“Where should we start?” she smiled. “You’ve just confessed to a dozen illegal things you really did, and another dozen that you probably didn’t do. We’ve traced several postal scams back to you already. But we can start off with immigration violations and work our way up to inciting murder. That should keep us busy.”

Siri got to his feet and stretched his stiff old back.

“Good show, eh?” he said. “I’ll leave it up to you to sort the mushrooms from the toadstools in that salad, but I think you’ve got the gist of it. He had no connections to the peace movement. That was a story he perfected to explain why he’d been there for so long. But even if every word he spoke was a lie, you can surely see how you and your mother fit into his world of fantasy. And perhaps he really believed all the garbage he said. Dementia works in odd ways. He was never a successful businessman. He taught English—made just enough for his next drink. It seems his world pretty much existed in the postal service. In his apartment they found begging letters and applications and scams. They found some letters to you he hadn’t sent. They all asked for help with money.”

“This is all a setup,” said Dom. “You put this all together to mess with my mind.”

He reached down for the gun.

“Don’t do it,” came a voice, and the building echoed with the sounds of gun hammers cocking behind him. While Siri had kept Dom engaged, Phosy and a few select officers had entered through the rear door and taken up positions.

Dom laughed.

“I had you in my sights, you know?” he said.

“I know,” said Siri. “But secondhand revenge is rarely effective. You were carrying someone else’s vengeance. Those few seconds it took to step into your stepfather’s shoes were enough to throw off your timing.”

“I don’t believe that was Henry on the film,” said Dom.

“Yes, we thought that would be the case,” said Phosy. “That’s why we’ve arranged for a family reunion.”

“With Henry?” said Dom.

“You’re under arrest in Laos which probably won’t be a lot of fun for you,” said Phosy. “Our prisons aren’t the most hospitable. So we’ve arranged a happy moment for you to take to jail with you.”

“Our American colleagues were delighted to hear of Henry’s whereabouts. He’s been on their wanted list for a long time. Our friend Cindy was only too pleased to join our sting operation. They’ve transported your daddy to the US consulate here before flying him down to his own oblivion via the embassy in Bangkok,” said Siri. “His dream of being repatriated will come true, but I think he’ll be admiring the land of the free through barred windows for a very long time.”

Epilogue One