Robert played it straight. “Fifteen years.” He would have bet a month’s pay that the General could have told him the time of day when he had joined ONI.

“Before that, I believe you commanded a naval air squadron in Vietnam.”

“Yes, sir.”

“You were shot down. They didn’t expect you to pull through.”

The doctor was saying, “Forget about him. He won’t make it.” He had wanted to die. The pain was unbearable. And then Susan was leaning over him. Open your eyes, sailor, you don’t want to die. He had forced his eyes open and through the haze of pain was staring at the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. She had a soft oval face and thick black hair, sparkling brown eyes and a smile like a blessing. He had tried to speak, but it was too much of an effort.

General Hilliard was saying something.

Robert Bellamy brought his mind back to the present. “I beg your pardon, General?”

“We have a problem, Commander. We need your help.”

“Yes, sir?”

The General stood up and began to pace. “What I’m about to tell you is extremely sensitive. It’s above Top Secret.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Yesterday, in the Swiss Alps, a NATO weather balloon crashed. There were some experimental military objects aboard the balloon that are highly secret.”

Robert found himself wondering where all this was leading.

“The Swiss government has removed those objects from the balloon, but, unfortunately, it seems that there were some witnesses to the crash. It is of vital importance that none of them talk to anyone about what they saw. It could provide valuable information to certain other countries. Do you follow me?”

“I think so, sir. You want me to speak to the witnesses and warn them not to discuss what they saw.”

“Not exactly, Commander.”

Then I don’t under

“What I want you to do is simply track down those witnesses. Others will talk to them about the necessity for silence.”