NO BAD TROOPS by William Peter Grasso

Author:William Peter Grasso [Grasso, William Peter]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: UNKNOWN
Published: 2024-05-02T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fifteen

Once the meeting broke up, Jock Miles and Sean Moon took the opportunity to catch up over coffee at the embassy’s commissary. Sean began by relating his eyewitness account of the mortar attack on LZ Dorcy the previous day. “I’ve got to tell you, sir, your son impresses me more every time I see him. He was always an outstanding soldier, but now he’s matured into an outstanding combat leader, as well. He made all the right calls under fire. I’m not just blowing smoke when I say that there’s a lot of you in him.”

“There’s probably more of his mother than me in him, Sergeant Major. Don’t ever forget that she’s the toughest warrior in the Miles family.”

“Either way, sir, he comes from one hell of a gene pool. I’m proud to serve with him. Just one thing, though…whenever he and I get together, the shit always seems to hit the fan.”

Jock smiled. “He’s mentioned that to me before. You know, I’d love to fly out to Tay Ninh and visit him, but your people at MACV already put the screws to that. Too risky for civilians, they say. They probably mean too risky for a civilian who walks with a cane, but they’re just being polite.”

Sean had to laugh at that description of the retired general. “Civilian, my sweet ass, sir…and I’m surprised whoever told you that didn’t get beat over the head with that cane. But I don’t have to tell you that northern Tay Ninh Province is the hot spot at the moment.”

“And that brings us back to this Colonel Tran character,” Jock said. “I’d bet next month’s paycheck that you know a lot more about his case than you let on in that meeting.”

“You know me too well, General.” Then Sean described in detail the murder allegation against Tran and the search for the advisor’s missing notebook.

“The murder charge is shaky as all hell, sir. CID is pretty sure there’s not enough to go on, and as you said, General Abe isn’t looking to play vigilante. But that notebook…we don’t know what’s in it, and there’s still a chance it’s the smoking gun that turns out the lights on Colonel Tran. Trouble is, it’s looking like we’re never going to find it.”

“That’s too bad,” Jock said. “But just between you, me, and the lamppost, I wouldn’t be surprised if our CIA friends are already cooking up Tran’s execution. It wouldn’t be the first time they’ve taken out a politically inconvenient individual…with or without official approval from Washington.”

*****

After a day in which he accomplished nothing but the shuffling of paperwork, CW3 Morgan was drinking alone at the Long Binh Officers Club. He was still unsettled from yesterday’s mortar attack on LZ Dorcy, and he was still annoyed with himself for buckling under SGM Moon’s pressure to interview Lieutenant Miles out in the boonies.

I don’t give a fuck if Moon’s some seven-foot-tall monster and throws his weight around like he’s King Kong. He’s not the MACV commander…he’s just the commander’s bellhop.

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