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"It's better we eat about seven o'clock."

"No problem," the American said. He gestured at the Thai woman. "She used to keep a safe

house for us in Bangkok, and I'm told she's a fine cook."

The small, round-faced woman obviously understood English and was pleased with the

comment. She smiled broadly and said: "You want steaks or Thai food?"

Creasy looked around at the group. Only Maxie chose a steak.

"Typical Rhodesian," Creasy noted. "Everything that doesn't have horns and four legs is

uneatable." He looked again at his watch.

"Nol Pol estimates four hours to Trat. So our ETD will be eight thirty." From the table he

picked up one of the VHF radios which was about the size of a large mobile phone. He gave it

to Jennings and said: "Mark, please go with the minibus about five miles away from here and test

transmission. Your code name will be 'M'. The code for this house will be 'B' for base. Keep the

transmission short." He moved down the table and picked up a single, green uniform with a flat,

peaked hat and passed it to the Cambodian, saying in French: "So now you've rejoined the

Khmer Rouge, at least for one night."

The Cambodian held the uniform in his hands, looking down at it. His face had turned sombre.

Chapter 69

They kitted up after dinner, first changing into black uniforms apart from Nol Pol, who put on

the dull green trousers and tunic of the Khmer Rouge. Susanna, Jennings and Jens watched as

they went through the ritual facing each other in pairs, one checking the other's equipment.

Again the thought of a ragtag bunch of mercenaries was dispelled forcibly from Susanna's mind.

These men were serious soldiers; even The Owl, who looked a little incongruous in his black

uniform and thick spectacles. She asked if he would be taking his Walkman with him and he

replied with slight astonishment: "Naturally."

She glanced at Jens, wondering about his thoughts. Would he feel left out of what was the

culmination of a team effort? His normally animated face was now serious as he watched his

friends prepare. Then she witnessed the depth of Creasy's leadership. He turned to the Dane,

pointed at the VHF radio in front of him and said: "Now you're in charge, Jens. You have to

coordinate everything we do. After we take that base and Guido and I assault the temple, there

may be some confusion. There always is in a fire-fight. We know that the radios work well. I'll

have one with me and Maxie will have one at their base. But you must monitor all our calls in

case there is any kind of interference. In effect, this house is now our operational base. You know

our plan.

As soon as we secure the base, we'll let you know. Then you'll ask Mark to activate his

agents in Bangkok to take off on that chartered aircraft. We need to know the moment that it's

airborne and that it's heading on the bearing of one-twenty degrees. It should continue on that

bearing until it's about a mile from the temple. It should then turn onto a bearing of one-nine-oh

and circle the coast over the Gulf of Thailand before returning to Bangkok about an hour later."

Jens tapped his computer. "Don't worry, Creasy. It's all in here. What about code names?"

"You are 'Base'. I am 'Green One', Guido is 'Green Two', Maxie is 'Red One', Rene is 'Red

Two', The Owl is 'Red Three' and Nol Pol is 'Blue One'."

The Dane fed the information into the computer.

Creasy looked at Susanna and said: "We don't say long goodbyes. We think that's unlucky. We'll

see you in the morning."

He picked up his SMG and led the men out into the compound. Over his shoulder, he said:

"Jens, we'll do a radio check after we've crossed the border."

Susanna and Jens and Jennings stood by the door, watching as Nol Pol climbed into the driving

seat of the lead jeep. Creasy sat beside him, with Guido in the back carrying the rocket-launcher.

Maxie drove the second jeep with the other three. They drove out of the compound without a

backward glance.

They trooped back into the house. Jennings said: "I wish he'd have let me have a back-up force

ready. If things go wrong, I could have had a bunch of hard guys to chopper in there."

As they sat down at the table, Jens said to him: "I'll explain why he didn't let you do it. It's like

these modern explorers or solo round-the-world sailors. They might be in the middle of the

roaring forties or halfway across the Arctic icecap. If they get into trouble, they pick up their

radio and say 'Help'. Back at base, a plane takes off and in a couple of hours is dropping

supplies or even people to help them out." He gestured with his thumb.

"Those guys are like Scott or Amundsen. They don't want a nanny watching over them. It's why

they do that kind of work. It's not just the money, especially in this case. It's the thrill of the

danger. They're hooked on adrenalin."

"Even The Owl?" Susanna asked.

"Yes, even him."

She decided to satisfy her curiosity and asked: "But not you, Jens?"

The Dane shook his head and then tapped it with his forefinger. "I'm more cerebral. I'm not

saying they're stupid. In fact, they're all highly intelligent." He thought for a moment and then

went on: "You might say it's a question of co-ordination. You can be sure that they would all

have been good sportsmen. They have the co-ordination between eye and limb that enabled

them to become experts with the weapons they just took out of here." He smiled. "I was always

hopeless at sports. It was embarrassing at school. We played football and handball and I hardly

knew which was which. When I was in the Danish police, I had to take a firearms course like

everybody else. The instructor was being generous when he told me that the target was safe when

I held a gun."

Jennings had been listening intently. He said: "You're an honest man."

Jens shrugged and answered: "I'm also important. I don't feel bad about not going in with them.

I do the investigating and the planning and when the action starts, I'll be co-ordinating. I've done

it before with this team. It makes it easier for them, knowing that I'm here. Someone has to do it

and I'm happy doing it." He looked at his watch. "They'll be crossing the border in about an

hour. That's the crucial time. If they get through undetected, there's very little Khmer Rouge

presence until they ford the upper reaches of the Tamyong river. Then it's a grey area until they

reach Tuk Luy. We know from the aerial survey that most of the Khmer Rouge soldiers there

have moved south. We don't know how many remain. When they get to within a kilometre,

Creasy will send in Maxie to recce. He's the best there is."

Chapter 70

"We're in Cambodia," Nol Pol said, braking the jeep to a stop.

Creasy was looking at the map. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. The countryside is the same, but I can feel it. We're in the killing fields." He pointed

across Creasy to the left. "Soon we should see the lights of the village of Cam Tray. They have

no electricity, but they have kerosene lamps. Then in another ten minutes we should reach the

Tamyong river. It's only a stream up here. After that, we're deep into Khmer Rouge territory."

They were on a dirt track, which the Cambodian explained was usually only used by bullock

carts. From the back seat Guido asked: "Does the track continue like this?"

"No," the Cambodian answered. "It gets worse as we near the river. That will be a danger point.

The Khmer Rouge have several camps along that river. After that we have a clear run through to

Tuk Luy."

Creasy said to the Cambodian: "When we get near the river, turn off the headlights and wear the

night sights. It's difficult, but possible." He picked up the VHF radio, switched it on and said:

"Green One to Base. Do you read?"

Three seconds later, Jens' voice came back: "Base to Green One, loud and clear."

Creasy spoke again: "Green One, to Red One. Do you copy?"

From the jeep fifty metres behind, Maxie spoke into his radio: "I copy."

Creasy said: "We're in Cambodia. In about ten minutes from now, we'll switch off our

headlights. Do the same and wear night sights."

"Affirmative."

Creasy nodded to the Cambodian, who engaged the first gear and edged the jeep forward.

It happened as they came down the track towards the river. Both Nol Pol and Creasy were

wearing the Trilux night sights strapped to their heads. Simultaneously, they spotted the two

figures standing on the track. They both held rifles. Creasy picked up the radio and quietly said:

"Two Khmer rouge ahead. We're stopping. Slow down and have Red Two and Red Three leave

your vehicle and cover us from the flanks. Then drive on and stop behind us."

Maxie's voice came back. "Will do."

The two men on the track had raised their rifles. They were AK47s. Nol Pol gently braked to a

halt. One of the Khmer Rouge moved away to the side. The other approached the jeep, his gun

held high. From the back seat, Guido whispered: "I have him covered."

Creasy lifted off his night sight, saying to the Cambodian: "Take yours off. You know what to

tell them."

Nol Pol followed the instruction and then said: "I've rehearsed it many times. These two are

peasants and not regulars. They use them simply for patrolling."

The Khmer Rouge reached the driver's window. The AK47 was pointed at Nol Pol's head. He

looked at Creasy and at Guido in the back and then turned abruptly as the second jeep pulled up

behind. He shouted something to the other Khmer Rouge, then pointed his rifle at the second

jeep.

Creasy was startled by the tone of Nol Pol's voice. He shouted at the Khmer Rouge. When the

soldier tried to say something, he shouted at him again. The soldier backed away about a metre,

but his gun was still pointed at Nol Pol. Creasy realized that he was listening to an officer

addressing a very junior soldier. Nol Pol lowered his voice slightly as he spoke several sentences.

Creasy knew that he was explaining that Nol Pol was an officer in the Khmer Rouge and he was

escorting five mercenaries who had been hired by Connie Crum, the Cobra, to clear mines in her

region. They were moving without lights because there had been rumours of government troops

in the area. Had the soldiers seen any government troops?

Slowly, the Khmer Rouge soldier lowered his AK47. He spoke to Nol Pol respectfully, with his

sandalled feet loosely at attention.

Then Nol Pol turned to Creasy with a slight smile. He said: "He has heard of no government

troops in the area, although they bombed a Khmer Rouge camp about ten miles away

yesterday...Do you have any cigarettes?"

"I don't smoke. Do they want cigarettes?"

"They always want cigarettes, especially American cigarettes."

From the back seat, Guido said: "Rene smokes Marlboros."

Creasy opened the door of the jeep and jumped down. He called out: "Rene!"

From the bushes thirty metres away, Rene emerged with his submachine-gun held ready. The

other Cambodian soldier swung his AK47 to cover him. Nol Pol shouted an order which was

repeated by the other soldier. The AK47 was lowered.

"Do you have any cigarettes?" Creasy asked Rene.

"Naturally," the Belgian answered. "I've got a couple of packs."

"You'll have to sacrifice them," Creasy said. "Give them a pack each. We're among friends."

Rene lowered his SMG and reached into his tunic pocket, saying: "I'll give them a pack and a

half to share between them. I'm not going through withdrawal symptoms in the middle of a

fight."

The atmosphere became convivial. Both the Khmer soldiers rested their AK47s against their

side of the jeep while Rene counted out the cigarettes. Then they had another conversation with

Nol Pol, picked up their rifles and moved down the track.

He started the engine, saying to Creasy: "They'll show us the best place to ford the river."

As the jeep moved forward, Creasy asked: "Will they communicate with Tuk Luy?"

"No. They cannot. They have no radios. They come from the village we just passed. They

assume that I'm a Khmer Rouge officer. Of course, in such a rural countryside, the word will

eventually get around that we've been here. But by that time, we should be out."

The two jeeps surged across the shallow river half an hour before midnight, with the two

Khmer Rouge soldiers wading in front, puffing away at their Marlboros. Then, with waves of

goodbye, they watched the jeeps move off into the darkness towards Tuk Luy.

Nol Pol said: "It won't be so easy if we run into regular units. We're entering the area from

which I defected. They might know me."

"They won't open fire without warning," Creasy said. "They'll have a look first. If they recognize

you, we'll gun them down. Guido will have you covered at all times."

From behind, Guido slapped the barrel of his SMG and said: "You're covered. And if we're

stopped, Rene and The Owl will be on each flank before they see the second jeep."

Chapter 71

"What happens if he meets any Khmer Rouge soldiers?" Nol Pol asked.

"He won't," Creasy answered. "He's the best scout I know. He moves like a cat, and at night,

cats don't bump into dogs or anything else that might be dangerous."

They were parked on a ridge about a kilometre away from the faint lights in the distance. Maxie

McDonald had just merged into the darkness in front of them. Creasy looked at the dial of his