The Honor of Spies

Enrico, who was sitting in a folding wooden chair, got respectfully to his feet. Frade didn't move.

"Welcome home," Welner said.

"Thank you," Clete said. "But you could have told me that at Claudia's 'Welcome Home, Cletus' party tonight. What are you up to?"

"I wanted to talk to you."

"You could have done that tonight, too, or on the phone."

"In person."

"About what? Be warned: If I don't like the answer, no wine flows into your glass."

"Is this one of those days when you're determined to be difficult?"

"Probably."

"Well, one of the things on my mind is that you have to go to the Recoleta cemetery within the next couple of days."

"Why would I want to do that?"

"Because the brothers want to see if you approve of their cleaning of the Frade tomb."

"Since I don't think you're trying to be funny, you can have a little wine."

"You are so kind," Welner said as he sat down in the other wicker chair.

Frade poured wine into the priest's glass.

"Being kind gets me in all kinds of trouble," Frade said. "By 'the brothers,' you mean the monks who run the cemetery?"

"No. I meant the brothers. Are you interested in the difference between monks and brothers?"

"Spare me. Why did they clean the tomb?"

"Because the marble was dirty, and I understand there was a little corrosion here and there."

"I think I'm beginning to understand. In addition to my saying 'thank you,' they would not be offended if I slipped them an envelope stuffed with money?"

"That would be very nice of you, if you should feel so inclined."

"Am I supposed to believe that you drove all the way over here from Claudia's just to tell me that?"

"I had a few other things on my mind."

"For example?"

"How did you find the United States?"

"Well, I set the compass on north-northwest, and eventually, there it was, right out in front of the airplane."

The priest shook his head tolerantly.

"Things went well?"

"All the pilots of South American Airways now have their air transport rating, if that's what you're asking."

"The problem of insurance has been resolved?"

"It's a done deal," Frade said.

"That's good to hear."

"Why do I have this feeling that, having beat around the bush long enough, you are about to get to your real reason for coming over here?"

"I happened to be driving past your house on Avenida Libertador--"

"Ah-ha! And was that before or after your spies on the premises--"

"Getting right to the point, Cletus: Why did Juan Domingo Peron suddenly stop accepting your kind hospitality?"

"Now that you mention it, it probably had something to do with what I said to him."

"And what was that?"

"If I remember correctly, and I usually do, what I said was, 'One more thing, Tio Juan, you degenerate sonofabitch. You're going to have to find someplace else for your little girls. I want you out of here by tomorrow.' Or words to that effect."

"You didn't!" Welner blurted.

"Tell him, Enrico."

The priest looked at Enrico, who nodded.

"Are you out of your mind, Cletus?" Welner asked.

"Not so far as I know. I confess to being a little annoyed with my godfather at the time."

"About what?"

"Well, just before I said that, he pointed a pistol at me. I get very annoyed when people point pistols at me. And so does Enrico. For a couple of seconds there, I thought Enrico's shotgun might go off and cause a tragic accident."

Welner again looked at Enrico, who again nodded.

"What set this off?" Welner asked.

"Well--are you sure you want to know?"

"Yes, I'm sure."

"Saved by the belle," Frade then said.

"Excuse me?"

"Belle with an 'e' at the end. As in: 'Belle on horseback.' Drink your wine, Father, before the posse gets here and the sheriff tries to shut us off before dinner."

When Frade had awakened that morning, he'd been alone in bed. It was long after first light, and Dorotea was nowhere around. He found a note stuck with a blob of Vaseline onto the bathroom mirror:

Darling, I didn't have the heart to wake you. Madison and I have taken Mr. Fischer to see his family. Be back for lunch or earlier. Dorotea.

Frade now pointed at the break in the trees, and Welner looked where he pointed.

A line of people on horseback, led by Dona Dorotea and trailed by Wilhelm Fischer, Captain Madison R. Sawyer III, and half a dozen peones, was coming toward them at a walk.

This was lost on Father Welner, but there was more than a passing similarity to a scene in a Western movie where the posse returns from cutting off the bandits at the pass. Everyone but Fischer was holding a long arm either cradled in the arm or upright, with the butt resting on the saddle. Dorotea had a double-barreled shotgun, and Sawyer a Thompson submachine gun with a fifty-round drum magazine. Everything else was there except dead bandits tied across saddles.

Dorotea, Sawyer, and Fischer walked their horses to the verandah, dismounted, tied the horses to a hitching rail, and went onto the verandah.