Nightwork

Hale was seated at a cluttered desk, peering down at a sheaf of papers in front of him. He had put on weight since I had last seen him. and had added statesmanlike solidity to the mild polite face. On the desk, in a silver frame, was a family group, a woman and two children, a boy and a girl. Everything in moderation. Zero population growth. An example to the heathen. Hale looked up when I came in and stood, smiling widely. 'Doug,' he said, 'You don't know how glad I am to see you.'

As we shook hands. I was surprised at how moved I was by my friend's greeting. For three years now, no one had been genuinely glad to see me.

'Where've you been. where've you been, man?' Hale said. He waved to a leather sofa along one side of the spacious office and, as I sat down. pulled a wooden armchair close to the sofa and sat down himself. 'I thought you'd disappeared from the face of the earth. I wrote three times and each time the letters came back. Haven't you learned anything about forwarding addresses yet? And I wrote your girl friend. Pat, asking about you and she wrote back and said she didn't know where you'd gone.' He scowled at me. He was agreeable-looking, tall, comfortably built, soft-faced, and the scowl was incongruous on him. 'And you don't look so almighty great, either. You look as though you haven't been out in the open air for years.'

'Okay, okay,' I said, 'one thing at a time, Jerry. I just decided I didn't like flying anymore and I moved on. Here and there.'

'I wanted to ski with you last winter. I had two weeks off and I heard the snow was great... '

'I haven't been doing much skiing, to tell the truth,' I said.

Impulsively, Hale touched my shoulder. 'All right,' he said. 'I won't ask any questions.' Even as a boy in college he had always been quick and sensitive. 'Well, anyway, just one question. Where're you coming from and what're you doing in Washington?' He laughed. 'I guess that's two questions.'

'I'm coming from New York,' I said, 'and I'm m Washington to ask you to do a little favor for me.'

The government is at your disposal, lad. Ask and ye shall receive.'

'I need a passport.'

'You mean you never had a passport?'

No.'

'You've never been out of the country?' Hale sounded amazed. Everybody he knew was out of the country most of the time.

'I've been in Canada,' I said. That's all. And you don't need a passport for Canada.'

'You said you were in New York.' Hale looked puzzled. 'Why didn't you get it there? Not that I'm not delighted you finally had an excuse to visit me,' he added hastily. 'But all you had to do was go to the office on Six thirty....'

'I know,' I said. 'I just didn't feel like waiting. I'm in a hurry and I thought I'd come to the fountainhead, from which all good things flow.'

"They are swamped there,' Hale said. 'Where do you intend to go?'

'I thought Europe, first. I came into a little dough and I thought maybe it was time I ought to get a dose of Old World culture. Those postcards you used to send me from Paris and Athens gave me the itch.' Deception. I found was coming easily.

'I think I can run the passport through for you in a day,' Hale said. 'Just give me your birth certificate....' He stopped when he saw the frown on my face. 'Don't you have it with you?'

'I didn't realize I needed it.'

'You sure do,' Hale said. 'Where were you born - Scranton, wasn't it?'

‘Yes.'

He made a face.

What's the matter?' I asked.

Pennsylvania's a bore,' he said. 'All the birth certificates are kept in Harrisburg, the state capital. You'd have to write there. It'd take at least two weeks. If you're lucky.'

'Balls,' I said. I didn't want to wait anywhere for two weeks.

'Didn't you get your birth certificate when you applied for your first driver's license?'

Yes,' I said.

Where is it now? Have you any idea? Maybe somebody in your family. Stashed away in a trunk somewhere.'

My brother Henry still lives in Scranton,' I said. I remembered that after my mother died he had taken all the accumulated family junk, old report cards, my high school diploma, my degree from college, old snapshot albums and stored them in his attic. 'He might have it.'

'Why don't you call him and have him look. If he finds it tell him to send it to you special delivery, registered.'

'Even better,' I said. 'I'll go down there myself. I haven't seen Henry for years and it's about time I put in an appearance, anyway.' I didn't feel I had to explain to Hale that I preferred not to have Henry know where I was staying in Washington or anywhere else.

Let's see,' Hale said. This is Thursday. There's a weekend coming up. Even if you find it, you couldn't get back in time to do anything until Monday.'

That's okay,' I said. 'Europe's waited this long I guess it can wait another couple of days.'

'You'll need some photographs, too.'

'I have them with me.' I fished the envelope out of a pocket.

He slid one out of the envelope and studied it. 'You still look as though you're just about to graduate from high school.' He shook his head. 'How do you manage it?'