“Is he that bad?” Candace asked. “I’d heard rumors.”

“Whatever you heard, it’s ten times worse,” Melanie said. “He’s a major sleazeball. To give you an example, he executed some impoverished Equatoguinean men because they’d been caught poaching in the Zone, where he likes to hunt.”

“He killed them himself?” Candace questioned with shock and revulsion.

“Not by himself,” Melanie said. “He had the men tried in a kangaroo court here in Cogo. Then they were executed by a handful of Equatoguinean soldiers at the soccer field.”

“And to add insult to injury,” Kevin said, “he uses the skulls as bowls for odds and ends on his desk.”

“Sorry I asked,” Candace said with a shiver.

“What about Dr. Lyons?” Melanie asked.

Kevin laughed. “Forget it. He’s more venal than Bertram. This whole operation is his baby. I tried to talk to him about the smoke, too. He was even less receptive. Claimed it was my imagination. Frankly I don’t trust him, although I have to give him credit for being generous with bonuses and stocks. He’s cleverly given everyone connected with the project a real stake in the venture, particularly Bertram and Siegfried.”

“So, that leaves it all up to us,” Melanie said. “Let’s find out if it’s your imagination or not. What do you say the three of us take a quick trip to Isla Francesca?”

“You’re joking,” Kevin said. “It’s a capital offense without authorization.”

“It’s a capital offense for locals,” Melanie said. “That can’t apply to us. In our case, Siegfried has to answer to GenSys.”

“Bertram specifically forbade visits,” Kevin said. “I offered to go by myself, and he said no.”

“Well, big deal,” Melanie said. “So he gets mad. What is he going to do, fire us? I’ve been here long enough so that I don’t think that would be half bad. Besides, they can’t do without you. That’s the reality.”

“Do you think it might be dangerous?” Candace asked.

“Bonobos are peaceful creatures,” Melanie said. “Much more so than chimps, and chimps aren’t dangerous unless you corner them.”

“What about the man who was killed?” Candace said.

“That was during a retrieval,” Kevin said. “They had to get close enough to shoot a dart gun. Also, it was the fourth retrieval.”

“All we want to do is observe,” Melanie said.

“Okay, how do we get there?” Candace asked.

“Drive, I guess,” Melanie said. “That’s how they go when they do a release or a retrieval. There must be some kind of bridge.”

“There’s a road that goes east along the coast,” Kevin said. “It’s paved to the native village then it becomes a track. That’s how I went on the visit to the island before we started the program. For a hundred feet or so the island and the mainland are only separated by a channel thirty feet wide. Back then there was a wire suspension bridge stretched between two mahogany trees.”

“Maybe we can view the animals without even going across,” Candace said. “Let’s do it.”