Blue Bloods of Bois D’Arc by Dick Brown Read Free Book Online Page B

Pentagon, greatly simplified by the special visitor’s pass Harry had gotten him. He located Col. Norbeck’s office only to find the outer reception area empty. He moved slowly about the professionally decorated room. Much too plush for a Colonel , he thought. Then he noticed, on the wall on the narrow end of the office, an almost life-size portrait of the President as a younger man, dressed in his Navy officer’s uniform. He cut an impressive figure.
    “Humph,” he said, “why would an Air Force man have a portrait of a Navy man hanging in his office, even if he is the President now?”
    “Sorry I’m late.” Col. Norbeck quietly slipped up on Jack while he gazed at the portrait of the young officer. Short and stocky, with tightly curled, gray hair, the colonel didn’t fit Jack’s image of a modern Air Force jet jockey. A guy that short in the old Army Air Corps couldn’t have seen over the instrument panel of a B-17, Jack mused, but would have made a good tail gunner. Dressed in a tailored Brooks Brothers suit, Robert Talbot tie, and Allen Edmonds Park Avenue shoes, the colonel was no typical government employee.
    “My secretary will be back in a moment with fresh coffee. Won’t you please come in, Mr. Workman?” Col. Norbeck gestured toward his office door.
    This man’s Air Force has sure changed since the old days , Jack thought as he entered the inner office. Hand-rubbed wood paneling, original paintings, thick carpet, an executive desk bigger than the President’s, and satin drapes. Drapes! And he has a window in the Pentagon! This man is really well connected, he thought. Doing business with Col. Norbeck was going to be interesting.
    “This way,” the colonel motioned Jack to have a seat on the couch at the east end of the office away from the more formal desk and high-backed leather executive chair.
    “Colonel, I sure want to compliment your decorator. You have a beautiful office.” Jack gestured with a sweep of his arms around the room.
    “Thank you. I did most of it myself, Mr. Workman,” he said. “Our mutual friend, Senator Langtree, tells me you are interested in our set-aside program for small business.” Col. Norbeck curled his lower lip over his teeth and unconsciously chewed it. “I’ll have to be frank with you. Most of the set-asides are earmarked for minority businesses.” The lower lip rolled out with a smacking sound.
    “At last, here comes Aleisha with fresh coffee.” A tall, raven-haired young lady in her mid-twenties with a straight part down the center of her head appeared from the outer office. Her long, silky hair flowed over her shoulders down her back below her waist. She gracefully placed the tray of coffee and sweet rolls on the table separating the two men. Jack couldn’t help noticing that when she leaned over to pour their coffee, her low-cut blouse revealed a lot of cleavage. Jack felt his cheeks heat up when Col. Norbeck caught him staring.
    “Mr. Workman, what—”
    “Please, call me Jack,” he interrupted, recovering from his embarrassment.
    “What type of facility do you have, Mr. Workman?” Col. Norbeck asked.
    “I have a decommissioned World War II fighter base I picked up as surplus inventory after the war, and I operate a charter and air-freight service with a complete IRAN—Inspect and Repair As Needed—crew. My crew can handle anything from re-skinning to complete engine and air frame overhaul,” Jack said.
    “There are some light maintenance and overhaul programs budgeted in this fiscal budget. Fortunately for you, to my knowledge there are no minorities in that business. To be considered, you will be required to submit a lengthy evaluation application, pass an onsite inspection of your facility, and produce a certified line of credit for five million dollars.”
    “Is that all? How long does the qualification process take?”
    “Normally six months is sufficient. As soon as you file your application, the evaluation will be scheduled. We