FIVE TIMES PLUS ONCE 6

Five times the past came back to bother them, and once it gave them happiness

Chapter 6: 

When Mike T. Barnow asked Elizabeth McCord (again) to be reasonable

Summary:
In 2018, Sarah submitted a request for a posthumous presidential pardon for Duke Mitchell. In March 2020, the file landed on the desk of President Elizabeth McCord.

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Part 3 of The Lies We Told Each Other

Fandoms: Top Gun (Movies), Madam Secretary

Relationships:
Sarah Kazansky/Tom "Iceman" Kazansky/Pete "Maverick" Mitchell, Elizabeth McCord/Henry McCord

Characters:
Tom "Iceman" Kazansky, Pete "Maverick" Mitchell,
Sarah Kazansky, Elizabeth McCord, Henry McCord, Jay Whitman, Mike Barnow, Ellen Hill, Olivia Mason, Gordon Becker, Ephraim Ware, Hugh Haymond, Hank Nolan  

Additional Tags: Crossover, 5+1 Things

Washington, DC, March 2020

 

Elizabeth watches Henry, weighing up whether or not to bring up the subject. After all, they don't spend as many nights together as they'd like and should prioritize… other aspects of their life. At the same time, she's keen to share this with her husband. To start with, it's not related to the election campaign, which seems to monopolize all their conversations. Also, it's not strictly legal, there's an undeniable ethical knot at the heart of the matter, which his perspective could help her with.

"Hey, Henry, do you know a Navy pilot named Mitchell? He seems to be famous," she says casually as she lifts the covers on her side of the bed.

He looks up from the dresser where he's putting his things. His eyes sparkle as if he's anticipating something fun.

"Maverick?" He lets out a short laugh. "Who did he piss off this time?"

She wrinkles her brow, a little surprised. She knows about Pete Mitchell from his participation in the mission to deactivate the uranium enrichment plant in Sakha-Yakutia last November and from the film. Still, she was unaware that he elicited such sympathy in her husband.

"No," she clarifies. "I mean his father, Duke Mitchell."

Henry's face changes immediately.

"Oh, that Mitchell," he walks over to the bed and lifts the covers on his side. "Yeah, I know him. He was…" he sighs and shrugs his shoulders, clearly uncomfortable. "It's a scary story that the Admiralty uses, Duke Mitchell, the traitor, and his son, Pete Mitchell, the madman."

"So it's true that your son carried a stigma?"

Henry looks at her straight on, curious.

"Yeah, it's true. Rumor has it that he was denied entry into the Naval Academy, even though he had a perfect application, so he had to go to college and work through NROTC. Afterward…" he makes a vague gesture with his hands, "the higher-ups were never happy with him, his word didn't carry the same weight, that sort of thing. Why do you ask about that?"

She drops the file into the center of the bed. It was a difficult read, but she's undoubtedly had heavier materials to sleep on since they moved to DC.

"Because I have received a request to grant a posthumous Presidential Pardon to Duke Mitchell."

He looks at the folder curiously for a moment, then back at his wife.

"That isn't a file from the Naval Justice Office."

"No. It's an NSA file."

He raises an eyebrow.

"I'm officially intrigued. First, I can't imagine Maverick doing all that paperwork. It's not that he doesn't care about his father, it's just that I don't think he trusts the Admiralty enough to expect a fair trial. Second, the NSA? I thought presidential pardons were the work of the Justice Department or the military prosecutor's office."

"You're right," Elizabeth confirms as she climbs into bed, "it wasn't Captain Mitchell who initiated the request, but Sarah Kazansky."

Henry nods.

"Ah, that does make sense."

He gets into bed but doesn't lie down. He sits against the headboard and looks at the folder, somewhere between curious and uncomfortable. She turns a little to face him.

"I know that face."

"What face?"

She smacks her lips.

"Henry. That face you do when you think there's something deeper."

He rolls his eyes but doesn't deny it. It's confirmation enough for Elizabeth.

"Come on, what are you not telling me?"

Henry purses his lips uncomfortably. He's never been one for gossip, and he's not about to start now, but he's known for years that "friendship" isn't the right word to describe the relationship between the Kazanskys and Pete Mitchell.

By the time he met him during Operation Desert Storm, Maverick was already a legendary figure. The rescue of the SS Layton was an operation that was talked about in the war pilots' guild, like the tales of great heroes of the past. The most fascinating of his characters was Mitchell, of course, with his cursed last name, defiant attitude, and magazine model image.

In 1993, he was introduced to another star of the story. Tom "Iceman" Kazansky was then a commander, and his girlfriend Sarah was a young, energetic woman. Well, actually, she was already a celebrity in her own right: the Navy is quite conservative, and this Indigenous nurse – the actual comments were much less delicate – refused to marry the father of her child. He and Kazansky were part of their respective officers' entourage, a docile audience for Rear Admiral Tolkan's commissioning ceremony. Henry remembers that moment with strange clarity because two contradictory ideas emerged as he watched the couple's interactions. First, she seemed much more in love than he was. Second, Iceman was suspiciously disinterested in talking about Maverick, as if he wanted to downplay the importance of their relationship, which made Sarah angry. He found it odd.

In his experience, civilian girlfriends had little understanding of the brotherhood born from combat and often harbored well-or-badly concealed jealousy of their partners' colleagues. That Sarah disapproved of Kazansky's behavior, an obvious political move to distance himself from the troublesome aviator, was admirable. Few people are as consistent in their sense of justice. He also concluded that it was doubtful that their relationship would last. Kazansky wanted to climb and had the talent to do so, everyone knew that. But he could not imagine Sarah Seresin as the dutiful wife befitting a high-ranking naval officer.

He got almost everything wrong. Kazansky was, if not madly in love, at least interested enough in Sarah to marry her. She lived up to some expectations, giving him another baby, this time a boy, less than a year after the wedding. As for distancing himself from Mitchell? Please! Kazansky has two nicknames: "Iceman the Terrible” and “Maverick’s Guardian Angel.”

So, no, it doesn’t surprise him that Sarah Kazansky wants to do this for Mitchell. The thing is… In a way, the Department of Defense can be divided into two types of people: those who insist that Kazansky looks out for Mitchell out of honor of their professional brotherhood and those who know that Maverick is the love of Iceman's life. Henry falls into the second group, and what has always confused him is the relationship between Sarah Kazansky and Pete Mitchell. Sarah doesn’t strike him as the kind of woman who would agree to cover up for her husband’s homosexuality for decades. At the same time… That’s what she’s done, right?

No, it's more complicated. There is a familiarity and an evident trust between those three.

Take Metcalf's funeral a few months ago. It was a political event, and Kazansky made the most of it, exchanging greetings, making social chit-chat, and strengthening alliances. The expectation was that Sarah would be hanging on his arm, sober, hurt, but not overwhelmed by the circumstances. She wasn't. The Admiral worked through the reception but was accompanied by Vice Admiral Kerner, first and his youngest son later. Mrs. Kazansky was caring for Maverick, evidently devastated by the death of the closest thing he ever had to a father.

Yes, it was a sensitive and considerate gesture, but politically clumsy. It exposed the Admiral's "true" priorities. Does Sarah Kazansky value her husband's lover so much that she would jeopardize his image? Henry is mature enough to understand that part of his discomfort comes from the conventions of monogamy. Sarah and Pete act with unusual confidence and a lack of competitiveness, which is uncomfortable by contrast. He doesn't believe he has the capacity to share Elizabeth with anyone else.

But how do you explain all this to your wife without clouding her judgment?

"Look, Kazansky and Mitchell have been thick as thieves since they saved each other's lives in 1986, and of course, Sarah Kazansky has more reason to trust the system than Mitchell. That's all."

"No, it isn't."

Henry huffs, frustrated.

"Bess, you have to make a decision based on your own criteria and the advice of... Who is supposed to advise you on this?"

"The Judge Advocate General, the Office of the Pardon Attorney, and the White House Legal Office.

He can't help but raise his eyebrows. Hasn't Mike Barnow had his say in this? It's only a matter of time, surely.

"Yes, well, I don't want to influence you."

She crosses her arms over her chest.

"Duke Mitchell died on November 5, 1965. I don't think you knew him, so you can't influence my opinion of him. At least not in any way relevant to the present situation. You've already confirmed to me that his son was a scapegoat for his father's alleged treason. What else is there to that story?"

Henry closes his eyes for a moment, tilts his head, and looks at her again.

"Mitchell has a biological son."

She nods. The application letter mentions it. Jake Mitchell preferred to cut ties with his father and go to the Academy under his mother's last name than to deal with his father's and grandfather's cursed legend.

"What the letter surely doesn't mention, and I doubt the JAG and CIA reports would consider worthy of mentioning, are the rumors about that boy. Nobody knows his mother because it was supposedly Mitchell's one-weekend fling in New York. You can imagine that in 1991, it was a huge surprise when he was given full custody of his son and asked for a position on land to look after him.

She nods. Yes, it is unusual for a man to do so much, even when the mother dies.

"What many people did notice was that, first, when Maverick returned to serve at sea, the Kazanskys began to care for Jake full-time and, second, that the child looked more like Iceman than Maverick."

"Are you implying that…?"

"I'm telling you what was being said. I think the rumor arose from the prejudice with which anything related to Mitchell was viewed. Some only wanted to see a linear pattern: he was a Mitchell, destined for betrayal or madness, like his grandfather or father. Kazansky was trying to save him, it was his charity project," he can't help but grimace as he repeats the argument. "But imagining Maverick covering his wingman Kazansky's back by assuming paternity of his bastard. Ah! That's the kind of melodramatic twist that many people prefer. Of course, the fact that the boy disappeared after finishing high school only fueled the theories."

"Well..." she is silent for a few seconds while she processes the information. "I was right," she touches the folder still between them. "That doesn't changes my opinion on the Duke Mitchell case."

"I'm glad," he nods. "Are you going to tell me now why the NSA sent you a report on Duke Mitchell?"

"Because the CIA opposes the presidential pardon."

"Excuse me?"

She gives him an embarrassed smile. It happens often when she has to admit the mistakes of an agency to which she remains emotionally attached.

"They argue that it would generate scrutiny over events that are better left in the past."

"It means that, technically, whatever happened with Duke Mitchell is public, but no one has noticed until now, and they will do everything possible to keep it that way."

She nods her head and twists her lips in displeasure.

"The documents on the circumstances of his death were declassified in 2018. It is about Operation Barrel Roll, which the CIA implemented with the support of the Air Force and the Navy."

"I remember some of that," he nods, brow furrowing as he tries to remember. "Something about the monstrous bombings in Laos, right?"

"Yes, between 1964 and 1973, they dropped 260 million bombs to destroy North Vietnam's supply routes through Laos. It cost a lot of money and 118 lives: 113 Air Force, four Navy, and one Marine Corps. Amazingly, Sarah Kazansky waded through the thousands of reports to complete this request less than three months after declassification."

But Henry is more interested in something else.

"So Duke Mitchell didn't abandon his post to go live with a mistress in Hanoi?"

Now, it is she who raises her eyebrows, astonished.

"That was the Admiralty's explanation?"

"Well, yes... I told you it was a story to scare recruits, didn't I? It has all the components: uncontrolled passion, femme fatale, and, of course, a bit of racism."

Elizabeth snorts, not hiding her displeasure.

"And Pete Mitchell decided to join the Navy?"

"I think he wanted to prove that there was honor in his family," Henry shrugs. "Clean the family name with blood, so to speak."

"If it's blood we're talking about, he's shed enough to wash several reputations," she admits, though her tone is hesitant. "He's one of the most decorated officers of his generation."

Now, Henry realizes that his wife is not telling him everything.

"But…?"

She looks at him, doubtful. She carefully considers what she is about to say.

"But our relations with Vietnam are going well. If I sign this presidential pardon, I will bring back the whole disaster of Operation Barrel Roll and not only give ammunition to those who prefer resentment here. The resistance to President Ngọc Thịnh within the Vietnamese Communist Party is real."

"Pure sexism," snorts Henry.

"Indeed. She is a woman and was born in South Vietnam. She should not even have become vice president for many conservatives," she admits, as annoyed as her husband. "The fact is that any debate about the Vietnam War is used by her enemies to remind them of her family's past."

"Elizabeth…" Henry throws up his hands in a shocked gesture. "You can't be considering denying this to the Mitchell family in the name of geopolitics! They've been paying for the CIA's failure for over fifty years."

She bites her lip and looks at him, unsure.

"Give it to him!" is the first thing Mike tells her the following day with an annoyed look. "I don't even know why you asked for a meeting to discuss the matter, but okay. I went for a run an hour earlier," he points with his index finger accusingly. "The things I do for you, Elizabeth! To get to the office first and tell you alone. Here's my advice: Give Duke Mitchell a presidential pardon."

Elizabeth blinks several times, somewhat taken aback by the belligerent tirade she is greeted with at her own office. Her right hand is still on the doorknob of the Oval Office, and she is clutching several folders on her chest with her left arm.

"I really think I've lost out with this new office," she sighs.

She glances over her shoulder at Blake's desk, but her secretary shrugs and gives her a tight smile. Despite herself, she understands - who can stop Mike Barnow? She finishes entering, closes the door, and walks over to her desk.

"At least at the State Department, they will be waiting for me at the elevator door on the seventh floor, and I had the time in the elevator to myself."

"I think it's lovely that you're having nostalgic reminiscences about your time as Secretary of State at the end of your first term," he replies mockingly. "I'll make sure someone asks you that at one of your campaign events. Now, on to the important part. I want to save you time, and save the time of all the people you called to discuss Duke Mitchell. There's nothing to discuss."

She drops the folders on the table.

"I'm not going to issue such a controversial presidential pardon without consulting all parties, Mike."

"Controversial? Controversial? Did you read the same report I did? Sarah Kazansky wrote a moving letter laying out the long list of microaggressions, snubs, and petty gestures the Navy had filled Pete Mitchell's years of service with, leading his son to abandon his home and family name to prevent his career from dying before it began. Sarah Kazansky's plea is supported by three letters claiming that Duke Mitchell was shot down in combat after heroically engaging MiG fighters and saving the lives of the rest of his squadron. However, the Navy and the CIA forced them to remain silent. Who are the three brave guarantors of the aviator's character? Conspiracy theorists? No. Resentful ex-intelligence agents? No. Sarah Kazansky managed to obtain testimony from three officers aboard the USS Oriskany at that moment, direct witnesses with impeccable records. The late Rear Admiral Mike Metcalf and Captain Harlan P. Chapman, aviators assigned to the aircraft carrier,  who claim to owe their lives to Mitchell, and, to top it off, the late Vice Admiral Bartholomew J. Connolly III, captain of the USS Oriskany from April to December 1965."

Elizabeth slumps into the presidential chair and throws her head back. She knows all this. Mike knows she knows, but he doesn't stop.

"Sarah Kazansky supports her testimony and that of the three highly decorated officers with declassified CIA documents that reveal how they not only spectacularly failed to prevent the use of Laos as a transit territory for North Vietnamese communist forces. They did so by spending millions of dollars on bombs that still affect their civilian population and also lost more than one hundred American lives."

"Why do you keep saying her full name?" she cuts and sits up on her chair, curious.

"Oh! So you did notice?" Mike smiles with amusement and pride. "Because the most important thing here is who is asking for the pardon. If any political consideration deserves this request, it is not because of Ware and Haymond's flimsy excuse that the Vietnam government is going to collapse. It is your political career that will be affected. It is your plans for the second presidency that are at stake. Do you want Kazansky to be your Secretary of the Navy? Then give Duke Mitchell a presidential pardon, and you can promote Pete Mitchell to vice admiral to finish sweetening the pill."

"Do you really think Kazansky would turn down the offer of Secretary of the Navy if we denied that to his friend?"

Mike raises his eyebrows and gives her a look of pity.

"Friends? Is that what you think they are?"

She opens her mouth and closes it again. She carefully reviews her conversation with Henry last night and finally understands what he didn't dare say but kept hinting at.

"Since when?"

Barnow shrugs.

"Estimates vary, but most likely in the early to mid-nineties. There are two proven facts: Kazansky and Mitchell bought a mansion together," makes quotation marks with fingers, "so their wives could support each other," snorts mockingly, "in 1994. And they were at an impromptu celebration for the repeal of DADT in Hawaii in October 2011 to," makes quotation marks with fingers again, "accompany Mitchell's stepson Bradley Bradshaw at one of Oahu's most iconic gay bars, The Moan. There is also, of course, Mitchell's spectacular coming out via Hollywood, with the Oscar-winning Best Picture of the Year Top Gun. Officially, there is nothing else. Kazansky does have two nicknames, though Iceman and "Maverick's Guardian Angel."

"And their wives…?"

"That's something that no one has a good explanation for, and it's something that, of course, those who remain in denial about the possibility of a homosexual admiral cling to. Mitchell married Carole Bradshaw, his best friend's widow, in 1994. According to my sources, there was always a consensus that it was a marriage of convenience. No," he hastens to clarify in response to Elizabeth's dismissive expression, "not to protect Mitchell from gossip about his sexual preferences, but to guarantee her and her son's status within the military community. Carole Bradshaw's maiden name was," dramatic pause, "Abbot."

"Like the representative from Texas?"

Mike nods.

"She was his sister. Would you risk having custody of your gay son passed to someone like Richard Abbot?"

Elizabeth shudders at the suggestion. Abbot is a summary of everything she finds repulsive about the mythical "Deep America." His platform has four pillars: racist xenophobia, recalcitrant sexism, defending military spending, and lowering taxes for the rich. No, she would not leave him to care for anyone, regardless of their sexual orientation or age. At the same time, her admiration for Mitchell grows. She read about the accident that took Nick "Goose" Bradshaw's life and can understand his feeling of guilt, but marrying the widow to protect his son? That is an unusual level of commitment.

"Very well," she nods, "let's accept that Carole Bradshaw never cared about Mitchell's sexual orientation. There's Sarah Kazansky. Suddenly, this request seems…" she purses her lips, unsure of what word to use.

"Illogical? Unexpected? Contrary to her interests?" Mike lists while rocking in his seat.

He makes a face of discomfort. Elizabeth knows that expression: Mike Barnow doesn't like not knowing.

"From your expression, I gather that the relationship between Admiral Kazansky and his wife seems," she hesitates again with the term, "legitimate?"

Mike makes a stiff, reluctant nod.

"You know that challenge where you look back and try to spot clues to what's happening in the present?"

"Of course," as a CIA agent, teacher, and government official, she had to do that many times.

"Well, this is one of those cases where there are no clues."

She raises her eyebrows, confused. No clues? It's Washington DC, there's always something, isn't there? Although… if Kazansky has hidden his relationship with Mitchell for over twenty years, they are very good at this. She likes him more and more for Secretary of the Navy, maybe even Secretary of Defense? No, with those rumors around him, that would be taking things too far.

“You have to understand,” Mike explains, “the whole Iceman and Maverick romance is little more than a conspiracy theory inspired by Top Gun. There are only two concrete facts, which can be explained in other ways, with perfectly heterosexual arguments. The dissonant element is Sarah Kazansky, who bore him two children, one of them before they were married. Who as late as 2008 was writing him love letters. Who has been seen with hickeys on her neck after spending the night with her husband as recently as 2015. Do I believe Kazansky and Mitchell are lovers? Yes. Can I explain what Mrs. Kazansky's role is? All I can think of is that the Admiral is a stud and she is…" Mike rolls his eyes, clearly uncomfortable. "She appreciates Mitchell taking on some of the physical demands of their relationship. In any case," and now his voice regains its composure, "I wouldn't be a good advisor if I didn't tell you that this pardon is the key to keeping you in the good graces of Admiral Kazansky, whom you want for your second term in office, but who owes you nothing."

Elizabeth nods thoughtfully. The moral imperative invoked by Henry is now joined by personal political advantage. Can she make this decision on those criteria alone? Ephraim Ware and Hugh Haymond's argument is not a flimsy excuse, no matter what Mike says, no matter how much she resents the sexist and regionalist undertones of the current tensions in the Vietnamese government.

She reaches out to ask Barnow something else, but Blake appears in the doorway.

"Madam President, your daily security update. And you have a meeting at 8:30."

Mike stands up immediately.

"I'm going to go get some sugar to justify my ex-wife's hatred. I'll see you in half an hour to hear you go all presidential on how the right thing to do is, like when you freed Erica James while Conrad was incommunicado on Air Force 1," and he winks at her, complicit.

The security report lasts not half an hour but forty-five minutes. There is something brewing in Venezuela, but they cannot figure out exactly what. China has still not managed to control the strange outbreak of pneumonia that began last December in Wuhan. Although the government has managed to prevent the infections from spreading beyond the province of Hubei, there is growing evidence that it is doing so by openly violating the human rights of its population. The worst thing is that the CDC delegate admits there is no other way to stop the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

It is a bitter prologue to the uncomfortable discussion that awaits.

As she walks through the halls of the White House, Elizabeth congratulates herself again for having asked Blake to leave the University of Virginia and join her on her adventure as Secretary of State. Her assistant scheduled the meeting on the Presidential Pardon in the Cabinet Room to accommodate all the parties involved around the long table. She appreciates it. Walking from the Oval Office to the Cabinet Room gives her a few moments to focus again on the Mitchell family and how much the American government owes them.

Elizabeth sits, as usual, in the center of the table with her back to the windows (she prefers to avoid the temptation to try to make out the garden when discussions get tedious; she is the president, after all). Her chief of staff, Jay Whitman, sits to her right, and White House counsel Olivia Mason to her left. Mike is next to Olivia but moves his chair away from the table and feigns apathy by staring at the ceiling, elbows resting on the arms of his chair, hands connected by outstretched fingertips.

Across the table, the sides are clearly defined. Attorney General Nolan faces the president, his expression calm and his gestures relaxed. Only the frequency he picks up and puts down his pen reveals his tension. The defense department's representatives have chosen to sit to his left: Admiral Ellen Hill looks frankly uncomfortable, Navy Secretary James E. McPherson and Gordon Becker, the trusted defense secretary he inherited from Conrad, are very stiff, but their eyes are wide and wary as if they were in battle. Clearly aware that they are in hostile territory, Ephraim Ware, Director of National Intelligence, and Hugh Haymond, Director of the CIA, left a seat between Nolan and them.

"First of all," Elizabeth begins, "I want to thank the defense and intelligence representatives for taking the time to look into this matter. I have studied your recommendations and assure you that I understand each position on the Mitchell matter. That is why I asked you to come. The decision is mine, indeed, but it will affect several branches of our government. When possible, I like to work from a consensus. So, I would like to start with the recommendations of the Justice Department and White House Legal Counsel."

This part is short and to the point: Nolan and Mason agree on this one, and their expositions complement each other almost perfectly.

The Attorney General reminds them that the Department of Justice has a general policy of not accepting applications for posthumous pardons because the time of the officials involved in the clemency process is better spent on applications for pardons and commutations of sentences from living people. In addition, modern investigative techniques are useless for very old crimes. However, Sarah Kazansky's application was not processed by the Office of the Pardon Attorney but by the Navy Pardon Requests Office. The Navy's Criminal Law Division

considered the claim worthy of reaching this year's list of pardons. The Attorney General's Office agrees with the Office of Naval Justice that there was an injustice. This fact is widely documented through declassified documents from the government. For these reasons, his office sees no reason to oppose granting the pardon.

Now that Mike has tipped her off, Elizabeth recognizes a slight tension between several people when the Pacific Fleet commander's last name is mentioned. Interesting.

For her part, Olivia Mason addresses the general policy against posthumous pardons: rehabilitation is impossible. However, from her point of view, the key to this request is the burden that the Mitchell family has carried since 1965. The stigma that Pete Mitchell carried is undeniable, and it is also documented in the file with testimonies and excerpts from Navy documents. Among the most scandalous evidence are successive versions of the USNA Naval History syllabus, where for decades, the "Mitchell Affair" has been presented as an example of the risks of fraternization in enemy territory. The most obvious and painful impact, of course, is that his only son decided to adopt his mother's surname, Seresin, and cut all ties with the family.

Elizabeth recalls the difficult situations her children have found themselves in because of her and Henry's work. Alison and Jason have had a hard time, yes, but they never... or maybe they have?

Have they ever considered giving up their family in exchange for a little peace? For the opportunity of being judged on their own merits?

Poor boy!

Olivia concludes, and Mike snorts.

"Well, that's it, right? We can just let the president sign on the dotted line and move on."

"Wait a minute, Mr. Barnow," speaks Ephraim Ware. "The issue does merit debate," he turns to Elizabeth. "Madam President, as the CIA report explains, the ramifications of bringing this to light could be… uncomfortable."

"Uncomfortable!" Ellen snorts, clearly outraged. "You made an honorable man into a traitor, you condemned his family to public scorn in the middle of the Cold War, and now you say 'uncomfortable'. Please!"

"It wasn't just us," Haymond answers with all the dignity he can muster. "The Air Force agreed to deny any US involvement in Laos."

"And those are a good bunch too," Gordon growls.

From his expression, it is evident that he is already planning to order a thorough investigation into who decided what.

"Madam President," Ellen makes no attempt to hide the fact that this moves her deeply, "the documents have been declassified. The truth is there for anyone who wants to look for it. A posthumous pardon for Duke Mitchell would demonstrate beyond a doubt that this administration stands by its combatants, not paying mind to," she throws a venomous glance at Ware and Haymond, "political considerations."

Elizabeth nods slightly to the Admiral and turns to the Secretary of the Navy, who looks unusually gloomy today.

"What is your position, McPherson?"

"Madam President, I worked for military justice my entire career. Pete "Maverick" Mitchell has given JAG personnel work," shakes his head, "more times than I care to remember. He was a belligerent officer with a nasty ability to walk the fine line between courage and insubordination. Or at least that's how we thought of it. Because Mitchell was synonymous with trouble. I... I'm not going to deny that I saw the ghost of Duke Mitchell, too. What we did." he rubs his face with his hands. "Those twenty casualties that were never acknowledged, those families, for God's sake. But Maverick persisted. He knew he had talent, and he gave everything to this country. I don't think a presidential pardon makes up for it. I've defended victims of harassment, and it's... But at least we can close the chapter. Madam President, please."

"What do you think, Jay?"

Her political advisor looks at her without hiding his surprise. Then he looks around the table and, as proof of how much he has matured, he does not flinch at any of the looks he receives in return.

"As far as I understand, no one at this table denies the rightness of the presidential pardon for Duke Mitchell." Ellen can't help but smile with satisfaction. "I also think the CIA's warning about instability in Vietnam has merit, but it's not something we can't handle. It's just a PR issue. We set up some events related to our economic cooperation with Hanoi get the press there to focus on something else. I even think we could have been proactive in this, considering that polls indicate that the public sees this administration as loosely commited to its military. I think it was a mistake not to take control of the narrative when the documents were declassified. If the pardons had been the administration's initiative, no one could have denied it was fair and would put us on the right side of history, which is difficult when we're talking about Vietnam. Instead, we now risk making it look like the wife of the Commander of the Pacific Fleet forced your hand, Madam President."

At the oblique mention of Kazansky, Hill, McPherson, and Becker all turn very stiff. Oddly enough, Haymond does, too. Elizabeth saves that detail for later and replies to Jay.

"If we can't avoid that narrative, which I find a bit far-fetched, I don't care," she waves her hands, fingers extended, across the table. "Sarah Kazansky marked all the Xs and dotted all the i's. I'm sure that, precisely because she was the Admiral's wife, the Office of Naval Justice reviewed the file with a magnifying glass to ensure that everything met the highest standards. So, our only problem is the internal opposition to President Ngọc Thịnh. Tell me, Haymond, do you think it will be enough to feed the news cycle so the Vietnamese press looks to the other side, or do we need to look for an additional incentive package?"

Her question generates looks of frank astonishment from the three military representatives.

"Madam President…" Ellen exhales with an incredulous voice.

She gives her a determined look.

"You said it yourself, Admiral Hill. This administration needs to prove that it stands with its combatants. And you're right, Jay, that we should have been proactive, but it's not too late." She turns to Olivia. "I want us to investigate the legal status of the other casualties from Operation Barrel Roll. If we can issue all the pardons simultaneously, no one will have reason to believe that Kazansky forced me to do anything. Right?"

She glances at Mike. As expected, he has the look of ecstasy that comes from bold political moves that include a drop of decency.

 

San Diego, July 3, 2020

 

The room smells of sex and happiness.

This year, Ice managed to get himself assigned to oversee the Blue Angels squadron during their Independence Day maneuvers in San Diego. A completely ceremonial mission, of course. The Blue Angels don't need the Admiral, but the cameras need him.

Pete won't complain about the Navy playing PR with his husband if it means he's home for his birthday.

The kids are out, living their adult lives. They will come tomorrow. Today, they have the house, and they have taken advantage of it.

"We'll have to disinfect the kitchen," Ice's voice is more of a vibration because his lips are pressed against his husband's back.

"Tomorrow," Pete answers sleepily.

He moves his head a little, wanting to suck on Sarah's nipple a little more, but she gets out of the bed.

"Hey!" he moans, surprised by the sudden emptiness in his arms.

Ice sits up slightly, leaning his elbows on the bed, and watches her pull something out of one of the dresser drawers.

"Mitawin?" he asks.

Sarah turns to them, a legal-sized envelope in her hands and a proud smile on her face.

"Honey, your birthday gift for our husband was exquisite, but I think I outdid you this time."

She walks back to the bed, sits down, and hands the envelope to Pete.

"Happy birthday, Mitchell."

They both look at her in surprise. Sarah doesn't usually use that last name. She knows Pete has a complicated relationship with his family legacy. It doesn't matter that Viper told him his father wasn't a traitor because no one else knows it, nor will they ever know.

Pete looks intrigued at the envelope, at his wife, and at the envelope again.

"Come on," she urges him, smiling, "open it, Mitchell."

He raises an eyebrow, puzzled by the insistence on using his last name, but complies. Ice shifts so that his back is against the headboard so he can look over his shoulder. Pete opens the envelope and pulls out a sheet of stiff paper, the modern parchment substitute used to print official documents. "Executive Grant of Clemency" it says on the first line, and the seal of the United States Department of Justice gleams on the bottom left. It can't be… or can it?

“Oh, Sarah!” Ice’s voice is low and reverent, like someone witnessing a miracle.

So it's true.

Pete swallows and forces himself to read the entire document.

Executive Grant of Clemency

Elizabeth A. McCord

President of the United States of America

To ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, GREETING:

Be it known that this day, I, Elizabeth A. McCord, President of the United States of America, pursuant to my powers under Article II, Section 2, Clause 1, of the Constitution, have granted

Duke Mitchell

A TOTAL AND UNCONDITIONAL PARDON

WHEREAS, the United States Military Tribunal for the Northern District of Vietnam found Lieutenant Mitchell guilty of Desertion under Article 85, Section 885, Title 10, General Military Code of the United States, and sentenced him to death on December 14, 1965.

WHEREAS, the Department of Defense and the Department of Justice have recommended executive clemency for Lieutenant Mitchell.

I HEREBY DESIGNATE, direct, and authorize the Office of Presidential Pardons, as my representative, to sign a grant of clemency to the individual named herein.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my name and cause the seal of the Department of Justice to be affixed.

Made in the City of Washington,

District of Columbia,

June 29, 2020.

 

He has enough control to put it away. He doesn't want it to get wet with his tears, and there's no way he can...

Sarah takes the document from his trembling fingers, places it on the nightstand, and climbs into bed.

"My dad," he moans incredulously. "Did you get a pardon for my dad?"

"The documents of the CIA operation were declassified in 2018," she explains. "I made the request as quickly as I could. I didn't tell you anything because I didn't want to give you false hope."

Pete doubles over and lets out a few choked, pained sobs that shake his chest and make the veins in his neck tremble.

"It's okay, love, it's okay," Tom coos as he wraps his arms around his torso to press him against his broad chest, "let it out."

"My dad didn't abandon me," he suddenly blurts out in a high-pitched, almost childish voice.

Sarah puts her hands on his shoulders.

"Of course not," her voice doesn't shake, although her eyes are wet. "Your dad was a good man, Pete. A hero. And now everyone knows it."

"Th… Thanks, love."

"No," she denies softly. "Thanks to you, Pete. For your love. For Tom's love. For the children you gave me," she gives him a soft kiss on the lips.

Ice kisses the back of his neck.

"You deserve it, Pete."

The man shakes again with a hoarse, agonized whimper. He raises one hand to his wife's cheek and caresses her lips with his thumb. His other hand finds Ice's hand on his chest, and they interlace their fingers.

"You are my perfect birthday."

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An incomplete list of references:

How to Get a Presidential Pardon,

https://www.wikihow.life/Get-a-Presidential-Pardon

https://www.justice.gov/media/953646/dl?inline

List of US aircraft losses to missiles during the Vietnam War, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_US_aircraft_losses_to_missiles_during_the_Vietnam_War

McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McDonnell_Douglas_F-4_Phantom_II

Operation Barrel Roll, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Barrel_Roll

Presidential Pardon After Completion of Sentence, Policies, Military pardons, https://www.justice.gov/pardon/apply-pardon

Roblin, Sebastien. "Revealed: 50 Years Ago, a Top-Secret US Base Was Overrun By Elite Vietnamese Commandos", https://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/revealed-40-years-ago-top-secret-us-base-was-overrun-by-24993

Tillman, Barrett. "Vietnam: The Yankee Station View," https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/2021/september/vietnam-yankee-station-view

USS Oriskany, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Oriskany

VMFA-212, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VMFA-212

Yankee Station, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yankee_Station

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INDEX: https://palabraspulsares.blogspot.com/p/the-lies-we-told-each-other-3-five.html