“Hey, Eddie. What ‘cha drinking?”
“Ice tea.”
John shook his head. “Man, any pilot with balls the size of yours ought to be drinking whiskey by the bottle.”
“Ice tea,” Eddie told the bartender.
“You’re one cool son-of-a-bitch under fire. And when shit-for-brains stuck that pistol to the side of your head and you just told him to stuff it, I’d have lost it right there.”
“I was so scared I just said something stupid without even thinking about it.”
“I really wanted to throw that slimeball out. But that job you did on Foster was really slick. I’ll never forget that move.”
Eddie groaned, drank his tea, and then said, “I’m on my way out to the orphanage. Want to go?”
“I guess so. What’s out there?”
“Kids without parents.”
“Figured that much. You trying to adopt one or what?”
“No. We take food and toys out to them and play with them. It’s really great. You’ll love these kids.”
“Hell, I’m afraid one of them will recognize me and start calling me Daddy.”
“I’ve seen several that look like you out there. If we can match y’all up, you can take them home.”
“Thanks a fuck’en lot, ace.”
“Come on. We have food and toys to pick up. And I have to have this truck back by nightfall.”
While visiting the children at the orphanage, Miss Aroonsi informed Eddie that the Vietnamese nurse had been to the orphanage and had examined several of the children. She was asking questions about Ray Metson and Eddie. She kept referring to them as the two CIA men. The adults at the orphanage were very worried about Eddie and Ray. And they were afraid of the Vietnamese woman, because she had kidnapped the children once before. Eddie promised to discuss the problem with Colonel Suwit.
That evening Eddie found Ray at the club and explained what Miss Aroonsi had told him about the Vietnamese nurse.
“If she’s still around, she’s in Vietnamese Village. Maybe we need to go find her,” Ray said.
“Screw you, pal. I’m not going down there.”
“Would you rather she finds you?”
“Last time she found me she was gracious enough not to splatter my brains all over the hospital. She may not feel so gracious if she finds me hunting in her part of town.”
“Well, if you’re afraid of her, I guess I’ll just have to get Dr. Li to check on her for us.”
“Sounds good to me. But what I’m concerned about is that she was asking the kids about us.”
“Sorry, I’ve already got a doctor. Besides, she seemed more interested in you. Even let you live when she ran into you at the hospital. She probably has the hots for you.”
“She thought I was a doctor. Now she knows who we are and she’s looking for us. You remember their last house call at Christmas. This could be some real trouble.”
“Yea, you’re right. We’ll go see Suwit in the morning.”
“And what about the kids. They seem real interested in Chip-Chang.”
Ray’s eyes narrowed, but he said nothing.
“Thought you needed to know about this.”
“Appreciate it, Eddie. We’ll talk to Suwit tomorrow morning. We just can’t act without his knowledge and okay.”
“All right. Enjoy your beer, Ray. See you in the morning.”
28 April 1975
Eddie and Teresa were eating lunch at the Thai Restaurant with Mack Klevenger when Mack received a call from the Comm Center. Eddie had a priority IMMEDIATE, SECRET message from Thirteenth Air Force/CC.
“He’s after me again,” Eddie said.
“Who is?” Teresa asked.
“Brass Balls,” Eddie answered. “I figure it’s my court-martial orders. It’ll probably take place at Clark where he can hand-pick the jury.”
“That doesn’t sound like a SECRET, IMMEDIATE priority message to me,” Mack said.
“It’s not,” Teresa said, shaking her head. “He’s just depressed because his new love is down in Khula Lumpur and he’s stuck up here on the losing end of the war.”
“Well, you’re going back to the States soon,” Mack said. “Take her back with you.”
“Yea, right,” Eddie said. “The jerk-ball lawyer hasn’t gotten me the divorce from the dope-fiend yet, and I’m supposed to bring this missionary girl back to the World with me!?”
“Well, you’ve told her about your wife, haven’t you?” Mack asked.
Teresa sat shaking her head. “No, he hasn’t. He keeps hoping the divorce comes through before the question of his marital status comes up.”
Mack grinned and said, “I hope she’s on the pill.”
“Yes. Aspirin. She puts them firmly between her knees and keeps them there.”
“It’s how she keeps him interested,” Teresa added.
Mack broke into a roaring laugh.
“Come on, Mack. You don’t have to tell the whole world about this.”
“Hell, Eddie. Everyone thinks you’re fooling around with Teresa.”
The smile left Teresa’s face. “Let’s go, Mack. That message is getting old.” She got up and walked to the cash register.
“You really aren’t making friends today, are you?”
Mack smiled and shrugged, but did not make any other comment.
“Another hot message?” Ray asked as Eddie and Teresa walked into the Projects Office.
“Frequent Winds starts at sunup and Brass Balls thinks I’m flying.”
“What’s wrong with that?”
“He still thinks he’s going to be court-martialed,” Teresa said.
“I’m not flying any more. Every time I go out I get into more trouble,” Eddie explained as he dropped into the chair at his desk.
“Brass Balls doesn’t take no for an answer,” Ray said.
“Brass Balls isn’t here.”
“He’ll be here at 6:00. You’ll have the opportunity to tell him face to face. But as for me, I’d rather face whatever the NVA may be throwing up at me tomorrow than try to tell that crazy son-of-a-bitch anything.”
“Goes double for me, and I’ve never met the monster,” Teresa said.
Eddie shrugged and started reading a stack of intelligence reports.
The general scheduled an officer’s call for 6:00 p.m. in the club. Only twelve F-4’s were scheduled to fly from Ubon and Big Jake would lead the three flights. The general opened the bar for beer only and put a two-beer limit on each crewman. After a short pep talk he opened a beer and leaned on the bar.
Eddie walked over and leaned on the bar in front of the general.
“Donevant. Grab a beer.”
“Pass, General. Received your message today.” The general took a sip of beer and nodded. “But I’ve been grounded by the President.”
“You were grounded by me pending investigation. You aren’t grounded anymore.”
“I’m cleared of the investigation?”
“Not yet, but give me a few more weeks and I’ll get you a fuck’en air metal and captain’s bars.”
“No, I’ve had it. I’m about to submit my resignation and hang up this blue suit. You’ve got my wings. Just keep ‘em.”
The general blinked and said, “You’re not fuck’en serious. Not tonight.”
“I’m serious. I quit.”
The general set his beer on the bar, grabbed his flight cap, and said, “Come with me.” He led Eddie out the front door and stopped just off the curb on the driveway. Two sergeants walking into the club saluted, but the general threw his hat on the ground. They stopped and Eddie looked at him.
“You sorry, ungrateful, son-of-a-bitch,” the general said. “I’m fighting to save your career and I come here asking you to help me and you tell me to go fuck myself.”
“No, sir. That’s not what I’m saying.”
“I need every fuck’en pilot I can get in the air over Viet Nam for this one last shot and you pick now to lose your nerve.”
“Look, I just –”
“If you won’t fight the Communists tomorrow, you’ll have to take an ass whoop’en from me tonight.”
Eddie shook his head, not believing what the general had just said.
The general shoved Eddie back and said, “You’re gonna fight. Either me tonight or the Communists tomorrow.”
The two sergeants grabbed the general by the arms. He tried to pull free, yelling, “Get your hands off me.”
“Whoa, General, whoa,” one of the sergeants said.
“Turn him loose,” Jake barked from the doorway.
They released the general.
“Just what the fuck is going on here?” Jake demanded.
“That no account son-of-a-bitch says he won’t fly tomorrow,” the general hissed, poking his finger at Eddie. “So, I’m gonna kick his sorry ass tonight.”
“Like hell, you are,” Jake boomed.
“He won’t fly.”
“He’s flying tomorrow,” Jake said and then he reached down and picked up the general’s flight cap.
Jake turned to Eddie and said, “See you at the morning briefing.”
Eddie nodded and walked off.
Jake turned back to the general and said, “Come on, before someone steals your beer.”
“That son-of-a-bitch –”
“Yea, he’s a son-of-a-bitch, but he’s my son-of-a-bitch,” Jake said as they started back into the club. “And he’ll fly because I said he’ll fly.”
29 April 1975
General Bellford stood silently before twenty-three of the F-4 crewmen in the flight briefing room. He checked his watch. It was not yet 11:00 a.m. The temperature outside was near 100 degrees. The pilots and wizzos sat in air conditioned comfort, but some still had sweat showing on their green flight suits. The chair next to Ralph Purdy was empty. Where was Eddie Donevant? was the question on everyone’s mind. Even the general stood watching the door. They all sat silently waiting.
At 11:04 the side door banged open and Eddie Donevant ran in and bounded onto the stage past the general.
“Okay, gentlemen. Navy opened Operation Frequent Winds, and they’re now evacuating Saigon by helicopter,” Eddie called out. He slammed a red arrow on the map. “NVA is using armor and is pushing hard to move into the city. Ton Son Nhut Air Base here, northwest of Saigon, is under rocket attack and is now closed. They’re being hit with 130-mm artillery rounds right now.”
“What about Bien Hoa?” someone called out.
“This column of T-54’s overran Bien Hoa yesterday. The ARVN’s [Army Republic of Viet Nam] are fighting hard, but the armor is moving steadily toward the city. Navy is asking us to swat them back.”
“What’s the Navy doing?” another pilot called out.
“Their flight decks are shuttling helicopters for the evacuation. Vietnamese are flying everything they’ve got out to the ships. Their flight decks are too loaded to launch.”
The general added, “There’s going to be panic in the streets down there and ARVN’s won’t fight. That evacuation is going to be a clusterfuck, so let’s give the Navy all the help we can.”
“Weather is partly to mostly cloudy over the target with scattered thundershowers,” Eddie continued. “If we’re hit, we go east over the water and pray that Navy Angels will be there.”
“It’s all tanks, Jake. Call the armament,” the general nodded.
Jake picked up the phone and ordered bombs and rockets. Eddie wrote the armament on the board for the crews to copy.
“This is like Phnom Penh,” the general said, “except Saigon is still putting planes into the air. When they lose Ton Son Nhut they have only two places to go. Out to sea and ditch or west to Thailand. Any coming into Thailand are being sent to Korat or U-Tapao. Keep your guns up. If the NVA get any of those birds - and they have some - you may have to fight. Expect anything out there.”
Eddie quickly added, “Last night at 6:00, Ton Son Nhut was hit with five A-37’s. They took out an AC-119 and several C-47’s belonging to the Vietnamese, then strafed Route One while heading toward Pham Rang. That’s in Communist hands now, too.”
“How long can they hold down there,” someone called out.
“Expect May Day to be celebrated right on time in Saigon this year,” Eddie answered.
The general looked at Eddie, but said nothing.
“Listen up. Here’s the numbers,” Jake called out. He gave them the codes and clearances and their headings. The war was on again.
At 2:02 p.m. Eddie’s flight of four F-4 Phantoms sat at the ready line watching the last two heavily loaded F-4’s from Jake’s flight smoke down the runway and roar into the bright blue Asian sky.
“Condor One and Two, cleared for take off,” Ubon tower radioed.
“Condor One and Two, rolling,” Eddie said as he pushed the throttles forward. The cockpit was already over 100 degrees inside. Climbing up to their 35,000 foot assigned altitude would provide welcome cooling.
As the Phantom’s afterburner ignited, Eddie began to hear the guitars of Simon and Garfunkle coming over the headsets.
“What’s it today, Ralph?” Eddie asked.
“The Boxer,” he answered.
“Why don’t you ever play the Beach Boys?”
“Man, your landings are scary enough without rocking and bopping down final. I play this stuff to keep you calm.”
Eddie laughed as he pulled the nose up and waited for the Phantom to slowly climb over the city.
“Hey, you hear that?” Ralph asked over the intercom.
“Couldn’t make it out. What was it?”
“Vietnamese Air Force is still flying missions. They’re calling missions.”
“Yea. They go up to bomb something, then beat feet over to Thailand with their planes.”
“No way. Those are Vietnamese F-5’s over there laying in napalm. They still have some A-37’s up and a Sandy just got splashed. This place is really fuck’en jump’en.”
“Hope you’re listening for us. Don’t want to miss a call.”
Jake and Eddie’s flights spent the hours on CAP watching helicopters shuttling back and forth between pickup points in Saigon and the U.S. fleet offshore. Just after 3:00 p.m. the first twelve CH-53’s landed at Ton Son Nhut. The chopper flights continued until after dark. Helicopter gunships were given the job of attacking missile sites and artillery batteries. By nightfall Eddie could see thousands of headlights on the road from Xuan Loc. They were NVA trucks and tanks heading into Saigon. He cursed silently at the sight. He was loaded with bombs, but an unofficial agreement with the Communists existed. If American aircraft did not attack advancing Communist units the NVA would not fire on American aircraft evacuating the city. The Phantoms shuttled back and forth between Ubon and Saigon until midnight. They were then ordered down for the night. Eddie’s last night view of Saigon was of a city burning amid rocket trails and explosions under breaks in the clouds.
UBON PROJECTS OFFICE
30 April 1975
Eddie, Ray, and Teresa read through a trickle of intelligence reports coming out of Saigon as the sun rose over the city. Navy radars were reporting that nothing was flying over the Saigon area, except American spy planes. A communist tank column had entered the city, plowed through the gates of the presidential palace, and by 11:00 a.m. the government of South Viet Nam had ceased to exist.
However, the U.S. and other nations were still running intelligence teams in southern Viet Nam and supporting South Vietnamese guerillas who were continuing their war against the Communists. Although their work load was rapidly dropping off, the Projects Office was still in business.
Jo
hn Slaughter came in just after noon and dropped onto the couch.
“Well, John,” Eddie asked. “How do things look for your guys?”
“You forget that I lost two guys in Cambodia?”
“No. But what do you do now?”
“I’m not sure. Hope to make a deal with the Vietnamese like I made with the Khmer. Shut the opium flow off.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Teresa said. “Viet Nam is going to be cut off from the West. Very little opium will flow out through there.”
“If that’s true, then it will have to come through Thailand and Burma. And they won’t let me work in Thailand.”
“Who won’t?” Eddie asked.
“Thai government,” Ray answered. “They know how John works. I hear you and your team - well, what’s left of it - is being ordered out by the middle of May.”
“Yea. Figures. Thais want to make money from the opium trade now that Cambodia and Viet Nam are off the route.”
“Brings me back to my original question, John,” Eddie said. “How do things look for you and your guys?”
John shrugged. “If we cut the flow of dope coming out of Asia, then someone will find another drug from some other place and I go back to fighting drugs again. In the meantime, I guess I go back to the States. Same as you folks.”
“Not the same, John. With the war over, we have to go back and find jobs in the civilian world. You at least have a job when you get back.”
“Shit. Not doing what I do over here. War’s over for me, too.”
They all nodded in agreement, but no one could find any words to say. Finally, John stood up and said, “Let me go try to talk Mack into becoming a real policeman when he gets back.”
CHAPTER TEN
UBON RTAFB
1 June 1975
On June the first the Ubon Projects Office was officially closed. Ray was relieved of all DIA duties and assigned to the six-man base closure team, tasked to write the closure report for the base. Captain Klevenger and Colonel Waldrop were the two officers assigned to the team. Teresa was reassigned to the Bangkok intelligence center. Eddie was left in TDY status as a Security Police Administrative officer with no assigned duties.
The Christian school in Kuala Lumpur went into summer session on June first, so Elaine packed a few things in a small suitcase and flew to Ubon. She arrived on the daily Thai Airways flight at noon, June second.
The Wrong Side of Honor Page 21
