Also, he had no idea what she thought of him. He wondered if he were better off not knowing.

Shortly before landing, Jelbart received a call from Brian Ellsworth. News of what had happened at the Cairns airstrip traveled a lot faster than the Bell 204. International media were waiting for them. So was Ellsworth. He greeted the team at the helicopter. Police kept the reporters away. Ellsworth congratulated them for the job they did, then cautioned the team to ignore the questions being shouted by the press.

“Whatever you say will be reported and distorted, both pro and contra Mr. Darling,” Ellsworth said. “That can only help his case.”

“Prejudice the judicial process,” Coffey said. “Make it look like the government has prejudged Darling.”

“Precisely. One thing I must ask you,” Ellsworth said as he slipped his cell phone from inside his jacket. “The prime minister is waiting to hear from me about the missing cargo. He wants to know what the chances are of getting those materials back.”

“That depends,” Herbert said. “First we have to find the people who distributed the stuff. Then we have to get them to talk.”

“We also have to hope the materials haven’t already been passed around,” Jelbart added.

“I wouldn’t worry about that,” Herbert said. “These guys work like diamond and art thieves. The neighborhood is too hot to try transferring it now. We’ve got a week or two to find out who they are. Everything depends on how you handle Darling, Hawke, and the other members of the crew.”

“You may have to cut them deals you aren’t going to like,” Coffey said.

“I’m not going to like anything that doesn’t have them hanging by their feet over a pit of rattlesnakes,” Herbert said.

“Well, Mr. Coffey, we are sure to be engaged in various dances with Mr. Darling’s legal lancers,” Ellsworth said. “I actually worry about them nearly as much as I worry about the smugglers.”

Herbert understood that. He resisted shooting a nasty look at Lowell Coffey. Ever since an attorney in Lebanon had helped free one of the men responsible for the Beirut embassy bombing, attorneys had been one step above terrorists on Herbert’s favorite-people list.

“With a little forethought, we should be able to find the nuclear material,” Loh promised.

“How can you be sure?” Ellsworth asked.

“Did you ever play volleyball, Mr. Ellsworth?” she asked.

“In school. Why?”

“There are times when you rally for position, and there are times when you spike,” she said. “This is a time to spike. We need to follow the trail while it still exists.”

“How?”

“Give me one of the sailors,” Loh said. “Any one of them, though I suggest a less hardened member of the crew. We will find that trail and the missing materials. We may not even have to take him to Singapore. Just the idea of it seems to make people talkative.”