Sons of Fortune (19 page)

“And
you will,” said the colonel, “but only if you sign up for six years. You see,
with your qualifications, Nat,” he added as he stood up and began to pace
around the room, “you can immediately apply for any course of higher education
and what’s more, I the army will pay for it.”

“But
I already have a scholarship,” Nat reminded his commanding officer.

“I’m
well aware of that, it’s all in here,” said the colonel, looking down at the
open file in front of him. “But the university doesn’t offer you a captain’s
pay to go with it.”

“I
would be paid to go to college?” said Nat.

“Yes,
you would receive a full captain’s pay, plus an added allowance for an overseas
posting.”

“An overseas posting?
But I’m not applying for a place at the University of Vietnam-I want to return
to Connecticut, and then go on to Yale.”

“And
so you will, because the regulations state that if, and only if, you have
served abroad, in a war sector, and, I quote,” the colonel turned another page
in his file, “then an application for advanced education will be given the same
status as your last posting. I’ve decided I now love lawyers,” said the
colonel, looking up, “because, can you believe
it,
they’ve come up with something even better.”

Tremlett
sipped his coffee while Nat remained silent. “Not only will you receive your
full captain’s salary as well as an overseas allowance,” the colonel continued,
“but because of your injury, at the end of six years, you will automatically be
discharged, when you will qualify for a captain’s pension.”

“How
did they ever get that through Congress?” asked Nat.

“I
don’t suppose they worked out that anyone would qualify in all four categories
at the same time,” replied the colonel.

“There
has to be a downside,” said Nat.

“Yes,
there is,” said the colonel gravely, “because even Congress has to cover its
backside.” Once again, Nat didn’t bother to hold him up. “First, you will have
to return to Fort
Benning
every year for two weeks’
intensive training to bring you up to scratch.”

“But
I’d enjoy that,” said Nat.

“And
at the end of the six years,” said the colonel, ignoring the interruption, “you
will remain on the active list until your forty-fifth birthday, so in the event
of another war, you could be called up.”

“That’s
it?” said Nat in disbelief.

“That’s
it,” repeated the colonel.

“So
what do I have to do next?”

“Sign
all six documents that the lawyers have prepared, and we’ll have you back at the
University of Connecticut by this time next week. By the way, I’ve already
spoken to the provost, and he tells me that they’re looking forward to seeing
you next Monday.

He
asked me to inform you that the first lecture begins at nine o’clock. Sounds a bit
late to me,” he added.

“You
even knew how I would respond, didn’t you?” said Nat.

“Well,
I admit,” said
Tremlett
, “that I did think you would
consider it a better alternative to brewing my coffee for the next twelve
months.

By
the way, are you sure you won’t join me?” the colonel asked, as he poured
himself a second cup.

“Will
you take this woman to be your lawful wedded wife?” intoned the bishop of
Connecticut.

“I
will,” said Jimmy.

“Will
you take this man to be your lawful wedded husband?”

“I
will,” said Joanna.

“Will
you take this woman to be your lawful wedded wife?” repeated the bishop.

“I
will,” said Fletcher.

“Will
you take this man to be your lawful wedded husband?”

“I
will,” said Annie.

Double
weddings were a rare event in Hartford, and the bishop admitted that it was the
first he’d ever conducted.

Senator
Gates stood at the head of a long receiving line, smiling at each new guest. He
knew almost all of them. After all, both of his children were being married on
the same day.

“Who
would have thought Jimmy would end up marrying the smartest girl in the class?”
said Harry proudly.

“Why
shouldn’t he?” asked Martha. “You did.

And
don’t forget, thanks to Joanna, he also managed cum laude.”

“We’ll
cut the cake, just as soon as everyone is seated at their tables,” announced
the
maftre
do’,

“
and
I’ll need the brides and grooms in front, and the
parents behind the cake when the photographs are taken.”

“You
won’t have to round up my husband,” said Martha Gates. “If a flashbulb goes
off, he’ll be on the other side of the camera within moments-it’s an
occupational hazard.”

“How
right she is,” admitted the senator. He turned his attention to Ruth Davenport,
who was looking wistfully at her daughter-in-law.

“I
sometimes wonder if they aren’t both a little too young.”

“She’s
twenty,” said the senator, “Martha and I were married when she was twenty.”

“But
Annie still hasn’t graduated.”

“Does
it matter? They’ve been together for the past six years.”

The
senator turned to greet another guest.

“I
sometimes wish
. .”
began Ruth.

“What
do you sometimes wish?” inquired Robert, who was standing on the other side of
his wife.

Ruth
turned so that the senator couldn’t overhear her. “No one could love Annie more
than I do, but I sometimes wish they, well,” she hesitated, “they had both
dated more.”

“Fletcher
met lots of other girls, he just didn’t want to date them, and by the way,”
said Robert, allowing his champagne glass to be refilled yet again, “how often
have I gone shopping with you, only to find you end up buying the dress you
first looked at?”

“That
didn’t stop me considering several other men before I settled for you,” said
Ruth.

“Yes,
but that was different, because none of the others wanted you.”

“Robert
Davenport, I would have you know
. .”

“Ruth,
have you forgotten how many times I asked you to MB marry me before you finally
accepted? I even tried to make you pregnant.”

“You
never told me that,” said Ruth, turning to face her husband.

“You’ve
obviously forgotten how long it was before you eventually had Fletcher.”

Ruth
looked back at her daughter-in-law.

“Let’s
hope she doesn’t have to face the same problem.”

“No
reason why they should,” said Robert. “It’s not Fletcher who is going to have
to give birth. And my bet is,” he continued, “that Fletcher, like me, will
never look at another woman for the rest of his life.”

“You’ve
never looked at another woman since we’ve been married?” said Ruth after
shaking hands with two more guests.

“No,”
said Robert, before he took another gulp of champagne, “I slept with several of
them, but I never looked at them.”

“Robert,
how much have you had to drink?”

“I
haven’t counted,” Robert admitted, as Jimmy broke away from the line.

“What
are you two laughing about, Mr. Davenport?”

“I
was telling Ruth about my many conquests, but she refuses to believe me. So
tell me, Jimmy, what are you hoping to do when you graduate?”

“I’ll
be joining Fletcher at law school.

It’s
likely to be a tough ride, but with your son to get me through the day, and
Joanna the night, I might just about manage it. You must be very proud of him,”
said Jimmy.

“Magna
cum laude and president of the college council,” said Robert. “We sure are,” he
added as he held out his empty glass to a passing waiter.

“You’re
drunk,” said Ruth, trying not to smile.

“You’re
right as always, my darling, but that won’t stop me being inordinately proud of
my only son.”

“But
he would never have become president without Jimmy’s contribution,” said Ruth
firmly.

“It’s
very kind of you to say so, Mrs. Davenport, but don’t forget, Fletcher won by a
landslide.”

JEFFREYARCHER

“But only after you had convinced Tom.
whatever
his name was, that he should concede and back
Fletcher.”

“It
may have helped, but it was Fletcher who instigated the changes that will
affect a generation of
Yalies
,” said Jimmy as Annie
came over to join them. “Hi, kid sister.”

“When
I’m chairman of General Motors, will you still address
m e
in that tiresome manner?”

“Sure
will,” said Jimmy, “and what’s more, I’ll stop driving Caddies.”

Annie
was just about to hit him, when the
maitre
do
’ suggested that the time had come to cut the cake.

Kuth
put an arm around her daughter-in-law.

“Take
no notice of your brother,” she said, “because once you’ve graduated, he’ll
have been put firmly in his place.”

“It’s
not my brother I need to prove anything to,” said Annie. “It’s always been your
son who sets the pace.”

“Then
you’ll just have to beat him as well,” said Ruth.

“I’m
not sure I want to,” said Annie.

“You
know he’s talking about going into politics once he’s obtained his law degree.”

“That
shouldn’t stop you having your own career.”

“It
won’t, but I’m not too proud to make sacrifices if it will help him to achieve
his ambitions.”

“But
you’ve the right to a career of your own,” said Ruth.

“Why?”
said Annie.
“Because it’s suddenly become fashionable?
Perhaps I’m not like Joanna,” she said, glancing across at her sister-in-law.
“I know what I want, Ruth, and I’ll do whatever is necessary to achieve it.”

“And
what’s that?” asked Ruth quietly.

“‘Support
the man I love for the rest of my life, bring up his children, delight in his
success, and with all the pressures of the seventies, that may prove a lot
harder than gaining a magna cum
laiide
from Vassar,”
said Annie as she picked up the silver knife with an ivory handle. “You know, I
suspect there are going to be far fewer golden wedding anniversaries in the
twenty-first century than there have been in the twentieth.”

“You’re
a lucky man, Fletcher,” said his mother as Annie placed the knife on the bottom
layer of the cake.

“I
knew that even before the braces had been removed from her teeth,” said
Fletcher.

Annie
passed the knife across to Joanna.

“Make
a wish,” whispered Jimmy.

“I
already have, freshman,” she replied, “and what’s more, it’s been granted.”

“Ah,
you mean the privilege of being married to me?”

“Good
heavens no, it’s far more significant than that.”

“What
could possibly be more significant than that?”

“The fact that we’re going to have a baby.”

Jimmy
threw his arms around his wife. “When did that happen?”

“I
don’t know the exact moment, but I stopped taking the pill a while ago once I
was convinced you’d graduate.”

“That’s
wonderful. Come
on,
let’s share the news with our
guests.”

“You
say a word, and I’ll plant this knife in you instead of the cake. Mind you, I always
knew it was a mistake to marry a freshman with red hair.”

“I
bet the baby has red hair.”

“Don’t
be too sure, freshman, because if you mention it to anyone, I’ll tell them I’m
not certain who the father is.”

“Ladies
and gentlemen,” said Jimmy, as his wife raised the knife, “I have an
announcement to make.” The room fell silent. “Joanna and I are going to have a
baby.” The silence continued for a moment, before the five hundred guests broke
into spontaneous applause.

“You’re
dead, freshman,” said Joanna, as she plunged the knife into the cake.

“I
knew that the moment I met you, Mrs. Gates, but I think we should have at least
three children before you finally kill me.”

“Well,
Senator, you’re about to become a grandfather,” said Ruth.
“My
congratulations.
I can’t wait to be a grandmother, although I suspect it
will be some time before Annie has her first child.”

“She
won’t even consider it until she’s graduated, would be my bet,” said Harry
Gates, “
especially
when they find out what I have
planned for Fletcher.”

“Is
it possible that Fletcher might not fall in with your plans?” suggested Ruth.