Line of Fire W E B Griffin

[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

"Hello, Daphne!" he called cheerfully, and then he saw Constable Rogers and bit off whatever else he
had intended to say.
"I'd heard you were hurt," Daphne said. "I'm glad to see you're all right."
"May I ask who you are?" Constable Rogers asked, rising to her feet.
"My name is Moore. Who are you?"
"I'm Constable Rogers-"
"Constable?"
"-and I am instructed to place Mrs. Farnsworth into the custody of Major Edward Banning, of the United
States Marine Corps."
"Into the custody? What the hell are you talking about?"
"Can you tell me where I might find Major Banning? This is the address I was given."
"Major Banning is not here. I work for him. Will that do?"
"If you would, I'd like to see some identification, please , Constable Rogers said.
"Daphne, what the hell is going on here?" John asked, and then saw tears in Daphne's eyes.
He went into the bedroom and came back out holding his credentials in his hand. Constable Rogers
examined them carefully.
"That will be sufficient, thank you," she said. Then she fished in her purse and came out with a form, in
triplicate, with carbons, the whole thing neatly stapled together. "If you would be good enough to sign
that, Sir?"
Moore took the form, glanced at it, took the fountain pen Constable Rogers extended to him, and signed
his name in the block provided for SIGNATURE OF INDIVIDUAL ASSUMING CUSTODY OF
DETAINEE.
Constable Rogers tore off one of the carbons and handed it to Moore.
"Thank you very much," she said as she neatly folded the rest of the form and stuffed it in her purse.
She turned to Daphne. "When you are finished here, Mrs. Farnsworth, if you will come to the Main
Police Station, room 306, they will arrange for your transportation back to Melbourne." Daphne nodded
but didn't say anything. With a curl of her lips she probably thought was a smile, Constable Rogers gave
a nod to Moore and then to Barbara and Joanne and walked out of the living room.
"Daphne, what the hell is this all about?" John Moore asked.
"She called you Mrs. Farnsworth?" Barbara said.
"Yeoman Farnsworth," Daphne said softly, looking at Barbara and then averting her eyes, "has been
discharged for the good of the Service."
"What?"
"I'm pregnant," Daphne said. "About four months, they tell me.
"Oh, my God!" Barbara said. "Steve?" she asked; and then a moment later, with horror in her voice, she
blurted, "I'm so sorry I asked that."
Daphne shrugged. "Steve," she said.
"What's this... ? Who was that terrible woman?"
"Banning said Feldt would arrange for Daphne to come here," Moore explained.
"They came to where I was working," Daphne said. "Two policemen brought Constable Rogers. Then
they took me to my room and let me pack a bag. And then they took us to the railroad station and put us
on the train."
Goddamn Major Banning! Joanne thought.
"That's outrageous!" Moore said.
And what if you're in the family way, too, Joanne Miller? You didn't think about that, did you, carried
away on the wings of love? Oh, God!
"They can't do that!" Barbara said furiously. "You didn't do anything wrong!"
"Oh, yes they can," Daphne said. "They read me the appropriate passages from the Emergency War
Powers Act. Any citizen may be detained for ninety-six hours when it is considered necessary in the
prosecution of the war."
"Damn them!" Barbara said.
"What does Major Banning want with me?" Daphne asked.
"I'm afraid to ask, but does it have something to do with Steve?"
"Yes, but he's all right, Daphne," Moore said.
"Then what?"
"We needed a new code to communicate with them," Moore explained. "Pluto Hon came up with a
simple substitution code based on personal things that only Barbara and Lieutenant Howard would
know. He wanted to do the same thing with you and Koffler."
"He's all right?" she asked.
"Yes, he's all right."
"Daphne," Barbara said, "I wish I was pregnant."
What the hell is the matter with you, Barbara? That's absolute idiocy! Jeanne thought. God, don't let me
be pregnant!
"It's not quite the same for you, Barbara," Daphne said.
"I believe Joe's coming back," Barbara said. "Steve will, too."
"You're in love with Joe," Daphne said.
"You're not in love with Steve?"
"How could I be in love with him? I hardly know him."
How could I be in love with Johnny? I hardly know him, either.
"You're upset," Barbara said. "Understandably."
"Actually, I think I'm thinking pretty clearly," Daphne said.
"What happened-and I was with him only that one night happened because he came to Wagga Wagga-"
"Where?" Moore blurted and was immediately sorry.
"My family has a station, Two Creeks Station, in Wagga Wagga, New South Wales," Daphne explained.
"You'd call it a farm, or a ranch." He should not be hearing this, Joanne decided. This is between women,
and none of his business.
"Why don't you go get dressed?" Joanne snapped.
"Hey, I'm trying to help," John replied. "And I do have to get the stuff for a code from her."
"You know all about codes, too?"
"I know what Pluto told me to get from her when she showed up," Moore said. "What about... Wagga
Wagga'?" Daphne smiled.
"Steve thought it was funny, too," she said. "I thought you knew all this, John?"
"I wasn't here," Moore said. "I came after Koff- Steve and Lieutenant Howard jumped into Buka."
"That's right, isn't it?" Daphne said. "I'd forgotten."
"You don't have to talk to him about this," Joanne said.
"It would be helpful if she would," Moore said coldly.
"It's all right. If it will help Steve," Daphne said.
"I'm not trying to pry," Moore said, looking at Joanne. "I just need words we can use for a code. Wagga
Wagga sounds fine." He looked at Daphne. "Steve would remember that?"
"Oh, I'm sure he would. He got lost twice trying to find it," Daphne said.
"What was he doing there?"
"After I learned that my husband was killed in North Africa," Daphne said, "there was a memorial service
for him.
When Steve heard, he wanted to do something for me. So he drove out. In that Studebaker, I think," she
said, gesturing outside. "With a box of candy and flowers and a bottle of whiskey, he didn't know what
was appropriate, so he brought one of each." Steve's a nice kid, John," Barbara said gently.
Yes, a nice kid," Daphne said. "And I rode back from New South Wales to Victoria with him. He had to
stop at Captain Pickering's place. What was it called?"
"The Elms, in Dandenong," Barbara furnished.
"And everybody was there, and they ran you and me off, and we eavesdropped-" [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

pobieranie @ do ÂściÂągnięcia @ ebook @ download @ pdf