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Cambodian government. Jennings will select three or four and then you'll talk to them one by

one and pick out the best."

They were sitting on the patio of the bungalow. Guido had gone off to the business centre to

send a fax to his Pensione in Naples, just to make sure that it had not burned down or been

turned into a whorehouse by his assistant Pietro.

Jennings came back from the phone, pulled out his chair, sat down and said to Susanna: "It's all

set up. My liaison guy at Cambodian Army HQ has selected five ex-Khmer soldiers who

defected over the last three weeks. They're all from that region. I've arranged for you to

interview them in half an hour from now at their Intelligence Headquarters. I'll take you there

myself. It's better that you don't mention the job in front of Cambodian Army officers." He

turned to Creasy. "I can arrange transport to Bangkok on a US Army or UN aircraft. Nobody

will know you've left Phnom Penh or even arrived in Bangkok."

Creasy shook his head. "Thanks, Mark. But Guido and I will fly on a civilian aircraft. I want

Connie Crum to know that we've left Phnom Penh and I want her to follow us when we get to

Bangkok...at least, at the early stages. But it would be good if you could smuggle Susanna and

the ex-Khmer Rouge guy into Bangkok unnoticed."

"And myself!" the American said firmly.

"Yourself?"

"Of course. From that file we know that Connie Crum has a big organization in Bangkok. If

Susanna is going to be in that city, she needs protection while you guys cross into Cambodia."

He tapped a spot under his left armpit. "I've got my Colt 1911 right here, and it's going to stay

there until Susanna is safely out of Indo-China."

Creasy glanced at Susanna, who was trying hard not to smile. "OK, it's agreed," Creasy said.

"We'll all feel better knowing that you're around. You can also handle the collection of the

weapons we need and the two four-wheel-drive vehicles."

"That's in the pipeline," Jennings answered. "They'll be ready by noon tomorrow." He looked at

his watch and said to Susanna: "We have to leave now. Those guys will be waiting."

They all stood up and Creasy said to Susanna: "Try to find one who's got a really serious grudge

against the Khmer Rouge. Something that will give him more motivation than mere money."

"I'll do my best," she said. "And incidentally, how much money do I offer him?"

"Five hundred dollars."

"That's all?"

"Yes, that's all. If you offer him more, he'll think it's a suicide mission." He turned towards the

door, saying: "And for him it will be. If he gets out... if we all get out, he'll get a bonus."

Chapter 61

He was tall for a Cambodian, with clean-cut features and intelligent eyes. Susanna felt an

empathy with the man. She had not felt it with the previous four. They had been mere pawns in

the ever-shifting Cambodian scene. This man was of a higher calibre. He was in his mid-forties

and he had a stillness about him, a watchfulness. As he sat down, he greeted her formally and

after listening to her opening sentences, complimented her on her Khmer language. She looked

Page 130

down at the file in front of him. His name was Nol Pol, and he had turned himself over to the

Cambodian army only a week before. Mark Jennings sat to her left, slightly behind her. He had

been studying the local language, but only for a short time. He could take no part in the

discussions.

"Why did you defect?" she asked the Cambodian.

"It was a family matter."

"In what way?"

Nol Pol sighed and asked: "Do you know the history of Cambodia over the last twenty or thirty

years?"

"I'm not an expert," she answered, "but I'm familiar with it."

"Then you know that when the Khmer Rouge was formed, its ideals were of the purest

communism. I joined them out of idealism against the wishes of my family, especially my elder

brother. Many families were split at that time. For many years I managed to keep my idealism,

even through the killings. The ideals started to fade after the Khmer Rouge turned against the

results of the election and continued to fight. The ideals died completely when I recognized my

elder brother as a prisoner of the Khmer Rouge. I had no chance to speak to him. It was too

late. I could only watch as a woman ordered our soldiers to force the prisoners, my brother

included, into a minefield to clear it with their own lives."

Susanna felt goose-bumps on her skin. She glanced at Jennings, whose face showed total lack of

comprehension. The Cambodian continued talking, his voice very tight as he struggled to

control it.

"There must have been a hundred prisoners. I did not realize what was happening until the

explosions started and their bodies were thrown into the air...I saw my brother die."

"You did not try to help?" Susanna asked.

He shook his head. "I could do nothing. If they had known I had a brother in the Cambodian

army, they would have sent me also into that minefield."

"Who was the woman that gave the order?"

"She's the local commander."

"What's her name?"

"Her name is So Hoan in our language. Her nickname is Talian, which means a very dangerous

snake. Foreigners call it a cobra...But she has another name. She's only half Khmer, the other half

is Western."

"What is the other name?"

"Connie Crum."

With those two words she felt Jennings beside her come alert. She raised her hand to keep him

silent and said to the Cambodian: "So she ordered your brother's death?"

"Yes; and many others. For her, making death is as easy as chopping leaves from a tree. I have

seen much evil these past years, but none more than Talian."

Susanna looked again at the file and then said: "You're from the town of Pursat?"

"Yes."

"And you know the Cardamom region well?"

"Of course."

"Do you know a town called Tuk Luy?"

"Of course. I was stationed there for three years."

Susanna drew a deep breath and asked the all-important question. "If you had a chance to see So

Hoan killed or captured, would you take it?"

The Cambodian leaned forward and answered immediately: "I would give my life to see it!"

Susanna turned to Jennings and said: "I think this man's C.V. fits the job profile."

Chapter 62

"I'm going in with you," Susanna said.

Creasy sighed, knowing that he was in for another argument. He said: "That's out of the

question."

"Because I'm a woman...and pregnant?"

They were lying in bed in Creasy's room. They had just been making love. It was only the third

time, but it seemed to be reaching an ever-increasing level of intensity. Susanna pushed herself

up and propped the pillows behind her. He looked up at her and said: "Maybe that's ten per

cent of the reason. But ninety per cent is that you're not trained for it. You would be a liability.

I'm going to have the same argument with Jens in Bangkok tomorrow and he's going to get the

same reason. You have to understand that I fought with all the others many times. The very fact

that we've survived means that we know what we're doing. We have an almost telepathic

understanding. I hardly have to give an order. They know how I work. If you came along, one of

them would have to look after you, and I can't spare any of them, it's that simple. So forget it."

"Maybe Mark could come along and look after me."

Creasy chuckled. It seemed to come deep from his belly. It was a sound so rare that she

treasured it. He said: "Then I'll have to detail someone to look after Mark...I don't have an army,

just four very experienced firefighters." He also pushed himself up and put an arm around her.

"You've been a major part of this whole thing. We wouldn't be here now without your

knowledge of the language, without your connections. You'll continue to help in Bangkok. But

Susanna, after we cross that border it's a question of believing in the motto: 'They also serve who

stand and wait'. The waiting will be hard. It'll be hard for you and it'll be hard for Jens. It's always

like that. But it won't take long. We have to get in there and do the job and get out by dawn.

You and Jens and your bodyguard Mark will be waiting at the border. I repeat that you've been a

major part in the whole operation, especially in finding that guy Nol Pol. It could make all the

difference. By the way, did he accept the offer of the money?"

"Yes. His parents and his elder sister are still alive, living in Battambang. The money will keep

them for at least a year. Times are tough in this country."

Creasy nodded: "And they're going to stay tough for a long time. If he comes out alive, I'll make

sure they're comfortable for a long time."

"What about the language? How will you communicate with them?"

"It's not a problem. You said he speaks a little French."

"Yes, but not perfectly."

"It'll be enough," Creasy said. "Guido and I speak French from the Foreign Legion. Rene

speaks it as his first language." He pulled her close and brushed her lips with his. "We didn't do

anything back there, did we?"

"Back when?"

"Back about half an hour ago."

"Nothing that I can remember."

"Me neither." He pulled her back down onto the bed.

Chapter 63

It was a city that Creasy had never liked.

"It's a whore's place," he said to Guido. "Every fat, ugly German or Englishman or Frenchman

who hasn't got the charm or the time to find a girlfriend in his own country flies in here and pays

for women who always look like teenagers. They suddenly become Cary Grant about an hour

after they step out of the jumbo jet."

"It's always been like that," Guido answered.

"No it hasn't. Two events created this whorehouse. The Vietnam war and the tens of thousands

of GIs who came in here on their five days of R-and-R with their pockets full of money, and then

the boom in tourism and the advent of charter flights. If a German or an Englishman wants to

go to a high class whorehouse in Hamburg or London, the cost of the night with a couple of

girls is more than the cost of a two-week package holiday in Thailand. Half of Europe's

paedophiles save their weekly wages to spend their holidays here."

The Italian glanced at his friend. "Are you suddenly getting moralistic?"

Creasy grunted. "I've always been moralistic. I don't blame the men. Too often it's the only

chance they have to get into bed with a woman. I don't blame the women either. They're just the

victims. I blame the fat cats and the government. Most of the massage parlours and whorehouses

are owned by army generals and their compliant politicians. It's been estimated that more than a

third of their foreign exchange comes from sex tourism."

The taxi was jammed up behind a row of cars and trucks which moved at a snail's pace. Creasy

gestured out of the window. "It wouldn't be so bad if they used some of the billions of dollars

they earn from that trade to build a metro or supply decent drinking water to the millions who

live here."

The Italian shrugged noncommittally He said: "You've seen Naples. We have slums there as bad

as they've got here. The only difference is that it's not army generals making the money, it's the

Mafia."

"It's about the same thing," Creasy answered, and then shrugged off his mood. "It was fortunate

that Susanna questioned those defected Khmer Rouge. This guy Nol Pol is a real find. If we'd

hired some other guy, he could have led us right into a trap for a little more money than we are

paying. This guy is motivated and Susanna was clever enough to pick it up."

Guido did not answer immediately. He was looking out at the crowded streets. Then he turned

and asked seriously. "Are you falling in love with her a little bit?"

Creasy thought about that while they edged forward another few metres. Then he said: "Just a

little bit. She is kind of special."

"Is she good in bed?"

"That's a strange thing," Creasy answered. And then he uttered the phrase that he and his type

always answered if asked if they ever killed anybody: "I can't remember."

The Italian laughed softly. "Then she must be. I agree with you, she's a fine woman. And I think

she's good for you."

Again there was a silence. Then Creasy said: "Maybe. I'm not sure about these things any more.

Everyone I get close to ends up getting dead. Maybe Susanna is better off with a guy like

Jennings, or that professor back in Washington."

Guido chuckled. "I don't know about Jennings. After all, he's CIA. Not exactly a safe

profession."

Creasy snorted in disagreement. "For CIA in-house agents, life is safer than being a bank

manager. It's only the poor non-American agents out in the field who get chopped down

because some guy back at Langley takes half a million bucks to buy a new house. Jennings is

crazy about her."

"That's his problem," the Italian said. "He shows it too much. Women like the strong silent

types."

The taxi had finally reached the splendid entrance to the Ducit Thani Hotel. Creasy punched

Guido on the shoulder and said: "Spoken like an Italian."

Chapter 64

They had become friends.

Creasy realised it as she was getting dressed. Her body was beautiful, and also her face, and he

realized that even after the recent love-making he looked on her as a friend more than a lover.