"This animal we're looking for would be worth millions, Safford, money in the bank. Of course… "
She didn't have to finish the remark. He recognized her skepticism and tried to mirror it, in fact, to keep himself from looking like a fool. A search for living dinosaurs was probably quixotic, possibly insane, but he had still leaped at the chance to head the expedition. Whether it was simple boredom with his teaching post and part-time work at the Smithsonian, or longing for a greater glory that would soon be hopelessly beyond his reach, Professor Stockwell had signed on despite the giggle factor, offering his solid reputation as a sacrifice. If they returned to Georgetown empty-handed… well, his job would still be waiting for him, thanks to tenure, and in the meantime there was no need to think about the personal humiliation he would have to face. A couple of the wags on campus were already calling him Professor Challenger, and they would have a roaring field day if he failed.
"I'm confident that the authorities can deal with any problems of that nature," he told Audrey. "All we have to do is find the creature, yes?"
"You're right, of course," she said. "But I don't have to like him."
"No, my dear, you certainly do not." Emboldened by the moment, Stockwell took a shot. "How would you like a glass of wine?"
"I'd better not," she told him, softening rejection with a smile. "We've got an early start tomorrow, and I still have things to do."
"I understand." Too well, he understood. "I'll see you in the morning, then. Sleep well."
"You, too."
She left him, headed back to her adjoining room, and Stockwell double-locked the door behind her. You could never be too careful.
"Do you believe their story?"
Sibu Sandakan faced his superior across a massive teakwood desk, his bearing ramrod straight. He had to stop and think about the question, even now, though it had been a frequent topic of discussion at the office for the past few weeks.
"I think their leader is sincere," he said at last.
"I'm not sure even he believes, but there is hope. He yearns for immortality."
"And what about the others?" asked Germuk Sayur, first deputy to Jantan Separuh, the minister of the interior.
"The Englishman loves money. He will go wherever he is paid to go. As for the new American, I think his curiosity is piqued, but he is skeptical."
He offered no opinion on the woman, nor was it requested. Sibu Sandakan and his immediate superior were of a single mind where females were concerned. This blond American might be a full professor back in Washington, but it was still impossible for them to take her seriously as a guiding force behind the expedition. Women followed men. So it had always been; so it would always be.
"And you, Sibu? What do you think about their chances?"
"Of returning with a dinosaur?" He frowned, considering the problem, desperate not to come off sounding like a superstitious peasant. "You have heard the Tasek Bera stories, sir. You know of the reports from our own soldiers and police."
"Indeed. I'm asking what you think."
"I don't believe in fairy stories," Sibu Sandakan replied, "but who can say about such things?"
"The minister has some concern about this dead man, Hopper."
"Oh?"
"He was prospecting for uranium, as you're aware. You also know the circumstances of his death."
"Yes, sir."
"There is suspicion at the ministry," Germuk Sayur continued. "Some believe this party may be more concerned with mining than with monsters."
"Customs has examined their equipment, I assume."
"Within their limits, Sibu. It would not require much effort to conceal a simple Geiger counter—or to purchase one from sources in the country, if it came to that."
"There are no mining experts in the party," Sandakan reminded his superior.
"None that we know of."
"Sir?"
"Who knows if anyone is what he claims to be these days? A passport can be forged, biographies concocted out of nothing. The Americans are skilled at fabrication."
"You believe their government may be involved?" The very notion boggled Sibu's mind.
"I am suggesting only possibilities," Germuk Sayur replied. "But then again, why not?"
"They would be risking much embarrassment."
"With much to gain, Sibu. A fortune for the taking."
"Surely we would not permit them to invade our sovereignty?"
"Americans are devious," the deputy reminded him. "They have been known to bribe officials, threaten economic sanctions when their will is thwarted, even sponsor revolutions to unseat a government if all else fails."
"I will be vigilant," said Sibu Sandakan.
"Is vigilance enough, I wonder?"
"Sir?"
"We must be ready to respond at the first sign of treachery, Sibu. You understand?"
He nodded, more from force of habit than real understanding. Sibu Sandakan was troubled by the turn this little chat had taken. He was no spy, much less a soldier or policeman. Nothing in his background had prepared him for the kind of cloak-and-dagger games Germuk Sayur was evidently planning.
"You will carry this." The deputy retrieved a plastic box, no larger than a cigarette pack, from an inside pocket of his coat and slid it toward Sibu across the desk. "It is a radio transmitter, specially designed for an emergency. You cannot send a message in the normal sense, by speaking into it, nor is it able to receive. Simplicity dictates a single button that, when pressed, transmits a nonstop signal for the next eight hours, on a special frequency. From noon tomorrow, until you return, the ministry will have an armed security detachment standing by with helicopters, waiting for your signal."
Sibu Sandakan was even more uneasy now. "What sort of an emergency?" he asked.
"You'll be the judge of that, Sibu. If the Americans should find uranium instead of dinosaurs, for instance, they will need immediate protection."
House arrest would be more like it, Sandakan imagined. Someone in the capital could always sort the matter out with an apology, by which time the uranium would be secure in native hands. That much was only fair, but he resented being drafted into work for which he wasn't trained or temperamentally inclined. Still, he couldn't refuse an order from the ministry.
The plastic box felt almost weightless in his hand. He stroked his thumb across the button, trying to imagine the reaction that a pound or two of pressure would evoke.
"You will, of course, be circumspect about its use." It was an order, plain and simple.
"Yes, sir. Certainly." Another thought was nagging at him now. "What if… ?"
"Go on, Sibu."
"What if the expedition is successful, sir?"
"What if they find a prehistoric animal, you mean?"
"Yes, sir."
Germuk Sayur could only smile. "In that case, they will also need protection, Sibu, will they not?"
"The Englishman—"
"Must pose no threat to an endangered species. Not when its survival could prove beneficial to the state."
"I'm not sure—"
"Think of it, Sibu. The tourist trade we could attract. You've seen Jurassic Park?"
"No, sir."
"I recommend it highly. If museums can turn a profit from display of dusty bones, think what a modern and well-managed game preserve could do with living animals."
It was beyond imagination, and Sibu let it go.
"Yes, sir," he said.
"You're clear on your instructions, then? A signal in the case of an emergency, but no hysterics. If the party finds uranium or giant lizards, you must let us know immediately. Otherwise… "
"I understand."
"In that case, you should get some rest. You have a great adventure waiting for you in the morning."