George Chesbro - Two Songs This Archangel Sings

"Well, Lieutenant, let's look at some alternatives. What if I were to assure you that-"

"You can't assure us of anything, Andrews," I interrupted. "You have to do something. We couldn't negotiate with you over what to do with Madison, even if we wanted to. We're not the final arbiters of his fate. There's still an avenging Archangel out there, remember? And he'll stay out until this business is taken care of to his satisfaction, not ours. Garth's suggestion is a good one."

"Please don't mention the possibility of killing anyone again," the aide said tightly.

"What the hell was Kevin Shannon thinking of when he nominated this guy?" I asked.

"I'm really not at liberty to discuss the president or his decisions."

"Does Madison have something on him?"

Andrews stiffened. "President Shannon is his own man."

"That would make him a unique politician. Did he know about Madison's involvement in Operation Archangel before he nominated him?"

Andrews frowned. "You really do know about the Archangel plan, don't you?"

"You're damn right, I do. Want me to go through it with you?"

"No," Andrews said after a pause. "I believe you. Frankly, I've just found out the details. That, along with the statement Veil Kendry submitted to the president, was my reading material on the flight here. The Archangel plan may have been tacky, but I don't really see anything sinister in it."

"That's your opinion. But the Archangel plan itself really isn't the point, is it? It's the sequence of events that led up to Veil's defection, and then what happened after the plan fell apart; it's the death sentence Orville Madison personally imposed on Veil, and his subsequent attempt to carry it out on the eve of his nomination; it's all the carnage that's resulted from Madison's botching the assassination and then striking out in all directions in a panic because of his fear of both Veil and the truth coming out. The issue here is the punishment'of a murderer. We're not saying that the president should have known about, or even guessed at, the dark side of Madison's character. Paranoid schizophrenics are usually intelligent, and they're very good at concealing their illness, especially from powerful people the paranoid schizophrenic thinks can help him."

"Oh? You're a psychiatrist in addition to all your other accomplishments, Dr. Frederickson?"

"No, Andrews, but I do happen to be a recognized authority on paranoid schizophrenia. Check it out."

"I'll take your word for it," Andrews replied dryly.

"Another characteristic of paranoid schizophrenics is that they never know enough to quit while they're ahead. Also, they love to gloat in victory over their enemies-real or imagined. Orville Madison blew it all when he decided to celebrate his nomination to one of the most powerful positions in the world by making good on a threat he'd made almost twenty years before. In effect, he engineered his own destruction. Now bury him."

"Perhaps we're trying to. But what we know, or suspect, may be very difficult to prove in a court of law. And for you two to start making what some might call wild accusations could only make matters worse. Do you see what I mean?"

"I see that you're a slippery son-of-a-bitch," Garth said. "You know we're telling the truth."

"Not the point, Lieutenant," Andrews replied without looking at Garth. "There's still not a shred of physical evidence linking Orville Madison to your troubles. There is only your word, and Veil Kendry's statement. Bear in mind that most people would brand Veil Kendry as a madman for the things he's done."

"Whatever he's done, Andrews, the fact is that he's given your boss ample time to clean his own house. Veil's already been betrayed once by this country. Now he has, in effect, done the work of Congress and the administration by exposing Madison for what he is. If you don't act against Madison, you'll be betraying Veil again."

"That's preposterous, Frederickson. You can't even link Madison to this Archangel plan, let alone to Veil Kendry. All the people you talked to who were supposed eyewitnesses to the events Kendry describes are dead."

"Killed by Madison."

"Proof, Frederickson. Where's the proof?"

"Damn it, there are records. The government has them. What the hell were you reading on the plane?"

"What I read on the plane was a brief overview of the Archangel plan, and its objectives. There were no names, no dates. The actual records are classified. As I'm sure you're aware, you can't cite classified records for reasons to subpoena classified records. You must have other evidence which the classified material may amplify."

"Find a man by the name of Lester Bean. He was a lieutenant general in the war, and he was Veil's C.O. He'll testify to the link between Orville Madison and Veil Kendry."

"Bean's name was mentioned in Kendry's statement. I made some inquiries before I came here to see you. Bean is in retirement, and nobody seems to know where he is."

Which might or might not be the truth. It didn't make any difference; the clear message was that we were not going to get any help from the administration. Dealing with Burton Andrews was growing tiresome and depressing.

"Veil Kendry was the Archangel plan, Andrews."

"Proof, Frederickson."

"What does Madison have to say about all this?"

Andrews shrugged. "What would you expect him to say? He claims to vaguely remember a plan for a minor public relations project that was eventually aborted, but that's all. He denies knowing anybody by the name of Veil Kendry, and says he was never involved in anything called Operation Archangel."

"You believe that?"

"What you and your brother, the president or I, believe — or even know to be true-is irrelevant. Bear in mind that Mr. Madison has occupied the highest echelons of power for a very long time and has had almost unlimited access to the files you keep talking about. I wouldn't be a bit surprised if all those files have been tampered with, altered; otherwise, he would have made up some kind of a cover story instead of simply denying everything."

"Your point is well taken," I said quietly.

"You said you had proof of these allegations, but it's become obvious to me that you're bluffing. Still, proof or no proof, we're left with a most serious problem which must be dealt with. It's why I've given you the assurance that Orville Madison will soon be resigning as secretary of state. Considering our position, that may be the most we can hope for. It's going to be a very delicate thing-the almost immediate resignation of a newly appointed secretary of state-to handle with the news media, and we would like your assurance that neither of you will be feeding the media sensational stories that could have serious repercussions on everything from the value of the dollar to our relations with our allies-not to mention the morale of our citizens. Will I be able to give the president that assurance, gentlemen?"

"Forcing Madison out of office isn't enough, Andrews," I said, wearily shaking my head. "Not nearly enough."

"Personally, the president and I might well agree with you. But even if it were in everybody's interests to do so, you couldn't go into a court of law with what you have-which is nothing."

"It won't be nearly enough for Veil Kendry, Andrews."

"But he's not here, is he?"

"He's out there someplace, very close by, waiting to see what happens. If he doesn't like what he sees, I'm sure he'll kill Orville Madison himself."

"So be it," Andrews said with a kind of verbal shrug. "But if and when this Veil Kendry ever shows his face, he's going to have plenty of his own problems to deal with. The statement he sent to the president amounts to a signed confession to murder. The man's a self-confessed multiple murderer-and a barbaric one, at that. He admits to killing two men in New York City, three in Seattle, and six up in the mountains."