Part Three
Flagg

It was awful good, having Ray writing to me. Me writing to him. I was still homesick, but it wasn't quite so bad. At least someone I cared about was in the same country. But it was kind of bad, too, because I worried about him so much. He said not to, but I couldn't help it. I saw all the casualties they sent back from the front.

I was afraid that some day I'd know the choppers were coming over the ridge, and when they set down, Ray would be strapped to one of the baskets. Or that they'd unload him off an ambulance truck. My heart was in my mouth every time we had incoming, till I'd seen them all unloaded, and checked to be sure he wasn't in that batch.

But the weeks went by, and he wasn't there. A letter didn't come with each post, 'cause sometimes he couldn't get it back behind the lines. But if it didn't, there'd be two letters in the next post, or more. They always made me feel a little warmer inside. That was good, 'cause Korea could be an awful cold place sometimes, for the body and for the soul. And some people just seem to carry cold around with them.

That's how it was with Colonel Flagg. He just sort of seemed to carry a little pocket of cold around with him. I noticed it the first time I met him.

I'd been at the MASH close to three months. I was in a good mood. I'd had a letter from Ray that day, talking about maybe visiting me on the farm when the war was over, and we both got back to the states. I wasn't too sure it would actually happen. You make plans, and then the world kind of steps in and changes them for you, and I had a feeling the end of the war was a long way off. But it was nice to think about it.

What really bothered me was that I didn't know he was coming. I almost always know when anyone important is coming into camp. But I didn't have any warning on Flagg. One minute I was bending over, getting a requisition form out of the bottom of the filing cabinet, the next I turned around and almost ran into him.

There was this big guy, standing right behind me, only about a foot away. I don't mind tellin' ya, I yelled. I was that startled. I mean, I hadn't even heard the door open, and I'm not deaf. "Geez, you scared me half to death!" I gasped.

"That's my job." If it had been Hawkeye, I would've known it was a joke. But this guy had what Trapper John would've called a perfect poker face. No expression at all. I think he meant it. "Don't you believe in saluting a superior officer, Corporal?"

The only person around the 4077th who insisted on salutes was Major Burns. Even Hot Lips didn't bother much about them, so I'd kinda gotten out of the habit. But I snapped one real quick when I saw the insignia on his shoulders. Colonel. I managed to slap myself in the face with the form I'd forgotten I was holding. Most people would have smiled at that. I wouldn't have gotten sore. It was pretty silly, after all. But not this guy. He just stared at me. "Sorry, sir. Can I help you, sir?"

"You can direct me to Colonel Henry Blake."

"Yessir. Who shall I say is calling?"

"The name is Colonel Samuel Flagg, but you won't be telling him that. I can see myself in."

He started for the door, and I came after him. "Uh, Colonel, the colonel is in the middle of a meeting right now, and he..." Flagg turned those pale eyes on me, and I was suddenly cold, even though it was the middle of summer. "...probably won't mind if you go right on in."

His voice was flat. "Are you sure about that, Corporal? I wouldn't want to upset your office protocol. Routine is important in this man's army."

He wasn't asking if it was all right with me. He was telling me it had better be alright with me. "Yessir."

"So you think I should just go on in?" The voice was soft and thoughtful now. It said, 'Are you presuming to tell me what I should do?'

Geez, this was one of those guys where there wasn't a right answer. "Sir, I think you should do whatever you want."

He nodded slowly. "That's a very wise attitude." He went into the office and a minute later I heard Colonel Blake yell, just like I did. Of course, it would have been easier for Flagg to surprise him, since Henry was probably distracted by having Nurse Ripples on his lap.

Nurse Ripples came hurrying out, smoothing her hair and throwing back startled glances. She whispered to me, "I swear, that spook just popped up out of nowhere. I'm going to The Swamp for a martini. I need it."

I s'pose I shouldn't have done it, but I put my ear against the office door to try and hear what was going on. I mean, the company clerk needs to know what's going on, doesn't he? I couldn't hear much. Colonel Flagg talked in a very quiet voice. All I could hear from him was a low grumble.

Colonel Blake wasn't much clearer. I could tell by the tone of his voice and the way he laughed that he was nervous. It was one of those 'well, I better laugh even though this isn't funny, because otherwise it's just too weird' laughs. One thing I heard real clear, though. Colonel Blake saying, like he couldn't believe it, "CIA?!" and Colonel Flagg shushing him.

I heard someone headed for the door, and jumped behind my desk. My butt hit the chair about two seconds after the door opened, and I tried to look like I was working on a requisition form. Colonel Flagg came out of the office. I was hoping he'd just walk on past, but he stopped right in front of my desk.

I wasn't sure what he wanted, so I figured I'd better play it safe. I stood up and saluted. He looked at me for a long time, almost a minute, I think. Then he reached down and turned the form around. I'd been looking at it upside down. I felt myself start to turn red with embarrassment. He said, "What's your name, soldier?"

"Corporal Radar O'Reilly, sir."

He expressed the first emotion I'd seen from him: disbelief. His thin, straight mouth turned down slightly. "Do you mean to tell me that an American mother saddled her male child with a name like 'Radar'?"

"Uh, nossir. Radar is my nickname, sir. My given name is Walter Eugene O’Reilly, but I try to keep the Eugene quiet, sir."

"I don't blame you." He leaned over the desk. I stood real still, even when he got so close I could feel his breath. Some people you want to try not to flinch around. He said, real quiet, "I'm going to be watching you, O' Reilly. You interest me." Then he left.

I dropped down in my chair, and started breathing again. Colonel Blake came out, looking even more flustered than usual. I said, "What was that, sir?"

"That, Radar, was army intelligence."

"Well, what's he doing here?"

"You got me. He says it's so secret that even he's not sure. What an idiot."

I stared at Colonel Blake. Were we talking about the same person? "He scared me."

Colonel Blake waved, making a dismissive gesture. "Don't let him bother you , Radar. His kind like to play their games. You're a good kid. Just do your job, and you won't have any problem with him." He laughed. "It's not like there are any skeletons in your closet, are there?"

I looked over to where the letter from Ray was laying on my bunk, and said slowly, "No sir. Not a single bone."