I found Hawk by the side of the pool of his club in the green Virginia countryside near Washington. He was taking a much-needed sunbath. His bony elbows and knees looked like ivory doorknobs.
"How did the cleanup go?" I asked.
"It's all taken care of. We had to close down the Carolina and the Denver bases, but we got ride of all the Mafia plants. Fortunately the operation was in an early stage and they hadn't passed on any information of much value."
"The Mob as a whole didn't know anything about Rossi's deal with the Communists or that he was involved in spying on AXE. Abruze probably didn't know much either. He was just suspicious. But suspicions can be deadly when you're mixed up with people like Lew Rossi."
Hawk cracked one eye.
"It was a costly and bloody affair, Nick, but that's our line of work, yours and mine. The dirty business they give no medals for."
"I know," I said.
"Are you ready to leave for London tomorrow?"
"Yes, sir."
"Nick," he called as I moved away. He sat up in the deck chair. "Who's the broad waiting for you in the car?"
"A reliable informant."
"You mean Valante's daughter?" he said.
Barbara was waiting impatiently. "Let's go somewhere and go to bed, Nick. Tomorrow will come awfully fast." She slid closer to me as I drove away from the club. "Was your boss surprised?"
"Oh, sure," I said. "He was almost speechless."