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"And it also says, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth,' " McCoy said. "And that 'he who lives by the sword shall die by the sword.' "
Ba
"I'm not absolutely sure about this," he said finally. "Your knife was evidence in a court-martial. But now that there's not going to be a court-martial, maybe I can get it back for you."
"Thank you," McCoy said. "I'd hate to have to buy another one."
(Two)
On the way back to his office, Captain Ba
And he wondered why he himself, except that once, hadn't called him on it. The fact, he concluded after a while, was that McCoy was neither intentionally discourteous nor insolent; and that the discussion had been between them as men, not officer and PFC. In other words, the kid had understood - either from instinct or from smarts - what was the correct tone to take with him.
The more he saw of McCoy, the more he learned about him, the more impressed he became both with his intelligence (his score on the written promotion examination should have prepared him for that, but it hadn't) and with his toughness. He was a very tough young man. But not entirely. Within, there was a soft center of young boy, who wished to sneak off and be a spy-for the pure glamour of it, and the romance.
He could not, of course, permit him to snoop around the Japanese, both because he would get caught doing it (always an embarrassment with the Japanese) and because it was very likely that the Japanese would in fact "accidentally" kill him… or, if they wanted to send a message to the Americans, behead him with a sword, and then arrange for his head to be delivered in a box.
Before the convoy left for Tientsin and Peking, Ba
McCoy said, "Aye, aye, sir."
Ba
Almost a month to the day later, the convoy returned.
Two days later Lieutenant Macklin furnished Ba
They hadn't actually caught Macklin in a situation where they could credibly claim espionage, they just found him
somewhere that the officer in charge of a supply convoy should not have been.
There were a number of legalities and unwritten laws involving the relationship between the Japanese Imperial Army in China and the military forces of the French, the Italians, the English, and the Americans. Captain Ba
What the Japanese had done when they caught Macklin was what they had done before.
They had, as brother officers, courteously invited him to visit their headquarters. They then took him on an exhausting inspection of the area, with particular emphasis on the garbage dumps, rifle ranges, and other fascinating aspects of their operation. Then they brought him to the mess, where several profusely apologetic Japanese officers spilled their drinks on him while they got him drunk. At di
The idea was to make him lose face. As usual, they succeeded.
Corporal Ke
"How's your leg?" Ba
"It was rough on the way up, sir," McCoy said.
"All right now, though?"
"Yes, sir," McCoy said.
"Well, whether or not you like it, McCoy," Ba
"I thought that was probably going to happen," McCoy said.
"I'm sorry you're not pleased," Ba
"Captain, I've got something to say, and I don't know how to go about saying it."
"Spit it out," Ba
"The 111th and 113th Regiments of the 22nd Infantry Division are going to be moved from Sьchow to Nantung, where they are going to be mobilized."
"Mobilized?" Ba
"I mean they're going to get trucks to replace their horses.''
"You mean motorized," Ba
"Yeah, motorized," McCoy said. "Sorry, sir. And then," he went on, "the 119th Regiment is going to stay at Sьchow, reinforced by a regiment, I don't know which one, of 41st Division. Then, when the 111th and 113th come back, the 119th'll go to Nantung and get their trucks, and the other regiment will go back where it came from. When the whole division has trucks, they're going to move to Tsinan."
"You're sure of this?" Ba
"A couple of whores told me," McCoy said. "And I checked it out."
"Now, Corporal McCoy, why do you suppose Lieutenant Macklin's report doesn't mention this?"
As he spoke, Ba
Ba
"Well, I told you I didn't know how to say it," McCoy said. "I told him what I heard, and he laughed at me. But he's wrong. Whores know."
The truth was, Ba
"You said you 'checked it out,' " Ba
"Yes, sir."
"How?"
"I checked it out, sir," McCoy replied.
"You said that, and I asked you how."
"Sir, you told me not to go snooping around the Japs, and I'm afraid you're going to think I did anyhow."
"Why would I think that?" Ba
"Well," McCoy said uneasily, "I got pretty close to them." He paused and then blurted, "I went to Nantung, Captain."
"You're telling me you went to Nantung? Without orders?"