Sea of Fire

punched someone. He could not remember. The last thing he remembered clearly was running down the stairs. That moment was so immediate he felt as though he could go back there. Do things differently.

But it would still come out the same, Kannaday realized. Unlike Hawke, he had been predictable. On top of that, there was an unusual dynamic. Hawke was not after something that Kannaday had. He wanted to preserve the hierarchy exactly as it was. But with privileges. And he had succeeded. The fact that the rest of the crew had not come down to check on him was telling. If the cook had come by, Kannaday did not hear him. But he doubted it. Either the crew had been told to stay away or did so from fear.

Kannaday's body was beginning to accept the pain as a fact of life. It felt as though he had strained every muscle in his arms, torso, and neck. It was that kind of taut, deep-muscle ache. Kannaday knew that the more he moved, the more it would hurt. But he had no choice. He had to get out of here. Somehow, he had to take charge.

The captain waited another few minutes before trying to move again. He shifted to the edge of the bed and put his feet on the floor. He rose slowly. Most of the damage had been done north of Kannaday's waist. His legs felt all right. He felt a little light-headed as he took a few shuffling steps toward the door. The sensation passed after a few moments. It was not pleasant, but Kannaday had his footing. What he did not have was something just as important.

A plan.

Kannaday reached the door. He turned and leaned his back against it. Standing in the dark, he pondered his next steps, both literally and figuratively. As he did, something occurred to him. The events that had brought Kannaday here could be useful. After all, he made the same mistake twice. He had acted just as Hawke had expected him to.

Hawke would probably expect him to do it again. Especially after the beating he had taken.

Kannaday went back to the bed. He sat down. He tried not to think the way he usually did, as if he were going down a checklist of things to do before leaving port.

He let himself contemplate all the scenarios that would surprise Hawke. And Darling, for that matter. Everything from setting fire to the Hosannah to taking the dinghy and vanishing into the night sea.

How far are you willing to go? he asked himself.

More important than that, Kannaday needed to find out exactly what he wanted.

Kannaday was doing the job he had agreed to do. The crew had suffered a setback because of the sampan attack. Not a dramatic one, but Darling's reputation for absolute efficiency had been tarnished. Darling would be able to absorb the blow. The gentry knew how to talk to the gentry. He would explain it all to Mahathir bin Dahman. Darling would blame it on the serfs. But Darling would also want to make the head villain pay. Darling had known precisely how Hawke would respond to a threat or challenge. He had sent Kannaday back to be humiliated.

Kannaday realized that he was not interested in recapturing Darling's respect. He wanted to hurt Hawke, and he wanted to hurt Darling. The question was how to do that without hurting himself.

Or was it?

There is flaw in your thinking, he admonished himself. The question itself made him vulnerable. It cost him the advantage of surprise.

The question itself held the answer.

Chapter Forty-Six

Cairns, Australia Saturday, 10:04 P.M.

They did things differently in Australia.

Bob Herbert had expected to be at the Darling estate by eight P.M. at the latest.

All they had to do was set the trap around back, go to the front, and knock on the door. But Leyland and Jelbart were not so impulsive. They insisted on taking several passes over the 500-acre estate in the helicopter. They used fire brigade night-vision goggles to study the terrain. They wanted to know where the security posts were and where there were places that could serve as emergency exits. The property was heavily fenced to keep out wild hare and deer. However, they found two spots where the bait could credibly be set inside. The security personnel would know those spots and probably go right to them. Jelbart wanted to time how long it would take for the teams to drive their golf carts to and from that area. Ordinarily, Herbert would have admired their thoroughness. But potential nuclear terrorists were on the run. He wanted to capture them. Herbert said so after they made their second slow pass over the estate. A pass they would explain to Jervis Darling or his security chief when they came to visit.

'We won't be able to capture anyone if our ruse is exposed,' Jelbart pointed out. 'We'll be the ones being investigated.'

FNO Loh was sitting between Coffey and Herbert in the backseat. 'I cannot believe that your government would discipline you. We are pursuing a reasonable lead in a case of some urgency,' she said.

'The government would not bother us if we were pursuing the lead in a reasonable fashion,' Jelbart replied. 'We are not. We are invading a citizen's privacy. The law is very specific about things like that.'

'Specific and constipated,' Herbert said. 'Remind me to quote the law to whatever guys are looking to slip nuclear material into populated cities and poison our water supplies.'

'We're not certain that's the case,' Coffey said.

'Certain enough to make me want to kick Darling's ass for quick answers,' Herbert replied.

'And then what? If we become what we behold, then all of civilization goes to hell,' Jelbart pointed out.

'If we don't, hell will come to civilization,' Herbert shot back. 'Don't take this personally, Jelbart, but I'm getting really sick of our leaders reacting instead of taking preventative action. Am I the only one who realizes that this isn't the twentieth century anymore?'

'What do you mean?' Coffey asked.

'Somehow, over the last forty or so years, the Western world evolved this screwed-up coddling mentality toward killers and terrorists. That is going to destroy us,' Herbert said.

'This isn't about coddling killers; it's about individual voices and dignity,' Coffey said. 'And for the record, it came from us. From America. It came after the Vietnam War protests and civil rights movement proved effective. It came when police were required to read criminals their rights. Now everyone on earth wants a share of humanity. And I don't think that's a bad thing.'

'That may have worked in the sixties and seventies, but it's a luxury we can no longer afford,' Herbert said. 'We don't stop eating tuna because a few dolphins get snared.'

'What does that have to do with anything?' Coffey asked.

'Yes, what are you suggesting, Mr. Herbert?' Jelbart asked.

'That we hunt down bad guys aggressively,' Herbert said. He was yelling so that they could hear him over the rotor. But it felt good to yell because he was angry. 'Once in a while you may grab an innocent. You apologize and make amends. But that's how you protect the majority of the people.'

'So you think that we should just do away with human rights?' Jelbart pressed.

'No!' Herbert shouted. 'The actions can be selective. I suggest we grant exceptional authority in emergency circumstances, like these. We have fanatical racists and radical sociopaths with access to nuclear fuel. We've got mass murderers in our high schools. When I was a kid, juvenile delinquents packed zip guns and switchblades. Once in a while they flashed their weapons, and once in a really rare while they used them. Usually on other hoodlums. Usually shitting their pants when they did. Now we have kids packing AK-47s and attitude. They're cool killers, Warrant Officer. You're trying to play soccer or football or whatever the hell you call it against a team that disregards referees, fouls, out-of-bounds lines, clocks, and rules. I'm telling you that if we don't identify and neutralize them, the game is over. With us the losers.'

The cockpit was silent for a long moment. After making a final pass over the estate, Leyland spoke.

'I see a tree we can use,' he said. He made another pass and showed it to the others.

'Maybe we should just hang ourselves from it,' Herbert said. 'Save Darling or whoever is behind this plot further inconvenience.'