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His tone suggested that might not be true.

Claudette thought: Oh, Jimmy!

“Back-channel, Cronley, for what it’s worth,” Colonel Parsons said, “I’ve heard that our military attaché in Buenos Aires . . .”

Cronley thought: That would be the guy Cletus—or was it Ashley?—described as a horse’s ass who can’t find his ass with both hands.

“. . . has been working with the FBI on the Odessa question.”

“Colonel, may I make a suggestion?” Cronley asked.

“Certainly.”

“Why don’t you get in touch with General Greene? I know the CIC has been investigating this Odessa thing. Maybe he’d be able to help.”

“You can’t?” Major Ashley said.

“So far as I know, Odessa is bullshit,” Cronley said. “I don’t know anything about it.”

“Actually, I have been in touch with General Greene,” Colonel Parsons said. “He apparently got essentially the same message I did from the Pentagon. He said he sent them what very little he had, and suggested that you might be able to help.”

“I don’t know a damned thing about Odessa, but . . .”

Cronley did not finish his sentence.

Hammersmith thought: The Uniform Code of Military Justice 1928 Article 107. False official statements. Any person subject to this chapter who, with intent to deceive, makes any false official statement knowing it to be false, shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.

And you know what you just told him is blatantly false, Cronley!

What the hell are you up to?

“But what?” Major Ashley challenged. “You either know something, or you don’t. Or do you have knowledge of Odessa and don’t want to share it with us?”

Hammersmith thought: Ashley just nailed you, Cronley.

If you tell him you don’t have any information on Odessa, then you’re making another false statement, and Article 107 comes into play.

If you now come up with something, that means you lied to Colonel Parsons a moment ago, making it a violation of Article 107.

This just may get you court-martialed, you smart-ass sonofabitch!

Colonel Parsons, who is no fool, is probably looking for a chance to hang you out to dry!

You’re not half as smart as you think you are! Not a quarter!

“I was about to suggest that Mr. Hammersmith may be able to help, Colonel,” Cronley said. “General Greene told me that not only was Hammersmith one of his best agents, but that he often worked on investigations that no one else knew about. Maybe some of that involved Odessa.”

“Really?” Colonel Parsons said. “Well, Mr. Hammersmith, can you help G-2 out? Did you ever do any work with regard to Odessa for General Greene?”

Hammersmith felt a cramp in his stomach.

He thought: Cronley, you sonofabitch!

You just blindsided me, and I really didn’t see it coming!

Just about everything Homer Greene knows about Odessa he got from me.

But Parsons just said Homer told him he had “very little”!