Pentagon. He had a turkey sub and soup in one of the cafeterias off the Concourse, with two colonels. Then, though it hadnât been on the agenda, they told him their boss would like ten minutes. Dan followed them through polished sunlit corridors around to the Army staff spaces in Wedge One.
The sign on the door of 3D389 said Lieutenant General Thurman Knight, U.S. Army, was the Armyâs operations deputy. Most civilians thought the Joint Chiefs directed military operations. But that was actually the job of the combatant commanders, four-stars who controlled all forces, from whatever service, within their geographic area. But the old terminology lived. Each service chief appointed a deputy who worked with the director, Joint Staff, to form the body known as the Operations Deputies, or OPSDEPS in milspeak. They met in sessions chaired by the director, Joint Staff, in his office, or in the Tank, to review major issues before they went up to the Chiefs and then the SecDef.
Knight welcomed him into a better-appointed and larger office than either heâd been in earlier. The generalâs dress greens matched his eyes. Huskier than Dan, he moved with the deliberation of a trainer of wolves. The diplomas on his walls were from the War College, the School of the Americas, and the Command and General Staff College.
Dan had looked up Knightâs bio before he came over. The general had been a first lieutenant in Korea, served as an adviser with the Vietnamese and Peruvian armies, and commanded first an airborne brigade and then the 101st Airborne before commanding the Special Operations Command South in Panama. Looking at his chest, Dan read the Distinguished Service Medal, the Purple Heart, the Superior Service Medal with an oak-leaf cluster, the Legion of Merit with an oak-leaf cluster, the Bronze Star with a V and three oak-leaf clusters, the Meritorious Service Medal, the Air Medal, and the Army Commendation Medal. He had the rifle and wreath of the Combat Infantryman Badge, a parachutistâs badge of some sort, and Ranger and Special Forces tabs.
For the first time, Dan wished heâd worn his lapel decoration. Knightâs gaze moved as slowly as he did and, when it settled, was hard to meet directly. His grip, complete with a gold VMI ring the size of a handball, was hearty, but his manner warned this might not be a pleasant call.
In his inner office, settled on a sofa so close Dan smelled lime aftershave, Knight didnât want to discuss the issue items Dan had brought with him. He wanted to talk budget. Specifically, the line items the presidentâs budget reduced. Dan said he wasnât on the budget side. The general asked if the president had any idea how hard he was stressing the services. Dan said he presumed De Bari was getting that word during the lunch he had every week with Jack Weatherfield, the secretary of defense, and General Stahl, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
This didnât seem to be what Knight wanted to hear. He lit a cigar, toasting the cut end with a chrome lighter in the shape of a Maxim gun. Almost as an afterthought, offered one. Dan shook his head.
âNow, correct me if Iâm wrong, Lenson. Letâs not make this on any kind of record, all right? But youâre military staff over there, that right? Whatâan O-6?â
âO-5, sir.â
âArmy? Guard?â
âNavy, sir.â
âWell, youâre uniformed service. Academy too, I see.â
âYes, sir.â Dan wondered if he should quit wearing the ring, since he wasnât supposed to be in uniform.
âWeâre getting concerned over here. It started with this âno further discriminationâ bullshit, which wasnât the way to get on our good side. And itâs gone downhill from there.â
One of De Bariâs first acts on taking office had been to end the servicesâ exclusion of gays. And part of his platform, responding to the recession, had
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