Griffin W.E.B. - The Corps 08 - In Dangers Path

«The operative words in that sentence, Augie, are 'once it's in place.' Our responsibility, your responsibility, is transporting the magic devices to Chungking.»

«Yes, sir.»

General Adamson checked the Opplan again.

«Frankly, I'm concerned about these two,» he said, pointing to a list of names. «Captain McCoy, Kenneth R., and Gunnery Sergeant Zimmerman, Ernest W. What do we know about them?»

«They both enjoy the confidence of General Pickering and Colonel Banning, sir, and neither of them has a magic clearance.»

«The Deputy Director tells me that McCoy was commissioned from the ranks, where he was known as 'Killer McCoy' for his proclivity for stabbing people in drunken brawls. And the sergeant has a room-temperature IQ.»

He also speaks four or five languages, including two kinds of Chinese and Russian, but I don't think you want to hear about that.

«They're an interesting pair, sir,» Albright said.

«In other words, you would judge that, if necessary, either of them could pull the pin on a thermite grenade?»

And if it was a dud, Gunnery Sergeant Zimmerman could chew both devices up and spit out tacks

. «Yes, sir,» Albright said.

General Adamson paused thoughtfully before asking, «What are you going to tell them about the «personnel records' crates?»

«Nothing, sir, of course.»

«You don't think they'll be curious?»

Frankly, I would be surprised if McCoy doesn't have a damned good idea of what's in them. He's very tight with Banning, and he's a very bright young fellow.

«No, sir.»

«You don't think Colonel Banning has told him?» General Adamson asked. «Or perhaps even General Pickering?»

«I think that is highly unlikely, sir.»

«I have a reason for asking this question, Augie,» General Adamson said. «So let me paraphrase. You think it over before answering. If it should come to pass that Captain McCoy or Sergeant Zimmerman were to fall into the hands of the enemy, do you think either of them knows, or has guessed, enough about magic to compromise it?»

«I don't

know

, sir,» Albright said. «But I think it's highly unlikely.»

That's not true. McCoy probably knows damned well what's in those crates, and if he does, Zimmerman probably does too. But what he's after from me is some reason he can get either McCoy or Zimmerman kicked off this operation. I don't know what that's all about, but I'll have no part of it.

Am I endangering magic because of my contempt for this man? I hope not. I don't think so. What I

do

know is if I could have anybody I wanted to guard the devices, I'd pick this Marine mustang captain and his room-temperature-IQ sergeant.

General Adamson grunted, and thought the matter over for a full thirty seconds before going on: «I'm sure Pickering and Banning have asked themselves the same question,» he said, «and decided that he doesn't know enough about magic to pose a risk to it in case of capture. But I don't want you, Augie, to even hint about what those crates contain.»

«No, sir,» Colonel Albright replied, very formally. «Is there any reason, in the General's opinion, why I should know why the General raised that question?»

General Adamson thought the question over before deciding to tell him, finally concluding that he might as well, because he was going to find out anyway. Albright spent a good deal of time in the Navy Communications facility where the magic device was in operation. No one there would—or should— question his right to read anything being encrypted or decrypted, including Special Channel material that would be coming to and from General Pickering. Albright might not have paid attention to it before, but now that he was curious about this whole business, he would be looking for something, and would find it.

«As you know, I've become rather friendly with the Deputy Director for Administration at the OSS,» General Adamson said.

Colonel Albright had first met the OSS Deputy Director (Administration)— whom he had immediately disliked—when he had been ordered to make magic material available to OSS Director Donovan. He had dealt with him again—and learned to like him even less—when he had been ordered to provide a magic device, for training purposes, to the OSS training camp in Maryland.

The magic device at the Congressional Country Club had nothing to do with magic material being exchanged between Hawaii, Brisbane, and Washington. It was instead shown to OSS agents who were to be sent into Europe. If they came across such a device, they all had orders to make every effort to steal it. The order had come from Admiral Leahy, but it had originated with Albright, who thought it entirely likely the Germans had come up with improvements to their devices that he wanted to know about.

That figures

, Colonel Albright thought.

You're two of a kind. Two asshole paper pushers, highly skilled in protecting your own asses

.

«You know what I'm talking about, Augie. He hears things, and passes them on to me, and I hear things…«

«Yes, sir.»

«This is one of those times when it is easier to go along than to say no, according to my friend. Admiral Leahy didn't want to say no to Admiral Nimitz; the President didn't want to say no to Admiral Leahy; and OSS Director Donovan, of course, couldn't say no to either the President or Admiral Leahy.»

«No about what, sir?»

«General Pickering has been charged with setting up a Navy weather station in the Gobi Desert.»

I

suppose it's dishonest of me not to tell him that Banning told me all about Operation Gobi when he went to Monmouth to pick radios for the operation

.

But then, Banning wasn't simply running off at the mouth. He needed my help to get radios and decided (a) that if Fritz Rickabee trusts me, he could trust me; and (b) authority or not, I had a bona fide Need To Know. I'm not going to get him in trouble because of that.

«In the Gobi Desert?»

«From what I've heard about this operation, it's really out of left field. Your two Marines are going to try to make their way to the Gobi Desert… masquerading as members of a camel caravan! The idea is to establish contact with a group of Americans supposedly wandering around in there, to be followed by the flying in of a weather station.»

«That sounds like a tough operation, sir.»

«My friend tells me his personal assessment of the chances of success range from one in a thousand to none.»

«It sounds pretty—«

«It sounds suicidal to me,» General Adamson said. «Not to mention the waste of assets that could better be expended elsewhere. General Pickering's reason for taking the long way around to Chungking is to stop off at Pearl Harbor to discuss getting a submarine for Operation Gobi. The submarine is to rendezvous in the Yellow Sea a hundred miles off the China coast with a couple of Catalinas. After being refueled by the submarine, the airplanes will then fly across China and land in the Gobi Desert. They will not fly out again, of course. The distances are too great.»

«It does sound more than a little risky, sir.»

«Risky's not the word for it. Insanity would be more accurate.»

«Yes, sir.»

«So it behooves you and me, Augie, in case Operation Gobi is not successful, to make sure no one can point a finger at us and say that

we

somehow dropped the ball.»

You don't give a damn about McCoy and Zimmerman, or the people who will fly the airplanes on a one-way mission, or the sailors trying to refuel airplanes on the high seas in the middle of winter. All you're worried about is covering your own ass.

«Yes, sir.»