Part 17 (1/2)
”Be seated,” he said, indicating the caars in the humidor” He beamed fondly, like a father at his eldest son ”I would like you to read through this report and to place your signature in the space I have an to read, frowning like a bulldog and with his lips for the words silently After a few lanced up at Aldo Belli
”es that attacked us”
”A matter of opinion, Castelani It was dark No one will ever know for certain how enial smile ”It is ood things to say of your conduct” And the Major read on and blanched
”Colonel, the enemy casualties were 126 dead, not 12,600”
”Ah, a slip of the pen, Major, I will correct that before sending it to headquarters”
”Sir, youan armoured vehicle” And the Count frowned for the first ti
”Armoured vehicle, Castelani, surely you e otten, he had decided It reflected no credit on anybody particularly none upon hi note to the splendours of his report
”It would be quite in the nors for the ene Read on! Read on! Caro mio, you will find that I have recommended you for a decoration” eneral De Bono had summoned his staff to a lunchtime conference to appraise the readiness of the expeditionary force to cohlands These conferences were a weekly affair, and the General's staff had not taken long to understand that in exchange for a really superb luncheon, for the reputation of the General's chef was international, they were expected to provide the General with good reasons which hethe start of the offensive The staff had fully entered into the spirit of the gas had been inspired However, even their fertile ih barren land The Inspector General of the Medical Corps had tentatively diagnosed a straightforward case of gonorrhoca contracted by an infantry ood scare story warning of a possible epidemic but the General was not certain whether it could be used or not They needed aj so this now over the cigars and liqueurs, when the door of the dining room was thrown open and Captain Crespi hurried to the head of the table His face was flushed, and his eyes wild, his itated that an electric silence fell over the roohtly inebriated officers
Crespi handed a e to the General, and he was so disturbed that as intended as a whisper cae
”The clown!” he panted ”The clown has done it!” The General, alare and his eyes flew across the sheet before he handed it to the officer beside him and covered his face with both hands
”The idiot!” he wailed, while the e passed swiftly from hand to hand, and a hubbub of raised voices followed it
”At least, your Excellency, it is a great victory,” called an infantry coed
”My planes are ready, General We await the word to follow up this ia Aeronautica, leaping to his feet and the General uncovered his eyes and looked confused
”Congratulations, led unsteadily upright, spilling port down the front of his jacket ”A hty victory”
”Oh dear!” murmured De Bono ”Oh dear!” ”An unprovoked attack by a horde of savages” - Crespi had retrieved the e and read the memorable words of Count Aldo Belli aloud ”fire of the flower of Italian manhood” ”Oh dear!” said De Bono a little louder, and covered his eyes again
”Almost fifteen thousand of the enemy dead!” shouted a voice
”An army of sixty thousand routed by a handful of Fascist sons It is a sign for the future”
”Forward to the ultimate victory”
”We ain ”Yes,” he agreed miserably ”I suppose we shall have to now” The Third Battalion of the black shi+rt ”Africa” regiment was paraded in full review order on the sandy plain above the Wells of Chaldi The ground was neatly demarcated by the meticulous rows of pale canvas tents and neat lines of white stones In twenty-four hours, under the goading of Major Castelani, the caave his also
Count Aldo Belli stood in the back of the Rolls, which, despite the loving attentions of Giuseppe the driver, was showing signs of wear and attrition However, Giuseppe had parked it with the daood side with a mixture of beeswax and ht, and had replaced the shattered windscreen and the broken lao which I shall read to you,” shouted the Count, and the parade stirred with interest ”The e is personal to me from Benito Mussolini”
”II Duce 11 Duce ”Duce,”roared the battalion in unison, like a well-trained orchestra, and the Count lifted a hand to restrain thean to read
”My heart swells with pride when I conteallant sons of Italy, children of the Fascist revolution, whom you command'-” the Count's voice choked a little
When the speech ended, histheir helmets in the air ”The Count cli, e hands left and right and then clasping his own hands above his head like a successful prizefighter and crying ”Ours is the victory,” and ”Death before dishonour,” until his voice was hoarse and he was led away to his tent by two of his officers
However, a glass of grappa helped him recover his composure and he was able to pour a warrior's scorn on the radio e from General De Bono which accompanied the paean of praise frorined to discover that the officer he had judged to be an ineffectual blowhard had indeed turned out to be a firebrand In view of the Duce's personalhimself to the political wilderness, order thewhere he could be restrained from any further flamboyant action
The man had virtually established himself as an independent coo on the offensive, and had held up the good Count's action as an example of duty and dedication He had directly ordered De Bono to support the Count's drive on the Sardi Gorge and to reinforce him as necessary
De Bono's response had been to send the Count a long radiogra with him to advance only after reconnaissance in depth and after having secured both flanks and rear
Had he delivered this advice forty-eight hours earlier, it would have been most enthusiastically received by Aldo Belli But now, since the victory at the Wells of Chaldi and wou the Duce's congratulatory ed man He had tasted the sweets of battle honours and learned how easily they could be won He kne that he was opposed by a tribe of priht, dresses ar expedition when his men opened fire
”Gentlemen,” he addressed his officers ”I have today received a code green e from General De Bono The armies of Italy are on the lanced at his wrist-watch, ”in just twelve minutes” time, the forward elein the e capital of Addis Ababa We stand now at the leading edge of the sword of history The fields of glory are ripening on the mountains ahead of us and the for one, intend that the Third Battalion shall be there when the harvest is gathered in” His officersto be alare in their Colonel It was to be hoped that this was rhetoric rather than real intention
”Our esteeed me to exercise the ute,” and they smiled and nodded vehe ”I will not sit here quiescent, while glory passes h the assembled officers, like the forest shaken by the first winds of winter, and they joined in only halfheartedly when the Count began to sing' La Giovinezza'
Lij Mikhael had agreed that one of the cars e to the town of Sardi where a Catholic mission station was run by an elderly Ger cleanly, and the heat and swelling of the flesh and the watery yellow discharge froreatest concern
Fuel for the cars had coe railway as far as Sardi, and had then been packed down the steeper, lower section of the gorge by e where the Sardi River debauched through a forest of acacia trees into a triangular valley, which in turn widened to away to the open desert At the head of the valley, the river sank into the dry earth and began its long subterranean journey to where it eed at last in the scattered water-holes at the Wells of Chaldi
Lij Mikhael was going up to Sardi with Vicky's car for he had arranged to meet the Ras of the Gallas there in an atteainst the Italian aggressors, and then an aircraft was being sent down to Sardi froent war conference with the Emperor at Lake Tona
Before he left, he spoke privately with Jake and Gareth, walking with theed road that cli the rocky water course Of the Sardi River
Now they stood together, staring up the track to where it turned into the first sleep bend and the river ca down beside it in a tall white-plumed waterfall that drifted rowth of dark green h as a crocodile's back here,” said Jake ”Will Vicky get the car up?”
”I have had a thousandthese vehicles,” the Lij told hih, yes, but I think it will be passable”
”I should jolly well hope so,” Gareth murmured ”It's the only way out of this lovely little trap into which we have backed ourselves Once the Eyeties close the entrance to the valley-” and he turned and swept a hand across the vista of plain and mountain that lay spread below them, and then he smiled at the Prince
”Just the three of us here now, Toffee old boy Let's hear from you What exactly do you want from us? What are the objectives you have set for us? Are we expected to defeat the whole bloody army of Italy before you pay us out?”
”No, Major Swales” The Prince shook his head ”I thought I had made myself clear We are here to cover the rear and flank of the Emperor's army We must expect that eventually the Italians will force their way up this gorge and reach the plateau and the road to Dessie and Addis we can't stop theements in the north are decided If the Emperor succeeds, the Italians ithdraw here If he fails, then our task is over”
”How long until the Ehts?”
”Who can tell?” And Jake shook his head, while Gareth took the stub of his cigar froinning to think we are being underpaid,” he said
But the Prince see quietly but with a f( -)rce that commanded their attention