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gripped the battered nation over the following weeks, trivialities such as the Phu Lai fuckup were forgiven and forgotten. After all, said Browder with a wink, everyone from the chiefs of staff to the chief of Army intelligence was a fuckup for not having noticed what was coming.
    Browder, when he had a free moment some days later, put himself in for a Silver Star and told Tyson to do the same, though Tyson did not.
    Alpha Company spent a restless night among the bones and pungent earth.
    A breeze from the South China Sea carried the sounds of explosions from the east, and they could see parachute flares and signal rockets in the vicinity of Hue. A sergeant on his second tour of duty commented,
    "That's just Hue celebrating. It's called Tet. The gook New Year. Happy New Year."
    But it wasn't Hue celebrating. It was Hue dying.
    At dawn the remamder of Alpha Company moved east toward the now besieged city, a journey of six kilometers that would take them nearly two weeks and, for many of them, a lifetime to complete.

    "Ben!"
    Tyson opened his eyes and focused on Marcy sitting in the club chair across from him, a drink in her hand. He cleared his throat. "Hello."
    "Tough day?"

    WORD OF HONOR e 39

    Tyson sat up. "I've had worse."
    Marcy considered him for a moment. Then she said, "David ordered Chinese food."
    "I smell it."
    "Do you want to eat, or do you want to talk?"
    "I want to drink." He held out his glass.
    She hesitated, then stood and took it.
    "Drambuie. Neat." He picked up the Hue book and slid it across the coffee table between them. She handed him his drink.
    . He said, "Have a seat, my love. I have good news and bad news. The good news is that your husband is famous. The bad news is the reason why. Page two-seventeen. "
    She took up the book and began reading. She dressed well, and for all her feminism, she favored frilly white blouses and cameo chokers. Her skirt was hot pink and fit tightly, with a slit up the side, She wore her dark brown hair in a short shag that framed a light olive complexion. She looked vaguely Semitic or Mediterranean, though her genetic pool lay in the north of Europe. Her eyes were what people noticed first; those large watery green eyes that were able to flash anger, sensuality, and iciness with equal intensity. Ben Tyson studied his wife as she read. Finally, she sensed his gaze and raised the book.
    Tyson shifted his attention to the window. Bluebirds were feeding on the back lawn, and the sun was nearly gone, leaving long purple shadows over the terrace. The room was dark except for the circle of lamplight around Marcy.
    "Is this true?"
    He turned back toward her. She'd rested the open book in her lap and was staring at him, intently, expectantly.
    Everything that came to mind sounded evasive. "As far as it goes, and in substance, yes, it is accurate."
    She said nothing for a long time, then asked, "What more is there?"
    "Much, much more."
    "In your words, Ben. How is this book inaccurate?"
    "It's a matter of perspective. It depends on where you were standing."
    "Where were you standing?"

    40 * NELSON DEMILLE

    He ignored the question and said, "Also, after a long time it's hard to distinguish reality from fantasy from nightmare. "
    "It says here"- she tapped the open book --it says you and your men massacred sick and wounded people. You shot men, women, children, and babies. Burned people alive. Did that happen?"
    Tyson let a few seconds go by, then replied evenly, "It happened. It did happen. But not quite the way Picard says. "
    "Then tell me what you remember. What you know."
    Tyson considered a moment, then answered, "No."
    "Why not?"
    "I made a promise never to speak of this."
    "Whom did you promise?"
    Tyson looked off at some indeterminate point and said distractedly, "We all promised. We swore to each other."
    She showed a flash of anger. "That's absurd. I'm your wife. "
    Tyson stood and poured himself another liqueur. He turned and looked at her.
    Marcy stood and tossed the