‘You don’t want me. Remember? You’re a specialist.’
England said, ‘So are you. I’m beginning to find out in what.’
Parker could visualize the suitcases moving away across the horizon, while he and this fool stood here talking crap. England didn’t know about the suitcases, because Parker had let him understand the loot had burned up in the fire back on the island. England had believed it because it satisfied his need for poetic justice. But now there was no justification for Parker being in such a hurry, and if he kept on pushing, England might begin to wonder.
Still, England himself should be in a hurry. Parker said to him, ‘Make up your mind. Do you want Baron or not?’
England shrugged. ‘All right,’ he said, ‘I’ll see it out. I was told to co-operate, I’ll co-operate. But if we ever get our hands on Baron through you I’ll have a heart attack.’
They went back to the helicopter and told the pilot what they wanted; their quarry would be heading west, or towards the nearest town, or. both. ‘We don’t know how long ago he left. England said, ‘so we aren’t looking just for him. We’re also looking for signs that he’s passed a certain way, so we’ll be sure which way he’s headed.’
For the next hour and a half they made tic-tac-toe in the sky, north and then south and then west, north and then south and then west, until ahead of them they saw the black man-shape spread out on the ground and Parker pointed forward, saying, ‘There’s something there.’
‘I see it,’ said the pilot.
The helicopter lowered, and Parker saw no suitcases, and then he made out that the figure on the ground was Grofield, which was impossible.
The pilot landed twenty yards away, and Parker hurried across the rocky ground, limping, wanting to get there before England, to keep Grofield from saying anything he shouldn’t.
Grofield had his eyes closed, and very faintly he was smiling. He looked as though he’d been wandering out here for a week, with dirt caked on his face, with his lips dry and cracked, his clothing filthy. Parker knelt beside him and said, low and fast, ‘England’s with me. Keep mum on the money.’
Grofield opened his eyes as England came running up. Grofield said, ‘Come off it, Parker, you’re a mirage.’
Parker said, ‘Where’s Baron?’
‘Ahead of me. I don’t know.’ Grofield’s voice was husky and he was out of breath, but the words came as though he were fully conscious and in good shape. ‘I hid on the boat,’ he said. ‘Passed out. I don’t know how far he is ahead of me.’
Parker said, ‘How’s he travelling? Light or heavy?’
‘Heavy.’
England said, ‘We’d better get this man back to the ship.’
Grofield said, ‘No. I’m happy in Mexico.’
Parker straightened up, said to England, ‘You got no jurisdiction here, remember?’
‘This man’s hurt,’ England said. ‘He needs medical attention.’
On the ground, Grofield said, ‘Mexico has doctors.’
Parker looked westward, across the flat land towards the horizon, and then he looked down at Grofield. He had too many things to do at once. It was no good leaving Grofield for the law, but it was also no good standing around here while Baron got farther and farther away.
He said to England, ‘We got a radio in that helicopter?’
‘Of course.’
‘We got a map of this area in there?’
‘I think so.’
‘Let’s go look at it. You wait here, Grofield.’
Grofield smiled some more, lying there on the ground. He looked very sick. ‘I won’t move,’ he promised.
Parker and England went back to the helicopter and looked at a map. According to the pilot they were at a spot about twenty miles south of a coast town called Pesca. About fifteen miles west of them was a dirt road heading north and south, and that road, taken through a number of villages, would lead finally to Ciudad Victoria, about eighty miles away, the nearest city of any size.
Parker said to England, ‘You get on that radio of yours, you arrange for a jeep to come here from Ciudad Victoria. Then you and the helicopter leave. Grofield and I, in the jeep, we’ll get Baron for you. Tell them we want to keep the jeep a while, maybe a few days, maybe a week. We’ll turn it in when we go back across the border.’
‘I don’t know if I can work that,’ England said. ‘You don’t seem to realize how complicated that would be, getting’
‘Then why don’t you try it, see what happens?’
England said, ‘I stay with you.’
Parker looked at him. ‘You got no jurisdiction here.’
‘I won’t be here officially. I’ll just be with you, observing.’
Parker shook his head. ‘No.’
‘It’s the only way I could get a car, if it’s checked out to me. They’d never allow me to give a car to you.’
‘Jeep.’
