Amerikan Eagle

Her happy expression faltered. “I’m… I’m holding up. There’s a lot of danger out there. But it’s you I’m worried about. From what little I know about what you’re up against…”

He said, “That’s it. Don’t worry about me. Worry about yourself, worry about what we’re all doing. You do your job, I’ll do mine, and in the end, it will all work out.”

As she bit her lower lip, her eyes became weepy. “Okay, I hear you, but I’m still so scared for you.” She swiped at her eyes with one hand. “This is when… when I think about what might have been if you had been first to ask me out in high school instead of Sam. I know that’s a horrible thing to say… I mean, damn, I’m all mixed up. I just worry about you and miss you awful. And I think of you a lot.”

“Stop that,” he said. “If I had been with you back then, you would have been arrested, too. And you wouldn’t have that wonderful boy, my dear nephew. And my brother… he’s crazy about you. So please don’t say any more.”

She wiped her eyes again. He bent down, kissed the top of her head. “It’s all right. You get going now… and thanks. This was the best gift you could have given me.”

She smiled up at him through her tears. “It’s not much. Just some sandwiches and—”

“I wasn’t talking about the sandwiches. Now go.” She started to descend, and he thought of something. “Sarah?”

“Yes?” his sister-in-law asked.

“Stop thinking about the past, about what might have been. Think about the future. Toby… we’re doing this for Toby and the world he gets to grow up in. No matter what happens, no matter how much you and Sam and even I suffer, remember that.”

“I will,” she promised, and she closed the trapdoor, and the attic suddenly got dark again.

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

An earsplitting whistle cut through the chatter as somebody brought fingers up to his mouth. Hanson held up his hands and said, “Guys, I’m just as surprised about this as you are. Christ… Look, for now all days off are canceled. In fact, all time off is canceled. We’ll put cots in the basement because I know it’s gonna be a long haul between now and then. Okay, I want to see all the sergeants in my office, pronto, along with Captain Stackpole and Inspector Miller. Guys, this is going to be a hell of a thing. By the end of today, this city is going to be crawling with radio newsmen, newsreelers, newspaper reporters, and every nut with a grudge. I know you got questions, but I don’t have the answers. We’ll have a department meeting at ten o’clock, and we’ll know better then.”

A voice from the rear of the room: “Boss, all right if we go home, wrap a couple of things up, then come back?”

“Yeah.” Hanson nodded. “That makes sense. You officers on duty, go back to work. The rest of you fellas, if you need to go home, check in with the wife, or whatever, that’s fine. Just be back here by ten o’clock. And pack some clothes and essentials.” He slapped his hands together. “Let’s get a move on. There’s plenty of work to be done.”

Moving through the crowded lobby, Sam went upstairs, where Hanson’s door was open and Mrs. Walton was on the phone, desperately fielding message after message. The three shift sergeants and Art Stackpole, the sole police captain, were clustered around Hanson’s desk. Hanson was on the phone, nodding, saying, “Yeah, yeah, yeah” while writing something down. The sergeants and Stackpole ignored Sam as he entered. Four of his fellow officers, and four men who figured they should have had the inspector’s job instead of him.

Hanson hung up the phone. He tore off a sheet of paper and passed it over to Sam. “Change of plans, Inspector. Rockingham Hotel. Room Twelve. Get over there right now.”

“What’s going on?”

“What’s going on, Sam, is that FBI character you met the other day is still here, and he’s going to be part of the federal task force running the summit security. He wants a liaison officer with the department, and guess what, you just got picked.”

“But I can do more if—”

“Sam, just do it,” Hanson cut in impatiently. “Okay? Look, in the last five minutes, every goddamn newspaper, radio station, and newsreel outfit within a hundred miles called me. Not to mention the governor’s office and our two distinguished senators and two representatives. I’ve also got to see your father-in-law in about ten minutes. Then there’s the matter of coordinating everything with the Navy Yard and about a hundred other things have just landed on my desk, so please, Sam, just shut up and do this. All right?”

Sam folded the piece of paper, stuck it in his pocket. “I’ll take care of it.”

“Good. And one more thing. Here.” Hanson passed over an embossed piece of cardboard, and Sam glanced at it, saw a bad photograph of himself pasted on one side, and a drawing of an American eagle, and some lettering. Hanson said, “Your new commission in the New Hampshire National Guard. Congratulations. Stick it in your billfold, and for God’s sake, don’t lose it.”

“It says I’m a lieutenant. How in hell did that happen?”