The Evening News (97 page)

Sloane didn't telephone. After arriving at the hotel and receiving Rita's
message, he took a taxi immediately to Entel. He had worked in Lima on
assignment in the past and knew his way around
.
His first question to Rita was, "Where's Harry
?
”

"In the jungle
,”
she answered tersely, "risking his life trying to rescue
your wife and boy
.”

Then she thrust the faxed letter forward
.”
What the
hell is this
?
”

"What do you mean
?
”

Crawford Sloane took the letter and read it as she
watched him. He read it twice, then shook his head
.”
This is a mistake
.
It has to be
.”

A sharpness still in Rita's voice, she asked, "Are you telling me you
don't know anything about it
?
”

"Of course not
.”

Sloane shook his head impatiently
.”
Harry's my friend
.
Right now I need him more than anyone else in the world. Please tell me
what he's doing in the jungle-isn't that what you just said
?
”

Sloane had
clearly dismissed the letter as absurd, something he would not waste time
on
.
Rita swallowed hard. Tears flooded her eyes; she was angry at her own
misjudgment and injustice
.”
Oh, Christ, Crawf! I'm sorry
.”

For the first
time she took in the extra lines of strain on the anchorman's face, the
anguish in his eyes. He looked far worse than when she had last seen him
,
eight days earlier
.”
I thought that somehow you . . . Oh, never mind
!”

Rita pulled herself together
.”
Here's what's happening, what Harry and
the others are trying to do
.”

She described the expedition to Nueva
Esperanza and what Partridge hoped to achieve. She filled in background
,
too, explaining Partridge's doubts about telephone security-the reason
his plan had not been reported to New York
.
At length Sloane said, "I'd like to talk to that pilot, find out how
things were when he left Harry and the others. What's his name
?
”

"Zileri
.”

Rita looked at her watch
.”
He's probably not back yet, but I'll
phone soon, and then we'll go. Have you had breakfast
?
”

Sloane shook his head
.”
There's a cafeteria in the building. Let's go down
.”

Over coffee and croissants, Rita said gently, "Crawf, we were all shocked
and saddened by the news about your father
Harry especially. I know he
blamed himself for not moving faster, but we didn't have the information
. .
.”

Sloane stopped her with a gesture
.”
I'll never blame Harry for
anything-whatever happens, even now. No one could have done more
.”

"I agree
,”
Rita said, "which is what makes this so unbelievable
.”

Once
more she produced the faxed letter which Les Chippingham had signed
.”
This is no mistake, Crawf. This was intended. People don't make mistakes
like that
.”

H
e read it again
.”
When we get upstairs I'll phone Les in New York
.”

"Before you do, let's consider this: There's something behind it
,
something you and I don't know. Yesterday in New York--did anything
happen out of the ordinary
?
”

"You mean at CBAT' "Yes-,
,
Sloane considered
.”
I don't think so . . . well, I did hear Les was sent
for by Margot Lloyd-Mason-apparently in an all-fired hurry. He was over
at Stonehenge. But I've no idea what it was about
.”

A sudden thought struck Rita
.”
Could it have been something to do with
Globanic? Perhaps this
.”

Opening her purse, she took out the several
clipped sheets of paper Harry Partridge had given her this morning
.
Sloane took the sheets and read them
.”
Interesting! A huge debt-to-equity
swap. Really big money! Where did you get this
?
”

"From Harry
.”

She repeated what Partridge had told her on the way to the
airport-how he had received the document from the Peru radio commentator
,
Sergio Hurtado, who intended to broadcast the information during the
coming week. Rita added, "Harry told me he didn't plan to use the story
.
Said it was the least we could do for Globanic which puts butter on our
bread
.”

"There could be a linkage between this and Harry's firing
,”
Sloane said
thoughtfully
.”
I see a possibility. Let's go upstairs and call Les now
.”

"There's something I want to do first, when we get there
,”
Rita said. The "something
”
was send for Victor Velasco
.
When the international manager of Entel appeared a few minutes later
,
Rita told him, "I want a secure line to New York, with no one listening
.”

Velasco looked embarrassed
.”
Do you have reason to suppose - .
.”

"Yes.,, "Please come to my office. You may use a phone there
.”

Rita and Crawford Sloane followed the manager to a pleasant, carpeted
office on the same floor
.”
Please use my desk
.”

He pointed to a red
phone
.”
That line is secure. I guarantee it. You may dial direct
.”

"Thank you
.”

With Partridge en route to Nueva Esperanza, Rita had no
intention of letting his whereabouts, which might be mentioned in
conversation, become known to Peru authorities
.
With a courteous nod, Velasco left the office, closing the door behind
him
.
Sloane, seated at the desk, tried Les Chippingham's direct CBA News line
first. There was no answer-not unusual on a Saturday morning. What was
unusual was that the news president had not left with the CBA News
switchboard a number where he could be reached. Consulting a pocket
notebook, Sloane tried a third number-Chippingham's uptown Manhattan
apartment. Again no response. There was a Scarsdale number where
Chippingham sometimes spent weekends. He wasn't there either
.”
It rather looks
,”
Sloane said, "as if he's deliberately made himself
unavailable this morning
.”

He sat at the desk, contemplative, weighing
a decision
.”
What are you thinking of
?
”

Rita asked
.”
Calling Margot I
loyd-Mason
.”

He picked up the red phone
.”
I will
.”

Sloane tapped out the U.S. overseas code again and the number of
Stonehenge. An operator told him, "Mrs. Lloyd
-
Mason is not in her office
today
.”

"This is Crawford Sloane. Will you give me her home number, Please
.”

"It's unlisted, Mr. Sloane. I'm not allowed to give it out
.”

"But you have it
?
”

The operator hesitated
.”
Yes, sir
.”

"What's your name, operator
?
”

"Noreen
.”

"A beautiful name; I've always liked that. Now, please listen to me
carefully, Noreen. By the way, do you recognize my voice
?
”

"Oh yes, sir. I watch the news every night. But lately I've been worried
. .
.”

"Thank you, Noreen. So have 1. Now, I'm calling from Lima, Peru, and I
simply have to speak with Mrs. Lloyd-Mason. If you'll give me that
number, I promise I will never breathe a word of how I got it, except
that next time I'm in Stonehenge I'll come to the switchboard room and
thank you personally
.”

"Oh! Would you really, Mr. Sloane? We'd all love it
!”

"I always keep promises. The number, Noreen
?
”

He wrote it down as she read it out
.
This time, the phone was answered on the second ring by a male voice
which sounded like a butler's. Sloane identified himself and asked for
Mrs. Lloyd-Mason
.
He waited several minutes, then Margot's voice, which was unmistakable
,
said, "Yes
?
”

"This is Crawf. I'm calling from Lima
.”

"So I was told, Mr. Sloane. I'm curious why you are calling me
,
particularly at home. First, though, I'd like to offer my sympathy about
your father's death
.”

"Thank you
.”

Unusually for someone of his stature, Sloane had never been on a
first-name basis with the CBA president and clearly she intended to keep
it that way. He also guessed from her tone and aloofness that he would
get nowhere with direct questions. He decided to try the timeworn
journalist's trick which so often worked, even with sophisticated
persons
.”
Mrs. Lloyd-Mason, yesterday when you decided to fire Harry Partridge
from CBA, I wonder if you realized how much he has accomplished in the
whole effort to find and free my wife, son and father
.”

The reply came back explosively, "Who told you that was my decision
?
”

He was tempted to answer, You just did! But restraining himself, he said
,
"In the TV news business, which is close-knit, almost nothing is secret
.
That's why I called you
.”

Margot snapped, "I do not wish to discuss this now
.”

"That's a pity
,”
Sloane said, speaking quickly, before she
could hang up, "because I thought you might want to talk about the connection between Harry's firing and that big debt
to-equity swap Globanic is arranging with Peru. Did Harry's honest reporting offend someone with a stake in that deal
?
”

At the other end of the line there was a long silence in which he could
hear Margot breathing. Then, her voice subdued, she asked, "Where did you
hear all that
?
”

So there was a connection after all!
"Well
,”
Sloane said, "the fact is, Harry Partridge learned about the
debt-to-equity arrangement. He's a first-class reporter, you know, one
of the best in our business, and right now he's out risking his life for
CBA. Anyway, Harry decided not to use the information. His words were
,
I understand, 'That's the least I can do for Globanic, which puts butter
on our bread.'
“
Again the silence. Then Margot asked, "So it isn't going to be
publicized
?
”

"Aha! That's another matter
.”

In other circumstances, Sloane thought, he
might have enjoyed this; as it was, he felt miserably depressed
.”
There's
a radio reporter in Lima who uncovered the story, has a copy of the
agreement, and intends to broadcast it next week. I expect it will be
picked up outside Peru. Don't you
?
”