Hall broke the connection without saying anything else.
"White House. Are you through?"
"Shut it down, please," Castillo said, and replaced the handset in its cradle. He sensed Silvio's eyes on him.
"You think Jack Masterson was trying to pay ransom?" Silvio asked.
"Sir, that's one-"
A female voice came over an intercom loudspeaker.
"Mr. Ambassador, the foreign secretary is on two."
Silvio reached for the telephone.
"Good morning, Osvaldo.
"Osvaldo, I'm always happy to receive you at your convenience.
"That will be fine. I will be expecting you.
"I appreciate that, Osvaldo. And I agree, this is a genuine tragedy. I will be waiting for you."
Silvio broke the connection with his finger, but kept the handset in his hand.
"The foreign minister officially requests an immediate audience," Silvio said. "And personally, he said he's heartbroken. I think he means that; he got along very well with Jack."
Castillo nodded, but didn't say anything.
Silvio took his finger off the switch, then pressed a button on his telephone.
"Oh, Sylvia. I'm glad you're in. Could you come in right away, please? Thank you."
He hung up the telephone and looked at Castillo again.
"The foreign minister, sometime during our audience, is going to ask me how I intend to deal with the press. To avoid hurting his feelings by having some doubts about his suggestions along that line, I'm going to show him what I have already released to the press."
A moment later, a slightly chubby woman in her late forties put her head into Silvio's office. She had heavily rimmed spectacles sticking out of her salt-and-pepper- and somewhat unkempt-hair. Silvio waved her in.
"Good morning, Sylvia," Silvio said.
"Wit
h all due respect, Mr. Ambassador, what's good about it? Jack was one of the good guys. And those poor kids!"
"Sylvia, this is Mr. Castillo. Mr. Castillo, this is Mizz Sylvia Grunblatt, our public affairs officer."
Ms. Grunblatt's offered handshake suggested that while she considered it a strange custom and a complete waste of her time, she resigned herself to the act.
"How much have you heard, Sylvia?"
She looked at Castillo as if wondering what she could say before a man she didn't know.
"Ken Lowery gave me a heads-up earlier," she said finally. "And then he called and told me he was at the German Hospital, and I went there on my way here. He pretty much filled me in."
"The foreign minister is on his way here. When he gets here I want to be able to tell him what we have released to the press."
"Which is?"