The Wrong Side of Honor

by Marshall Ginevan

  He stepped into the back and called, “Dr. Pinchon.”

  She and Mr. Ngo looked up from behind a work table. Eddie looked at his revolver, held his hands up, and said, “I’m sorry. There was nothing I could do.”

  “Mr. Eddie, it was very foolish of you to go out there,” she scolded him.

  Eddie nodded in silent agreement and holstered his weapon. His hands still shook.

  Dr. Pinchon walked into the dining room and over to the two bodies at the table. One look told her there was nothing that could be done for either of them.

  Mr. Ngo followed Eddie out to the dining room. When he saw the bodies of his two customers, he sank to the floor and cried like a little baby.

  Dr. Pinchon looked at Eddie and said, “She was his daughter.”

  It was nearly midnight before Eddie was able to return to the base from the police station downtown. He had been questioned by the city police chief and an investigator from the regional headquarters of the Border Patrol Police, with only the base OSI [Office of Special Investigations – criminal investigator] agent being permitted to be present throughout the investigation. It was the OSI agent who brought Eddie back to the base.

  The OSI agent and Eddie walked into Mack Klevenger’s office where Mack, Colonel Waldrop, Teresa, and Sahas were waiting. Eddie sat on the couch and explained what had happened since he left the base. Eddie’s story sounded like a detached mechanical briefing.

  “What do the locals say, Stan?” Colonel Waldrop asked the OSI agent.

  He shrugged. “Sounds like a Communist attack to them, too.”

  “What do the locals say about Eddie?” Mack asked. “Do they believe his story? Are they considering any charges?”

  “They apparently believe him because they aren’t talking about charges.”

  “What did you learn beyond what Eddie has told us?” Teresa asked.

  “Well, there was only three bullet holes across the street. That and the blood on the sidewalk that led to the alleyway indicates that he got at least one of them.”

  “I did?” Eddie asked in surprise.

  “What were they after is the key question,” Mack said. “There’s no mileage in going after missionaries fleeing from Viet Nam.”

  “The woman was the restaurant owner’s daughter,” Eddie said, his sleepiness telling in his voice. “But I think they just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time.”

  “You think they were after you?” Teresa asked.

  “Not me particularly. They were looking for any GI and found me. When I went into restaurant with Dr. Pinchon they saw a convenient place to strike. Since we were in the back, they mistook the missionaries for me.”

  “Sounds like the doctor led you into an ambush,” the OSI agent opined. “She’s probably in on it.”

  Eddie looked at him and said, “Yea, right. So, she can get herself killed right along with me?”

  “She wouldn’t know they were going to kill her, too.”

  “Then why did she take me to the back if there was an ambush in the plans? And don’t tell me it was an ambush on the missionaries.”

  “Why? They could have had vital information the Communists didn’t want to get out.”

  The others sighed and shook their heads.

  “Good night, Stanley. Thanks for the ride. And don’t call me. I’ll call you,” Eddie said, dismissing him.

  As soon as the OSI agent walked out, Mack said, “Sahas.”

  “The Communists have paid informants, too. I think they know who Eddie is and what he does. They tried to kill you, Eddie. They want you dead.”

  “I don’t believe that. Not for one minute.”

  “It’s possible, Eddie,” Mack said. “We’re putting our feelers out to find out who they were after. In the meantime, you’re restricted to base.”

  “You need to find out for sure who did this, Mack. It may not have been Communists or Vietnamese. And besides, you can’t restrict me to base. I’m not really one of your sky cops.”

  “I’m the base commander,” Colonel Waldrop said, “and I can restrict you to base. So, don’t try going downtown. Mack, put him on the restricted list.”

  “Yes, sir.” Mack checked his watch and said, “Let’s call it a night, folks. It’s already after midnight.”

  With that everyone left for the night.

  PROJECTS OFFICE

  For the next few days Eddie worked on a growing number of field intelligence reports coming in from Cambodia and Southern Laos. The Khmer Rouge were moving closer to Phnom Penh each day. Several A-teams were working to supply information on Communist troop movements, Khmer Rouge positions, and even some drug movements when they were found. It was confusing and difficult to sort out the different factions working in close proximity to one another.

  Bomb damage assessment photos shot by an RF-4 out of Udorn two days after the attack on Nha Dong Camp showed the camp to be eighty percent destroyed. They had gotten away with the illegal attack on the NVA base this time.

  John Slaughter reported a new bandit base camp located on the Se Khong twenty miles downriver from the Laotian border inside Cambodia. He was calling for an air strike. Eddie handed that operation off to Hank Renwick to put together.

  MACK KLEVENGER’S OFFICE

  UBON RTAFB

  24 March 1975

  At 7:00 p.m. Mack Klevenger called a meeting with the same group he had in his office following the restaurant shooting. After pleasant bantering, Mack brought the meeting to order.

  “Stan, what have you learned from the police downtown?”

  “The Thai army made another sweep through the Village and found more weapons. They hauled off twenty-four suspected Communists. They’ll interrogate them and lock them up.”

  “Where do they lock them up at?” Teresa asked.

  “Out back of the firing range,” Eddie answered. “They keep them under mounds of dirt.”

  “Sorry I asked.”

  “They did locate one of the two involved in the shooting,” Stan continued.

  “What did he tell them? Anything?” Colonel Waldrop asked.

  “Hasn’t said a word. Army found them getting him ready for his funeral. Apparently, he bled to death later that night.”

  “How do we know he was one of the two?” Mack asked.

  “He had a .38 round under his heart that came from Donevant’s weapon.”

  “Hell, Mack, I’m convinced,” Colonel Waldrop said.

  That drew a round of laughter.

  “Who was he?” Mack continued.

  “They don’t know. May never know.”

  Sahas spoke up. “He was called Dog Boy. Used to be Viet Cong, but a GI working dog chewed him up in the tunnels a few years ago. He came here last year to work the trail.”

  “Seasoned soldier,” Mack commented.

  “Seasoned as an eighteen-year-old can get in four years. But it looks like he made a mistake.”

  “What about the other one?” Eddie asked.

  “He was hit in the arm and has not been seen since that night. He worked as a barber for a while and has gone by five different names. We think he is NVA. I believe that he has gone back across the border.”

  “Who was behind this attack and why?” Teresa asked.

  “NVA. They were out hunting CIA men. We do not know why. And we do not know the name of the person who gave the order,” Sahas continued.

  “They were going after Eddie? They wanted to kill him?” Teresa asked, with a serious concern in her voice.

  Sahas nodded and looked at Eddie.

  “My sources tell me the same thing, Eddie. They were after you,” Mack said.

  “I guess this just goes with the job,” Eddie said rather flippantly.

  The others just looked at him as silence filled the room.

&nb
sp; A few seconds later Colonel Waldrop broke the silence. “Another issue came to my attention yesterday evening while I was having dinner with the Provincial Governor downtown. It seems that the hospital director complained to him that hours after you and Dr. Li picked up three orphans from an NVA camp in Laos that camp was almost totally destroyed in an air attack.”

  “I didn’t fly any attacks this week,” Eddie answered defensively.

  “No, I’m sure you didn’t. But I’d bet a fast hundred bucks, Lieutenant, that you talked to your flying buddies at Udorn just prior to that attack.”

  Eddie shifted uncomfortably and said, “Well, sir. I think that wager is just a bit rich for my blood.”

  “I thought so. The hospital’s complaint is that you are placing them at risk by making it appear that they were in on the attack. That hurts not only them, but it hurts us, too.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Keep the two operations separate. You have an obligation to protect these people just as they have an obligation to protect you out there.”

  “Colonel’s right, Eddie. That was a serious fuck up,” Mack added.

  “What are we going to do with him?” Teresa asked.

  “Do with me?” Eddie asked. “It was a fully deniable mission. Just deny it.”

  “Not the mission, stupid,” she said. “About this threat to your life.”

  “Oh,” Eddie answered. “Well, ah. The colonel already restricted me to base. I thought that was enough.”

  “Damn, Eddie,” Mack said. “They got into your office at Christmas. You think they can’t reach you on the base.”

  “I’m just not convinced. The R-factor on all this info just isn’t high enough to make serious decisions with.”

  “Eddie,” Teresa said slowly and thoughtfully. “I know you want to tough this out. You think it isn’t manly to run away from a fight, especially when you’re a combat pilot. But two innocent people are dead. The reason they’re dead is because they just happened to be too close to you at the wrong time. Now that’s not your fault, and I’m not blaming you. But on the other hand, if you continue to allow yourself to be a target, someone else around you may get killed. It could be one of us. It could be someone from the hospital. Or it could be one of those little kids from the orphanage.”

  Eddie set silently listening, showing no emotion.

  “Getting yourself killed may be part of your job or it may be just plain stupid,” Mack said. “But getting someone else killed in the process would be criminal on your part. And I’m here to prevent crimes as well as react to them after the fact.”

  “We all assume the risk of getting killed just by being here. You’ve restricted me to base to minimize that threat and I accept that. But I’ve got a job to do, just as you do, and we can’t get that job done if we let them run us out by the mere threat of armed aggression.”

  “We’re not here to win anything, Lieutenant,” Colonel Waldrop countered.

  “They attacked us at Christmas and lost to the man. They attacked me and lost one with a second injured. The killed and wounded ratio is in our favor.”

  “That could change at any time –” Mack started to argue, but Colonel Waldrop waved him off. Eddie just did not understand or he refused to accept the obvious. The meeting was cut short at that point and everyone went to his quarters for the night.

  PROJECTS OFFICE

  UBON RTAFB

  “Eddie, you give any more thought to getting out of here for a while?” Teresa asked.

  “And go where? Udorn? There’s no flying positions up there. Kunsan is cold this time of year and their flying slots are all filled. I’d just end up on the RIF list.”

  “How about leave?”

  “R & R in Bangkok? Weeks in a whore house doesn’t much appeal to me. And Hawaii is expensive this time of year.”

  “I was thinking of Kuala Lumpur.”

  Eddie made a face and asked, “Kuala what?”

  “Kuala Lumpur.”

  “Sounds like some kind of mountain retreat for religious monks.”

  Teresa laughed. “Boy, did you ever flunk geography. It’s the capital of Malaysia. You know, that part of the peninsula between southern Thailand and Singapore. It’s really nice down there this time of year.”

  “Oh! Yea,” Eddie moaned. “Go to some strange place by myself for a few weeks. What’s down there that would interest me?”

  Teresa folded her hands in front of her and smiled. “How about a pretty red head?”

  Eddie blinked and said, “A what?”

  “A red head. Pretty. Early twenties. Definitely female. Single. I think you’d like her.”

  Eddie took a sip of hot tea, thinking. “What’s the catch? She’s 300 pounds or living in a convent or what?”

  He’s interested, Teresa thought. “She is not 300 pounds. Maybe 115 pounds. She does not live in a convent, either. But, ah… if you’re counting on getting laid, you could be disappointed.”

  “Why?”

  “Because she’s the daughter of a missionary couple and she’s a teacher at the Christian school there. You see, they have this boarding school there for English speaking kids. Primarily missionary kids, but enough others send their kids there to come up with a lot of English speaking students. British, Canadian, Australian, New Zealand. Even foreign kids sent to learn English.”

  “And how is it that you happen to know this young lady?”

  “We both went to high school there. She went to a Bible college, became a teacher, and returned to teach.”

  “And you?”

  Teresa smiled. “I couldn’t get into a Bible college scene. Had enough of that in high school. Went to a state college on an ROTC scholarship. The Air Force welcomed me. Now here I am, a first lieutenant, just like you.”

  Eddie swung his feet up on his desk and said, “Sounds like we have a lot in common.”

  “Nope,” she said, shaking her head. “I’m a slave to these,” she held up her pack of cigarettes, “and you’re into that Christian scene. Church three times a week, prayer meetings, and Bible studies. I think that you and Elaine have much more in common.”

  Eddie picked up his cup of tea and sat looking at it as he thought. “Why are you trying to get me out of here?”

  She smiled. “Because I like you. You’re a decent guy. And if you don’t get out of here until things cool down a little, they’re going to kill you. And you’re just depressed enough right now to let that happen.”

  “What makes you think I’m depressed?”

  “I can see it, Eddie. You’re depressed about not being on flight status. You’re worried about your career. And I’m sure you have some other personal problems eating at you.”

  “Well, Dr. Freud. Where did you learn all this?”

  “I was a psych major at college,” she said with a grin.

  Eddie took another sip of tea.

  “Well, how about it? You want to go?”

  “Sure. But there’s too much work here for just one person. And I’m the only pilot to meet our U-10 flying commitment. I’m stuck here.”

  She smiled and said, “Okay.”

  The next morning at 6:30, Eddie walked into the office and saw Ray Metson sitting on the couch next to Teresa. They were reviewing intelligence reports from the Central Highlands in South Viet Nam.

  “Ray, what are you doing here?”

  “I’m back. Thai Air Force sent one of their people in to replace me.”

  “Great. There’s enough work here to keep all three of us busy for a while. Can you stay on for a while, Teresa?”

  “I’ve got to,” she said. “Your leave papers, passport, and flight reservations are on your desk. Thai Airways leaves here at 11:00, you change planes at Don Muang, and arrive at Kuala Lumpur at 4:20. Elaine will meet you at the VIP lounge at 5:00 sharp.”
/>   “Wait a minute. I never said I’d go.”

  “Colonel Waldrop did. Said if you don’t show up down there by 5:00 today, he’ll TDY you out to the States with a PCS follow up. General Bellford agrees. General said for you to call him if you have any questions about the way things are going to be.”

  Eddie walked to his desk and looked over the paperwork. His brown official passport lay on the stack of papers. “How’d you get the tickets?”

  “Travel voucher from finance paid for them. They’ll deduct it from your pay. There’s an open return ticket, but you can’t cash it in.”

  “And Eddie,” Ray added. “Don’t forget to turn that weapon into the armory before you leave.”

  Eddie nodded, picked up his paperwork, and walked out.

  KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA

  27 March 1975

  Eddie Donevant stood in the customs and immigration line at Kuala Lumpur International Airport. He was both relieved and depressed about leaving Ubon. He was relieved that he no longer had to deal with complex and confusing intelligence reports coming in from all over Southeast Asia. But at the same time he felt as if he had been fired from a job that he was performing well. He was also apprehensive about his stay in another strange Asian country with an American school teacher. He felt as if he were facing banishment and this was part of his punishment. He finally admitted to himself that he was actually dreading his upcoming encounter with this woman.

  Customs checked his paperwork, stamped his passport, and passed him through without inspecting his baggage. Directions from the customs inspector to the VIP lounge led him to an unmarked door next to a water fountain. The door was locked. Eddie checked his watch - it was 4:55. He opened the map of Kuala Lumpur. After studying the layout of the city for several minutes, he felt someone watching him. Looking up from the map, he saw a slender woman standing at the water fountain looking at him. She had reddish-brown hair rolled up on her head and she wore a flowered blouse, a long skirt, and sandals.

  She stood with her hands in her pockets, nodding her head approvingly, and smiling. “You’re definitely the one,” she said.