Читать книгу An Affair of State онлайн

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"I ate here often until a few years ago. My husband used to bring me."

She would have been married, of course, but it didn't seem the proper time to ask about her husband. She would tell him of her husband when she was ready. "Did you know this was General Grant's favorite restaurant?" he asked.

"No, I didn't know."

"It was. He had a private dining room on the second floor, and when he'd finished a couple of dozen chincoteagues and a three-pound lobster he'd pace up and down on the balcony over the garden, smoking a cigar and shaking down his dinner."

"Tell me," she said, watching the thin spiral of smoke from the clamshell ash tray, "what do you think of generals?"

"I think generals are fine for winning wars. Or used to be."

"Used to be?"

"Uh-huh. I think generals are archaic, like knights in armor."

"If you talk like that in the Department," she said, "you won't be very popular. Generals are Chiefs of Mission in all the critical areas, and more areas are getting critical all the time."