“Captain Kannaday, we understand what you’ve been through. But this is rather urgent,” Jelbart said. “I need you to tell us who the man was and why you were out here.”

“His name is Hawke,” the man replied. “John Hawke. And he brought the Hosannah out here to sink it.”

“Why?” Jelbart asked.

The man sat back and shut his eyes. He said nothing.

“Captain?” Jelbart said. “Captain!”

“Officers, I must rest,” the man said. “Please. For just a few minutes. It won’t change anything, I assure you.”

Water dribbled down the man’s temples and forehead, and his head slumped against the window. Loh leaned across the aisle and jabbed him with a finger. He grumbled but did not open his eyes.

“If this were Singapore, we’d wake him,” Loh said.

“If this were Singapore, I’d help you,” Herbert said. “We’ve got a nice, long ladder. What are the international laws about fly-fishing a guy from a helicopter to wake him?”

“It’s called ‘extreme coercion,’ Mr. Herbert,” Jelbart said. “What your legal system would define as ‘cruel and unusual punishment.’ ”

“These are extreme and unusual circumstances,” Loh remarked. Her tone was unsympathetic. She did not respect weakness. Especially from a man whose life she just saved.

“Nonetheless, this man is not the pirate we found,” Jelbart said. “As far as we know, this man has not committed a crime. We have no recourse but to bring him in and question him at his convenience.”

“There are times when we worry about etiquette and protocol too much,” Loh said.

“I’m with Officer Loh on that,” Herbert said. “We have two responsibilities here. One is to the captain. The other is to a few million people just like him. In one case, a guy may be inconvenienced. In the other case, tens of thousands may die. That’s not even a contest to me.”

“We can honor both,” Jelbart insisted. “The captain asked for a few minutes. Let us at least give him that.”

Herbert shook his head, and Monica Loh sat back. She wondered if Jelbart would have been so compassionate if Captain Kannaday had been American. Or Singaporean. Australians were notoriously protective of their own.

Because it was her nature, she also wondered whether Captain Kannaday were really asleep or whether he had been listening carefully to everything they said. Trying to decide what he should say.

She did not know. One thing she did know, however. Soon, someone on board was going to be apologizing to someone else on board for a serious miscalculation.

SIXTY-FOUR - Washington, D.C. Saturday, 1:24 P.M.

SIXTY-FOUR

Washington, D.C. Saturday, 1:24 P.M.

Research was job number four for Paul Hood. That came after quarterbacking, cheerleading, and devil’s advocacy.