In Search of Enemies - A CIA Story - John Stockwell

[74] IN SEARCH OF ENEMIES
He collared me as I hurried down the hall; otherwise I would have
nodded and walked past him.
"John, you're the head of the Angola Task Force, aren~t you?"
I nodded.
"Well, it looks like we'll be working together. Jim Potts just asked
me if I would postpone my retirement and go into Angola to work
with one of those black clowns over there."
Not the man for IAFEATURE, Hilton was a dues-paid-in-advance
member of the agency's senior clique, a burned-out hero of previous
wars. I tried to see Potts, then Carl. Neither was in. Finally I found
George Costello. He knew Sam Hilton.
"George," I said. "Sam's not the man for the Lusaka job. He isn't
fit enough and he doesn't ... "
"Now wait a minute, John. Slow down. Sam has done some things
you couldn't even touch. He parachuted into Greece when there
were N"zis all over the place and single-handedly tore them a new
asshole.~ ou young people don't know what danger really is."
"How long ago was that, George?"
"Let's see ... it was ninteen-forty-three."
"Thirty-two years ago. How old was Sam then?"
"He was in his twenties. You should have seen him. He was strong
as a mule. He isn't very tall, but he could have broken someone lik~
you in half."
"Okay," [ said, "but all that was thirty years ago. I just saw him
in the hall. He's fat and soft. And I knew him in Vietnam. He loafed.
Drank a lot. Inhaled long black cigars. H
Costello looked at me with thunder in his eyes, but I held up my
hand.
"George, I hope he got medals and a hearty thanks for what he
did in Greece in 1943. But this is 1975 and we're talking about
Angola. Sam is over the hill physically. So are you. Right now Nick
Kohler could whip all three of us at the same time. He,s twentyseven.
It's his turn. You guys have to step aside and let Nick's
generation have its chance."
Some pop-off valve in his mind blew and the red went out of his
forehead. He was chuckling as I left his office and went to find Potts.
But Potts didn~t laugh. He stonily put me out of his office.
The next day I had lunch with Sam Hilton. We both took seconds
of everything and then two desserts while I told him what he would