part 2
Casino took the steps two at a time and pulled the door of the vehicle open as soon as the car stopped moving. Reaching a hand into the back he helped an older woman up, gave her a friendly kiss on the cheek and stooped down, ducking inside the car. Hmm. A very proper English matron. A proper English chaperon? For a very proper English young lady!? How in the heck had their short tempered safecracker won one of those?
Casino gathered her into his arms and stood waiting as her friends stepped out of the vehicle and gathered around them on the drive. They were all there, just as promised. He said he'd told this girl all about them, and told them she'd found the perfect match for each one of them.
There was an open faced, wide eyed brunette for Goniff, a solemn raven haired beauty for Chief, and a graceful red headed debutante for Actor. There was even a tiny little blonde for the Warden. Casino stood grinning at them obviously convinced he held the crown jewel in his arms. "Fellas, this is Jeannette Marie Leclercq. Jeannie, honey, these are the guys."
The Lieutenant walked down the steps and presented himself very properly to the matron, just as he should. But it took the others a moment to get over their shock and start moving. Goniff was the first to break into a grin and start down the stairs, but Actor, with his long legs, was the first to arrive to be presented. Taking the delicate hand she offered he brushed the back of her knuckles with a kiss and smiled at her. "Mlle Jeannette, c'est un grand honneur pour vous rencontrer."
"Et vous, monsieur. Mais avec votre tol�rance, I speak English."
"And beautifully too."
Casino rolled his eyes and whispered in her ear, "See! What'd I tell ya." As she giggled he turned so she could face the others. "This here's Goniff, and that guy back there's Chief. You probably won't get more'n two words outta him all day. And the one in the uniform's Lieutenant Garrison. He thinks he runs the place, so try and humor him."
The grumbling threat of thunder overhead got him moving. Casino spotted Rawlins standing open-mouthed at the top of the steps. "Hey! Sergeant Major, make yourself useful and help Mrs. Reid, here, up the stairs." Nodding to the driver he continued. "Just bring that stuff up into the house. The room we got all set up is around the stairs to the left, you can't miss it." And turning to face Jeannette again he apologized. "Sorry we couldn't get it all set up on the patio's and stuff, like we had before, honey, but the weather went lousy on us."
He stopped halfway up the steps and looked back. The only one showin' any sense was the Warden, he'd already started shepherding the group towards the house. "Well! Come on you guys. Jeeze! What's the hold up? Everybody grab a kid and get inside before it starts rainin' on us!"
And rain it did, all afternoon, but no one seemed to notice. The tables had been set in the library and they spent the day talking and laughing, eating and reading, or just lounging in front of the fire. Even Chief had loosened up and told some stories about how a coyote had helped spread the stars across the sky, and how two twin boys had killed a bunch of monsters and made it safe for people to live in his part of the world, mesmerizing Simone. Actor had been soundly beaten in chess by his 'date', Miriam, and Goniff had taught all of them three of his favorite jokes, well, the clean ones, with Caroline, the little brunette adding her own twist to one that sent him into a fit of laughter that erupted now, every time he caught her eye. Six-year-old Liesel spent the day following Garrison wherever he went, climbing confidently into his lap whenever he sat down. She was comfortably napping there now, much to the amusement of the Lieutenant's team of 'hardened criminals.'
"She's a sweet little doll that one. Looks like a little pixie! I can see why you took a shine to her." Goniff nodded towards where the older kids were playing on the rug in front of the fire.
"You wouldn't believe how much she looks like my little sister Mari." Casino shook his head, he couldn't believe it himself, and had stopped dead in his tracks when he first saw the little girl. He'd been drawn to her from that moment and had talked his way off the estate and into the confidence of Elizabeth Reid, the lady that took care of the kids, just to spend time with her. It was almost like being home again, almost like being the big brother he was again. It felt good... But he laughed, the kid was a natural con artist. He turned on the pick pocket. "Just wait 'til she knows you better. She's not so sweet. That one's got a mouth on her. She spouts off in French most a the time, but you can sure get her drift by the sound a her voice!" That reminded him of Mari too, she didn't take anything off a anybody!
"But how did you ever come to meet?" Actor still couldn't figure out how Casino had won his way into the confidence of Mrs. Reid, the woman who looked after the children.
"Well it was them kids a Sister Therese's. The ones we brought over from France." Casino shrugged and tried not to look like the soft touch he was. "I sorta wanted to know what happened to 'em."
"But how'd you track 'em down, man. How'd you know where to start lookin?"
"Aw, that was the Warden." Casino tipped his head in the direction of their leader and turned to shoot a look in his direction. Grinning at the others he lowered his voice before he continued,,, seemed Liesel wasn't the only one napping over on the sofa. "Soon as I started askin' about that batch a kids he started diggin' around to find out what happened to 'em. Didn't take long before he found Mrs. Reid here. She had 'em at her place over on the other side a town and he cut me the OK to go over for a visit."
"Why ain't them little tykes here then? What'd ya leave them home for?"
"Jeeze! They aren't still there. She found places for 'em all months ago!"
Mrs. Reid spoke up to explain. "I keep the children with me until I can find homes for them out in the community. It's better for the little ones to be with a family, to have people who will act as their parents, and to have brothers and sisters to play with, rather than stay in some large group home or orphanage. After they've been placed they come back for visits and parties. Your friend here has been very generous with his time and has become a great favorite of the children." Her eyes twinkled as she smiled over Casino's grumbling denial. "He has quite a repertoire of children's stories, and he makes a very convincing clown." The shouts of laughter that followed her revelation woke the Warden and nearly drown out the Sergeant Major.
"Lieutenant Garrison?" Rawlings' disembodied voice coming over the intercom on the wall near the door caused the kids to stop and search around them, looking for the person that went with the odd sounding voice.
Garrison carefully handed the sleeping Liesel over into Mrs. Reid's keeping and stepped to the unit on the wall. "Yes, Sergeant, what is it?"
"Colonel Wilhoitz on the phone for you, sir." The children were giggling over Goniff's impromptu impression of the very proper Sergeant Major Rawlins.
Garrison motioned for quiet. "Put the call on my desk, Sergeant," and excused himself, stepping across the hall into the room he used for his office.
As soon as he left the room Goniff turned his vocal talents back to mocking the British NCO and had been rewarded by delighted giggles from the children, and appreciative laughter from his team mates who had to put up with all the rules, and regulations, and training methods the by-the-book Sergeant could come up with. Their merriment carried easily across the hall and into the Lieutenant's office as he picked up the phone.
"Colonel Wilhoitz, sir. Lieutenant Garrison... No sir, we have some guests from the town visiting, sir. Some children, sir. One of the locals, a Mrs. Reid, takes in refugee children until she can find homes for them and... Yes, sir. I'll tell them that, sir...."
Garrison stopped outside the library door for a moment, collecting his thoughts and controlling his irritation. When he stepped through the door he had a smile of regret on his face, but the men who'd worked with him could see the heat of anger still in his eyes. "I'm sorry. The kids have to go back."
"We don't have another mission?!" Casino was completely caught up in Jeannette and the look on the Warden's face hadn't penetrated his contentment.
"No. We don't. But I've been ordered back for a meeting."
"He can't've done! The doctors said you was s'pose to be restin'." Playing and talking with the kids wasn't strictly resting, but it was a sight more relaxing than spending time meetin' with that Colonel Wilhoitz fella. Goniff thought it was doin' them all a world of good, especially the Warden.
Garrison tried to smile and make light of it, but he didn't quite manage to pull it off. "He just told me I got a full eight hours of sleep last night. I guess he figures that's enough rest for now." He couldn't bring himself to tell them what the Colonel had to say about visitors when he'd explained the noise the man could hear in the background, not in front of Mrs. Reid and the kids. They'd find out soon enough that 'civilians' were now banned from being on the grounds.
ggg
"Who is this guy anyway, and why's he got it in for us?"
"He's a jerk, and it's 'cause we're cons, baby. I keep telling ya that. I don't know why you guys never believe me."
"But he ain't left us sit still longer than three or four days before he runs us right back over there. How's he figure we'll be able to pull all them jobs off if he don't leave us any chance to rest up?"
Garrison sat at the table with his head resting on his fist and let them rant. He'd just told them they'd been given another assignment. Another 'quick and simple' job that would turn out to be neither 'quick' nor 'simple.' He didn't have the energy to explain Wilhoitz to them, or to refute Casino's claim,,, Besides, he knew it was true.
Actor watched the Warden. Goniff was right, the team had been sent over many times now since he and Garrison had gone over on their own, but at least the men had been given those few days of respite between assignments. Garrison had been kept busy by their new CO. Debriefing was his sole responsibility now, as the good Colonel did not feel the need to waste his time listening to the technical 'experts' on the team. Wilhoitz kept him in the headquarters building going over the information they brought back, as well as interpreting and evaluating information being sent or brought back by other teams, and translating messages from the underground. He was interrogating people returning or being brought from the continent too, something the confidence man was certain Wilhoitz didn't have the skill or knowledge to do for himself. The con man doubted that was all the Lieutenant was doing when he was away from them for the several days between missions, and had his suspicions confirmed when the Warden arrived at the estate bruised and exhausted, sporting a bandage around his left arm, claiming a fall that had required a few stitches. He was going into Europe alone again, or with other teams, but he'd probably never admit it. Actor cleared his throat and after getting the other cons attention nodded in Garrison's direction. The man's eyes were closed, his head still rested on his fist and he was nearly asleep amid all the noise.
The abrupt silence brought the Warden's head up and he looked around at his men to see what had happened.
"You are in no shape to go back over there."
Garrison dropped his hand to the table and stretched back against the chair, "I'm fine."
"No. You'r not." Casino gave a derisive snort. "Believe me, I've seen 'fine' and you do not look anything like it."
"Maybe you should turn yourself in to the doc, and get this mission scrapped." Chief advised as he studied their commander.
Garrison shook his head. "Findlay's already cleared me. Besides, they'd just send you over with someone else." Findlay'd cleared him alright,,, finally. He'd had quite a job convincing the doctor that he was fit and ready to go out on this assignment once he understood what Wilhoitz was planning. One failure to report, to be available for any future assignment, and he'd be replaced. The Colonel made it quite clear what the new men waiting to takeover the group had to say about working with 'criminals'. None of them wanted the men there, none of them understood the value of what they could do.
"He'd do that?!" Goniff's face registered amazement. "That Colonel'd really do that?
Shoving away from the table the Warden got to his feet with a sigh. "That's what he says." Obviously he'd tried to get them out of this latest job, and it hadn't worked. "Come on, let's go. I'd rather be over there anyway." He smiled back at their shocked expressions. "Wilhoitz doesn't do field work," he explained over his shoulder as he headed for the door.
ggg
He'd just finished the debriefing on the latest mission. They'd gotten in and out the way they were supposed to. Well, no, not exactly the way they were supposed to. He'd scrapped the Colonels' plan the moment they'd hit the ground in Italy. If he'd followed the man's instructions they'd all be sitting in a German POW camp right now. No, he amended that thought too, they'd all be in an Italian cemetery right now after enjoying an intimate view of a German firing squad. He was just picking up the reports and sliding them back into his briefcase when the Colonel dropped his latest bomb.
"You will confine your men to the estate grounds from now on. There's no reason for them to be in the town. Everything they need is there on the base."
"But sir, that's unreasonable." Every group got a break after they came back. It was a way for them to relax, a pat on the back for a job well done. It was necessary to preserve morale and imperative in maintaining the overall health of the group.
"Lieutenant, the Army may have chosen to use these criminals, but there's no reason to subject the British civilians to them."
"Sir! They haven't done anything wrong..."
"That's not what these reports say, Garrison." Colonel Wilhoitz pulled a thin file across the desk so it sat right in front of him. It appeared to be well worn, the corners of some of the pages turned down. "Pub brawls, petty thievery. Gambling..."
Brawls that the locals had been involved in, pranks and dares that they'd set the guys and then bet on. Gambling?! Even the local police took their turn at the tables that could be found after hours in almost every pub in Britain. "No one has ever pressed charges."
"But it's still here in the reports." Wilhoitz leaned back in his chair and smiled up at him, the smile didn't reach his eyes. "You didn't think you could just cover that up by paying those people off, did you Lieutenant?"
"Sir, I didn't...."
"I want you and your books in here tomorrow morning at eleven-hundred, Lieutenant. We'll find out what you did or didn't do."
ggg
"I think you need to go talk to him, man."
The young man found him in the library and waited until Goniff, who was using the desk in the room to practice one of his card tricks, had finally satisfied himself with his skill and the outcome and given in to his ever present hunger and wandered off to the kitchens, leaving them alone together in the room. "Why? What's happened?" Actor laid his pipe aside on the table and gave Chief his full attention.
"I went out on my run a couple a hours ago, and I found the Warden on his knees 'bout a half-mile out, when I was on the way back. He gave me some lame story about fallin' over a root... There wadn't any thing messin' up that path,,, we cut it ourselves and made sure it was clean." Actor waited for Chief to order his thoughts, to give him all the details of what he'd observed, and why he was concerned. "He was kinda pale, and breathin' funny. Holdin' his side like he does when he doesn't think any body's around. Didn't look like he'd gone all the way down... I don't think he passed out like he done before, but he sure was hurtin'." The young man raised troubled eyes and fixed them on their seconds face. He felt a little like he'd let the Warden down, tellin' secretes on him or somethin', but the look in Actor's eyes told him he'd done just the right thing.
"All right. I'll speak to him." He frowned down at the carpet between them and wondered how to approach the Warden. They'd had this come up before, over on the continent when they were working a job. Then it made some sense, in a stubborn sort of way. But here? When help was available and there was no threat? Or was there a threat? Actor considered it and as the answer fell into place in his mind the door swung open and he looked up to see the Warden standing there.
"I've got to go in for a little while. No one leaves the grounds." He looked them both in the eye, "I mean it. Find Goniff and Casino and tell them. Tell Casino he can use the phone in my office to call down to Mrs. Reid's, but no one sets foot off the estate." Glancing at Chief as he turned to leave he advised. "You better stay off the trail. Wouldn't want to give anyone the wrong idea."
They exchanged stares as the door closed behind the Lieutenant, remembering the truck load of new guards that had been sent out to the estate yesterday. It had been a surprise, even the Warden hadn't known about it. It wasn't a surprise now. That's why he'd been out there. He wasn't just out running to try and stay in shape or get back in condition, he was running down that trail to be there if one of the new guards challenged Chief, tried to make out like he was escaping. The clock in the library was just striking the ten o'clock hour.
ggg
Garrison hadn't gotten back to the estate until after midnight, but he found Actor waiting for him when he walked into his office. He didn't acknowledge the man as he walked past him, he didn't want to know what kind of problem had come up in his absence. The day he'd spent with Wilhoitz and his financial experts, going over and over the accounts while they searched for evidence that he had juggled the books to hide bribes, pay offs to cover the 'crimes' of his men, seemed to last forever and had stripped him of all of his patience and the little reserve of energy he had left. He couldn't face anything more, but, setting the ledgers back in place on the shelf he took a deep breath and turned to face his second in command. "What is it?" The question was blunt. "Why are you in here?"
"Chief told me about finding you on the path this morning. He's worried about you." Actor considered the man standing in front of him. He was thin, haggard, he hadn't been sleeping, and there was a fine sheen of sweat on his face, probably indicating another one of the fevers that he thought he kept from them. "We all are."
Garrison's voice was level, determined and his face set. "I'm fine."
The con man came to his feet, concern and irritation with his commander's attitude and condition boiling to the surface. "We've been through this before! You are not fine and you know it. I don't understand why you are being so stubborn!"
"Actor, lay off!"
"No! It is obvious there is something wrong with you, and if you won't report it I will!" He could see it now, the way the man's eyes tightened, the shortening of his breath and, there it was,,, the way he held his arm down closer to his side as if he was protecting broken ribs.
They were squared off, standing like fighters waiting for the bell to ring, "And if you do they'll pull me out of here.......... "
There, it was out.
".............and you'll get someone who thinks just like Wilhoitz! You'll get Lieutenant Deavers, or Captain Moore, or one of the other men that he's gathered around him as his assistants and aids. How long do you think it would take for them to ship you guys back to the States?"
"But surely there's a way around him. What about Corporal Riley, or Dr. Phillips?" He couldn't think of the last time he'd seen the young medic, but there was no need for them to be in contact, not unless someone was ill or injured here in the mansion. Phillips would see that the Lieutenant was ill if they went to him. He'd find a way to keep him here, treat him right here on the estate if the Warden didn't trust them enough to stay in the hospital. Surely his concerns were misplaced, over blown.
"They reassigned Riley weeks ago. Said we were close enough to a medical unit that we didn't need our own corpsman." Garrison dropped into the chair behind his desk and turned it, turned his back on Actor and stared out the window. "Everything goes through the hospital now." He heaved a sigh and swung the chair back around so he was facing the man who was his second in command. "And they have a new head of service too,,, a man Wilhoitz recommended." For all the con man's subtlety he still didn't understand.
"General Fremont then?" Like Reynolds, Fremont had changed his view of the team over time and become one of their few supporters.
"Fremont isn't in direct control any more, he's moved up. Carlisle is our boss now,,,"
"And he thinks just like Wilhoitz." It wasn't a question, it didn't need to be. Actor could see the answer in the Warden's eyes.