Call to Treason - Tom Clancy [78]
" "Loyalty is missing in action, along with honor and integrity," Hood said angrily, without preliminaries. "Mike, did you give that quote to a reporter named Lucy O'Connor?"
"I did," Rodgers replied.
"Why?"
"Because it is true. And don't take it too personally, Paul. I told her it was missing everywhere, not just at Op-Center."
"How I take it doesn't matter," Hood said. "It's how the rest of the team takes it. Mike, I thought we had discussed the circumstances surrounding the budget cut, that you understood "
"Paul, this is not just about me getting shit-canned," Rodgers said.
"It's about this whole stinking investigation of Admiral Link."
"Stinking in what way?" Hood asked.
"It's harassment for gain," Rodgers told him.
"You know us better than that, dammit."
"I know Darrell better than that," Rodgers said. "I'm not so sure about you anymore, and I can't believe he did that without your okay."
"Yeah, I approved it," Hood told him. "Hell, I encouraged it, and with good reason. I didn't suggest the ramping-up, though. I shouldn't be telling you this, but that was Bob Herbert's idea."
"Bob?"
"Bob," Hood said.
That took Rodgers by surprise. It also stripped him naked. He looked around with slow, probing eyes. His gaze moved along the avenue, across the street, peered into parked cars and the windows of office buildings. Rodgers knew all the tails Op-Center used. He half-expected to see one of them watching him from behind a hamburger or a paperback book. The thought was also a disturbing reminder of how quickly an ally could become an adversary.
"Look, I'm not going to get into a howling contest in the press," Hood went on. "I told Ms. O'Connor that I disagree with your view and left it at that. But I do want to remind you that Op-Center is my first concern "
"I have my dismissal to remind me, thanks," Rodgers interrupted.
"I thought you understood what went down," Hood said.
"I do. I thought you understood that I did not like it."
Both men snapped off the conversation. The crackling cell phone silence was heavy, but it did not hurt. Rodgers felt that Hood was out of line. As he sat there, his eyes continued to search for familiar faces. Aideen Marley, Maria Corneja-McCaskey, David Battat, some of the others that Rodgers himself had trained. His heart ached over what they must be feeling.
"Mike, we both want the same thing," Hood said. "Whichever way it goes, we want this to be over as soon as possible. So I'm going to ask you to cooperate by letting Bob's people work "
"Christ, you don't have to ask that," Rodgers said. "I know the drill.
Just don't put any of them on me."
"Of course not." Hood said. He sounded as though he had been wounded.
Too bad.
Rodgers clicked off the phone. He decided he was not angry with Bob Herbert. Yes, the intelligence chief was just doing his job. More importantly, though, Rodgers believed that Herbert had involved himself for the reasons Hood had stated: to put this crippled bird in the hangar. Unlike Paul Hood, Herbert was looking out for his friend's interests.
Rodgers tucked the cell phone back in his pocket. Because he was not technically on duty, he was not in uniform. It seemed strange wearing a blazer instead of his uniform. It was also liberating. Mike Rodgers and General Mike Rodgers had been the same person for so long, he was looking forward to discovering what it was like to be a civilian.
Starting with having the freedom to talk back to a commander who had betrayed him.
Rodgers stopped looking for spies. He enjoyed the respite, and when Kat finally showed up, breathless but smiling, he knew he would enjoy his lunch as well. They set out toward a cafe with open-air seating, put their names on the waiting list, and talked about the morning.
Rodgers let her out-gas