“When you do, ask if they have anything on Mahathir bin Dahman, a Malaysian billionaire,” Coffey said. He spelled the name for her. “Have you ever heard of him?”

“Again, only what I have read in the newspapers,” she said. “He is heavily involved in the development of real estate.”

“Any scandals?” Coffey asked.

“None of which I am aware,” the officer reported. That was a somewhat milder form of “I don’t know.” It did not come out any easier. FNO Loh wished she did not feel as though she had to impress these two men. They certainly were not pushing her.

“All right,” Coffey said. “Anything you can find will be more than we have now.”

“Have you heard anything more about the sailor from the sampan?” Loh asked.

“The last report I had from the hospital was about ninety minutes ago,” Jelbart said. “The patient was sedated and not speaking.”

“Do they have anyone who can speak Malay in case he does say something?” she asked.

“The intercom is on, and there is a voice-activated tape recorder at his bedside,” Jelbart said. “Anything he says will be recorded and played for someone who can translate. I’ll make certain you hear it as well.”

“Thank you,” she said. Loh had to admit that for men, these two seemed all right.

“The question is, what do we do while we wait?” Coffey asked.

“If I may make a suggestion,” Loh said.

“Please,” Coffey replied.

“I will contact Singapore for those files. But we have a saying in the military: ‘Do not wait. Advance.’ ”

“I’m sure that reads well in a textbook,” Coffey said.

“It works in practice, Mr. Coffey,” Loh replied. It felt good to say that with certainty. “I believe that we should try to collect our own intelligence about Mr. Darling.”

“I’m a coastal police officer, not a spy,” Jelbart said. The warrant officer was not complaining. It sounded to Loh as though he were frustrated. And a little concerned. “I’m also afraid that the more Australians who know about this, the greater the odds of Darling finding out. We’re still talking about theories, and highly speculative ones at that.”

“Our top spy will land in Australia a few hours from now,” Coffey said. “He’ll know what to do.”

“I can tell you what we have to do,” Loh replied.

“Can you?” Coffey asked.

“Yes.” It felt good to be able to answer this one, too. Because the answer was not only right, it was obvious. “We should not waste time following the 130-5 trail. It is already cold.”

“What should we do?” Coffey asked.

“Make sure that Jervis Darling is unable to kill,” she replied. “Again.”

THIRTY-FOUR - Washington, D.C. Friday, 12:31 P.M.

THIRTY-FOUR

Washington, D.C. Friday, 12:31 P.M.

“Boss, would you please authorize the uploading of a benevolent systemic virus?”