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The Duchess took one of the bottles and carried it into the bathroom, i Charity was slumped down in the tub, so that only her chin and her nipples ] broke the surface of the water. (;

"How about a little bubble bath?" the Duchess asked.

"Oh, I see it got here," Charity said.

"I was afraid to ask."

"You know where it came from?"

"Yes," Charity said, "I know."

"I won't ask where Jimmy is," the Duchess said. | "I'm glad, because I can't tell you," Charity said.

The Duchess filed that away, professionally. Charity Hoche was privy to upper-echelon secrets. And knew how to keep them. And then she was a little ashamed for being professional.

"Actually, I had something specific in mind before," Charity said, "when I said there would come a time when you could scratch my back."

"Tell me," the Duchess said.

"How would I get Lieutenant Colonel Peter Douglass, Jr." on the telephone?"

"Doug's a friend of yours?"

"Understatement," Charity said.

"At least on my part."

"The way we do that," the Duchess said, "is I get on the telephone, and when I have Colonel Douglass on the line, I bring the phone in here to you."

"Oh, nice!"

Two minutes later, the Duchess went back into the bathroom.

"Colonel Douglass is not available," she said.

"He will not be available for the next thirty-six hours. I'm sorry."

"Damn," Charity said. She sat up abruptly, splashing water.

"That means he's out spreading pollen."

"I don't think so," the Duchess said.

"Oh, come on," Charity said.

"He doesn't know I'm here. And if you know him, you know he's just like the others. I'm not complaining. If I was in his shoes, I'd probably be doing the same thing.

"Live today... '" "I would guess that he's off somewhere getting drunk," the Duchess said.

"Oddly enough, that would make me happy. Compared to what I really think he's up to. Why do you say that?"

The Duchess hesitated.

"Oddly enough, it's classified," she said.

"Oddly enough," Charity said, "I'm cleared for anything going on around here. Didn't Jamison tell you?"

"No,"the Duchess said.