TREASURE

BY CLIVE CUSSLER

Books by Clive Cussler

Sahara

Dragon

Treasure

Cyclops

Deep Six

Pacific Vortex

Night Probe!

Vixen 03

Raise the Titanic!

Iceberg

The Mediterranean Caper

POCKET BOOKS New York London Toronto Sydney Tokyo Singapore

POCKET BOOKS, a division of Simon & Schuster Inc. 1230 Avenue of the

Americas, New York, NY 10020

Copyright (D 1988 by Clive Cussler Enterprises, Inc.

All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or

portions thereof in any form whatsoever.

for information address Simon & Schuster Inc., 1230 Avenue of the

Americas, New York, NY 10020

ISBN: 0-671-70465-6

First Pocket Books printing November 1988

10  9  8  7 6 5 4 3 2 1

POCKET and colophon are registered trademarks of Simon & Schuster

Printed in the U.S.A.

A NOTE TO THE READER

Please forgive the inconvenience of converting measurements from what

most Americans are used to.  But in 1991 the United States finally

became the last nation on earth to convert to the metric system.

It's easy.

1 kilometer roughly equals a little more than 1/2 Mile.

1 meter is slightly more than a yard, about 39 inches.

THE ALEXANDRIA LIBRARY truly existed, and if it had remained unravished

by wars and religious zealots it would have given us not only the

knowledge of the Egyptian, Greek and Roman empires, but those

little-known civilizations that rose and fell far beyond the shores of

the Mediterranean.

In A.D. 391 Christian Emperor Theodosius ordered all books and art

depicting anything remotely pagan, which included the teachings of the

immortal Greek philosophers, burned and destroyed.

Much of the collection was thought to have been secretly saved and

spirited away.  What became of it, or where it was hidden, remains a

mystery sixteen centuries later.

THE PRECURSORS

July 15, A.D. 391

A land unknown A small, flickering light danced eerily through the black

of the tunneled passageway.  A man dressed in a woolen tunic that

dropped below his knees paused and raised an oil lamp above his head.

The dim glow illuminated a human figure inside a gold-and-crystal casket

while casting a grotesque, wavering shadow against the smoothly cut wall

behind.  The man in the tunic stared into the sightless eyes for a few

moments, and then he lowered the lamp and turned away.

He studied the long line of stationary forms that stood in deathlike

silence, so great in number they seemed to trail off into infinity

before vanishing in the darkness of the long cavern.

Junius Venator moved on, his strap sandals scraping over the uneven

floor with a bare whisper of sound.  Gradually, the tunnel widened into

a vast gallery.  Soaring to a height of nearly thirty feet, the domed

ceiling was divided by a series of arches to give it structural

strength.  Gutters carved in the limestone spiraled down the walls so

water seepage could run into deep drainage basins.  The walls were laced

with cavities filled with thousands of strange-looking circular

containers made of bronze.  Except for the large wooden crates stacked

uniformly in the center of the carved chamber, the forbidding place

might have been mistaken for the catacombs beneath Rome.

Venator peered at the copper tags attached to the crates, checking their

numbers against those on a scroll he flattened on a small folding table.

The air was dry and heavy, and sweat began to course through the layers

of dust that blanketed his skin.  Two hours later, satisfied everything

was catalogued and in proper order, he rolled up the scroll and slid it

into a sash at his waist.

He took one final, solemn look at the objects in the gallery and exhaled

a sigh of regret.  He knew he would never see or touch them again.

Tiredly, he turned, held the little lamp in front of him and retraced

his steps through the tunnel.

Venator was not a young man; he was approaching his fifty-seventh year.

tired dragging steps reflected the weariness of a man who had no more

heart for life.  And yet, down deep, he felt a glow of warmth it-from an

inner satisfaction.  The immense project was successfully completed; the

great burden lifted from his bent shoulders.  All that remained for him

was to survive the long voyage to Rome.

He passed four other tunnels leading off into the hill.  One had been

blocked off by a great pile of rubble.  Twelve slaves excavating deep

inside had perished when the roof collapsed.

They were still in there, crushed and buried where they fell.

Venator felt little remorse.  Better for them to have died quickly than

suffer years of misery in the mines of the Empire on a bare subsistence

diet before dropping from disease or being abandoned when they were too

old to work.

He took the far passage on the left and walked toward a pale glimmer of

daylight.  The entrance shaft had been hand-cut inside a small grotto

and measured two-and-a-half meters in diameter-just wide enough to

permit entry of the largest crates.

Suddenly the sound of a faraway scream echoed down the shaft from the

outside.  A frown of concern furrowed Venator's forehead, and he

increased his pace.  Out of habit he squinted his eyes against the

brilliance of the sun as he stepped into its light.  He hesitated and

studied the camp that lay a short distance away on a sloping plain.  A

group of Roman legionaries stood around several barbarian women.  One

young girl screamed again and tried to scramble away.  She almost broke

through the cordon of soldiers, but one of them grabbed her by her long

flowing black hair.  He pulled her back, and she stumbled to her knees

in the coarse dirt.

A huge, hard-bitten character spied Venator and approached.  The man was

a giant, standing a good full head above everyone else in camp, with

great shoulders and hips joined nearly as one, and a pair of oak-beam

arms ending in hands that dropped almost to his knees.

Latinius Macer, a Gaul, was the chief overseer of the slaves.  He waved

a greeting and spoke in a voice that was surprisingly high-pitched.

"Is all in readiness?" he asked.

Venator nodded.  "The tally is finished.  You can seal off the

entrance."

"Consider it done."

"What is the disturbance in camp?"

Macer glanced at the soldiers, peering through black, cold eyes, and

spat on the ground.  "Stupid legionaries became restless and raided a

village five leagues north of here.  The massacre was senseless.  At

least forty barbarians were killed. Only ten were men, the rest women

and children.  And for no good reason.  No gold, no booty worth mule

dung.  Returned with a few ugly women to gamble over.  Little else."

Venator's face tensed.  "Were there any other survivors?"

"I was told two of the men escaped into the brush,"

"They will sound the alarm in other villages.  I fear Severus has kicked

a hornet's nest."

"Severus!" Macer spat the word in unison with another salvo of saliva.

"That damned centurion and his lot do nothing but steep and drink our

wine supply.  A pain in the buttocks to bring the lazy baggage along, in

my judgment."

"They were hired to protect us," Venator reminded him.

"from what?" Macer demanded.  "Primitive heathen who eat insects and

reptiles?"

"Gather the slaves and seal off the tunnel quickly.  And make a good job

of it.  The barbarians must not be able to dig through after we leave."

"Little fear of that.  from what I've seen, no one around this cursed

land has mastered the art of metalworking." Macer paused and pointed to

the massive heap of excavated takings poised above the entrance to the

shaft, precariously held in place by a giant crib of logs.  "Once that

falls, you can stop worrying about your precious antiquities.  No

barbarian will ever get to them.  Not by scratching with his bare

hands."

Reassured, Venator dismissed the overseer and strode angrily toward the

tent of Domitius Severus.  He passed the personal emblem of the military

detachment, a silver symbol of Taurus the bull atop a lance, and brushed

aside the sentry who attempted to block his passage.

He found the centurion seated in a camp chair, contemplating a naked,

unwashed barbarian woman, who sat on her haunches, uttering a chorus of

strange vowel sounds.  She was young, no more than fourteen.  Severus

was wearing a brief red tunic clasp over his left shoulder.  His bare

arms were ornamented with two bronze bands fastened around his biceps.

They were the muscled arms of a soldier, trained for the sword and

shield.  Severus did not bother to look up at Venator's sudden

appearance.

"This is how you pass your time, Domitius?" snapped Venator, his voice

coldly sarcastic.  "Scorning God's will by raping a heathen child?"

Severus slowly turned his hard gray eyes to Venator.  "The day is too

warm to listen to your Christian tripe.  My god is more tolerant than

your god."

"True, but you worship a pagan."

"Purely a matter of preference.  Neither of us has met our gods face to

face.  Who is to say who is right?"

"Christ was the son of the true God!"

Severus gave Venator a look of exasperation.  "You have invaded my

privacy.  State your case and leave."

"So you can ravage this poor heathen?"

Severus did not answer.  He rose, grabbed the chanting girl by the arm

and threw her roughly on his camp cot.

"Would you care to join me, Junius?   You may go first,"

Venator stared at the centurion.  A chill of fear ran through him.  The

Roman centurion who led an infantry unit was expected to be a hard

master.  This man was merciless, a savage.

"Our mission here is finished," said Venator.  "Macer and the slaves are

preparing to seal off the storage cave.  We can strike camp and return

to the ships."

"Eleven months tomorrow since we left Egypt.  One more day to enjoy the

local pleasures will not matter."

"Our mission was not to pillage.  The barbarians will seek revenge.  We

are few, they are many,"

"I'll match my legionaries against any horde the barbarians can throw

against us."

"Your men have grown soft as mercenaries."

"They haven't forgotten how to fight," Severus said with a confident

smile.

"But will they die for the honor of Rome?"

"Why should they?   Why should any of us?   The great years of the

Empire have come and gone.  Our once glorious city on the Tiber has

turned into a slum.  Little Roman blood runs in our veins.  Most of my

men are natives of the provinces.  I am a Spaniard and you are Greek,

Junius, In these chaotic days who can feel an ounce of loyalty toward an

emperor who rules far to the east in a city none of us have ever seen?

No, Junius, my soldiers will fight because they are professionals and

because they are paid to fight."

"It may be the barbarians will give them no choice."

"We'll deal with that scum when the time comes."

"Better to avoid conflict.  I say we leave before dark-"

Venator was interrupted by a loud rumble that shook the ground.  He

rushed from the tent and stared at the cliff wall. The slaves had pulled

the supports from under the crib, releasing a thundering avalanche that

plunged over the cave opening, burying it beneath tons of massive

boulders.  A great dust cloud erupted and spilled into the ravine.  The

echoing rumble was followed by cheers from the slaves and legionnaires.

"It's done," said Venator, his voice solemn, his face weary. "The wisdom

of the ages is safe."

Severus came and stood beside him.  "A pity the same can't be said for

us."

Venator turned.  "If God grants us a smooth voyage home, what have we to

fear?"

"Torture and execution," said Severus flatly.  "We have defied the

Emperor.  Theodosius does not forgive easily.  There will be no place

for us to hide in the Empire.  Better we find refuge in a foreign land."

"My wife and daughter . . . they were to meet me at our family villa at

Antioch."

"The Emperor's agents have probably intercepted them by now.  They are

either dead or sold into slavery."

Venator shook his head disbelievingly.  "I have friends in power who

will protect them until my return."

"Friends can be threatened and bought."

Venator's eyes widened in sudden defiance.  "No sacrifice is too heavy

for what we have achieved.  All would be for nothing if we did not

return with a record and chart of the voyage.  "

Severus was about to reply when he observed his second in command,

Artofius Noricus, running up the slight grade toward the tent.  The

young legionary's dark face glistened in the noonday heat, and he was

gesturing up at the edge of the low cliffs.

Venator held up a hand to ward off the sun and stared upward.  His mouth

pressed into a tight line.

"The barbarians, Severus.  They have come to pay back the sack of their

village."

It was as if the hills swarmed with ants.  Over a thousand barbarian men

and women stared down at the cruel intruders of their land.  They were

armed with bows and arrows, shields of leather hide and spears with

chipped obsidian points.  Some gripped clubs of rock tied to short

wooden handles.  The men wore only waistcloths.

They stood in stony silence, expressionless, savage, and as ominous as

an approaching storm.

"Another force of barbarians has massed between us and our ships!"

Noricus shouted.

Venator turned, his face ashen.  "This is the result of your stupidity,

Severus." His voice was vicious with anger.  "You have killed us all."

Then he dropped to his knees and began to pray.

"Your divinity will not Turn the barbarians into sheep, old man,"

Severus said sarcastically.  "Only the sword can provide deliverance."

He turned and took Noricus by the arm and began issuing commands. "Order

the bugler to sound battle assembly.  Tell Latinius Macer to arm the

slaves.  Form the men in a tight fighting square.  We'll march in

formation to the river."

"Bugler!"

Noricus threw a taut salute and ran for the center of the camp.

The infantry unit of sixty soldiers quickly formed in a hollow square.

The Syrian archers took their place on the flanks between the armed

slaves, facing outward, while the Romans formed on front and rear.

Screened in the center were Venator and his small staff of Egyptian and

Greek aides and a three man medical unit.

The main infantry weapons of fourth-century Rome were the gladius, a

double-edged pointed sword eighty-two centimeters long, and the pilum, a

two-meter throwing and thrusting spear.  for protection and armor, the

soldiers wore an iron helmet with hinged cheek pieces that tied under

the chin with a strap and looked like a jockey cap with the brim turned

backward, a cuirass made up of overlapping metal plates encircling the

body and covering the shoulders, and a guard worn over the shins called

a greave- Their defensive tool was an oval shield made out of laminated

wood.

Instead of rushing in to attack, the barbarians took their time and

slowly encircled the column.  At first they tried to draw the soldiers

out of the solid lines by sending a few men up close who shouted strange

words and made threatening gestures.  But their heavily outnumbered foe

did not panic and run as expected.

Centurion Severus was too much a veteran to feel fear.  He stepped ahead

of his front line and surveyed the terrain crawling with barbarians.

He waved derisively at them.  This was not the first time he had faced

overwhelming odds in a fight.  Severus had volunteered for the legion

when he was sixteen.  He advanced from common soldier, winning several

decorations for distinguished bravery in battles against the Goths along

the Danube and the Franks at the Rhine.  After his retirement, he had

become a mercenary, hiring out to the highest bidder, in this case

Junius Venator.

Severus had unswerving confidence in his legionaries.  The sun gilded

their helmets and unsheathed swords.  They were strong fighters and

battle-hardened men who knew victory without ever enduring defeat.

Most of the livestock, including his horse, had died on the grueling

voyage from Egypt, so he walked at the head of the square, turning every

few steps so as to keep a constant, wary eye on the enemy.

With a roar that rose and broke like crashing surf, the barbarians

rushed down the sun-baked incline and fell on the Romans.  The first

wave was decimated, pierced by the long throwing spears of the soldiers

and the arrows from the Syrian archers.  The second wave burst forward,

crashed into the thin ranks, and were cut down like wheat before a

scythe.  The gleaming swords dulled and turned red with barbarian blood.

Driven by a stream of salty oaths, and threatened by the scourging lash

of Latinius Macer, the slaves gave a good account of themselves and

stood firm.

The formation moved forward at a crawl as the barbarians pressed from

all sides, fed by continuous reserves.  Great red stains fanned on the

dirt of the and slope.  More and more naked bodies dropped and crumpled

lifeless.  Those who surged from behind fought on their comrades'

corpses, slicing bare feet on shattered weapons, throwing flesh against

the terrible shafts of iron that thrust into breasts and stomachs, then

falling on the death heap.  At close quarters they were no match for

Roman discipline.

The battle now took a different Turn.  Realizing they could make no

headway against the swords and spears of the foreigners, the barbarians

pulled back and regrouped.  Then they began shooting flights of arrows

and throwing their crude spears while their women hurled rocks.

The Romans closed shields over their heads like large tortoise shells

and stoutly maintained their march for the river and the safety of their

ships.  Only the Syrian archers were able to cause casualties among the

barbarians.  There were not enough shields to go around for the slaves,

and they fought open and unprotected from the hail of missiles.  They

were weakened from the long, tiring voyage and the exhausting excavation

of the cavern.  Many fell and were left behind, their bodies immediately

stripped and horribly mutilated.

Severus was an old hand at this style of fighting; he had experienced it

against the Britons.  Noting that his enemy was reckless and untrained,

he called a halt and ordered all weapons be dropped on the ground.  The

barbarians, taking it as a gesture of surrender, were deceived into

making a rash charge.  Then, at Sevenis's order, the swords were

snatched up and the Romans counterattacked.

Straddling two rocks, the centurion swung his sword in almost measured,

metronomic strokes.  Four barbarians dropped at his feet.  He knocked

another one sprawling with the flat of his sword and slashed the throat

of one who lunged against his side.  Then the frenzied tide receded and

the naked horde retreated out of hand-to-hand range.

Severus took advantage of the breathing spell to count his casualties.

Out of sixty of his soldiers, twelve lay dead or were dying.  Fourteen

more sustained various wounds.  The slaves had suffered the worst.  More

than half were killed or missing.

He approached Venator, who was binding up a gash on one arm with a torn

piece of his tunic.  The Greek wise man still carried his precious tally

sheet securely under his sash.

"Still with us, old man?"

Venator looked up, his eyes brimming with fear mixed with

determination"You'll die before me, Sevenis."

"Is that a dream or a prophecy?"

"Does it matter?   None of us will see the Empire again."

Severus did not reply.  The fight abruptly resumed as the barbarians

unleashed another discharge of spears and rocks that filled the air and

thumped against the shields.  He quickly returned to his place in front

of the depleted square.

The Romans fought viciously, but their numbers were dwindling.  Almost

all of the Syrian archers were down.  The square was closing in on

itself as the withering assault continued unabated.  The survivors, many

of them wounded, were exhausted and suffered from the heat and the

attack. Their swords began to sag and they switched them from one hand

to the other.

The barbarians were equally exhausted and taking huge losses, yet they

stubbornly contested every foot of the gradual slope to the never- Half

a dozen of their corpses could be counted around every slain legionary.

The mercenaries' bodies, pierced by scores of arrows, looked like

pincushions.

The giant overseer Macer was struck in one knee and the thigh.  He

stayed on his feet but could not keep up with the moving formation- He

dropped behind and soon attracted a group of twenty barbarians who

swiftly surrounded him.  He turned, at bay, waved his sword like a

windmill and cut three of them completely in two before the rest drew

back and hesitated in respect of his awesome strength.  He shouted and

motioned for them to come close and fight.

The barbarians had learned their lesson the hard way and refused to be

drawn into arms-length combat.  They stood back and launched a torrent

of spears at Macer.  In seconds, blood gushed from five wounds on his

body.  He grasped the shafts and pulled out the points.  A barbarian ran

close and hurled his spear, striking Macer in the throat.  Slowly he

toppled over from the loss of blood and dropped into the dust.  The

barbarian women rushed in like a pack of mad wolves and stoned him to

pulp.

Only a high sandstone bluff separated the Romans from the river's edge.

Beyond, it seemed that the sky had suddenly turned from blue to orange.

Then a column of smoke rolled upward, black and heavy, and the wind

brought the smell of burning wood.

Shock gripped Venator, quickly replaced with despair.

"The ships!" he shouted.  "The barbarians are attacking the ships!"

The bloodied slaves panicked and made a suicidal dash for the river. The

barbarians rushed in from the flanks and viciously assaulted them.

Several of the slaves threw down their arms in surrender and were

slaughtered.  The rest tried to make a fight of it from behind a grove

of small trees, but their pursuers cut them down to a man.  The dust of

the sage land became their shroud, the dry brush their sepulcher.

Severus and his surviving legionaries fought their way to the summit of

the bluff and suddenly halted, oblivious to the murderous onslaught

raging around them, and stared in stunned fascination at the disaster

below.

Pillars of fire rose and merged into a coil of smoke that unwound and

reached upward like a serpent.  The fleet, their only hope of escape,

was burning along the river's edge.  The enormous grain ships they had

commandeered in Egypt were being incinerated under great sheets of

rolling flame.

Venator pushed his way through the front rank and stood beside Severus.

The centurion was silent; blood and sweat stained his tunic and armor.

He gazed in frustration at the sea of flame and smoke, seeing the

blazing sails disintegrate in a maelstrom of sparks, the dreadful

reality of defeat branded in his eyes.

The ships had been anchored on the shoreline and lay naked and exposed.

A force of barbarians had engulfed the small body of seamen and torched

everything that could burn.  Only a small merchant ship had escaped the

conflagration, its crew somehow beating off their attackers.  Four

seamen were struggling to raise the sails while several of their

shipmates strained at the oars in their struggle to reach the safety of

deep water.

Venator tasted the falling soot and the bitterness of calamity in his

mouth.  Even the sky itself seemed red to him.  He stood there in

helpless rage.  The faith he had placed in his carefully executed plan

to safeguard the priceless knowledge of the past died in his heart.

A hand was laid on his shoulder and he turned and stared into the

strange expression of cold amusement on Severus's face.

"I had always hoped to die," said the centurion, "drunk on good wine

while lying on a good woman."

"Only God can choose a man's death," Venator replied vaguely.

"I rather think luck plays a heavy role."

"A waste, a terrible waste."

"At least your goods are safely hidden," said Severus.  "And those

escaping sailors will tell the scholars of the Empire what we did here."

"No," said Venator shaking his head.  "No one will believe the fanciful

tales of ignorant seamen." He turned and gazed back at the low hills in

the distance.  "It will remain lost for all time."

"Can you swim?"

Venator's eyes returned to Severus.  "Swim?"

"I'll give you five of my best men to cut a passage to the water if you

think you can reach the ship."

"I . I'm not certain." He studied the waters of the river and the

widening gap between the ship and shoreline.

"Use a piece of debris for a raft if you have to," Severus said harshly.

"But hurry, we'll all be meeting our gods in a few more minutes."

"What about you?"

"This hill is as good a place as any to make a stand."

Venator embraced the centurion.  "God be with you."

"Better he walk with you."

Severus turned and swiftly selected five soldiers who were unwounded and

ordered them to protect Venator on their run for the river.  Then he

went about the business of re-forming his ravaged unit for a final

defense.

The few legionaries clustered around Venator- Then they made their dash

for the river, shouting, and hacking their way through a loose line of

startled barbarians.  They cut and slashed like madmen on a bloody

rampage.

Venator was exhausted beyond feeling, but his sword never hesitated, his

step never faltered.  He was a scholar who had become an executioner. He

was long past the point of no return.  There was only grim stubbornness

left now; any fear of dying had disappeared.

They fought through the mad whirl of fiery heat.  Venator could smell

the odor of burnt flesh.  He threw off another shred of his tunic and

covered his nose and mouth as they fought through the smoke.

The soldiers went down, protecting Venator to their last breath.

Suddenly his feet were in the water, and he sprang forward, diving the

instant it rose above his knees.  He glimpsed a spar that had fallen

free of a burning ship and feverishly paddled toward it, not daring to

look back.

The soldiers still on the bluff countered everything that was thrown at

them. The barbarians dodged and chanted defiance while probing for a

weak spot in the Roman defenses.  Four times they grouped in mass

formations and charged, and four times they were hurled back, but not

before they took down a few more of the exhausted legionaries.  The

square became a small knot as the few survivors closed ranks and fought

shoulder to shoulder. Bloody heaps of dead and dying carpeted the land,

their blood flowing in streams down the slopes.  And still the Romans

resisted.

The battle had been raging without let-up for nearly two hours, but the

barbarians were attacking with the same intensity as at the beginning.

They began to smell victory and massed for one last charge.

Severus broke off the arrow shafts that protruded from his exposed flesh

and fought on.  Barbarian corpses carpeted the ground around him.  Only

a handful of his legionaries remained at his side.  One by one they

perished, sword in hand, buried beneath swarms of rocks, arrows and

spears.

Severus was the last to fall.  His legs folded under him and his arm

could no longer lift his sword.  He swayed on his knees, made a futile

effort to rise, then looked up to the sky and muttered softly, "Mother,

Father, carry me to your arms."

As if in answer to his plea, the barbarians rushed forward and savagely

clubbed him until death released his agony.

In the water, Venator grimly clutched the spar and kicked his legs in a

desperate attempt to reach the retreating ship.  His effort was in vain.

The river's current and a puff of wind pushed the merchant vessel

further away.

He shouted to the crew and frantically waved his free hand. A group of

seamen and a young girl holding a dog stood on the stern, staring at him

without compassion, making no move to bring the ship around.  They

continued their escape down river as if Venator did not exist.

They were abandoning him, he realized helplessly.  There would be no

rescue.  He beat a fist on the spar in anguish and sobbed

uncontrollably, convinced that his God had forsaken him.  Finally he

turned his eyes toward shore and gazed at the carnage and devastation.

The expedition was gone, vanished in a nightmare.

PART I

October 12, 1991

Heathrow Airport, London

No one paid the slightest attention to the pilot as he slipped around

the crowd of media correspondents who overflowed from the interior of

the VIP lounge.  Nor did any of the passengers sitting in the waiting

area of gate 14 notice that he carried a large duffel bag instead of a

briefcase.  He kept his head down, eyes straight ahead, carefully

avoiding the battery of TV cameras aimed at a attractive woman with a

smooth brown face and compelling coal-black eyes, who was the hub of the

noisy activity.

The pilot quickly walked through the enclosed boarding ramp and halted

in front of a pair of airport security agents. They wore plain clothes

and blocked the aircraft door.  He threw a casual wave and tried to

shoulder his way past them, but a hand firmly grasped his arm.

"One moment, Captain."

The pilot stopped, a questioning but friendly expression on his

dark-skinned face.  He seemed idly amused at the inconvenience.

His olive-brown eyes had a gypsylike piercing quality about them.  The

nose had been broken more than once, and a long scar ran down the base

of his face.

He stood nearly six feet four inches, thickset, with a slightly rounded

paunch. Seasoned, confident, and standing straight in a tailored

uniform, he looked like any one of ten thousand airline pilots who

captained international passenger jets.

He removed his identification from a breast pocket and handed it to the

security agent.

"Carrying VIPs this trip?" he asked innocently.

The British guard, correct, immaculately dressed, nodded. "A body of

United Nations people returning to New York including the new

Secretary-General."

"Hala Kamil?"

"Yes."

"Hardly  the  job  for  a  woman."

"Sex  didn't  prove  a  hindrance  for  Prime  Minister  Thatcher."

"She wasn't in water over her head."

"Kamil is an astute lady.  She'll do all right."

"Providing Moslem fanatics from her own country don't blow her away,"

replied the pilot in a decided American accent.

The Britisher gave him a strange look indeed but made no further comment

as he compared the photo on the I.D. card with the face before him and

read the name aloud.  "Captain Dale Lemk."

"any problem?"

"No, simply preventing any," the guard replied flatly.

Lemk extended his arms.  "Do you want to frisk me too?"

"Not necessary.  A pilot would hardly hijack his own airplane.  But we

must check your credentials, to be certain you're a genuine crew

member."

"I'm not wearing this uniform for a costume party."

"May we see your carry bag?"

"Be my guest." He set the blue nylon bag on the floor and opened it. The

second agent lifted out and riffled the pages of the standard pilot's

aircraft and flight operations manuals and then held up a mechanical

device with a small hydraulic cylinder.

"Mind telling us what this is?"

"An actuator arm for an oil-cooling door.  It stuck in the open

position, and our maintenance people at Kennedy asked me to hand-carry

it home for inspection."

The agent poked at a bulky object tightly packed on the bottom of the

bag.  "Hello, what do we have here?" Then he looked up, a curious

expression in his eyes.  "Since when do airline pilots carry

parachutes?"

Lemk laughed.  "My hobby is skydiving.  Whenever I have an extended

layover, I jump with friends at Croydon."

"I don't suppose you would consider jumping from a jetliner?"

"Not from one flying five hundred knots at thirty-five thousand feet

over the Atlantic Ocean."

The agents exchanged satisfied glances.  The duffel bag was closed and

the I.D. card was passed back.

"Sorry to have delayed you, Captain Lemk."

"I enjoyed the chat."

"Have a good flight to New York."

"Thank you."

Lemk ducked into the plane and entered the cockpit.  He locked the door

and switched off the cabin lights so any casual observer could not view

his movements through the windows from the concourse above.  In

well-rehearsed sequence, he knelt behind the seats, pulled a small

flashlight from his coat pocket and raised a trapdoor leading to the

electronics bay below the cockpit, a compartment that was named by some

long-forgotten joker as the "hell hole." He dropped down the ladder into

pure darkness, underscored by the murmur of the flight attendants'

voices as they prepared the main cabin for boarding and the thump of the

luggage being loaded in the rear by the baggage handlers.

Lemk reached up and tugged the duffel bag down after him and switched on

the penlight.  A glance at his watch told him he had about five minutes

before his flight crew arrived.  In an exercise he had practiced nearly

fifty times, he retrieved the actuator arm from the bag and connected it

to a miniature device he had concealed in his flight cap.

He attached the assembled unit to the hinges of a small access door to

the outside used by ground/maintenance mechanics.  Then he laid out the

parachute.

When his first and second officers arrived, Lemk was sitting in the

pilot's seat, his face buried in an information manual.  They exchanged

casual greetings and began running through their preflight check

routine.  Neither the co-pilot nor the engineer perceived that Lemk

seemed unusually quiet and withdrawn.

Their senses might have been sharper if they had known this was to be

their last night on earth.

Inside the crowded lounge, Hala Kamil faced a forest of microphones and

glaring camera lights.  With seemingly inexhaustible patience, she

fielded the barrage of questions thrown at her by the mob of inquisitive

reporters.

Few asked about her sweep through Europe and the nonstop meetings with

heads of state.  Most probed for insights on the imminent overthrow of

her Egyptian government by Moslem fundamentalists.

The extent of the turmoil was unclear to her.  Fanatical mullahs, led by

Akhmad Yazid, an Islac law scholar, had ignited religious passions that

ran through the millions of destitute villagers of the Nile and the

impoverished masses in the slums of Cairo.  High-ranking officers in the

army and air force were openly conspiring with the Islamic radicals to

remove the recently installed president, Nadav Hasan.  The situation was

extremely volatile, but Hala had received no up-to-the-minute

intelligence from her government, and she was forced to keep her answers

vague and ambiguous.

On the surface Hala appeared infinitely poised and sphinxlike as she

replied calmly, without emotion.  Inwardly she floated between confusion

and spiritual shock.  She felt distant and alone, as though

uncontrollable events were swirling around someone else, someone beyond

help for whom she could only feel sorrow.

She could have posed for the painted portrait bust of Queen Nefertiti in

the Berlin museum.  They both possessed the same long-stemmed neck,

delicate features and haunting look. Forty-two years old, slim, black

eyes, flawless tawny complexion and long jet-black silken hair brushed

straight and falling down to her shoulders.  She stood five feet eleven

inches in heels, and her lithe, shapely body was enhanced by a designer

suit with pleated skirt.

Hala had enjoyed the attentions of four lovers over the years but had

never married.  A husband and children seemed foreign to her.  She

refused to spare the time for long-term attachments, and making love

held little more ecstasy for her than buying a ticket and attending the

ballet.

As a child in Cairo, where her mother was a teacher and her father a

shoemaker, she had spent every minute of her free time sketching and

digging in the ancient ruins within bicycle distance of her home.  A

gourmet cook and an artist with a Ph.D. in Egyptian antiquities, she had

landed one of the few jobs open to Moslem women, as researcher for the

Ministry of Culture.

With great individual effort and prodigious energy, she then

successfully fought Islamic discrimination and worked up to Director of

Antiquities and later head of the Department of information- She caught

the eye of then President Mubarak, who asked her to serve on the

Egyptian delegation to the United Nations General Assembly.  Five years

later, Hala was named Vice Chairman when Javier P6rez de Cudllar stepped

down in the middle of his second tour during an upheaval when five

Moslem-run nations withdrew from the charter during a controversy over

demands for religious reform.  Because the men in line ahead of her

refused the job, she was appointed to serve as Secretary-General in a

tenuous hope she might mend the widening cracks in the organization's

foundation.

Now, with her own government teetering on the brink of disintegration,

there was a good chance she might become the first chief representative

of the United Nations without a good try.

An aide came up and whispered in her ear.  She nodded and held up one

hand.

"I'm told the plane is ready to take off," she said.  "I'll take one

more question."

Hands flew up and a dozen queries filled the air at once. Hala pointed

to a man standing at the doorway holding a tape recorder.

"Leigh Hunt of BBC, Madame Kamil. if Akhmad Yazid replaces President

Hasan's democratic government with an Islamic republic, will you return

to Egypt?"

"I am a Moslem and an Egyptian. if my country's leaders, regardless of

the government in power, wish me to come home, I will comply."

"Even though Akhmad Yazid has called you a heretic and a traitor?"

"Yes," Hala replied evenly.

"If he's half as fanatical as the Ayatollah Khomeini, you might be

running into an execution.  Would you care to comment?" Hala shook her

head, smiled gracefully and said, "I must leave now.  Thank you."

A circle of security guards escorted her from the throng of reporters

and onto the boarding ramp.  Her aides and a large delegation from

UNESCO were already seated.  Four members of the World Bank were sharing

a bottle of champagne and conversing in low tones in the pantry.  The

main cabin smelled of jet fuel and Beef Wellington.

Wearily Hala fastened the catch of her seat belt and glanced out the

window.  There was a light mist and the blue lights along the taxi

strips blurred into a dull glow before disappearing completely.  She

removed her shoes, closed her eyes and gratefully dozed off before the

stewardess could offer her a cocktail.

After waiting its Turn behind the warm exhaust of a TWA 747, United

Nations charter Flight 106 finally moved onto the end of the runway.

When takeoff clearance came down from the control tower, Lemk eased the

thrust levers forward and the Boeing 720-B rolled over the damp concrete

and rose into the soggy air.

As soon as he reached his cruising altitude of 10,500 meters and engaged

the autopilot, Lemk unbuckled his belt and rose from his seat.

"A call of nature," he said, heading for the cabin door.  His second

officer and engineer, a freckle-faced man with sandy hair, smiled

without turning from the instrument panel.  "I'll wait right here."

Lemk forced a short laugh and stepped into the passenger cabin.  The

flight attendants were preparing the meal service. The aroma of Beef

Wellington came stronger than ever.  He made a gesture and drew the

chief steward aside.

"Can I get you anything, Captain?"

"Just a cup of coffee," replied Lemk.  "But don't bother, I can manage."

"No bother." The steward stepped into the pantry and poured a cup.

"There is one other thing.

"sir?"

"The company has asked us to take part in a government sponsored

meteorology study.  When we're twenty-eight hundred kilometers out from

London, I'm going to drop down to fifteen-hundred meters for about ten

minutes while we record wind and temperature readings.  Then return to

our normal altitude."

"Hard to believe the company went along.  I wish my bank account totaled

what it will cost in lost fuel."

"You can bet those cheap bastards in top management will send a bill to

Washington."

"I'll inform the passengers when the time comes so they won't be

alarmed."

"You might also announce that if anyone spots any lights through the

windows, they'll be coming from a fishing fleet."

"I'll see to it."

Lemk's eyes swept the main cabin, pausing for an instant on the sleeping

form of Hala Kamil before moving on.  "Did it strike you that security

was unusually heavy?" Lemk asked conversationally.

"Of those reporting told me Scotland Yard caught wind of a plot to

assassinate the Secretary-General."

"They act as though there's a terrorist plot under every rock. I had to

show my identification while they searched my flight bag."

The steward shrugged.  "What the hell, it's for our protection as well

as the passengers'."

Lemk motioned down the aisle.  "At least none of them looks like a

hijacker."

"Not unless they've taken to wearing three-piece suits."

"Just to be on the safe side, I'll keep the cockpit door locked.  Call

me on the intercom only if it's important."

"Will do."

Lemk took a sip of his coffee, set it aside and returned to the cockpit.

The first officer, his copilot, was gazing out the side window at the

lights of Wales to the north, while behind him the engineer was occupied

with computing fuel consumption.

Lemk turned his back to the others and slipped a small case from the

breast pocket of his coat.  He opened it and readied a syringe

containing a highly lethal nerve agent called sarin.  Then he faced his

crew again and made a fumbling step as if losing his balance and grabbed

the arm of the second officer for support.

"Sorry, Frank, I tripped on the carpet."

Frank Hartley wore a bushy mustache, had thin gray hair and a long,

handsome face.  He never felt the needle enter his shoulder.  He looked

up from the gauges and lights of his engineer's panel and laughed

easily.  "You're going to have to lay off the sauce, Dale."

"I can fly straight," Lemk replied good-naturedly.  "It's walking that

gives me a hard time."

Hartley opened his mouth as if to say something, but suddenly a blank

expression crossed his face.  He shook his head as if to clear his

vision.  Then his eyes rolled upward, and he went limp.

Leaning his body against Hartley so the engineer would not fall to one

side, Lemk withdrew the syringe and quickly replaced it with another.

"I think something is wrong with Frank."

Jerry Oswald swung around in the copilot's seat.  A big man with the

pinched features of a desert prospector, he stared questioningly.  "What

ails him?"

"Better come take a look."

Oswald twisted his bulk past the seat and bent over Hartley. Lemk jabbed

the needle and pushed the plunger, but Oswald felt the prick.

"What the hell was that?" he blurted, whirling around and gazing dumbly

at the hypodermic needle in Lemk's hand.  He was far heavier and more

muscular than Hartley, and the toxin did not take effect immediately.

His eyes widened in sudden comprehension, and then he lurched forward,

gripping Lemk by the neck.

"You're not Dale Lemk," he snarled.  "Why are you made up to look like

him?"

The man who called himself Lemk could not have answered if he wanted.

The great hands were choking the breath out of him.  Crammed against a

bulkhead by the immense weight of Oswald, he tried to gasp out the words

of a lie, but no words could come.  He rammed his knee into the

engineer's groin.  The only reaction was a short grunt.  Blackness began

to creep into the corners of his vision.

Then, slowly, the pressure was released and Oswald reeled backward. His

eyes became terror-stricken as he realized he was dying.  He looked at

Lemk in confused hatred.  With the few final beats left in his heart he

swung his fist, landing a solid blow into Lemk's stomach.

Lemk drifted to his knees, dazed, the breath punched out of him.  He

watched as if looking through fog as Oswald fell against the pilot's

seat and crashed to the cockpit floor.  Lemk slid to a sitting position

and rested for a minute, gasping for air, massaging the pain in his gut.

He rose awkwardly to his feet and listened for any curious voices coming

from the other side of the door.  The main cabin seemed quiet.  None of

the passengers or flight crew had heard anything unusual above the

monotonous whine of the engines.

He was drenched in sweat by the time he manhandled Oswald into the

copilot's seat and strapped him in.  Hartley's safety belt was already

fastened so Lemk ignored him.  At last he settled behind the control

column on the pilot's side of the cockpit and plotted the air-craft's

position.

Forty-five minutes later, Lemk banked the plane from its scheduled

flight path to New York onto a new heading, toward the frozen Arctic.

It is one of the most barren spots on the earth and one never seen or

experienced by tourists.  In the last hundred years, only a handful of

explorers and scientists have trod its forbidding landscape.  The sea

along the rugged shore is frozen for all but a few weeks each year, and

in the early fall temperatures hover around - 73 degrees the cold sides

for the long winter months, and even in summer, dazzling sunshine can be

replaced by an impenetrable gale in less than an hour.

Yet, shadowed by scarred mountains and swept by a constant wind, the

magnificent desolation in the upper reaches of Ardencaple Fjord on the

northeast coast of Greenland was inhabited nearly two thousand years ago

by a band of hunters.  Radiocarbon dating on excavated relics indicated

the site was occupied from A.D. 200 to A.D. 400, a Short time span for

the archaeological clock.  But they left behind twenty dwellings which

had been preserved by the frigid ice.

A prefabricated aluminum structure had been airlifted by helicopter and

assembled over the ancient village by scientists from the University of

Colorado.  A balky heating arrangement and foam-glass insulation fought

a lopsided battle against the cold, but at least denied entry to the

never-ending wind moaning eerily around the outside walls.  The shelter

also enabled an archaeological team to work the site into the beginning

stages of winter.

Lily Sharp, a professor of anthropology at Colorado, was oblivious to

the cold that seeped into the covered village.  She rested on her knees

on the floor of a single-family dwelling, carefully scraping away the

frozen earth with a small hand trowel.  She was alone and lost in deep

concentration as she probed the distant past belonging to the

prehistoric people.

They were sea-mammal hunters who spent the harsh Arctic winters in

dwellings dug partially into the ground, with low walls of rock and turf

roofs often supported by whale bones. They entertained themselves with

oil lamps, passing the long dark months carving miniature sculptures out

of driftwood, ivory and antlers.

They had settled this part of Greenland during the first centuries after

Christ.  Then, inexplicably, at the height of their culture, they pulled

up stakes and vanished, leaving behind a revealing cache of relics.

Lily's perseverance paid off.  While the three men on the archaeology

team relaxed after dinner in the hut that was their living quarters, she

had returned to the protected settlement and continued to excavate,

unearthing a length of caribou antler with twenty bearlike figures

sculpted on its surface, a delicately carved woman's comb and a stone

cooking pot.

Suddenly Lily's trowel clinked on something.  She repeated the movement

and listened carefully.  Fascinated, she tapped again.  It was not the

familiar sound from the edge of the trowel striking a rock.  Though a

bit flat, it had a definite metallic ring to it.

She straightened and stretched her back.  Strands of her dark red hair,

long and thick, shining under the glare from the Coleman lantern, fell

from under her heavy woolen cap.  Her blue-green eyes mirrored skeptical

curiosity as she gazed at the tiny speck protruding from the

charcoal-black earth.

A prehistoric people lived here, she pondered.  They never knew iron or

bronze.

Lily tried to stay calm, but a feeling of astonishment crept over her.

Then excitement, followed by urgency.  She missed the archaeologist's

fussbudget passion for prudence. She scraped and dug furiously at the

hard-crusted soil.  Every few minutes she stopped and painstakingly

brushed away the loose dirt with a small painter's brush.

At last the artifact lay fully exposed.  She leaned over for a closer

look, staring in awe as it glimmered yellow under the bright white from

the Coleman lantern.

Lily had excavated a gold coin.

A very old one, by the look of the worn edges.  There was a tiny hole

and a piece of rotted leather thong on one side, suggesting that it had

once been worn as a pendant or personal amulet She sat back and took a

deep breath, almost wanting to reach down and touch it.

Five minutes later, Lily was still crouched there on her knees, her mind

trying to create a solution, when abruptly the shelter's door opened and

a large-bellied man with a blackwhiskered, kindly-looking face stepped

in from the cold, accompanied by a swirl of snow.  He exhaled clouds of

steam as he breathed.  His eyebrows and beard were matted with ice,

which made him look like some frozen monster from a science-fiction

movie until he broke into a great toothy smile.

it was Dr. Hiram Gronquist, the chief archaeologist of the four-person

dig.

"Sorry to interrupt, Lily," he said in his soft, deep voice, "but you've

been pushing too hard.  Take a break.  Come back to the hut, warm up and

let me pour you a good stiff brandy."

"Hiram," said Lily, doing her best to stifle the excitement in her

voice, "I want you to see something."

Gronquist moved closer and knelt down beside her.  "What have you

found?"

"See for yourself."

Gronquist fumbled for his reading glasses inside his parka and slid them

over his red nose.  He bent over the coin until his face was only inches

away and studied it from every angle. After several moments, he looked

up at Lily, an amused twinkle in his eyes.

"You putting me on, lady?"

Lily looked at him sternly, then relaxed and laughed.  "Oh, my God, you

think I salted it?"

"You've got to admit, it's  like  finding  a  virgin  in  a  bor dello."

"Cute."

He gave her a friendly pat on one knee.  "Congratulations, this is a

rare discovery."

"How do you suppose it got here?"

"There isn't a workable gold deposit within a thousand miles, and it

certainly wasn't minted by the early inhabitants. Their level of

development was only a notch above Stone Age.  The coin obviously came

from another source at a later date.  "

"How do you explain the fact it was buried with artifacts we've dated

within a century either side Of A.D. 300?"

Gronquist shrugged.  "I can't."

"What's your best guess?" asked Lily.

"Off the top of my head, I'd say the coin was probably traded or lost by

a Viking."

"There is no record of Vikings sailing this far north along the East

Coast," said Lily.

"Okay, maybe Eskimos from a more recent time frame traded goods with the

Norse settlements to the south and used this site to camp during hunting

expeditions."

"You know better, Hiram.  We've found no evidence of habitation after

A.D. four hundred."

Gronquist gave Lily a scolding look.  "You never give in, do you?   We

don't even have a date on the coin."

"Mike Graham is an expert on ancient coins.  One of his specialties is

dating sites around the Mediterranean.  He might identify it."

"Won't cost us a nickel for an appraisal," said Gronquist agreeably.

"Come along.  Mike can examine it while we have that brandy."

Lily donned her heavy fur-lined gloves, adjusted the hood of her parka

and turned down the Coleman.  Gronquist switched on a flashlight and

held the door open for her.  She stepped into the agony of the numbing

cold and wind that groaned like a ghost in a churchyard.  The freezing

air struck her exposed cheeks and made her shudder, a reaction that

always seemed to sneak up on her even though she should have been quite

used to it by now.

She grasped the rope that led to the living quarters and groped along

behind the protecting bulk of Gronquist.  She stole a glance upward. The

sky was unclouded and the stars seemed to melt into one vast carpet of

shimmering diamonds illustrating the barren mountains to the west and

the sheet of ice that ran down the fjord to sea in the east.  The

strange beauty of the Arctic was a compelling mistress, Lily decided.

She could understand why men lost their souls to its spell.

After a thirty-yard hike through the dark, they entered the storm

corridor of their hut, walked another ten feet and opened a second door

to the living quarters inside.  To Lily, after the abominable cold

outside, it was like stepping inside a furnace.  The aroma of coffee

caressed her nostrils like perfume and she immediately pulled off her

parka and gloves and poured herself a cup.

Sam Hoskins, neck-length blond hair matching an enormous blond handlebar

mustache, was hunched over a drafting board.  A New York architect with

a love for archaeology, Hoskins allowed two months a year out of his

busy schedule to rough it on digs around the world.  He provided

invaluable assistance by rendering detailed drawings of how the

prehistoric village might have looked seventeen hundred years ago.

The other team member, a light-skinned man with thinning sandy hair,

reclined on a cot, reading a dog-eared paperback novel.  Lily couldn't

remember seeing Mike Graham without an adventure book in one hand or

stuffed in a coat pocket. One of the leading field archaeologists in the

country, Graham was as laid back as a mortician.

"Hey, Mike!" Gronquist boomed.  "Take a look at what Lily dug up."

He flipped the coin across the room.  Lily gasped in shock, but Graham

expertly snatched it out of the air and peered at the face.

After a moment he looked up, his eyes narrowed doubtfully. "You're

putting me on."

Gronquist laughed heartily.  "My exact words when I laid eyes on it.  No

gag.  She excavated it at site eight."

Graham pulled a briefcase from under his cot and retrieved a magnifying

glass.  He held the coin under the lens, examining it from every angle.

"Well, what's the verdict?" Lily asked impatiently.

"Incredible," murmured Graham, captivated.  "A Gold Miliarensia.  About

thirteen and a half grams.  I've never seen one before.  They're quite

rare.  A collector would -probably pay between six and eight thousand

dollars for it."

"Who is the likeness on the face?"

"A standing figure of Theodosius the Great, Emperor of the Roman and

Byzantine Empires.  His position is a common motif found on the face of

coins from that era. if you look closely, you can make out captives at

his feet while his hands hold a globe and a labarum."

"A labarum?"

"Yes, a banner bearing the Greek letters XP and forming a kind of

monogram meaning the the name of Christ." The Emperor Constantine

adopted it after his conversion to Christianity and it was handed down

through his successors."

"What do you make of the lettering on the reverse?" asked Gronquist.

Graham's eyeball enlarged out of proportion through the glass as he

studied the coin.  "Three words.  First one looks like TRIVMFATOR. Can't

make out the other two.  They're nearly worn smooth.  A collector's

catalogue should give a description and Latin translation.  I'll have to

wait until we return to civilization before I can look them up."

"Can you date it?"

Graham stared at the ceiling thoughtfully.  "Coined during the reign of

Theodosius, which, if I remember correctly, was from A.D. 379 to 395."

Lily stared at Gronquist- "Right in the ballpark."

He shook his head.  "Sheer fantasy, to suggest fourth-century Eskimos

had contact with the Roman Empire."

"We can't rule out the infinity of chance," Lily persisted.

"Once this gets out, there will be a flood of speculation and hype by

the news media," said Hoskins, inspecting the coin for the first time.

Gronquist took a swallow of his brandy.  "Ancient coinage has turned up

in odd places before.  But the date and source of its deposit could

rarely be proven to the full satisfaction of the archaeologists'

community."

"Perhaps," said Graham slowly.  "But I'd give my Mercedes convertible to

know how it turned up here."

They all gazed at the coin for a few moments without speaking, each lost

in their own thoughts.

Finally Gronquist broke the silence.  "It seems the only thing we know

for certain is that we have a real mystery on our hands.

Shortly before midnight, the imposter began his practiced drill to

abandon the jetliner.  The air was sparkling clear and the dim smudge

that was Iceland rose above the flat, black horizon line of the sea. The

small island country was outlined by a faint but eerie display of

greenish rays from the Aurora Borealis.

He was oblivious to the dead men around him.  He had grown used to the

smell of blood and it no longer sickened him.  Death and gore simply

went with the job.  He was as indifferent to mutilated bodies as a

pathologist or the neighborhood butcher.

The imposter was quite clinical about killing.  Numbers of dead were

merely mathematical sums.  He was paid well; he was a mercenary, as well

as a religious fanatic who murdered for a cause.  Oddly, the only part

of his work that offended him was being called an assassin or a

terrorist.  He detested the words.  They had a political ring about

them, and he nurtured a passionate dislike for politicians.

He was a man of a thousand identities, a perfectionist who rejected

random gunfire in crowds or sloppy car bombs, considering them tools for

juvenile idiots.  His methods were far more subtle.  He never left

anything to chance.  International investigators found it difficult to

separate many of his hits from what appeared to be accidents.

The death of Hala Kamil was more than an assigned task. He considered it

a duty.  His elaborate plan had taken five months to perfect, followed

by the patient wait for the opportune moment.

Almost a waste, he mused.  Kamil was a beautiful woman. But she was a

threat that had to be nullified.

He gently eased back on the throttles and nudged the control column

forward, beginning a shallow rate of descent.  To anyone but another

pilot the slight drop in speed and altitude was imperceptible.

The main cabin crew had not troubled him.  By now the passengers were

dozing, attempting but failing to fall into the deep sleep so elusive on

long aircraft flights.

for the twentieth time he re-checked his heading and studied the

computer he had reprogrammed to indicate the time and distance to his

drop zone.

Fifteen minutes later the jetliner crossed over an uninhabited section

of Iceland's southern coastline and headed inland. The landscape below

became a montage of gray rock and white snow.  He lowered the flaps and

reduced speed until the Boeing 720-B was flying at 352 kilometers an

hour.

He reengaged the auto pilot on a new radio frequency transmitted from a

beacon placed on the Hofsjokull, a glacier rising 1,737 meters from the

center of the island.  Then he set the altitude so the aircraft would

impact 150 meters below the peak.

Methodically he smashed and disabled the communication and direction

indicators.  He also began dumping fuel as a backup in case a flaw

somehow marred his carefully conceived plan.

Eight minutes to go.

He dropped through the trapdoor into the hell hole.  He already wore a

pair of French paraboots with thick, elastic soles.  He hurriedly

removed a jumpsuit from the duffel bag and slipped into it.  There had

been no room for a helmet so he pulled on a ski mask and stocking cap.

Next came a pair of gloves, goggles and an altimeter, which he strapped

to one wrist.

He clipped the harness snaps and checked the straps for snugness.  He

wore a piggyback rig where the reserve sat on his shoulder blades and

the main chute fit into the small of his back.  He relied on a ram air

canopy, a square air foil that is more flown than jumped.

He glanced at the dial of his watch.  One minute, twenty seconds.  He

opened the escape door and a rush of air swept through the hell hole. He

studied the sweep second hand on the watch and began counting down.

When he reached zero he launched his body through the narrow opening

feet first, facing in the direction of flight.  The velocity of the

airstream struck him with the icy force of an avalanche, crushing the

breath from his lungs.  The plane soared past with a deafening roar. for

a brief instant he felt the heat from the turbine's exhaust, and then he

was away and falling.

Face down in a stable arched and spread position, knees slightly flexed,

hands spread in front, Lemk looked down and saw only blackness.  No

lights burned on the ground.

He assumed the worst; his crew had failed to reach the correct

rendezvous point.  Without a defined target zone he could not gauge his

wind drift or direction.  He might land kilometers away, or worse,

impact in the middle of jagged ice with serious injury and never be

found in time.

In ten seconds he had already dropped nearly 360 meters. The needle on

the luminous dial of his altimeter was crossing into the red.  He could

not wait any longer.  He pulled the pilot chute from a pouch and threw

it into the wind.  It anchored to the sky and strung out the main

canopy.

He heard the chute open with a satisfying thump, and he was jerked into

an upright position.  He took his penlight and aimed the narrow beam

over his head.  The canopy blossomed above him.

Suddenly a small circle of lights blinked on about one Mile away to his

right.  Then a flare went up and hung for several seconds, just long

enough for him to judge wind direction and speed.  He pulled on the

right steering toggle and began gliding toward the lights.

Another flare went up.  The wind held steady with no fluctuation as he

neared the ground.  He could clearly see his crew now.  They had laid

out another line of lights leading to the previously lit circle.  He

jockeyed the steering toggles and made a 180-degree bank into the wind.

Lemk prepared to strike the ground.  His crew had chosen the terrain

well.  The balls of his feet made contact with soft tundra, and he made

a perfect stand-up landing in the center of the circle.

Without a word, he unsnapped the harness and walked outside the glare of

the lights.  He looked up at the sky.

The aircraft with its unsuspecting crew and passengers flew straight

toward the glacier that gradually rose, closing the gap between ice and

metal.

He stood there watching as the faint sound of the jet engines died and

the blinking navigation lights melted into the black 4 night.

Back in the galley, one of the flight attendants tilted her head,

listening.

"What's that tinny noise coming from the cockpit?" she asked.

Gary Rubin, the chief steward, stepped into the aisle and faced toward

the bow of the plane.  He could hear what sounded like a continuous,

muffled roar, almost like rushing water in the distance.

Ten seconds after the imposter's exodus, the timer on the actuator set

the hydraulic arm in motion, closing the hatch in the hell hole and

cutting off the strange sound.

"It stopped," he said.  "I don't hear it any more."

"What do you suppose it was?"

"Can't say.  I've never heard anything quite like it.  for a moment I

thought we might have suffered a pressure leak."

A passenger call light came on and the flight attendant brushed back her

blond hair and stepped into the main cabin.

"Maybe you better check it out with the captain," she said over her

shoulder.

Rubin hesitated, remembering Lemk's order not to bother the flight crew

except for a matter of importance.  Better safe than sorry.  The welfare

of the passengers came first.  He lifted the intercom phone to his ear

and pressed the cockpit call button.

"Captain, Chief Steward here.  We've just experienced a weird noise

forward of the main cabin.  Is there a problem?"

He received no reply.

He tried three times, but the receiver remained dead.  He stood there at

a loss for several moments, wondering why the flight cabin did not

respond.  In twelve years of flying, this was a new experience for him.

He was still trying to fathom the mystery when the flight attendant

rushed up and said something.  At first he ignored her, but the urgency

in her voice got through to him.

"What . . . what did you say?"

"We're over land!"

"Land?"

"Directly beneath us," she said, eyes blank with confusion. "A passenger

pointed it out to me."

Rubin shook his head doubtfully.  "Impossible.  We have to be over the

middle of the ocean.  He probably saw lights from fishing boats.  The

captain said we might spot them during our descent for the meteorology

study."

"See for yourself," she pleaded.  "The ground is coming up fast.  I

think we're landing."

He stepped over to the galley window and looked down. Instead of the

dark waters of the Atlantic there was a glimmer of white.  A vast sheet

of ice was slipping under the aircraft no more than 240 meters below. It

was near enough for the ice crystals to reflect the strobe flashes from

the navigation lights. He froze, uncomprehending, trying to make some

sense out of what his eyes told him was true.

If this was an emergency landing, why hadn't the captain alerted the

main cabin crew?   The "Fasten Seat Belts" and "No Smoking" signs had

not been turned on.

Almost all of the U.N. passengers were awake, reading or engaged in

conversation.  Only Hala Kamil was sound asleep. Several representatives

from Mexico, returning from an economic mission to the World Bank

headquarters, were huddled around a table in the tail section.  Director

of Foreign Financing Minister Salazar talked in grim undertones.  The

atmosphere around the table was dampened by defeat.  Mexico had suffered

a disastrous economic collapse and was going through technical

bankruptcy with no monetary aid in sight.

Dread flared within Rubin, and the words rustled from his mouth: "What

in hell is going on?"

The flight attendant muttered as Her face paled and her eyes widened.

"Shouldn't we begin emergency procedures?"

"Don't alarm the passengers.  Not yet anyway.  Let me check with the

captain first."

"Is there time?"

"I don't know."

Controlling his fear, Rubin walked quickly, almost at a jog, toward the

cockpit, faking a bored yawn to divert any curiosity at his rapid step.

He whipped the curtain closed that shielded the boarding entryway from

the main cabin.

When he tried the door.  It was locked.

He frantically rapped his knuckles against the door.  No one answered

from inside.  He stared dumbly at the thin barrier that blocked the

cockpit, his mind an incredulous blank; and then, in a flash of

desperation, he lashed out his foot and kicked in the door.

The panel was built to open outward, but the blow smashed it against the

inner wall. . Rubin stared into the cramped space of the cockpit.

Disbelief, bewilderment, fear,  they swirled through his mind like a

flood hurtling down a shattered dam.

One swift glance took in the slumped form of the men, Oswald's head on

the floor, face up, ever, staring sightlessly at the cabin roof.  Lemk

had seemingly vanished.

Rubin  stumbled over Oswald's body, leaned across the panel-staring

through  the wind The massive summit of the Hofsjokull loomed beyond the

bow of the plane no more than ten miles away The flickering n lights

silhouetted against the rising ice, the uneven surface  with ghostly

shades of gray and green.

Driven by panic, the steward climbed into the pilot's seat  and firmly

clutched  the  control  column.

He pulled the wheel toward his chest.

Nothing happened.

The column refused to give.

Glancing at the panel, he observed that it showed a slow but steady

increase in altitude.  He yanked at the wheel again, but harder this

time.  It gave slightly.  He was stunned by the unyielding pressure.

There was no time to think straight.  He was too inexperienced to

realize he was trying to override the automatic pilot with brute

strength when only twenty-five pounds of pressure was required to

overpower it.

The sharp, cold air made the glacier appear near enough to reach out and

touch.  He pushed the throttles forward and hauled back on the control

column again.  It gave sluggishly, like the wheel of a speeding car that

lost its power steering, and inched back.

With agonizing slowness the Boeing lifted its nose and swept past the

icy peak with less than a hundred feet to spare.

Down on the glacier, the man who had murdered the bona fide Flight 106

pilot, Date Lemk, in London and taken his place, peered into the

distance through a pair of night glasses. The northern lights had faded

to a dim glow, but the uneven rim of the Hofsjokull still showed against

the sky.

The air was hushed with expectancy.  The only sounds came from the

two-man crew who were loading the flights transmitter beacon into the

hull of a helicopter.

Suleiman Aziz Arnmar's eyes became accustomed to the darkness, and he

could make out the broken ridges scarring the wall of the ice floe.

Ammar stood like a statue, counting the seconds, waiting for the small

speck of flame that would mark the crash of Flight 106. But the distant

fireball did not materialize.

Finally Ammar lowered the glasses and sighed.  The stillness of the

glacier spread around him, cold and remote.  He pulled off the

gray-haired wig and threw it into the darkness. Next he removed a pair

of specially handcrafted boots and took out the four-inch risers in the

heels.  He became aware of his servant and friend, Ibn Telmuk, standing

beside him.

"Good makeup job, Suleiman, I wouldn't recognize you," said Ibn, a

swarthy type with a curly mass of ebony hair. "The equipment loaded?"

Ammar asked.

"All secured.  Was the mission a success?"

"A  minor  miscalculation. The plane somehow cleared the crest.  Allah

has given Miss Kamil a few more minutes of life."

"Akhmad Yazid will not be pleased."

"Kamil will die as planned," Annnar said confidently. "Nothing was left

to chance."

"The plane still flies."

"Even Allah can't keep it in the air indefinitely."

"You have failed," said a new voice.

Ammar swung and stared into the frozen scowl of Muhammad Ismail.  The

Egyptian's round face was a curious blend of malevolence and childish

innocence.  The beady black eyes gazed with evil intensity over a heavy

mustache, but they lacked the power of penetration.  Bravado without

substance, a facade of toughness, pulling a trigger was his only skill.

Ammar had had little choice in working with lsmail.  The obscure village

mullah had been forced on him by Akhmad Yazid.  The Islamic idol hoarded

his trust Re a miser, rationing it out only to those he believed

possessed a fighting spirit and a traditionalist's devotion to the

original laws of Islam. Firm religious traits meant more to Yazid than

competency and professionalism.

Ammar professed to being a true believer of the faith, but Yazid was

wary of him.  The assassin's habit of talking to Moslem leaders as

though they were mortal equals did not sit well with Yazid.  He insisted

that Ammar carry out his death missions under the guarded eye of Ismail.

Ammar had accepted his watchdog without protest.  He was a master at the

game of deceit.  He quickly reversed Ismail's role into that of a dupe

for his own intelligence purposes.

But the stupidity of Arabs was a constant irritation to Ammar.  Cold,

analytical reasoning was beyond them.  He shook his head wearily and

then patiently explained the situation to Ismail.

"Events can happen beyond our control.  An updraft, a malfunction in the

automatic pilot or altimeters, a sudden change in the wind.  A hundred

different variables could have caused the plane to miss the peak.  But

all probabilities were considered.  The automatic pilot is locked on a

course toward the pole.  No more than ninety minutes of air time is

left."

"And if someone discovers the bodies in the cockpit and one of the

passengers knows how to fly?" Ismail persisted.

"The dossiers of all on the plane were carefully examined. None

indicated any pilot experience.  Besides, I smashed the radio and

navigation instruments.  Anyone attempting to take control will be lost.

No compass, no landmarks to give them a direction.  Hala Kamil and her

U.N. bedfellows will vanish in the cold waters of the Arctic sea."

"Is there no hope for survival?" asked Ismad. "None," said Ammar firmly.

"Absolutely none."

Dirk Pitt relaxed and slouched in a swivel chair, stretching out his

legs until his six-foot-three-inch body was on a near horizontal plane.

Then he yawned and ran his hands through a thick mat of wavy black hair.

Pitt was a lean, firm-muscled man in prime physical shape for someone

who didn't run ten miles every day or look upon the exertion and sweat

of bodybuilding as a celestial tonic against old age.  His face wore the

tanned, weathered skin of an outdoorsman who preferred the sun to the

fluorescent lighting of an office.  His deep green, opaque eyes radiated

a strange combination of warmth and cruelty while his lips seemed

eternally locked in a friendly grin.

He was a smooth article who moved easily among the rich and powerful,

but preferred the company of men and women who drank their liquor

straight up and liked to get their hands dirty.

A product of the Air Force Academy, he was listed on active status with

the rank of Major, although he had been on loan to the National

Underwater & Marine Agency (NUMA) for nearly six years as their Special

Projects Director, Along with Al Giordino, his closest friend since

childhood, he had lived and adventured in every sea, on the surface and

in the depths, encountering in half a decade more wild experiences than

most men would see in ten lifetimes.  He had found the vanished

Manhattan Limited express train after swimming through an underground

cavern in New York, salvaged a few passengers before being sent to the

bottom of the Saint Lawrence River with a thousand souls.  He had hunted

down the lost nuclear submarine Starbuck in the middle of the Pacific

and tracked the ghost ship Cyclops to her grave under the Caribbean. And

he raised the Titanic.

He was, Giordino often mused, a man driven to rediscover the past, born

eighty years too late.

"You might want to see this," Giordino said suddenly from the other side

of the room.

Pitt turned from a color video monitor that displayed a view of the

seascape one hundred meters beneath the hull of the icebreaker survey

ship Polar Explorer.  She was a sturdy new vessel especially built for

sailing through ice-covered waters. The massive boxlike superstructure

towering above the hull resembled a five-story office building, and her

great bow, pushed by 80,000-horsepower engines, could pound a path

through ice up to one-and-a-half meters thick.

Pitt placed one foot against a counter, flexed his knee and pushed.  The

motion was honed through weeks of practice and  with the gentle roll of

the ship for momentum.  He twisted 180 degrees in his swivel chair as

its castors carried him some meters across the slanting deck of the

electronics compartment.

"Looks like a crater coming up."

Al Giordino sat at a console studying an image on the Klein sidescan

sonar recorder.  Short, standing a little over 162 centimeters in

stockinged size-eleven feet, broadened with beefy shoulders in the shape

of a wedge, he looked as if he were assembled out of spare bulldozer

parts.  His hair was dark and curly, an inheritance from Italian

ancestry, and if he had worn a bandanna and an earring he could have

moonlighted as an organ-grinder.  Dry-humored, steadfast and reliable as

the tides, Giordino was Pitts insurance policy against Murphy's Law.

His concentration never flickered while Pitt, feet extended as bumpers,

came to an abrupt stop against the console beside him.

Pitt watched the computer-enhanced sonograph as the ridge of a crater

slowly rose to a crest and then made a steep descent into the interior

void.

"She's dropping fast," said Giordino.

Pitt glanced at the echo sounder.  "Down from 140 to 180 meters.  "

"Hardly any slope to the outer rim."

"Two hundred and still falling."

"Weird formation for a volcano," said Giordino.  "No sign of lava rock."

A tall, florid-faced man with thick graying brown hair that struggled to

escape from a baseball cap tilted toward the back of his head, opened

the door and leaned in the compartment.

"You night owls in the mood for food or drink?"

"Peanut-butter sandwich and a cup of black coffee sounds good," Pitt

replied without turning.  "Leveling out at 220 meters.  "

"A couple of doughnuts with milk," Giordino answered.

Navy Commander Byron Knight, skipper of the survey vessel, nodded.

Besides Pitt and Giordino, he was the only man with access to the

electronics compartment.  It was off limits to the rest of the officers

and crew.

"I'll have your orders rustled up from the galley."

"You're a wonderful human being, Byron," Pitt said with a sarcastic

smile.  "I don't care what the rest of the navy says about you."

"You ever try Peanut butter with arsenic?" Knight threw at him over his

shoulder.

Giordino watched intently as the arc of the formation spread and

widened.  "Diameter almost two kilometers."

"Interior is smooth sediment," said Pitt.  "No breakup of the floor."

"Must have been one gigantic volcano."

"Not a volcano."

Giordino faced Pitt, a curious look in his eyes.  "You have another name

for a submerged pockmark?"

"How about meteor impact?"

Giordino looked skeptical.  "A meteor crater this deep on the sea

bottom?"

"Probably struck thousands, maybe millions of years ago, at a time when

the sea level was lower."

"What led you up that street?"

"Three clues," Pitt explained.  "First, we have a well defined rim

without a prominent outer upsiope.  Second, the subbottom profiler

indicates a bowl-shaped cross section.  And third" he paused, pointing

at a stylus that was making furious sweeps across a roll of graph paper.

"The magnetometer is having a spasm.  There's enough iron down there to

build a fleet of battleships."

Suddenly Giordino stiffened.  "We have a target!"

"Where?"

"Two hundred meters to starboard, lying perpendicular on the crater's

slope.  Pretty vague reading.  The object is partly obscured by the

geology."

Pitt snatched the phone and rang the bridge.  "We've had a malfunction

in the equipment.  Continue our heading to the end of the run.  If we

can make the repair in time, come around and repeat the track."

"Will do, sir," replied the watch officer.

"You should have sold snake oil," said Giordino, smiling.

"No telling the size of Soviet ears."

"Anything from the video cameras?"

Pitt glanced at the monitors.  "Just out of range.  They should pick it

up on the next pass."

The initial sonar image that appeared on the recording paper looked like

a brown smudge against the lighter geology of the crater's wall.  Then

it slipped past the sidescan's viewing window and disappeared into a

computer that enhanced the detail. The finished picture came out on a

special large high-resolution color video monitor.  The smudge had

become a well defined shape.

Using a joystick, Pitt moved a pair of crosshairs to the center of the

image and clicked the button to expand the image.

The computer churned away for a few seconds, and then a new, larger,

even more detailed image appeared on the screen. A rectangle

automatically appeared around the target and showed the dimensions.  At

the same time another machine reproduced the color image on a sheet of

glossy paper.

commander Knight came rushing back into the compartment.  After days of

tedium, cruising back and forth as though mowing a vast lawn, staring

for hours on end at the video display and sidescan readings, he was

galvanized, anticipation written in every line of his face.

"I was given your message about a malfunction.  You have a target?"

Neither  Pitt  nor  Giordino  answered.  They  smiled  like prospectors

who have hit the mother lode.  Knight, staring at them, suddenly knew.

"Good God above!" he blurted.  "We've found her, really found her?"

"Hiding in the seascape," said Pitt, pointing to the monitor while

handing Knight the photo.  "The perfect image of one Alfa-class Soviet

submarine."

Knight  stared,  fascinated,  at  both  sonar  images.  "The Russians

probed all around this section of the sea.  Incredible they didn't find

her."

"She's easy to miss," said Pitt.  "The ice pack was heavier when they

conducted their search.  They couldn't maintain a straight track.

Probably skirted the opposite side of the upslope, and their sonar beams

only showed a shadow where the sub was lying.  Also, the unusually heavy

concentration of iron under the crater would have thrown off their

magnetic profile."

"Our intelligence people will dance on the ceiling when they see this."

"Not if the Reds get wise," said Giordino.  "They'll hardly stand idle

and watch us repeat our 'Seventy-five snatch of their 'Golf' class sub

with the Glomar Explorer."

"You  suggesting they haven't swallowed our story about conducting a

geological survey of the seafloor?" Pitt asked with deep sarcasm.

Giordino gave Pitt a sour look indeed.  "Intelligence is a weird

business," he said.  "The crew on the other side of these bulkheads has

no idea of what we're up to, yet Soviet agents in Washington smelled out

our mission weeks ago.  The only reason they haven't interfered is

because our undersea technology is better and they want us to lead the

way to their sub."

"Won't be easy to deceive them," agreed Knight.  "Two of their trawlers

have been shadowing our every move since we left port."

"So have their surveillance satellites," added Giordino.

Pitt said, "All reasons why I asked the bridge to run out our last track

before coming about for a closer look."

"Good try, but the Russians will pick up our track rerun."

"No doubt, except once we pass over the sub we go on and Turn onto the

next lane, continuing as before.  Then I'll radio our engineers in

Washington to complain of equipment problems and ask for maintenance

instructions.  Every couple of miles we'll rerun a lane to reinforce the

ruse."

Giordino looked at Knight.  "They might buy it.  It's believable

enough."

Knight considered that.  "Okay, we won't hang around.  This will be our

last look at the target.  Then we continue on, acting as if we've found

nothing."

"And after we've finished this grid," Pitt said, "we can start a new one

thirty miles away and fake a discovery."

"A nice added touch," Giordino said approvingly.  "Drop a red herring

across our trail."

Knight smiled wryly.  "Sounds like a good script.  Let's go for it."

The ship rolled and the deck canted slightly to starboard as the

helmsman brought her around on a reverse course.  Far behind the stern,

like an obstinate dog on a long leash, a robot submersible called

Sherlock automatically refocused its two movie cameras and one still

camera while continuing to send out probing sonar waves.  Presumedly

named by its designer after the fictional detective, Sherlock revealed

detailed features of the seafloor previously unseen by man.

Minutes ticked by with the slowness of hours until at last the crest of

the crater began slipping across the sidescan.  The Polar Explorer's

course towed Sherlock along the plunging slope of the crater's interior.

Three pairs of eyes locked on the sidescan recorder.

"Here she comes," Giordino said with the barest tremor of excitement.

The Soviet submarine nearly filled the port side of the sonograph.  She

was lying on a steep angle with her stern toward the center of the

crater, her bow pointing at the rim.  The hull was upright and she was

in one piece, unlike the U.S. submarines Thresher and Scorpion, which

had imploded into hundreds of pieces when they sank in the 1960s.  The

slight list to her starboard side was no more than two or three degrees.

Ten months had passed since she went missing, but her outer works were

free of growth and rust in the frigid Arctic waters.

"No doubt of her being an 'Alfa' class," said Knight.  "Nuclear-powered,

titanium hull, nonmagnetic and noncorrosive in salt water, latest

silent-propellor technology, the deepestdiving and fastest submarines in

both the Soviet and U.S.

navies."

The lag between the sonar recording and the video view was around thirty

seconds.  As if watching a tennis match, their heads turned in unison

from the sonar as they stared intently at the TV monitors.

The sub's smooth lines slid into view under the camera's lights and were

revealed in a ghostly bluish-gray hue.  The Americans found it hard to

believe the Russian vessel was a graveyard with over a hundred and fifty

men resting inside.  It looked like a child's toy sitting on the bottom

of a wading pool.

"any indication of unusual radioactivity?" asked Knight.

"Very slight rise," answered Giordino.  "Probably from the sub's

reactor."

"She didn't suffer a meltdown," Pitt surmised.

"Not according to the readings."

Knight stared at the monitors and made a cursory damage report.  "Some

damage to the bow.  Port diving plane torn away.  A long gouge in her

port bottom, running for about twenty meters."

"A deep one by the looks of it," observed Pitt.  "Penetrated her ballast

tanks into the inner pressure hull.  She must have struck the opposite

rim of the crater, tearing the guts out of her.  Easy to imagine the

crew struggling to raise her to the surface as she kept running across

the center of the crater.  But she took in more water than she could

blow off and lost depth, finally impacting about halfway up the slope on

this side."

The compartment fell into a momentary silence as the submarine dropped

astern of the Sherlock and slowly faded from view of the cameras.  They

continued to gaze at the monitors as the broken contour of the sea

bottom glided past, their minds visualizing the horrible death that

stalked men who sailed the hostile depths beneath the sea.

for nearly half a minute no one spoke, they hardly breathed.  Then

slowly each shook off the nightmare and turned away from the monitors.

The ice was broken.  They began to relax and laugh with all the

spontaneous enthusiasm of saloon patrons celebrating a winning touchdown

by the home team.

Pitt and Giordino could sit back and take it easy for the rest of the

voyage.  Their part in the search project was over.  They had found a

needle in a haystack.  Then slowly Pitts expression turned serious and

he stared off into space.

Giordino knew the symptoms from long experience.  Once a project was

successfully completed, Pitt suffered a letdown. The challenge was gone,

and his restless mind quickly turned to the next one.

"Damn fine job, Dirk, and you too, Al," Knight said warmly.  "You NUMA

people know your search techniques. This has to be the most remarkable

intelligence coup in twenty years.  "

"Don't get carried away," said Pitt.  "The tough part is yet to come.

Recovering the sub under Russian noses will be a delicate operation.  No

Glomar Explorer this time.  No salvage from highly visible surface

ships.  The entire operation will have to be carried out underwater-"

"What the hell is that?" Giordino's eyes had returned to the monitor.

"Looks like a fat jug."

"More like an urn," Knight confirmed.

Pitt stared into the monitor for a long moment, his face thoughtful, his

eyes tired, red and suddenly intense.  The object was standing straight

up.  Two handles protruded from opposite sides of a narrow neck, flaring

sharply into a broad, oval body that in Turn tapered toward the base

buried in the silt.

"A terra-cotta amphora," Pitt announced finally.

"I believe you're right," said Knight.  "The Greeks and Romans used them

to transport wine and olive oil.  They've been recovered all over the

bottom of the Mediterranean."

"What's one doing in the Greenland Sea?" Giordino asked no one in

particular.  "There, to the left of the picture, we've picked up a

second."

Then a cluster of three drifted under the cameras, followed by five more

running in a ragged line from southeast to northwest.

Knight turned to Pitt, "You're the shipwreck expert.  How do you'read

it?"

A good ten seconds passed before Pitt replied. Then at last he did, his

voice was distant, as though it came from someone in the next

compartment.

"My guess is they lead toward an ancient shipwreck the history books say

isn't supposed to be here."

Rubin would have traded his soul to abandon the impossible task, remove

hands slick with sweat from the control rolumn, close tired eyes and

accept death, but his sense of responsibility to the flight crew and

passengers drove him on.

Never in his wildest nightmares did he see himself in such a crazy

predicament.  One wrong physical movement, a slight error in judgment

and fifty people would find a deep, unknown grave in the sea.  Not fair,

he cried in his mind over and over.  Not fair.

None of the navigation instruments was fullctioning.  All communications

equipment was dead.  Not one of the passengers had ever flown an

aircraft, even a light plane.  He was totally disoriented and hopelessly

lost.  Inexplicably the needles on the fuel gauges wavered on "Empty."

His mind strained at the confusion of it all.

Where was the pilot?   What caused the flight officers' deaths?   Who

was behind this insane madness?

The questions swarmed in his mind, but the answers remained wrapped in

frustration.

Rubin's only consolation was that he was not alone.  Another man shared

the cockpit.

Eduardo Ybarra, a member of the Mexican delegation, had once served as a

mechanic in his country's air force.  Thirty years had passed since he

wielded a wrench on propellerdriven aircraft, but bits and pieces of the

old knowledge had returned to him as he sat in the copilot's

seat-reading the instruments for Rubin and taking command of the

throttles.

Ybarra's face was round and brown, the hair thick and black with traces

of gray, the brown eyes widely spaced and expressionless.  In his

three-piece suit, he seemed out of place in the cockpit.  Oddly there

was no beaded perspiration on his forehead, and he had not loosened his

tie or removed his coat.

He motioned upward at the sky through the windshield. "Judging from the

stars, I'd say we're on a heading toward the North Pole."

"Probably flying east over Russia for all I know," Rubin said grimly. "I

haven't a vague idea of our direction."

"That was an island we left behind us."

"Think it was Greenland?"

Ybarra shook his head.  "We've had water under us for the last few

hours.  We'd still be over the icecap if it was Greenland.  My guess is

we crossed Iceland."

"My God, how long have we been heading north?"

"No telling when the pilot turned off his London-to-New York course."

Another fear added to Rubin's aching confusion.  Calamity was piling on

calamity.  The one-in-a-thousand chance of coming through alive had

rapidly risen to one in a million.  He had to make a desperate decision,

the only decision.

"I'm going to bring her around ninety degrees to port."

"We have no other choice," Ybarra agreed solemnly.

"A few might survive if we crash on land.  Near impossible to pull off a

water landing on high waves in the dark, even by an experienced pilot.

And if by some miracle we set her down intact, no human dressed in

street clothes could last more than a few minutes in a freezing sea."

"We may already be too late." The U.N. delegate from Mexico nodded at

the instrument panel.  The red fuel warning lights were flashing across

the board.  "I fear our time in the air has run out."

Rubin stared in astonishment at the telltale instruments.  He did not

realize that the Boeing flying 200 knots at 1,500 meters ate up the same

amount of fuel as it did when flying 500 knots at 10,500 meters.  "Okay

we head west until she drops from under us."

Rubin rubbed his palms on his pants legs and gripped the control column.

He had not taken command of the aircraft again since climbing over the

glacier's peak.  He took a deep breath and pressed the "Autopilot

Release" button on the control column.  He was too unsure of himself to

slip the Boeing into a bank with the ailerons so he used only the rudder

controls to gently crab around in a flat Turn.  As soon as the nose came

onto a straight course he felt something was wrong.

"Rpms dropping on number four engine," said Ybarra with a noticeable

tremor in his voice.  "It's starving for fuel."

"Shouldn't we shut it down or something?"

"I don't know the procedure," Ybarra replied dumbly.

Oh, dear Lord, Rubin thought to himself, the blind leading the blind.

The altimeter began to register a steady drop.  The airspeed indicated a

decrease too.  His mind strained beyond reason, Rubin tried to will the

plane in the air rather than fly it.

He also tried to fight time as the distance between the plane and the

sea slowly, relentlessly narrowed.  Then, without warning, the control

column began to grow sluggish and vibrate in his hands.

"She's stalling," shouted Ybarra, his stoic face showing fear at last.

"Push the nose down."

Rubin eased the control column forward, fully aware he was hastening the

inevitable.  "Lower the flaps to increase our lift!" he ordered Ybarra.

"Flaps coming down," Ybarra replied through pursed lips.

"This is it," Rubin muttered.  "We're going in."

A stewardess stood in the open cockpit door listening to the exchange,

eyes wide with fright, face pale as a sheet of paper.

"Are we going to crash?" she asked, barely above a whisper.

Rubin tensed in his seat, too busy to Turn.  "Yes, dammit!" he swore.

"Strap yourself in."

She spun and nearly fell down as she raced back to the main cabin to

alert the other flight attendants and passengers for the worst. Everyone

realized there was no putting off the inevitable, and thankfully there

was no panic or hysterical outcry. Even the prayers came softly.

Ybarra twisted in his seat and stared down the aisle.  Kamil was

comforting an older man who was shaking uncontrollably.

Her face was completely calm and seemed to bear a smiling expression of

contentment.  She was truly a lovely woman, Ybarra thought.  A pity her

beauty would soon be erased.  He sighed and turned back to the

instrument panel.

The altimeter was falling past two hundred meters.  Ybarra took a great

risk and increased the throttle settings on the three remaining engines.

It was a useless gesture born of desperation.  The engines would burn

their last few gallons of fuel at a faster rate and die sooner.  But

Ybarra wasn't thinking logically.  He could not sit and do nothing.  He

felt he had to perform one final, defiant act, anything, even if it

meant hastening his own death.

Five tormenting minutes passed as one.  The black sea reached up to

clutch the aircraft.

"I see lights!" Rubin blurted suddenly.  "Dead ahead!"

His eyes instantly flicked up and focused through the windshield.  "A

ship!" he cried.  "It's a ship!"

Almost as he shouted, the plane roared over the polar Explorer, missing

the radar mast by less than ten meters.

The crew of the icebreaker had been alerted by radar to the approaching

aircraft.  The men standing inside the bridge involuntarily ducked as

the airliner, exhaust from its two straining engines screaming like an

army of banshees, swept overhead toward the Greenland coast to the west.

The roar filled the electronics compartment, and it emptied like a lake

through a split dam.  Knight took off for the bridge at a dead run with

Pitt and Giordino right behind him.  None of the men manning the bridge

as much as turned as the captain burst past the door.  Everyone was

peering in the direction of the receding aircraft.

"What in hell was that?" Knight demanded from the officer on watch.

"An unidentified aircraft nearly ranmied the ship, Captain."

"Military?"

"No, sir.  I caught a quick glimpse of the lower wings as she flashed

overhead.  She bore no markings."

"A spy plane maybe?"

"I doubt it.  All her windows were lit UP."

"A commercial airliner," Giordino suggested.

Knight's expression became vague and a trifle irritated.

"Where does the pilot get off, endangering my ship?   What's he doing

around here anyway?   We're hundreds of miles off commercial flight

paths."

"She's losing altitude," said Pitt, staring at the blinking lights as

they grew smaller in the east.  "I'd say she's going in."

"God help them if they set down on this sea in the dark."

"Strange he hasn't turned on the landing lights."

The watch officer nodded his head in agreement.  "Strange is the word. A

pilot in trouble would surely send out a distress signal.  The

communications room hasn't heard a peep."

"You tried to raise him?" asked Knight.

"As soon as they came at us on radar.  No reply"

Knight stepped to the window and gazed out.  He dnimmed his fingertips

thoughtfully for no more than four seconds. Then he turned and faced the

watch officer.

"Maintain course, continue the grid pattern."

Pitt looked at him.  "I understand your decision, but I can't say I

applaud it."

"You're on a Navy ship, Mr. Pitt," said Knight sternly. "We're not the

Coast Guard.  Our mission takes first priority."

"There could be women and children on board that plane."

"The facts don't spell tragedy.  She's still in the air.  If the Polar

Explorer is the only hope of rescue in this part of the sea, why no

distress call, no attempt to signal us with his landing lights, no sign

of preparations to ditch?   You're a flyer, you tell me why the pilot

hasn't circled the ship if he's in trouble."

"Could be he's trying for land."

"Begging the Captain's pardon," interrupted the watch officer, "I forgot

to mention the landing flaps were down."

"Still no proof of an immanent crash," Knight said stubbornly.

"Damn the compassion, full steam ahead," Pitt said coldly. "This isn't

war, Captain.  We're talking about a mission of mercy.  I wouldn't want

it on my conscience if a hundred people died because I failed to act.

The Navy can well afford the time it takes to investigate."

Knight tilted his head toward the empty chart room, closing the door

after Pitt and Giordino entered.  "We have our own mission to consider,"

he persisted calmly.  "We Turn off course now and the Russians will

suspect we found their sub and home in on this area."

"Solid point," Pitt acknowledged.  "But you can still send Giordino and

me into the game."

"I'm listening."

"We use our NUMA helicopter on the aft deck and you supply your medical

people and a couple of strong bodies. We'll chase the aircraft while the

Polar Explorer keeps running search lanes."

"And Russian surveillance?   What will their intelligence analysts make

of it?"

"At first they won't see it as a coincidence.  They're already probably

trying to paint a connection.  But if, God forbid, the plane crashes,

and proves out to be a commercial airliner, then at least you'll have a

legitimate reason for turning off course to launch a rescue mission.

Afterward we resume our search pattern, fake out the Russians and gamble

on turning a disaster into a windfall."

"And your helicopter flight, they'll monitor your every move."

"Al and I will use open communications and keep a running dialogue of

our search for the downed mystery plane.  That should pacify their

suspicions."

Knight's eyes turned downward, staring at something beyond the deck.

Then he sighed and raised his head to look at Pitt.

"We're wasting time.  Get your bird untied and warmed up. I'll see to

the medical personnel and a team of volunteers."

Rubin made no attempt to circle the Polar Explorer because of the almost

nonexistent altitude and his sad lack of flying talent.  There was every

chance he would stall the plane and send it cart-wheeling into the

rising swells.

The mere sight of the ship had ignited a small glimmer of hope in the

cockpit.  Now they had been sighted and rescuers would know where to

look for survivors.  A small comfort, but better than none at all.

The black sea abruptly turned to solid pack ice and, magmfied by

starlight, whirled crazily beneath the windshield. Rubin almost felt as

if he were sledding through it.  With the final impact only minutes

away, it finally occurred to him to order Ybarra to Turn on the landing

lights.

The Mexican feverishly scanned the instrument panel, found the marked

switches and flicked them to "ON." A startled polar bear was caught in

the sudden glare before he vanished beneath and behind the aircraft.

They were hurtling over a dead, frozen plain,

"Mother of Jesus," murmured Ybarra.  "I see hills on our right.  We've

crossed overland."

Luck's pendulum had finally swung in Rubin's favor. Ybarra's hills were

a desolate range of mountains that swept above the jagged Greenland

coast for a hundred miles in both directions.  But Rubin had somehow

missed them and miraculously manhandled the descending Boeing into the

middle of Ardencaple Fjord, He was flying up the narrow inlet to the sea

below and between the summits of steep sloping cliffs.  Luck also

conjured up a headwilld, which gave the aircraft added lift.

The ice seemed close enough for him to reach out and drag his hand over

it.  The lights reflected a kaleidoscope of shivering colors.  A dark

mass loomed ahead.  He gently pushed the right rudder pedal and the mass

slid away to his port side.

"Lower the landing gear!" Rubin shouted.

Ybarra wordlessly complied.  Under normal emergency landing procedures

it was the worst possible action to take, but in their ignorance they

unwittingly made the correct decision for the terrain.  The landing gear

dropped from their wheel wells and the plane quickly lost speed due to

the added wind resistance.

Rubin gripped the control wheel until his knuckles turned ivory, and he

glanced down directly at the ice flashing past. The blazing crystals

seemed to be rising up to meet him, spreading as they came.

Rubin closed his eyes, praying they would come down in soft snow instead

of striking unyielding ice.  There was nothing more he and Ybarra could

do.  The end was approaching with horrifying speed.

Mercifully, he did not know, could not know, the ice was only one meter

thick, far too thin to support the weight of a Boeing 720-B.

The maze of instrument lights had gone crazy, and the lights were

flashing red.  The ice rushed out of the darkness.  Rubin had the

sensation of bursting through a black curtain into a white void.  He

pulled back on the control column and the speed of the Boeing fell away

as the nose rose up for the last time in a feeble attempt to cling to

the sky.

Ybarra sat terrified.  Oblivious to the 320-kilometer-an-hour airspeed,

frozen in shock, he made no attempt to yank back the throttles.  Nor did

his dazed mind think to cut the electrical switches.

Then the impact.

On reflex, Rubin and Ybarra flung up their hands and closed their eyes.

The tires touched, slid, and gouged twill trails through the ice.  The

port inboard engine buckled and was torn from its mounts, madly gyrating

into the darkness. Both starboard engines dug in at the same time,

caught and twisted the wing away in a shrieking, mangled mass.  Then all

power was lost and the lights went dark.

The Boeing careened across the fjord's ice sheet, shedding pieces of

protesting metal like particles behind a comet.  It smashed into a

pressure ridge that had been thrust up when the pack ice collided.  The

nose gear was crushed back against the forward belly, tearing into the

hell hole.  The bow dropped and plowed through the ice, crushing the

thin aluminum plates inward against the cockpit.  At last the momentum

fell off, and the crumpled plane, distorted and dismembered, came to the

end of its shattering journey.  It came to a stop just thirty meters

short of a jumbled group of large rocks near the icebound shore.

for a brief few seconds there was a deathly silence.  Then the ice made

a loud series of cracking sounds, metal groaned as it twisted against

metal, and the battered aircraft slowly settled through the ice into the

frigid water.

The archaeologists heard the Boeing fly up the valley too.

They rushed out of their hut in time to catch a brief look at the

plane's outline reflected in the ice glare by the landing lights.  They

could clearly make out the illuminated cabin windows and the extended

landing gear.  Almost immediately came the sound of shrieking metal, and

a scant instant later the vibration of the impact carried through the

frozen surface. The lights went dead, but the protest of tortured metal

continued for several seconds.  Then, suddenly, a dead silence swept out

of the darkness, a silence that overpowered the dreary moan of the wind.

The archaeologists stood in disbelieving shock.  Stunned, frozen

immobile, immune to the cold, they stared into the black night like

haunted statues.

"Good lord," Gronquist finally muttered in awe, "it crashed in the

fjord."

Lily could not conceal the shock in her voice.  "Horrible!   No one

could have survived uninjured."

"More than likely dead if they went in the water."

"Probably why there's no fire," added Graham.

"Did anyone see  what  kind  of  plane  it  was?"  asked  Hoskins.

Graham  shook  his  head. "Happened too fast. Good size, though.  Looked

to be multi-engine.  Might be an ice recon patrol."

"How far do you make it?" asked Gronquist.

"Probably a kilometer, a kilometer and a quarter."

Lily's expression was pale and strained.  "We've got to do something to

help them."

Gronquist took a visual bearing and rubbed his unprotected cheeks.

"Let's get back inside before we freeze, and form a plan before we

charge off half-cocked."

Lily began to come back on track.  "Gather up blankets, any extra warm

clothing," she said brusquely.  "I'll see to the medical supplies."

"Mike, get on the radio," Gronquist ordered.  "Notify the weather

station at Daneborg.  They'll spread the word to Air Force rescue units

at Thule."

Graham made an affirmative motion with his hand and was the first one

inside the hut.

"We'd better bring along tools for prying any survivors from the

wreckage," said Hoskins.

Gronquist nodded as he yanked on his parka and gloves. "Good thinking.

Figure out whatever else we'll require.  I'll hook up the sled to one of

the snowmobiles.  We can pile all the stuff in that."

Five minutes ago they had all been asleep.  Now they were throwing on

cold-weather gear and hurriedly rushing about their respective chores.

Forgotten was the enigmatic Byzantine coin, forgotten was the warm

comfort of sleep; all that mattered was the urgency of getting to the

downed plane as quickly as possible.

Returning outside, head against a sudden shift of wind, Gronquist dashed

around the hut to a small snow-covered shed that protected the project's

two snowmobiles.  He kicked away the ice that had formed around the

bottom of the door and pulled it open.  Inside, a small oil heater

struggled with all the efficiency of a candle inside a freezer to keep

the interior air twenty degrees above the temperature outside.  He tried

the starter buttons, but the batteries were badly drained after months

of hard use, and both engines balked at turning over. Cursing in vapored

breaths, he removed his heavy gloves with his teeth and began yanking on

the manual pull ropes.  The engine on the first snowmobile caught on the

fifth attempt, but the second played stubborn.  Finally, after -two

pulls (Gronquist counted them), the engine obstinately coughed to life.

He hitched the tongue of a large sled to the rear catch on the

snowmobile whose engine had had extra time to warm up.  He finished none

too soon, as his fingers were beginning to Turn numb.

The others had already stacked the supplies and equipment outside the

entryway to the hut when he rode up.  Except for Gronquist, they were

all bundled up in down-filled jumpsuits. The sled was loaded to the top

of its sideboards in less than two minutes.  Graham passed everyone a

heavy-duty flashlight, and they were ready to set off.

"If they crashed through the ice," shouted Hoskins above the wind, "we

might as well forget it."

"He's right," Graham shouted back.  "They'd be dead from hypothemiia by

now."

Lily's eyes turned hard behind her ski mask.  "Pessimism never saved

anybody.  I suggest you big jocks get a move on."

Gronquist grabbed her by the waist and lifted her onto the snowmobile.

"Do what the lady says, boys.  There're people dying out there."

He swung a leg over the seat in front of Lily and cracked the throttle

as Hoskins and Graham raced for the idling snowmobile in the shed.  The

engine's exhaust purred and the rear tread gripped the snow.  He cut a

sharp U-Turn and took off toward the shore, the sled bouncing along

behind.

They swept over the uneven ice-covered stones of the beach onto the

frozen fjord.  It was dangerous going.  The beam from the single light

mounted in front of the handgrips wavered over the ice pack in a crazy

jumble of white flashes against black shadows, making it nearly

impossible for Gronquist to see any pressure ridges until they were

plowing up and over them like a lifeguard boat through heavy surf.  And

no amount of driving skill could prevent the heavily laden sled from

veenng and seesawing in their wake.

Lily clasped her hands around Gronquist's great stomach in a death grip,

her eyes closed, head buried against his shoulder. She yelled for him to

slow down, but he ignored her.  She turned and spied the bobbing light

of the other snowmobile rapidly closing on their tail.

Without the drag of the sled, the overtaking vehicle, with Hoskins

steering and Graham behind, quickly caught up and passed.  Soon all Lily

could see of the other two men was an indistinct blur of hunched figures

through a trailing cloud of fine surface snow.

She felt Gronquist tense as a large metal object rose up out of the

darkness at the far edge of the light's ray.  Gronquist abruptly jammed

the handgrips around to his left.  The edges of the front skis dug into

the ice and the snowmobile swerved away just one meter from striking a

piece of the plane's shattered wing.  He made a frantic attempt to

straighten out, but the sudden twist of centrifugal force whipped the

sled around like the tail of a maddened rattlesnake.  The top-heavy sled

went into a wild skid, jackknifed against the snowmobile and snapped the

hitch.  The tips of the runners dug in and it flipped upside down,

scattering its load in the air like debris from an explosion.

Gronquist shouted something, but the words were cut off as the flat side

of a runner unerringly caught him on the shoulder, knocking him off the

snowmobile.  He was thrown in a wide arc like a demolition ball about to

smash a wall.  The hood of his coat was jerked back and the ice rose up

and struck his unprotected head.

Lily's arms were torn from around Gronquist's waist as he vanished into

the darkness.  She thought she might be thrown clear.  The sled missed

her, crashing to a stop a few meters away, but the snowmobile had other

ideas.  Without Gronquist's hands on the clutch lever and throttle, it

came to a stop, teetering precariously at a forty-five-degree angle,

engine popping at idle.

It hung there for a brief moment, and then slowly heeled over to one

side, falling on Lily's legs from her hips down and pinning her

helplessly against the ice sheet.

Hoskins and Graham were not immediately aware of the accident behind

them, but they were about to run into a disaster of their own.  After

covering another two hundred meters, Graham turned, more out of

curiosity than intuition, to check how far they had outdistanced Lily

and Gronquist.  He was surprised to see their light hewn far to the

rear, stationary and pointing downward.

He pounded Hoskins's shoulder and shouted in his ear, "I think

something's happened to the others."

It had been Hoskins's original intention to find the depression in the

ice carved by the plane after it touched down and then follow it to the

final crash site.  His eyes were straining to penetrate the gloom beyond

when Graham interrupted his concentration.

The words came indistinct over the growl of the snowmobile's exhaust. He

twisted his head and shouted back at Graham.

"I can't hear you."

"Something's wrong."

Hoskins nodded in understanding and refocused his attention on the

terrain ahead.  The distraction was to cost them. Too late, he glimpsed

one of the troughs gouged by the landing gear almost as he was on it.

The snowmobile flew over the two-meter opening in the ice and became

airborne.  The weight of the two riders forced the nose to dip down and

it collided against the opposite wall with a sharp crack like the blast

of a pistol.  Fortunately for Hoskins and Graham, they were pitched over

the edge and onto the ice surface, their bodies tumbling crazily as if

they were cottonstuffed dolls thrown across a waxed floor.

Thirty seconds later a stunned Graham, moving like a ninety-year-old

man, stiffly lifted himself to his hands and knees.  He sat there dazed,

not fully aware of how he got there.  He heard a strange hissing sound

and looked around.

Hoskins was sitting in an upright position, doubled up in agony with

both hands tightly pressed against his groin.  He was sucking and

exhaling air through clenched teeth while rocking back and forth.

Graham removed his outer mitten and lightly touched his nose, It didn't

feel broken, but blood was flowing from the nostrils, forcing him to

breathe through his mouth.  A series of stretches indicated all joints

were still mobile, all limbs in place.  Not too surprising, considering

the heavy padding of his clothing.  He crawled over to Hoskins, whose

tortured hissing had become a string of mournful groans.

"What happened?" Graham asked, regreuing such a stupid question the

instant he uttered it.

"We hit a gash furrowed in the ice by the aircraft," Hoskins managed

between groans.  "Jesus, I think I've been castrated."

"Let me have a look." Graham pried away the hands and unzipped the front

of Hoskins's jumpsuit.  He took a flashlight from a pocket and pushed

the switch.  He could not suppress a smile.  "Your wife will need

another excuse to dump you. There's no sign of blood.  Your sex life is

secure."

"Where's Lily . . . and Gronquist?" Hoskins asked haltingly.

"About two hundred meters back.  We've got to make our way around the

ice opening and check out their situation."

Hoskins rose painfully to his feet and hobbled to the edge of the ice

break.  Amazingly, the snowmobile's headlamp was still burning, its dim

glow playing on the bottom of the flord while backlighting the bubbles

that traveled up six meters to the surface.  Graham walked over and

peered down.  Then they looked at each other.

"As lifesavers," said Hoskins dejectedly, "we'd better stick with

archaeology-"

"Quiet!" Graham snapped suddenly.  He cupped his mittens to his ears and

turned from side to side like a radar dish.  Then he stopped and pointed

excitedly at flashing lights in the distance.  "Hot damn!" he shouted.

"There's a helicopter coming up the fjord."

Lily floated in and out of reality.

She could not understand why it became increasingly difficult for her to

think straight.  She lifted her head and looked around for Gronquist. He

lay unmoving several meters away. She shouted, desperately trying to get

a response, but he lay as though dead.  She gave up and gradually

entered a halfdream world as her legs lost all sensation of feeling.

Only when she began to shiver did Lily realize she was in a mild state

of shock.

She was certain Graham and Hoskins would return any moment, but the

moments soon grew into painful minutes, and they did not show.  She felt

very tired and was about to gratefully slip away into sleep when she

heard a strange thumping sound approaching from overhead.  Then a

dazzling light cut the dark sky and blinded her eyes.  Loose snow was

kicked up by a sudden windstorm and swept around her.  The thumping

sound died in intensity and a vague figure, encircled by the light, came

toward her.

The figure became a man in a heavy fur parka who immediately summed up

the situation, took a strong - grip on the snowmobile and heaved it off

her legs to an upright position.

He walked around her until the light illuminated his face. Lily's eyes

weren't focusing as they should but they stared into a pair of sparkling

green eyes that took her breath away. They seemed to reflect hardness,

gentleness and sincere concern in one glinting montage.  They narrowed a

fraction when he saw that she was a woman.  She wondered dizzily where

he came from.

Lily couldn't think of anything to say except, "Oh, am I ever glad to

see you."

"Name's Dirk Pitt," answered a warm voice.  "If you're not busy, why

don't you have dinner with me tomorrow night?"

Lily looked up at Pitt, trying to read him, not sure she had heard him

correctly.  "I may not be up to it."

He pushed back the hood of his parka and ran his hands up and down her

legs.  He gently squeezed her ankles.  "No apparent breaks or swelling,"

he said in a friendly voice.  "Are you in pain?"

"I'm too cold to hurt."

Pitt retrieved a pair of blankets that had been pitched from the sled d

you get here?"

he asked her.

"I'm one of a team of archaeologists doing an excavation on an ancient

Eskimo village.  We heard the plane come up the fjord and ran out of our

hut in time to see it land on the ice. We were heading for the crash

site with blankets and medical supplies when we . . ." Lily's words

became vague and she weakly gestured toward the overturned sled.

"We?"

In the light from the helicopter Pitt quickly read the accident in the

snow coating the ice: the straight trail of the snowmobile, the abrupt

swerve around the severed aircraft wing, the sharp cuts made by the

runners of the out-of-control sledonly then did he glimpse another human

form lying nearly ten meters beyond the wing.

"Hold on."

Pitt walked  over  and  knelt  down  beside  Gronquist.  The  big

archaeologist was breathing evenly.  Pitt gave him a cursory

examination.

Lily watched for a few moments, and then asked anxiously, "Is he dead?"

"Hardly.  A nasty contusion on his forehead.  Concussion, most likely.

Possible fracture, but I doubt it.  He has a head like a bank vault."

Graham came trudging up, Hoskins limping along behind, both looking like

snowmen, their Arctic jumpsuits dusted white, their face masks plastered

with ice from their breathing.  Graham lifted his mask, exposing his

bloodied face and studied Pitt blankly for a moment, then he smiled

bleakly.

"Welcome, stranger.  Your timing was perfect."

No one on the helicopter had seen the other two members of the

archaeology expedition from the air, and Pitt began to wonder how many

other ambulance cases were wandering around the fjord.

"We have an injured man and lady here," Pitt said without formalities.

"Are they part of your group?"

The smile fell from Graham's face.  "What happened?"

"They took a bad spill."

"We took one too."

"You see the aircraft?"

"Saw it go down, but we didn't reach it."

Hoskins moved around Graham and stared down at Lily and then glanced

around until he spied Gronquist.  "How badly are they hurt?"

"Know better after they've had X-rays."

"We've got to help them."

"I have a team of medics on board the helicopter."

"Then what in hell are you waiting for?" Hoskins cut him off - "Call

them out here - " He made as if to brush past Pitt, but he was stopped

dead by an iron grip on his arm.  He stared uncomprehending into a pair

of unblinking eyes.

"Your friends will have to wait," Pitt said firmly.  "any survivors on

the downed aircraft must come first.  How far to your camp?"

"A kilometer to the south," Hoskins answered compliantly.

"The  snowmobile  is  still  operable.  You  and your partner rehitch

the sled and carry them back to your camp.  Go easy in case they have

any internal injuries.  You have a radio?"

"Yes.  "

"Keep it set on frequency thirty-two and stand by," said Pitt.  "If the

plane was a commercial jetliner loaded with passengers, we'll have a

real mess on our hands."

"We'll stand by," Graham assured him.

Pitt leaned over Lily and squeezed her hand.  "Don't forget our date,"

he said.

Then he yanked the parka hood over his head, turned and jogged back to

the helicopter.

Rubin felt a great weight smothering him from all sides as if some

relentless force was driving him backward.  The seat belt and harness

pressed cruelly into his gut and shoulders.  He opened his eyes and saw

only vague and shadowy images.  As he waited for his vision to clear he

tried to move his hands and arms, but they seemed locked in place.

Then his eyes gradually focused and he saw why.

An avalanche of snow and ice had forged through the shattered

windshield, entrapping his body up to the chest.  He made a desperate

attempt to free himself.  After a few minutes of struggling, he gave up.

The unyielding pressure held him like a straitjacket.  There was no way

he could escape the cockpit without help.

The shock slowly began to fade and he gritted his teeth from the pain

that erupted from his broken legs.  Rubin thought it strange that his

feet felt as though they were immersed in water.  He rationalized that

it was his own blood.

Rubin was wrong.  The plane had settled through the ice in water nearly

three meters deep and it had flooded the cabin floor up to the seats.

Only then did he remember Ybarra.  He turned his head to his right and

squinted through the darkness.  The starboard side of the aircraft's bow

had been crushed inward almost to the engineer's panel.  All he could

see of the Mexican delegate was a rigid, upraised arm protruding from

the snow and telescoped wreckage.

Rubin turned away, sick in the sudden realization that the little man

who had sat at his side throughout the terrible ordeal was dead, every

bone crushed.  Rubin also realized he had only a short time to live

before he froze to death.

He began to cry.

"She should be coming up!" Giordino shouted over the engine and rotor

noise.

Pitt nodded and stared down at the gouge that cut across the merciless

ice, its sides littered with bits and pieces of jagged debris.  He saw

it now.  A tangible object with mamnade straight lines imperceptibly

appeared in the gloom ahead. Then they were on top of it.

There was a sad and ominous appearance about the crumPlead aircraft. One

wing had completely ripped off and the other was twisted back against

the fuselage.  The tail section was buckled at a pathetic angle. The

remains had the look of a mashed bug on a white carpet.

... The fuselage sank through the ice and two-thirds of it is immersed

in water," Pitt observed.

"She didn't burn," said Giordino.  "That's a piece of luck."

He held up his hand to shade his eyes from the dazzling reflection as

the helicopter's lights swept the airliner's length. "Talk about highly

polished skin.  Her maintenance people took good care of her.  I'd guess

she was a Boeing 720-B.  any sign of life?"

"None," replied Pitt.  "it doesn't look good."

"How about identification markings?"

"Three stripes running down the hull, light blue and purple separated by

a band of gold."

"Not the colors of any airline i'm familiar with."

"Drop down and circle her," said Pitt.  "While you spot a landing site,

I'll try and read her lettering."

Giordino banked and spiraled toward the wreckage.  The landing lights,

mounted on bow and tail of the helicopter, exposed the half-sunken

aircraft in a sea of brilliance.  The name above the decorative stripes

was in a slanted-style instead of the usual easier to read block-type

letters.

"NEBULA," Pitt read aloud.  "NEBULA AIR."

"Never heard of it," said Giordino, his eyes fixed on the ice.

"A plush airline that caters to vips.

"What in hell is it doing so far from the beaten track?"

"We'll soon know if anybody's alive to tell us."

Pitt turned to the eight men sitting comfortably in the warm belly of

the chopper.  They were all appropriately clothed in blue Navy Arctic

weather gear.  One was the ship's surgeon, three were medics, and four

were damage-control experts.  They chatted back and forth as casually as

if they were on a bus trip to Denver.  Between them, tied down by straps

in the center of the floor, boxes of medical supplies, bundles of

blankets and a rack of stretchers sat stacked beside asbestos suits and

a crate of fire-fighting equipment.

An auxiliary-powered heating unit was secured opposite the main door,

its hoisting cables attached to an overhead winch. Next to it stood a

compact snowmobile with an enclosed cabin and side tracks.

The gray-haired man seated just aft of the cockpit, with gray mustache

and beard to match, looked back at Pitt and grinned.  "About time for us

to earn our pay?" he asked cheerfully.

Nothing, it seemed, could dim Dr. Jack Gale's merry disposition.

"We're setting down now," answered Pitt.  "Nothing stirring around the

plane.  No indication of fire.  The cockpit is buried and the fuselage

looks distorted but intact."

"Nothing ever comes easy." Gale shrugged.  "Still, it beats hell out of

treating burn cases."

"That's the full news.  The tough news is the main cabin is filled with

nearly a meter of water, and we didn't bring our galoshes."

Gale's face turned serious.  "God help any injured who didn't stay dry.

They wouldn't have lasted eight minutes in freezing water."

"If none of the survivors can open an emergency exit, we may have to cut

our way inside."

"Sparks from cutting equipment have a nasty habit of igniting sloshing

jet fuel," said Lieutenant Cork Simon, the stocky leader of the Polar

Explorer's damage-control team.  He bore the confident look of a man who

knew his job inside out and then some.  "Better we go in through the

main cabin door.  Doc Gale, here, will need all the space he can get to

remove any stretcher cases."

"I agree," said Pitt.  "But a pressurized door that's been jammed

against its stops by the distortion of the crash will take time to force

open.  people may be freezing to death in there.  Our first job is to

make an opening to insert the vent pipe from the heater."

He broke off as Giordino cut a steep Turn and dropped down toward a flat

area only a stone's throw from the wreck.  Everyone tensed in readiness.

Outside, the beat of the rotor blades whiPPed up a small blizzard of

snow and ice particles, turning the landing site into an

alabaster-colored stew that wiped out all vision.

Giordino had barely touched the wheels to the ice and set the throttles

on idle when Pitt shoved open the loading door, jumped into the cold and

headed toward the wreckage.  Behind him Doc Gale began directing the

unloading of supplies while Cork Simon and his team willched the

auxiliary heater and the snowmobile onto the ice.

Half-running, half-slipping, pi  made a visual inspection of the

interior of the fuse lage, carefully avoiding open breaks in the ice.

The air reeked with the unwelcome smell of jet fuel.  He climbed up the

ice MOUnd that was piled a meter thick over the cockpit windows.

Climbing the slick surface was like crawling up a greased ramp.  He

tried to scoop an opening into the cockpit, but quickly gave it up: it

would have taken an hour or more to dig through the packed ice and then

tunnel inside.

He slid down and ran around to the remaining wing.  The right section

was twisted and broken from its supporting mounts, the tip pointing

toward the tail. it lay on the ice, crushed against the sunken fuselage

only an arm's length below the row of windows.  Using the wing as a

platform over the open water, Pitt dropped to his hands and knees and

tried to peer inside.  The lights from the helicopter reflected off the

Plexiglas, and he had to cup his hands around his eyes to close out the

glare, At first he could not detect any movement, only darkness and a

deathly stillness.

Then, quite suddenly, a grotesque face materialized on the other side of

the window, scant centimeters from Pitts eyes.

He unconsciously stepped back.  The sudden appearance of a woman with a

cut over one eye and blood flowing over half the features, all distorted

by the hairline cracks running through the window, startled Pitt

momentarily.

He quickly shook off the shock and studied the unblemished side of the

face.  The high cheekbones, the long dark hair, and one olive-brown eye

was enough to suggest a very beautiful woman, Pitt thought charitably.

He leaned close to the window and yelled, "Can you open an emergency

exit hatch?"

The plucked eyebrow raised a fraction, but the eye looked blank.

"Do you hear me?"

At that instant, Simon's men fired up the auxiliary power unit, and a

stand of floodlights flashed on, illuminating the aircraft in a glare as

bright as daylight.  They quickly connected the heater unit and Simon

began dragging the flexible hose across the ice.

"Over here, on the wing," Pitt waved.  "And bring something to cut

through a window."

The damage-control team had been trained for emergency ship repair, and

they went about their trade, competent and without wasted movement, as

if rescuing trapped passengers from a downed airplane was an everyday

exercise.

When Pitt turned back, the woman's face was gone.

Simon and one of his team scrambled up on the twisted wing, struggling

to keep their footing while tugging the widemouthed heater hose behind.

Pitt felt a blast of hot air and was amazed that the heating unit

required so little time to warm UP

"We'll need a fire ax to break through," said Pitt.

Simon feigned a haughty look.  "Give the U.S. Navy credit for a touch of

finesse.  We've advanced far beyond crude chopping methods." He removed

a compact battery-powered tool from his coat pocket.  He pushed the

switch and a small abrasive wheel on one end began to spin.  "Goes

through aluminum and Plexiglas like butter."

"Do your stuff," Pitt said dryly, moving back out of the way.

Simon was as good as his word; the little cutting device sliced through

the thick exterior window in less than two minutes.  The sheet inside

took only seconds.

Pitt hunched down  and  extended  his  arm  inside  and  beamed a

flashlight.  There was no sign of the woman.  The cold water of the

fjord glittered under the light's ray.  The water lapped at the edge of

empty, nearby seats.

Simon and Pitt inserted the end of the heater hose through the window

and then hurried around to the forward section of the aircraft.  The

navy men had reached under the water and released the latch to the main

exit door, but, as expected, it was jammed.  They rapidly drilled holes

and screwed in stainless-steel hooks which were attached to cables

leading to the snowmobile.

The driver engaged the clutch and the snowmobile slowly inched ahead

until the slack was taken up.  Then he revved the engine, the metal

spikes of the treads dug in, and the little snowmobile strained forward.

for a few seconds nothing seemed to happen.  There was only the growl of

the exhaust and the crunching noise of the treads as they chiseled their

way into the ice.

After an anxious wait, a new sound broke the cold-an unearthly

screeching of protesting metal, and then the lower edge of the cabin

door raised out of the water.  The cables were unhooked and the entire

rescue crew crouched down, set their shoulders against the door and

heaved upward until it creaked almost to a full open position.

The inside of the plane was dark and ominous.

Pitt leaned across the narrow stretch of open water and stared into the

unknown, his stomach churning with morbid curiosity.  His figure threw a

shadow over the water in the aisle of the main cabin, and at first he

saw nothing but the gleam from the walls of the galley.

It was strangely quiet and there was no sign of human remains.

Pitt hesitated and looked back.  Doc Gale and his medical team were

standing behind him, staring in grim anticipation, while Simon's men

were unreeling cable from the power unit to light the plane's interior.

"Going in," Pitt said.

He jumped across the opening into the plane.  He landed on the deck in

water that splashed over his knees.  His legs felt like they had been

suddenly stabbed by a thousand needles. He waded around the bulkhead and

into the aisle separating the seats of the passenger cabin.  The eerie

silence was unnerving; the only sound came from the sloshing of his

movement.

Then he froze in shock, his worst fears unfolding like the petals of a

poisonous flower.

Pitt found himself exchanging blank looks with a sea of ghostly white

faces.  None moved, none blinked, none spoke. They just sat strapped in

their seats and stared at him with the sightless expression of the dead.

A chill colder than the freezing air spread over the back of Pitts neck.

The light from outside filtered through the windows, casting eerie

shadows on the walls.  He looked from seat to seat as if expecting one

of the passengers to wave a greeting or say something, but they sat as

still as mummies in a tomb.

He leaned over a man with slicked-back red-blond hair precisely parted

down the middle of the skull, who sat in an aisle seat.  There was no

expression of agony on the face.  The eyes were half open as if they

were about to close in sleep, the lips met natumfly, the jaw slightly

loose.

Pitt lifted a limp hand and placed his fingertips just below the base of

the thumb and pressed against the artery running beneath the skin on the

inner side of the wrist.  His touch felt no pulsations-the heart had

stopped.

"Anything?" asked Doc Gale, wading past him and examining another

passenger.

"He's gone," replied Pin.

"So's this one."

"from what cause?"

"Can't tell yet.  No apparent injuries.  Dead only a short time.  No

indication of intense pain or struggle.  Skin coloring doesn't suggest

asphyxiation."

"if he last fits," said Pitt.  "The oxygen masks are still in the

overhead panels."

Gale quickly moved from body to body.  "I'll know better after a more

thorough examination."

He paused as Simon finished mounting a light unit above the doorway and

safely above the water.  The naval officer motioned outside, and

suddenly the interior of the passenger cabin was flooded with light.

Pitt surveyed the cabin.  The only noticeable damage was a slight

distortion in the ceiling.  All seats were in an upright position and

the seat belts buckled.

"Impossible to believe they just sat here half immersed in ice water and

died from hypothermia without making any movement," he said while

checking an elderly brown-haired woman for life signs.  There was no

hint of suffering in her face.  She looked as if she had simply fallen

asleep.  A small rosary hung loosely from her fingers.

"Obviously all were dead before the plane struck the ice," offered Gale.

"A valid answer," Pitt murmured, rapidly scanning the seat rows as if

searching for someone.

"Death probably came from toxic fumes."

"Smell anything?"

"No

"Neither do I."

"What does that leave us?"

"Digested poison."

Gale stared at Pitt a long, hard moment.  "You're talking mass murder."

"We appear to be headed in that direction."

"Might help if we had a witness."

"We do."

Gale stiffened and hurriedly looked over the white faces. "You spot

someone still breathing?   Point him out."

"Before we broke inside," Pitt explained, "a woman stared at me through

a window.  She was alive.  I don't see her now."

Before Gale could reply, Simon sloshed down the aisle and stopped, his

eyes bulging with shock and incomprehension. "What in hell?" He

stiffened and stared wildly around the cabin.  "They look like figures

in a wax museum."

"try cadavers in a morgue," said Pitt dryly.

"They're dead?   Everyone?   You're absolutely sure?"

"Someone is alive," answered Pitt, "either in the cockpit or hiding out

in the bathrooms to the rear."

"Then they're in need of my attention," said Gale.

Pitt nodded.  "I think it best if you continue your examination in the

slim chance there's a spark of life in any of these people.  Simon can

check the cockpit area.  I'll head aft and search the bathrooms."

"What about all these stiffs?" asked Simon irreverently. "Shouldn't we

alert Commander Knight and begin evacuating them?"

"Leave them be," Pitt said quietly, "and stay off the radio. We'll make

our report to Commander Knight in person.  Keep your men outside.  Seal

the door and place the interior of the aircraft off limits.  Same goes

for your medical team, Doc. Touch nothing unless it's absolutely

necessary.  Something's happened here beyond our depth.  Word of the

crash has already gone out.  Within hours air-crash investigators and

the news media will be swarming around like locusts.  Best to keep what

we've found under wraps until we hear from the proper authorities."

Simon weighed Pitts words for a moment.  "I get the picture.

"Then let's get a move on and find a survivor,"

What was normally a twenty-second walk took Pitt nearly two minutes of

struggle through the thigh-high water before he reached the bathrooms.

His feet had already turned numb and he didn't require the services of

Doc Gale to tell him he'd have to dry and warm them in the next half

hour or risk frostbite.

The death toll would have been much higher if the plane had carried a

full load of passengers.  But even with many of the seats vacant, he

still counted fifty-three bodies.

He paused to examine a female flight attendant seated against the rear

bulkhead.  Her head was tilted forward and blond hair spilled across her

face.  He felt no pulse.

He reached the compartment containing the bathrooms. Three had the

VACANT sign showing and he peered inside, They were empty.  The fourth

read OCCUPIED and was locked.  Someone had to be inside to have slipped

the latch.

He knocked loudly on the door and said, "Can you understand me?   Help

is here.  Please try to unlock the door."

Pitt put his ear to the panel and thought he heard a soft sobbing from

the other side, followed by low murmurs as if two people were conversing

in hushed tones.

He raised his voice.  "Stand back.  I'm going to force the door.  "

Pitt raised his dripping leg and gave a sharp but controlled kick, just

enough to break the latch without smashing the door against whoever was

inside.  His heel impacted just above the knob and the catch ripped from

the jam.  The door gave about an inch.  A gentle nudge with his shoulder

and it swung inward.

Two women were huddled in the cramped rear of the bathroom, standing on

top of the toilet platform out of the water, shivering and clutching

each other for support.  Actually, the one doing the clutching was a

uniformed flight attendant, her eyes wide with alarm and the fear of a

trapped doe. She was standing on her right leg, the left was stiffly

extended to the side.  A wrenched knee, Pitt guessed.

The other woman straightened and stared back at Pitt defiantly.  Pitt

immediately recognized her as the apparition at the window.  Part of her

face was still masked with coagulated blood, but both eyes were open now

and had the cold look of hatred.  Pitt was surprised at her hostility.

"Who are you and what do you want?" she demanded in a husky voice with a

slight trace of an accent.

A dumb question was the first thought that crossed Pitts mind, but he

quickly wrote off the woman's testy challenge to shock.  He smiled his

best Boy Scout trustworthy smile.

"My name is Dirk Pitt.  I'm part of a rescue team from the United States

ship Polar Explorer."

"Can you prove it?"

"Sorry, I left my driver's license at home." 'This was bordering on the

ridiculous.  He tried another tack and leaned against the door frame and

casually crossed his arms.  "Please rest easy," he said soothingly.  "I

want to help, not harm you."

The flight attendant seemed to relax for an instant, her eyes softened

and the edges of her lips lifted in a timid smile.  Then abruptly the

fear returned and she sobbed hysterically.

"They're all dead, murdered!"

"Yes, I know," said Pitt gently.  He held out his hand.  "Let me take

you where it's warm and the ship's doctor can tend your injuries."

Pitts face was shadowed by the floodlights irt the forward part of the

cabin, and the stronger woman of the two could not read his eyes.  "You

might be one of the terrorists who caused all this," she said in a

controlled tone.  "Why should we trust you?"

"Because you'll freeze to death if you don't,"

Pitt tired of the word games.  He stepped forward, carefully lifted the

flight attendant in his arms and eased her out into the aisle.  She

offered him no resistance, but her body was stiff with apprehension.

"Just relax," he said.  "Pretend you're Scarlett O'Hara and I'm Rhett

Butler come to sweep you off your feet."

"I don't feel much like Scarlett.  I must look a mess."

"Not  to  me,"  Pitt  grinned.  "How  about  dinner some night?"

"Can my husband come along?"

"Only if he picks up the check."

She gave in then and he felt her body sag in exhausted relief.  Slowly

her arms circled his neck and she buried her head in his shoulder.  He

paused and turned to the other woman.  The warmth of his smile was

revealed and his eyes glinted in the light.  "Hang tight.  I'll be right

back for you."

for the first time Hala knew she was safe.  Only then did the dam

holding back the nightmare of fright, the stunning disbelief that any of

this was happening to her, flood over the gates.

The suppressed emotions ran free, and she wept, Rubin knew he was

slipping away.  The cold and the pain had ceased to exist.  The strange

voices, the sudden display of light, formed no meaning for him.  He felt

detached, To his confused mind they were like obscure recollections from

a distant place, a former time.

Suddenly a white brilliance filled the shattered cockpit.  He wondered

if this was the light at the end of the tunnel people who had died and

returned claimed to have experienced.

A disembodied voice nearby said, "Take it easy, take it easy."

Rubin tried to focus his eyes on a vague figure hovering over him.  "Are

you God?"

Simon's face went blank for a brief moment.  Then he smiled

compassionately.  "Only a mere mortal who happened to be in the

neighborhood."

"I'm not dead?"

"Sorry, but if I'm any judge of age, you'll have to wait at least

another fifty years."

"I can't move.  My legs feel like they're pinned.  I think they might be

broken.  Please . . . please get me out."

"That's why I'm here," said Simon cheerfully.  He used his hands to

scoop a good foot of ice and snow away from Rubin's upper torso until

the trapped arms came free.  "There, now you can scratch your nose until

I return with a shovel and cutting tools."

Simon reentered the main cabin as Pitt was easing the flight attendant

through the door into the waiting arms of Gale's medics, who gently

lowerrd her onto a stretcher.

"Hey, Doc, I've got a live one in the cockpit."

"On my way," replied Gale.

"I could use your help too," Simon said to Pitt.

Pitt nodded.  "Give me a couple of minutes to carry another from the aft

section."

Hala slid to her knees and leaned over and looked into the mirror. There

was enough light to clearly see her reflection. The face that stared

back was flat-eyed and expressionless.  It was also a disaster.  She

looked like an over-the-hill streetwalker who had been beaten up by her

pimp.

She reached out and pulled several paper towels from a rack.  She dipped

them in the cold water, then wiped clear the clotted blood and lipstick

which had smeared around her mouth.  Her mascara and eye shadow looked

as if they had been applied by Jackson Pollock on a drip painting.  She

wiped away that mess too.  Her hair was still reasonably intact so she

patted the loose ends into place.

She still looked awful, she thought despairingly.  She forced a smile

when Pitt reappeared, hoping she looked more presentable.

. He looked at her a long moment and then screwed his face into an

expression of awed curiosity.  "Excuse me, gorgeous creature, but have

you seen an old crone anywhere?"

Tears welled in Hala's eyes and she half-laughed, halfcried.  "You're a

nice man, Mr. Pitt.  Thank you."

"I try, God Icnows I try," he said humorously.

Pitt had returned with several blankets and he bundled them around her.

He placed one arm under her knees and the other around her waist and

lifted her without the slightest sign of strain.  As he carried her up

the aisle his numbed legs began to give out and he stumbled for several

steps before recovering.

"Are you all right?" she asked.

"Nothing a shot of Jack Daniel's Tennessee whiskey won't cure."

"As soon as I return home I'll send you a whole case."

"Where's home?"

"At the moment, New York."

"Next time I'm in town, let's have dinner together."

"I'd consider it an honor, Mister Pitt."

"Likewise, Miss Kaniil."

Hala raised her eyebrows.  "You recognized me, looking horrible like

this?"

"I admit it wasn't until after you'd fixed your face a bit."

"Forgive me for putting you to all this trouble.  Your legs and feet

must be frozen stiff."

"A minor discomfort is a small price for freezing.I held the

Secretary-General of the U.N. in my arms."

Amazing, truly amazing, thought Pitt.  This has to be a redbanner day.

Dating the only three women, and attractive ones at that, within two

thousand miles of frigid desolation inside of minutes had to be some

sort of record.  The feat meant more to him than discovering the Russian

submarine.

Fifteen minutes later, after Hala, Rubin and the flight attendant were

comfortably settled inside the helicopter, Pitt stood in front of the

cockpit and waved to Giordino, who acknowledged with a thumbs up sign.

The rotors were engaged and the craft rose in the air above a swirling

cloud of snow, swung around a hundred and eighty degrees and headed for

the Polar Explorer.  Only when it was safely airborne and on its way did

Pitt hobble over to the auxiliary heating unit.

He pulled off his waterlogged boots and soggy socks and dangled his feet

over the exhaust, soaking up the heat and gratefully accepting the

stabbing pain of recirculation.  He became vaguely aware of Simon's

approach.

Simon stopped and stood, gazing at the wrinkled sides of the aircraft.

It did not look forlorn any more.  To him, the knowledge of the dead

inside gave it a camel house appearance.

"United Nations delegates," Simon said distantly, "is that who they

were?"

"Several were members of the General Assembly," answered Pitt.  "The

. lized agencies.

According to Kamil, most of them were returning from a tour of their

Field Service organizations."

"Who'd gain by murdering them?"

Pitt wrung out his socks and laid them over the heater tube. "I have no

idea."

"Middle East terrorists?" Simon persisted.

"News to me they've taken up murder by poison."

"How're your feet?"

"In a state of gradual thaw.  How about yours?"

"The Navy issues foul-weather boots.  Mine are dry and warm as toast."

"Hooray for  considerate  admirals,"  Pitt  muttered  sardonically.

"I'd say one of the three survivors did the dirty work."

Pitt shook his head.  "If in fact it proves to be poison, it probably

was introduced into the meal at the food services kitchen before it was

loaded on board the aircraft."

"The chief steward or a flight attendant could  have  done  it in the

galley."

"Too difficult to poison over fifty meals one at a time without being

detected."

"What about the drinks?" Simon tested again.

"You're a persistent bastard."

"Might as well speculate until we're relieved?"

Pitt checked his socks.  They were still damp.  "Okay, drinks are a

possibility, especially coffee and tea."

Simon seemed pleased that one of his theories had been accepted.  "Okay,

smartass, of the three survivors who's your candidate for most duly

suspect?"

"None of the above."

"You saying the culprit knowingly took the poison and committed

suicide."

"No, I'm saying it was the fourth survivor."

"I only counted three."

"After the plane crashed.  Before that there were four,"

"You don't mean the little Mexican fellow in the copilot's seat?"

"I do."

Simon looked totally skeptical.  "What brilliant logic brought you to

that conclusion?"

"Elementary," Pitt said with a sly grin.  "The killer in the best

murder-mystery tradition is always the least obvious suspect.

"Who dealt this mess?"

Julius Schiller, Under Secretary for Political Affairs, grimaced

good-naturedly as he studied his cards.  His teeth clamped on a cold

stogie, he looked up and peered over his hand, his intelligent blue eyes

moving from player to player.

Four men sat across the poker table from him.  None smoked, and Schiller

diplomatically refrained from lighting his cigar.  A small bundle of

cedar logs crackled in an antique mariner's stove, taking the edge off

an early fall chill.  The burning cedar gave an agreeable aroma to the

teak-paneled dining saloon inside Schiller's yacht.  The beautifully

proportioned 35-meter-motor sailer was moored in the Potomac River near

South Island just opposite Alexandria, Virginia.

Soviet Deputy Chief of Mission Aleksey Korolenko, heavybodied and

composed, wore a fixed jovial expression that had become his trademark

in Washington's social circles.

"A pity we're not playing in Moscow," he said in a stern but mocking

tone.  "I know a nice spot in Siberia where we could send the dealer."

"I second the motion," said Schiller.  He looked at the man wfio had

dealt the cards.  "Next time, Date, shuffle them up."

"If your hands are so rotten," growled Dale Nichols, Special Assistant

to the President, "why don't you fold?"

Senator George Pitt, who headed up the Senate Foreign Relations

Committee, stood and removed a salmon-colored sport jacket.  He draped

it over the back of the chair and turned to Yuri Vyhousky.

"I don't know what these guys are complaining about.  You and I have yet

to will a pot."

The Soviet Embassy's Special Adviser on American Affairs nodded.  "I

haven't seen a good hand since we all began playing five years ago."

The nightly poker sessions had indeed been held on Sctfiller's boat

since 1986, and went far beyond a simple card game between friends who

needed one evening out of the week to unwilld.  It was originally set up

as a small crack in the wall separating the opposing superpowers. Alone,

without an official setting and inaccessible to the news media, they

could informally give and take viewpoints while ignoring bureaucratic

red tape and diplomatic protocol. ideas and information were exchanged

that often had a direct bearing on Soviet-American relations.

"I open for fifty cents," announced Schiller.

"I'll raise that a dollar," said Korolenko.

"And they wonder why we don't trust them," Nichols groaned.

The Senator spoke to Korolenko without looking at him. "What's the

prediction from your side on open revolt in Egypt, Aleksey?"

"I give President Hasan no more than days before his government is

overthrown by Akhmad Yazid."

:'You don't see a prolonged fight?"

'No, not if the military throws its weight behind Yazid."

"You in, Senator?" asked Nichols.

"I'll go along for the ride."

"Yujri?"

Vyhousky dropped fifty-cent pieces in the pot.

"Since Husan took over after Mubarak's resignation," said Schiller,

"he's achieved a level of stability.  I he'll holdon ' . 'You said the

same about the Shah of Iran," Korolenko goaded.

"No denying we  called  the  wrong  shots."  Schffler  paused and

dropped his throwaway cards on the table.  "Let me have two."

Korolenko held up one finger and received his card.  "You might as well

pour your massive aid into a bottomless pit.  The Egyptian masses are on

the brink of starvation.  A situation that fuels the surge of religious

fanaticism sweeping the slums and villages.  You stand as little chance

of stopping Yazid as you did Khomeini."

"And what is the Kremlin's stance?" asked Senator Pitt.

"We wait," said Korolenko impassively.  "We wait until the dust

settles."

Schiller eyed his cards and shifted them around.  "No matter the

outcome, nobody wills."

"True, we all lose.  You may be the great Satan in the eyes of Islamic

fundamentalists, but as good Communist atheists we're not loved either.

I don't have to tell you the biggest loser is Israel.  With the

disastrous defeat of Iraq by Iran and the assassination of President

Saddam Husayn, the road is now open for him and Syria to threaten the

moderate Arab nations into combining forces for a massive three-front

attack against Israel.  The Jews will surely be defeated this time."

The Senator shook his head doubtfully.  "The Israelis have the finest

fighting machine in the Middle East.  They've won before, and they're

prepared to do it again."

"Not against 'human wave' attacks by nearly two million Arabs," warned

Vyhousky.  "Assad's forces will drive south while Yazid's Egyptians

attack north across the Sinai, as they did in 'sixty-seven and

'seventy-three.  Only this time h-an's army will sweep over Saudi Arabia

and Jordan, crossing the River Jordan from the West.  Despite their

fighting skills and superior technology, the Israelis will be

overwhelmed."

"And when the slaughter finally ends," added Korolenko ominously, "the

West will be thrown into a state of economic depression when the united

Muslim governments, with total control of fifty-five percent of the

world's oil reserves, drive prices to astronomical heights.  As they

surely will."

"Your bet," Nichols said to Schiller.

"Two bucks."

"Raise you two," came Korolenko.

Vyhousky threw his cards on the table.  "I fold."

The Senator contemplated his hand a moment.  "I'll match the four and

raise another four."

"The sharks are circling," said Nichols with a tight smile. "Count me

out."

"Let's not kid ourselves," said the Senator.  "It's no secret the

Israelis have a small arsenal of nuclear weapons, and they won't

hesitate to use them if they're down to the last roll of the dice."

Schiller sighed deeply.  "I don't even like to think about the

consequences." He looked up as his boat's skipper knocked on the door

and hesitantly stepped in.

"Excuse me for interrupting, Mr. Schiller, but there's an important call

for you."

Schiller pushed his cards toward Nichols.  "No sense in prolonging the

agony with this hand.  Would you excuse me?"

One of the cardinal niles of the weekly get-together was no phone calls

unless it was a matter of urgency that in some way concerned everyone at

the table.  The game continued, but the four men played automatically,

their curiosity mounting.

"Your bet, Aleksey," said the Senator.

"Raise you another four dollars."

"I call."

Korolenko shrugged resignedly and laid down his cards face up. All he

had was a pair of fours.

The Senator smiled wryly and turned over his cards.  He won with a pair

of sixes.

"Oh, good lord," moaned Nichols.  "I dropped out with a pair of kings."

"There goes your lunch money, Aleksey." Vyhousky laughed.

"So we bluffed each other," said Korolenko.  "Now I know why I won't buy

a used car from an American politician."

The Senator leaned back in his chair and ran a hand through a thick mane

of silver hair.  "As a matter of fact I worked my way through law school

selling cars.  Best training I ever had for running for the Senate."

Schiller reentered the room and sat down at the table. "Sorry to leave,

but I've just been notified that a chartered United Nations plane

crashed on the coast of northern Greenland.  Over fifty known dead.  No

word on survivors."

"any Soviet representatives on board?" asked Vyhousky. ... The passenger

list hasn't come through yet."

"A terrorist bombing?"

"Too early to tell, but first sketchy reports say it was no accident."

"What flight was it?" Nichols asked.

"London to New York."

"Northern Greenland?" Nichols repeated thoughtfully. "They must have

strayed over a thousand miles off course."

"Smells of a hijacking," suggested Vyhousky.

"Rescue units are on the site," explained Schiller.  "We should know

more within the hour."

The expression on Senator Pitts face darkened.  "I have a dire suspicion

that Hala Kamil was on that flight.  She was due back at United Nations

headquarters from Europe for next week's session of the General

Assembly."

"I believe George is right," said Vyhousky.  "Two of our Soviet

delegates were traveling in her party."

"Madness," said Schiller, wearily shaking his head.  "Utter madness. Who

would gain by murdering a planeload of U.N. people?"

No one answered immediately.  There was a long moment's silence.

Korolenko stared, expressionless, at the center of the table.  Then he

spoke in a quiet voice.

The Senator stared the Russian straight in the eye.  "You knew."

"I guessed."

"You think Yazid ordered Kamil's death?"

"I can only say our intelligence sources discovered there was an Islamic

faction in Cairo that was planning an attempt."

"And you stood by and said nothing while fifty innocent people died-"

"A miscalculation," admitted Korolenko.  "We did not know how or when

the assassination was to take place.  It was assumed Kmfl's LIFE would

be in danger only if she went to Egypt-not from Yazid lf, but rather his

fanatical followers.  Yazid has never been tied to any terrorist acts.

Your profile of him reads the same as ours: a brilliant man who thinkqs

of himself as a Muslim Gandhi."

"So much for KGB and CIA profiles," said Vyhousky candidly.

"Another classic case of intelligence experts being suckered by a

well-conceived public-relations campaign," sighed the Senator.  "The man

is a bigger psycho case than we figured."

Schiller nodded in agreement.  "Yazid has to be responsible for the

tragedy.  His followers would never have considered it without his

blessing."

"He had the motive," said Nichols.  "Kamil has immense flair and charm.

Her level of popularity with the people and the military far exceeds

President Hasan's.  She was a strong buffer.  If she's dead, Egypt is

only hours away from a government led by extremist mullahs."

"And when Hasan falls?" asked Korolenko slyly.  "What will be the White

House position then?"

Schiller and Nichols exchanged knowing looks.  "Why, the same as the

Kremlin's," said Schiller.  "We're going to wait until the dust

settles."

for a moment the fixed smile faded from Korolenko's face. "And if, make

that when, the combined Arab nations attack the Jewish state?"

"We'll back Israel to the hilt, as we have in the past."

"But will you send in American forces?"

"Probably not."

"Arab leaders might be less cautious if only they knew that.  "

"Be our guest.  Only remember, -this time, we're not going to use our

leverage to stop the Israelis from taking Cairo, Beirut and Damascus."

"You're saying the President won't stand in their way if they resort to

nuclear weapons?"

"Something like that," Schiller said with studied indifference.  He

turned to Nichols.  "Whose deal?"

"I believe it's mine," said the Senator, trying his best to sound

casual.  This switch in the President's Middle East policy was news to

him.  "Shall we ante fifty cents?"

The Russians were not about to let loose.

"I find this most disturbing," said Vyhousky.

"A new posture had to come sometime," Nichols confessed. "The latest

projections put United States oil reserves at eighty billion barrels.

With prices pushing fifty dollars a barrel, our oil companies can now

afford to mount a massive exploration program.  And, of course, we can

still count on Mexican and South American reserves.  The bottom line is

that we no longer have to rely on the Middle East for oil.  So we're

cutting bait. If the Soviet government wants to inherit the Arab mess,

take it as a gift."

Korolenko couldn't believe what he was hearing.  His ingrained wariness

made him skeptical.  But he knew the Americans too well to doubt they

would bluff or mislead him, on an issue of such magnitude.

Senator Pitt had his doubts, too, about the game plan the President was

leaking to the Soviet representatives.  There was a strong possibility

oil would not flow over the Rio Grande when America needed it.  Mexico

was a revolution waiting for the starter's gun.

Egypt was cursed with a Dark Ages fanatic like Yazid.  But Mexico had

its madman in a Topiltzin, a Benito JuArez/Emilio Zapata messiah who

preached a return to a religious state based on Aztec culture.  Like

Yazid, Topiltzin was supported by millions of his nation's poor, and he

was also inches away from sweeping out the existing government.

Where were all the madmen coming from, the Senator wondered?   Who was

spawning these devils?   He made a conscious effort to keep his hands

steady as he began to deal.

"Five card stud, gentlemen, jokers wild."

Huge figures rose up in the eerie silence of the night and gazed through

empty eyes at the barren landscape as if waiting for some unknown

presence to bring them to life.  The stark, rigid figures stood as tall

as a two-story building, their grim, expressionless faces highlighted by

a full moon.

A thousand years ago they had supported a temple roof that sat on top of

the five-step pyramid of Quetzalcoatl in the Toltec city of Tula.  The

temple was gone but the pyramid remained and was reconstructed by

archaeologists.  The ruins stretched along a low ridge, and during the

city's glory sixtythousand people lived and walked on its streets.

Few visitors found their way to the site, and those who took the trouble

were awed by TVIa's haunted desolation.

The moon cast ghostly shadows through the dead city as a solitary man

climbed the steep steps of the pyramid to the stone statues at the

summit. He was dressed in a suit and tie and carried a leather attached

case.

At each of the five terraces he stopped for a few moments and peered at

the macabre sculptured friezes decorating the walls.  Human faces

protruded from the gaping mouths of serpents while eagles shredded human

hearts with their beaks.  He continued, passing an altar carved with

skulls and crossbones, symbols used in later centuries by pirates of the

Caribbean.

He was sweating when he finally reached the top of the pyramid and

looked around.  He was not alone.  Two figures stepped forward and

roughly searched him.  They motioned at his attache case.  He obligingly

opened it and the men rummaged through the contents.  Finding no

weapons, they silently retreated to the edge of the temple platform.

Rivas relaxed and pressed a hidden switch on the handle of the case.  A

small tape recorder secreted inside the lid began to roll.

After a short minute had passed, a figure emerged from the shadows of

the great stone statues.  He was dressed in a floorlength robe of white

cloth.  His hair was long and tied at the base, giving it the look of a

rooster tail.  His feet were hidden under the robe, but the moon's light

revealed circular bands around his arms that were carved from gold and

inlaid with turquoise.

He was short, and the smooth, oval face suggested Indian ancestry.  His

dark eyes studied the tall, fair-complexioned man before him, taking in

the oddly-out-of-place business suit.  He crossed his arms and spoke

strange words that sounded almost lyrical.

"I am Topiltzin."

"My name is Guy Rivas, Special Representative for the President of the

United States."

Rivas had expected an older man. it was difficult to guess the Mexican

messiah's age, but he didn't look a year over thirty.

Topiltzin gestured to a low wall.  "Shall we sit while we talk?"

Rivas nodded a "Thank you" and sat down.  "You chose a most unusual

setting."

"Yes, I thought  it appropriate." Topiltzin's tone suddenly turned

contemptuous.  "Your President was afraid for us to confer openly.  He

did not want to embarrass and anger his friends in Mexico City."

Rivas knew better than to be baited.  "The President asked me to express

his gratitude for allowing me to talk with you."

"I expected someone with a higher rank of state."

"Your conditions were you'd speak with only one man.  We took that to

mean no interpreter for our side.  And since you do not wish to speak

Spanish or English, I am the only ranking government official who has a

tongue for Nahuatl, the language of the Aztecs."

"You speak it very well."

"My family immigrated to America from the town of Escampo.  They taught

it to me when I was quite young."

"I know Escampo; a small village with proud people who barely survive."

"You claim you'll end poverty in Mexico.  The President is most

interested in your programs."

"Is that why he sent you?" Topiltzin asked.

Rivas nodded.  "He wishes to open a line of communication.  "

There was silence as a grim smile crossed Topiltzin's features.  "A

shrewd man.  Because of my country's economic collapse he knows my

movement will sweep the ruling Partido Revolutionary Institutional out

of office, and he fears an upheaval in U.S. and Mexican relations.  So

he plays both ends against the middle."

"I can't read the President's mind."

"He will soon learn the great majority of Mexican people are finished

with being doormats for the ruling class and wealthy.  They are sick of

political fraud and corruption.  They are tired of digging garbage in

the slums.  They will suffer no more."

"By building a utopia from the dust of the Aztecs?"

"Your own nation would do well to return to the ways of your founding

fathers."

"The Aztecs were the biggest butchers in the Americas.  To fashion a

modern government on ancient barbarian beliefs is . . ." Rivas paused.

He almost said "idiotic." Instead, he pulled back and said, "naive."

Topiltzin's round face tensed and his hands worked compulsively.  "You

forget, it was the Spanish conquistadors who slaughtered our common

ancestors."

"Spain could say the same about the Moors, which would hardly justify

restoring the Inquisition."

"What does your President want from me?"

"Merely peace and prosperity in Mexico," replied Rivas, holding the

line.  "And a promise you will not steer a course toward Communism."

"I am not a Marxist.  I detest Communists as much as he does.  No armed

guerrillas exist among my followers."

"He'll be glad to hear it."

"Our new Aztec nation will attain greatness once the criminally wealthy,

the corrupt officials, and present government and army leaders are

sacrificed."

Rivas wasn't sure he interpreted right.  "You're talking about the

execution of thousands of people."

"No, Mr. Rivas, I'm talking sacrificial victims for our revered gods,

Quetzalcoad, Huitzilopochtli, Tezcatlipoca."

Rivas looked at him, not comprehending.  "Sacrificial victims?"

Topiltzin did not reply.

Rivas, staring at the stoic face, suddenly knew.  "No!" he burst out.

"You can't be serious."

"Our country will again be known by its Aztec name of Tenochtitian,"

Topiltzin continued impassively.  "We shall be a religious state.

Nahuatl will become our official language. Population will be brought

under control by stern measures. Foreign industries will be the property

of the state.  Only the native born can be allowed to live within our

borders.  All others will be expelled from the country."

Rivas was stunned.  He sat white-faced, listening in silence.

Topiltzin went on without pause.  "No more goods are to be purchased

from the United States nor will you be allowed to buy our oil.  Our

debts to world banks will be declared null and void, and all foreign

assets confiscated.  I also demand the return of our lands in

California, Texas, New Mexico and Arizona.  To ensure this return I

intend to turn loose millions of my people across the border."

Topiltzin's threats were nothing short of frightening.  Rivas's

distraught mind could not conceive the terrible consequences.

"Pure madness," Rivas said desperately.  "The President will never

listen to such absurd demands."

"He will not believe what I say?"

"No sane man would."

Rivas in his uneasiness had stepped too far.

Topiltzin slowly rose to his feet, eyes unblinking, head lowered, and

spoke in a toneless voice.  "Then I must send him a message he will

understand."

He raised his hands over his head, arms outstretched toward the dark

sky.  As if on cue four Indians appeared wearing white capes clasped at

the neck and nothing else.  Approaching from all sides, they quickly

subdued Rivas, who froze in astonishment.  They carried him to the stone

altar sculpted with the skulls and crossbones and threw him on his back,

holding him down by the arms and legs.

At first Rivas was too dazed to protest, too incredulous with shock to

comprehend Topiltzin's intention.  When horrorstruck realization came,

he cried out.

"Oh, God!   No!   No!"

Topiltzin coldly ignored the terrified American, the pitiful fright in

his eyes, and stepped to the side of the altar.  He gave a nod, and one

of the men ripped away Rivas's shirt, exposing the chest.

"Don't do this!" Rivas pleaded.

A razor-sharp obsidian knife seemed to materialize in Topiltzin's

upraised left hand.  The moonlight glinted from the black, glassy blade

as it hung poised.

Rivas screamed-the last sound he would ever make.

Then the knife plunged.

The tall column-statues looked down upon the bloody act with stone-cold

indifference.  They had witnessed the horrible disPlay of inhuman

cruelty thousands of times, a thousand years ago.  There was no pity in

their timeworn chiseled eyes as Rivas's still-beating heart was torn

from his chest.

Despite the people and activity around him, Pitt was captivated by the

dense silence of the cold north.  There was an incredible stillness

about it that seemed to overwhelm the voices and sounds of machinery. He

felt as though he were standing in numbing solitude inside a

refrigerator on a desolate world.

Daylight finally appeared, filtered by a peculiar gray mist that

permitted no shadows.  By midmorning the sun began to burn away the icy

haze and the sky turned a soft orange-white. The ethereal light made the

rocky peaks overlooking the fjord look like tombstones in a snow-covered

cemetery.

The scene surrounding the crash site was beginning to resemble a

military invasion.  A fleet of five Air Force helicopters had been the

first to arrive, ferrying an Army Special Service Force of heavily armed

and determined-looking men who immediately cordoned off the fuselage and

began patrolling the entire area.  An hour later, Federal Aviation

accident investigators landed and set about marking the scattered

wreckage for removal.  They were followed by a team of pathologists who

tagged and removed the bodies to the helicopters, which quickly

airlifted them to the morgue at Tule Air Force Base.

The  Navy  was  represented  by Commander Knight and the unexpected

appearance of the Polar Explorer.  All halted their grisly chores and

turned their eyes toward the sea as a series of loud whoops from the

ship's siren echoed -off the jagged mountains.

Dodging newly-formed ice calves, floating low and opaque, and the

winter's first bergs, which resembled the ruins of Gothic castles, the

Polar Explorer came about slowly and entered the mouth of the fjord. for

a time the ash-blue sea hissed quietly past the scar-red, and then it

turned to white.

The immense prow of the icebreaker effortlessly bulldozed a path through

the ice pack, heaving to less than fifty meters from the wreckage.

Knight stopped engines, climbed down a ladder to the ice and graciously

offered the facilities of the ship to the security and investigation

teams as a command post-an offer that was thankfully accepted without a

second's hesitation.

Pitt was impressed with the security.  The news blackout had not yet

been penetrated: the story given out at Kennedy Airport revealed only

that the U.N. flight was overdue.  It was only a matter of another hour

before a shrewd correspondent got wise and blew the whistle.

"I think my eyeballs just froze to their lids," Giordino said gloomily.

He was sitting in the pilot's seat of the NUMA helicopter, trying to

drink a cup of coffee before it froze. ,Must be colder than a Minnesota

dairy cow's tit in January."

Pitt gave his friend  a  dubious  look.  "How  would  you  know?

You haven't been outside your heated cockpit all night."

"I get frostbite by looking  at  an  ice  cube  in  a  glass  of

Scotch." Giordino held up one hand, five fingers an all spread.

"Look at that. I'm so stiff with cold I can't make a fist."

Pitt happened to glance out the side window and spotted Commander Knight

trudging over the ice from the ship.  He walked back to the cabin and

opened the cargo door when Knight reached the boarding ladder.  Giordino

moaned in self-pity as his precious heat escaped and a frigid breeze

engulfed the interior of the chopper.

Knight waved a greeting and climbed on board, exhaling clouds of vapor.

He reached inside his parka and produced a leather-covered flask.

"A little something from the sick bay.  Cognac.  Can't begin to guess

the brand.  Thought you might find a good use for it."

"I think you just sent Giordino to heaven," Pitt said, laughing.

"I'd rather be in hell," Giordino muttered.  He tipped the flask and

savored the brandy as it trickled into his stomach. Then he raised his

hand again and made a fist.  "I I'm cured."

"Might as well settle in," said Knight.  "We've been ordered to remain

on station for the next twenty-four hours.  If you'll pardon the awful

pun, they want to keep us on ice until the cleanup is over."

"How are the survivors doing?" inquired Pitt.

"Miss Kamil is resting comfortably.  Incidentally, she asked to see you.

Something about having dinner together in New York.  "

"Dinner?" asked Pitt innocently.

"fullny thing," Knight continued.  "Just before Doc Gale surgically

repaired the flight attendant's torn knee ligaments, she mentioned a

dinner date with you too."

Pitt had a pure-as-the-driven-snow expression on his face. "I guess they

must be hungry."

Giordino rolled his eyes and tilted the flask again.  "I I've heard this

song before."

"And the steward?"

"Rough shape," Knight replied.  "But Doc thinks he'll pull through.  His

name is Rubin.  While he was slipping under the anesthetic he babbled

some wild story about the pilot murdering the first and second officers

and then vanishing in flight."

"Maybe not so wild," said Pitt.  "The pilot's body has yet to be found."

"Not my territory," Knight shagged.  "I've got enough to worry about

without getting bogged down in an unsolved air mystery.

"Where do we stand on the Russian sub?" asked Giordino.

"We keep the lid on our discovery until we can report face to face with

the big brass at the Pentagon.  Stupid to fumble away the ball away

through a communications leak.  A piece of luck, for us at any rate, the

plane crashing.  Gives us the logical excuse to set a course for home

and our dock in Portsmouth as soon as the survivors can be airlifted to

a stateside hospital.  Let's hope the unexpected diversion will confuse

Soviet intelligence analysts enough to get them off our back."

"Don't count on it," Giordino said, his face beginning to glow.  "If the

Russians had the slightest suspicion we struck pay dirt, and they're

paranoid enough to think our side caused the plane crash as a diversion,

they'll come charging in with salvage ships, a protective fleet of

warships, a swarm of covering aircraft and, when they pinpoint the sub,

raise and tow it back to their station at Severomorsk on the Kola

Peninsula."

"Or blow it into smithereens," Pitt added.

"Destroy it?"

"The Soviets don't have major salvage technology.  Their prime objective

would be to make certain no one else laid hands on it."

Giordino passed the cognac to Pitt.  "No sense debating the cold war

here.  Why don't we return to the ship, where it's nice and warm?"

"Might as well," said Knight.  "You two have already done more than your

share."

Pitt stretched and began zipping up his parka.  "Think I'll take a

hike."

"You're not coming back with us?"

"In a bit.  Thought I'd look in on the archaeologists and see how they

are."

"Wasted trip.  Doc sent one of his medics over to their camp.  He's

already reported back.  Except for a few bruises and strains they were

all fine."

"Might find it interesting to see what they've dug up," Pitt persisted.

Giordino was an old hand at reading Pitts mind.  "Maybe they've found a

few old Greek amphoras lying around."

"Won't hurt to ask."

Knight gave Pitt the benefit of a hard stare.  "Mind what you say."

"I have our geological survey story down pat."

"And the aircraft passengers and crew?"

"They were all trapped among the wreckage and died from hypothermia

brought on by exposure to the frigid water."

"I think he's ready for the big sting," said Giordino dryly. "Good,"

Knight nodded.  "You've got the right idea.  Just don't suggest anything

they have no reason to know."

Pitt opened the cargo door and gave a casual nod.  "Don't wait up.  Then

he stepped into the cold.

"Persistent cuss," Knight muttered.  "I didn't know Pitt was interested

in antiquities."

Giordino gazed through the cockpit window as Pitt set off across the

fjord.  Then he sighed.

"Neither did he."

The ice field was firm and flat, and Pitt made good time across the

fjord.  He scanned the ominous gray cloud ceiling rolling in from the

northwest.  The weather could change from bright sunshine to a blinding

blizzard within minutes and obliterate all landmarks.  He wasn't keen on

wandering lost without even a compass, and he increased his pace.

A pair of white gyrfalcons soared above him.  Seemingly immune to the

Arctic cold, they were a select group of birds that remained in the

north during the harsh winter.

Moving in a southerly direction, he crossed the shoreline and kept his

bearings on the smoke that rose above the archaeologists' hut.  The

distant and indistinct smudge appeared as though seen through the wrong

end of a telescope.

Pitt was only ten minutes away from the camp when the storm struck.  One

minute he could see nearly twenty kilometers, the next his visibility

was cut to less than five meters.

He started jogging, desperately hoping he was traveling in something

remotely resembling a straight line.  The horizontally driving snow came

against his left shoulder and he leaned into it slightly to compensate

for his drift.

The wind increased and beat against him until he could barely stand.  He

shuffled blindly forward, looking down at his feet, counting his

strides, his arms huddled about his head.  He knew it was impossible to

walk sightless without gradually wandering in a circle.  He was also

aware that he could walk past the archaeolgists' hut, missing it by a

few meters, and stumble on until he dropped from exhaustion.

Despite the high wind-chill factor, his heavy clothing kept him

reasonably warm, and he could tell by his heartbeat that he was not

unduly exerting himself.

Pitt paused when he calculated that he was in the approximate vicinity

of the hut.  He continued walking another thirty paces before stopping

again.

He turned to his right and moved over about three meters until he could

still see his footprints trailing off in the blowing snow from the

opposite direction.  Then he walked parallel to his original path,

mowing the lawn as if he was searching for an object beneath the sea. He

took about sixty steps before his old footprints faded and disappeared m

the snow.

He walked five lanes before he swung to his right again, repeating the

pattern until he was sure he had retraced the now obliterated center

line.  Then he picked up the grid again on the other side.  On the third

lane he stumbled into a snowdrift and fell against a metal wall.

He followed it around two corners before meeting a rope that led to a

door.  With a great sigh of relief, Pitt pushed open the door, savoring

the knowledge that his life had been in danger and he had won.  He

stepped inside and tensed.

This was not the living quarters, but rather a large Quonsetlike shelter

covering a series of excavations in the exposed earth.  The interior

temperature was not much above freezing, but he was thankful to be safe

from the gale-force wind.

The only light came from a Coleman lantern.  At first he thought the

structure was deserted, but then a head and pair of shoulders seemed to

rise up from a trough in the ground.  The figure was kneeling, facing

away from Pitt, and seeming absorbed in carefully scraping loose gravel

from a small shelf in the trough.

Pitt stepped from the shadows and looked down.

"you'ready?" he asked.

Lily spun around, more puzzled than startled.  The light was in her eyes

and all she could make out was a vague form.

"Ready for what?"

"To go out on the town."

The voice came back to her.  She lifted the lamp and slowly rose to her

feet.  She looked into his face, captivated once again by Pitts eyes,

while he was taken by her dark red hair that looked like fire under the

bright light of the hissing Coleman.

"Mr.  Pitt . . . isn't it?" She slipped off her right glove and extended

her hand.

He also removed his glove, reached out and gave her hand a firm squeeze.

"I prefer attractive ladies to call me Dirk."

She felt like an embarrassed little girl, mad at herself for not having

any makeup On, wondering if he noticed the calluses on her hand.  And to

make it worse, she could feel herself blushing.

"Lily Sharp," she stammered.  "My friends and I were hoping we could

thank you for last night.  I thought you were joking about dinner.  I

really didn't think I'd see you again."

"As you can hear-" he paused and tilted his head toward the moaning wind

outside. a blizzard couldn't keep me away."

"You must be crazy."

"No, just stupid for thinking I could outrun an Arctic storm."

They both laughed and the tension fell away.  Lily began to climb out of

the excavation trough.  Pitt took her arm and helped her up.  She winced

and he quickly released his grip.

"You shouldn't be on your feet."

Lily smiled gamely.  "Stiff and a little sore from a sea of

black-and-blue marks I can't show you, but I'll live."

Pitt held up the lantern and peered around the oddly grouped rocks and

excavations.  "Just what is it you have here?"

"An ancient Eskimo village, inhabited one hundred to five hundred years

after Christ."

"Have you a name for it?"

"We call the site Gronquist Bay Village after Dr. Hiram Gronquist, who

discovered it five years ago."

"One of the three men I met last night?"

"The big man who was knocked unconscious."

"How's he getting along?"

"Despite a large purplish dome on his forehead, he swears he doesn't

suffer from headaches or dizziness.  When I left the hut he was roasting

like a turkey."

"Turkey?" Pitt repeated, surprised.  "You must have a firstrate supply

system."

"A vertical-lift Minerva aircraft, on loan to the university by a

wealthy alumnus, flies in once every two weeks from Thule."

"I thought excavations this far north were limited to midsummer when

above-freezing temperatures thawed the ground."

"Generally speaking that's true.  But with the heated prefab shelter

over the main section of the village, we can work from April through

October."

"Find anything out of the ordinary, like an object that doesn't belong

here?"

Lily gave Pitt a queer look.  "Why do you ask?"

"Curiosity.  "

"We've unearthed hundreds of interesting artifacts representing

prehistoric Eskimo lifestyles and technology.  We have them in the hut,

if you care to examine them."

"How's chances of looking at them over the turkey?"

"Good to excellent.  Dr. Gronquist cooks gourmet."

"I had hoped to invite you all to the ship's galley for dinner, but the

sudden storm messed up my plans."

"We're always happy to see a new face at the table."

"You've discovered something unusual, haven't you?" Pitt asked abruptly.

Lily's eyes widened suspiciously.  "How could you knowt' "Greek or

Roman?"

"Roman Empire, Byzantium, actually."

"Byzantium what?" Pitt pushed her, his eyes turned hard.

"How old?"

"A gold coin, late fourth century."

He seemed to relax then.  He took a deep breath and slowly let it out

while she looked at him in confusion and no small degree of irritation.

"Make your point!" Lily snapped at him.

"What if I was to tell you," Pitt began slowly, "there is a trail of

amphoras scattered along the seabed that leads into the fjord?"

"Amphoras?" Lily repeated in astonishment.

"I have them on videotape from our underwater cameras."

"They came." She spoke as in a trance.  "They really crossed the

Atlantic.  The Romans set foot on Greenland before the Vikings."

"The evidence points in that direction." Pitt eased his arm around

Lily's waist and aimed her toward the door.  "Speaking of direction, are

we stuck here for the duration of the storm or does that rope outside

the door lead to your hut?"

She nodded.  "Yes, the line stretches between the two buildings." She

paused and stared into the excavation where she had discovered the coin.

"Pytheas, the Greek navigator, made an epic voyage in 350 B.c. The

legends say he sailed north into the Atlantic and eventually reached

Iceland.  Strange there

are no records or legends telling of a Roman voyage this far north and

west, seven hundred and fifty years later."

"Pytheas was lucky: he made it home to tell the tale."

,,You think the Romans  who  came  here  were  lost  on  the return

voyage?"

"No, I think they're still here." Pi pinned her with a determined grin,

"And you and i, lovely lady, are going to find them."

-PART II

The Serapis

October 14, 1991

Washington, D.C.

A cold, bleak drizzle shrouded the nation's capital as a taxi pulled to

a stop at Seventeenth and Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the old

Executive Office Building.  A man dressed in a deliveryman's uniform

stepped from the rear seat and told the driver to wait.  He leaned back

in the taxi and retrieved a package wrapped in red silk.  He hurried

across the sidewalk and down several steps, passing through a doorway

into the reception area of the mail room.

"for the President," he said with a Spanish accent.

A postal service employee signed in the package and the time.  He looked

up and said.  "Still raining?"

"More like a fine spray."

"Just enough to make life miserable."

"And slow traffic," the deliveryman said with a sour face.

"Have a good day anyway."

"You too."

The deliveryman left as the postal worker took the package and ran it

under the fluoroscope.  He stood back and stared at the screen as the

X-rays revealed the object under the wrapping.

He easily identified it as a briefcase, but the picture puzzled him.

There was no indication of files or papers inside, no hard object with a

distinguishing outline, nothing that looked like explosives.  He was an

old hand at X-ray identification, but the contents of the case threw

him.

He picked up the phone and made a request to the person on the other

end.  Less than two minutes later a security agent appeared with a dog.

"Got one for Sweet-pea?" asked the agent.

The postal worker nodded as he set the package on the floor.  "Can't

make an I.D. on the scope."

Sweet-pea hardly resembled her namesake.  She was a mutt, the result of

a brief affair between a beagle and a dachshund. Huge brown eyes, a fat

little body supported by short spindly legs, Sweet-pea was highly

trained to sniff out every explosive from the common to the exotic.  As

the two men watched, she waddled around the package, nose quivering like

a plump dowager sniffing at a perfume counter.

Suddenly she stiffened, the hair on her neck and back stood up, and she

began backing away.  Her face took on an odd, suspicious kind of

distasteful expression, and she began to growl.

The agent looked surprised.  "That's not her usual reaction."

"There's something weird in there," said the postal worker.

"Who is the package addressed to?"

"The President."

The agent walked over and punched a number on the phone. "We better get

Jim Gerhart down here."

Gerhart, Special Agent in Charge of Physical Security for the White

House, took the call during a brief lunch at his desk and left

immediately for the mail reception room.

He observed the dog's reaction and eyebafled the package under the

fluoroscope.  "I don't detect any wiring or detonation device," he said

in a Georgia drawl.

"Not a bomb," the postal worker agreed.

"Okay, let's open it."

The red silk wrapper was carefully removed, revealing a black leather

attache case.  There were no markings, not even a manufacturer's name or

model number.  Instead of a combination lock, both latches had inserts

for a key.

Gerhart tried the latches simultaneously.  They both unsnapped.

"The moment of truth," he said with a cautious gun.

He placed his hands on each corner of the upper lid and slowly lifted

until the case was open and the contents in view.

"Jesus!" Gerhart gasped The  security  agent's  face  went  white  and

he  turned  away.

The postal worker made gagging noises and staggered for the lavatory.

Gerhart slammed the lid shut.  "Get this thing over to George Washington

University Hospital."

The security agent couldn't reply until he swallowed the acid-tasting

bile that had risen in his throat.  Finally he coughed, "Is that thing

real or is this some kind of Halloween trick or treat?"

"It's genuine," said Gerhart grin-dy- "And believe you me, it ain't no

treat."

In his White House office, Dale Nichols settled back in his swivel chair

and adjusted his reading glasses.  for perhaps the tenth time he began

scrutinizing the contents of a folder routed to him by Arrnando L6pez,

the President's Senior Director Of Latin American Affairs.

Nichols gave off the image of a university professor, which indeed he

had been when the President persuaded him to switch his sedate campus

classroom at Stanford for the political cesspool of Washington.  His

initial reluctance had turned to amazement when he discovered he had a

hidden talent for manipulating the White House bureaucracy.

His thicket of coffee-brown hair was parted neatly down the middle.  His

old-style spectacles, with small round lenses and thin wire frames,

reflected a plodding temperament, a neversay-die type who was oblivious

to everything but his immediate project.  And, finally, the ultimate in

academic clichds, the bow tie and the pipe.

He lit the pipe without removing his eyes from the articles clipped from

Mexican newspapers and magazines dealing with only one subject.

Topiltzin.

Included were interviews granted by the charismatic messiah to officials

who represented Central and South American countries.  But he had

refused to talk to American journalists or government representatives

and none had penetrated his army of bodyguards.

Nichols had learned Spanish during a two-year tour in Peru for the Peace

Corps, and easily read the stories.  He took a legal pad and began

making a list of claims and statements that came to light during the

interviews.

1. Topiltzin describes himself as a man who came from the poorest of the

poor, born in a cardboard shack on the edge of Mexico City's sprawling

garbage dump, with no idea of the day, month or year.  Somehow he

survived and learned what it was to live amid the stink and flies and

manure and muck of the hungry and homeless.

2. Admits to no schooling.  History from childhood, until his emergence

as a self-styled high priest of archaic TolteclAztec religion, is blank.

3. Claims to be the reincarnation of Topiltzin, tenthcentury ruler of

the Toltecs, who was identified with the legendary god Quetzalcoatl.

4. Political philosophy a crazy blend of ancient culture and religion

with vague sort of autocratic, one-man, noparty rule.  Intends to play

benevolent father role to Mexican people.  Ignores questions on how he

intends to revive shattered economy.  Refuses to discuss how he will

restructure government if he comes to power.

5. Spellbinding orator.  Has uncanny rapport with his audience.  Speaks

only in old Aztec tongue through interpreters.  Language still used by

many Indians of Central Mexico.

6. Mainstream supporters are fanatical.  His popularity has swept the

country like the proverbial tidal wave.  Political analysts predict he

could will a national election by nearly six percentage points.  Yet he

refuses to participate in free elections, claiming, and rightly so, that

corrupt leaders would never surrender the government after a losing

campaign.  Topiltzin expects to take over the country by public acclaim.

Nichols set his pipe in an ashtray, stared at the ceiling thoughtfully

for a few moments, and began writing again.

SUMMARY: Topiltzin is either incredibly ignorant or incredibly gifted.

Ignorant if he is what he says he is.

Gifted if he has a method to his madness, a goat only he can see.

Trouble, trouble, trouble.

Nichols was going over the articles again, searching for a key to

Topiltzin's character, when his phone buzzed.  He picked up the

receiver.

"the President on one," announced his secretary.

Nichols punched the button.  "Yes, Mr. President."

"any news of Guy Rivas?"

"No, nothing."

There was a pause on the President's end.  Then, finally, "He was

scheduled to meet with me two hours ago.  I'm concerned.  If he

Encountered a problem, his pilot should have sent us word by now."

"He didn't fly to Mexico City in a White House jet," explained Nichols.

"In the interests of secrecy he booked passage on a commercial airliner

and flew coach class as a tourist on vacation."

"I understand," the President agreed.  "If President De Lorenzo learned

I sent a personal representative behind his back to make contact with

his opposition, he'd take it as an insult and scratch our Arizona

conference next week."

"Our primary concern," Nichols assured him.

"Have you been briefed on the U.N. charter crash?" the President asked,

suddenly changing tack.

"No, sir," replied Nichols.  "My only information is that Hala Kamil

survived."

"She and two crew members.  The rest died from poison."

"Poison?" Nichols blurted incredulously.

"That's the word from the investigators.  They believe the pilot tried

to poison everyone on board before parachuting from the plane over

Iceland."

"The pilot must have been an imposter."

"We won't know till a body is found, warm or cold."

"Christ, what terrorist movement would have a motive for murdering over

fifty U.N. representatives?"

"So far none have claimed credit for the disaster.  According to Martin

Brogan at CIA, if it is the work of terrorists, they stepped out of

character on this one."

"Hala Karnil might have been the target," suggested Nichols.  "Akhmad

Yazid has sworn to eliminate her."

"We can't ignore the possibility," the President admitted.

"Have the news media gotten wind of it?"

"The story will be all over the papers and TV in the next hour.  I saw

no reason to hold it back."

"Is there anything you'd like me to do, Mr. President?"

"I'd appreciate it, Dale, if you'd monitor reaction from President De

Lorenzo's people.  There were eleven delegates and agency

representatives from Mexico on the flight.  Offer condolences in my name

and any cooperation within limits. Oh, yes, you'd better keep Julius

Schiller over at the State Department informed so we don't stumble over

each other."

"I'll get my staff right on it."

"And let me know the minute you hear from Rivas."

"Yes, Mr. President."

Nichols hung up and forced his attention back to the file. He began to

wonder if Topiltzin was somehow connected with the U.N. murder.  If only

there was a thread he could grasp.

Nichols was not a detective.  He had no talent for coldly dissecting a

prime suspect layer by layer until he knew what made the man tick.  His

academic specialty was in systems projections of international political

movements.

Topiltzin was an enigma to him.  Hitler had a misguided vision of Aryan

supremacy.  Driven by religious fervor, Khomeini wanted to return the

Middle East to the Muslim fulldamentals of the Dark Ages.  Lenin

preached a crusade of world Communism.

What was Topiltzin's objective?

A Mexico of the Aztecs?   A return to the past?   No modern society

could function under such archaic rules.  Mexico was not a nation to be

run on the fantasies of a Don Quixote.  There had to be another driving

force behind the man.  Nichols was conjecturing in a vacuum.  He

glimpsed Topiltzin only as a caricature, a villain in a cartoon series.

His secretary entered unannounced and laid a file folder on his desk.

"The report you asked for from the CIA-and you have a call on line

three."

"Who is it?"

"A James Gerhart," she replied.

"White House security," said Nichols.  "Did he say what he wanted?"

"Only that it was urgent."

Nichols  became  curious.  He answered the call. "This is Dale Nichols."

"Jim Gerhart, sir, in charge of-"

"Yes,  I  know,"  Nichols  interrupted.  "Yy'hat's  the problem?"

"I think you better come down to the pathology lab at George

Washington."

"The University Hospital?"

"Yes, sir."

"What in hell for?"

"I'd rather not say too much over the phone."

"I'm very busy, Mr. Gerhart.  You'll have to be more specific."

There was a short silence.  "This is a matter concerning you and the

President.  That's all I can say."

"Can't you at least give me a clue?"

Gerhart ignored the probe.  "One of my men is waiting outside your

office.  He will drive you to the lab.  I'll meet you in the waiting

room."

"Listen to me, Gerhart-" That was as far as Nichols got when the snarl

of the dial tone struck his ear.

The drizzle had turned to rain and Nichols's disposition rrored the

dismal weather as he was led through the University Hospital's entrance

to the pathology laboratory.  He hated the etherlike smells that

permeated the halls.

True to his word, Gerhart waited in the anteroom.  The two men knew each

other by sight and name but had never spoken.  Gerhart came forward but

made no effort to shake hands.

"Thank you for coming," he said in an official tone.

"Why am I here?" Nichols asked directly.

"for an identification."

Nichols was suddenly flooded with foreboding.  "Who?"

"I'd prefer you tell me."

"I don't have the stomach for looking at dead bodies.

"This isn't exactly a body, but you will need a strong stomach."

Nichols shrugged.  "All right, let's get it over with."

Gerhart held the door open and guided him down a long corridor and into

a room with large white tiles inlaid on the walls and floor.  The floor

was slightly concave with a drain in its center.  A stainless steel

table stood in stark solitude in the middle of the room.  A white,

opaque plastic sheet covered a long object that rose no more than an

inch above the surface of the table.

Nichols looked at Gerhart in bewilderment.  "What am I supposed to

identify?"

Without a word Gerhart lifted the sheet and pulled it away, letting it

drop in a crumpled wad on the floor.

Nichols stared at the thing on the table, uncomprehendingAt first he

thought it was a paper outline of a man's figure. Then he shuddered as

the gory truth struck him.  He leaned over the floor drain and threw up.

Gerhart stepped from the room and quickly returned with a folding chair

and a towel.

He steered Nichols to the chair and passed him the towel. "Here," he

said without sympathy, "use this."

Nichols sat for nearly two minutes, clutching the towel against his face

and dry-retching.  At last he recovered enough to look up at Gerhart and

stammer.

"Good lord . . . that's nothing but .

"Skin," Gerhart finished for him, "flayed human skin."

Nichols forced himself to stare at the grisly thing stretched out on the

table.

He was reminded of a deflated balloon.  That was the only way he could

describe it.  An incision had been made from the back of the head down

to the ankles, and the skin peeled away from the body like a pelt from

an animal.  There was a long vertical slit in the chest that had been

crudely sewn.  The eyes were missing, but the entire denmis was there,

including both shriveled hands and feet.

"Can you tell me who you think he might be?" asked Gerhart softly.

Nichols made a conscious effort, but the grotesque, misshapen facial

features made it all but impossible.  Only the hair seemed vaguely

familiar.  Yet he knew.

"Guy Rivas," he murmured.

Gerhart said nothing.  He took Nichols by the arm and helped him to

another room that was comfortably  shed with soft chairs and a coffee

urn.  He poured a cup of coffee and handed it to Nichols.

"I'll be back in a minute."

Nichols sat there as if in a nightmare, shocked by the sick sight in the

other room.  He could not bring himself to grips with the reality of

Rivas's horrible death.

Gerhail came back carrying an attached case.  He set it on a low table.

"This was dropped off at the mail reception room. The body skin was

tightly folded inside.  At first I thought it was the work of some

psycho.  Then I made a thorough search and found a miniature tape

recorder mounted beneath the interior lining."

"You played it?"

"Lot of good it did.  Sounds like a conversation between two men in some

kind of code."

"How did you trace Rivas to me?"

"Rivas's government ID card had been placed inside his flayed skin.

Whoever murdered him wanted to make sure we'd put a make on the remains.

I went to Rivas's office and interrogated his secretary.  I wormed it

out of her that he met with you and the President for two hours before

leaving for the airport and a flight to an unknown destination.  I

thought it unusual that his own secretary didn't know his destination,

so I reckoned he'd been sent on a classified mission.  That's why I

contacted you first."

Nichols looked at him narrowly.  "You say there's a conversation on the

tape?"

Gerhart nodded gravely.  "That and Rivas's screams as he was cut apart."

Nichols closed his eyes, trying to force the vision from his mind.

"His next of kin will have to be notified," Gerhart continued.  "He have

a wife?"

"And four kids."

"You know him well?"

"Guy Rivas was a nice man, One of the few people with integrity I've met

since coming to Washington.  We worked together on several diplomatic

missions."

for the first time Gerhart's stony face went soft.  "I'm sorry.  "

Nichols didn't hear him.  His eyes slowly turned bitter and cold.  The

nightmarelike expression had gone.  He no longer tasted the vomit or

felt sickened by the horror.  The brutal savagery inflicted on someone

close to him had triggered a floodgate of anger, anger such as Nichols

had never known before.

The professor whose scope of power was limited to the walls of a

classroom no longer existed.  In his place was a man close to the

President, one of a small elite group of Washington power brokers with

the muscle to shape events or create havoc around the globe.

By whatever means and power that were his in the White House, with or

without Presidential favor or official sanction, Nichols was set on

avenging the murder of Rivas.  Topiltzin had to die.

The small Beechcraft executive jet touched down with a faint squeal from

the tires and turned off the crushed-rock runway of a privately owned

airport twenty kilometers south of Alexandria, Egypt.  Less than a

minute after it rolled to a halt beside a green Volvo with TAXI lettered

on the doors in English, the whine from the engines ceased and the

passenger door raised open.

The man that stepped to the ground was wearing a white suit with

matching tie over a dark blue shirt.  Slightly under six feet, with a

slim body, he paused a moment and dabbed a handkerchief around a

receding hairline, and then smugly brushed a large black mustache with

one forefinger.  His eyes were hidden by dark glasses and his hands

covered by white leather gloves.

Suleiman Aziz Ammar did not resemble in the slightest the pilot who had

boarded Flight 106 in London.

He walked over to the Volvo and greeted the short, muscular dxiver who

emerged from behind the wheel.  "Good morning, Ibn.  Find any problems

on your return?"

"Your affairs are in good order," Ibn replied, opening the rear door and

making no effort to conceal a pisto  shotgun in a shoulder holster.

"Take me to Yazid."

Ibn nodded silently as Ammar settled into the rear seat.

The exterior of the taxi was as deceptive as Ammar's many disguises. The

darkly tinted windows and body panels were bulletproof.  Inside, Ammar

sat in a low, comfortable leather chair in front of a compact desk

cabinet containing a compact array of electronics that included two

telephones, a computer, radio transmitter and TV monitor.  There were

also a bar and a rack with two automatic rifles.

As the car skirted the crowded central section of Alexandria and turned

onto the a1-Beach road, Annnar busied himself by monitoring his

far-flung investment operations.  His wealth, known only to him, was

enormous.  His financial success was accomplished more by ruthlessness

than shrewdness. If any corporate executive or government official stood

in Ammar's way on a profitable business deal, he was simply eliminated.

At the end of a twenty-kilometer drive, Ibn slowed the Volvo and stopped

at a gate leading up to a small villa squatting on a low hill

overlooking a wide sandy beach.

Ammar shut down the computer and stepped from the car. Four guards in

desert sand-colored fatigues surrounded him and efficiently searched his

clothing.  As a backup safeguard he was directed to walk through an

airport-type X-ray detector.

He was then led up a stone stairway to the villa past crudely built

concrete compounds manned by a small army of Yazid's elite bodyguards.

Ammar smiled as they bypassed the ornate front archway, open to honored

visitors, and entered through a small side door.  He brushed off the

insult, knowing it was Yazid's shallow-minded way of humbling those who

did his dirty work but were not accepted to his inner circle of fanatic

grovelers.

He was ushered into a stark and empty room furnished with only one

wooden stool and a large Persian Kashan carpet that hung from one wall.

The interior was hot and stuffy.  There were no windows and the only

illumination came from an overhead skylight.  Without a word the guards

retreated and closed the door.

Annnar yawned, casually held up his wristwatch as if checking the time.

Next he removed his dark glasses and rubbed his eyes.  The practiced

gestures enabled him to locate the tiny lens of a TV camera within the

design of the hanging carpet without giving his discovery away.

He stewed for nearly an hour before the carpet was pulled aside and

Akhmad Yazid strutted through a small archway into the room.

The spiritual leader of the Egyptian Muslims was young, no more than

thirty-five.  He was a small man; he had to look up to meet Ammar's

eyes.  His face did not have the precise features of most Egyptians, the

chin and cheekbones were softer, more rounded.  His head was covered by

a white lace cloth wound in an abbreviated turban, and his broom

handle-dun body was draped in a white silk caftan.  When moving from

shadow to light, his eyes seemingly altered from black to dark brown.

As a sign of respect, Ammar gave a slight nod without looking Yazid in

the eye.

"Ah, my friend," Yazid said warmly.  "Good to have you back."

Ammar looked up, smiled and began playing the game. "I'm honored to

stand in your presence, Akhmad Yazid."

"Please sit," Yazid said.  It was an order rather than an invitation.

Ammar complied, sitting on the small wooden stool so Yazid could look

down on him.  Yazid also added another form of humiliation.  He circled

the room as he lectured without prologue, forcing Amrnar to twist around

the stool to follow him.

"Every week brings a major challenge to President Hasan's fragile

authority.  All that prevents his fall is the loyalty of the military.

He can still rely on the 350,000-strong army for support.  for the

moment, Defense Minister Abu Hamid straddles the fence.  He has assured

me he will throw his support to ouir movement for an Islamic republic,

but only if we will a national referendum without bloodshed."

"Is that bad?" asked Ammar with an innocent expression.

Yazid gave him a cold stare.  "The man is a pro-Western charlatan, too

cowardly to give up American aid.  All that matters to him are his

precious jets, helicopter gunships and tanks.  He fears Egypt will go

the way of Iran.  The idiot insists on an orderly transition of

governments so loans from world banks and financial aid from America

will keep pouring in,"

Them He paused, gazing directly into Ammar's eyes, as if daring his

prize assassin to contradict him again.  Ammar remained silent.  The

stifling room began to close in on him.

"Abu Hamid also demands my promise that Hala Kamil will remain

Secretary-General of the United Nations," Yazid added.

"Yet you ordered me to eliminate her," Ammar said, curious.

Yazid nodded.  "Yes, I wanted the bitch dead because she is using her

position in the U.N. as a platform to voice her opposition to our

movement and turn world opinion against me. Abu Haniid, however, would

have slammed the door in my face if she'd been openly assassinated-the

reason why I counted on you, Suleiman, to remove her with an

unquestionable accident.  Regrettably, you failed.  You managed to kill

everyone on board the aircraft except Kamil."

The last words fell like a hammer.  Ammar's outward calm disintegrated.

He looked up at Yazid in blank confusion.

"She lives?"

Yazid's eyes went cold.  "The news broke in Washington less than one

hour ago.  The plane crashed in Greenland. Every U.N. passenger except

Kamil and all but two of the crew were found dead from poison."

"Poison?" Ammar murmured skeptically.

"Our paid sources in the American news media have confirmed the report.

What were you thinking of, Suleiman?   You assured me the plane was

supposed to vanish in the sea."

"Do they say how it reached Greenland?"

"A flight steward discovered the bodies of the flight crew. With help

from a Mexican delegate, he took over the controls and managed to

crash-land in a fjord on the coast.  Kamil might have died from

exposure, cutting you off the hook, but an American naval vessel

happened to be crusing nearby. They responded almost immediately and

saved her life."

Ammar was stunned.  He was not used to failure.  He could not imagine

how his exactingly conceived plan had gone so far off track.  He closed

his eyes, seeing the plane clear the summit of the glacier.  Almost

instantly he gleaned the imponderables, focusing on a piece of the

puzzle that didn't fit.

Yazid stood qtuetly for a few moments, then broke Ammar's concentration.

"You realize, of course, I will be accused of this mess."

"There is no evidence tying me to the disaster or me to you," Ammar said

firmly.

"Perhaps, but call it guilt by motive.  Speculation and rumor will

convict me in the Western news media.  I should have you executed.  "

Ammar wiped his mind clear and shrugged indifferently. "That would be a

sad waste.  I'm still the best eliminator in the Middle East."

"And the highest paid."

"I'm not in the habit of charging for unfinished projects."

"I would hope not," said Yazid acidly.  He abruptly spun and walked

toward the hanging carpet.  He reached out and pulled it back with his

left hand, paused and turned back to Ammar. "I must prepare my mind for

prayer.  You may go, Suleiman Aziz Ammar."

"And Hala Kaniil?   The job is unfinished."

"I am turning her removal over to Muhammad Ismail."

"Ismail," Ammar grunted.  "The man is a cretin."

"He can be trusted."

"for what, cleaning sewers?"

Yazid's hard, cold eyes stared at Ammar menacingly. "Kamil is no longer

your concern.  Remain here in Egypt near my side.  My faithful advisers

and I have another project to advance our cause.  You will have an

opportunity to redeem yourself in the eyes of Allah."

Before Yazid could enter the archway, Ammar rose to his feet.  "The

Mexican delegate who helped fly the aircraft.  Was he also poisoned?"

Yazid turned and shook his head.  "The report states he was killed in

the crash."

Then he was gone and the carpet dropped back.

Ammar settled on the stool again.  Slowly the revelation broke through

the mists of the enigma.  He should have been maddened, but there wasn't

the slightest feeling of anger.  Instead, an amused smile curled under

his mustache.

"So there were two of us," he mused aloud to the empty room.  "And the

other one poisoned the in-flight meal service." Then he shook his head

in wonderment.  "Poison in the Beef Wellington.  My god, how quaint."

At first no one paid any attention to the tiny blur that crept across

the outer edge of the sidescan sonar's recording paper.

Six hours into the search they had found several man-made objects. Parts

of the downed aircraft that were pinpointed for retrieval, a sunken

fishing trawler, bits and pieces of junk thrown over by fishing fleets

seeking shelter in the fjord from storms, all were identified by video

camera and eliminated.

The last anomaly was not resting on the bottom of the fjord as expected.

It sat inside a small inlet encircled by sheer cliffs. Only one end

protruded into clear water; the rest was buried under a wall of ice.

Pitt was the first to realize its significance.  He was sitting in front

of the recorder, surrounded by Giordino, Commander Knight and the

archaeologists.  He spoke into a transmitter.

"Swing the fish, bearing one-five-zero degrees."

The Polar Explorer was still stationary in the icebound fjord.  Outside

on the pack a team led by Cork Simon had augered through the ice and

lowered the sensing unit into the water.  Very slowly they swung the

fish, as they called it, scanning a 360-degree grid.  After searching

one area, they unreeled more cable and tried again at another site

farther away from the ship.

Simon acknowledged Pitts command and twisted the cable until the fish's

sonar probes were trained at 150 degrees.

"How's this?" he queried.

"You're right on target," Pitt replied from the ship.

Seen from a better angle the target became more distinct. Pitt circled

it with a black felt pen.

"I think we've got something."

Gronquist moved in closer and nodded.  "Not much showing to identify.

What do you make of it?"

"Pretty vague," answered Pitt- "You have to use some imagination since

most of the object is covered by ice that has fallen from the

surrounding cliffs.  But the part that shows underwater suggests a

wooden ship.  There's a definite angular shape coming together at what

might be a high, curving sternpost.  "

"Yes," said Lily excitedly.  "High and graceful.  Typical of a

fourth-century merchant ship."

"Don't get carried away," cautioned Knight.  "She could be an old

sail-rigged fisherman."

"Possibly." Giordino looked thoughtful.  "But if my memory serves me

correctly, the Danes, Icelanders and Norwegians who have fished these

waters over the centuries sailed in more narrow beamed double-enders."

"You're right," said Pitt.  "The sharp bow and stern were handed down

from the Vikings.  What we're seeing here might also be a double-ender,

but with a broader sweep."

"Can't get a clear picture through the ice-covered section of the hull,"

said Gronquist.  "But we could drop a camera back of the stern in clear

water for a better identification."

Giordino looked doubtful.  "A camera might confirm the stern section of

a wrecked ship, but little else."

"We've plenty of strong male backs on the ship," said Lily. "We could

tunnel down through the ice and inspect her at first hand."

Gronquist took a pair of binoculars and walked out of the electronics

compartment to the bridge.  He returned in half a minute.  "I make the

ice cover over the wreck to be a good four meters thick.  Take at least

two days to cut through."

"You'll have to dig without us, I'm afraid," said Knight. "My orders are

to get under way before 1800 hours.  We've no time left for a lengthy

excavation."

Gronquist was taken aback.  "That's only five hours from now."

Knight made a helpless gesture.  "I'm sorry, I have no say in the

matter."

Pitt studied the dark spot on the recording paper.  Then he turned to

Knight.  "If I proved positively that's a fourth-century Roman ship out

there, could you persuade North Atlantic command to keep us on station

for another day or two?"

Knight's eyes took on a foxy look.  "What are you cooking up?"

"Will you go along?" Pitt crowded him.

"Yes," Knight stated firmly.  "But only if you prove, without a shadow

of a doubt, that's a thousand-year-old shipwreck.  " ... Then it's a

deal."

"How are you going to do it?"

"Simple," said Pitt, reeling Knight in.  "I'm going to dive under the

ice and come up into the hull."

Cork Simon and his crew worked quickly at cutting an access hole through

the one-meter-thick ice sheet with chain saws.  They quarried multiple

squares until they reached the final layer.  They broke through with a

sledgehammer mounted on a long pipe and then removed the ice fragments

with grappling hooks so Pitt could safely submerge.

When he was satisfied the hole was clear, Simon walked a few steps and

entered a small canvas-covered shelter.  The interior was heated and

warm and crowded with men and diving equipment.  An air compressor sat

next to the heating unit, chugging away, its exhaust vented to the

outside.

Lily and the other archaeologists were sitting at a folding table in one

corner of the shelter, making a series of drawings and discussing them

with Pitt as he suited up for the dive.

"Ready when you are," Simon announced.

"Another five minutes," Giordino replied while busily checking the valve

assemblies and regulator on a Mark I navy diver's mask.

Pitt had slipped a special dry suit over long underwear made of heavy

nylon pile for thermal insulation.  Next he pulled on a hood and then a

quick-release weight belt while trying to absorb a cram course in

ancient ship construction.

"In early merchant vessels the shipwrights favored cedar and cypress,

and often pine, for the planking," lectured Gronquist.  "They mostly

used oak for the keel."

"I won't be able to tell one wood from another," Pitt said.

"Then study the hull.  The planks were tightly joined by tenons and

mortises.  Many ships had lead plates laid on their underwater surface.

The hardware may be of iron or copper."

"What about the rudder?" asked Pitt.  "Anything I should look for in

design and fastenings?"

"You won't find a stern-centered rudder," said Sam Hoskins.  "They

didn't Turn up for another eight hundred years.  All early Mediterranean

merchantmen used twill steering oars that extended from the aft

quarters."

"Do you want a reserve 'come home' air bottle?" Giordino interrupted.

Pitt shook his head.  "Not necessary for a dive this shallow as long as

I'm on a lifeline."

Giordino lifted the Mark I mask and helped Pitt pull it down over his

head.  He checked the face seal, adjusted the position and cinched up

the spider straps.  The air supply was on, and when Pitt signaled that

he had proper air flow, Giordino secured the communications line to the

mask.

ANie one of the Navy men unreeled and straightened the air-supply hose

and communications line, Giordino tied a manila lifeline around Pitts

waist.  He performed the predive checkout and then donned a headset with

microphone.

"You hear me okay?" he asked.

"Clear but faint," Pitt answered.  "Turn up the volume a notch."

"Better?"

"Much."

"How do you feel?"

"Nice and cozy so long as I'm breathing warm air."

"All set?"

Pitt answered by making an okay sign with his thumb and forefinger.  He

paused to hook an underwater dive light to his belt.

Lily gave him a hug and gazed up through his face mask. "Good hunting,

and be careful."

He willked back at her.

He turned and walked through the entryway of the shelter into the cold

outside, trailed by two Navy men who tended his lines.

Giordino began to follow when Lily clutched his arm.  "Will we be able

to hear him?" she asked anxiously.

"Yes, I've connected him into a speaker.  You and Dr. Gronquist can stay

here where it's warm and listen in.  If you have a message for Pitt,

simply come and tell me, and I'll pass it on."

Pitt walked stiffly to the edge of the ice hole and sat down. The air

temperature had dropped to zero.  It was a crystalline November day with

a biting edge, courtesy of a ten-mile-an-hour wind.

As he slipped on his fins he looked up at the sheer sides of the

mountains that soared above the inlet.  The tons of snow and ice

clinging to the steep palisades seemed as if they could fall at any

moment.  He turned to the upper end of the fjord where he could see

glacier arms curling and grinding toward the sea.  Then he looked down.

The water in the dive hole looked jade, ominous and cold.

Commander Knight approached and put his hand on Pitts shoulder.  All he

could see was a pair of intense green eyes through the glass of the

mask.  He spoke loudly so Pitt could hear.

"One hour, twenty-three minutes left.  I thought you ought to know."

Pitt gave him a steel-edged stare but did not reply.  He made a "thumbs

up" sign and slipped through the narrow hole into the forbidding water.

He slowly settled past the encircling white walls.  He felt as if he

were diving down a well.  Once clear, he was dazzled by the glistening

kaleidoscope of color from the sun's rays that penetrated the ice.  The

underside of the sheet was jagged and uneven and specked with small

hanging stalactites formed by brine from the rapidly freezing fresh

water carried into the fjord by glaciers.

Underwater visibility was almost eighty meters on a horizontal range. He

glanced down and saw a small kelp community grasping the rocky mass

carpeting the bottom.  Thousands of small shrimplike crustaceans

suspended in the still water swirled past his sight.

A huge, three-meter bearded seal eyed him curiously at a distance, tufts

of coarse bristles sprouting from its muzzle.  Pitt waved his arms, and

the big seal shot him a wary look and swam away.

Pitt touched the bottom and paused to equalize his ears. There was a

danger in diving with a buoyancy-compensatortype life-jacket under ice

and he did not wear one.  He was slightly heavy, so he adjusted by

removing and dropping a lead weight from his belt.  The air that flowed

from the compressor through a filter and then an accumulator into his

mask tasted bland but pure.

He gazed upward and oriented himself from the eerie glow of the ice hole

and checked his compass.  He hadn't bothered to carry a depth gauge.  He

wouldn't be working in water over four meters deep.

"Talk to me," the voice of Al Giordino came through the mask's

earphones.

"I'm on the bottom," replied Pitt.  "All systems up to par."

Pitt spun and stared through the green void.  "She lies about ten meters

north of me.  I'm going to move toward her.  Give me some slack in the

lines."

He swain slowly, taking care his lines didn't foul on the rock

outcroppings.  The intense cold of the frigid water began to seep into

his body.  He was thankful Giordino had had the foresight to see that

his air supply was warm and dry The stern of the wreck slowly unveiled

before his eyes.  The sides were covered with a mat of algae.  He

brushed away a small area with his gloved hand, stirn'ng up a green

cloud.  He waited a minute for the cloud to dissipate and then peered at

the result.

"Inform Lily and Doc I'm looking at a wooden hull without a stern

rudder, but no sign of steering oars."

"Acknowledged," said Giordino.

Pitt pulled a knife from a sheath strapped to one leg and pried at the

underside of the hull near the keel.  The point revealed soft metal.

"We have a lead-sheathed bottom," he announced.

"Looking good," replied Giordino.  "Doc Gronquist wants to know if there

is any sign of carving on the sternpost."

"Hold on."

Pitt carefully wiped off the growth over a flat section of the sternpost

just before it disappeared upward into the ice, waiting patiently for

the resulting algae cloud to drift away.

"There's some kind of a hardwood plaque imbedded into the sternpost.  I

can make out lettering and a face."

"A face?"

"With a curly head of hair and heavy beard."

"What does it read?"

"Sorry, I can't translate Greek."

"Not Latin?" Giordino asked skeptically.

The raised carving was indistinct in the shimmering light that filtered

through the ice.  Pitt moved in until his face mask nearly touched the

wooden plaque.

"Greek," Pitt stated firmly.

"Certain?"

"I used to go with a girl who was an Alpha Delta Pi."

"Hold on.  You've thrown the bone pickers into spasms."

After nearly two minutes, Giordino's voice returned over the earphones.

"Gronquist thinks you're hallucinating, but Mike Graham says he studied

classical Greek in college and asks if you can describe the lettering."

"First letter resembles an S shaped like a lightning strike. Then an A

with the right leg missing.  Next a P followed by another handicapped A

and what looks like an inverted L or a gallows.  Then an 1. Last letter

is another lightning strike S.

That's the best I can do."

Listening over the speaker inside the shelter, Graham copied Pitts

meager description on the page of a notebook.

He scrutinized what  appeared  to  be  a  word  for  several  moments.

Something  was  out  of  place.  He  struggled  to  jog  his memory, and

then  he  had  it.  The  letters  were  Classical  but Eastern Greek.

His thoughtful expression slowly turned incredulous.  He furiously wrote

a short word, tore out the page and held it up- in modern capitals it

read, S A R A PI S

Lily stared at Graham questioningly- "Does it mean anything?"

Gronquist said, "I think it's the name of a Greek-Egyptian god.  "

"A popular deity throughout the Mediterranean," agreed Hoskins.  "Modern

spelling is usually 'Serapis.  "'

"So our ship is the Serapes," murmured Lily pensively, Knight grunted.

"So we might have either a Roman, Grecian or Egyptian shipwreck.  Which

is it?"

"We're over our heads," answered Gronquist.  "We'll need the expertise

of a marine archaeologist who knows ancient Mediterranean shipping to

sort this one out."

Below the ice, Pitt moved across the starboard side of the hull,

stopping where the planking vanished into the ice.  He swam around the

sternpost to the port.  The planking looked warped and bowed outward.  A

few kicks of his fins, and he could see a section that was stove in by

the ice.

He eased up to the opening and slipped his head inside. it was like

looking in a dark closet.  He saw only vague, indiscernible shapes.  He

reached in and felt something round and hard.  He gauged the distance

between the broken panels, The gap was too small to squeeze his

shoulders through.

He grasped the upper plank, planted a finned foot against the hull and

pulled.  The well-preserved wood slowly bent but refused to give.  Pitt

tried both feet and heaved with everything he had.  The plank still held

firm.  When he was just about to call it quits the treenails suddenly

tore off the inside ribs and the waterlogged wood peeled away, throwing

Pitt backward in awkward slow motion against a large rock.

any respectable card-carrying marine archaeologist would have gone into

cardiac arrest at such irreverent brutality toward an ancient artifact,

Pitt felt totally unsympathetic toward academic scruples.  He was cold

and getting colder, his shoulder began to ache from the impact on the

rock, and he knew he couldn't stay down much longer.

"I've found a break in the hull," he said, panting like a marathon

runner.  "Send down a camera."

"Understood," replied the stolid voice of Giordino.  "Come back and I'll

pass it to you."

Pitt returned to the dive hole and followed his bubbles to the surface.

Giordino lay on his stomach on the ice, reached down and handed Pitt a

compact underwater video camera/recorder.

"Take a few meters of tape and get out," said Giordino. "You've

accomplished enough."

"What about Commander Knight?"

"Hold tight, I'll put him on."

Knight's voice came over the earphones.  "Dirk?"

"Go ahead, Byron."

"Are you one hundred percent certain we've got a thousand-year-old relic

in pristine condition?"

"All indications look solid."

"I'll need something tangible if I'm to convince Atlantic Command to

keep us on station another forty-eight hours."

"Stand by and I'll seal it with a kiss."

"An identifiable antiquity will suffice," Knight said dourly.

Pitt threw a wave and faded from view.

He did not enter the wreck immediately.  How long he floated motionless

outside the jagged opening he couldn't be sure.  Probably about one

minute, certainly no longer then two.  Why he hesitated, he didn't know.

Maybe he was waiting for an invitation from a skeletal hand beckoning

from within, maybe he was afraid of finding nothing more than debris

from an eighty-year-old Icelandic fishing schooner, or maybe he was just

leery of entering what might be a tomb.

Finally he lowered his head, tightened his shoulders and cautiously

kicked his fins.

The black unknown opened up and he swam in.

Once Pitt squeezed inside, he paused and hung motionless, slowly

settling on his knees, listening to his pounding heart and his breath

escaping from the exhaust valve, waiting until his eyes eventually

became accustomed to the fluid gloom.

He didn't know what he'd expected to find: what he found was an array of

terra-cotta jars, pitchers, cups and plates neatly stacked in shelves

set in the bulkheads.  One was a large copper pot he had touched when

groping through the hull; its walls had turned a deep patina green.

At first he thought his knees were resting on the hard surface of the

deck.  He felt about with his hands and discovered he was kneeling on

the tiled surface of a hearth.  He glanced up and saw his bubbles rise

up and spread in a wavering cover.  He stood and surfaced into clear

air, his head and shoulders having risen above the water level of the

fjord,

"I'm inside the ship's galley," he notified the spellbound party on the

ice.  "The upper half is dry.  Camera is rolling."

"Acknowledged," Giordino said briefly. Pitt used the next few minutes to

video-record the galley's interior above and below the water level,

while keeping a running dialogue on the inventory.  He found an open

cupboard stocked with several elegant glass vessels, He lifted one and

peered inside.  It held coins.  He picked one out, rubbed away the algae

with his gloved fingers, and shot tape with one hand. The coin's surface

revealed a golden color.

A sense of awe and apprehension flooded over Pitt.  He looked quickly

around as if expecting a ghostly crew, or at least their skeletal

apparitions, to come bursting through the hatchway to accuse him of

theft.  Only there was no crew.  He was alone and touching objects that

belonged to men who had walked the same deck, prepared food and eaten

here-men who had been dead for sixteen centuries.

He began to wonder what had happened to them.  How had they come to be

in the frozen north when there were no records of such a historic

voyage?   They must have died of exposure, but where did their bodies

lie?

"You'd better come up," said Giordino.  "You've been down almost thirty

minutes."

"Not yet," replied Pitt.  Thirty minutes, he thought.  It seemed more

like five.  Time was slipping away from him. The cold was beginning to

affect his brain.  He dropped the coin back in the glass vessel and

continued his inspection.

The galley's ceiling rose half a meter above the main deck overhead, and

small arched windows that normally allowed ventilation were battened

down on the upper side of the forward bulkhead.  Pitt pried one

partially open only to confront a solid wall of ice.

He made a rough measurement and found the water level was deeper toward

the aft end of the galley, Pitt took this to indicate that the bow and

central section of the hull were aground on the raised slope of the

ice-buried shoreline.

"Come up with anything else?" Giordino inquired with burning curiosity.

"Like what?"

"Remains of the crew?"

"Sorry, no bones to be seen." Pitt ducked under the water and scanned

the deck to make certain.  It was free and clean of litter.

"They probably panicked and abandoned ship at sea," Giord'L- o

theorized.

"Nothing points to a panic," said Pitt.  "The galley could pass a

general inspection."

"Can you penetrate the rest of the ship?"

"There's a hatchway in the forward bulkhead.  I'm going to see what's on

the other side."

He leaned down and ducked through the low and narrow opening, carefully

pulling his lifeline and air hose after him. The darkness was

oppressive.  He unhooked the dive light from his weight belt and swept

its beam around a small compartment.

"I'm now in some kind of storeroom.  The water is shallower here, rising

just short of my knees.  I can see tools, yes, the ship's carpenter's

tools, spare anchors, a large steelyard ' "Steelyard?" Giordino broke

in.

"A balance scale that hangs from a hook."

"Got you."

"There's also an assortment of axes, lead weights and fish netting. Hold

on while I document."

A narrow wooden ladder led upward through an opening in the main deck.

After shooting tape, he cautiously tested it, surprised to find it still

stout enough to support his weight.

Pitt slowly climbed the rungs and poked his head into the shattered

remains of a deck cabin.  Little was visible except a few buried bits of

debris.  The cabin had been nearly crushed flat by the build up of ice.

He dropped down and waded through another hatch that opened into the

cargo hold.  He swung the dive light's beam from Starboard to port and

instantly went numb from shock.

It was not only a cargo hold.

It was also a crypt.

The extreme cold had transformed the dry hold into a cryogenic chamber.

Eight bodies in a state of near-perfect preservation were grouped around

a small iron stove toward the bow.  Each was covered by a shroud of ice,

making them look as though they had been individually wrapped in a

thick, clear plastic.

Their facial expressions appeared peaceful and their eyes were locked

open- Like mannikins in a shop window, they were posed in different

positions as if placed and adjusted for the correct attitude.  Four sat

around a table eating, plates in hand, cups raised to mouth.  Two

reclined side by side against the hull, reading what Pitt guessed were

scrolls.  One was bent over a wooden chest, while the last was seated in

the act of writing.

Pitt felt as if he had entered a time machine.  He could not believe he

was staring at men who had been citizens of Imperial Rome.  Ancient

mariners who sailed into ports long buried under the debris of later

civilizations, ancestors over sixty generations from the past.

They had not been prepared for the Arctic cold.  None wore heavy

clothing; all were bundled in coarse blankets.  They seemed small in

size compared to Pitt; all would have measured a good head shorter.  One

little man was bald, with gray woolly side hair.  Another had shaggy red

hair and was heavily bearded.  Most were clean-shaven.  from what he

could read through their icy covering, the youngest was around eighteen

and the oldest close to forty years of age.

The mariner who had died while writing had a leather cap pulled tight

around his head and long strips of wool wrapped around his legs and

feet.  He was bent over a small stack of wax tablets resting on the

scarred surface of a small folding table.  A stylus was still gripped in

his right hand.

The crew did not look as if they had starved or died slowly from the

cold.  Death had come suddenly and unexpectedly.

Pitt guessed the cause.  All hatch covers had been tightly sealed to

keep out the cold, and the only opening for ventilation had frozen over.

The pots containing the last meal were sitting on the small oil stove.

There was no way for the heat and smoke to escape to the outside. Lethal

carbon monoxide had built up within the cargo hold.  Unconsciousness had

struck without warning, and each man died where he sat.

Almost as if he was afraid to awaken the long-dead seaman, Pitt very

carefully chipped the ice away from the wax tablets until they came

free.  Then he unzipped the front of his dry suit and slipped them

inside.

Pitt no longer noticed the agony of the cold, the nervous sweat that was

trickling from his pores, or the shivering.  His mind was so absorbed in

the morbid scene that he failed to hear Giordino's repeated demands for

a reply.

"Are you still with us?" asked Giordino.  "Answer, dammit!"

Pitt mumbled a few unintelligible words.

"Say again.  Are you in trouble?"

Giordino's concerned tone finally shook Pitt out of his trancelike

state.

Inform Commander Knight his worst fear is confirmed," Pitt answered.

"The antique status Of the ship is genuine.  And by the way," he added

in a monotonous, laconic voice, "you might also mention that if he needs

witnesses, I can produce the crew."

"You're wanted on the phone," Julius SchiHer's wife called through the

kitchen window.

Schiller looked up from the barbecue in the backyard of his tree-shaded

home in Chevy Chase.  "They give a name?"

"No, but it sounds like Dale Nichols."

He sighed and held up a pair of tongs.  "Come mind the steaks so they

won't burn."

Mrs. Schiller gave her husband a brief kiss as they passed each other on

the porch.  He entered his study, closed the door and picked up the

receiver.

"Yes?"

"Julius, Dale."

"What's on your mind?"

"Sorry to call on a Sunday," said  Nichols.  "Did  I  interrupt

anything?"

"Only a family barbecue."

"You must be a diehard.  It's only forty-five  degrees  outside."

"Beats smoking up the garage-"

"Steak and scrambled eggs, that's my favorite."

Schiller caught Nichols's drift on the eggs and switched his phone onto

a secure line that entered a computer scramble mode.  "Okay, Dale, what

have you got?"

"Hala Kamil.  The exchange came off smoothly,"

"Her look-alike is at Walter Reed Hospital?" Schiller asked.

"Under tight security to go along with the act:"

"Who doubled for her?"

"Teri Rooney, the actress.  She did a superb makeup job. You couldn't

tell her apart from the real Secretary-General unless you were nose to

nose- As a backup, we arranged a press conference by hospital doctors.

They gave out a story describing her serious condition."

"And Kantil?"

"She remained on the Air Force plane that brought her from Greenland.

After refueling, it flew to Buckley Field near Denver.  from there she

was flown by helicopter to Breckenridge.  "

"The ski resort in Colorado?"

"Yes, she's resting comfortably at Senator Pitts chalet just outside of

town.  No injuries except a few bruises and a mild case of frostbite."

"How is she taking her forced convalescence?"

"No word yet.  Hala was heavily sedated when she was carried from the

hospital at Thule.  But she'll go along when she learns of our operation

to safeguard her arrival at the U.N.

headquarters to address the opening session of the General Assembly.  A

reliable source close to her says she plans on making a scathing

indictment of Yazid, exposing him as a religious charlatan and offering

proof of his underground terrorist activities."

"I've read a report from the same source," Schiller admitted.

"Five days until the opening session," said Nichols.  "Yazid will pull

out all stops to blow her away."

"She's got to be kept on ice until she steps to the podium," Schiller

said, deadly serious.

"She's safe," said Nichols.  "any word from the Egyptian government on

your end?"

"President Hasan is giving us his full cooperation regarding Kantil.

He's scratching every hour he can buy or steal to launch his new

economic reforms and replace military leaders with men he can trust.

Hala Kantil is the only thread preventing Yazid from attempting a quick

grab for the Egyptian government.  If Yazid's assassins stop her before

her speech goes out over world news satellite channels, there is a real

danger of Egypt becoming another Iran before the monday is out."

"Relax, Yazid won't get wise to the scam until it's too late," said

Nichols confidentially.

"I assume she is under heavy guard?"

"By a top team of Secret Service agents.  The President is personally

keeping a tight grip on the operation."

Schiller's wife knocked on the door and spoke loudly from the other

side.  "Steaks are ready, Julius."

"In a minute," he answered.

Nichols picked up on the exchange.  "That's all I have for now.  I'll

let you get back to your steaks."

"I'd feel better if the FBI was lending a hand," said Schiller.

"The White House security staff has considered every contingency.  The

President thought it best to keep all intelligence within a tight

circle."

Schiller paused pensively for a moment.  Then he said, "Don't screw it

up, Dale."

"Not to worry.  I promise, Hala Kamil will arrive at the U.N. building

in New York in pristine condition and full of fire."

"She'd better."

"Does the sun set in the west?"

Schiller set down the phone.  He had an uneasy feeling.  He hoped to God

the White House knew what it was doing.

Across the street three men sat in the back of a Ford van with "Capitol

Plumbing, 24-hour emergency service" painted on the panels.  The cramped

interior was crowded with electronic eavesdropping equipment.

Tedium had set in five hours ago.  Surveillance is perhaps the most

boring job since watching rails rust.  One man smoked and the other two

didn't and couldn't stand the stale air.  All were stiff and cold.

Former counterespionage agents, they had resigned to become independent

contractors.

Most retired agents occasionally take on an outside job for the

government, but these three were among the very few who respected money

more than patriotic duty, and they sold what ever classified information

they  could  ferret  out  to  the  highest bidder.  '

One of them, a blond, scarecrow type, peered through binoculars out a

tinted window at Schiller's house.  "He's leaving the study."

The fat man hunched over a recording machine with earphones nodded in

agreement.  "All talk has ceased."

The  , man had a great waxed handlebar mustache, operated a laser

parabolic, a sensitive microphone that received voice sounds inside a

room from the vibrations on a windowPane, and then magnified them

through fiber optics onto a sound channel.

"Anything interesting?" asked the skinny blond.

The  fat  man  removed  the  earphones  and  wiped his sweating

forehead.  "My share from this gig will pay off my fishing boat."

"I love a marketable commodity."

"This information is worth big bucks to the right party."

"Who've you got in mind?" asked the one with the mustache.

The fat man grinned like a glutted coyote.  "A wealthy, highly placed

raghead who wants to make points with Akhmad Yazid."

The President rose from behind his desk and gave a brief nod as CIA

Director Martin Brogan was ushered into the Oval Office for the morning

intelligence briefing.

The formality of a handshake between the two men had fallen by the

wayside soon after their daily meetings began. The slim, urbane Brogan

didn't mind in the least.  He had narrow, long-fingered violinist's

hands, while the tall, two-hundred-pound President had massive paws and

a bone-crushing grip.

Brogan waited until the President sat down before settling in a leather

chair.  Almost as if it were a ritual, the President poured a cup of

coffee, ladled in a teaspoon of sugar and graciously handed a large mug

to Brogan.

The President brushed a hand over his head of silver hair and fixed

Brogan with a limpid pair of gray eyes.  "Well, what secrets does the

world hold this morning?"

Brogan shrugged and passed a leather-bound file across the desk.  "At

0900 Moscow time, Soviet President Georgi Antonov balled his mistress in

the backseat of his limousine on the way to the Kremlin."

"I envy his method for starting the day," the President said with a

broad smile.

"He also made two calls from his car phone.  One to Sergei Komilov, head

of the Soviet space program, the other to his son, who works in the

commercial section of the embassy in Mexico City.  You'll find the

transcript of the conversations on pages four and five."

The President opened the file, slipped on a pair of reading glasses and

scanned the transcript, amazed, as always, at the penetration of

intelligence gathering.

"And how was the rest of Georgi's day?"

"He spent most of his time on domestic affairs. you wouldn't want to be

in his shoes. The outlook on the Soviet economy grows worse by the day.

His reforms in the fields and factories have gone down the toilet.  The

old guard in the Politburo is trying to undermine him.  The military

isn't happy with his program's Proposals and has gone public with its

Opposition.  Soviet citizens are getting more vocal as the lines get

longer.  With a little prodding by our operatives, graffiti knocking the

government are appearing throughout the cities. Overall economic growth

has flattened out at two percent. There is a strong possibility Antonov

may be forced from power before next summer."

"If our deficit doesn't level off I may wind up in the same boat," the

President said grimly.

Brogan made no comment.  He wasn't expected to.

"What's the latest intelligence from Egypt?" the President asked, moving

on.

"President Hasan is also hanging by the skin of his teeth. The air force

remains loyal, but the army generals are close to throwing in with

Yazid.  Defense Minister Abu Hamid held a secret meeting with Yazid in

Port Said.  Our informants say Haniid won't swing his support without

assurances of a solid power position.  He does not want to be dictated

to by Yazid's circle of fanatical mullahs."

"Think Yazid will give in?"

Brogan shook his head.  "No, he has no intention of sharing power.

Han-lid has underestimated Yazid's ruthlessness.  We've already

uncovered a conspiracy to place a bomb in Haniid's private plane."

"Have you alerted Harried?"

"I'll need your authority."

"You have it," said the President.  "Hamid is cagey.  He may think we're

pulling a ploy to keep him out of Yazid's camp."

"We can supply the names of Yazid's assassin team.  Hamid can take it

from there if he insists on proof."

The President leaned back and stared at the ceiling for a moment.  "Can

we tie Yazid to the crash of the U.N. plane carrying Hala Kamfl?"

"Circumstantial evidence at best," Brogan admitted.  "We won't have any

concrete conclusions until the investigators wrap up and make their

report.  for now, the disaster is a real puzzle.  Only a few facts have

been uncovered.  We do know the genuine pilot was murdered; his body was

found in the trunk of a car parked at Heathrow airport."

"Sounds like a maria hit."

"Almost, except the killer did a masterful job of disguising himself

well enough to double as the pilot.  After actually taking off the

plane, he killed the flight crew by injecting them with a toxic nerve

agent known as sarin, turned off course and abandoned the aircraft over

Iceland."

"He must have worked with a team of highly trained professionals," the

President said admiringly.

"We have reason to think he acted alone," said Brogan.

"Alone?" The President's expression turned incredulous. "This guy has to

be one canny son of a bitch."

"The finesse and intricacy are trademarks of an Arab whose name is

Suleiman Aziz Ammar."

"A terrorist?"

"Not in the crude sense.  Animar is one of the cleverest assassins in

the game.  I wish he was on our side."

"Never let the liberals in Congress hear you say that," the President

said wryly.

"Or the news media," Brogan added.

"Do you have a file on Ammar?"

"About a meter thick.  He's what the trade used to call a master of

disguise.  A good, practicing Muslim who has little interest in

politics, a mercenary with no known association with fanatical Islamic

diehards.  Ammar charges enormous fees, and gets them.  A shrewd

businessman.  His wealth is estimated at over sixty million dollars.  He

seldom goes by the book.  His hits are ingeniously planned and carried

out.  All are planned to look like accidents.  None can be laid on his

doorstep with certainty.  Innocent victims mean nothing to him so long

as his target is taken out.  We suspect he is responsible for over a

hundred deaths in the past ten years.  His attempt, proven, to kill Hala

K I would mark his first recorded failure."

The President adjusted his glasses and turned to the report on the air

crash.  "I must have missed something.  If he meant for the plane to

vanish in the ocean, why did he bother poisoning the passengers?   What

possible reason could he have for killing them twice?"

"There's the catch," explained Brogan.  "My analysts don't think Ammar

was responsible for murdering the passengers."

The President's eyes took on a look of surprise.  "You've switched me on

a sidetrack, Martin.  What in hell are you talking about?"

"Pathologists from the FBI labs flew up to Thule and performed autopsies

on the victims.  They found fifty times the sarin required to kill

inside the flight crew's bodies, but their tests showed the passengers

died from ingesting manchineel in the flight meal."

Brogan paused to sip his coffee.

The President waited, impatiently tapping a pen against a desk calendar.

"Manchineel, or poison guava as it's called, is native to the Caribbean

and gulf coast of Mexico," Brogan continued.  "It comes from a tree that

bears a deadly, sweet-tasting, appleshaped fruit.  Carib indians used

the sap to tip their arrows. any number of early shipwrecked sailors and

modern tourists have died after eating the manchineel's poisonous

juices."

"And your people believe an assassin of Ammar's caliber wouldn't stoop

to using manchineel?"

"Something like that." Brogan nodded.  "Ammar's connections would have

no trouble buying or stealing sarin from a European chemical-supply

company.  Manchineel is something else.  You can't find it on a shelf.

It also works too slowly for a quick kill.  I find it doubtful Ammar

would even consider using it."

"If not the Arab, then who?"

"We don't know," answered Brogan.  "Certainly none of the three

survivors.  The only trail, and a faint one, leads to a Mexican delegate

by the name of Eduardo Ybarra.  He's the only other passenger besides

Hala Kaniil who didn't eat the meal.  "

"It says here he died in the crash." The President looked up from the

briefing file.  "How could he insert poison in the flight meals without

being seen?"

"That was done in the kitchen of the company that caters for the

airline.  British investigators are checking out that lead now."

"Maybe Ybarra is innocent.  Maybe for some simple reason he didn't eat."

"According to the surviving flight attendant, Hala slept through the

meal, but Ybarra feigned an upset stomach."

"It's possible."

"The surviving flight attendant saw him eating a sandwich from his

briefcase."

"Then he knew."

"Looks that way."

"Why did he risk coming on board if he knew everyone was going to die

except him?"

"As a backup, in case the main target, or targets, probably the entire

contingent of Mexicans, didn't take the poison."

The President leaned back in his chair and studied the ceiling.  "Okay,

Kamil is a Thorn in the side of Yazid.  He pays Animar to erase her. The

job is botched and the plane doesn't disappear in the middle of the

Arctic Ocean as planned but comes down in Greenland.  So much for

mystery number one. Solid facts for a good case.  We'll call it the

Egyptian connection.  Mystery number two, the Mexican connection, is far

more cloudy.  There is no obvious motive for a mass murder, and the only

suspect is dead.  If I were a judge I'd order the case dismissed for

lack of evidence."

"I'd have to go along," said Brogan.  "There has been no evidence of

terrorist movements operating out of Mexico."

"You forget Topiltzin," the President said unexpectedly.

Brogan was surprised at the cold, mysterious look of pure anger that

spread across the President's face.

"The agency has not forgotten Topiltzin," Brogan assured him, "or what

he did to Guy Rivas.  I'll have him taken out whenever you say the

word."

The President suddenly sighed and sagged in his chair.  "If only it was

that simple.  Snap my fingers and the CIA obliterates a foreign

opposition leader.  The risk is too great.  Ken nedy found that out when

he condoned the mafia's attempt to kill Castro.  "

"Reagan made no objections to the attempts to get Muarnmar Qaddafi.  "

"Yes," the President said wearily.  "If only he had known Qaddafi would

fool everyone and die of cancer!"

"No such luck with Topiltzin.  Medical reports say he's as strong as a

Missouri mule."

"The man is a bloody lunatic.  If he takes over Mexico, we'll have a

disaster on our hands."

"You played the tape made by Rivas?" Brogan asked, knowing the answer.

"Four times," the President said bitterly.  "It's enough to provoke

nightmares."

"And if Topiltzin topples the present government and makes good his

threat by sending millions of his people flooding across our border in a

mad attempt to recover the American Southwest." . . . ?" Brogan let the

question hang.

The President replied in a strangely mild tone.  "Then I will have no

choice but to order our armed forces to treat any horde of illegal

aliens as foreign invaders."

Brogan arrived back in his office at the CIA headquarters in Langley and

found the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Elmer Shaw, waiting for him.

"Sorry to foul up your busy schedule," said Shaw, "but I have some

interesting news that might make your day."

"Must be important to warrant your personal visit."

"It is."

"Come in and sit down.  Is the news good or bad?"

"Very good."

"Nothing else is going right lately," said Brogan solemnly. "I'll be

glad to hear something decent for a change."

"Our survey ship, the Polar Explorer, has been searching for the Soviet

Alfa-class submarine that went missing."

"I'm familiar with the mission," Brogan interrupted. "Well, they've

found it."

Brogan's eyes widened slightly, and he rapped his desk in a rare display

of pleasure.  "Congratulations.  The Alfa class is the finest sub in

both navies.  Your people have pulled off a master stroke."

"We haven't got our hands on it yet," said Shaw.

Brogan's eyes suddenly narrowed.  "What about the Russians?   Are they

aware of the discovery?"

"We don't think so.  Shortly after instruments detected the sunken sub,

which, by the way, includes videotape of the wreckage, our ship pulled

off the search track and assisted in the rescue operations of the downed

U.N. aircraft.  A heavensent smoke screen.  Our best intelligence from

inside the Soviet navy confirms business as usual.  Nothing from the KGB

either.  And our space surveillance of their North Atlantic fleet shows

no indication of dramatic course changes toward the search area."

"Odd they didn't have a spy trawler shadow the Polar Explorer."

"They did," explained Shaw.  "They also kept a close eye on our

operations all right, monitoring our ship's course and communications by

satellite.  They left it alone, sitting back and hoping our more

advanced underwater search technology would get lucky where theirs

failed.  Then they banked their expectations on the clear possibility

our crew would give away the location through the tiniest of errors."

"But they didn't."

"No," answered Shaw firmly.  "Ship security was airtight. Except for the

captain and two NUMA underwater search experts, the entire crew was

briefed to think they were on an iceberg-tracking and sea-bottom geology

survey.  My report on the success of the discovery was hand-carried from

Greenland by the Polar Explorer's executive officer so there was no

chance of communications penetration."

"Okay, wherr do we go from here?" inquired Brogan.  "Obviously the

Soviets would never allow another Glomar Explorer snatch.  And they

still have a ship patrolling the area where they lost that missile sub

off the East Coast in 'eighty-six."

"We have an underwater salvage job in mind," said Shaw.

"When?"

"If we began putting together the operation now, redesigning and

modifying existing submersibles and equipment, we should be ready for

salvage in ten months."

"So we ignore the sub, or act like it until then?"

"Correct,"  replied  Shaw.  "In  the  meantime, another event has fallen

into our laps that will confuse the Soviets.  The Navy needs your

agency's cooperation to carry it out."

"I'm listening."

"During rescue and subsequent investigation of the air crash, the NUMA

people working with us in the search accidentally stumbled on what looks

like an ancient Roman shipwreck buried in ice."

Brogan stared at Shaw skeptically.  "In Greenland?"

Shaw nodded.  "The word from experts is it's genuine."

"What can the CIA do to help the Navy with an old shipwreck?"

"A little disinformation.  We'd like the Russians to think the Polar

Explorer was looking for the Roman ship all along."

Brogan noted a flashing light on his intercom.  "A sound concept.  While

the Navy prepares to grab their newest sub, we scatter bread crumbs down

the wrong path."

"Something like that."

"How will you handle the Roman wreck from your end?"

"We set up an archaeological project as a cover for an onsite base of

operations.  The Polar Explorer will remain on station so the crew can

give a hand in the excavation."

"Is the sub close by?"

"Less than ten miles away."

"any idea of her condition?"

"Some structural damage from a collision with a rise on the seafloor,

but otherwise intact."

"And the Roman ship?"

"Our men on the scene claim they've found the frozen bodies of the crew

in an excellent state of preservation."

Brogan rose from his desk and walked with Shaw to the door.

"Incredible," he said, fascinated.  Then he grinned impishly.  "I wonder

if any ancient state secrets will be found too?"

Shaw grinned back.  "Better a hoard of treasure."

Under the direction of the archaeologists the crew of the Polar Explorer

cut their way down to the ice-locked ship, layer by layer, until the top

deck was laid bare from bow stern to sternpost.

Everyone in the fjord was drawn to the site, hypnotized by curiosity.

Only Pitt and Lily were missing.  They remained on board the icebreaker

to study the wax tablets.

A compelling silence gripped the crowd of seamen and archaeologists,

joined by the air-crash investigating team, as they stood on the edge of

the excavation.  They stared down at the partially cleared vessel as

though it were a hidden tomb of ancient royalty.

Hoskins and Graham measured the hull, arriving at an overall length of

just under twenty meters, with a beam of seven meters.  The mast had

broken two meters above its step and was missing.  The remains of the

hemp rigging snaked over the weather deck and sides as if wadded up and

dropped by a giant bird.  A few shredded pieces of canvas were all that

remained of the once broad, square sail.

The deck planking was tested for strength and found to be as solid as

the day the ship was launched from some long-forgotten Mediterranean

shipyard.  The artifacts strewn about the deck were photographed, tagged

and carefully lifted to the surface and carried to the Polar Explorer,

where they were cleaned and catalogued.  Then each object was stored in

the ship's ice locker to prevent decay during the voyage to a nation

that was not in existence when the old merchant vessel sailed on her

final voyage.

Gronquist, Hoskins and Graham did not touch the collapsed deckhouse or

enter the galley.  Slowly, almort tenderly, the three of them lifted one

end of the cargo hatch and propped it half-open.

Gronquist stretched out on his stomach and leaned his head and shoulders

into the gap until his vision ranged beneath the deck beams.

"Are they there?" Graham asked excitedly.  "Are they as Pitt described

them?"

Gronquist stared at the ghastly white faces, the frozen masklike

expressions.  It seemed to him that if he scraped away the ice and shook

them, their eyes would b  and they'd come alive.

He hesitated before answering.  The bright daylight above gave him a

clear view of the entire hold, and he glimpsed two forms huddled

together in the extreme angle of the bow that Pitt had missed.

"They're just as Pitt described," he said soberly, "except for the dog

and the girl."

Pitt stood in the shelter of a deck crane and watched as Giordino

jockeyed the NUMA helicopter over the stern of the Polar Explorer.

Fifteen months later the landing skids touched the painted bull's-eye on

the deck, the sound of the turbine's whine fell away and the rotor

blades beat to a slow stop.

The right-hand cockpit door opened and a tall man wearing a green

turtleneck sweater under a brown corduroy sport jacket jumped to the

deck.  He looked around for a moment as though getting his bearings and

then spied Pitt, who threw a wave of greeting.  He walked swiftly,

shoulders huddled, hands shoved deeply into pockets to shield them from

the cold.

Pitt stepped forward and quickly ushered the visitor through a hatch

into the warmth of the ship.

"Dr. Redfem?"

"You Dirk Pitt?"

"Yes, I'm Pitt."

"I've read of your exploits."

"Thank you for taking time from your busy schedule to come."

"Are you kidding?" blurted Redfem, eyes wide with enthusiasm.  "I jumped

at your invitation.  There isn't an archaeologist in the world who

wouldn't give an eyetooth to be in on this find.  When can I take a

look?"

"Be dark in another ten minutes.  I think it will be practical if you're

briefed by Doctor Gronquist, the archaeologist who supervised the

excavation.  He'll also show you the artifacts he's recovered off the

main deck.  Then at first light you set foot on the vessel and take

charge of the project."

"Sounds good."

"Have any luggage?" Pitt asked.

"I traveled light.  Only a briefcase and a  small  tote  bag."

"Al Giordino will bring them down."

"The helicopter pilot?"

"Yes, Al will see that your gear is taken to your quarters. Now if

you'll follow me, I'll see you get something warm in your stomach and

pick your brain on an intriguing puzzle."

"After you."

Dr. Mel Redfem towered over Pitt and had to duck halfway to his navel

when he passed through a hatch.  His blond hair had receded to a widow's

peak and he wore designer glasses in front of gray-blue eyes.  His long

body was still reasonably trim for a man of forty with a slight but

noticeable paunch.

A former college basketball star who passed on playing for the pros to

earn his doctorate in anthropology, Redfem later turned his considerable

talents to underwater exploration and became one of the world's leading

experts in classical marine archaeology.

"Did you have a good flight from Athens to Reykjavik?" asked Pitt.

"Slept through most of that one," answered Redfem.  "It was the ride in

the navy patrol plane from Iceland to the Eskimo settlement a hundred

miles to the south of here that damned near turned me into an ice cube.

I hope I can borrow some cold-weather clothing.  I packed for the sunny

islands of Greece and didn't plan for a rush trip to the Arctic Circle."

"Commander Knight, the ship's skipper, can fix you up.

What were you working on?"

"A second-century B.C. Greek merchant ship that sank with a cargo of

marble sculptures." Redfem could not contain his curiosity and began to

grill Pitt- "You didn't state in your radio message what the ship was

carrying."

"Except for the bodies of the crew, I found the cargo hold empty."

"Can't have it all your way," Redfemn said philosophically. "But you did

say the ship was basically intact."

"Yes, that's true. if we repair a hole in the hull, restore the mast and

the rigging and hang new steering oars, you could sail her into New York

harbor."

"God, that's astounding.  Has Dr. Gronquist been able to determine an

aPProximate date on her?"

"Yes, by coins minted arOUnd A.D. 390.  We even know her name. SeraPisIt

was carved in Greek on the sternpost."

"A completely preserved fourth-cen  Byzantine merchant ship," Redfem

murmured in wonder.  "This has to be the archaeological find of the

century.  I can't wait to lay my hands on her."

Pitt led him into the officers' wardroom, where Lily sat at a dining

table copying the wording from the wax tablets onto paper.  Pitt made

the introductions.

"Dr.  Lily Sharp, I)r.  Mel Redfem."

Lily rose and extended her hand.  "This is an honor, Doctor. Although my

field is land science, I've been a fan of your underwater work since

grad school."

"The honor is mine," said Redfem politely.  "Let's cut the fancy titles

and stick with first names."

"What can we get you?" asked Pitt.

"A gallon of hot chocolate and a bowl of soup should thaw me out just

fine."

Pitt relayed the order to a steward.

"Well, where's this puzzle you mentioned," asked Redfem with the

anxiousness of a kid leaping out of bed on Christmas Day.

Pitt stared at him and smiled.  "How's your Latin, Mel?"

"Passable.  I thought you said the ship was Greek."

"It is," answered Lily, "but the Captain wrote out his log on wax

tablets in Latin.  Six were inscribed with wording.  The seventh has

lines like a map.  Dirk recovered them during his initial entry into the

ship.  I've transposed the writing into more readable form on paper so

it can be run off on a copy machinne.  I drew an enlarged scale of the

tablet depicting a chart of some kind.  So far we haven't been able to

pin down a geographical location because it lacks labels."

Redfem sat down and held one of the tablets in his hand.  He studied it

almost reverently for several moments before setting it aside.  Then he

picked up Lily's pages and began to read.

The steward brought a mug of hot chocolate and a large bowl of Boston

clam chowder.  Redfem became so engrossed in the translation that he

lost his appetite.  Like a robot, he raised the cup and sipped the

chocolate without taking his eyes from the handwritten pages.  After

nearly ten minutes, he stood up and paced the deck between the officers'

dining tables, muttering Latin phrases to himself, oblivious to his rapt

audience.

Pitt and Lily sat in utter silence, careful not to interrupt his

thoughts, curiously watching his reactions.  Redfem stopped as if

mentally placing a problem into proper perspective.  He returned to the

table and examined the pages again.  The air fairly crackled with

expectancy.

Several more minutes dragged by before Redfem finally laid the pages on

the table with trembling hands.  Then he stared vacantly into the

distance, his eyes strangely blurred.

Redfem had been rocked right down to his toenails.

"You look like you just found the Holy Grail," said Pitt.

"What is it?" asked Lily.  "What did you find?"

They could barely hear Redfem's answer.  His head was down.

He said, "It's possible, just possible, your chance discovery may unlock

the door to the collection of art and literary treasures the world has

ever known."

"Now that you have our undivided attention," Pitt said dryly, you mind

sharing your revelation?"

Redfem shook his head as if to clear it.  "The story-saga is a better

definition-is overwhelming.  I can't quite comprehend it all."

Lily asked, "Do the tablets tell why a Graeco-Roman ship sailed far

beyond her home waters?"

"Not Graeco-Roman, but Byzantine," Redfem corrected her.  "When the

Serapes sailed the ancient world, the seat of the Empire had been moved

by Constantine the Great from Rome to the Bosporus, where the Greek city

of Byzantium once stood."

"Which became Constantinople," said Pitt.

"And then Istanbul." Redfem turned to Lily.  "Sorry for not giving you a

direct answer.  But, yes, the tablets reveal how and why the ship came

here.  To fully explain, we have to set the stage, beginning with 323

B.c., the year Alexander the Great died in Babylon- His empire was split

up by his generals.  One of them, Ptoleiny, carved out Egypt and became

king.  A canny guy, Ptolemy.  He also managed to get his hands on

Alexander's corpse, encasing it in a gold-and-crystal coffin.  He later

enshrined the body in an elegant mausoleum and built a magnificent city

around it that surpassed Athens.  In honor of his former king, Ptolemy

called it Alexandria."

"What does all this have to do with the Serapes?" asked Lily.

"Please bear with me," replied Redfem gently.  "Ptolemy founded a

massive museum and library from scratch.  The inventory became

monumental.  His descendants, through Cleopatra, and later successors

all continued to acquire manuscripts and art objects until the museum,

and especially the library, became one of the largest storehouses of

art, science and literature that has ever existed.  This vast collection

of knowledge lasted until A.D. 391.  In that year, Emperor Theodosius

and the patriarch of Alexandria, Theophilos, who was a religious nut

case, decided all reference to anything except newly fanned Christian

principles was paganism.  They masterminded the destruction of the

library's contents. Statues, fabulous works of art in marble, bronze,

gold and ivory, incredible paintings and tapestries, countless numbers

of books inscribed on lambskin or papyrus scrolls, even Alexander's

corpse: all were to be smashed into dust or burned to ashes.  "

"What kind of numbers are we talking about?" Pitt asked.

"The  books alone numbered in the hundreds of thousands."

Lily shook her head sadly.  "What a terrible waste."

"Only Biblical and church writings were left," continued Redfem.  "The

entire library and museum was finally leveled after Arab and Islamic

rebbels swept Egypt sometime around A.D. 646."

"The earlier masterworks that took centuries to collect were lost, gone

forever," Pitt summed up.

"Lost," Redfem agreed.  "So historians have thought until now.  But if

what I just read rings true, the cream of the collection is not gone

forever.  It lies hidden somewhere."

Lily was confused.  "It exists to this day?   Smuggled out of Alexandria

by the Serapis before the burning?"

"According to the inscriptions on the tablets."

Pitt looked doubtful.  "No way the Serapes sneaked off with more than a

tiny fraction of the collection.  It won't wash.  The ship is too small.

Less than forty tons burden.  The crew might have carried a few thousand

scrolls and a couple of statues into the cargo hold, but nothing like

the quanity you're talking about."

Redfem gave Pitt a respectful gaze.  "You're,very astute. You have a

good knowledge of early ships."

"Let's get back to the Serapes washing up in Greenland," Pitt urged, as

Redfem picked up the appropriate pages of Lily's text and shuffled them

into order.

"I won't give you a literal translation of fourth-century Latin.  Too

stiff and formal.  Instead, I'll try and relate the text in English

vernacular.  The first entry is under the Julian calendar date of April

, A.D. 391.  The report begins:

"I, Cuccius Rufinus, captain of the Serapes, in the em ploy of Nicias,

Greek shipping merchant of the port city Of RhOdeS, have agreed to

transport a cargo for Junius Venator of Alexandria.  The voyage is said

to be long and arduous, and Venator will not disclose our destination.

My daughter, Hypatia, sailed with me this trip and her mother will be

very concerned at our lengthy separation.

But Venator is paying twenty times the usual rate, a good fortune that

will greatly benefit Nicias as well as myself and the crew.

"The cargo was put on board at night under heavy guard, and quite

mysteriously, as I was ordered to remain at the docks with my crew

during the loading.  Four sol diers under the command of the centurion

Dominus Se verus have been commanded to stay on the ship and sail with

us.

"I do not like the look of it, but Venator has paid me for the voyage in

full, and I cannot go back on my con tract.

"An honest man," said Pitt.  "Hard to believe he didn't discover the

nature of his cargo."

"He comes to that later.  The next few lines are a log of the voyage. He

also makes mention of his ship's namesake.  I'll skip to where they make

their first port.

our god Serapes for providing us with a smooth and fast passage of

fourteen days to Carthago Nova where we rested for five days and took on

four times our normal supply of provisions.  Here we joined Junius

Venator's other ships. Most are over two hundred tons burden, some close

to three hundred.  We total sixteen with Vena tor's flagship.  Our

sturdy Serapes is the smallest vessel in the fleet."

"A fleet!" Lily cried.  Her eyes gleamed, her whole body taut.  "They

did save the collection."

Redfem nodded delightedly.  "A damned good chunk of it anyway.

Two-to-three-hundred-ton-ships were representative of large merchantmen

of that era.  allowing for two ships to carry men and provisions, and

taking an average tonnage of two hundred for the other fourteen ships,

you have a gross tonnage for the fleet of 2,800 tons.  Enough to

transport a third of the Library's books and a fair share of the

museum's art treasures."

Pitt called for a break.  He went to the galley counter and brought back

two cups of coffee.  He set one in front of Lily and returned for a

plate of doughnuts.  He remained standing. He thought and concentrated

better on his feet.

"So far the great Library snatch is theory," he said.  "I've heard

nothing that proves the goods were actually spirited away."

"Rufinus nails it down further on," said Redfem.  "The description of

the Serapis's cargo comes near the end of the log."

Pitt gave the marine archaeologist an impatient look and sat back,

waiting.

"On the next tablet Rufinus mentions minor repairs to the ship, dockside

gossip, and a tourist's eye of Carthago Nova, now Cartagena, Spain.

Oddly, he doesn't express any further uneasiness about the coming

voyage.  He even failed to note the date the fleet left port.  But the

really offbeat part is the censorship.  Listen to the next paragraph.

"We sailed today toward great sea.  The faster ships towing the slower

ones.  I can write no more.  The soldiers are watching.  Under strict

orders of Junius Venator there can be no record of the voyage."

"Just when we set the straight pieces of the puzzle together," Pitt

muttered, "the center section is missing."

"There must be more," Lily insisted.  "I know I copied beyond that part

of the report."

"You did," acknowledged Redfem, shuffling the pages. "Rufinus takes up

the tale eleven months later.

"I am free now to record our cruel voyage without fear of punishment.

Venator and his small army of slaves, Se verus and his legionaries, all

the ship's crews, have all been slain by the barbarians and the fleet

burned.  The Serapes escaped because my fear of Venator made me

cautious.

"I learned the source and contents of the fleet's cargo and know its

hiding place in the hills.  Secrets such as these must be kept from

mortal men.  I suspected Venator and Severus meant to murder all but a

few of their trusted soldiers and the crew of one ship to insure their

return home.

"I feared for the life of my daughter so I armed my crew and ordered

them to remain close to the ship so we could cast off at the first sign

of treachery.  But the barbarians struck first, slaughtering Venator's

slaves and Se verus's legion.  Our guards died in the battle, and we cut

the lines and heaved our ship from the beach.  Venator tried to save

himself by running into the water.  He shouted for rescue.  I could not

risk the lives of Hypatia and the crew to save him and refused to Turn

back.  To do so against the current would have been suicidal."

Redfem paused in the translation before continuing.  "At this point

Rufinus jumps around and flashes back to the fleet's departure from

Cartagena.

"The voyage from Hispania to our destination in the strange land took

fifty-eight days.  The weather was favorable with winds at our backs.

for this good fortune, Serapis demanded a sacrifice.  Two of our crew

died from a malady unknown to me."

"He must mean scurvy," said Lily.

"Ancient seamen rarely sailed more than a week or two without touching

land," Pitt clarified.  "Scurvy did not become common until the long

voyages of the Spanish.  Could be they died from any number of reasons."

Lily nodded at Redfem.  "Sorry for interrupting.  Please go on.

"We first stepped ashore on a large island inhabited by barbarians who

resembled Scythians, but with darker skins.  They proved friendly and

willingly helped the fleet replenish our food and fresh water supplies.

"We sighted more islands, but the flagship sailed on.

Only Venator knew where the fleet was to land.  At last we sighted a

barren shore and came to the wide mouth of a river.  We stood off for

five days and nights until the winds blew to our advantage.  Then we set

sail up the river, rowing at times, until we reached the hills of Rome."

"The hills of Rome?" Lily repeated absently.  "That's a twist."

"He must have meant it as a comparison," said Pitt.

"A tough riddle to crack," Redfem admitted.

"The slaves under the overseer Latiriius Macer dug into the hills above

the river.  Eight months later the fleet's cargo was carried from the

ships to the hiding ground."

"Did he describe the 'hiding ground'?" asked Pitt.

Redfern picked up a tablet and compared it to Lily's copy. "Parts of the

wording are indistinct.  I'll have to fill in as best I can.

"Thus, the secret of the secrets lies within the hill inside a chamber

dug by the slaves.  The place cannot be seen because of the palisade.

After all was stored, the barbarian horde swarmed from the hills.  I do

not know if the chamber was sealed in time as I was busy helping my crew

push the boat from the sand."

"Rufinus fails to record distances," said Pitt, disillusioned, and

never'gives directions.  Now we have an odds-on chance the barbarians,

whoever the hell they were, robbed the store."

Redfem's expression turned grim.  "We can't ignore the possibility.  "

"I don't think the worst happened," said Lily optimistically. "An

immense collection can't be erased as though it never existed.  A few

pieces would have eventually turned up."

"Depends on the area where the action took place," said Pitt"Fifty-eight

days at an average speed of-say three and a half knots, a vessel

designed along the adcient lines of the Serapis-might have sailed over

four thousand nautical miles."

"Providing they sailed in a straight line," said Redfem. "Not a likely

prospect.  Rufinus merely states they sailed fifty-eight days before

stepping ashore.  Traveling in unknown waters, they probably hugged the

coastlines."

"But traveling to where?" Lily asked.

"The southern coast of Western Africa is the most logical destination,"

answered Redfem.  "A crew of Phoenicians sailed around Africa clockwise

in the fifth century B.C. Quite a bit of it was charted by Rufinus's

time.  Stands to reason Venator would have turned his fleet south after

passing through the Straits of Gibraltar."

"Never sell a jury," said Pitt.  "Rufinus described islands."

"Could be the Madeira, Canary or Cape Verde Islands."

"Still won't sell.  You can't explain how the Serapes ended up halfway

across the globe from the tip of Africa to Greenland.  You're talking a

distance of eight thousand miles."

"That's true.  I'm confused on that count."

"My vote goes for a northern course," said Lily.  "The islands also

might be the Shetlands or the Faroes.  That would put the excavation

site along the Norwegian coast or, better yet, Iceland."

"She makes a good case," Pitt agreed.  "Her theory would explain how the

Serapes came to be stranded in Greenland."

"What does Rufinus tell us after he escaped the barbarians?"

she asked.

Redfern paused to finish off his hot chocolate.  "He goes on to say: "We

reached the open sea.  Navigating was difficult.  The stars are in

different positions.  The sun is not the same also.  Violent storms

struck us from the south.  One crewman was swept overboard on the tenth

day, a gale.  We continued to be driven toward the north.  On the  first

day our god led us to a safe bay where we made repairs and took what

provisions we could find from the land.  We also added extra ballast

stone.  Some distance beyond the beach there is a great sea of

dwarf-like pines. Fresh water seeps from sand with the jab of a stick.

"Six days of good sailing and then another tempest, worse than the last.

Our sails are split and useless.  The great gale shattered the mast, and

the steering oars were swept away.  We drifted helplessly under the

merciless wind for many days.  I lost record of days.  Sleep became

impossible.  The weather turned very cold.  Ice formed on the deck.  The

ship became very unstable.  I ordered my frozen and exhausted crew to

throw our water and wine jars over the side."

"The amphoras you found on the bottom outside the fjord."

Redfem paused, nodding at Pitt.  Then he continued reading.

"Shortly after we were driven into this long bay, we managed to beach

the ship and fall into a dead sleep for two days and nights.

"The god Serapis is unkind.  winter has set in and ice has bound the

ship.  We have no choice but to brave out the winter until the days

warm.  A barbarian village lies across the bay and we have found them

open to trade.  We barter with them for food.  They use our gold coins

as trinkets, having no idea of their value.  They have showed us how to

keep warm by burning oil from a monstrous fish.  Our stomachs are full,

and I think we shall survive.

"While I am comfortable with much time on my hands I will write a few

words each day.  This entry I shall recall the amount and type of cargo

that Venator's slaves unloaded from the hold of the Serapis as I watched

unseen from the galley and made an accounting.  At the sight of the

great object, everyone sank to their knees in proper reverence."

"What does he mean?" asked Lily.

Patience," said Redfem.  "Listen.

"Three hundred twenty copper tubes marked' Geologic Charts.  Sixty-three

large tapestries.  These were packed around the grand gold-and-glass

casket of Alexander.  My knees trembled.  I could see his face through

"Rufinus wrote no more," Redfem said sadly.  "He didn't finish the

sentence.  The last tablet is a drawing showing the general

configuration of the shoreline and the course of the river."

"The lost coffin of Alexander the Great," Lily said, slightly above a

whisper.  "Can he still lie buried in a cavern somewhere?"

"Along with treasures from the Alexandria Library?" Redfem added to

Lily's question.  "We can do little else but hope."

Pitts reaction was quite different; it was one of profound confidence.

"Hope is for spectators- I figure I can find your antiques in thirty . .

. make that twenty days."

Lily's and Redfem's eyes opened wide.  They regarded Pitt with the

suspicion usually awarded a politician promising to lower taxes.  They

flatly didn't believe him.

They should have.

"You sound pretty cocky," said Lily.

Pitts green eyes glowed with a look of utter sincerity. "Let's have a

look at the map." Redfem handed him a rendering Lily had made from the

tablet and then enlarged.  There was little to examine except a series

of wavy lines.

"Won't tell us much," he said.  "Rufinus didn't label anything."

"It's enough," said Pitt, his tone dry and unperturbed. "Enough to lead

us to the front door."

It was four in the morning when Pitt awoke.  He automatically rolled

over to return to sleep but realized through the cobwebs that someone

had turned on the light and was talking to him.

"Sorry, pal, but you've got to rise and shine."

Pitt groggily squinted into the serious face of Commander Knight.  "What

gives?"

"Orders from the top.  You're to shove off for Washington immediately."

"They say why?"

"They is the Pentagon, and, no, they didn't grace me with an

explanation."

Pitt sat up and swung his bare feet onto the deck.  "I was hoping to

hang around a bit longer and watch the excavation."

"No such luck," said Knight.  "You, Giordino and Dr. Sharp have to be on

your way within the hour."

"Lily?" Pitt stood and made his way to the head.  "I can understand the

big brass wanting to question Al and me about the Soviet sub, but why

are they interested in Lily?"

"The Joint Chiefs don't confide in the serfs." Knight smiled wryly.  "I

haven't a clue."

"What about transportation?"

"Same way Redfem came in.  Helicopter to the Eskimo village and weather

station, a Navy plane to Iceland, where you transfer to an Air Force

B-52 bomber that's rotating back to the States for overhaul."

"Not the way it's done," mumbled Pitt with a toothbrush in his mouth.

"If they want my wholehearted cooperation, it's private jet or nothing."

"You're pretty heady for this early in the morning."

"When I'm kicked out of bed before dawn I'm not shy about telling the

Joint Chiefs to insert it among their hemorrhoids."

"There goes my next promotion," moaned Knight.  "Guilt by association."

"Stick with me and you'll wind up Fleet Admiral."

"I bet."

Pitt tapped his head with the toothbrush.  "Gemus has struck.  Fire off

a message.  Say we'll meet them halfway. Giordino and I will fly our

NUMA 'copter direct to Thule Air Force Base.  They can damn well have a

government jet waiting to zap us to the Capital."

"You might as well tease a Doberman when he's eating-"

Pitt threw up his hands.  "Why is it nobody around here has any faith in

my creative smartst'

Washington closed down after a dazzling clear day.  The crisp fall

weather sharpened the air as the setting sun glazed the white granite of

the government buildings into a goldue porcelain.  The sky was sprinkled

with cotton-ball clouds that looked solid enough for the Gulfstream IV

jetliner to land on.

The plane could carry up to nineteen passengers, but Pitt, Giordino and

Lily had the main cabin all to themselves.  Giordino had promptly fallen

asleep before the plane's wheels lifted from the U.S. Air Force Base at

'nule and hadn't opened an eye since.  Lily had dozed on and off or read

Marlys Milihiser's The Threshold.

Pitt stayed awake, lost in his thoughts, occasionally making entries in

a small notebOOk.  He turned and stared out the small window at the

homeward-bound traffic slowly beating its way from the core of the

Capital.

His thoughts wandered back to the frozen crew of the Serapis, its

skipper, Rufinus, and his daughter, Hypatia.  Pitt was sorry his eyes

had failed to find the girl in the darkness of the cargo hold even

though the video camera had recorded her quite clearly, arms circled

around a s, all long-haired dog.

Gronquist almost cried when he described her.  Pitt wondered if she

would end up as a frozen display in a museum, viewed in hushed

astonishment by endless lines of the curious.

Gazing down at the Washington mall as the Gulfstream circled for its

approach, Pitt put off his thoughts of the Serapis and focused on the

search for the Alexandria Library treasures.  He knew exactly how he was

going about it.  The part of his plan that didn't thrill him was putting

all his eggs in one basket.  He had to bank his entire search on a few

crudely scratched in wax by the freezing hand of a dying man. Murphy's

Law-Whatever can go wrong, will go wrong was already erecting the

barricades against him.

The lines in the map might not fit a known geographical location for any

number of reasons: distortion in the wax from rapid temperature changes

during the initial freeze on the Serapis and later thaw on board the

Polar Explorer; or perhaps Ruflnus erred in the scale and misplaced the

curves and angles of the shoreline and river; or the worst and most

probable scenario-great changes in the landscape due to soil buildup or

erosion, earthquakes or extreme changes in climate during the past 1,600

years.  No river in the world had maintained an unvarying course over a

thousand years.

Pitt smelled the intoxicating scent of challenge.  To restless men it is

a real scent that wafts somewhere between a sexually aroused woman and

newly cut grass after a rain.  It tempts and addicts until the

challenger is oblivious to any thought of failure or danger.  The

excitement of the chase meant as much to Pitt as actual success.  And

yet, when he did achieve the nearimpossible, there was always the

inevitable letdown afterward.

His first obstacle was lack of time to conduct a search.  The second was

the Soviet sub.  He and Giordino were the frontrunning candidates to

oversee the underwater salvage operation.

Pitts reverie was interrupted by the pilot's voice over the speakers to

fasten seat belts.  He watched the plane's tiny shadow enlarge against

the leafless trees below.  The brown grass flashed past and turned to

concrete.  The pilot taxied off the main runway at Andrews Air Force

Base and braked to a stop beside a Ford Taurus station wagon.

Pitt helped Lily step from the plane.  Then he and Giordino unloaded the

luggage and stacked it in the rear of the Taurus.

driver, a young athletic prep-school type, stood back as if afraid to

interfere with the two hard-core types who handled the heavy suitcases

and duffel bags as lightly as pillows. "What's the plan?" Pitt asked the

driver.

"Dinner with Admiral Sandecker at his club."

"Admiral who?" asked Lily.

"Sandecker," answered Giordino.  "Our boss at NUMA.  We must have done

something right.  It's a rare treat when he pops for a meal."

"Not to mention an invitation to the John Paul Jones Club," added Pitt.

"Exclusive?"

Giordino nodded.  "A depository for rusty old naval officers with bilge

water in their bladders."

It was dark when the driver finally turned into a quiet residential

street in Georgetown.  Five blocks later he eased the car onto a gravel

drive and stopped beneath the portico of a red-brick Victorian mansion.

In the entrance hall a short gamecock of a man stepped across the carpet

dressed in a tailored silk suit with a vest.  He moved in rapid,

energetic steps like a cat sneaking through a door crack.  His features

were sharp and always rem-linded. Pitt noticed the deep red hair on his

head connected to a meticulously  ed Van Dyke beard.  His eyes seemed

filled with spit and vinegar.

Admiral James Sandecker was not the kind to creep into a room; he took

it by storm.

"Good to see you boys back," he snapped in a tone more official than

friendly.  "I hear your ancient ship discovery may change the history

books.  The news media is giving it a big play."

"We had a few lucky breaks," said Pitt.  "May I present Dr. Lily Sharp.

Lily, Admiral James Sandecker."

Sandecker beamed like a lighthouse when he was in the presence of an

attractive woman, and he went luminous for Lily.  "Doctor, you have to

be the loveliest lady to ever honor these walls."

"I'm happy to see your club shows no discrimination against females."

"Not because the membership is open- said Giordino slyly.  "Most women

would rather get a tetanus shot than come here and hear old derelicts

rehash the wars."

on toward Sandecker shot Giordino a withering stare.

Lily looked at the two men, puzzled.  She thought perhaps she was caught

in the middle of a long-standing feud.

Pitt forced back a laugh, but couldn't suppress a smile. He'd witnessed

the give-and-take for ten years.  Everyone close to them knew Giordino

and Sandecker were the warmest of friends.

Lily decided to make a tactical retreat.  "If one of you gentlemen will

point out the ladies room, I'll freshen up."

Sandecker gestured up a hallway.  "First door on the right. Please take

your time." As soon as she had left, the admiral motioned Pitt and

Giordino into a small sitting room and closed the door.  "I have to

leave for a meeting with the Secretary of the Navy in an hour.  This

will be our only chance to talk in private so I'll have to make it quick

before Dr. Sharp returns.  Let me begin by saying you did a damned fine

job finding the Soviet sub and then clamping a lid on it.  The President

was most pleased when he received the news and asked me to thank you."

"When do we start?" asked Giordino.

"Start what?"

"A covert underwater salvage operation on the sub."

"Our intelligence people insist it be put on hold.  Their scheme is to

feed Soviet agents misleading information.  Make it appear any further

search is a waste of taxpayers' money, and we've written it off as a

lost cause."

"for how long?" Pitt asked.

"Maybe a year.  Whatever time it takes for the mission project people to

draw up plans and construct the equipment for the project."

Pitt stared at the admiral suspiciously.  "I get the feeling we won't be

included."

"Dead on," Sandecker said flatly.  "As they say at the police precinct,

you're off the case."

"I have a more important job for you two characters."

"What could be more important than stealing the secrets of the Soviet

Navy's deadliest submarine?" Pitt asked guardedly.

"A skiing holiday," Sandecker replied.  "Nothing like the invigorating

air and the powder snow of the rockies.  You're booked on  a commercial

flight to Denver tomorrow morning at ten forty-five.  Dr. Sharp will

accompany you.", Pitt looked at Giordino, who merely shrugged.  He

turned back to Sandecker.  "Is this a reward or exile?"

"Call it a working vacation.  Senator Pitt will explain the details."

"My dad?"

"He's expecting you later this evening at his home." Sandecker pulled a

large gold pocket watch from his vest pocket and read the ivory face.

"We must not keep a pretty lady waiting."

Sandecker started for the door while Pitt and Giordino stood dumbly

rooted to the room's faded carpet.

"Don't hold back, Admiral!" Pitts voice was sharp.  "Unless you play it

straight, there's no way in hell I'll be on that plane tomorrow."

"Accept my regrets too," Giordino said.  "I feel an attack of Borneo

jungle fullgus coming on."

Sandecker paused in mid-stride, Mined, lifted an eyebrow and stared

directly at Pitt- "You don't fool me for a Minute, mister.  You don't

give a damn about the Soviet sub.  You want to find the relics of the

Alexandria Library so bad you'd give up sex."

Pitt said with forbearance, "Your insight is flawless, as usual.  So is

your underground grapevine.  I intended to turn over the transcription

of the Serapis's log to you on our return to Washington.  Apparently

someone beat me to it."

"Commander Knight.  He radioed Dr. Redfem's translation in code to the

Navy Department, who turned it over to the National Security Council and

the President.  I read a copy before you left Iceland.  You opened

Pandora's box and didn't know it.  If the cache exists and can be found,

it will cause a political upheaval.  But I'm not about to go into it.

That job was given to your father for reasons he's better qualified to

explain.  "

"How does Lily fit in the picture?"

"She's part of your cover.  A backup in the event there's a leak or the

KGB suspects their sub was actually found.  Martin Brogan wants to Make

it clear you're working on a legitimate archaeological project.  That's

why I'm meeting you at the club, and your father will brief you at home.

Your movements must look routine should you be tailed."

"Sounds like an ove I to me."

"The bureaucracy works in mysterious ways," said Giordino resignedly. "I

wonder if I can get tickets to a Denver Bronco game."

"I'm glad we see eye to eye," Sandecker said with some satisfaction.

"Now let's find our table.  I'm starved."

They dropped Lily off at the Jefferson Hotel.  She gave them both a hug

and entered the lobby, followed by a porter with her bags.  Pitt and

Giordino directed the driver to the ten-story solar-glass building that

was the headquarters for the National Underwater & Agency.

Giordino went directly to his office on the fourth floor while Pitt

remained on the elevator and rode up to the

communication-and-information network on the top level.  He left an

attached case with the receptionist and removed an envelope, slipping it

in his coat pocket.

He wandered around the seemingly endless rows of electronic equipment

and computer hardware until he found a man sitting cross-legged on the

tiled floor contemplating a miniature tape recorder dissected from a

large kangaroo doll.

"Does it sing 'Waltzing Matilda' off-key," Pitt asked.

"How'd you know?"

"A lucky guess."

Hiram Yaeger looked up and grinned.  He had a droll face with straight

blond hair tied in a ponytail.  His beard, curled in long ringlets,

looked as if he had borrowed it from a costume rental.  He peered

through a pair of granny spectacles and was dressed like a down-and-out

rodeo performer in old Levi's and boots a bag lady would throw away.

Sandecker had pirated Yaeger away from a computer-design company in

California's Silicon Valley and had given him free reign to create

NUMA's data complex from scratch.  It was a perfect mamage between human

gemus and central processing unit.  Yaeger supervised a vast library of

information containing every known report and book written about the

world's oceans.

Yaeger studied the doll's recording and speaker unit with a critical

eye. "I could have designed a better system than this with kitchen

utensils."

"Can you fix it?"

"Probably not."

Pitt shook his head and gestured around the computer complex.  "You set

up all this but can't repair a simple cassette player?"

"My heart isn't in it." Yaeger rose, walked into an office and stood the

stuffed kangaroo on one corner of his desk.

"Maybe someday when I'm inspired I'll modify it into a talking lamp."

Pitt followed him and closed the door.  "Feel in the mood for a more

exotic project?"

"Along what lines?"

"Research.  "

"Lay it on me."

Pitt removed the envelope from his pocket and gave it to Yaeger- NUMA's

computer wizard slouched in a chair, opened the envelope flap and

withdrew the contents.  He rapidly scanned the typed transcript, then

read through it again more slowly.  After a long silence, he peered over

his spectacles at Pitt.

"This from that old ship you found?"

"You know of it?"

"Have to be blind and deaf not to.  The story has been all over the

newspapers and TV."

Pitt nodded at the papers in Yaeger's hand.  "A translation from Latin

of the ship's log."

"What do you want from me?"

"Take a look at the page with the map."

Yaeger held it up and studied the uniabeled lines.  "You want me to make

a match with a known geographical location?"

"If you can," Pitt acknowledged.

"Not a hell of a lot to go on.  What is it?"

"An ocean shoreline and a river."

"When was it drawn?"

"A.D. 391."

Yaeger gave Pitt a bemused look.  "You might as well ask me to name the

streets of Atlantis."

"Program your electronic playmates for a projection of the ship's course

after the fleet left Cartagena.  You might also try working backwards

from the shipwreck site in Greenland.  I've included the position."

"You realize this river may not exist any more."

"The thought entered my mind."

"I'll need authorization from the Admiral."

"You'll get it first thing in the morning."

"All right," Yaeger said glumly- "I'll give it my best shot.

What's my deadline?"

"Just stay with it until you have something," Pitt replied. "I've got to

go out of town for a while.  I'll check in with you the day after

tomorrow to see how you're doing."

"Can I ask a question?"

"Sure."

"Is this really important?"

"Yes," Pitt said slowly, "I think it is.  Maybe more important than you

and I can ever imagine."

When Pitts father opened the door to his colonial home on Massachusetts

Avenue in Bethesda, Maryland, he wore a faded Pair Of khaki Pants and a

well-snagged pullover sweater. The Socrates Of the Senate was noted for

his expensive and fashionable suits, always embellished with a

California golden poppy in the lapel.  But out of the public eye he

dressed like a rancher camped out on the range.

"Dirk!" he said with pleasure, giving his son a warm bear hug.  "I see

you too infrequently these days."

Pitt put his arm around the Senator's shoulder, and they walked side by

side into a paneled den with rifled bookshelves stretching from floor to

ceiling.  A fire flickered under an ornate mantel carved from teak.

The Senator motioned his son to a chair and walked behind a wet bar.

"Bombay gin martini with a twist, isn't it?"

"A bit cool for gin.  How about a Jack Daniel's straight up."

"Every man to his own poison."

"How's Mom?"

"She's at some highfalutin spa, a fat farm in California on her annual

crusade to lose weight.  She'll be back day after tomorrow, two pounds

heavier."

"She never gives up."

"It keeps her happy."

The Senator passed Pitt a bourbon and then poured himself a port.  He

raised the glass.  "Here's to a fruitful trip to Colorado.  "

Pitt didn't drink.  "Whose bright idea was it to send me skiing?"

"Mine."

Pitt calmly took a swallow of Jack Daniel's and gave his father a hard

stare.  "What is your involvement with the Alexandria Library

artifacts?"

"Very heavy if they truly exist."

"Are you speaking as a private citizen or a bureaucrat?"

"A patriot."

"All right," Pitt said with a deep sigh.  "Fill me in.  How are

classical art and literary works and the coffin of Alexander so vital to

United States interests?"

"None of the above," said the Senator.  "The prime meat of the inventory

is maps showing geological resources of the ancient world.  The lost

gold mines of the Pharaohs, the forgotten emerald mines of Cleopatra,

the fabled but mystic land of Punt that was famous for its riches of

silver, antimony and unusual greenish gold; locations known two and

three thousand years ago but buried in the oblivion of time.  There was

also the fabulous land of Ophir and its recorded wealth of precious

minerals.  Its location still remains a tantalizing mystery.  The mines

of King Solomon, Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, and Sheba, the queen of

Saba, whose fabled land today is only a biblical memory.  The legendary

wealth of the ages still lies hidden under the sands of the Middle

East."

"So it's found, so what?   How can precious-mineral deposits belonging

to other countries concern our government?"

"As bargaining chips," answered the Senator.  "If we're able to point

the way, negotiations can be opened for joint ventures in the

exploitation.  We can also make points with national leaders and spread

a little badly needed goodwill."

Pitt shook his head and considered.  "News to me Congress has turned to

prospecting for good foreign relations.  Must be more to this than meets

the eye."

The Senator nodded, marveling at his son's insight.  "There is. Are you

familiar with the term 'stratigraphic trap'?"

"I should be." Pitt smiled.  "I found one in the Labrador Sea off Quebec

Province a few years ago."

"Yes, the Doodlebug project.  I remember."

"A stratigraphic trap is one of the toughest oi'l deposits to discover.

Normal seismic exploration won't detect it.  Yet they often prove out to

have incredibly high yields."

"Which leads us to bitumen, a hydrocarbon-like tar or asPhatt that was

used in Mesopotamia as long as five thousand years ago for waterproofing

buildings, canals, clay drainage pipes and caulking boats.  Other uses

included roads, treatment Of wounds, and adhesives.  Much later the

Greeks mention springs along the North African coast that bubble with

oil. The Romans recorded a site in the Sinai they called Petrol

Mountain.  And the Bible tells of God ordering Jacob to suck oil out of

flintlike rock, and describes the vale of Siddim being frill of slime

pits, which can be interpreted as tar pits."

"None of these areas has been relocated or drilled?" Pitt asked.

"There has been drilling, yes, but no significant strikes to date.

Geologists claim there's a ninety percent probability of finding five

hundred million barrels of crude petroleum under Israel alone.

Unfortunately, the ancient sites have been lost and covered over through

the centuries due to land upheavals and earthquakes."

"Then the main goal is to find a massive oil bonanza in Israel."

"You have to admit it would solve a multitude of problems.  "

"Yes, I guess it would."

The Senator and Pitt sat in silence for the next minute, staring into

the fire.  If Yaeger and his computer banks didn't pick up a lead, the

chances were, at best, hopeless.  Pitt was suddenly angered that the

power brokers in the  te House and Congress were more interested in oil

and gold than in the art and literature that could fill in the missing

gaps of history.

It was, he thought, a sad commentary on the affairs of state.

The silence was broken by the ring of the telephone.  The Senator walked

over to a desk and picked up the receiver.  He said nothing, merely

listened for a moment.  Then he hung up.

"I doubt if I'll find the lost Library in Colorado," Pitt said dryly.

"Everyone concerned would be surprised if you did," the Senator came

back.  "My staff has arranged a briefing for you by the leading

authority on the subject.  Dr. Bertram Rothberg, a professor of

classical history at the University of Colorado, has made the study of

the Alexandria Library his life's work. He'll fill you in on background

data that could help your search."

"Why do I have to go to him?   Seems to me it would be more practical to

bring him to Washington."

"You met with Admiral Sandecker?"

"Yes.  "

"Then you know it's vital to distance yourself and Al Giordino from the

discovery of the Soviet submarine.  That phone call a minute ago was

from an FBI agent who is talking a KGB agent who is talking you."

"Nice to know I'm popular."

"You're to make no move that would cause suspicion."

Pitt nodded approvingly.  "Fine and dandy, but suppose the Russians get

wise to the mission?   They have as much to gain by laying their hands

on the Library data as we do."

"The possibility exists but is extremely remote," the Senator said

guardedly.  "We've taken every precaution to keep the wax tablets

secret."

"Next question."

"Shoot."

"I'm under surveillance," said Pitt.  "What's to stop the KGB from

following me to Dr. Rothberg's doorstep?"

"Nothing," the Senator answered.  "We have every intention of sitting on

the sidelines and cheering them on."

"So we put on a show of status quo."

"Exactly."

"Why me?"

"Because of your L-29 Cord."

"My Cord?"

"The classic car you had restored in Denver.  The man you hired called

here last week and said to tell you the job is finished and she looks

beautiful."

"So I travel to Colorado under a spotlight to pick up my collector car,

get in a little ski time on the slopes, and party with Dr. Sharp."

"Exactly," the Senator  repeated.  "You're  to  check  into  the Hotel

Breckenridge.  A message will be waiting explaining where and when

you'll make contact with Dr. Rothberg."

"Remind me never to trade horses with you."

The Senator laughed.  "You've been involved, with some pretty devious

schemes yourself."

Pitt finished the bourbon, stood, and placed his glass on the mantel.

"Mind if I borrow the family lodge?"

"I'd prefer you stay away from it."

"But my boots and skis are stored in the garage."

"You can rent your equipment."

"That's ridiculous."

"Not so ridiculous," the Senator said in an even voice, when you

consider that the instant you open the front door, you'll be shot."

"You sure you want to get out here, buddy?" the cabdriver inquired as he

stopped beside what looked like an abandoned hangar on one corner of

Washington's International Airport.

"This is the place," replied Pitt.

The driver glanced warily around at the deserted unlit area. This had

all the earmarks of a mugging, he thought.  He reached under the front

seat for a length of pipe he hid for such an occasion.  He kept an

apprehensive eye on the rearview mirror as Pitt pulled a wallet from his

inside coat pocket. The driver relaxed slightly.  His fare wasn't acting

like a mugger.

"What do I owe you?"

"I got eight-sixty on the meter," the driver replied.

Pitt paid the fare plus tip and exited the cab, waiting for the driver

to open the trunk and remove the luggage.

"Hell of a place for a drop," the driver muttered.

"Someone is meeting me."

Pitt stood and watched the cab's taillights dim in the distance before

he turned off the hangar's alarm system with a pocket transmitter and

entered through a side door.  He pressed a code on the transmitter and

the interior became bathed in bright fluorescent light.

The hangar was Pitts home.  The main floor was lined with a glittering

collection of classic and restored automobiles. There were also an old

Pullman railroad car and a Ford tri motor airplane.  The most bizarre

oddity was a cast-iron bathtub with an outboard motor attached to it.

He walked toward his living quarters, which stretched across an upper

level against the far wall.  Reached by an ornate iron spiral staircase,

the door at the top opened onto a living room flanked by a large bedroom

and a study on one side and a dining area and kitchen on the other.

He unpacked and entered a shower stall, turning up the hot water and

aiming the nozzle against a tiled wall.  He lay on his back with his

feet stretched upward just below the faucets so he could control the

spray temperature with his toes.  Then he promptly dozed off.

Forty-five minutes later, Pitt slipped on a robe and turned on the TV

set.  He was about to reheat a pot of Texas chili when the buzzer on the

intercom sounded.  He pressed the door speaker button, half-expecting Al

Giordino to answer.

"Yes?"

"Greenland catering," a feminine voice answered.

He laughed and pressed a switch that unlocked the side door.  He stepped

onto the balcony and stared down.

Lily walked in carrying a large picnic basket.  She stopped and gazed in

astonishment for several moments, her eyes dazzled by the light

reflecting off the sea of chrome and highly polished lacquer paint.

"Admiral Sandecker tried to describe your place to me," she said

admiringly, "but he didn't do it justice."

Pitt came down the stairs to meet her.  He took the picnic basket and

nearly dropped it.  "This thing weighs a ton.  What's in it?"

"Our late dinner.  I stopped off at a delicatessen and picked up a few

goodies."

"Smells like a tasty menu."

"We begin with smoked salmon followed by wild mushroom soup, spinach

salad with pheasant and walnuts, linguine in oyster sauce and white

wine, all washed down with a bottle of Principessa Gavi.  for dessert we

have coffee chocolate trifle.  "

Pitt looked down at Lily and smiled in genuine admiration. Her face was

alive and her eyes sparkling.  There was a vibrancy he had not noticed

before.  Her hair was brushed long and straight.  She wore a

tight-fitting tank dress with a revealing back and black sequins that

flashed as she walked.  Free of the heavy coat she had worn since

Greenland, her breasts loomed larger and her hips more slender than he

had pictured them in his imagination. Her legs were long and angled

provocatively, and she moved with a sensual vivacity.

After they entered his living room, Pitt dropped the food basket in a

chair and reached out and took her hand.  "We can eat later," he said

softly.

In automatic shyness she dropped her gaze downward, then slowly, as if

drawn by an irresistible force, her eyes slowly rose to meet his.  Pitts

green eyes were so piercing that her legs grew weak and her hands

trembled.  She began to flush.

This was stupid, Lily thought.  She had carried the seduction, down to

the right wine, the dress and the alluring black lace bra and panties

beneath.  And now she was swept by confusion and doubt.  She didn't

dream things would move so quickly.

Without a word Pitt peeled the straps from Lily's shoulders, allowing

the sequined dress to fall in a pool of shimmering light around her high

heels.  He slipped his hands around her bare waist and under her knees,

lifting her body in one flowing motion.

As he carried her into the bedroom she buried her face against his

chest.  "I feel like a brazen harlot," she whispered.

Pitt tenderly laid her on the bed and looked down.  The sight of her

body made the fire burn within him.

"Better," he said in a husky voice, "that you act like one."

Yazid entered the dining hall of his villa.  He paused and gave a brief

nod at the long table covered with plates, serving dishes, eating

utensils and goblets, all cast in bronze.

"I trust my friends enjoyed their dinner."

Mohammed al-Hakim, a scholarly mullah who was Yazid's shadow, pushed

back his chair and stood.  "Excellent as always, Akhmad.  But we missed

your enlightened presence."

"Allah does not reveal his wishes to me when my stomach is full," Yazid

said with a faint smile.  He looked around the room at the five men who

had risen to their feet and were acknowledging his authority with varied

degrees of respect.

No two were dressed alike.  Colonel Naguib Bashir, leader of a

clandestine organization of pro-Yazid officers, had worn a loose flowing

djellaba with long sleeves and hood to conceal his identity since

leaving Cairo.  A turban sat like a grotesque lump on the head of

al-Hakim, and his frail body was covered from shoulders to feet in a

drab robe of black cotton worn smooth.  Mussa Moheidin, a journalist who

was Yazid's chief propagandist, was dressed casually in slacks and a

sports shirt open at the neck, while the young Turk of the group, Khaled

Fawzy, the ramrod of the revolutionary council, wore battle fatigues.

Only Suleiman Ammar was impeccably dressed in a Wlored safari suit.

"You must all be wondering why I called this emergency meeting," Yazid

announced, so I won't waste time.  Allah has provided me with a plan to

rid ourselves of President Hasan and his den of corrupt thieves in one

master stroke.  Now please be seated and finish your coffee."

He walked over to one wall and pushed a switch.  A large colored map

slowly dropped toward the floor.  Amniar recognized it as a standard

Egyptian school map of South America, A blowup of the coastal city of

Punta del Este, Uruguay, was circled in red.  Taped to the lower half of

the map was an enlarged photo of a luxury cruise ship.

The men around the table sat down again, their faces expressionless.

Their interest was hooked.  They waited patiently to hear the revelation

Allah had bestowed on their religious leader.

Only Ammar veiled his skepticism.  He was too much the realist to

believe in pious concoctions.

"In six days," Yazid began, "the international economic summit meetings,

brought on by the world monetary crisis, will be held in the resort city

of Punta del Este, former scene of the Inter-American Economic and

Social Council conference which proclaimed the Alliance for Progress.

The debtor nations, except Egypt, have banded together to repudiate all

loans and erase foreign debt.  This act will force hundreds of banks in

the United States and Europe to fail.  Western bankers and their

national financial experts have called for round-the-clock talks in a

last-ditch attempt to stall the coming economic catastrophe.  Our

imperialist bootlicking President is the only holdout.  Hasan is

scheduled to attend the talks and undermine-tine our Islamic brothers

and third World friends by begging the Western money changers for more

loans to keep his eroding grip on Egypt.  This we will not permit.  Bis

millah, we will take advantage of this moment to establish a true

Islamic government for our people."

"I say we kill the tyrant and be done with it," Khaled Fawzy said

harshly.  He was young and arrogant and tactless.  Already his

impatience had resulted in a failed coup by his student revolutionaries

that had cost thirty lives.  His dark eyes darted back and forth around

the table.  "One well-placed ground-to air missile as Hasan's plane

takes off for Uruguay, and we will be rid of his corrupt regime for

good."

"And open the door for Defense Minister Abu Hamid to set himself up as

dictator before we are ready," finished Mussa Moheidin.  The famous

Egyptian writer was in his mid-sixties. He was a witty, urbane and

articulate man, with a slow and gracious manner.  Moheidin was the only

man at the table Ammar truly respected.

Yazid turned to Bashir.  "Is that a valid prediction, Colonel?"

Bashir nodded.  A vain and shallow man, he was quick to display his

narrow vision of military affairs.  "Mussa is right. Abu Hamid dangles

the prospect of his support for you, using the excuse that he is waiting

for you to produce a mandate from the people.  This is merely a stalling

tactic.  Hamid is ambitious.  He is banking on an opportunity to use the

army to set himself up as President."

"All too true," said Fawzy.  "One of his close aides is a member of our

movement.  He revealed that Haniid plans to install himself as President

and consolidate his position by marrying Hala Kamil because of her

popularity with the people.  "

Yazid smiled.  "He has built a castle of sand.  Hala Kamil will not be

available for the marriage ceremony."

"Is that a certainty?" asked Ammar.

"Yes," Yazid answered smoothly.  "Allah has willed that she not live

beyond the next sun."

"Please share your revelation, Akhmad," begged al-Hakim. Unlike the

other dark-skinned men around him, al-Hakim had the face of a man who

had spent half his life in a dungeon.  His pale skin seemed almost

transparent.  Yet the eyes, which were magnified by thick-lensed

glasses, were set in unshakable determination, Yazid nodded.  "I have

been informed by my well-placed sources in Mexico that because of an

unexpected heavy invasion of tourists there is a shortage of luxury

hotel rooms and palatial residences in Punta del Este.  To keep their

nation from losing the summit talks and the international limelight,

Uruguayan officials have arranged for the foreign leaders and their

statesmen to be hosted on board chartered luxury cruise ships moored in

the port.  Hasan and the Egyptian delegation will be staying on a

British liner called the Lady Flamborough.  President De Lo nzo of

Mexico and his staff will also be on board.

Yazid paused and looked from one man to the next.  Then he said, "AHah

came to me in a vision and commanded me to seize the ship."

"Praise be to Allah!" Fawzy burst out.

The other men glanced at each other, incredulous.  Then they turned

their attention back to Yazid, expectantly, without voicing a question.

"I see by the look in your eyes, my friends, you doubt my vision."

"Never," said al-Hakim solemnly.  "But perhaps you misinterpreted

Allah's command."

"No, it was quite clear.  The ship with President Hasan and his

ministers must be seized."

"for what purpose?" asked Mussa Moheidin.

"To seal off Hasan and prevent his return to Cairo while our forces

sweep into power."

"Abu Hamid wig call out the army to foil any overthrow other than his,"

cautioned Colonel Bashir.  "I know this for a fact.  "

"Haniid cannot stop a tidal wave of revolutionary fervor," said Yazid.

"Civil unrest is at a peak.  The masses are fed up with harsh austerity

brought on by payment demands on foreign loans.  He and Hasan are

cutting their own throats by not denouncing the godless moneylenders.

Egypt can only be saved by embracing the purity of Islamic law."

Khaled Fawzy leaped to his feet and raised a fist.  "You have only to

give me the order, Akhmad, and I will have people in the streets."

Yazid paused, breathing heavily with religious zeal.  Then he said, "The

people will lead.  I will follow."

The expression on al-Hakim's face was grave.  "I must confess-I have

dark misgivings."

"You are a coward!" Fawzy snapped in rash defiance.

"Mo ed al-Hakim is wiser than you," said Moheidin patiently.  "I know

his mind.  He does not wish a repeat of the Achille Lauro fiasco in

nineteen eighty-five, when Palestinians commandeered the ltahan crew

liner and murdered an old Jew invalid in a wheelchair."

Bashir spoke up.  "Terrorist slaughter will not help our cause.  "

"You wish to go against the will of Allah?" said Yazid, annoyed.

Everyone began talking at once.  The room went sour with vehemence as

they argued back and forth.

Only Ammar remained detached.  They're idiots, he thought, goddamned

idiots.  He tuned out of the debate and stared at the photo of the

cruise ship.  The wheels inside his head began to shift through the

gears.

"We are not only Egyptians," argued Bashir, "we are Arabs. The other

Arab nations will Turn against us if we murder our officials and any of

theirs who get in the way.  They won't see it as a gift from Allah, but

rather as a political terrorist plot."

Moheidin gestured toward Fawzy.  "Khaled made a point. Better to kill

Hasan on home territory than launch a bloodbath on board a ship holding

the leader of Mexico and his delegation as well."

"We cannot condone an act of mass terrorism," said alHakim.  "The

negative consequences for our new government would be disastrous."

"You are all worms who belong in Hasan's camp," Fawzy spat.  "I say

attack the ship and show the world our power."

Nobody paid any attention to the militant fanatic who was viciously

anti-Jew and anti-Christian.

"Don't you see, Akhmad," pleaded Bashir, "security in Punta del Este

will be impossible to penetrate?   Uruguayan patrol boats will be thick

as locusts.  Every ship housing sumnut leaders will be heavily guarded.

You're talking a suicide assault by an army of commandos.  It simply

can't be done."

"We will have help from a source that must remain confidential," said

Yazid.  He turned and studied Ammar.  "You, Suleiman-You're our expert

on undercover operations.  If a team of our best fighters can be

smuggled on board the Lady Flamborough without detection, can the ship

be taken and held until we can form a republic in the name of Islam?"

"Yes," replied Ammar, without taking his eyes off the cruise ship's

photo.  The voice was quiet, but it carried total conviction.  "Six days

is cutting it slim, but the ship can be carried with ten experienced

fighting men and five experienced seamen, with no bloodshed providing we

have the element of suprise."

Yazid's eyes gleamed.  "Ah, I knew I could count on you."

"Impossible," Bashir roared.  "You could never smuggle that many men

into Uniguay without arousing suspicion.  And even if through some

miracyou captured the ship and subdued the crew, every special assault

team in the West would be swarming over your hide inside of twenty-four

hours.  Threats to kill the hostages won't stop them.  You'd "

"I can take and hold the Lady Flamborough for two weeks."

Bashir shook his head.  "You're lost in a dream world."

"How is that possible?" asked Moheidin.  "I'm interested in learning how

you expect to outwit an army of highly trained international security

forces without a pitched battle."

"I don't intend to fight."

"This is nonsense!" Yazid said, shocked.

"Not really," said Ammar.  "It's all in knowing the trick."

"Trick?"

"Precisely." Ammar smiled benignly.  "You see, I plan on making the Lady

Flamborough, her crew and passengers, an crew disappear.

"My visit is strictly unofficial," Julius Schiller advised Hala Kamil as

they stepped into the log-beamed sitting room of Senator Pitts ski

lodge.  "My aides are covering for me, saying I'm fishing in Key West."

"I understand," said Hala.  "I'm grateful for the chance to talk to

someone other than the cook and Secret Service guards."

She greeted him dressed fashionably in an Icelandic brown wool

sweater-jacket with matching pants, looking even younger than Schiller

remembered.

He looked out of place at a ski resort in a business suit, polished

wing-tip shoes, and carrying an attached case.  "Is there anything I can

arrange to make your safety more bearable?"

"No, thank you.  Nothing can relieve the frustration of inactivity when

there is so much I must do."

"A few more days and it will be over," Schiller said consolingly.

"I hardly expected to see you here, Julius."

"Something has come up that concerns Egypt.  Our President thought it

prudent you be consulted on a recent event."

Hala curled her legs under her and sipped at the tea. "Should I be

flattered?"

"Let's say he'd be grateful for your cooperation."

"Regarding what?"

Schiller opened the attache case, gave Hala a bound folder and sat back

with his tea.  He watched as the soft features of her angelic face

slowly tightened as she realized the scope of what she read, Finally she

finished the last page and closed the folder.  She gave Schiller a

penetrating stare.

"Is the public aware of this?"

He nodded.  "The discovery of the ship will be announced this afternoon.

But we're holding off any reference to the Alexandria Library

treasures."

Hala gazed out the window.  "Our loss of the Library sixteen centuries

ago would compare to your President suddenly ordering the burning of the

Washington archives, the Smithsonian Institution and the National Art

Gallery."

Schiller nodded.  "A fair comparison."

"Is there hope the ancient books can be recovered?"

"We don't know yet.  The wax tables from the ship only provided a few

tantalizing clues.  The hiding place could be anywhere between Iceland

and South Africa."

"But you do intend to search," she said, her interest growing.

"The discovery project is underway."

"Who else  knows  about  this?"

"Only the President, myself and a few trusted members of our government,

and now you."

"Why have you included me and not President Hasan?"

Schiller got up and walked across the room.  Then he turned back to

Hala. "Your nation's leader may not be in control much longer.  We feel

the information is too far-reaching to fall into the wrong hands."

"Akhmad Yazid."

"Frankly, yes."

"Your government will have to deal with him sooner or later," said Hala.

"If the Library treasures and their valuable geological data can be

located, Yazid will demand they be returned to Egypt."

"We understand," said Schiller.  "That's the purpose behind our meeting

here in Breckinridge- The President wishes you to announce the imminent

discovery in your address to the United Nations."

Hala looked at Schiller thoughtfully for a moment.  Then her eyes turned

and anger came into her voice.

"How can I say the discovery is just around the corner when a search may

take years and never be successful?   I find it most distasteful that

the President and his advisers insist on creating a lie and using me to

speak it.  Is this another one of your stupid Middle East foreign policy

games, Julius?   A last-ditch gamble to keep President Hasan in power

and erode Akhmad Yazid's influence?   Am I the tool to mislead the

Egyptian people into believing rich mineral deposits are about to be

found in their country that will Turn around our depressed economy and

eliminate the terrible poverty?"

Schiller sat silently and made no denials.

"You have come to the wrong woman, Julius.  I'll see my government fall,

and face death from Yazid's executioners, before I deceive my people

with false hope."

"Noble sentiments," Schiller said quietly.  "I admire your principles;

however, I firmly believe the plan is sound."

"The risk is too great.  If the President fails to provide the Library's

great knowledge, he will be inviting a political disaster.  Yazid will

take advantage with a propaganda campaign that will broaden his power

base and make him stronger than your experts on Egypt can ever conceive.

for the tenth time in as many years, United States foreign policy

experts will look like amateurish clowns in the eyes of the world."

"Mistakes have been made," Schiller admitted.

"If only you hadn't interfered in our affairs."

"I didn't come here to debate Middle eastern policy, Hala.  I came to

ask your help."

She shook her head and turned away.  "I'm sorry.  I can't go on record

with a lie."

Schiller looked at her with compassion in his eyes.  He didn't push her,

but thought it better to back off.

"I'll tell the President of your response," he said, picking up his

attache case and making for the doorway.  "He'll be most disappointed."

"Wait!"

He turned expectantly.

Hala rose and came to him.  "Prove to me that your people have a

positive lead to the location of the Library artifacts and not a foggy

clue, and I'll do as the White House wishes."

"You'll make the announcement?"

"Yes.

"Four days until your address is not much time."

"Those are my terms," Hala said bluntly. Schiller nodded gravely

"Accepted."

Then he turned and walked out the door.

Muhammad Ismail watched Schiller's limousine come off the private road

leading to Senator Pitts lodge and Turn onto Highway 9 toward the ski

town of Breckenridge.  He did not see who was seated in the rear seat,

and he did not care.

The sight of the official car, men patrolling the grounds who spoke into

radio transmitters at regular intervals, and the two armed guards inside

a Dodge van at the road's enumce were all he needed to confirm the

information purchased by Yazid's agents in Washington.

Ismail leaned casually against a large Mercedes-Benz diesel sedan,

shielding a man sitting inside peeling out an open window through a pair

of binoculars.  A rack on the roof held several sets of skis. lsmail was

dressed in a white ski suit.  A matching ski mask hid his perpetually

scowling face.

"Seen enough?" he asked while seemingly adjusting the ski rack.

"Another minute," answered the observer.  He was staring at the lodge,

which was partially visible through the trees.  All that could be seen

around the binoculars was a heavy black beard and a mass of uncombed

hair.

"Make it quick.  I'm freezing out here just standing around."

"Bear with me another minute."

"How does it look?" asked Ismail.

"No more than a five-man detail.  Three in the house.  Two in the van.

Only one man patrols around the grounds at a time, not a second more

than thirty minutes.  They don't dally.  The cold gets to them too. They

walk the same trail through the snow.  No sign of TV cameras, but they

probably have one mounted in the van that is monitored inside the

house."

"We'll move in two groups," said Ismail.  "One takes the house, the

other kills the guard patrolling outside and destroys the van from the

road,  where they least expect an attack."

The observer dropped the glasses.  "Do you plan to move in tonight,

Muhammad?"

"No," answered ismail.  "Tomorrow, when the American pigs are stuffing

their mouths with their morning meal."

"A daylight raid will be dangerous."

"We will not sneak around in the dark like women."

"But our only escape route to the airport is through the center of

town," the observer protested.  "The streets will be crowded with

traffic and hundreds of skiers.  Suleiman Ammar would not risk such an

adventure."

lsmail suddenly spun and slapped the observer with his gloved hand.  "I

am in charge here!" he snapped.  "Suleiman is an overrated jackal.  Do

not speak his name in my presence."

The observer  did  not  cower.  His  dark  eyes  flashed  with

hostility.  "You'll kill us all," he said quietly.

"So be it," Ismail hissed, his voice as cold as the snow.  "If we die so

Hala Kamil can die, the price will be cheap."

"Magnificent," said Pitt.

"Gorgeous, simply gorgeous," Lily murmured.

Giordino nodded in agreement.  "A real winner."

They were standing in an antique and classic automobile restoration

shop, and their admiring stares were directed toward a 1930 L-29 Cord

town car, a model with an open front for the chauffeur.  The body was

painted burgundy while the fenders were a buff that was matched by the

leather-covered roof over the passenger's compartment.  Elegantly

styled, long and graceful, the car had front-wheel drive that helped to

give it a low silhouette.  The original coachmaker had stretched the

chassis until it measured nearly five-and-a-half meters from front to

rear bumper.  Almost half the length was hood, beginning with a

race-car-type grill and ending with a sharply raked windshield.

It was big and sleek, a thing of beauty that belonged to an era fondly

revered by older generations but unknown to those who followed.

The man who had found Pitts car stored in an old garage, hidden under

forty years of trash, and had restored it from a mangled hulk, was proud

of his handiwork.  Robert Esbenson, a tall man with a pixie face and

limpid blue eyes, gave the hood a final, loving wipe with a dust cloth

and turned the car over to Pitt.

"I hate to see this one go."

"You've done a remarkable job," said Pitt.

"Are you going to ship it home?"

"Not just yet.  I'd like to drive it for a few days."

Esbenson nodded.  "Okay, let me adjust the carburetor and distributor

for our  high altitude.  Then, when you return to the shop, I'll have it

detailed and arrange for an auto transporter to ship it to Washington."

"Can I ride in it?" Lily asked anxiously.

"All the way to Breckenridge," Pitt replied.  He turned to Giordino.

"Coming with us, Al?"

"Why not?   We can leave the rental car outside in the parking lot."

They switched the luggage, and ten minutes later Pitt turned the Cord

onto Interstate 70 and aimed the long hood toward the foothills leading

into the snow-peaked Rocky Mountains.

Lily and Al sat warmly in the luxurious passenger compartment separated

from Pitt by the divider window.  Pitt did not pull out the

transformable top that protected the chauffeur's seat, but sat in the

open bundled up in a heavy sheepskin coat, savoring the cold air on his

face.

for the moment his mind was on his driving, scanning the instruments to

make sure the sixty-year-old car was performing as it was designed to

do.  He held to the right lane, allowing most of the traffic to pass and

gawk.

Pitt felt exhilarated and content behind the wheel, listening to the

smooth purr of the eight-cylinder engine and the mellow tone of the

exhaust.  It was as though he had control over a living thing.

if he had had any inkling of the mess he was driving into, he would have

turned around and headed straight back to Denver.

Darkness had fallen over the Continental Divide when the Cord rolled

into the legendary Colorado mining town turned ski resort.  Pitt drove

up the main street, whose old buildings retained their historic western

flavor.  The sidewalks were crowded with people coming from the slopes,

carrying their skis and poles over one shoulder.

Pitt parked near the entrance of the Hotel Breckenridge.  He signed the

register and took two phone messages from the desk clerk.  He read both

slips of paper and slipped them into a pocket.

"from Dr. Rothberg?" asked Lily.

"Yes, he's invited us for dinner at his condo.  It's just across the

street from the hotel."

"What time?" Giordino queried.

"Seven-thirty."

Lily glanced at her watch.  "Only forty minutes to shower and do my

hair.  I'd better get with it."

Pitt gave her the room key.  "You're in two twenty-one.  Al and I have

rooms adjoining yours on each side."

As soon as Lily disappeared with the porter into an elevator, Pitt

motioned Giordino into the cocktail lounge.  He waited until the barmaid

took their drink order before passing the second message across the

table.

Giordino read it aloud softly.  " 'Your library project takes top

priority.  Most urgent you find a permanent address for Alex in the next

four days.  Luck, Dad."

" He looked up, utterly confused.  "Do I read this right?   We have only

four days to identify the location?"

Pitt nodded positively.  "I read panic between the lines and smell

something rumbling in Washington power circles."

"They might as well ask us to invent a common cure for herpes, AIDS and

acne," Giordino grumbled.  "We can kiss off our skiing trip."

"We'll stay," said Pitt resolutely.  "Nothing we can do until Yaeger

gets lucky." Pitt rose from his chair.  "And speaking of Yaeger, I'd

better give him a call."

He found a public telephone in the hotel lobby and made a call on his

credit card.  After four rings a voice answered in what sounded like the

middle of a yawn.

"Yaeger here."

"Hiram, this is Dirk.  How's your search going?"

"It's going."

"Run onto anything?"

"My babies sifted through every piece of geological data in their little

banks from Casablanca around the horn to Zanzibar. They failed to find a

hot spot along the coast of Africa that matched your drawing.  There

were three vague possibilities.

But when I programmed profiles on land-mass transformations that might

have occurred over the past sixteen hundred years, none proved

encouraging.  Sorry."

"What's your next step?"

"I'm. already in the process of heading north.  This will take more time

because of the extensive shoreline encompassing the British Isles, the

Baltic Sea and the Scandinavian countries as far as Siberia."

"Can you cover it in four days?"

"Only if you insist I put the hired help on a twenty-four-hour

schedule."

"I insist," said Pitt sternly.  "Word has just come down that the

project has become an urgent priority."

"We'll hit it hard," Yaeger said, his voice more jovial than serious.

"I'M in Breckenridge, Colorado. if you strike on something, call me at

the Breckenridge Hotel." Pitt gave Yaeger the hotel phone and his room

number.

Yaeger dutifully repeated the digits.  "Okay, got it."

"You sound like you're in a good mood," said Pitt.

"Why not?   We accomplished quite a lot."

"Like what?   You still don't know where our river lies."

"True," replied Yaeger cheerfully.  "But we sure as hell know where it

ain't."

Snowflakes the size of cornflakes were falling as the three trudged

across the street from the hotel to a two-story cedarsided condominium.

A flood-lighted sign read SKIQUEEN. They climbed a stairway and knocked

on the door to unit 22B.

Bertram Rothberg greeted them with a jolly smile beneath a splendid gray

beard and sparkling blue eyes.  His ears rose in full sail through a

swirling sea of gray hair.  A red plaid shirt and corduroy trousers clad

his beefy body.  Put an ax in one hand -and a crosscut saw in the other,

and he could have reported for duty as a lumberjack.

He shook hands warmly and without introductions as if he'd known

everyone for years.  He led them up a narrow stairwell to a combination

living-dining room beneath a high-peaked ceiling with skylights.

"How does a gallon bottle of cheap burgundy sound before dinner," he

asked with a sly grin.

Lily laughed.  "I'm game."

Giordino shrugged.  "Makes no difference as long as it's wet."

"And you, Dirk?"

"Sounds good."

Pitt didn't bother asking Rothberg how he recognized each of them.  His

father would have provided descriptions.  The performance was nearly

flawless.  Pitt suspected the historian had worked for one of the

government's many intelligence agencies at some time in the past.

Rothberg retired to the kitchen to pour the wine.  Lily followed.

"Can I help you with anything-?" She suddenly stopped and peered at the

empty counters and the cold stove.

Rothberg caught her curious look.  "I'm a lousy cook so our dinner will

be catered.  It should show up around eight." He pointed at the

sectional couch in the living room.  "Please get comfortable around the

fire."

He passed the glasses and then lowered his rotund figure into a leather

easy chair.  He raised his glass.

"Here's to a successful search."

"Hear, hear," said Lily.

Pitt got off the mark.  "Dad tells me you've made the Alexandria Library

a life study."

"Thirty-two years.  Probably been better off to have taken a wife all

that time instead of rummaging around dusty bookshelves and straining my

eyes over old manuscripts.  The subject has been like a mistress to me.

Never asking, only giving. I've never fallen out of love with her."

Lily said, "I can understand your attraction."

Rothberg smiled at her.  "As an archaeologist, you would."

He rose and jabbed in the fireplace with a poker.  Satisfied that the

logs were burning evenly, he sat down again and continued.

"Yes, the Library was not only a glorious edifice of learning, but it

was the chief wonder of the ancient world, containing vast accumulations

of entire civilizations." Rothberg spoke almost as if he was in a

trance, his mind seeing shadows from the past.  "The great art and

literature of the Greeks, the Egyptians, the Romans, the sacred writings

of the Jews, the wisdom and knowledge of the most gifted men the world

has ever known, the divine works of philosophy, music of incredible

beauty, the ancient best-sellers, the masterworks of medicine and

science, it was the finest storehouse of materials and knowledge ever

assembled in antiquity."

"Was it open to the public?" asked Giordino.

"Certainly not to every beggar off the street," answered Rothberg.  "But

researchers and scholars pretty much had the run of the place to

examine, catalog, translate and edit, and to publish their findings. You

see, the Library and its adjoining museum went far beyond being mere

depositories.  Their halls launched the true science of creative

scholarship.  The Library became the first true reference library, as we

think of today, where books were systematically catalogued.  In fact the

complex was known as the Place of the Muses."

Rothberg paused and checked his guests' glasses.  "You look like you can

use another shot of wine, Al."

Giordino smiled.  "I never Turn down a free drink."

"Lily, Dirk?"

"I've hardly touched mine," said Lily.

Pitt shook his head.  "I'm fine."

Rothberg  refilled  Giordino's  glass  and  poured his own before

continuing.

"Later empires and nations owe a staggering debt to the Alexandria

Library.  Few institutions of knowledge have produced so much.  Pliny, a

celebrated Roman of the first century A.D., invented and wrote the

world's first encyclopedia.  Aristophanes, head of the Library two

hundred years before Christ, was the father of the dictionary.

Callimachus, a famous writer and authority on Greek tragedy, compiled

the earliest Who's Who.  The great mathematician Euclid devised the

first known textbook on geometry.  Dionysius organized grammar into a

coherent system and published his 'Art of Grammar,' which became the

model text for all languages, written and spoken.  These men, and

thousands of others, labored tutu piuduced their epoch achievements

while working at the Library.

"You're describing a university," said Pitt.

"Quite right.  Together the library and museum were considered the

university of the Hellenistic world.  The immense structures of white

marble contained picwm galleries, statuary halls, theaters for poetry

reading and lectures on everything from astronomy to geology.  There

were also dormitories, a dining hall, cloisters along colonnades for

contemplation, and an animal park and botanical garden.  Ten great halls

housed different categories of manuscripts and books.  Hundreds of

thousands of them were handwritten on either papyrus or parchment, and

then rolled into scrolls and stored in bronze tubes.  "

"What's the difference between the two?" asked Giordino.

"Papyrus is a tropical plant.  The Egyptians made a paperlike writing

material out of its stems.  Parchment, also called vellum, was produced

from the skins of animals, especially young calves, kids or lambs."

"Is it possible they could have survived the centuries?" Pitt asked.

"Parchment should last longer than papyrus," answered Rothberg.  Then he

looked at Pitt.  "Their condition after sixteen hundred years would

depend on where they've been stored.  Papyrus scrolls from Egyptian

tombs are still readable after three thousand years."

"A hot and dry atmosphere."

"Yes.  "

"Suppose the scrolls were buried somewhere along the northern coast of

Sweden or Russia?"

Rothberg bent his head thoughtfully.  "I suppose the freeze would

preserve them, but during the summer thaw they would rot from the

dampness."

Pitt could smell defeat looming down the road.  This was one more nail

in the coffin.  Hope of finding the Library manuscripts intact seemed

farther than ever.

Lily did not share Pitts pessimism.  She had the glow of excitement on

her face.  "If you had been Junius Venator, Dr. Rothberg, what books

would you have saved?"

"Hard question," Rothberg said, winking at her.  "I can only guess he

might have attempted to save the complete works of Sophocles, Euripides,

Aristotle and Plato for a start.  And of course, Homer.  He wrote

twenty-four books, but only a very few have come down to us.  I think

Venator would have saved as many of the fifty thousand volumes on Greek,

Etruscan, Roman and Egyptian history as his fleet of ships could carry.

The latter would be extremely interesting, since the Library's

monumental store of Egyptian literature and religious and scientific

material has all been lost.  We know practically nothing about the

Etruscans, yet Claudius wrote an extensive history on them that must

have sat on the Library's shelves.  I'd certainly have taken religious

works on Hebrew and Christian laws and traditions.  The revelations of

these scrolls would probably knock the socks off modern biblical

scholars."

"Books of the sciences?" added Giordino.

"That goes without saying."

"Don't forget cookbooks," said Lily.

Rothberg laughed.  "Venator was a shrewd operator.  He'd have saved a

general spread of knowledge and material, including books on cooking and

household hints.  Something for everyone, you might say."

"Especially the ancient geological data," said Pitt.

"Especially that," Rothberg agreed.

"Has anything come down on what kind of a man he was?" inquired Lily.

"Venator?"

"Yes.  "

"He was the leading intellectual of his time.  A renowned scholar and

teacher who was hired away from one of the great learning centers of

Athens to become the last of the Alexandria Library's prominent

curators.  He was the great chronicler of his age- We know he wrote over

a hundred books of political and social commentary that covered the

known world going back four thousand years.  None of which has

survived."

"Archaeological researchers would have a field day with data compiled by

someone who was two thousand years closer to our past," said Lily.

"What else do we know about him?" Pitt asked.

"Not much.  Venator attracted a large number of pupils who went on to

become recognized men of letters and science.  One student, Diocles of

Antioch, mentioned him briefly in one of his essays.  He described

Venator as a daring innovator who struck out into areas other scholars

feared to tread.  Though a Christian, he saw religion more as a social

science.  This was the main cause behind the friction that existed

between Venator and the Christian zealot Theophilos, Bishop of

Alexandria. Theophilos went after Venator with a vengeance, claiming the

museum and Library were hotbeds of paganism.  He finally persuaded the

Emperor Theodosius, a devout Christian, to burn the place.  In the

uproar and riots that occurred between Christians and non-Christians

during the destruction, it was supposed Junius Venator was murdered by

fanaticw followers of Theophilos."

"But now we know he escaped with the pick of the collection," said Lily.

"When Senator Pitt called with the news of your discovery in Greenland,"

said Rothberg, "I felt as excited as a street sweeper who'd won a

million-dollar lottery."

"Can you give us any thoughts on where you think Venator hid the

artifacts?" asked Pitt.

Rothberg considered for a long moment.  Finally he said quietly, "Junius

Venator was not an ordinary man.  He followed his own path.  He had

access to a mountain of knowledge.  His route would have been

scientifically planned, only the unknowns were left to chance.  He

certainly did an efficient job when you consider the relics have

remained hidden for sixteen hundred years." Rothberg threw up his hands

in defeat.  "I can't offer a clue.  Venator is too tough a customer to

second-guess."

"You must have some idea," Pitt persisted.

Rothberg looked long and deeply into the flames wavering in the

fireplace.  "All I can say is, Venator's burial place must be where no

man would think to look."

0758, read Ismail's watch.  He flattened himself behind a small blue

spruce and peered at the lodge.  Wood smoke was curling from one of two

chimneys while steam issued from the heater vents.  Kamil, he knew, was

an early riser and a good cook. He rightly reasoned that she was up and

making breakfast for her guards.

He was a man of the desert and not used to the icy cold that gripped

him.  He wished he could stand, flail his arms and stamp his feet.  His

toes ached and his fingers were becoming numb inside the gloves.  The

agony of the cold was filling his mind and slowing his reaction time. A

creeping fear fell over him, a fear that he might botch the job and die

for no purpose.

Ismail's inexperience was showing through.  At the initial stage of the

mission he was coming unstrung.  He suddenly wondered if the hated

Americans somehow knew or suspected his presence.  Nervous and afraid,

his mind began to lose its ability to make hard-and-fast decisions.

0759.  One quick glance at the van just above the entrance to the road.

Shifts were alternated every four hours between the guards in the warm

lodge and those huddled inside the van. Two relief men were due to make

the hundred-meter walk from the lodge at any time.

He turned his attention to  the  guard  walking  a  well-beaten path

through the snow around the grounds.  He was slowly approaching Ismail's

tree, his breath coming in clouds of vapor, his gaze alert for any sign

out of the ordinary.

The monotony and the bitter cold had not slackened the Secret Service

agent's vigilance.  His eyes swept back and forth over the area like

radar.  Less than a minute remained before he would see Ismail's trail

in the snow.

Ismail swore softly under his breath and pressed more deeply into the

snow.  He was, he knew, exposed.  The pine needles shielding him from

view would not stop bullets.

0800.  Almost on the dot, the front door of the lodge opened and two men

stepped out.  They wore stocking caps and down-filled ski coats.  They

automatically scanned the snowy landscape as they moved down the road in

quiet conversation.

Ismail's plan was to wait until the relief party reached the van and

then take Out all four guards at the same time.  But he had misjudged

and moved into position too early.  The two men had only walked fifty

meters down the road when the guard circling the lodge spotted Ismail's

footprints.

He stopped and raised the transmitter to his lips.  His words were cut

off by a loud series of cracks from ismail's Heckler & Koch MP5

submachine gun.

Ismail's amateurish plan had gotten off to a bad start.  A pro would

have snuffed the guard with a single shot between the eyes from a

silenced semiautomatic.  Ismail stitched the guard'S COat in the chest

area with ten rounds; a good twenty others sprayed the woods beyond.

One of the Arabs frantically began lobbing grenades at the van while

another pumped bullets through the sides.  Sophisticated assault was

beyond the scope of most terrorists.  Finesse was as foreign to them as

liquid soap.  Their only salvation was luck.  One of the grenades found

its way through the windshield, bursting with a loud thud.  The

explosion bore no similarity to motion-picture special effects.  The gas

tank did not go up in a fiery ball.  The body of the van bulged and

split as if a cherry bomb had gone off inside a tin can.

Both occupants were killed instantly.

Excited with blood lust, the two assassins, neither older than twenty,

kept up their attack on the mangled van until the magazines of their

rifles were empty, instead of concentrating on the Secret Service agents

on the road, who took cover

behind trees and unleashed an accurate fire from their Uzis that quickly

cut them down.

Correctly figuring their fellow agents inside the van were beyond help,

they began retreating toward the lodge, running in a sideways motion

back to back, one of them exchanging fire with Ismail, who had found

cover behind a large mossy rock.

Ismafl's strategy was blown away by the confusion.

The other ten men of the terrorist team were supposed to rush the rear

door at the sound of Ismad's gunfire, but they lost valuable time wading

through knee-deep snow.  Their assault came late and they were

effectively pinned down by the agents inside.

One Arab managed to gain temporary safety under the north wall of the

lodge.  He pulled the pin on a grenade and flipped it at a large sliding

window.  He misjudged the thickness of the double panes, and the grenade

bounced back.  His face had only time for an expression of horror before

the blast blew him apart.

The two agents scrambled up the steps and leapt through the front door.

The Arabs laid down a barrage of fire that caught one of the men in the

back, dropping him with only his feet showing across the threshold.  He

was quickly dragged inside and the door slammed shut at the exact

instant a dozen shots and a grenade blasted it into splinters.

The windows disintegrated in showers of glass but the heavy log walls

easily withstood the onslaught.  The agents dropped two more of Ismad's

men, but the rest dodged in closer, using the pines and rocks for cover.

When they had moved within twenty meters of the lodge, they began

hurling grenades through the windows.

Inside the lodge, an agent roughly shoved Hala into a cold fireplace. He

was in the act of pushing a writing desk over the hearth to shield her

when a hail of fire through a window ricocheted off the stone mantel, of

the bullets smashing into his neck and shoulder.  Hala could not see,

but she heard his body thump as it made contact with the wood floor.

Ibc grenades were taking deadly effect now.  At close range the shrapnel

was far more damaging to human tissue than a rifle bullet.  The agents'

only defense was a sharp and precise fire, but they had not counted on a

heavy assault and theirsmall stockpile of ammunition was down to the

last few clips.

A call for assistance had been transmitted immediately after Ismail's

opening shots, but the emergency plea went to the Secret Service office

in Denver and precious time was lost before the local sheriff's

department was notified and their units organized.

A grenade exploded in a storeroom, igniting a can of paint thinner.  A

gas can used for filling the tank of a snowblower went next, and one

entire side of the lodge soon crawled with flames.

The gunfire died as the fire spread.  The Arabs cautiously tightened the

net.  They formed a loose circle around the lodge; every automatic rifle

was trained on the doors and windows.  They waited patiently for the

survivors to be flushed out by the blaze.

Only two Secret Service agents were still on their feet.  The rest were

sprawled in bloody heaps among the mutilated pieces of furniture- The

full fury of the fire raced into the kitchen and up a rear staircase,

spreading to the upstairs bedrooms.  Already it was far beyond any hope

of extinction.  The heat swiftly became unbearable to the defenders on

the lower floor.

The sound of sirens echoed up the valley from the direction of town and

drew closer.

One agent pushed away the desk protecting Hala in the fireplace and led

her on hands and knees to a low window.

"The local sheriff's deputies are arriving," he said quickly. "As soon

as they draw off the terrorist fire, we'll make a run for it before

we're barbecued to death."

Hala could only nod.  She could hardly hear him.  Her eardrums hurt from

the roar of the grenades.  Her eyes were filled with tears, and she

pressed a handkerchief tightly against her nose and mouth to filter out

the thickening blanket of smoke.

Outside, Ismail lay prone, clutching his H & K automatic, torn by

indecision.  The lodge had swiftly become a blazing inferno, smoke and

flame were rolling through the windows. Anyone still living had to

escape in the next few seconds or die.

But Ismail could not wait it out.  Already he could see red and blue

lights flashing through the trees as a sheriff's car sped up the

highway.

Of his original team of twelve men, seven were left, including himself.

any wounded were to be killed rather than left behind to be interrogated

by American intelligence officials. He shouted a comnand to his men and

they pulled away from the lodge and hurried off toward the entrance

road.

The first deputies to arrive slid to a stop and blocked the road to the

lodge.  While one reported on the radio, his partner cautiously eased

open his door and studied the van and burning lodge, holding his drawn

revolver.  They were only to observe, report and wait for backup.

It was a sound tactic when facing armed and dangerous criminals.

Unfortunately, it didn't work with a small army of unseen terrorists who

suddenly opened fire with a storm of bullets that shredded the patrol

car and killed the two deputies before they had a chance to react.

At a signal from one of the agents peering around the window, Hala was

lifted and brusquely flung out onto the ground. The Secret Service men

followed and quickly took her by the arms and began running, stumbling

through the snow on an angle toward the highway.

They had covered only paces when one of Ismail's men spotted them and

shouted the alarm.  Shots struck the trees and branches fell around the

fleeing survivors.  One of the agents suddenly threw up his hands,

clawing at the sky, stumbled forward a few steps and then fell face

downward in the snow.

"They're trying to cut us off from the highway!" the other agent

snapped.  "You try to make it.  I'll make a stand and delay them."

Hala started to say something, but the agent spun her around and gave

her a not-too-gentle shove that sent her on her way.

"Run, dammit,  run!"  he  yelled.

But he could see it was already too late.  any hope of escape was dealt

a death blow.  They had taken the wrong angle away from the burning

lodge and were headed on a direct line toward two Mercedes-Benz sedans

parked in woods beside the road.  In dazed defeat he realized the cars

belonged to the terrorists.  He had no alternative.  If he couldn't stop

them, he would at least slow them down long enough for Hala to hail a

passing car.  In a suicide gamble, the agent ran at the Arabs, finger

locked on the trigger of his Uzi, shouting every obscenity he'd ever

learned.

Ismail and his men were momentarily stunned into immobility by what they

saw as a charging demon.  for two incr-edulous seconds they hesitated,

then recovered and let loose a long burst at the courageous Secret

Service agent, cutting him down in mid-stride.

But not before he took out four of them.

Hala saw the cars too.  She also saw the terrorists rushing for them.

Behind her she heard the thunderous fusillade of shots.  Choking and

gasping for breath, her clothes and hair singed, she staggered into a

small ditch and up the other side before sprawling on a hard surface.

She raised her head slightly and found herself staring at black asphalt.

She pushed herself to her feet and began running, knowing she was only

delaying the inevitable, knowing with dread certainty she would be lying

dead in the next few minutes.

The Cord rolled majestically along the highway from Breckenridge, the

morning sun gleaming on the bright chrome and new paint.  Skiers wailing

to the lifts waved as the elegant sixty-year-old classic swept past.

Giordino dozed in the enclosed rear seat while Lily sat up front in the

open with Pitt.

Pitt had awakened in a stubborn mood that morning.  He saw no reason to

ski on rental skis when his own American made Olin 921s were in a closet

only three miles up the road from the hotel.  Besides, he reasoned, he

could drive to the family lodge, pick up his gear and be sitting on a

chair lift in half the time it took waiting his Turn to be fitted in a

rental shop.

Pitt shrugged off his father's unexplained warning to stay clear of the

lodge.  He simply wrote it off as bureaucratic overplay.  The Senator

would have made the same impression on Hulk Hogan by telling the

wrestler to Turn the other cheek after an opponent had kicked him in the

groin.

"Who's shooting off fireworks so early in the morning?" Lily wondered

aloud.

"Not fireworks," Pitt said, tuning in the sharp crack of gunfire and the

explosive thump from grenades echoing off the mountainsides of the

valley.  "Sounds like an infantry firefight."

"It's coming from the woods up ahead!" Lily pointed"to the right of the

road."

The smile wrinkles around Pitts eyes tightened.  He increased the Cord's

speed and rapped on the divider window. Giordino came awake and cranked

the glass down.

"You woke me just as the orgy was getting started," he said between

yawns.

"Listen up," ordered Pitt.

Giordino winched as the cold air flew into the passengers' compartment.

He cupped his ears.  Slowly an expression of bewilderment crossed his

face.

"Have the Russians landed?"

"Look!" said Lily excitedly.  "A forest fire."

Giordino made a quick study of the black smoke that abruptly billowed

above the treetops, chased by columns of flame.  "Fuel concentrated," he

stated briefly.  "I'd say it was a burning structure, probably a house

or condominium."

Pitt knew Giordino was on target.  He swore and pounded the steering

wheel, knowing with sickening certainty it was his family's lodge that

was feeding the growing mushroom of fire and smoke.

He said, "No sense asking for trouble by stopping.  We'll drive past and

check out the action.  Al, you come up front.

Lily, climb in the rear and keep your head down.  I don't want you

hurt."

"What about me?" Giordino asked in resigned indignation. "Don't I rate a

little concern?   Give me one good reason why I should sit up there

exposed with you?"

"To protect your trusty chauffeur from harm, evil and unsavor-y felons."

"Definitely not a good reason."

Pitt tried another tack.  "Of course, there's that fifty bucks I

borrowed from you in Panama and never paid back."

"Plus interest."

"Plus interest," Pitt repeated.

"What I won't go through to protect my meager assets."

Giordino's weary despair sounded almost genuine as he scrambled through

the open divider window and changed places with Lily.

Farther down the highway, a half-mile before the entrance to the lodge,

people were stopping and crouching behind their parked cars, gawking at

the swirling smoke and listening to the rattle of automatic rifles. Pitt

thought it odd that the sheriff's department hadn't put in an

appearance, and then he saw the bullet-riddled patrol car barricading

the road to the lodge.

His attention was focused to his right and the inferno beyond when

suddenly, at the very edge of his peripheral vision, he caught a vague

form running down the road on a collision course with the Cord.

He stomped on the brakes, hard, and cramped the steering wheel to the

right, whipping the Cord into a ninety-degrre angle and sending it on a

broadside skid.  The high, narrow tires shrieked from their treads'

friction against the pavement. The Cord ended up sideways, blocking both

lanes of the highway, the driver's side not more than a meter from a

woman standing stock-still.

Pitts heart had doubled its beat.  He let out a deep breath and looked

at the woman he'd come within a hair of mashing like a bug.  He saw the

fear and shock in her eyes slowly transform into an expression of

incredulity.

"You!" she gasped.  "Is it really you?"

Pitt stared at her blankly.  "Ms.  Kamil?"

"I believe in d'eji vu," Giordino mumbled.  "I do, I do, I do."

"Oh, thank God," she whispered.  "Please help me.  Everyone is dead.

They're coming to kill me."

Pitt climbed from behind the wheel at the same time Lily stepped from

the passengers' compartment.  They helped Hala inside and lowered her on

the rear seat.

"Who's they?" Pitt asked.

"Yazid's paid assassins.  They murdered the Secret Service men guarding

me.  We must get away quickly.  They'll be here any second."

"Rest easy," Lily said soothingly, noticing Hala's smokeblackened skin

and singed hair for the first time.  "We'll take you to a hospital."

"No time," Hala gasped, making a trembling gesture through the window.

"Please hurry or they'll kill all of you too."

Pitt turned just in time to see two black Mercedes sedans burst from the

woods and veer onto the highway.  He studied them for no more than a

second before jumping into the driver's seat.  He shifted into first

gear and jammed the accelerator to the floor.  He twisted the wheel and

turned the Cord in the only direction open to him-back toward downtown

Breckenridge.

He looked briefly into the mirror strapped to the side mount spare tire.

He estimated the distance between the Cord and the terrorists' cars at

no more than three hundred meters.  That brief glimpse was all he had

time for.  His rear view was suddenly cut off as a bullet drilled

through the mirror and shattered the reflection.

"Down on the floor!" he yelled at the two women in back.

There was no drive shaft on the Cord, and the women were able to curl up

and press themselves against the flat floor. Hala stared into Lily's

face and began trembling uncontrollably.  Lily put an arm around her and

forced a brave smile.

"Not to panic," she said encouragingly.  "Once we make it to town we'll

be safe."

"No," Hala murmured as shock began to set in.  "We won't be safe

anywhere."

In the front seat Giordino hunched low to get what shelter he could from

the gunfire and higid wind whistling around the windshield.  "How fast

will this thing go?" he asked conversationally.

"The best top speed ever recorded for an L-29 was seventy-seven,"

answered Pitt.

'Miles or kilometers?"

'Miles.  "

"I have a sinking feeling we're outclassed." Giordino had to shout in

Pitts ear to be heard above the howl of the Cord's second gear.

"What are we up against?"

Giordino swung around, leaned over the door and cast a wary eye

backward.  "Hard to tell what model a Mercedes is from the front, but

I'd say the hounds are driving five hundred SDLS."

"Diesels?"

"Turbocharged diesels to be exact, capable of 220 kilometers per hour."

"They gaining?"

"Like tigers after a  -toed sloth," Giordino replied drily. "They'll

chew our ass long before we reach the local sheriff's coffee hangout."

Pitt jammed the clutch to the floor, grasped the end of the gear-shift

arm that extended from the dashboard and shoved it into third.  "Better

we save lives by staying away.  Those killcrazy bastards are liable to

slaughter a hundred innocent bystanders just to assassinate Kamil.  "

Giordino peered to the rear again.  "I think I can see the whites of

their eyes."

Ismail screamed a dozen curses as his gun jammed.  In a rage, he heaved

it out of the Mercedes onto the highway and snatched another from the

hands of his follower in the backseat.  He reached out the window and

squeezed off a burst at the Cord.  Only five shells spat from the muzzle

before the armno clip emptied.  He cursed again as he fished in his

pocket for another clip, wrestled it free and pushed it in the slide.

"Do not excite yourself," said the driver carefully.  "We'll catch them

in the next kilometer.  I'll come around on the left while Omar and his

men in the other car take the right.  We can snare them in a cross fire

at close range."

"I want to kill the scum who interfered," Ismail snarled.

"You'll get your chance.  Patience."

Almost like a sullen child who can't have his way, Ismail slumped in the

seat and stared vengefully through the windshield at the fleeing car

ahead.

lsmail was the worst kind of killer.  He was utterly incapable of

remorse.  He would have celebrated after blowing up a maternity ward.

First-class hit men recorded their kills and studied ways to improve

their craft.  He never bothered to react or count the bodies.  His

planning was sloppy, and on two occasions he had wiped out the wrong

quarry, which made a fanatic like Ismail all the more dangerous.

Unpredictable as a shark, he struck indiscriminately and without mercy

at any innocent victim who was unlucky enough to step in his way.  He

justified his bloody deeds by killing for a religious cause, but in

another time, another place, he'd have been a serial murderer, leaving a

trail of dead for the full of it.  Ismail would have sickened John

Dillenger and Bonnie and Clyde.

He sat there moving his fingers over the rifle as if it were a sensual

object, waiting, waiting to pump its lethal fire through the thin walls

of the old car and into the flesh that had temporarily cheated him of

his prey.

"They must be saving their ammunition," sadd Giordino thankfully.

"Only until they box us in and can't miss," Pitt replied.  His eyes were

on the road, but his mind was desperately turning over escape schemes.

"My kingdom for a rocket launcher."

"Which reminds me.  When I got in the car this morning, I accidentally

kicked something under the seat."

Giordino bent down and probed the floorboard under Pitt. His hand

touched a cold, hard object.  He held it aloft.  "Only a socket wrench,"

he announced sadly.  "Might as well be a hainbone for all the good it'll

do."

"There's a Jeep trail just ahead that leads up to the top of the ski

runs.  Maintenance vehicles sometimes use it to carry supplies and

equipment to the peak.  Might give us a slim chance to lose them in the

woods or a ravine.  We're dead if we stick to the highway."

"How far?"

"Around the next bend in the road."

"Can we make it?"

"You tell me."

Giordino looked back for the third time.  "Seventy-five meters and

hauling ass."

"Close, too close," said Pitt.  "We'll have to slow them down."

"I could show my ugly face and make obscene gestures," Giordino said

dryly.

"Only make them madder.  We have to go to plan one."

"I missed the briefing," Giordino said sarcastically.

"How's your throwing arm?"

Giordino nodded in understanding.  "Keep this old barge in a straight

line and fireball Giordino wig retire the opposing term."

The open town car made a perfect platform.  Giordino planted his knees

on the seat facing backward, his head and shoulders exposed above the

roof.  He took aim, raised his arm and hurled the socket wrench in a

high arc toward the leading Mercedes.

for an instant his heart seized.  He thought he had underthrown as the

wrench dropped low and landed on the hood of the car.  But it took a

bounce and smashed neatly through the windshield.

The Arab driver had spotted Giordino in the act of heaving the wrench.

His reaction time was good but not good enough. He hit the brakes and

cramped the wheel to swerve out of the way just as the glass burst in a

thousand tiny pieces and sprayed into his face.  The wrench caromed off

the steering wheel and dropped into Ismail's lap.

The driver in the second Mercedes was hanging close to the rear bumper

of Ismail's car, and he didn't see the socket wrench sailing through the

air.  He was caught completely off guard when the taillights in front of

his eyes suddenly flashed red.  He stared helplessly as he rammed the

first Mercedes, sending it spinning out of control until it came to a

halt facing in the opposite direction.

"That what you had in mind?" asked Giordino cheerfully.

"Right on the money.  Hold on, we're approaching our Turn." Pitt slowed

and swung the Cord onto a narrow, snowpacked road leading in a series of

switchbacks up the mountainside.

The straight-eight engine with its 115-horsepower strained to pull the

heavy car over the slippery, uneven surface.  The stiff chassis springs

jolted everyone like tennis balls in a washing machine as the lighter

rear end slewed back and forth.  Pitt compensated with a deft touch on

the accelerator and steering wheel, using the pulling power of the

front-wheel drive to keep the long hood pointed up the middle of a road

that had all the qualifications of a vague hiking to.

Lily and Hala had picked themselves up off the floor and were sitting in

the seat, feet braced against the divider partition, hanging onto the

overhead straps for dear life.

Six minutes later they left the trees behind and were climbing above

timberline.  The road now ran between steep inclines carpeted with

massive rocks and deep snow.  It had been Pitts original idea to abandon

the Cord and make a run for it, using the woods and craggy landscape for

cover, but the depth of Colorado's famous powdery snow sharply increased

at the higher altitudes, making any passage on foot nearly impossible.

He was left with no alternative but to reach the summit

with enough time to take a chair lift down the mountain to the town and

become lost in the crowds.

"We're boiling," Giordino observed.

Pitt didn't need to see the steam starting to issue around the base of

the radiator cap; he'd been watching the needle on the temperature gauge

creep upward until it was pegged on HOT.

"The engine was rebuilt with close tolerances," he explained.  "We've

given it too much of a beating before it had a chance to break in."

"What do we do when the road ends?" asked Giordino.

"Plan two," answered Pitt.  "We take a leisurely ride down a chair lift

to the nearest saloon."

"I like your style, but the war's not over." Giordino nodded over his

shoulder.  "Our friends are back."

Pitt had been too busy to keep track of his pursuers.  They had

recovered from the accident and charged up the mountain after the Cord.

Before he could look behind, bullets shattered the rear window between

Lily's and Hala's heads, traversed the car and passed cleanly through

the windshield, leaving three small, starred holes.  The women didn't

have to be told to crouch on the floor again.  This time they tried to

melt into it.

"I think they're mad about the wrench," said Giordino,

"Not half as mad as I am over the way they're trashing my car."

Pitt hauled the car around a steep switchback, and when he straightened

oirt again, he turned and stole a quick look at the chasing cars.  The

rearward view was not lacking in menace.

The twin Mercedes were violently slewing all over the snow-covered road.

Their superior speed was partially offset by the Cord's front-wheel

traction.  Pitt pulled away in the tight turns, but the Arabs narrowed

the gap in the straightaways.

Pitt caught a glimpse of the lead driver twisting and turning his wheel

like a maniac, ignoring caution and keeping the rear-drive wheels in a

constant state of spin.  At every switchback he came within a hair of

sliding into heavy snow and becoming hopelessly stuck.

Pitt was surprised that the Mercedes showed no signs of wearing snow

tires.  He couldn't have known the Arabs had driven the cars over the

border from Mexico to muddy their trail.  Registered to a nonexistent

textile company in Matamoros, they were to be abandoned at the

Breckenridge airport after Hala's assassination was completed.

Pitt didn't like what he saw.  The Mercedes were moving relentlessly

closer.  They were only fifty meters behind.  He also didn't like the

sight of a man sticking an automatic rifle through the smashed

windshield.

"Here comes the mail!" he shouted, slipping under the wheel until his

eyes barely peered over the top of the dashboard.  "Everyone down!"

The words were barely out of his mouth when bullets began thumping into

the Cord.  One burst ripped the right fendermounted spare tire and

wheel.  The next tore through the roof, shredding the leather padding

and mangling the metal skin underneath.

Pitt tensed and tried to duck even lower as the left side of the car was

cut open as if attacked by an army of can openers. The hinges flew off a

rear door and it fell open, hanging grotesquely for a few moments until

it was torn away as the Cord brushed a tree.  Glass fragments flew like

rain.  One of the women screamed, he didn't know which one.  He became

aware of a fine spray of blood on the dashboard.  A bullet had ploughed

a furrow through one of Giordino's ears, but the gritty little Italian

made no sound.

Giordino probed the wound indifferently, almost as though it belonged to

someone else.  Then he tilted his head and gave Pitt a slanted grin.  "I

fear last night's wine is leaking out."

"Is it bad?" Pitt asked.

"Nothing a plastic surgeon can't fix for two thousand dollars.  What

about the women?"

Pitt shouted without turning.  "Lily, are you and Hala all right?"

"A few scratches from flying glass," Lily replied gamely. "Otherwise

we're unhurt." She was good and scared but not anywhere near the edge of

panic.

The steam from the Cord's radiator was escaping like a high-pressure jet

now.  Pitt could feel the engine lose revolutions as it slowly began to

seize up.  Like a jockey riding a tired old nag long overdue for the

pasture, he pushed the car as hard as he dared.

He  worked  coolly,  concentrating  on  hurling  the  Cord  around the

last switchback before the summit.  He had gambled and failed to elude

the assassins.  They clung to his rear bumper as if chained there.

The engine bearings began to rattle in protest from the excessive heat

and strain.  Another volley of bullets peppered the left rear fender and

flattened the tire.  Pitt fought the wheel to keep the rear end from

careening off the side of the road and dragging the car down a

60-percent grade filled with large jagged boulders.

The Cord was dying.  Ominous blue smoke filtered through the hood

louvers.  Beneath the engine, oil seeped through a gouge torn in the oil

pan by a rock Pitt could not avoid.  The oil pressure gauge quickly

registered zero.  any chance of making the temporary safety of the

summit became more remote with each knock of the piston rods.

The lead Mercedes charged around the switchback in a wild skid.  Pitt

clutched the wheel despairingly.  He could picture the look of triumph

on his pursuers' faces as they sensed they were seconds away from naming

their prey to the ground.

He saw no place for a desperation escape on foot.  They were trapped on

the narrow road between a steep drop on one side and a sharp rocky rise

on the other.  There was nowhere to go but ahead until the Cord's engine

gave up and froze.

Pitt jammed the accelerator pedal against the floorboard with all the

strength in his leg and uttered a fast prayer.

Incredibly, the battle-weary old classic had something more to give.  As

though a mechanical engine had a mind of its own, it reached down into

its iron and steel for one final, magnificent effort.  The engine

revolutions suddenly increased, the front wheels dug in, and the Cord

wiggled up the final grade to the sunmiit.  A minute later, through

clouds of blue smoke and white steam, it broke out onto the open crest

of a ski run.

Not one hundred meters away stood the upper end of a triple-chair ski

lift.  At first Pitt thought it strange that no one was skiing on the

slope directly below the Cord.  people were dropping off the chairs and

turning toward the opposite side of the lift before starting down a

parallel ski trail.

Then he observed his section of the slope was roped off. Several signs

hung on a line festooned with bright orange streamers warning skiers not

to ski this run because of dangerous, icy conditions.

"The end of the trail," Giordino said solemnly.

Pitt nodded in frustration.  "We can't make a break for the lift. They'd

shoot us down before we ran ten meters."

"It's either fight them with snowballs or take our chances and

surrender."

"Or we can try plan three."

Giordino peered at Pitt curiously.  "Can't be any worse than the first

two." Then his eyes widened and he groaned, "You're not-oh, God, no!"

The two Mercedes were almost within spitting distance. They had pulled

side by side to box in the Cord when Pitt twisted the wheel and sent the

car plummeting down the ski run.

"Allah help us," muttered lsmafl's driver.  "The crazy idiots. We can't

stop them."

"Keep after them!" Ismail shouted hysterically.  "Don't let them

escape."

"They'll die anyway.  No one can survive a runaway car down a

mountainside."

Ismafl swung his gun barrel and roughly pushed the muzzle into his

driver's ear.  "Catch those pigs," he snarled viciously, "or you'll see

Allah sooner than you planned."

The driver hesitated, seeing death no matter which move he made.  Then

he gave in and turned the Mercedes down the steep incline after the

Cord.

"Allah guide my actions," he uttered in sudden fear.

Ismail pulled the gun away and pointed through the broken windshield.

"Be still and mind your driving."

Ismail's henchmen in the second Mercedes didn't pause. Dutifully they

plunged after their leader.

The Cord hurtled across the hard-packed snow like a runaway freight  ,

gaining speed at a terrifying rate.  There was no slowing the heavy car.

Pitt steered with a light touch and feathered the brakes, cautious not

to lock them and send the Cord into an uncontrollable spin.  A sideways

slide down the steep incline would only result in the car's overturning

and ending up at the base of the mountain in a scattered trail of metal

and broken bodies.

"Is this a good time to raise the question of seat belts?" asked

Giordino with his feet raised and wedged against the dashboard.

Pitt shook  his  head.  "Not  optional  equipment  in  this model."Pitt

sensed a tiny bit of luck as the bullet-shredded rubber tore off the

rear wheel.  Free of the deflated tire, the double edges of the rim gave

him a small measure of control as they bit into the icy surface,

throwing up fanlike sheets of ice particles.

The speedometer was hovering at sixty when Pitt saw a field of moguls

coming up.  Expert skiers found the rounded snow bumps a favorite

obstacle course.  So did Pitt when he schussed down a slope at that

speed.  But not now, not playing downhill racer with a weighty 2,120

kilograms of automobile.

With a deft touch, he gently nudged the car off to the side of the road

where the path ran smooth.  He felt as though he were trying to thread a

needle with an Olympic bobsled.  Subconsciously Pitt tensed himself for

the violent shock and crashing impact should he make the slightest wrong

move and hurl the car into a tree, smashing everyone to bloody pulp.

But there was no crushing impact.  The Cord somehow shot through the

narrow slot, the moguls on one side and the trees on the other flashing

by like blurred stage sets.

As soon as Pitt was on a wide, unobstructed run, he snapped his head

around to check the status of his pursuers.

The driver of the lead Mercedes was savvy.  He'd followed in the Cord's

tire tracks around the moguls.  The second driver either didn't see them

or didn't consider them dangerous.  He realized his mistake too late and

compounded it by throwing the Mercedes wildly from side to side in a

desperate effort to dodge the meter-high humps.

The Arab actually slipped past three or four before he took one head-on.

The front end dug in and the rear rose up and appeared to hang on a

minety-degree angle.  The car stood poised there for an instant, and

then it flipped end over end as if a child had flipped a short stick. It

struck the hard snowpack again and again with the splitting sound of

crashing metal and glass, The occupants might have survived if they'd

been thrown clear, but the jarring series of impacts had jammed the

doors. The car began to disintegrate.  The engine tore from its

mountings and tumbled crazily into the woods.  Wheels, front suspension,

rear-drive train, none of it was built to take this destructive tomm- It

all wrenched away from the chassis, bouncing in mad gyrations down the

hill.

Pitt could not spare the time to watch the Mercedes cartwheel and

crumple into an indistinguishable heap before finally grinding to a halt

on its squashed roof in a small ravine.

"Would it sound gauche," said Giordino for the first time since they

plunged off the crest, "if I said, One down?"

"I wish you wouldn't use that term," Pitt muttered through gritted

teeth.  "The score is about to escalate." He briefly took one hand from

the wheel and motioned ahead.

Giordino tensed as he observed the ski run fork and merge with another

trail crowded with people in vividly colored ski suits.  He jerked

himself to a standing position by grabbing the remains of the windshield

frame, shouting and waving frantically as Pitt laid on the Cord's twill

horns.

The startled skiers turned at the honking and saw the two speeding cars

barreling down the ski trail.  With seconds to spare, they traversed to

the sides and gaped in astonishment as the Cord, with the Mercedes right

behind, sped past.

A ski jump rose from the trail and dropped off a hundred meters away.

Pitt hardly had time to distinguish the snowy ramp blending in with the

hillside.  Without hesitation he aimed the radiator ornament at the

starting drop-off.

"You wouldn't?" blurted Giordino.

"Plan four," Pitt assured him.  "Brace yourself.  I may lose control.  "

"I thought you've been doing that right along."

Far smaller than the structures built for Olympic competition, the jump

was used only for acrobatic and hot-dog skiing exhibitions.  The ramp

was wide enough to take the Cord and then some.  It extended thirty

meters into a concave dip before abruptly ending twenty meters above the

ground.

Pitt lined up on the starting gate, using the Cord's wide body to hide

the ski jump from the view of the Mercedes.  The tricky part depended on

exact timing and a nimble twist of the steering wheel.

At the last instant, before the front wheels rolled across the starting

line, Pitt flicked the steering wheel and spun the Cord's rear end,

whipping the car away from the ramp down the ski jump.  Alert to the

sudden antics of the Cord, Ismail's driver swung to avoid a collision

and made a perfect entry through the starting gate.

As Pitt wrestled the Cord back on a straight path, Giordino looked back

at the Mercedes and stared into a face masked with a weird expression of

frightened rage.  Then it was gone as the car shot down the steep slant

out of all control.  It should have soared into the sky like a fat bird

with no wings.  But the rear end broke loose and it slipped on a slight

angle, dropping the right wheels off the ramp's side a few meters before

the final edge and sending the car spiraling through the air like a

well-thrown football.

The Mercedes must have been hitting close to 120 kilometers when it

lifted off.  Impelled by tremendous momentum, it twirled through sky for

an incredible distance before curving earthward and striking the

snowpack with a tremendous impact on its four wheels.  As if in slow

motion, it bounced and sailed into a tall ponderosa pine, smashing

against the thick trunk.  The grinding screech of mangled metal split

the thin air as the chassis and body wrapped around the tree until the

front and rear bumpers met like a pitched horseshoe against a steel

stake.  Glass exploded like confetti and the bodies inside were twisted

and mashed like flies under a swatter.

Giordino shook his head in wonder.  "That's the danmedest sight I've

ever seen."

"More to come," said Pitt.  He had straightened out the Cord's wild

slide, but there was no slowing its velocity.  The brakes had burned out

halfway down the slope and the steering tie rod was bent and hanging by

a thread.  The Cord's path was un stakable.  It was heading toward the

large ski facility and restaurant building at the base of the chair

lifts.  All Pitt could do was keep blowing the horns and struggle to

avoid skiers too dumb to scramble out of the way.

The women had watched the destruction of the last Mercedes with morbid

curiosity and vast relief.  The relief was short-lived.  They turned and

stared aghast at the rapidly approaching building.

"Can't we do something?" Hala demanded.

"I'm open for suggestions," Pitt fired back. tie became quiet as he

managed to dodge a ski class made up of young children by careening up a

snowbank and curling around them.  The main mass of skiers had either

heard or witnessed the crash of the Mercedes and were galvanized into

action at the sight and sound of the Cord.  They quickly moved to the

side of the  I and stared in utter incomprehension as the Cord rocketed

by.

Warnings of the runaway vehicles had been phoned from the upper end of

the chair lift, and ski instructors had cleared most of the crowd away

it-from the base area.  There was a shallow, frozen pond to the right of

the ski center.  Pitt hoped to angle in that direction and run onto the

ice until it cracked open sinking the car to the running boards and

bringing it to an abrupt halt.  The only problem was, the onlookers had

unwittingly formed a corridor leading to the restaurant.

"I don't suppose there's a plan five," said Giordino, bracing himself

for the collision.

"Sorry," said Pitt.  "We're all sold out."

Lily and Hala watched, helpless and horror-stricken.  Then they dived

behind the division behind the chauffeur's seat, closed their eyes and

clutched each other.

Pitt stiffened as they struck several long racks holding skis and poles.

The skis seemed to explode as they were sent flying through the air like

toothpicks.  for an instant the Cord seemed buried, but then it burst

clear and bored up the concrete stairway, missing the restaurant but

splintering through the wooden wall of the cocktail lounge.

The room had been emptied except for the piano player, who sat paralyzed

at his keyboard, and a bartender, who elected discretion and frantically

took refuge behind the bar just as the Cord exploded into the room and

bulldozed its way through a sea of chairs and tables.

The Cord almost broke  ugh the far wall and down a two-story drop.

Miraculously, its momentum finally spent, the mutilated car stopped

short, leaving only its badly distorted front bumper protruding through

the wall.  The cocktail lounge looked like the recipient of an artillery

barrage.

Except for the hiss of the radiator and the crackling of the overheated

engine, an eerie silence filled the room.  Pitt had banged his head

against the windshield frame and blood was streaming down his face from

a cut above the hairline.  He looked over at Giordino, who sat staring

at the wall as if turned to stone.  Pitt turned and stared down at the

women behind.  They were wearing their best "are we still alive?" look,

but seemed none the worse for wear.

The bartender was still huddled out of sight behind the bar, so Pitt

turned to the piano player, who sat in a daze on a three-legged stool.

He was wearing a derby hat and the cigarette that dangled from the side

of his mouth hadn't even lost its ash.  His hands were poised above the

keys, his body rigid as if he was locked in suspended animation.  He

stared, shaken, at the bloody apparition who insanely smiled back.

"Pardon me," sir Pitt asked politely.  "Can you play 'Fly Me to the

Moon'?"

October 19, 1991

Uxmal; Yucatdn

The stonework on the massive structure reflected an unearthly glow under

the battery of multicolored floodlights.  Blue dyed the walls of the

great pyramid, while orange highlighted the Temple of the Magician on

the top.  Red spotlights swept up and down the wide staircase, giving

the effect of cascading blood.  Above, on the roof of the temple, a

slender figure stood haloed in white.

Topiltzin spread his arms and open hands in a divine gesture and stared

down at the hundred thousand upraised faces surrounding the

temple/pyramid in the ancient Mayan city of Uxmal on the YucatAn

peninsula.  He ended his speech, as he always did, with a chant in the

lilting Aztec tongue.  The vast audience picked up the phrases and

repeated them in unison.

"The strength and courage of our nation lies in us who will never be

great or wealthy.  We starve, we toil for leaders who are less noble and

honest than ourselves.  There can be no glory or greatness in Mexico

until the false government is dead.  No longer will we endure slavery.

The gods are gathering again to sacrifice the corrupt for the decent.

Their gift is a new civilization.  We must accept it."

As the words died away, the colored lights slowly dimmed until only

Topiltzin remained brightly lit.  Then the white spotlights blinked out

and he was gone.

Great bonfires were lit, and a truck caravan began handing out boxes of

food to the grateful mass of people.  Each container held the same

amount of flour and canned goods, and a cartoonUe booklet, heavy on

illustrations, light on captions. President De Lorenzo and his cabinet

ministers were drawn to resemble demons being driven out of Mexico and

into the open arms of an evil-looking Uncle Sam by Topiltzin and four

major Aztec gods.

A list of instructions was also included, describing peaceful but

effective methods of eroding government influence.

During the food handout, men and women worked the crowd, recruiting new

followers for Topiltzin.  The event was staged and oiled with the

professionalism of a rock concert organization.  Uxmal was only one stop

from Toppling the campaign to subvert the government in Mexico City.

He preached to the masses only at the great stone centers of the

past-Teotihuacdn, Monte Albdn, ?"ula and Chichdn It7A. He never appeared

in Mexico's modern cities.

The people cheered Topiltzin and shouted his name.  But he no longer

heard them.  The instant the spotlights went off, his bodyguards hustled

him down a ladder on the backside of the pyramid and into a large truck

and semitrailer.  The engine was started and the truck, led by one car

and followed by another slowly wound its way through the crowd until it

met the high' way.  Then it turned toward the Yucatdn state capital of

Mdrida and picked up speed.

The interior of the trailer was expensively decorated and divided

between a conference room and Topiltzin's private living quarters.

Topiltzin briefly discussed the next day's schedule with his close

worshipers.  When the meeting broke up, the truck was stopped, and

everyone bid him a good night.  The two cars collected the weary

followers and drove them to hotels in MA-rida.

Once Topiltzin closed the door and shut off one world, he entered

another.

He removed a feathered headdress and stripped off his white robe,

revealing a pair of expensive slacks and a sports shirt underneath.  He

opened a hidden cabinet, removed a chilled bottle of Schramsberg Blanc

de Blanc sparkling wine and swiftly extracted the cork.  The first glass

was downed for thirst, but the second was slowly savored.

Relaxed, Topiltzin entered a small cubicle containing communications

equipment, punched in a numbered code on a holographic telephone and

turned to face the center of the room.  He sipped at the California

champagne and waited. Slowly an indistinct figure began to materialize

in three dimensions.  At the same time, Topiltzin was visible thousands

of miles away.

When the details cleared, another man sat on an ottoman couch and stared

back at Topiltzin.  His complexion was dark, and the thin brushed-back

hair gleamed with oil.  His eyes had a hard-jeweled gleam.  The visitor

was dressed in a silk paisley robe over pajamas.  He studied Topiltzin's

shirt and slacks for a moment and frowned when he noticed the glass in

one hand.

"You live dangerously," he said sternly in American English.  "Designer

clothing, champagne-next it will be women."

Topiltzin laughed.  "Don't tempt me.  Acting like the Pope and wearing a

bizan-e costume eighteen hours a day is bad enough without practicing

celibacy."

"I endure the same inconvenience."

"We both have our own cross to bear," Topiltzin said in a bored tone.

"Do not get careless so close to success."

"I don't intend to.  None of my people would dare disturb my privacy.

Whenever I'm alone, they think I'm communicating with the gods."

The other man smiled.  "The routine sounds familiar."

"Shall we get down to business?" said Topiltzin.

"All right, what's the status?"

"The arrangements are sealed.  Everyone will be in his place at the

right moment.  I paid out over ten million pesos in bribes to set up the

rendezvous.  Once the fools on the take did their job, they were

sacrificed, not only to guarantee their silence but also as a warning to

those who are waiting to carry out our instructions.  "

"My congratulations.  You're very thorough."

"I leave the cleverness to you."

There was a friendly silence after this remark, which lasted several

moments while both men rested on their thoughts.  At last the caller

smiled craftily and produced a small brandy snifter from beneath a fold

of his gown. "Your health."

Topiltzin gave a satiric laugh and raised his champagne glass.  "To a

successful venture."

The ethereal visitor paused.  "A successful venture," he repeated, and

then added, "with no snags." After an even longer pause he said

pensively, "It will be interesting to see how our efforts alter the

fumm."

The roar of the engines lessened as the uinnarked Beechcraft jet lifted

away from Buckley Field outside Denver and rose toward its crusing

altitude.  The snow-capped rockies fell away behind as the aircraft set

its nose across the great plains.

"The President sends his best wishes for a speedy recovery," said Dale

Nichols.  "He was quite angered when briefed on your ordeal '

"Madder than hell is a better description," Schiller cut in.

"Let's say he wasn't happy," Nichols continued.  "He asked me to express

his apologies for not providing stronger security measures and promised

he will do everything within his power to ensure your safety while you

remain in the United States."

"Tell him I'm grateful," Hala replied, "and please beg him for me to

give every consideration to the families of the men who died saving my

life."

"They'll be well taken care of," Nichols assured her.

Hala was lying propped in a bed, wearing a white velour sweatsuit

striped in jade with a knit polo collar.  Her right ankle was in a

plaster cast.  She looked at Nichols, then toward Julius Schiller and

Senator Pitt, who were all seated opposite her bed.  "I'm honored that

three such distinguished gentlemen took time from their busy schedules

to fly to Colorado and accompany me back to New York."

"If we can do anything-"

"You've done much more than any foreigner on your soil could expect."

"You have the lives of a cat," said Senator Pitt.

Her lips parted in a slight smile.  "I owe two of them to your son.  He

has a capacity for appearing in the right place when you least expect

him."

"I saw Dirk's old car.  It's a miracle you all survived."

"A truly beautiful machine," Hala sighed.  "A pity it was destroyed.  "

Nichols cleared his throat.  "If we may touch on the subject of your

address to the U.N. tomorrow . . ."

"Have your people turned up any solid data leading to the Alexandria

missing artifacts?" Hala asked sharply.

Nichols glanced at the Senator and Schiller with the look of a man who

suddenly stepped in quicksand.  The Senator threw him a rope and gave

the reply.

"We haven't had time to launch a massive search," he said honestly.  "We

know little more than we did four days ago."

Nichols began hesitantly.  "The President . . . he hoped . . ."

"I'll save you time, Mr. Nichols." Hala's eyes turned to Schiller.  "You

may rest easy, Juhus, my speech will include a brief report on the

inuninent discovery of the Alexandria Library antiquities."

"I'm glad to hear you've changed your mind."

"Considering recent events, I owe your government that much."

Nichols was visibly relieved.  "Your announcement will give President

Hasan a sharp political advantage over Akhmad Yazid, and a golden

opportunity to boost Egyptian nationalism over religious

fulldamentalism."

"Don't expect too much," said the Senator.  "We're only filling cracks

on a crumbling fort."

Schiller's lips parted in a cold smile.  "I'd give a month's salary to

see Yazid's face when he realizes he's been had."

"I'm afraid he'll really come after Hala with a vengeance," said

Schiller.

"I don't think so," said Nichols.  "If the FBI can link a chain from the

dead terrorists to Yazid and then to the assassin responsible for the

plane crash with the death of sixty people, many moderate Egyptians who

do not condone terrorism will withdraw their support from his movement.

With an internationally publicized terrorist mission laid on his

doorstep, he'd have to think twice before ordering another attempt on

Ms. Kainil's life."

"Mr.  Nichols is correct on one point," said Hala.  "Most Egyptians are

Sunni Moslems who do not follow the bloody revolutionary dnimbeat of the

Iranian Shiites.  They prefer an evolutionary approach that slowly

changes the people's loyalty from a democratic government to a religious

leadership.  They will not accept Yazid's bloodlust methods." Hala

paused a moment.  "I disagree on the second point.  Yazid won't rest

until I'm dead.  He is too fanatical to give up.  He's probably planning

another attempt on my life this minute."

"She may be right; we must keep a sharp intelligence eye on Yazid,"

cautioned the Senator.

"What are your plans after your U.N. address?" asked Schiller.

"This morning, before we left the hospital, I was given a letter from

President Hasan by an attache from our embassy in Washington.  President

Hasan wishes me to meet with him."

"Once you leave our boundaries we can't guarantee your protection,"

Nichols warned her.

"I understand," she replied.  "But there is little cause for concern.

Since President Sadat's assassination, Egyptian security people have

become quite efficient."

"May I ask where this meeting will be held?" queried Schiller.  "Or is

it none of my business?"

"No secret; in fact it will be covered by the world news media," Hala

answered nonchalantly.  "President Hasan and I will confer during the

coming economic meetings in Punta del Este, Uruguay."

The mangled and bullet-holed Cord sat forlornly in the middle of the

shop floor.  benson slowly circled the car and shook his head sadly.

"This is the first time I've ever had to restor-e a classic car two days

after I finished it."

"We had a bad day," Giordino explained.  He was wearing a neck brace,

one arm was in a sling, and his nicked ear was heavily bandaged.

"It's a wonder any of you are standing here."

Except for six stitches, mostly hidden by his hair, Pitt was unmarked.

He patted the buckled chrome radiator shell as if the car was an injured

pet.

"Lucky for us they used to build them to last," he said quietly.

Lily limped painfully from the shop office.  Her left cheek was bruised

and the opposite eye was blackened.

"I have Hiram Yaeger on the phone," she announced.

Pitt nodded.  He put a hand on benson's shoulder.  "Make her even better

than she was before."

"We're looking at six months and heavy bucks," said benson.

"Time is no problem and neither is money." Pitt paused and broke into a

grin.  "The government is going to foot the bill this time around." He

turned, walked into the office and picked up the phone.  "Hiram, you got

something for me?"

"Just a status report," Yaeger replied from Washington. "I've eliminated

the Baltic Sea and the coastline of Norway."

"And nothing showed."

"Nothing worth celebrating.  No matching of geologic contours or

geographic descriptions from the Serapis log.  The barbarians Rufinus

mentioned don't come close to fitting the early Vikings.  He wrote of

people who resembled Scydiians, but with darker skins."

"That bothered me too," Pitt agreed.  "The Scythians came from Central

Asia.  Not damned likely they'd have been fairskinned and blond."

"I see no sense in continuing the computer search around Norway into the

northern waters of Russia."

"I agree.  What about Iceland?   The Vikings didn't settle there for

another five hundred years.  Maybe Rufinus meant Eskimos."

"No go," said Yaeger.  "I checked.  Eskimos never migrated to Iceland.

Rufinus also threw in the mystery of the 'great sea of dwarflike pines.'

He couldn't have found them on Iceland. And don't forget, you're talking

about a six-hundred-mile voyage across some of the worst seas in the

world.  Historical marine records are quite precise: Roman ship captains

rarely sailed out of sight of land for more than two days.  The voyage

from the nearest European land mass would have taken at least four and a

half days under ideal conditions.  "

"So where do we go from here?"

"I'll run the West African coast by again.  We might have missed

something.  Dark-skinned Africans and a warmer climate seem more logical

than the cold northern countries, especially to men from the

Mediterranean."

"You still have to explain how the Serapis came to be in Greenland."

"A projection of wind and currents could give us a clue."

"I'm flying back to Washington tonight," said Pitt.  "I'll look in on

you tomorrow."

"Maybe I'll have something," said Yaeger, but his tone did not sound

optimistic.

Pitt hung up and stepped from the office.  Lily looked at him with an

expression of hope.  Then she read the disappointment in his eyes.

"No good news?" she asked.

He shrugged negatively.  "Seems we haven't left square one."

She took his arm.  "Yaeger will come through," she said encouragingly.

"He can't work miracles."

Giordino held up a watch on his good arm.  "We don't have much time to

make our flight.  We'd better get rolling."

Pitt walked over, shook benson's hand and smiled. "Make her well again.

She saved our lives."

benson looked at him.  "Only if you promise me you'll keep her away from

flying bullets and ski slopes."

"Done."

After they left for the airport, benson opened a rear door of the Cord.

The door handle came off in his hand.

"God," he said mournfully, "what a mess."

A loud roar of applause erupted in the public galleries and swept over

the delegates on the main floor below as Hala refused all assistance and

slowly made her way to the podium on crutches.  She stood behind the

podium, poised and serene, speaking in a strong, convincing voice.  Her

theatrics were low-key and subtle.  She moved the audience with an

emotional appeal to stop the useless killing of innocent people in the

name of religion.  Only when she called for a censure of governments

that turned a blind eye toward terrorist organizations did a few

delegates shift in their seats and stare into space.

An undercurrent of murmurs trailed her news of the forthcoming

Alexandria Library discovery as the immense potential took time to sink

in.  Then Akhmad Yazid came in for a scathing attack, as she accused him

directly of the attempts on her life.

Hala concluded by firmly stating she would not be driven out of her

position as Secretary-General by threats of future harm, but would

remain until her fellow delegates asked for her resignation.

The  response  was  a  standing  ovation  that  became  thunder ous as

she stood off to one side of the podium and displayed the cast on her

ankle.

"She's some lady," said the President admiringiy.  "What I wouldn't give

to have her sit in my cabinet." He pressed the off button on a remote

control and the television screen went black.

"An excellent speech," said Senator Pitt.  "She tore Yazid apart-and

made a good pitch on the Library search project."

The President nodded.  "Yes, she came through for us on both counts."

"You know, of course, she's leaving for Uruguay to confer with President

Hasan."

"Dale Nichols briefed me on the conversation you had with her on the

plane," the President acknowledged.  He was seated behind his desk in

the Oval Office.  "How do we stand on the search?"

"NUMA!s computer facility is working on a location," answered the

Senator.

"Are they close?"

The Senator shook his head.  "No closer now to a breakthrough than they

were four days ago."

I.Can't we speed up the process?   Bring in a think tank, university

people, other government agencies?"

Senator Pitt looked doubtful.  "NUMA has the finest computer library in

the world on oceans, lakes and rivers.  If they can't find the

destination of the Egyptian fleet, no one can."

"What about archaeological and historical records?" the President

suggested.  "Maybe something's been uncovered in the past that could

offer a clue."

"Might be worth a try.  I know a good man at Penn State University who's

a triple-A researcher.  He can have  my people digging the archives here

and in Europe by this time tomorrow."

"Good, give him a crack at it."

"Now that the news media and Hala have spread the word," said the

Senator, "half the governments and most of the fortune hunters of the

world will be on the hunt for the Library collection."

"I considered that probability going in,"  the  President  said.

"But propping up President Hasan's government takes top priority.  If we

make the discovery first and then pretend to back down after Hasan makes

a dramatic show of demanding the artifacts be returned to Egypt, his

domestic popularity will take a big jump, and make him a hero in the

eyes of the Egyptian people."

"While stalling off the threat of a takeover by Yazid and his

followers," added the Senator.  "The only problem is Yazid himself.  The

man is extremely unpredictable.  Our best Middle East experts can't read

him.  He's liable to pull a rabbit out of the hat and steal the scene."

The President looked at him steadily.  "I see no problem in cutting him

out of the limelight when the artifacts are turned over to President

Hasan."

"I'm on your side, Mr. President, but it's dangerous to underestimate

Yazid."

"He's far from perfect."

"Yes, but unlike the Ayatollah Khomeini, Akhmad Yazid is a brilliant

intellect.  He's what the advertising agencies call a good concept man."

"In political areas perhaps, but hardly in assassinations."

The Senator shrugged and ssighed knowingly.  "His plans were, no doubt,

screwed up by his henchmen.  As President, you know better than anyone

how easily an aide or adviser can botch a simple project."

The President smiled back without humor.  He leaned back in his chair

and toyed with a pen.  "We know damned little about Yazid, where he came

from, what makes him tick."

"He claims to have spent the first thirty years of his life wandering

the Sinai desert talking to Allah."

"So he's lifted a page from Jesus Christ.  What else do we have on him?"

"You might ask Dale Nichols," answered the Senator.  "I understand he's

working with the CIA on building a biographical and psychological

profile."

"Let's see if they've come up with anything." The President pressed a

button on his intercom.  "Dale, can you come in for a minute?"

"Be right there," came Nichols's voice over the speaker.

Neither of  the  men  in  the  Oval  Office  spoke  during  the fifteen

seconds Nichols took to walk from his office.  He knocked, then opened

the door and stepped in.

"We were discussing Akhmad Yazid," the President informed him.  "Have

Brogan's people turned up any data on his background?"

"I talked to Martin only an hour ago," replied Nichols.  "He said his

analysts should have a file put together in another day or two."

"I want to see it the minute it's completed," said the President.

"Not to change the subject," said Senator Pitt, "but shouldn't someone

brief President Hasan on what we've got in mind in case the Library

collection can be pinpointed in the next few weeks?"

The President nodded.  "Definitely." He stared directly at the Senator.

"Think you could sneak off for forty-eight hours and do the honors,

George?"

"You want me to meet with Hasan in Uruguay." It was more a statement

than question.

"Do you mind?"

"This is really a matter for Doug Oates over at the State Department. He

and Joe Arnold from Treasury are already in Kingston holding preliminary

meetings with foreign economic leaders.  Do you think it wise to go

behind his back?"

"Ordinarily, no.  But you're better informed on the search project.

You've also met with President Hasan on four different occasions, and

you're close to Hala Kamil.  Simply put, you're the best man for the

job."

The Senator lifted his hands in resignation.  "No heavy votes coming up

in the Senate.  My staff can cover for me. if you arrange for a

government plane, I can leave here early Tuesday and arrive the

following afternoon."

"Thank you, George, you're a good scout." The President paused, and then

sprang the trap.  "There is one other thing."

"There always is." The Senator sighed.

"I'd like you to inform President Hasan 'm private, under the strictest

secrecy, that I will fully cooperate with him in the event he decides to

remove Yazid."

The Senator's voice was shocked.  "Since when does the White House deal

in political assassination?   I implore you, Mr. President, do not lower

your office into the slime with Yazid and other terrorists."

"If someone had had the foresight to take Khomeini for a ride twelve

years ago, the Middle East would be a far more peaceful place."

"King George might have said the same about George Washington and the

colonies in 1778."

"Come now, George, we could spend all day making comparisons.  The final

decision is up to Hasan.  He has to give the go-ahead."

"A bad idea," saidd the Senator resolutely.  "I have grave doubts about

such an offer.  If this leaked out it could shatter your Presidency."

"I respect your advice and honesty.  That's why you're the only man I

can trust to deliver the message."

The Senator caved in.  "I'll do as you ask and gladly brief Hasan on the

Library proposal, but don't expect me to sell him on Yazid's murder even

if it's deserved."

"I'll see that Hasan's staff is alerted to your arrival," said Nichols,

stepping in diplomatically.

The President rose from behind his desk, signaling the end of the

conference.  He shook hands with the Senator.

"I'm grateful, old friend.  I'll look forward to your report Wednesday

afternoon.  We'll have an early supper together."

"See you then, Mr. President."

"Have a good flight."

As Senator Pitt left the Oval Office he had a dire sense that the

President might very well be dining alone Wednesday evening.

The Lady Flamborough slipped smoothly into the tiny harbor of Punta del

Este just minutes before the sun fell over the western interior of the

mainland.  A soft breeze drifted in from the south that barely fluttered

the Union Jack on her stern.

She was a beautiful cruise ship, trim and handsomely designed, with a

streamlined superstructure.  She broke with the traditional British

black hull and more common white on her upper works.  She was painted

entirely in a soft slate blue with a sharply raked funnel banded in

royal purple and burgundy.

One of the new breed of sleek, small cruise ships, the Lady Flamborough

looked more like a posh motor yacht.  Her trim 101-meter-long hull

contained the most sumptuous luxuries afloat.  With only fifty large

suites, she carried just one hundred passengers, who were catered to by

an equal number of crew members.

On this voyage, however, from her home port in San Juan, Puerto Rico,

she sailed without passengers.

"Two degrees port," said the dark-skinned pilot.

"Two degrees port," acknowledged the helmsman.

The pilot stood in loose khaki shirt and shorts and kept a calculating

eye on the finger of land that sheltered the bay until it slipped behind

the Lady Flamborough's stern.

"Begin coming around to starboard and hold steady at zero eight zero."

The helmsman dutifully repeated the command and the ship very slowly

swung on its new course.

The harbor was crowded with yachts and other cruise ships riving flocks

of colorful pointed and swallowtail pennants. Some vessels were

chartered as floating hotels for the economic conference, others were

filled with their usual complement of vacationing passengers.

Half a kilometer from the mooring site the pilot ordered the engines on

"dead stop." The luxurious ship slipped through the calm water on her

momentum, eating up the distance and gradually easing to a halt.

Satisfied, the pilot spoke into a portable transmitter.  "We're in

position.  Slow aft and drop the hook."

The order was relayed to the bow, and the anchor payed out as the ship

very slightly moved astern.  When the flukes dug into the harbor silt,

the slack was taken up and the order was given to ring the engines to

"off."

Captain Oliver Collins, a slim man standing straight as a plumb line in

an impeccably tailored white uniform, nodded at the pilot in respect and

offered his hand.

"Neatly done as always, Mr. Campos." Captain Collins had known the pilot

for almost twenty years, yet he never referred to anyone, even his

closest friends, by his Christian name.

"If her length stretched another thirty meters I couldn't squeeze her

in." Harry Campos smiled, revealing an array of tobacco-stained teeth.

His accent was more hish than Spanish. "Sorry we can't slip her into a

berth, Captain, but I was told to moor you in the harbor."

"for security reasons, I should imagine," said Collins.

Campos lit the stub of a cigar.  "The bigwig meetings have the whole

island turned upside down.  You'd think there was a sniper behind every

palm the way security police are acting."

Collins stared through the bridge windows at the popular playground of

South America.  "I'll not complain.  This ship will be hosting the

presidents of Mexico and Egypt during the conference.

"That a fact?" muttered Campos.  "No wonder they wanted to keep your

vessel offshore."

"May I offer you a drink in my cabin, or better yet, considering the

hour, would you do the honor of dining with me?"

Campos shook his head.  "My thanks for the invite, Captain." He paused

and motioned at the mass of ships filling the harbor.  "But she's a busy

time.  Maybe a rain check for your next layover."

Campos filled out his document for payment and handed it to Captain

Collins, who signed.  Campos looked through the aft bridge windows at

the immaculate decks of the ship.

"One of these days I'll take a holiday and sail with you as a

passenger."

"Let me know," said Collins.  "I'll see the company covers all your

expenses."

"A mighty kind offer.  If I tell my wife, she'll never let up till I

take advantage of it."

"A pleasure, Mr. Campos.  any time you say the word."

The pilot boat came alongside and Campos jumped onto the deck from the

boarding ladder.  He gave a final wave as the boat pulled away and

headed out to sea to pilot the next incoming vessel.

"Most enjoyable voyage I ever sailed." This from Collins's first

officer, Nhchael Finney.  "A frill crew and no passengers. for six days

I thought I'd died and gone to heaven."

Company orders required ship's officers to spend almost as much time

entertaining the passengers as sailing the ship, a duty Finney hated

with a passion.  A fine seaman, he stayed away from the main dining

salon as much as possible, preferring to eat with his fellow officers,

or making constant inspections of the ship.

Finney didn't exactly look the part of a party mixer.  He was big, with

a barrel chest that fought to explode from the tight confines of his

uniform.

"I don't imagine you missed the joy of mingling and small talk," said

Collins sarcastically.

Finney made a disagreeable face.  "Wouldn't be so bad if they didn't ask

the same stupid questions all the time."

"Courtesy and respect when dealing with passengers, Mr. Finney," Collins

admonished.  "It goes with the waters.  Mind your manners in the next

few days.  We'll be entertaining some rather important foreign leaders

and statesmen."

Finney  did  not  reply.  He  gazed  at  the  modern  high-rise

"Everytime I see the old town," he said wistfully, "they ve added

another hotel."

"Yes, you're from Uruguay."

"Born just west in Montevideo.  My father was a sales rep for a Belfast

machinery company."

"You must enjoy coming home," said Collins.

"Not really.  I signed aboard a Panamanian ore carrier when I was

sixteen.  Mum and dad are gone.  Nobody left I grew up with." He paused

and pointed through the bridge window at an approaching boat.  "Here

come the bloody customs and immigration inspectors."

"Since we have no passengers, and the crew won't be going ashore," said

Collins, "the vessel should be cleared with a rubber stamp."

"The health inspectors are the worst nuisance."

"Notify the purser, Mr. Finney.  Then show them to my cabin."

"Begging your pardon, sir, but isn't that a bit much?   I mean, greeting

mere customs inspectors in the Captain's cabin."

"Perhaps, but I want everything to run smoothly with the bureaucracy

while we're in harbor.  You never know when we might require a favor."

"Aye, sir."

It was dusk as the customs and immigration officials brought their boat

alongside the Lady Flamborough and mounted the boarding ladder.  The

ship's lights suddenly blazed on and illuminated her upper decks and

superstructure. Moored amid the lights of the city and the other cruise

ships, she sparkled like a diamond in a jewelry box.

The Uniguayan officials, led by Finney, approached the open doorway to

the Captain's cabin.  Collins studied the five men including his first

officer.  He was a man who missed very little, and he quickly noticed

something odd about one of them.  One man had on a wide-brimmed straw

hat pulled low over his eyes and was wearing a jumpsuit, while the rest

were dressed properly enough in the casual uniforms worn by most

officials throughout the Caribbean islands.

The fellow who stood out walked without looking up, keeping his eyes on

the feet of the man in front of him.  When they reached the dciorway,

Finney politely stood aside and allowed them to enter first.

Collins stepped forward.  "Good evening, gentlemen.  Welcome aboard the

Lady Flamborough.  I'm Captain Oliver Collins."

The visiting officials stood strangely silent and Collins and Finney

exchanged curious glances.  Then the man in the jumpsuit stepped forward

and slowly peeled it off, revealing a white uniform with gold braid that

was an exact copy of the one Collins wore.  Next he removed the straw

hat and replaced it with a cap that matched the uniform.

The normally calm Collins was momentarily caught off balance.  He felt

as though he was staring into a mirror. The stranger could easily have

passed for a twin brother.

"Who are you?" Collins demanded.  "What's going on here?"

"No name is necessary," said Suleiman Aziz Ammar with a disamiing smile.

"I am taking command of your ship."

Surprise is the key for any successful clandestine operation. And the

surprise takeover of the Lady Flamborough was total. Except for Captain

Collins, First Officer Finney and a stunned purser, who were bound,

gagged and closely guarded in Finney's cabin, none of the other officers

or crew had the vaguest idea their ship had been hijacked.

Ammar cut his timing to a fine edge.  The bona fide Uruguayan customs

inspectors showed up only twelve minutes later.  He greeted them as if

they were old acquaintances in his makeup and near-perfect disguise as

Collins.  The men he had hand-picked to play the roles of Finney and the

purser kept to the shadows.  They were both experienced ship's officers

and bore a remarkable resemblance to their counterparts.  Few crew

members would have noticed the facial differences outside of three

meters.

The Uruguayan officials cleared the vessel and were soon on their way.

Ammar called Collins's second and third officers to the captain's cabin.

This would be his first and most crucial test.  If he passed their

inspection without arousing suspicion, they would become invaluable to

him as innocent accomplices to carry out the complicated plot in the

next twenty-four hours.

Making himself up to look like Dale Lemk, the pilot of Nebula Flight

106, was not a difficult process.  Animar had easily casta plaster mold

from Lemk's face after he'd murdered him.  Disguising himself to pass as

the captain of the Lady Flamborough was another matter.  He was forced

to work from only eight photographs of Collins obtained on short notice

by one of his agents in Britain.  He also had to inject himself with a

compound that raised his voice to an identical level with recordings of

Collins's voice.

He hired a skilled artist to sculpt a likeness of Collins's face from

the photos.  Male and female molds were cast from the sculpture.  Next,

a natural latex, dyed to match Captain Collins's skin coloring, was

pressed between the molds and set aside until gelation occurred, and

then baked.  He trimmed and carefully fitted the latex mask, using a

resin-wax mixture to match minor changes in facial structure.

Then Ammar applied foamed ear and nose prosthetics and added makeup.

Finally, a correctly dyed, barbered and parted hairpiece, contact lenses

to match the color of Collins's eyes, tooth caps, and Animar became the

spitting image of the cruise liner's Captain.

Ammar did not have the time to study Oliver Collins's personality

profile in depth or study the Captain's mannerisms. He just managed to

take a cram course on shipboard duties and memorize the names and faces

of the ship's officers.  He had no choice but to bluff it out, relying

correctly on the assumption the crew did not have the slightest reason

to be skeptical.  As soon as the two officers stepped into the Captain's

cabin, Ammar immediately acted to tip the scales in his favor.

"Pardon me, gentlemen, for sounding and looking a bit under the weather,

but I've picked up a case of the flu."

"Shall I send for the ship's doctor?" asked Second Officer Herbert

Parker, physically fit, suntanned, with a smooth boyish face that seemed

as if it saw a razor only on Saturday evenings.

A near- stake, thought Ammar.  A doctor familiar with Collins would have

spotted the masquerade in a flash.

"He's already given me enough pills to choke an elephant.  I feel fit

enough to muddle through my duties."

The third officer, a Scot with the unlikely name of Isaac Jones, pushed

aside a shag of red hair from his high forehead. "Anything we can do,

sir?"

"Yes, Mr. Jones, there is," answered Ammar.  "Our VIP passengers will be

arriving tomorrow afternoon.  You will be in charge of the welcoming

party.  We don't often have the honor of entertaining two presidents,

and I should think the company will expect us to carry out a first-rate

ceremony."

"Yes, sir," snapped Jories.  "Depend on it."

"W. Parker.

"Captain .

"A landing craft will arrive within the hour to transship a cargo for

the company.  You will be in charge of the loading operations.  A team

of security people will also be coming aboard this evening.  Please see

they are provided with suitable quarters.

"Rather short notice, isn't it, sir, taking on cargo?   And I thought

the Egyptian and Mexican security agents weren't due until early

morning."

"Our company directors work in mysterious ways," Ammar said

philosophically.  "As to our armed guests, company orders again.  They

want their own security personnel on board in case of a problem."

"A matter of one security team overseeing another."

"Something like that.  I believe Lloyds demanded extra precautions or

they threatened to raise our insurance rate to some astronomical

height."

"I understand."

"any questions, gentlemen?"

There were none and the two officers turned to leave. "Herbert, there is

one more thing," said Ammar.  "Please load the cargo as quietly and

quickly as possible."

"I will, sir."

Once they were out of earshot on the deck, Parker turned to Jones.  "Did

you hear that?   He called me by my first name. Don't you think that

jolly queer?"

Jones shrugged indifferently.  "He must be sicker than we thought.

The  landing  craft  came  alongside  and  a  small  cargo boom was run

out.  The  loading  operation  went  smoothly.  The  rest  of Ammar's

men, dressed in business suits, also came on board and were assigned to

four empty suites.

By midnight the landing craft slipped into the darkness and was gone.

The Lady Flamborough's cargo boom was pulled into the hold out of sight

and the large double loading doors were closed.

Ammar rapped five times on Finney's door and waited.  The door was

cracked slightly and the guard stood back.  Arnniar took a quick look up

and down the carpeted passageway and entered.

He nodded toward the Captain.  The guard moved forward and stripped the

tape from Collins's mouth.  "I regret the inconvenience, Captain.  But I

suppose it would be a waste of words to ask you to give me your word you

won't attempt to escape and warn your crew."

Collins sat stiffly in a chair, his arms and legs chained together, and

glared at Ammar with murder in his eyes.  "You sordid sewer filth."

"You British have a literary quality to your insults that is quite

amusing.  An American would have simply used a fourletter word meaning

the same thing."

"You'll get no cooperation from me or my officers."

"Not even if I order my men to slit the throats of your female crew

members one by one and throw their bodies to the sharks?"

Finney lunged at Ammar but the guard swiftly swung the butt end of his

automatic rifle into the first officer's groin. Finney fell back into

his chair with a muffled groan, his eyes glazed in pain.

Collins's eyes never left Ammar.  "I'd expect as much from a band of

subhuman terrorists."

"We are not ignorant juveniles out to butcher infidels," Ammar explained

patiently.  "We are top-line professionals. This is not a repeat of the

unfortunate Achille Lauro episode of a few years back.  We do not intend

to murder anyone.  Our purpose is simply to hold Presidents Hasan and De

Lorenzo and their staffs for ransom.  If you do not stand in our way, we

shall make our deal with their respective governments and be on our

way."

Collins  studied  Ammar's  mirrored  face, searching for the lie, but

the Arab's eyes reflected genuine honesty.  He could not know Ammar was

a master at theatrical deception.

"But you wouldn't hesitate to butcher my crew otherwise."

"And you too, of course."

"What do you want from me?"

"You, actually nothing.  Mr. Parker and Mr. Jones have accepted me as

Oliver Collins.  It's First Officer Finney whose services I require. You

will order him to obey my commands."

"Why Finney?" asked Collins.

"I opened the desk file in your cabin and read the officers' personal

records.  Finney knows these waters."

"I don't see what you're getting at."

"We cannot afford the risk of calling for a pilot," explained Animar.

"Tomorrow after dark, Finney will take the helm and steer the ship

through the channel into the open sea."

Collins considered that.  Then he slowly shook his head.  "Once the port

authorities get on to you they'll block the harbor entrance whether you

threaten to kill everyone on board or not."

"A darkened ship can slip out on a dark night," Ammar assured him.

"How far do you expect to go?   Every patrol boat within a hundred miles

will have you boxed in by daylight."

... They won't find us."

Collins looked slightly dazed.  "That's crazy.  You can't hide a ship

like the Lady Flamborough."

"Quite true," said Ammar, a cold, knowing smile forming on his lips.

"But I can make her invisible."

Jones was bent over a desk in his cabin making notes for the morning's

welcoming ceremonies when Parker knocked on the door and entered.  He

looked tired and his uniform was damp with sweat.

Jones turned and looked at him.  "Loading duty finished?"

"Yes, thank God."

"How about a nightcap?"

"A glass of your good Scottish malt whiskey?"

Jones rose and lifted a bottle from a dresser drawer.  He poured two

glasses and handed one to Parker.

"Look at it this way," he said.  "You were relieved of standing

early-morning anchor watch."

"I'd have preferred that to cargo loading," said Parker tiredly.  "What

about you?"

"Just got off duty."

"I wouldn't have bothered you if I hadn't seen a light through your

port."

"Burning the midnight oil, making sure everything runs tick-tock smooth

tomorrow."

"Finney isn't about and I felt I had to talk to someone.

for the first time Jones noticed the confused expression in Parker's

eyes.  "What's bothering you?"

Parker downed the Scotch and stared at the empty glass.

"We've just taken on the damnedest cargo I've ever seen come on board a

cruise liner."

"What did you load?" asked Jones, his curiosity aroused.

Parker sat quite still, shaking his head.  "Painting gear.  Air

compressors, brushes, rollers and fifty drums of what I assumed was

paint."

Jones couldn't resist asking, "What color?"

Parker shook his head.  "Can't say.  The drums were marked in Spanish."

"Nothing odd about that.  The company must want them on hand when the

Lady Flamborough goes in for a refit."

"That's only the half of it.  We transshipped huge rolls of plastic.  "

"Plastic?"

"And great sheets of fiberboard," Parker continued.  "We must have

loaded kilometers of the stuff.  We barely squeezed it  ugh the loading

doors.  Mucked around a good three hours just trying to stow it."

Jones stared at his glass through half-open eyes.  "What do you suppose

the company plans to do with it?"

Parker looked up at Jones with a puzzled frown.  "I haven't the foggiest

idea."

"The Egyptian and Mexican security agents came on board soon after sunup

and proceeded to inspect the ship for hidden explosives and make cursory

checks of the crew members' records for any hint of a possible assassin.

Except for a sprinkling of Indians and Pakistanis, the members of the

crew were British, and had no quarrel with the governments of either

Egypt or Mexico.

Animar's terrorist team all spoke fluent English and acted very

cooperative, showing their counterfeit British passports and

insurance-security documents when asked, and offering their assistance

in the ship's inspection.

President De Lorenzo came on board later in the morning. He was a short

man in his early sixties, physically robust, with wind-blown gray hair,

mournful dark eyes, and the suffering look of an intellectual condemned

to a mental institution.

He was welcomed by Ammar impersonating Captain Collins in an

award-winning performance.  The ship's orchestra played the Mexican

national anthem, and then the Mexican leader and his staff were escorted

to their suites on the starboard side of the Lady Flamborough.

In the middle of the afternoon a yacht belonging to a wealthy Egyptian

exporter came alongside and President Hasan climbed onto the ship.  The

Egyptian leader was the complete opposite of his Mexican counterpart. He

was younger, just past his fifty-fourth birthday, with thinning, black

hair.  He stood slim and tall, yet he moved with the halting movements

of a man who was ill.  His dusky eyes were watery and seemed to stare

through a filter of suspicion.

The ceremony was repeated and President Hasan along with his staff were

quartered in the suites running the length of the port side.

Over fifty Third World heads of state had arrived in Punta del Este for

the economic summit.  Some chose to stay in palatial estates owned by

their nation's citizens or at the exclusive Cantegril Country Club.

Others preferred the offshore quiet of the cruise ships.

Visiting diplomats and journalists soon crowded the streets and

restaurants.  Uruguayan officials worried whether they could cope with

the sudden mass of important foreigners combined with the routine influx

of tourists.  The nation's military force and police units did their

best to control the situation, but they were soon overwhelmed by the

human tidal wave sweeping the streets, and they gave up all attempts at

traffic control, concentrating their efforts on guarding the summit

meeting leaders.

Ammar stood on the starboard bridge wing and surveyed the teeming city

through binoculars.  He lowered them for a moment and checked his watch

for the fifth time.

His close friend studied him carefully.  "Are you counting the minutes

until nightfall, Suleiman Aziz?"

"Sunset in forty-three minutes," said Ammar without turning.

"The water is busy," said Ibn, nodding at the fleet of small boats

darting around the harbor, their decks crowded with journalists

demanding interviews and tourists hoping to spot international

celebrities.

"Allow no one to board except Egyptian and Mexican delegates who belong

on boarDe Lorenzo and Hasan's staffs."

"And if any wish to go ashore before we leave poll?"

"Permit them to do so," said Ammar.  "Ship's routine must appear

nominal.  The confusion in the city works to our advantage.  We won't be

missed until it's too late."

"The port authorities are no fools. When our lights fail to come on

after dark, they will investigate."

"They'll be notified that our main generator is under repair." Ammar

pointed toward another cruise liner that was anchored farther offshore

between the Lady Flamborough and the encircling peninsula.  "from shore

her lights will seem like ours.  "

"Unless someone looks closely enough."

Ammar shrugged.  "One hour is all we need to make the open sea.  The

Uruguayan security will not consider a search outside the harbor before

daylight."

"If the Egyptian and Mexican security agents are to be removed in time,"

said Ibn, "we must begin now."

"Your weapons are heavily silenced?"

"Our fire will sound no louder than the clap of hands."

Animar gave Ibn a piercing stare.  "Stealth and quiet, my tend.  Use

whatever deception necessary to isolate and take them out one at a time.

Notify me,  If any escape overboard and alert the security forces on

shore, we all die.  Make sure your men understand."

"We'll need every strong back and pair of hands we can muster for this

night's work."

"Then it's time to earn our fee and make Yazid ruler of Egypt.

The Egyptian guards were the first to be eliminated.  Having no reason

to distrust Ammar's fake insurance-security agents, they were easily

lured into vacant passenger suites that quickly became killing grounds.

any ruse that rang with a grain of truth was used to decoy the security

men.  The lie that worked best was deceiving them into believing one of

their high-ranking officials was stricken with food poisoning and the

ship's captain required their presence.

Once the Egyptian agents crossed the threshold, the door was closed and

a hijacker coldly shot them pointblank in the heart.  While the blood

was quickly cleaned away, the bodies were stacked in an adjoining

bedroom.

When the Mexicans' Turn arrived, two of De Lorenzo's guards became

suspicious, refusing to enter the suite.  But they were swiftly

overpowered and knifed in an empty passageway before they could sound

the alarm.

One by one the security agents went to their deaths, twelve in all,

until only two Egyptians and three Mexicans,'standing guard outside

their leaders' suites, were left.

Dusk was closing in from the east as Animar shed his ship's captain's

uniform and donned a black cotton jumpsuit.  Next he peeled off the

latex disguise and slipped a small jester's mask over his face.

He was in the act of tightening a heavy belt containing two automatic

pistols and a portable radio around his waist when Ibn knocked and

entered the cabin.

"Five remain," he reported.  "They can only be taken by direct assault."

"Good work," said Ammar.  He gave Ibn a steady stare. "We're past the

need for subterfuge.  Rush them, but warn your men to be cautious.  I

don't want Hasan and De Lorenzo accidentally killed."

Ibn nodded and gave the order to one of his men waiting outside the

door.  Then he turned and again faced Animar with a confident smile.

"Consider the ship secure."

Ammar motioned toward a large brass chronometer above Captain Collins's

desk.  "We shove off in thirty-seven minutes. Collect all passengers and

crew members, except the ship's engineers.  See that the engine-room

crew is prepared to get underway when I give the command.  Assemble the

rest in the main dining salon.  It's time to reveal ourselves and

deliver our demands."

Ibn did not respond but stood without moving, the smile spreading until

every tooth showed.  "Allah has blessed us with great fortune," he said

at last.

Ammar looked at him.  "We'll know better whether he's blessed us five

"He's already sent a good omen.  She is here."

"She?   Who are you talking about?"

"Hala Kan-iil."

At first Ammar could not comprehend.  Then he could not believe.

"Karnil, she's here on this ship?"

"She stepped on board less than ten minutes ago," announced Ibn,

beaming.  "I've placed her under guard in one of the female crew

members' quarters."

"Allah is indeed kind," said Ammar incredulously.

"Yes, he has sent the fly to the spider," Ibn said darkly, "and given

you a second chance to kill her in the name of Akhmad Yazid.

Just as darkness was approaching, a light tropical rain cleared the sky

and passed northward.  Lights were blinking to life along Punta del

Estes streets and on board the ships in the harbor, casting flickering

reflections across the water.

Senator Pitt thought it strange that nothing showed of the Lady

Flamborough except her outline against the brightly lit glow of the ship

moored behind her.  She looked dark and deserted as the launch swung

past her bow and came alongside the boarding stairs.

Carrying only a briefcase, the Senator jumped lightly onto the narrow

platform.  He had hardly climbed two steps before the launch turned away

and headed back to the dock area.  He reached the deck and found himself

standing alone.  Something was terribly wrong.  His first thought was

that he'd boarded the wrong ship.

The only sounds, the only sounds of life were a voice somewhere within

the superstructure coming through a speaker system, and the generators

humming deep in the bowels of the hull.

He turned to hail the launch but it had already traveled too far for him

to be heard above the exhaust of its tired old diesel engine.  Then a

figure in a black jumpsuit stepped out of the shadows, holding an

automatic rifle leveled at the Senator's stomach.

"Is this the Lady Flamborough?" the Senator demanded.

"Who are you?" the voice came back in little more than a whisper.  "What

is your business here?" The guard stood there, gun held rock-steady,

staring with his head cocked at an angle while the Senator explained his

presence.

"Senator George Pitt, you say.  An American.  You were not expected."

"President Hasan was informed of my arrival," said the Senator

impatiently.  "Please lower your weapon and take me to his quarters."

The guard's eyes glinted suspiciously from the glare of the lights on

shore.  "Anyone else come with you?"

"No, I'm quite alone."

"You must return ashore."

The Senator tilted his head at the retreating launch.  "My

transportation has left."

The guard seemed to be thinking it over.  Finally he lowered the gun and

silently walked a few steps down the deck and stopped beside a doorway.

He held out a frre hand and nodded toward the briefcase.

"In here," he said softly as though it was some kind of secret.  "Give

me your case."

"Mese are official documents," said the Senator flatly.  He clutched his

briefcase in both hands and brushed past the guard.

He walked into a heavy black curtain, slapped it to one side and found

himself standing in a 2,000-square-meter ballroom/ dining salon.  The

vast room was paneled in oak and styled after an English manor.  A small

army of people, some standing, some sitting, wearing either business

suits or crew uniforms turned and gazed at him in unison as though he

were a ball in a tennis match.

There were nine men spread around the walls, silent, deadly serious men

dressed alike in the black jumpsuits and matching jogging shoes; each

slowly swept the muzzle of a shoulderslung automatic weapon back and

forth over their captive audience.

"Welcome," came the amplified voice of a figure standing on a stage in

front of a microphone, a man indistinguishable from the others except

for a comical mask covering his face -but with that any sign of humor

quickly came to a halt. "Please state your identity."

Senator Pitt stared in confusion.  "What's going on here?"

"You will please answer my question," said Ammar with icy politeness.

"Senator George Pitt, United States Congress.  I'm here to confer with

President Hasan of Egypt.  I was told he was staying on board this

ship."

"You'll find President Hasan seated in the front row."

"Why are these men holding guns on everyone?"

Ammar feigned weary patience.  "Why, Senator, I thought it obvious.

You've blindly walked into the middle of a hijacking.

A growing incomprehension and the tentative beginnings of a dazed fear

mushroomed inside Senator Pitt.  He moved forward as if hypnotized, past

Captain Collins and his officers, and stared at the pale, familiar faces

of Presidents Hasan and De Lorenzo.  He stopped short and looked down

into the stricken eyes of Hala Kamil.

At that moment he realized people were going to die.

He silently put his arm around Hala's shoulder and was swept with sudden

anger.  "In God's name, do you know what you're doing?"

"I know very well what I'm doing," said Ammar.  "Auah has worked with me

every step of the way.  In your poker idiom, he has sweetened the pot by

raising the stakes with the unexpected arrivals of the Secretary-General

of the United Nations, and now a distinguished Senator from the United

States."

"You've made a grave mistake," the Senator snarled defiantly.  "You'll

never live to get away with this and brag about it.

" , but I can and I will."

:'Impossible!"

'Not impossible at all," said Ammar with an ominous finality in his

voice.  "As you shall soon see."

Nichols had donned his overcoat and was stuffing papers inside his

attached case before departing for home when his secretary leaned

through his open door.

"A gentleman from Langley is here with a drop."

"Have him come in."

A CIA agent whom Nichols recognized entered carrying an old-fashioned

leather accountant's-style briefcase.

"You caught me just in time, Keith," said Nichols.  "I was on my way

home."

Keith Farquar had a bushy mustache, thick brown hair, and wore

horned-rimmed glasses.  A large, no-nonsense type of man with

contemplative eyes, he was, Nichols thought, the kind of agent who made

up the solid bulwark of the Central Intelligence Agency.

Without an invitation Farquar sat down in a chair, placed the case on

his lap and set the correct numbers on a combination lock that released

the catch and switched off the circuit of a small incendiary explosive

inside.  He lifted out a thin file and placed it on the desk in front of

Nichols.

"Mr.  Brogan instructed me to tell you that hard data on Akhmad Yazid is

extremely sparse.  Biographical records regarding birth, parents and

ancestors, schooling, marriage, children, or any mention in legal

proceedings either criminal or civil, are virtually nonexistent.  Most

of what our Middle East section was able to put together comes from

descriptions of people who have known him.  Unfortunately, most of them,

for one reason or another, became ene es of Yazid.  So their accounts

are somewhat biased."

"Did your psychological section make up a profile?" asked Nichols.

"They put together a rough projection.  Yazid is as hard to penetrate as

a desert sandstorm.  A shroud of security has covered him in mystery.

Journalists' interviews with people around him are met with ambiguity

and vague shrugs."

"Which adds to the mirage," commented Nichols.

Farquar smiled.  "Mr.  Brogan's exact description of Yazid. 'An elusive

mirage."

"

"'Thank you for bringing the file by," said Nichols.  "And thank

everyone involved with assembling the information for me."

"Anything for a client." Farquar snapped the catches closed on his

briefcase and ambled toward the door.  "Have a nice evening."

"You too."

Nichols buzzed for his secretary.  She appeared wearing a coat and

holding a purse.  "Anything I can do before I leave?"

she asked apprehensively, afraid she would be asked to work overtime for

the third night in a row.

"Could you please call my wife on your way out?" asked Nichols.  "And

tell her not to worry.  I'll make the dinner party, but will be delayed

for about half an hour."

His secretary sighed thankfully.  "Yes, sir, I'll tell her.  Good night.

"Good night."

Nichols slipped his pipe between his teeth but didn't pack or light the

bowl.  He set his attache case off to the side of his desk, and, still

wearing his overcoat, he sat down and examined Yazid's file.

Farquar had not exaggerated.  It was slim pickings.  Although the last

six years were heavily reported, Yazid's life before his rapid rise from

obscurity took up little more than a paragraph.  His debut in the news

media began with his arrest by Egyptian police during a sit-in

demonstration for Cairo's starving masses inside the lobby of a luxury

tourist hotel.  He had distinguished himself by preaching in the worst

slum areas of the country.

Akhmad Yazid stated he was born in squalid poverty in a mud hut among

the decaying mausoleums of the City of the Dead that spilled into the

garbage dumps of Cairo.  His family lived on the thin margin between

survival and death until his two sisters and father died from disease

brought on by hunger and filthy living conditions.

He had no formal schooling except what was given during his adolescent

years by Islamic holy men, none of whom were found to back up this

assertion.  Yazid claimed Muhammad the Prophet spoke through him,

uttering divine revelations to the faiffiffil and urging them to return

Egypt to a utopian Islamic state.

Yazid possessed a resonant speaking voice.  He had the skilled

mannerisms and delivery to enrapture a crowd of listenets, slowly

building them to a fever pitch at the finish.  He insisted Western

philosophy was incapable of resolving Egypt's social/economic problems.

He preached that all Egyptians are members of a lost generation who must

find themselves through his moral vision.

Though he vehemently claimed otherwise, evidence indicated he was not

above using terrorism to achieve his goals. Five separate incidents,

including the murder of a high-ranking Air Force general, a truck

explosion outside the Soviet Embassy, and the execution-style killing of

four university teachers who spoke out in favor of Western ways, were

traced to Yazid's doorstep.  Nothing was proven but through sketchy

information gained from Muslim infomiants, CIA analysts felt certain

Yazid was planning a masterstroke to eliminate president Hasan and sweep

into power on a rising wave of public acclaim.

Nichols laid down the file and finally filled and lit his pipe.

A tiny, indefinable thought tugged at him from the far reaches of his

mind.

Something about the report struck him as vaguely familiar. He laid aside

a glossy photo of Yazid glaring malevolently at the camera.

The answer suddenly struck Nichols.  It was simple and it was shocking.

He picked up his telephone and punched the coded number

of a direct line, impatiently drumming the desk top with his fingers

until a voice answered on the other end.

"This is Brogan."

"Martin,  thank  heavens  you're  working  late.  This is Dale Nichols."

"What can I do for you, Dale?" asked the Director of the CIA.  "Did you

get the packet on Akhmad Yazid?"

"Yes, thank you," replied Nichols.  "I've gone through it and found

something you can help me with."

"Sure, what is it?"

"I need two sets of blood types and fingerprints."

"Fingerprints?"

"That's right."

"We use genetic codes and DNA tracing nowadays," Brogan answered

indulgently.  "any particular reason in mind?"

Nichols paused to collect his thoughts.  "If I tell you, I swear to God

you'll think I should be fitted for a straitjacket."

Yaeger pulled off his granny reading glasses, tucked them into the

pocket of a denim jacket, shuffled and stacked a pile of computer

reports, then settled back in his chair and sipped from a can of diet

soda.

"Zilch," he said almost sadly.  "A wasted effort up and down the line. A

1,600-year-old trail is too cold to follow without solid data.  A

computer can't go back in time and tell you exactly how it was."

"Maybe Dr. Gronquist can determine where the Serapes made landfall after

he's had a chance to study the artifacts," Lily said optimistically.

Pitt sat two rows below and off to one side from the others in NUMAs

small amphitheater.  "I talked to him by radio an hour ago.  He's found

nothing that isn't Mediterranean in origin.  "

A three-dimensional projection of the Atlantic Ocean showing land folds

and the irregular geology of the sea bottom filled a screen above the

stage.  Everyone seemed obsessed by it. Their eyes were drawn to the

contoured imagery even as they spoke.

Everyone, that is, except Admiral James Sandecker.  His eyes

suspiciously observed Al Giordino, particularly the large cigar

sprouting from one side of the Assistant Project Director's mouth as if

it had grown from a seedling.

"When did you start buying Hoyo de Monterrey Excaliburs?"

Giordino looked at the Admiral with an innocent expression.  "You

talking to me, Admiral?"

"Since you and I are the only ones in the theater smoking Excaliburs,

and I'm not in the habit of talking to myself, yes."

"Great, full flavor," said Giordino, holding up the fat cigar and

expelling a gush of blue smoke.  "I commend your discriminating taste."

"Where did you get it?"

"A little shop in Baltimore.  I forget the name."

Sandecker wasn't fooled for an instant.  Giordino had been stealing his

expensive cigars for years.  What drove the Admiral up the wall was that

he never discovered how.  No matter how well he hid or locked them away,

his inventory count always showed two missing every week.

Giordino kept the secret from Pitt so his best friend would never have

to lie if asked how it was done.  Only Giordino and an old buddy from

the Air Force who was a professional burglar for an intelligence agency

knew the technicalities of Operation Stogie.

"I've a good notion to ask to see a receipt," growled Sandecker.

"We, ve been attacking this thing from the wrong angle," Pitt said,

steering the meeting back on course.

"There's another angle?" asked Yaeger.  "We took the only logical

approach open to us."

"Without any reference to direction, it was an impossible job," Lily

backed him.

"A pity Rufinus didn't log his daily positions and distance traveled,"

mused Sandecker.

"He was under strict orders not to record anything."

"Could they determine a position back then?" asked Giordino.

Lily nodded.  "By positions of earth landmarks by figuring their

latitude and longitude a hundred and thirty years before Christ."

Sandecker  laced  his  hands across his trim stomach and gazed at Pitt

over his reading glasses.  "I know that lost look in your eyes.

Something's nagging at you."

Pitt slouched in his seat.  "We've been judging facts and using

guesswork without considering the man who conceived the smuggling plan."

"Junius Venator?"

"A brilliant guy," Pitt continued, "who was described by a contemporary

as 'a daring innovator who struck out into areas other scholars feared

to tread." The question we've overlooked is, if we were in Venator's

shoes, where would we have taken and hidden the great art and litemq

treasures of our time?"

"I still say Africa," volunteered Yaeger.  "Preferably around the Cape

somewhere up a river along the eastern coastline."

"Yet your computers couldn't make a marriage."

"They never came close," Yaeger admitted.  "But God only knows how land

formations have changed since Venator's day."

"Could Venator have taken the fleet northeast into the Black Sea?" Lily

queried.

"Rufinus was specific about a voyage of fifty-eight days," said

Giordino.

Sandecker, puffing his cigar, nodded.  "Yes, but if the fleet was hit by

foul weather or adverse winds, they could have traveled less than a

thousand miles in that time."

"The Admiral has a point," Yaeger conceded.  "Ancient ships of the

period were constructed to run with the sea and before the wind.  Their

rigging was not efficient for willdward sailing.  Heavy-weather

conditions could have cut their progress by eighty percent."

"Except," Pitt said, hanging on the word, "Venator loaded his ships

'with four times their normal supply of provisions."

"

"He planned for an extended voyage," said Lily, suddenly intrigued.

"Venator never intended to land every few days and resupply his fleet."

"All that that proves to me," said Sandecker, "is that Venator wanted to

keep the entire voyage as secret as possible by never coming ashore and

leaving a trail."

Pitt shook his head.  "As soon as the ships cleared the Straits of

Gibraltar, any need for secrecy evaporated.  Venator was free and in the

clear.  Byzantine warships sent to stop him would be as much in the dark

as we are of his next course heading."

"So we put ourselves in Yaeger looked quizzically at Pitt.

Venator's shoes or sandals or whatever they wore then.  What's our

plan?"

"Dr.  Rothberg unknowingly came up with the key to the mystery," Pitt

explained.  "He thought Venator buried the artifacts where no one of his

day would think to look."

Yaeger looked at him blankly.  "That could be anywhere in the ancient

world."

"Or outside of the world as the Romans knew it."

"Charted geography didn't extend very far below North Africa or east of

the Black Sea and Persian Gulf," said Lily. "Nothing was explored

beyond."

"We don't know that," Pitt disagreed.  "Junius Venator had access to

four thousand years of man's knowledge.  He knew of the existence of the

African continent and the great steppes of Russia.  He must have known

of trade with India, which in Turn imported and exported goods from

China.  And he'd have studied the records of voyages that sailed far

beyond the usual Roman/Byzantine trade routes."

"We're certain the Alexandria Library had an entire section devoted to

geographical records," said Lily.  "Venator could have worked from

source maps compiled from much earlier times."

"What do you think he discovered that influenced him?" asked Sandecker.

"A direction," Pitt answered.

All had focused their curiosity on Pitt, and he did not disappoint them.

He walked down to the stage and picked up a flashlight that shone a

small arrow on the three-dimensional projection.

"The only question in my mind," said Giordino, "is whether the fleet

turned north or south."

"Neither." Pitt moved the lighted arrow through the Gibraltar Straits

and across the Atlantic.  "Venator led his fleet west to the Americas."

His statement was greeted with stunned disbelief.

"There is no archaeological evidence supporting pre-Columbian contact in

the Americas," Lily stated firmly.

"The Serapes is a pretty good indicator they could have made such a

voyage," said Sandecker.

"It's a heated controversy," admitted Pitt.  "But there are too many

similarities in Mayan art and culture that cannot be ignored.  Ancient

America may not have been as isolated from European and Asian influence

as we once thought."

"Frankly, I buy it," said Yaeger, his enthusiasm restored. "I'd bet my

Willie Nelson record collection the Phoenicians, the Egyptians, Greeks,

Romans and Vikings all landed on North and South American soil before

Columbus."

"No self-respecting archaeologist would take you up on it," said Lily.

Giordino grinned at her.  "That's because they won't stake their

precious reputations on it."

Sandecker looked at Yaeger.  "Let's give the project another try Yaeger

looked at Pitt.  "What shorelines do you want me to cover?"

Pitt scratched his chin.  He realized he badly needed a shave.  "Begin

at the fjord in Greenland and work south down to Panama." He paused to

stare at the chart projection with thoughtful curiosity.  "It has to be

along there somewhere."

Captain Oliver Collins rapped a knuckle against the bridge barometer. He

squinted at the needle barely visible from the lights on shore and

cursed under his breath at the fair-weather reading.  If only there was

a storm, he thought, the ship could not have left the harbor.  Captain

Collins was a first-rate seaman, but a poor judge of human nature.

Suleiman Aziz Ammar would have ordered the Lady Flamborough to sea in

the middle of a hurricane with ninety-knot winds.  He sat tensely in the

captain's seat behind the bridge windows and wiped away the sweat from

around his neck that had trickled from his chin.

The mask was a torture in the humid climate, and so were the gloves he

wore constantly.  He suffered the discomfort stoically.  If the

hijacking failed and he escaped, international intelligence services

could never identify him with witnesses or fingerprints.

One of his men had taken the hetm and was looking at him expectantly

across the darkened bridge.  Two more were guarding the bridge doorways,

their guns aimed at Collins and First Officer Finney, who was standing

next to Ammar's helmsman.

The tide had come in and swung the ship on her anchor until her bow was

pointing toward the harbor entrance.  Ammar made one final sweep of the

harbor and dock area with a pair of binoculars and then motioned at

Finney with his hand while speaking into a small radio.

"Now," he ordered, "get her underway and launch the labor crews."

Finney, his face twisted in anger, looked at Collins imploringly for a

sign of defiance.  But the Captain gave a subdued shrug and the first

officer reluctantly gave the command to raise the anchor.

Two minutes later, dripping silt from the harbor bottom, the anchor rose

out of the black water and was pulled tight against the hawsehole.  The

helmsman stood by the wheel but made no move to grasp the spokes.  On

modern ships manual steering is used mostly during heavy weather and

while under the command of pilots upon entering and departing port.  It

was Finney who steered the ship and regulated the speed from a panel

tied through fiber optics to the ship's automated control system. He

also kept a sharp eye on the radar screen.

Once the ship was free of port the helm was placed on automatic pilot,

and ringing the chief engineer down below for "Slow Ahead" on the bridge

telegraph was quickly becoming more of a tradition than a necessity.

Moving wraithlike in the evening darkness, her outline visible only when

she blocked off lights from the opposite shore, the Lady Flamborough

slipped through the crowded harbor indistinct and unnoticed.  Her

diesels murmured faintly as the big bronze screws bit through the water.

Like a ghost feeling its way through the tombstones of a cemetery, the

ship wove its way around the other moored ships and turned into the

narrow channel for the open sea.

Ammar picked up the bridge phone and called the communications room.

"Anything?" he asked tersely.

"Nothing yet," answered his man who monitored the radio frequencies of

the Uruguayan navy patrol boats.

"Patch any signal through to the bridge speakers."

"Affirmative."

"A small boat crossing our bow dead ahead," announced Finney.  "We have

to give way."

Ammar placed the muzzle of an automatic pistol against the base of

Finney's skull.  "Maintain course and speed."

"We're on a collision course," Finney protested.  "The Flamborough has

no lights. They can't see us."

Ammar's only reply was to increase the pressure of the gun muzzle.

They could clearly see the approaching boat now.  She was a large

custom-designed motor yacht.  Collins guessed her dimensions at forty

meters in length with a beam of eight meters.  She was beautiful and

elegant, and she blazed with lights.  There was a party on board and

people were grouped in conversation or dancing on her spacious sun

decks.  Collins was stricken to see the radar antenna wasn't turning.

"Give them a blast of the horn," he implored.  "Warn them while they

still have a chance to give way."

Anunar ignored him.

The seconds ticked away under a cloud of dread until the collision was

inevitable.  The people partying on the yacht and the man at its helm

were completely oblivious to the steel monster bearing down on them out

of the dark.

"Inhuman!" Collins gasped.  "This is inhuman."

The Lady Flamborough bow-on into the starboard side of the big yacht.

There was no heavy jar or shriek of metal against metal.  The men on the

bridge of the cruise liner felt only a very slight tremor as the

four-story bow crushed the smaller boat nearly under the water before

slicing its hull in two.

The destruction was as devastating as a sledgehammer smashing a child's

toy.

Collins' fists were clenched on the forward bridge panel as he gazed m

horror at the disaster.  He clearly heard the panicked screams of women

as the yacht's shattered bow and stern sections scraped along the sides

of the Lady Flamborough before they sank less than fifty meters astern.

The dark surface of the Flamborough's wake was littered with wreckage

and bodies.

A few of the unfortunate passengers were thrown clear and were trying to

swim clear while the injured grasped anything that would keep them

afloat.  Then they were lost in the night.

The bitterness and rage welled up in Finney's throat.  "You murdering

bastard!" He spat at Ammar "Only Ali knows the unforeseen," said Ammar,

his voice remote and indifferent.  He slowly pulled the automatic away

from Finney's skull.  "As soon as we clear the channel, bear on a

heading of one-five-five degrees magnetic and engage the automatic

pilot."

Gray-faced beneath his tropic tan, Couins turned and faced Ammar.  "for

God's sake, radio the Uruguayan sea-rescue service and give them a

chance to save those poor people."

"No communications."

"They don't have to know who sent the transmission."

Ammar shook his head.  "Less than an hour after the local authorities

are alerted to the accident, an investigation will be underway by

security forces.  Our absence will quickly be discovered and a pursuit

launched.  I'm sorry, Captain, every nautical mile we put between our

stern and Punta del Este is critical.  The answer is no."

Collins stared into Ammar's eyes, stared without speaking while his

stunned mind fought to orient itself.  Then he said, "What price must be

paid before you'release my ship?"

"If you and your crew do what I command, no harm will come to any of

you."

"And the passengers, Presidents De Lorenzo and Hasan and their staffs?

What are your plans for them?"

"Eventually they will be ransomed.  But for the next ten hours they're

all going to get their hands dirty."

Bitter helplessness was sharp in Collins's mouth, but his voice was

impassive.  "You have no intention of holding them as hostages for

money."

"Are you a mind reader as well as a sea captain?" asked Ammar with

detached interest.

"It doesn't take an anthropologist to see your men were born in the

Middle East.  My guess is you intend to assassinate the Egyptians."

Ammar smiled emptily.  "Allah decides man's fate.  I only carry out my

instructions."

"Instructions from what source?"

Before Ammar could reply, a voice broke over the bridge speakers.

"Rendezvous at approximately zero two-thirty, Commander."

Animar acknowledged on his portable transmitter.  Then he looked at

Collins.  "There's no more reason for conversation, Captain.  We have a

great deal to accomplish before daylight."

"What are your plans for my ship?" demanded Collins, "You owe me the.

answer to that question."

"Yes, of course, I owe you that," Ammar muttered automatically, his mind

already training on another subject.  "By this time tomorrow evening,

international news services will report that the Lady Flamborough has

been posted missing and presumed lost with all passengers and crew in

two hundred fathoms of water."

"Did you hear something, Carlos?" the old fisherman asked as he gripped

the worn spokes on the wheel of an ancient fishing boat.

The younger man, who was his son, cupped his ears and peered into the

darkness beyond the bow.  "You have better ears than mine, Papa.  All I

hear is our engine."

"I thought I heard someone, like a woman screaming for help.

The son paused, listened again and then shrugged.  "Sorry, I still hear

nothing."

"It was there." Luiz Chavez rubbed his grizzled beard on a sleeve and

then pulled the throttle on idle.  "I wasn't dreaming."

Chavez was in a hearty mood.  The fish catch had been good.  The holds

were only half-full, but the nets had pwiea in a quality and variety

that would bring top prices from the chefs of the hotel and resort

restaurants.  The six bottles of beer that were sloshing in his stomach

didn't hurt his jolly disposition either.

"Papa, I see something in the water."

"Where?"

Carlos pointed.  "Off the port bow.  Looks like pieces of a boat.

The old fisherman's eyes were not so sharp at night any more.  He

squinted and gazed in the direction his son was pointing.  Then the

running lights began to pick out scattered bits of wreckage.  He

recognized the bright white paint and varnished debris as coming from a

yacht.  An explosion, or perhaps a collision, he thought.  He settled on

a collision.  The nearest lights of the port were only two kilometers

away.  An explosion would have been seen and heard.  He saw no sign of

navigation lights from rescue boats converging in the channel.

The boat was entering the debris field when his ears caught it again.

What he had thought was a scream now sounded like sobbing.  And it came

from close by.

"Get Raul, Justino and Manuel from the galley.  Quickly. Tell them to

make ready to go in the water after survivors."

The boy rushed off as Chavez set the gear lever to "Stop."

He stepped out of the wheelhouse and snapped on a spotlight and slowly

swept its beam across the water.

He spotted two huddled shapes lying half across a small splintered

section of teak decking and half in the water less than twenty meters

away.  One, a man, appeared inert.  The other, a woman, her face like

chalk, stared into the light and frantically waved.  Then suddenly, she

began yelling hysterically and thrashing at the water.

"Hold on!" Chavez shouted.  "Don't panic.  We're coming for you."

Chavez turned at the sound of running feet behind him.  His crew had

rushed out of the deckhouse and quickly crowded around him.

"Can you make anything out?" asked Luis.

"Two survivors floating on some wreckage.  Get ready to pull them on

board.  One of you might have to go in the water and give them a hand."

"No one is going in the water tonight," said one of the crew, his face

turning pale.

Chavez turned back to the survivors just as the woman let out a

terrified shriek.  His heart turned to ice as he saw the tall fin, the

ugly head with the ink-spot eye, whipping back and forth with its jaws

locked around the woman's lower legs.

"Adored Mary, Mother of Jesus!" muttered Luis, crossing himself as fast

as his hand could move.

Chavez shuddered but could not pull his eyes away as the shark draggtd

the woman off farther into the water.  Other sharks circled, drawn by

the blood, bumping against the shattered deck until the body of the man

rolled off.  One of the fishermen turned and vomited over the side as

the scream turned to an ungodly gurgling noise.

Then the night fell silent.

Less than an hour later, Colonel Jos6 Rojas, Uruguayan Chief Coordinator

for Special Security, stood ramrod straight in front of a group of

officers in battle dress.  He had trained with the British Grenadier

Guards after graduating from his country's military school, and he had

taken up their antiquated habit of carrying a swagger stick.

He stood over a table containing a model diorama of the Punta del Este

waterfront and addressed the assembled men. "We will organize into three

roving teams to patrol the docks on rotating eight-hour shifts," he

began while dramatically slapping the stick in the palm of one hand.

"Our mission is to stand on constant alert as a backup force in the

event of a terrorist attack.  I realize it's difficult for you to look

inconspicuous, but try anyway.  Stay in the shadows at night and off the

main thoroughfares by day.  We don't want to frighten the tourists into

thinking Uruguay is an armed state.  any questions?"

Lieutenant Eduardo Vazquez raised a hand.  "Colonel?"

"Vazquez?"

"If we see someone who looks suspicious, what should we do?"

"You do nothing except report him.  He'll probably Turn out to be one of

the international security agents."

"What if he appears to be armed?"

Rojas sighed.  "Then you'll know he's a security agent. Leave

international incidents to the diplomats.  Is everyone clear?"

No hands went up.

Rojas dismissed the men and walked to his temporary office in the Harbor

Master's building.  He stopped at a coffee machine to pour a cup when

his aide approached.

"Captain Flores in Naval Affairs asked if you could meet him

downstairs."

"Did he say why?"

"Only that it was urgent."

Rojas didn't want to spill his coffee, so he took the elevator instead

of the stairs.  Flores, impeccable in a white navy dress uniform,

greeted him on the first floor but offered no explanations as he

escorted Rojas across the street to a large shed that housed the coastal

rescue boats.  Inside, a group of men were examining several mangled

fragments that looked to the Colonel as if they came from a boat.

Captain Flores introduced him to Chavez and his son. "These fishermen

have just brought in this wreckage, which they discovered in the

channel," he explained.  "They say it looked to them like a yacht had

been crushed in a collision with a large ship."

"Why should a yachting accident concern special security?"

asked Rojas.

The Harbor Master, a man with cropped hair and a bristling mustache,

spoke up.  "It may well be a disaster that could cast a cloud on the

economic summit." He paused and added, Rescue craft are on the scene

now.  So far no survivors have been found."

"Have you identified the yacht?"

"One of the scraps Mr. Chavez and his crew fished out of the water bears

a nameplate.  The craft was called the Lola."

Rojas shook his head.  "I'm a soldier.  Pleasure boats are not familiar.

Is the name supposed to mean something to me?"

"The yacht was named for the wife of Victor Rivera," answered Flores.

"You know him?"

Rojas stiffened.  "I am acquainted with the Speaker of our Chamber of

Deputies.  The yacht was his?"

Registered in his name," Flores nodded.  'We've already contacted his

secretary at her home.  Gave her no information of course.  Merely

inquired as to Mr. Rivera's whereabouts' She said he was on board his

yacht hosting a party for Argentinean and Brazilian diplomats."

"How many?" Rojas inquired, a fear growing within him.

"Rivera and his wife, twenty-three guests and five crew members.  Thirty

in all."

"Names?"

"The secretary did not have the guest list in front of her. I've taken

the liberty of sending my aide to Rivera's headquarters for a copy."

"I think it best if I take command of the investigation from this

point," stated Rojas officially.

"The Navy stands ready to offer every assistance," said Flores, happy to

wash his hands of any authority.

Rojas turned to the Harbor Master.  "What ship was involved with the

collision?"

"A mystery.  No ship has arrived or departed the harbor in the last ten

hours."

"Is it possible for a ship to enter port without you knowing?"

"A captain would be stupid to try it without calling for a pilot.  "

"Is it possible?" Rojas persisted.

"No," stated the Harbor Master firmly.  "No oceangoing ship could dock

or moor in the harbor without my being aware of it."

Rojas accepted that.  "Suppose one sailed out?"

The Harbor Master considered the question for a few moments.  Then he

gave a slight nod.  "One could not cast off from a dock without my

knowledge.  But if the vessel was anchored offshore, if her skipper or

his officers knew the channel, and if she ran without lights, she might

make it out to sea unnoticed.  But I must say it would be close to a

miracle."

"Can you furnish Captain Flores with a list of moored ships?"

"I'll have a copy in his hands within ten minutes."

"Captain Hores?"

"Colonel?"

"Since a  missing ship is a naval operation, I'd like you to take

command of the search."

"Gladly, Colonel.  I'll begin immediately."

Rojas stared thoughtfully at the wreckage littering the concrete floor.

"There'll be hell to pay before this night is through," he muttered.

Shortly before midnight, after Captain Flores had conducted a thorough

search of the harbor and the waters outside the channel, he notified

Rojas that the only ship he could not account for was the Lady

Flamborough.

Colonel Rojas was stunned when he examined the cruise liner's VIP

passenger list.  He demanded a follow-up investigation in the false hope

that the Egyptian and Mexican Presidents had disembarked for quarters on

shore.  Not until it was confirmed that they were missing along with the

ship did the horrible specter of a terrorist hijacking become evident.

An extensive air search was launched at dawn.  Every aircraft the

combined air forces of Uruguay, Argentina and Brazil could put in the

air scoured over 400,000 square kilometers of the South Atlantic.

No sign of the Lady Flamborough was found.

It was as though she had been swallowed by the sea.

Two hands were running under his shirt and up his back.  He struggled to

wake from a sound sleep, dreaming he was deep in the water swimming

upward toward the shimmering surface, but never able to reach it.  He

rubbed his eyes, saw he was still on the couch in his office, and rolled

over, his gaze blocked by a pair of shapely legs.

Pitt moved to a sitting position and stared into Lily's beguiling eyes.

He held up his wrist, but he had taken his watch off and placed it on

the desk with his keys, change and wallet.

"What time is it?" he asked.

"Five-thirty," she replied sweetly, moving her hands across his

shoulders and massaging his neck.

"Night or day?"

"Late afternoon.  You only dozed off for three hours."

"Don't you ever drop off.?"

"I can get by with only four hours' sleep out of every twenty-four."

He  yawned.  "Your  next  husband  has  my  deepest sympathy."

"Here's some coffee." She set a cup on an end table near his head.

Pitt slipped on his shoes and tucked in his shirttails.  Yaeger found

anything?"

'Yes .

"The river?"

"No, not yet.  Hiram is very mysterious about it, but he claims you were

right.  Venator sailed across the Atlantic before either the Vikings or

Columbus."

He took a sip of the coffee and made a face.  "This is almost solid

sugar."

Lily looked surprised.  "Al said  you  always  take  four  spoon fuls."

"Al lied.  I prefer it pure black  with  grounds  on  the  bottom of the

cup."

"I'm sorry," she said with an unremorseful smile.  "I guess I was taken

in by a practical joker."

"You're not the first," he said, staring out the door of his office.

Giordino was seated with his feet on Yaeger's desk, devouring the last

slice of a pizza while he studied a detailed topographic map of a

shoreline.

Yaeger sat with bloodshot eyes aimed at a computer monitor while jotting

notes on a pad.  He did not have to Turn as Pitt and Lily entered the

room.  He could see their reflections in the screen.

"We've made a breakthrough," he said with some satisfaction.

Pitt asked, "What have you got?"

"Instead of concentrating on every nook and cranny south from the

Serapis's grave in Greenland, I leapfrogged down to Maine and began

looking for a match-up of his landing description."

"And it paid off," Pitt said in anticipation.

"Yes.  If you'recall, Rufinus wrote that after they deserted Venator,

they were battered by storms from the south for thirty-one days before

finding a safe bay where they could make repairs to the ship.  On the

next leg of the voyage more storms blew away the sails and tore off the

steering oars.  Then the ship drifted for an unspecified number of days

before ending up in the Greenland fjord."

Yaeger stopped and called up a chart of the American side of the North

Atlantic on the monitor.  Next his fingers nimbly punched out a series

of codes.  A small line formed and began traveling southward from the

east coast of Greentand south in a broken, zigzagged path around

Newfoundland, past Nova Scotia and New England, ending at a point

slightly above Atlantic City.

"New Jersey?" muttered Pitt, puzzled.

"Bamegat Bay, to be exact," said Giordino.  He brought over the

topographic map and laid it on a table.  Then he circled a section of

the coast with a red marker.

"Bamegat Bay, New Jersey?" Pitt repeated.

"The shape of the land was quite different back in ninety-one," Yaeger

lectured matter-of-factly.  "The beach strand was more broken and the

bay was deeper and more sheltered.  "

"How did you arrive at this exact spot?" asked Pitt.

"In describing the bay, Rufinus mentioned a great sea of dwarflike pines

where fresh water seeped from the sand with the jab of a stick.  New

Jersey has a forest of dwarf pines that fits the description.  It's

called the Pine Barrens, and it spreads across the southern center of

the state bordering on the coast to the east.  The water level is just

under the surface.  During spring runoff or after heavy rains you can

literally poke a hole in the sandy soil and strike water."

"Looks promising," said Pitt.  "But didn't Rufinus also say they added

ballast stone?"

"I admit that had me baffled.  So I put in a call to a geologist at the

Army Corps of Engineers.  He came up with a stone quarry that pinpointed

almost the exact site where I believe the Serapis's crew landed."

"Nice job," said Pitt gratefully.  "You've put the show on the right

track."

"Where do we go from here?" asked Lily.

"I'll continue working south," answered Yaeger.  "At the same time I'll

have my people compute an approximate trace of Venator's course west

from Spain.  With hindsight, it seems obvious the islands that made up

the fleet's first landfall after leaving the Mediterranean were the West

Indies.  By continuing the Serapis's path from New Jersey and projecting

Venator's track to the Americas, we should arrive at an approximate

intersect within five hundred miles of a liver that fits the bill."

Lily looked skeptical.  "I fail to see how you expect to trace Venator's

track when he censored all accounts of heading, currents, winds and

distances."

"No great flash," Yaeger replied dryly.  "I'll lift the log data from

the voyages of Columbus to the New World,'taking his computed course and

adjusting it for differences in hull design and water friction, rigging,

and sail area between his ships and the Byzantine fleet a thousand years

earlier."

"You make it sound simple."

"Believe  me,  it's  not.  We  may  be  homing  in  on  the  target, but

it's going to take another solid four days of study to get us there."

The weariness and long hours of tedious study seemed forgotten. Yaeger's

reddened eyes blazed with determination. Lily appeared to be galvanized

with excess energy.  They were poised for the starter's gun.

"Do it," said Pitt.  "Find the Library."

Pitt thought Sandecker sent for him for a status report on the search,

but the instant he saw the somber expression on the Admiral's face, he

knew there was a problem.  What really bothered Pitt was the soft look

in the Admiral's eyes; they were usually as hard as flint.

Then when Sandecker came over and took him by the arm and led him to a

couch and sat down alongside, Pitt knew there was a problem.

"I've just received some disturbing news from the White House,"

Sandecker began.  "The cruise ship that was hosting Presidents De

L4orenzo and Hasan at the economic summit in Uruguay is suspected of

being hijacked."

"I'm sorry to hear it," said Pitt, "but how does that affect NUMA?"

"Hala Kamil was on board."

"Damn!"

"And so was the Senator."

"My father?" Pitt muttered in surprise.  "I talked to him by phone the

night before last.  How did he come to be in Uruguay?"

"He was on a mission for the President."

Pitt stood up, paced back and forth and then sat down again.  "What's

the situation?"

Chve Cuss 'er

"The Lady Flamborough-the name of the British cruise liner-disappeared

from the port of Punta del Este last night."

"Where is the ship now?"

"An extensive air search has yet to Turn up a trace of her. The general

consensus of the officials on the scene is that the Lady Flamborough

lies at the bottom of the sea."

"Without absolute proof, I can't accept that."

"I'm with you."

"Weather conditions?"

"I gather from the report the area was fair with calm seas."

"Ships vanish in storms," said Pitt.  "Seldom in calm seas."

Sandecker made an empty gesture with his hands.  "Until more details

come in we can only speculate."

Pitt could not believe his father was dead.  What he heard was too

inconclusive.  "What is the White House doing about it?"

"The President's hands are tied."

"That's ridiculous," Pitt said sharply.  "He could order all naval units

in the area to assist in the search."

"That's the catch," said Sandecker.  "Except for an occasional training

exercise, none of which is occurring now, there are no United States

naval units on station in the South Atlantic.  "

Pitt stood again and stared out the window at the lights of Washington.

Then he fixed Sandecker with a penetrating stare.  "You're telling me

the United States government is in no way involved with the search?"

"It looks that way."

"What's to stop NUMA from searching?"

"Nothing except we lack a fleet of Coast Guard vessels and an aircraft

carrier."

"We have the Sounder."

Sandecker stared back thoughtfully for a moment.  Then his face took on

a questioning expression.  "One of our research vessels?"

"She's on a sonar mapping project of the continental slope off southern

Brazil."

Sandecker nodded.  "All right, I get your drift, but the Sounder is too

slow to be of any help on an extensive sea search.  What do you expect

to accomplish with her?"

"If my father's ship can't be found on the sur-face, I'll hunt for her

below.",

"You could be looking at a thousand square miles, maybe more."

"The Sounder's sonar gear can cut a swath two miles wide, and she

carries a submersible.  All I need is your permission to take command of

her."

"You'll need someone to back you up."

"Giordino and Rudi Gunn.  We make a good team."

"Rudi is on a deep-sea mining operation off the Canary Islands."

"He could be in Uruguay in eighteen hours."

Sandecker clasped his hands behind his head and stared at the ceiling.

Deep down he felt Pitt was chasing shadows, but he never doubted for an

instant what his answer would be.

"Write your own ticket," he said in a level tone.  "I'll back YOU."

"Thank you, Admiral," Pitt said.  "I'm grateful."

"How does the Alexandria Library project stand?"

"Yaeger and Dr. Sharp are close to a solution.  They don't need Al and

me getting in the way."

Sandecker rose and placed both his hands on Pitts shoulders.  "He may

not be dead, you know."

"Dad better not be dead," Pitt said with a grim smile, "I'd never

forgive him."

"Dammit, Martin!" the President said abniptly.  "Didn't your Middle East

people smell a plot to hijack the Lady Flamborough?"

Martin Brogan, the CIA director, shrugged wearily.  He was well

insulated for taking the blame for every terrorist act that killed

Americans or took them hostage.  The CIAs successes were rarely

heralded, but their mistakes were the stuff of Congressional

investigations and hype from the news mecha "The ship, along with its

entire passenger list and crew, was snatched from under the noses of the

finest security agents in the world," he replied.  "Whoever dreamed up

the venture and executed it is one shrewd operator.  The mere scope is

far beyond any terrorist activity we've seen in the past.

"I find it hardly surprising our counterterrorist network was not tipped

off in advance."

Alan Merger, the National Security Adviser, removed his glasses and idly

wiped the lenses with a handkerchief.  "My end struck out too," he said,

backing up Brogan.  "Analysis of our eavesdropping monitoring systems

failed to reveal any hint of a potential cruise-liner hijacking and

abduction of two foreign leaders."

"By sending George Pitt to meet with President Hasan, I sentenced an old

friend to death," the President said regretfully.

"Not your fault," Merger consoled him.

The President angrily pounded the desk with one fist.  "The Senator,

Hala Kamil, De Lorenzo and Hasan.  I can't believe they're all gone."

"We don't know that for sure," said Merger.

The President stared at him.  "You can't hide a cruise liner and all the

people on board, Alan.  Even a dumb politician like me knows that."

"There is still a chance '

"Chance, hell.  It was a suicide mission plain and simple. All those

poor people were probably locked up while the ship was scuttled.  The

terrorists never meant to escape.  They went down too."

"All the facts aren't in yet," Merger argued.

"Just what do we know?" demanded the President.

"Our experts are already in Punta del Este working with the Uruguayan

security people," explained Brogan.  "So far, we only have preliminary

conclusions.  First, the hijacking has been tied to an Arab group.  Two

witnesses came forward who were in a passing launch when they saw the

Lady Flamborough taking on cargo from a landing barge.  They heard

crewmen on both vessels speaking Arabic.  The landing barge has not been

found and is assumed to be scuttled somewhere in the harbor."

"any idea on the cargo?" asked Merger.

"All the witnesses could recall seeing were some drums," answered

Brogan.  "Second, a phony report was given to the Harbor Master's office

from the cruise liner saying its main generator had broken down, and the

vessel would only run navigation lights until repairs were carried out.

Then, as soon as it became dark, the unlit ship pulled up its anchor and

slipped out of the harbor, colliding with a private yacht carrying

important South American businessmen and diplomats. The only fumble in

an otherwise flawless execution.  Then it disappeared."

"Hardly a slop job," said Merger, "unlike the botched second

assassination attempt on Hala Kaniil."

"A different group entirely," Brogan added.

Dale Nichols spoke up for the first time in the meeting. "Which you

linked directly to Akhmad Yazid."

"Yes, the assassins were not very careful.  Egyptian passports were

found on tke bodies.  One, the leader, we identified as a mullah and

fanatical follower of Yazid."

"Do you think Yazid's responsible for the hijacking?"

"He certainly had the motive," answered Brogan.  "With President Hasan

out of the way, he has a clear shot at taking over the Egyptian

government."

"The same goes for President De Lorenzo, Topiltzin and Mexico," Nichols

stated flatly.

"An interesting theory," said Merger.

"What can we do besides send a few CIA terrorist investigators to

Uruguay?" asked the President.  "What are our options in helping with

the search for the Lady Flamborough?"

"To answer the first part of your question," said Brogan, "very little.

The investigation is in good hands.  Uruguayan police and security

intelligence chiefs were trained here and in Britain.  They know the

score and are most cooperative in working with our experts." He paused

and avoided the President's eyes.  "As to the second, again, very

little.  The Navy Department has no ships patrolling the ocean off South

America.  The nearest vessel to the area is a nuclear sub on a training

exercise off Antarctica.  Our Latin friends are doing fine without us.

Over eighty military and commercial aircraft and at least fourteen ships

from Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay have been combing the sea off Punta

del Este since dawn."

"And they haven't found a clue to the Lady Flamborough's fate," said the

President.  What little optimism he had before was rapidly eroding into

despondency.

"They will," said Merger tersely.

"Wreckage and bodies most certainly will Turn up," said Brogan candidly.

"No ship that size can vanish without leaving some trace behind."

"Has the story broken in the press yet?" asked the President.

"I was informed it came over the wire services an hour ago," Nichols

answered.

The President folded  his  hands  and  clenched  them  tightly.

"Holy hell will cut loose in Congress  when  they  find  out  one of

their members is a victim of a terrorist act.  No telling what kind of

revenge they'll demand."

"The purpose of the Senator's mission alone is enough to cause a major

scandal if it leaks out," said Nichols.

"Swinge that terrorists can murder international leaders and diplomats,

with an army of innocent victims thrown in, and get off with a few years

in prison," mused the President.  "But if we play their gwne and go

after them with guns blasting, we're branded immoral, blood-thirsty

avengers.  The news media get on our case and Congress demands

investigations."

"It hurts being the good guys," said Brogan.  He was beginning to sound

tired.

Nichols stood up and stretched.  "I don't think we have to worry.

Nothing was put down on paper or recorded on tape. And only the men in

this room know why Senator Pitt flew down to Punta del Este to confer

with President Hasan."

"Dale's right," said Merger.  "We can come up with any number of excuses

to explain away his mission."

The President unclasped his hands and rubbed his eyes tiredly.  "George

Pitt hasn't been dead a day and already we're trying to cover our

asses."

"That problem is minor compared to the political disasters we're facing

in Egypt and Mexico," said Nichols.  "With Hasan and De Lorenzo dead

too, Egypt will go the way of Iran and be irretrievably lost for sure,

Then with Mexico - - ." He hesitated.  "We'll have a time bomb ready to

go off along our own border."

"As my Chief of Staff and closest adviser, what measures do you suggest

we take?"

Nichols's stomach was attacked by a cramp and his heartbeat quickened.

The President and the two intelligence advisers seemed to be studying

his eyes.  He wondered if the stress that was twisting his guts came

from being put on the spot or the thought of a looming foreign

catastrophe.

"I propose we wait for proof the Lady Flamborough and everybody on her

lies on the bottom of the ocean.

"And if no evidence is forthcoming?" asked the President. "Do we go on

waiting until Egypt and Mexico, their leaders missing and presumed dead,

arr taken over by Topiltzin and

Akhmad Yazid, a pair of crazed megalomaniacs?   What then?

What course of action is left to stop them before it's too late?"

"Short of assassination, none." Nichols's hand nervously massaged his

aching stomach.  "We can only prepare for the worst."

"Which is . . . ?"

"We write off Egypt," Nichols said gravely, "and invade Mexico."

A heavy rain soaked Uruguay's capital city of Montevideo as the small

jet dropped from the clouds and lined up on the runway.  Soon after

touchdown it swung away from the commercial terminal and rolled onto a

taxi strip toward a cluster of hangars flanked by rows of fighter jets.

A Ford sedan with military markings appeared and led the pilot to a

parking area reserved for visiting VIP aircraft.

Colonel Rojas stood inside a hangar office and peered out a

water-streaked window.  As the aircraft rolled closer he could see the

letters NUMA across the aquamarine color scheme running down the

fuselage.  The sound of the engines died away, and a minute later three

men climbed out.  They quickly piled into the Ford to escape the deluge

and were driven inside the hangar where Rojas waited.

The Colonel stepped to the office door and studied them as they were

ushered across the vast concrete floor by a young lieutenant who was his

aide.

The short one with a curly jungle of black hair and a battleship chest

strutted with an easy vigor.  His hands and arms might have been grafted

from a bear.  His eyes scowled, but his lips showed white, even teeth in

a satirical smile.

The slim man with the horn-rinnned glasses, narrow hips and shoulders

looked like an accountant who had come to audit the company ledgers.  He

carried a briefcase and two books under one arm.  He also wore a smile,

but it seemed more mischievous than plain humorous.  Rojas pegged him as

a pleasant sort, easily amused yet highly competent.

The tall man who brought up the rear had black wavy hair and heavy

eyebrows, his face craggy and tanned.  There was an air of indifference

about him as though he would have enjoyed a prison sentence with the

same expectation as a Tahitian holiday.  Rojas was not fooled.  The

man's penetrating eyes gave him away.  While the other two gazed around

the hangar as they walked, this man fixed Rojas with a burning stare

like the sun through twill magnifying glasses.

Rojas stepped forward and saluted.  "Welcome to Uruguay, gentlemen.

Colonel Jose Rojas at your service." Then he addressed himself to the

tall man, speaking in perfect English with a slight trace of cockney

he'd picked up from the British. "I've looked forward to meeting you

since our phone conversation, Mr. Pitt."

Pitt stepped between his friends and shook Rojas's hand. "Thank you for

taking the time to see us." He turned and introduced the man with the

glasses.  "This is Rudi Gunn and the criminal type on my right is Al

Giordino."

Rojas gave a slight bow of the head and idly tapped his swagger stick

against a neatly pressed pants leg.  "Please forgive the Spartan

surroundings, but an army of world journalists have invaded our country

like the plague since the hijacking.  I thought it more convenient to

confer away from the horde."

"A sound idea," Pitt agreed. "Would you care to relax a bit after your

long flight and dine at our Air Force officers' club?"

"Thank you for the invitation, Colonel," said Pitt graciously, "but if

you don't mind, we'd like to get to it."

"Then, if you'll step this way, I'll brief you on our search

operations."

Inside the office Ro as introduced Captain Ignacio Flores, who had

coordinated the air/sea hunt.  Then he motioned the three Americans to

gather around a large table covered with nautical charts and

satellite-imagery photos.

Before he launched the briefing, Rojas looked at Pitt solemnly.  "I am

sorry to hear your father was a passenger on board the ship.  When we

spoke on thephone you didn't mention your relationship."

"You're well informed," said Pitt.

"I've been in hourly communication with your President's security

adviser."

"You'll be happy to know that the intelligence people in Washington who

briefed me on the situation praised your efficiency."

Rojas's official bearing crumbled.  He had not expected such a

compliment.  He began to loosen up.  "I regret I can't give you

encouraging news.  No new evidence has turned up since you departed the

United States.  I can, however, offer you a drink of our fine Uruguayan

brandy."

"Sounds good to me," Giordino said without hesitation. "Especially on a

rainy day."

Rojas nodded to his aide.  "Lieutenant, if you will do us the honors."

Then the Colonel leaned over the table and pieced together several

enlarged black-and-white satellite images until he had a mosaic of the

waters stretching three hundred kilometers off the coast.  "I take it

you're all familiar with satellite imagery?"

Rudi Gunn nodded.  "NUMA currently has three satellite oceanography

programs in progress to study currents, eddys, surface winds and sea

ice."

"But none are focusing on this section of the South Atlantic," said

Rojas.  "Most geographic information systems are aimed north."

"Yes, you're quite right." Gunn adjusted his glasses and examined the

photo blowups on the table.  "I see you've used the Earth Resources Tech

Satellite."

"Yes, the Landsat."

"And you used a powerful graphic system to show ships at sea.  "

"We had a piece of luck," Rojas continued.  "The polar orbit of the

satellite takes it over the sea off Uruguay only once every sixteen

days.  It arrived at a most opportune time.

"The Landsat's primary use is for geological survey," said Gunn.  "The

cameras are usually shut down when it orbits over the oceans to conserve

energy.  How did you get the images?"

"Immediately after the search was ordered," explained Rojas, "our

meteorological defense section was alerted to provide weather forecasts

for the patrol boats and aircraft.  One of the meteorologists had an

inspiration and checked the Landsat's orbit and found it would pass over

the search area.  He sent an urgent request to your government to Turn

it on.  The cameras were engaged with an hour to spare and the signals

sent to a receiving station in Buenos Aires."

"Could a target the size of the Lady Flamborough show up on a Landsat

image?" asked Giordino.

"You won't see detail like you would in a high-resolution photo from a

defense intelligence satellite," replied Pitt, "but she should be as

visible as a pinprick."

"You described her perfectly," said Rojas.  "See for yourselves."

He set a large magnified viewing lens with an interior light over a tiny

section of the satellite photo mosaic.  Then he stood back.

Pitt was the first to look.  "I can make out two, no, three vessels."

"We have identified all three."

Rojas turned and nodded to Captain Flores, who began to read aloud from

a sheet of paper, struggling with his English as if reciting in front of

a class.  "The largest ship is a Chilean ore carrier, the Cabo Gallegos,

bound from Punta Arenas to Dakar with a load of coal."

"The northbound vessel, just coming into view on the bottom edge of the

image?" asked Pitt.

"Yes," Flores agreed.  "That is the Cabo Gallegos.  The one opposite on

the top is southbound.  She's of Mexican registry. A container ship, the

General Bravo, carrying supplies and oil-drilling equipment to San

Pablo."

"Where's San Pablo?" asked Giordino.

"A small port city on the tip of Argentina," replied Rojas. "There was

an oil strike there last year."

"The vessel between them and closer toward shore is the Lady

Flamborough.  " Flores spoke the cruise liner's name as if he were

giving a eulogy.

Rojas's aide appeared with the bottle of brandy and five glasses.  The

Colonel raised his and said, "Saludos."

"Salute," the Americans acknowledged.

Pitt took a large sip that he swore later incinerated his tonsils and

resumed his study of the tiny dot for several seconds before giving up

the viewing glass to Gunn.  "I can't make out her heading."

"After sneaking out of Punta del Este she sailed due east without a

course change."

"You've been in contact with the other ships?"

Flores nodded.  "Neither one reported seeing her."

"What time did the satellite pass over?"

"The exact time was 03: 10 hours."

"The imagery was infrared."

'Yes .

"The guy who thought of using the Landsat ought to get a medal," said

Giordino as he took his Turn at the viewer.

"A promotion is already in channels," Rojas said, smiling.

Pitt looked at the Colonel.  "What time did your aerial reconnaissance

get off the ground?"

"Our aircraft began searching at first light.  By noon we had received

and analyzed the Landsat imagery.  We then could calculate the speed and

course of the Lady Flamborough and direct our ships and planes to an

interception point."

"But they found an empty sea."

"Quite right."

"No wreckage?"

Captain Flores spoke up.  "Our patrol boats did run on several pieces of

debris."

"Was it identified?"

"Some was pulled on board and examined but quickly discarded.  It

appeared to have come from a cargo ship rather than a luxury cruise

liner."

"What sort of debris?"

Flores checked through a briefcase and removed a thin file. "I have a

short inventory received from the Captain of the search vessel.  He

lists one worn overstaffed chair; two faded life-jackets, at least

fifteen years old, with operation instructions stenciled in almost

illegible Spanish; several unmarked wooden crates; a bunk mattress; food

containers; three newspapers, one from Veracmz, Mexico, the other two

from Recife, Brazil '

"Dates?" Pitt interrupted.

Flores looked questioningly at Pitt for a moment and then he averted his

gaze.  "The Captain did not give them."

"An oversight that will be corrected," said Rojas sternly, immediately

picking up on Pitts thoughts.

"If it isn't already too late," Flores came back uneasily. "You must

admit, Colonel, the debris appears to be trash, not ship's wreckage."

"Could you plot the coordinates of the ships as they're shown on the

satellite photo?" asked Pitt.

Hores nodded and began plotting the positions on to a nautical chart.

"Another brandy, gentlemen?" Rojas offered.

"It's quite vibrant," said Gunn, holding out his glass to the

lieutenant.  "I detect a very slight coffee flavor."

Rojas smiled.  "I can see you're a connoisseur, Mr. Gunn. Quite right.

My uncle distills it on his coffee plantation."

"Too sweet," said Giordino.  "Reminds me of licorice .

"It also contains anisette." Rojas turned to Pitt.  "And you Mr. Pitt.

How do you taste it?"

Pitt held up the glass and studied it under the light.  "I'd say about

two hundred proof."

North Americans never ceased to amaze Rojas.  All business one moment,

complete jesters the next.  He often wondered how they built such a

superpower.

Then Pitt laughed his infectious laugh.  "Only kidding.  Tell your uncle

if he ever exports it to the U.S., I'll be the first in line to

distribute it."

Flores threw down his dividers and tapped a penciled box on the chart.

"They were here at 03:10 yesterday morning."

Everyone moved back to the table and hovered over the chart.

"All three were on converging courses all right," observed Gunn.  He

took a small calculator from his pocket and began punching its buttons.

"If I make a rough estimate of speeds, say about thirty knots for the

Lady Flamborough, eighteen for the Cabo Gallegos, and twenty-two for the

General Bravo . . ." his voice trailed off as he made notations on the

edge of the chart.  After several moments he stood back and tapped the

figures with a pencil.  "Not surprising the Chilean coal carrier didn't

make visual contact.  She would have crossed the cruise liner's bow a

good sixty-four kilometers to the east."

Pitt stared thoughtfully at the lines across the chart.  "The Mexican

container ship, on the other hand, looks as if she missed the Lady

Flamborough by no more than three or four kilometers."

"Not surprising," said Rojas, "when you consider the cruise liner was

running without lights."

Pitt looked at Flores.  "Do you'recall the phase of the moon, Captain?"

"Yes, between new moon and first quarter, a crescent."

Giordino shook his head.  "Not bright enough if the bridge watch wasn't

looking in the right direction."

"I assume you launched the search from this point," said Pitt.

Flores nodded.  "Yes, the aircraft flew grids two hundred miles to the

east, north and south."

"And found no sign of her."

"Only the container ship and the ore carrier."

"She might have doubled back and then cut north or south," suggested

Gunn.

"We thought of that, too," said Flores.  "The aircraft cleared all

western approaches toward land when they returned for fuel and went out

again."

"Considering the facts," said Gunn ominously, "I fear the only place the

Lady Flamborough could have gone is down."

"Take her last position, Rudi, and figure how far she might have sailed

before the search planes arrived."

Rojas stared at Pitt with interest.  "May I ask what you intend to do?

Further search would be useless.  The entire surface where she vanished

has been swept."

Pitt seemed to stare through Rojas as though the Colonel were

transparent.  "Like the man just said, 'The only place she could have

gone is down." And that's precisely where we're going to look."

"How can I be of service?"

"The Sounder, a NUMA deep-water research ship, should arrive in the

general search area sometime this evening.  We'd be grateful if you

could spare a helicopter to shuttle us out to her.  "

Rojas nodded.  "I will arrange to have one standing by."

Then he added, "You realize you n-light as well be hunting one

particular fish in ten thousand square kilometers of sea.  It could take

you a lifetime."

"No," said Pitt confidently.  "Twenty hours on the outside."

Rojas was a pragmatic man.  Wishful thinking was foreign to him.  He

looked at Giordino and Gunn, expecting to see skepticism mirrored in

their eyes.  Instead, he saw only complete agreement.

"Surely, you can't believe such a fanciful time schedule?" he asked.

Giordino held up a hand and casually studied his fingernails.  "If

experience is any judge," he replied placidly, "Dirk has overestimated."

Exactly fourteen hours and forty-two minutes after the Uruguayan army

helicopter set them on the landing pad of the Sounder, they found a

shipwreck matching the Lady Flamborough's dimensions in 1,020 meters of

water.

On the discovery pass the target showed up as a tiny dark speck on a

flat plain below the continental slope.  As the Sounder moved in closer,

the sonar operator decreased the recording range until the shadowy image

of a ship became a discernible shape.

The Sounder did not carry the five-million-dollar viewing system Pitt

and Giordino had enjoyed on the Polar Explorer. No color video cameras

were mounted on the trailing sonar sensor.  The mission of her

oceanographic scientists was purely to map large sections of the sea

bottom.  Her electronic gear was designed for distance and not close-up

detail of manmade sunken objects.

"Same configuration all right," said Gunn.  "Pretty vague. Could be my

imagination but she appears to have a sweptback funnel on her stern

superstructure.  Her sides look high and straight.  She's sitting

upright, no more than a ten-degree list."

Giordino held back.  "We'll have to get cameras on her to make a

positive ID."

Pitt said nothing.  He kept watching the sonar recording long after the

target slipped behind the Sounder's stern.  any hope of finding his

father alive was draining away.  He felt as though he was staring at a

coffin as dirt was being thrown on the lid.

"Nice going, pal," Giordino said to him.  "You laid us right on the

dime."

"How did you know where to look?" asked Frank Stewart, skipper of the

Sounder.

"I gambled the Lady Flamborough didn't change her heading after crossing

the inside path of the General Bravo," Pitt explained.  "And since she

wasn't spotted by search aircraft beyond the outside course of the Cabo

Gallegos, I decided the best place to concentrate our search was on a

track extending east from her last-known heading as shown by the

Landsat."

"In short, a narrow corridor running between the General Bravo and the

Cabo Gallegos, " said Giordino.

"that about sums it up," Pitt acknowledged.

Gunn looked at him.  "I'm sorry it's not an occasion to celebrate.  "

"Do you want to send down an ROV?"* asked Stewart.

"We can save time," answered Pitt, "by skipping a remote camera survey

and going direct to a manned probe.  Also, the submersible's manipulator

arms may be useful if we need to lift anything from the wreck."

"The crew can have the Deep Rover ready to descend in half an hour,"

said Stewart.  "You going to act as operator?"

Pitt nodded.  "I'll take her down."

"At a thousand meters, you'll be right at the edge of its depth rating."

"Not to worry," said Rudi Gunn.  "The Deep Rover has a four-to-one

safety factor at that depth."

"I'd sooner go over Niagara Falls in a Volkswagen," said the Captain,

"than go down a thousand meters in a plastic bubble."

Stewart, narrow-shouldered, with slicked-down burnt-toast-brown hair,

looked like a small-town feed-store merchant and scoutmaster.  A

seasoned seaman, he could swim but was leery of the deep and refused to

learn to dive. He catered to the scientists' requests and whims

concerning their oceanographic projects as in any business/client

relation 'Remote Operated Vehicle; tetherrd, underwater viewing system.

ship.  But the ship operation was his domain, and any aca demic type who

played Long John Silver with his crew was cut off at the knees in short

order.

"That plastic bubble," said Pitt, "is an acrylic sphere over twelve

centimeters thick."

"I'm happy to sit on deck in the sunshine and wave goodbye to anyone who

takes the plunge in that contraption," Stewart muttered as he walked

through the door.

"I like him," said Giordino moodily.  "Utterly lacking in savoir faire,

but I like him."

"You two have something in common," Pitt said, grinning.

Gunn froze an image of the wreck on videotape from the sonar recording

and studied it thoughtfully.  He slid his glasses over his forehead and

refocused his eyes.  "The hull looks intact.  No sign of breakup.  Why

in hell did she sink?"

"Better yet," mused Giordino, "why no flotsam?"

Pitt stared at the blurred image too.  "Remember the Cyclops?   She was

lost without a trace too."

"How can we forget her?" Giordino groaned.  "We still carry the scars."

Gunn looked up at him.  "In all fairness, you can't compare a poorly

laden ship built around the turn of the century with a modern cruise

liner carrying a thousand built-in safety features.

"No storm put her down there," said Pitt.

"Maybe a rogue wave?"

"Or maybe some sand kicker blew her bottom out," said Giordino.

"We'll know soon enough," Pitt said quietly.  "In another two hours

we'll be sitting on her main deck."

The Deep Rover looked like she'd be more at home orbiting space than

cruising the depths of the ocean.  She had a shape only a Martian could

love.  The 240-centimeter sphere was divided by a large O-ring and sat

on rectangular pods that held the 120-volt batteries.  All sorts of

strange appendages sprouted from behind the sphere: thrusters and

motors, oxygen cylinders, carbon dioxide removal canisters, docking

mechanism, camera systems, scanning sonar unit.  But it was the

manipulators that extended in the front that would have made any

self-respecting robot green with envy.  Simply de bed, Vaey were

mechanical arms and hands with a canny way of doing everything flesh and

bone could do, and then some.  A sensory feedback system made it

possible to control the hand and arm movements to within thousandths of

a centimeter, while force feedback allowed the hands to delicately hold

a cup and saucer or grab and lift an iron stove.

Pitt and Giordino patiently circled the Deep Rover while she was fussed

over by a pair of engineers.  She sat on a cradle inside a cavernous

chamber called the "moon pool." The platform holding her cradle was part

of the Sounder's hull and could be lowered twenty feet into the sea.

One of the engineers finally nodded.  "She's ready when you are."

Pitt slapped Giordino on the back.  "After you."

"Okay, i'll handle the manipulators and cameras," he said jovially. "You

drive, only mind the rush-hour traffic."

"You tell him," yelled Stewart from an overhead balcony, his voice

echoing inside the chamber.  "Bring it back in one piece and I'll give

you a great big kiss."

"Me  too?"  Giordino  yelled  back,  going  along with the joke.

"You too. ',

"Can I take out my dentures?"

"Take out anything you want."

"You call that an incentive?" Pitt said dryly.  He was grateful to the

Captain for trying to take his mind off what they might find. "I may

make a beeline for Africa rather than come back here."

"You'll need an extra truckload of oxygen," said Stewart.

Gunn walked up, oblivious to the good-natured exchange, a pair of

earphones clamped to his head with the cable dangling at his leg.

He tried to keep his instructions businesslike, but compassion crept

into his voice.  "I'll be monitoring your audio locator beacon and

communications.  Soon as you see bottom, make a

three-hundred-and-sixty-degree sweep until your sonar picks out the

wreck.  Then give me your heading.  I expect you to keep me informed

every step of the way."

Pitt shook Gunn's hand.  "We'll stay in touch."

Gunn stared up at his old friend bleakly.  "You sure you wouldn't rather

stay topside and let me go down?"

"I've got to see for myself."

"Good luck," Gunn murmured, and then he quickly turned away and mounted

a ladder leading from the moon pool.

Pitt and Giordino settled into the side-by-side, aircraft-style

armchairs.  The engineers swung the top half of the sphere closed

against the watertight O-ring and tightened the clamps.

Giordino began going through the pre-dive checklist. "Power?"

"Power on," affirmed Pitt.

"Raho?"

"Are we coming in, Rudi?"

Loud and clear," Gunn answered.

"Oxygen "Twenty-one-point-five percent."

When they finished, Giordino said, "Ready when you are, Sounder."

"You're cleared for takeoff, Deep Rover," Stewart replied in his usual

ironic tone.  "Bring back a lobster for dinner."

Two divers stood by in full gear as the platform was slowly lowered into

the sea.  The water surged around the Deep Rover and soon enveloped the

sphere.  Pitt looked up into the shimmering lights of the moon pool and

saw the wavering figures leaning over the balconies.  The entire company

of oceanographers and crew turned out for the dive, hovering around Gunn

and listening to the reports from the sub.  Pitt felt like a fish on

display in an aquarium.

When they were fully submerged, the divers moved in and unhitched the

submersible from its cradle.  One of them held up a hand and gave an

"Okay" sign.  Pitt smiled and answered with a "Thumbs up," and then

pointed ahead.

The handgrips on the end of the amirests guided the manipulators, while

the armrests themselves controlled the four  sters.  Pitt took a Deep

breath and controled the rover as if he were a helicopter pilot.  A

slight pressure on his elbows and she rose off the cradle.  Then he

pushed his arms forward and the horizontal stablizers eased her ahead.

Pitt moved the little craft off the platform about thirty meters and

stopped to assess his compass bearing.  Then he engaged the vertical

thrusters and began the descent.

Down, down the Deep Rover fell through the dimensionless void, the

darkening water burying her in its depths.  The vibrant blue-green of

the surface soon turned to a soft gray.  A small, one-meter blue shark

swam effortlessly toward the sub,

circled once and, finding nothing inviting, continued its lonely journey

into the fluid haze.

They felt no sense of movement.  The only sound came from the soft

crackle of the radio and the pinging of the locator beacon.  The water

became a curtain of black surrounding their small circle of light.

"Passing four hundred meters," Pitt reported as caln-Ay as a pilot

announcing his flight altitude.

"Four hundred meters," Gunn repeated.

Ordinarily the wit and the sarcasm would have bounced off the interior

of the submersible to pass the time, but this trip Pitt and Giordino

were strangely silent.  Seldom during the descent did their conversation

run more than a few words.

"There's a real sweetheart," said Giordino, pointing.

Pitt saw it at the same time.  One of the ugliest of the deep's resident

citizens.  Long, eel-shaped body, outlined by luminescence like a neon

sign.  The frozen, gaping jaws were never fully closed, kept apart by

long, jagged teeth that were used more for entrapping prey than for

chewing them.  One eye gleamed nastily while a tube that was attached to

a luniinated beard dangled from its lower jaw to lure the next meal.

"How'd you like to stick your arm in that thing?" asked Pitt. Before

Giordino could answer, Gunn broke in.  "One of the scientists wants to

know what you saw."

"A dragonfish," Pitt replied.

"He wants a description," said Giordino.

"Tell him we'll draw a picture when we come home," Pitt grunted.

"I'll pass the word."

"Passing eight hundred meters," Pitt reported.

"Mind you don't smack the bottom," Gunn warned him.

"We'll keep an eye peeled.  Neither of us is keen on making a one-way

trip."

"Never hurts to have a worrywart on your side.  How's your oxygen?"

"On the money."

"You should be getting close."

Pitt slowed the Deep Rover's descent with a light touch of the sliding

armrest.  Giordino peered downward, his eyes watchful for a sign of

rocks.  Pitt could have sworn his friend never blinked in the next eight

minutes it took for the seabed to gradually materialize below.

"We're down," Giordino announced.  "Depth one,thousand fifteen meters."

Pitt applied extra power to the vertical  sters, bringing the

submersible to a hovering stop three meters above the gray silt.  Due to

the water pressure, the weight of the craft had increased during the

descent.  Pitt turned one of the ballast tank valves, keeping an eye on

the pressure gauge, and filled it with just enough air to achieve

neutral buoyancy.

"Making our sweep," he notified Gunn.

"The wreck should bear approximately one one zero degrees," Gunn's voice

crackled back.

"Affirmative, I read you," said Pitt.  "We have a sonar target two

hundred twenty meters, bearing one one two degrees."

"I copy, Deep Rover."

Pitt turned to Giordino.  "Well, let us see what we shall see.

He increased the power on the horizontal thrusters and executed a

sweeping bank, studying the barren seascape ahead as Giordino kept him

on track by reading off the compass heading.

"Come left a couple of points.  Too much.  Okay, you've got it. Keep her

straight."

There was not a flicker of emotion in Pitts eyes.  His face was

strangely still.  He wondered with a growing fear what he might find.

He recalled the haunting story of a diver salvaging a ferry that had

sunk after a collision.  The diver was working the wreck at one-hundred

meters when he felt a tap on his shoulder.  He swung around and was

confronted by the body of a beautiful girl who was staring at him

through sightless eyes, one arm extended and touching him as if asking

to take her hand. The diver had nightmares for years afterward.

Pitt had seen bodies before, frozen as the crew of the Serapis; bloated

and grotesque as the crew of the Presidential yacht Eagle; decayed and

half-dissolved in sunken airplanes off Iceland and a lake in the

Colorado rockies.  He could still close his eyes and visualize them all.

He hoped to God he wouldn't see his father as a floating corpse.  He

shut his eyes for a few moments and almost ran the Deep Rover into the

bottom.  Pitt wanted to remember the Senator as alive and vibrant-not as

a ghostly thing in the sea or a ridiculously made up stiff in a casket.

"Object in the silt to the right," Giordino said, jolting Pitt from his

morbid thoughts.

Pitt leaned forward.  "A two-hundred-liter drum.  Three more off to the

left."

"They're all over the place," said Giordino.  "Looks like a junkyard

down here."

"See any markings?"

"Only some stenciled lettering in Spanish.  Probably weight and volume

information."

"I'll move closer to the one dead ahead.  A trace of whatever was in

them is still rising to the surface."

Pitt edged the Deep Rover's sphere to within a few inches of the sunken

drum.  The lights showed a dark substance curling from the drain hole.

"Oil?" said Giordino.

Pitt shook his head.  "The color is more nistlike.  No, wait, it's red.

By God, it's an oil-base red paint."

"There's another cylindrical object next to it."

"What do you make of it?"

"I'd say it's a big roll of plastic sheeting."

"I'd say you're right."

"Might not be a bad idea to take it aboard the Sounder for examination.

Hold position.  I'll grab it with the manipulators."

Pitt nodded silently and held the Deep Rover steady against the gentle

bottom current.  Giordino clutched the handgrip controls and curled the

arm assemblies around the plastic roll, much like a human would bend

both elbows to embrace a friend.  Next he positioned the four-function

hands so they gripped the bottom edge.

"She's secure," he announced.  "Give us a little vertical thrust to pull

it out of the sillt."

Pitt complied, and the Deep Rover slowly rose, carrying the roll with

her, followed by a swirling cloud of fine silt.  for a few moments they

couldn't see.  Then Pitt eased the submersible ahead until they broke

into clear water again.

"We should be coming up on her," said Giordino.  "Sonar shows a massive

target in front and slightly to the right."

"We show you to be practically on top of her," said Gunn.

Like a  ghostly  image  in  a  darkened  mirror,  the  ship  rose  out

of the gloom.  Magnified by the water distortion, she seemed a

staggering sight.

"We have visual contact," Giordino reported.

Pitt slowed the Deep Rover to a stop seven meters from the hull.  Then

he maneuvered the sub up and alongside the derelict's foredeck.

"What the hell?" Pitt broke off suddenly.  Then, "Rudi, what colors were

on the Lady Flamborough?"

"Hold on." No more than ten seconds elapsed before Gunn answered. "Light

blue hull and superstructure."

"This ship has a red hull with white upperworks."

Gunn did not reply immediately.  When he did, his voice sounded old and

tired.  "I'm sorry, Dirk.  We must have stumbled on a  missing World War

Two ship that was torpedoed by a U-boat.  "

"Can't be," muttered Giordino distantly.  "This wreck is pristine.  No

sign of growth or corrosion.  I can see oil and air bubbles escaping.

She can't be more than a week old."

"Negative," Stewart's voice came over the radio.  "The only ship

reported missing during the last six months in this part of the Atlantic

is your cruise liner."

"This ain't no cruise ship," Giordino shot back.

"Hold for a minute," said Pitt.  "I'm going to come around the stern and

see if we can make an identification."

He threw the Deep Rover into a steep bank and glided parali lel to the

ship's side.  When they reached the stern, he spun sideways to a halt.

The sub hung there motionless only one meter from the name of the ship

painted on beaded welding.

"Oh, my God," Giordino whispered in incredulous awe.

"We've been conned."

Pitt did not sit there in stunned disbelief.  He grinned like a madman.

The puzzle was far from complete, but the vital pieces had fallen into

place.  The white raised letters on the red steel plates did not read

Lady Flamborough.

They read General Bravo.

from four hundred meters her designers and shipbuilders would not have

recognized the Lady Flamborough.  Her funnel had been reconstructed and

every square inch of her repainted. To complete the facade, the hull was

streaked with simulated rust.

Her once-beautiful superstructure, stateroom windows and promenade deck

were now hidden by great sheets of fiberboard assembled to look like

cargo containers.

Where the cruise liner's modern, rounded bridge featurrs were impossible

to remove or hide, they were squared with wooden frwnework and canvas

and painted with fake hatches and portholes.

Before the lights of Punta del Este had dropped astern, every crew

member and passenger was drafted into forced labor parties and driven to

the point of exhaustion by Ammar's armed hijackers.  The ship's

officers, cruise directors, the stewards, chefs and waiters, and

ordinary deckhands-they all hammered and slaved at assembling the

prefabricated containers through the night.

None of the VIP guests was spared.  Senator Pitt and Hala Kamfl,

Presidents Hasan and De Lorenzo, along with their cabinet members and

staff aides, were all pressed into service as carpenters and painters.

By the time the cruise liner rendezvoused with the General Bravo, the

counterfeit cargo containers were in place and the ship sported a nearly

identical configuration and color scheme.

from the waterline up, the newly disguised Lady Flamborough could have

easily passed as the container ship.  An overhead inspection from the

air would have revealed few discrepancies.  Only a close examination

from the sea might have detected obvious differences.

Captain Juu Machado and eighteen crewmen from the General Bravo

transferred to the cruise liner after opening all seacocks and cargo

doors and detonating strategically placed charges throughout the hull.

With a series of muffled explosions the container ship slipped beneath

the sea with only a few faint gurgles of protest.

When the eastern sky began to brighten with a new sun, the disguised

Lady Flamborough was steaming south toward the advertised destination of

the General Bravo.  But when the port of San Pablo, Argentina, was forty

kilometers off the starboard beam, the liner bypassed the port and

continued due south.

Ammar's ingenious scheme had worked.  Three days had passed, and the

world was still fooled into believing the Lady Flamborough and her

distinguished passengers were lying somewhere on the bottom of the sea.

Ammar sat at a chart table and marked the ship's latest position.  Then

he drew a straight line to his final destination and marked it with an

X. Smugly complacent, he dropped the pencil and lit a long Dunhill

cigarette, exhaling the smoke across the chart like a bank of mist.

Sixteen hours, he reckoned.  Sixteen more hours of sailing time without

pursuit and the ship would be securely hidden without the slightest

chance of detection.

Captain Machado stepped into the chart room from the bridge, balancing a

small tray on one hand.  "Would you like a cup of tea and a croissant?"

he asked in fluent English.

"'Thank you, Captain.  Come to think of it, I haven't eaten since we

departed Punta del Este."

Machado set the tray on the table and poured the tea.  "I know you

haven't slept since my crew and I came on board."

"There is still much to do."

"Perhaps we should begin by formally introducing ourselves."

"I know who you are, or at least the name you go by," said Ammar

indifferently.  "I'm not interested in lengthy biographies."

"That's how it is?"

"Yes."

"Mind letting me in on your plans?" said Machado.  "I was informed of

nothing beyond our transfer to your ship after scuttling the General

Bravo.  I'd be most interested in hearing about the next step of the

mission, especially the part on how our combined crews intend to abandon

the ship and evade arrest by international military forces."

"Sorry, I've been too busy to enlighten you."

"Now might be a good time," Machado pressed.

Characteristically, Ammar calmly sipped at his tea and finished off the

croissant beneath his mask before answering. Then he looked across the

chart table at Machado without expression.

"I don't intend to abandon the ship just yet," he said evenly. "My

instructions from your leader and mine are to mark time and delay the

final destruction of the Lady Flamborough until they both have time to

assess the situation and turn it to their advantage."

Slowly Machado relaxed, looked through the mask into the cold, dark eyes

of the Egyptian, and he knew this was a man solidly in control.  "I have

no problem with that." He held up the pot.  "More tea?"

Ammar passed his cup.  "What do you do when you're not sinking ships?"

"I specialize in political assassinations," said Machado

conversationally.  "The same as you, Suleiman Aziz Ammar."

Machado could not see the wary frown behind Ammar's mask, but he knew it

was there.

"You were sent to kill me?" Ammar asked, casually flicking an ash from

his cigarette while lining up a tiny automatic pistol that suddenly

appeared in his palm like a magic trick.

Machado smiled and crossed his arms, keeping his hands in open view.

"You can relax.  My orders were to work in total harmony with you."

Animar replaced the gun in a spring-operated device under his right

sleeve.  "How do you know me?"

"Our leaders have few secrets between them."

Damn Yazid, Ammar thought angrily.  Yazid had betrayed him by giving

away his identity.  He wasn't taken in for an instant by Machado's lie.

Once President Hasan was out of the way, the reincarnated Muhammad had

no further use for his hired killer.  Ammar was not about to reveal his

escape plans to the Mexican hit man.  He clearly realized his

counterpart had no option but to form an alliance of expediency.  Ammar

was quite comfortable in knowing he could kill Machado at any time,

while the Mexican had to wait until survival was assured.

Ammar knew exactly where he stood.

He raised his teacup.  "To Akhmad Yazid."

Machado stiffly raised his.  "To Topiltzin."

Hala and Senator Pitt had been locked in a suite along with President

Hasan.  They were grimy and splattered with paint, too exhausted to

sleep.  Their hands were blistered and their muscles ached from physical

labor none had been conditioned for.  And they were hungry.

After the frenzied remodeling of the cruise liner's outer structure

since leaving Uruguay, the hijackers had not allowed them any food.

Their only liquid intake came from the faucet in the bathroom.  And to

make their condition worse, the temperature had been steadily dropping

and no heat was coming through the ventilators.

President Hasan was stretched out on one of the beds in abject misery.

He suffered from a chronic back problem, and the strain from ten hours

of uninterrupted bending and stretching had left him in a torrent of

pain which he endured stoically.

for all the movement they made, Hala and the Senator might have been

carved from wood.  Hala sat at a table with her head lowered in her

hands.  Even in her disheveled state, she still looked serene and

beautffid.

Senator Pitt reclined on a couch, staring pensively at a light fixture

in the ceiling.  Only his eyes showed that he was alive.

Finally Hala raised her head and looked at him.  "If only we could do

something," she said, barely above a whisper.

The Senator rose stiffly to a sitting position.  for his age, he was

still in good physical shape.  He was sore from neck to feet, but his he

was beat as soundly as if he was twenty years younger.

"That devil with the mask doesn't miss a trick," he said. "He won't feed

us so we'll stay weak; everyone is locked away separately so we can't

communicate or cooperate in a counter-takeover; and, he and his

terrorists have not made any contact with us for two days.  All

calculated to keep us on edge and in a state of helplessness."

"Can't we at least try to get out of here?"

"There's probably a guard at the end of the hallway waiting to blast the

first body that breaks through a door.  And even if we somehow got past

him, where could we go?"

"Maybe we could steal a lifeboat," Hala suggested wildly.

The Senator shook his head and smiled.  "Too late for any attempt now.

Not with the hijacker's force doubled by the crew from that Mexican

cargo ship."

"Suppose we break out the window and leave a trail with furniture, bed

linen or whatever else we could throw out," Hala persisted.

"Might as well toss bottles with notes inside.  The currents would carry

them a hundred kilometers from our wake by morning." He paused to shake

his head.  "Searchers would never find them in time."

"You know as well as I, Senator, no one is looking for us. The outside

world thinks our ship sank and everyone died. Search efforts would have

been called off by now."

"I know one man who will never give up."

She looked at him questioningly.  "Who?"

"My son, Dirk."

Hala rose and Iimped over to the window and stared vacantly at the

outside fiberboard that hid her view of the sea. "You must be very proud

of him.  He's a brave and resourceful man, but only human.  He'll never

see through the deception-" She paused suddenly and peered down through

a tiny crack that showed a brief span of water.  "There's something

drifting past the ship."

The Senator came over and stood beside her.  He could just make out

several white objects against the blue of the sea. "Ice," he said,

stunned.  "That explains the cold.  We must be heading into the

Antarctic."

Hala sagged against him and buried her face in his chest. "We'll never

be rescued now," she murmured in helpless resignation.  "No one will

think to look for us there."

No one knew the Sounder could drive so hard.  Her decks trembled with

the straining throb of her engines and the hull shuddered as it pounded

into the swells.

Launched at a shipyard in Boston during the summer of 1961, she had

spent almost three decades chartering out to oceanographic schools for

deep-water research projects in every sea of the world.  After her

purchase by NUMA in 1990, she had been completely overhauled and

refitted.  Her new 4,000-horsepower diesel engine was designed to push

her at a maximum of fourteen knots, but Stewart and his engineers

somehow coaxed seventeen out of her.

The Sounder was the only ship on the trail of the Lady Flamborough, and

she stood as much chance of closing the gap as a basset hound after a

leopard.  Warships of the Argentine Navy and British naval units

stationed in the Falkjand Islands might have intercepted the fleeing

cruise ship, but they were not alerted.

After Pitts coded message to Admiral Sandecker announcing the

astonishing discovery of the General Bravo instead of the Lady

Flamborough, the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the White House intelligence

chiefs strongly advised the President to order a tight security lid on

the revelation until U.S. Special Operations Forces could reach the area

and coordinate a rescue.

So the old Sounder surged through the sea, alone and without any high

official authority, her crew of seamen  d scientists caught up in the

mad excitement of the chase.

Pitt and Giordino sat in the ship's dining room, studying a chart of the

extreme South Atlantic Ocean that Gunn had laid out on the table and

pinned down with coffee cups.

"You're convinced they headed south?" Gunn said to Pitt.

"A U-turn to the north would have put the liner back in the search

grid," explained Pitt.  "And there's no way they would have swung west

toward the coastline of Argentina."

"They might have  made  a  run  for  the  open  sea."

"With a three-day lead they could be halfway to Africa by now," added

Giordino.

"Too risky," said Pitt.  "Whoever is running the show doesn't lack for

gray matter.  Turning east across the ocean would have laid the ship

open to exposure by search aircraft and any passing vessels.  No, his

only option to avoid undue suspicion was to continue on the General

Bravo's advertised course to San Pablo on Tierra del Fuego."

"But the port authorities would have blown the whistle when the

container ship was overdue," insisted Giordino.

"Don't underestimate this guy.  What do you want to bet he signaled the

San Pablo Harbor Master and said the General Bravo was running late due

to engine breakdown?"

"A neat touch," agreed Giordino.  "He could easily gain another

forty-eight hours."

"Okay," said Gunn.  "What's left?   Where does he go?   There are a

thousand uninhabited islands he could get lost in around the Straits of

Magellan."

"Or ' Giordino hung on the "or7-"he might sail to the Antarctic, where

he figures no one will search."

"We're all talking in the present tense," said Pitt.  "for all we know,

he's already moored in some deserted cove."

"We're on to his tricks now," said Gunn.  "The Landsat cameras will be

activated on its next pass over, and the Lady Flamborough, alias General

Bravo, will be revealed in all her glory.  "

Giordino looked at Pitt for comment, but his old friend was staring off

into space.  He had picked up on Pitts habit of tuning out and knew the

signs all too well.

Pitt was no longer on the Sounder, he was on the bridge of the Lady

Flamborough, attempting to get inside the head of his adversary.  It

wasn't an easy chore.  The man who ramrodded the hijacking had to be the

shrewdest customer Pitt had ever come up against.

"He's aware of that," Pitt said finally.

"Aware of what?" Gunn asked curiously.

"The fact he can be detected by satellite photographs."

"Then he knows he can run, but he can't hide."

"I think he can."

"I'd like to know how."

Pitt stood and stretched.  "I'm going to take a little walk."

"You didn't answer my question." Gunn was anxious now, impatient.

Pitt swayed and balanced his body with the rock of the ship and looked

down at Gunn with a half grin.  "If I were him," he said as if talking

about a man he knew well, "I'd make the ship disappear a second time."

Gunn's mouth dropped open as Giordino gave him an "I told you so" look.

But before he could probe further, Pitt had exited the dining room.

Pitt made his way aft and dropped down a ladder to the moon pool.  He

walked around the Deep Rover and stopped in front of the large roll of

plastic sheeting they had pulled up from the bottom.  It stood on end

nearly as tall as Pitt and was secured by ropes against a stanchion.

He stared at it for nearly five minutes before he rose and patted it

with one hand.  Intuition, an intuition that grew into a certainty, put

a look that could be best described as pure Machiavellian in his eyes.

He spoke a single word, uttered under his breath so softly that an

engineer standing only a few meters away at a workbench didn't hear him.

"Gotcha!"

A flood of information on what became known as the Flamborough crisis

poured through teletype and computer into the Pentagon's Military

Command Center, the State Department's seventh floor Operations Center,

and the War Games room in the old Executive Office Building.

from each of these strategy tanks, the data were assembled and analyzed

with almost lightning speed.  Then the condensed version, fused with

recommendations, was rushed to the Situation Room located in the White

House basement for final assessment.

The President, dressed casually in slacks and a woolen turtleneck,

entered the room and sat at one end of the long conference table.  After

being updated on the situation, he would ask for options from his

advisers for appropriate action. Though final decisions were his alone,

he was heavily reinforced by crisis-management veterans who labored in

search of a policy consensus and stood ready to carry it out once he

gave it his stamp of approval despite dissenting opinions.

The intelligence reports from Egypt were mostly all bad.  A state of

anarrhy was in full swing; the situation was deteriorating by the hour.

The police and military forces remained in their barracks while

thousands of Akhmad Yazid's followers staged strikes and boycotts

throughout the country.  The only shred of good news was that the

demonstrations were not marked by violence.

Secretary of State Douglas Oates briefly examined a report that was

placed in front of him by an aide.  "That's all we need," he muttered.

The President looked at him expectantly in silence.

"The Muslim rebels have just stormed and taken Cairo's major TV

station."

"A-ny appearance by Yazid?"

"Still a no-show." CIA chief Brogan walked over from one of the computer

monitors.  "The latest intelligence says he's still holed up in his

villa outside Alexandria, waiting to form a new government by

acclamation."

"Shouldn't be long now." The President sighed wearily. "What stance are

the Israeli ministers taking?"

Oates neatly stacked some papers as he spoke.  "Strictly a wait-and-see

attitude.  They don't picture Yazid as an immediate threat."

"They'll change their tune when he tears up the Camp David Peace

Accord." The President turned and coldly stared into Brogan's eyes. "Can

we take him out?"

"Yes."

Brogan's answer was flat, emphatic.

"How?"

"In  the  event  it  comes  back  to  haunt  your administration, Mr.

President, I respectfully suggest you don't know."

The President bowed his head slightly in  agreement.

"You're probably right.  Still, you can't do the job unless I give the

order."

"I  strongly  urge  you  not  to  resort  to  assassination,"  said

Oates.

"Doug Oates is right," said Julius Schiller.  "It could boomerang.  If

word leaked out, you'd be considered fair game by middle East terrorist

leaders."

"Not to mention the uproar from Congress," added Dale Nichols, who sat

midway down the table.  "And the press would murder you."

The President thoughtfully weighed the consequences.  Then he finally

nodded.  "All right, so long as Yazid hates Soviet Premier Antonov as

much as he does me, we'll put his demise on the back burner for now. But

bear this in mind, gentlemen,

I'm not about to take half the crap from this nut that Khomeini dished

out to my predecessors."

Brogan scowled, but an expression of relief was exchanged between Oates

and Schiller.  Nichols merely puffed contentedly on his pipe.

The actors in the drama were strong men with definite and often

conflicting viewpoints.  Victory came easy, but defeat smoldered.

The President shifted the agenda.  "any late word on Mexico?"

"The situation is uncomfortably quiet," answered Brogan. "No

demonstrations, no rioting.  Topiltzin appears to be playing the same

waiting game as his brother."

The President looked up, puzzled.  "Did I hear you correctly?   You said

'brother'?"

Brogan tilted his head toward Nichols.  "Dale made a good call.  Yazid

and Topiltzin are brothers who are neither Egyptian nor Mexican by

birth."

"You've definitely proven a family connection?" Schiller interrupted in

astonishment.  "You have proof?"

"Our operatives obtained and matched their genetic codes."

"This is the first I've heard about it," said a stunned President.  "You

should have informed me sooner."

"The final documentation is still being evaluated and will be sent over

from Langley shortly.  I'm sorry, Mr. President.  At the risk of

sounding overly cautious, I didn't want to throw out such a shocking

discovery until we had gathered solid evidence."

"How in hell did you get their genetic codes?" asked Nichols.

"Both those guys are vain promoters," explained Brogan. "Our forgery

department sent a Koran to Yazid, and a photograph to Topiltzin showing

him in full Aztec regalia, along with requests begging them in each to

inscribe a short prayer on both items and return them.  Actually, it was

a bit more complicated, writing the requests in the handwriting of known

adoring followers-influential followers with financial and political

clout, I might add.  Both fell for it.  The tricky part was intercepting

the return mail before it reached the correct addresses.  The next

problem was sifting out the several sets of fingerprints which

accompanied each object.  Aides, secret agents, whoever.  One thumbprint

on the Koran matched with a known set of Yazid's prints that were on

file with Egyptian police when he was arrested several years ago.  We

then traced his DNA from his fingerprint oils.

"Topiltzin was not so easy.  He had no record in Mexico, but the lab

matched his code to his brother's from prints pulled from the photo.

Then a chance find in the international criminal records at Interpol's

Pahs headquarters dealt us a straight flush.  It all came together. What

we'd stumbled on was a family organization, a crime dynasty that arose

after World War Two.  A billion-dollar empire ruled by a mother and

father, five brothers and a sister, who spearhead the operations, and

run by a network of uncles, aunts, cousins, or whoever is related by

blood or marriage.  This tight association has made it nearly impossible

for international investigators to penetrate.  "

Except for the click of the teletype machines and the hushed murmur of

aides, a stunned silence settled over the table.  Brogan looked from

Nichols to Schiller to Oates to the President.

"Their name?" the President asked softly.

"Capesterre," answered Brogan.  "Roland and Josephine Capesterre are the

father and mother.  Their eldest son is Robert, or, as we know him,

Topiltzin.  The next brother in line is Paul.  "

"He's Yazid?"

"Yes."

"I think we'd be interested in hearing all you know," said the

President.

"As I've stated," said Brogan, "I don't have all the facts at my

fingertips, such as the whereabouts of Karl and Marie, the younger

brother and sister, or the names of associate relatives. We've only

scratched the surface.  from what I recall, the Capesterres are a

tradition-bound criminal family that began almost eighty years ago when

the grandfather emigrated from France to the Caribbean and launched a

smuggling business, moving stolen goods and bootleg booze to the U.S.

during Prohibition.  At first he operated out of Port of Spain,

Trinidad, but as he prospered he bought a small nearby island and set up

business there.  Roland took over when the old man died, and along with

his wife, Josephine-some claim she's the brain behind the throne-lost no

time in expanding into drug traffic- First they built their island into

a legitimate banana plantation, making a nice, honest profit.  Next they

turned inventive and made a real killing by harvesting two crops.  The

second, marijuana, was cultivated under the banana trees, to avoid

detection.  They also set up a refining lab on the island.  Have I

painted a clear picture?"

"Yes . . ." the President said slowly.  "We all see it clearly. Thank

you, Martin."

"They had it all worked out," murmured Schiller.  "The Capesterres

produced, manufactured and smuggled in one efficient operation."

"And distributed," Brogan continued.  "But interestingly, not in the

U.S. They sold the dnigs only in Europe and the Far East."

"Are they still into narcotics?" asked Nichols.

"No." Brogan shook his head.  ' enough contacts, they received a tip

their private island was about to be raided by the joint West Indies

security forces.  The family burned the marijuana crop, kept the banana

plantation and began buying controlling interests in financially shaky

corporations.  They became extremely successful in turning businesses

around and showing staggering profits.  Of course, their unusual method

of management might have had something to do with it."

Nichols took the hook.  "What was their system?"

Brogan grinned.  "The Capesterres relied on blackmail, extortion and

murder.  any time a competing company got in the way, the corporate

executive officers, for some strange reason, initiated merger

negotiations with the Capesteffe interests, losing their collective

asses on the deal, naturally. Developers who hindered projects, opposing

lawyers with lawsuits, unfriendly politicians, they all came to know and

love the Capesterres, or one sunny day their wives and kids had

accidents, their houses burned to the ground or they just up and

vanished."

"Kind of like the Mafia managing General Motors or Gulf and Western,"

said the President sardonically.

"A fair comparison." Brogan nodded politely and continued.  "Now the

family controls a vast worldwide conglomeration of financial and

industrial enterprises worth an estimated twelve billion dollars."

"Billion, as spelled with a 'b'?" Oates mumbled incredulously.  "I may

never attend church services again."

Schiller shrugged wonderingly.  "Who said crime doesn't pay?"

"No wonder they're pulling the strings in Egypt and Mexico," said Oates.

"They must have bought, blackmailed or strong-armed their way into every

department of the government and military.  "

"I begin to see how their scheme is coming together," said the

President.  "But what I can't understand is how can the sons pass

themselves off as native-born Egyptians or Mexicans?   No one can fool

millions of people without somebody getting wise."

"Their mother was descended from black slaves, which accounts for their

dark skin," Brogan said in a patiently explaining tone.  "We can only

speculate about their past.  Roland and Josephine must have laid the

groundwork forty or more years ago.  As their children were born, they

began a vigorous program of making over the boys into foreign nationals.

Paul was no doubt tutored in Arabic before he could walk, while Robert

learned to speak in ancient Aztec.  When the boys became older they

probably attended private schools in both Mexico and Egypt under assumed

names."

"A grand plan," muttered Oates admiringly.  "Nothing so mundane as

burying intelligence moles, but infiltration at the very highest levels,

and with the image of a messiah thrown in for good measure."

"Sounds pretty diabolical to me," said Nichols.

"I agree with Doug," said the President, nodding at Oates. "A grand

plan.  Training children from birth, using untold wealth and power to

set up a national takeover.  What we're really looking at here is an

incredible display of unbending doggedness and patience."

"You have to give the bastards credit," Schiller admitted. "They stuck

to their script until events swung in their favor. Now they're within

centimeters of ruling two of the Third World's leading countries."

"We can't allow it to happen," the President said bluntly.  "If the

brother in Mexico becomes head of state and makes good his threat by

driving two million of his countrymen across our borders, I see no

choice but to send in our armed forces."

"I must caution against aggressive action," said Oates, speaking like a

Secretary of State.  "Recent history has shown that invaders do not fare

well.  Assassinating Yazid and Topiltzin, or whatever their names, and

launching an assault on Mexico won't solve the long-range problem."

"Maybe not," grunted the President, "but it will dam well give us time

to ease the situation."

"There may be another solution," said Nichols.  "Use the Capesterres

against themselves."

"I'm  ," listening," said the President, stress showing in the lines

around his eyes.  "Please skip the riddles."

Nichols looked at Brogan for support.  "These men were drug  ckers. They

must be wanted criminals.  Is that right?"

"Yes on the first, no on the second," answered Brogan. "They're no petty

street crooks.  The entire family has been under investigation for

years.  No arrests.  No convictions. They've got a staff of corporate

and criminal lawyers that would put Washington's biggest law office to

shame.  They've got friends and connections that go straight to the top

of ten major governments- You want to pick up this bunch and put them on

trial?   You'd do better tearing down the pyramids with an ice pick."

"Then expose them to the world for the scum they are," pursued Nichols.

"NO good," said the President.  "any attempt will surely backlash as a

lie and propaganda ploy."

"Nichols might have a direction," said Schiller quietly.  He was a man

who listened more than he spoke.  "All we need is a base that can't be

cracked or shattered."

The President looked speculatively at Schiller.  "Where are You leading,

Julius?"

"The Lady Flamborough," replied Schiller, his face carefully pensive.

"Come up with indisputable proof that Yazid is behind the ship's

hijacking and we can crack the Capesterre wall.  "

Brogan nodded heavily.  "The ensuing scandal would certainly be a step

in stripping away Yazid's and Topfltzin's mystiques and opening the door

to the family's countless criminal activities.  "

"Don't forget the world news media.  They'd have a shark feeding frenzy

once they bit into the Capesten-es' bloody past." Nichols belatedly

winced at his unthinking pun.

"You're all overlooking one important fact," Schiller said with a long

sigh.  "At the moment, any tie between the ship's disappearance and the

Capesterres is strictly circumstantial."

Nichols frowned.  "Who else has motives for getting rid of Presidents De

Lorenzo and Hasan, and Hala Kamil?"

"No one!" Brogan said heatedly.

"Wait up," the President said patiently.  "Julius has a sound point. The

hijackers are not acting like typical Middle East terrorists.  They have

yet to identify themselves.  They've made no demands or threats.  Nor

have they used the crew and passengers as hostages for international

blackmail.  I'm not ashamed to admit I find the silence nightmarish."

"We're faced with a different breed this time," admitted Brogan.  "The

Capesten-es are playing a waiting game, hoping De Lorenzo's and Hasan's

governments will fall in their absence."

"any word on the cruise ship since George Pitts son discovered the

switch?" asked Oates, coolly steering the discussion clear of an

impending confrontation.

"Somewhere off the east coast of Tierra del Fuego," replied Schiller.

"Sailing like hell to the south.  We're tracking by satellite and should

have her cornered by this time tomorrow."

The President didn't look happy.  "The hijackers could have murdered

everyone on board by then."

"If they haven't already," said Brogan.

"What forces do we have in the area?"

"Virtually none, Mr. President," answered Nichols.  "We have no call to

maintain a presence that far south.  Except for a few Air Force

transport planes ferrying supplies to polar research stations, the only

U.S. vessel anywhere near the Lady Flamborough is the Sounder, a NUMA

deep-water survey ship.  "

"The one carrying Dirk Pitt?"

"Yes, sir."

"What about our Special Forces people?"

"I was on the phone with General Keith at the Pentagon twenty minutes

ago," Schiller volunteered.  "An elite team, along with their equipment,

boarded C- 140 cargo jets and took off about an hour ago.  They were

accompanied by a wing of Osprey as ult aircraft."

The President sat back in the chair and folded his hands. "Where will

they set up their command post?"

Brogan called up a map displaying the tip of South America on a giant

wall monitor.  He used a flashlight arrow to indicate a particular spot.

"Unless we receive new information that will alter the tentative plan,"

he explained, "they'll land at an airport outside the small Chilean city

of Punta Arenas on the Brunswick Peninsula and use it as a base for

operations."

"A long flight," said the President quietly.  "When will they arrive?"

"Inside fifteen hours."

The President looked at Oates.  "Doug, I leave it to you to handle any

sovereignty issues with the Chilean and Argentine governments."

"I'll see to it."

"The  Lady  Flamborough  will  have  to  be  found before the Special

Forces can launch a rescue attempt," said Schiller with remorseless

logic.

"We're up the creek on this one." There was a curious acceptance in

Brogan's voice.  "The closest carrier fleet is almost five thousand

miles away.  No way a full-scale air and sea search can be mounted."

Schiller stared at the table thoughtfully.  "any rescue attempt could

take weeks if the hijackers slip the Lady Flamborough in among the

barren bays and coves along the Antarctic coast line.  Fog, mist and low

overcast wouldn't help matters either."

"Satellite surveillance is our only tool," said Nichols.  "The

predicament is that we have no spy satellites eyeballing that region of

the earth."

"Dale is right," Schiller agreed.  "The far southern seas are not high

on the strategic surveillance list.  If we were turn northern

hemisphere, we could focus a whole array of listening and imagery gear

to tune in conversations on board the ship and read a newspaper on

deck."

"What's available?" the President asked.

"The Landsat," answered Brogan, "a few Defense meteorological

satellites, and a Seasat used by NUMA for Antarctic ice and sea current

surveys.  But our best bet is the SR-90 Casper.

"Do we have SR-90 reconnaissance aircraft in Latin America?"

"A tight security airfield in Texas is as close as we come."

"How long to fly one down and back?"

"A Casper is capable of reaching mach five, or just under five thousand

kilometers per hour.  One can fly to the tip of Antarctica, make a photo

run and have the film back in five hours."

The President slowly shook his head in dismay.  "Will someone please

tell me why the United States government is always caught with our pants

down?   I swear to God, nobody screws up like we do.  We build the most

sophisticated detection systems the world has ever known, and when we

need them, they're all concentrated in the wrong place at the wrong

time."

Nobody spoke, nobody moved.  The President's men avoided his eyes and

stared uncomfortably at the table, papers, wall, anything but one

another's face.

At last Nichols spoke in a quiet, confident voice.  "We'll find the

ship, Mr. President.  If anyone can get them out alive, the Special

Forces will."

"Yes," the President drawled softly.  "They're highly trained for such a

mission.  The only question in my mind is whether the crew and

passengers will be there to be rescued.  Or will the Special Forces find

a silent ship filled with corpses?"

Colonel Morton Hollis wasn't overjoyed at leaving his family in the

middle of his wife's birthday party.  The understanding look in her eyes

wrenched his gut.  The cost would hit him dearly, he knew.  The red

coral necklace was about to be enhanced by the five-day cruise to the

BAHamas she'd always pestered him about.

He sat at a desk in a specially designed office compartment inside the

C-140 transport, flying south over Venezuela.  He Puffed away deeply on

a large Havana cigar he had purchased at the base store, now that the

embargo on Cuban imports had been lifted.

Hollis studied the latest weather reports on the Antarctic peninsula and

peered at photographs showing the rugged, icy coastline.  He'd already

been over the difficulfies in his mind a dozen times since takeoff.

During their brief history the newly formed Special Operations Forces

had already achieved a notable record, but they had yet to tackle a

major rescue of the magnitude of the Lady Flamborough hijacking.

The orphan child of the Pentagon, the Special Operations Forces were not

molded into a single command until the fall of 1989.  At that time the

Army's Delta Force, whose fighters were drawn from the elite Ranger and

Green Beret units and a secret aviation unit known as Task Force 160,

merged with the top-of-the-line Navy SEAL Team Six and the Air Force's

Special Operations wing.

The unified forces cut across service lines and boundaries and became a

separate command, numbering twelve thousand men, headquartered at a

tightly restricted base in southeast Virginia.  The crack fighters were

heavily trained in guerrilla tactics, parachuting, wilderness survival

and scuba diving, with special emphasis on storming buildings, ships and

aircraft for rescue missions.

Hollis was short-he'd barely met the height requirements of the Special

Forces-and almost as wide in the shoulders as he was tall.  Forty years

old but immensely tough, he had survived a rigorous simulated guerrilla

war in the swamps of Florida for three weeks, and parachuted right back

in for another exercise.  His closely cropped brown hair was dun and

graying early.  His eyes were a blue-green, the whites slightly yellowed

from too much time in the sun without proper glasses.

An astute man who always looked over the next hill and planned

accordingly, he left very little to chance.  He blew a smoke ring from

the cigar with a degree of elation.  He couldn't be leading a better

team if he'd picked the medal winners of a military Olympics.  They were

the elite of the elite for fighting low-intensity conflicts.  The eighty

men of his team, who called themselves the Demon Stalkers, were selected

for the Lady Flamborough rescue because they actually had engaged in

assault exercises against mock terrorists who had held a ship and crew

hostages off the coast of Norway.  Forty were "shooters" while the other

half acted as logistical and support fighters.

His second in command, Major John Dillenger, rapped on the door and

stuck his head in.  "You busy, Mort?" he asked in a decided Texas twang.

Hollis waved a casual hand.  "My office is your office," he assured

Dillenger jovially.  "Squeeze in and sit yourself in my new French

leather designer couch."

Dillenger, a lean, stringy man with a pinched face, but hard as an

anvil, stared dubiously at the canvas seat bolted to the floor and sat

down.  Forever kidded about being saddled with the same name as the

famous bank robber, he was a master of the art of tactical planning and

the penetration of almost impossible defenses.

"Covering the bases?" he asked Hollis.

"Going over meteorological forecasts, ice and terrain conditions.  "

"See any jazz in your crystal ball?"

"Too early." Hollis raised an eyebrow.  "What plans are forming in your

perverted mind?"

"I can recite and draw pictures of six different ways to board a ship by

stealth.  I've already familiarized myself with the design and deck

layout of the Lady Flamborough, but until we learn whether we're coming

in by parachute, by scuba, or by foot from hard beach or ice, I can only

plot an outline."

Hollis nodded solemnly.  "Over a hundred innocent people are on that

ship.  Two Presidents and the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

God help us if one steps in our line of fire."

"We can't go in with blanks," Dillenger said caustically.

"No, and we can't drop from noisy helicopters with all weapons blasting.

We've got to infiltrate before the hijackers know we're there.  Complete

surprise is crucial."

"Then we hit 'em by 'stealth parachute' at night."

"Could be," Hollis acknowledged tersely.

Dillenger shifted uncomfortably in the canvas seat.  "A night landing is

dangerous enough, but dropping blindly on a darkened ship can mean

slaughter.  You know it, and I know it, Mort.  Out of forty men, fifteen

will miss the target and fall in the sea.  Twenty will sustain injuries

impacting on hard, protruding surfaces of the ship.  I'll be lucky to

have five men in fighting trim."

"We can't rule it out."

"Let's wait until more info comes in," suggested Dillenger. "Everything

hinges on where the ship is found.  Whether she's moored or sailing

across the sea makes all the difference in the world.  As soon as we

receive word on her final status, I'll formulate a tight assault plan

and lay it in your hands for final approval.  "

"Fair enough," said Hollis agreeably.  "How are the men?"

"Doing their homework.  By the time we land at Punta Arenas, they'll

have memorized the Lady Flamborough well enough to run around her decks

blindfolded."

"A lot is riding on them this time out."

"They'll do the job.  The trick is to get them on board in one piece.

"There is one thing," Hollis said, a deep apprehension on his face. "The

latest estimate from intelligence sources on the strength of the

hijackers . . . it just came in from the Pentagon.  "

"How many are we talking about, five, ten, maybe twelve?"

Hollis hesitated.  "Assuming the crew of the Mexican ore camer that

boarded the cruise ship are also armed . . . we could be looking at a

total of forty."

Dillenger gaped.  "Oh, my gawd.  We're going up against an equal number

of terrorists?"

"Looks that way." Hollis nodded grimly.

Dillenger shook his head in shocked disapproval and drew a hand across

his forehead.  Then his eyes burned into Hollis's.

"Some people," he said disgustedly, "are going to get their butts

stomped before this caper is over."

Deep in a concrete bunker tunneled into a hill outside Washington, D.C.,

Lieutenant Samuel T. Jones came rushing into a large office, panting as

though he'd just run a two-hundredmeter dash, which indeed he had-only

two steps shy of the exact distance from the communications room to the

photoanalysis office.

His face was flushed with excitement, and he held a huge photograph

spread between his upraised hands.

Jones had often rushed along the corridors during crisis exercise

drills, but he, and the other three hundred men and women who worked in

the Special Operations Forces Readiness Command, hadn't really put their

hearts into it until now. Practice did not make the adrenaline pump like

the real thing. After waiting like hibernating groundhogs, they had

erupted into life when the alert on the Lady Flamborough hijacking came

in from the Pentagon.

Major General Frank Dodge headed up the SOF He and several members of

his staff were tensely awaiting the arrival of the latest satellite

image depicting the waters south of Tierra del Fuego when Jones burst

into the room.

"Got it!"

Dodge  gave  the  young  officer  a  stern look for unmilitary

enthusiasm.  "Should have been here eight minutes ago," he grunted.

"My fault, General.  I took the liberty of trimming the outer perimeters

and enlarging the immediate search area before having it

computer-enhanced."

Dodge's stern expression softened and he nodded approvingly.

"Good thinking, Lieutenant."

Jones gave a short sigh and quickly clipped the newest satellite image

on a long wallboard under a row of hooded spotlights.  An earlier image

hung nearby, showing the Lady Flamborough's last known position circled

in red, her previous course marked in green, and predicted course in

orange.

Jones stepped back as General Dodge and his officers crowded around the

image, peering anxiously for the tiny dot indicating the cruise ship.

"The last satellite sighting put the ship about one hundred kilometers

south of Cape Horn," said a major, tracing the course from the previous

chart.  "She should be well out into Drake's Passage by now, approaching

the islands off the Antarctic peninsula."

After nearly a full minute of appraisal, General Dodge turned to Jones.

"Did you study the photo, Lieutenant?"

"No, sir.  I didn't take the time.  I rushed it over as quickly as

possible."

"You're certain this is the latest transmission?"

Jones looked puzzled.  "Yes, sir."

"No mistake?"

"None," Jones replied unhesitatingly.  "The NUMA Seasat satellite

recorded the area with digital electronic impulses that were sent to

ground stations instantaneously.  You're seeing an image no more than

six minutes old."

"When will the next photo come in?"

"The Landsat should orbit the region in forty minutes."

"And the Casper?"

Jones glanced at his watch.  "If she returns on schedule, we should be

looking at film in four hours."

"Get it to me the instant it arrives."

"Yes, sir.  "

Dodge turned to his subordinates.  "Well, gentlemen, the White House

ain't going to like this."

He went over and picked up a phone.  "Put me through to Alan Merger."

The National Security Adviser's voice came over the line within twenty

seconds.  "I hope you've got some good news, Frarik.

"Sorry, no," Dodge answered flatly.  "It appears the cruise ship-"

"She sank?" Mercier cut him off.

"We can't say with any certainty."

"What are you saying?"

Dodge took a breath.  "Please inform the President the Lady Flamborough

has vanished again."

By the early 1990s equipment for sending photographs or graphics around

the world by nucrowave via satellite or across town by fiber optics

became as common in business and government offices as copy machines.

Scanned by laser and then transmitted to a laser receiver, the image

could be reproduced almost instantly in living color with extraordinary

detail.

So it was that within ten minutes of General Dodge's call, the President

and Dale Nichols were hunched over the desk in the Oval Office

scrutinizing the Seasat image of waters off the tip of South America.

"She may really be on the bottom this time," said Nichols. He felt tired

and confused.

"I don't believe it," the President said, his face a mask of repressed

fury.  "The hijackers had their chance to destroy the ship off Punta del

Este and make a clean getaway on the General Bravo.  Why sink her now?"

"Escape by submarine is a possibility."

The President seemed not to hear.  "Our inability to deal with this

crisis is frightening.  Our whole response seems mired in inertia."

"We were caught unprepared and unequipped," Nichols offered lamely.

"An event that occurs too frequently around here," the President

muttered.  He looked up, fire in his eyes.  "I refuse to write those

people off.  I owe George Pitt.  Without his support, I wouldn't be

sitting in the Oval Office." He paused for effect.  "We're not going to

snap at a red herring again."

Sid Green was scrutinizing the satellite images too.  A

photo-intelligence specialist with the National Security Agency at its

headquarters in Fort Meyer, he had projected the last two satellite

pictures on one screen.  Intrigued, he ignored the most recent photo,

the one that failed to reveal the ship, and concentrated on the earlier

one.  He zoomed in on the tiny blip that represented the Lady

Flamborough with a computerized lens.

The outline was fuzzy, too indistinct to make out little more than the

ship's profile.  He turned to the computer at his left and entered a

series of instructions.  A few details that were hidden to his eye

became apparent now.  He could discern the funnel and shape of the

superstructure and blurred sections of the upper decks.

He played with the computer keyboard, trying to sharpen the cruise

ship's features.  He spent nearly an hour at it before he finally sat

back, put his arms behind his head and rested his eyes.

The door to the darkened room opened and Green's supervisor, Vic Patton,

entered.  He stood behind Green for a moment looking at the projections.

"It's like trying to read a newspaper on the street from the roof of the

World Trade Center," he observed.

Green spoke without turning.  "A 70-by-130 kilometer swath doesn't offer

us much resolution, even after enlarged enhancement."

"any sign of the ship on the last linage?"

"Not a hint."

"Too bad we can't drop our KH spy birds that low."

"A KH- 15 might get a picture."

"The situation in the Middle East is heating up again.  I can't pull one

out of orbit until the dust settles."

"Then send in a Casper."

"One is on the way," said Patton.  "You should be reading the color of

the hijackers' eyes by lunch."

Green motioned at the computer lens.  "Take a look and tell me if

something looks out of place."

Patton pressed his face against the rubber eyepiece and peered at the

speck that was the Lady Flamborough.  "Too damned blurred to discern

incidentals.  What am I missing?"

"Check the bow section."

"How can you tell the back from the front?"

"By the wake behind the stern," Green answered patiently.

Okay, I've got it.  The deck behind the bow looks obscured, almost as if

it was covered."

"You will first prize at the fair," said Green.

"What are they up to?" Patton mused.

"We'll know when the film from the Casper comes in."

On board the C-140, now cruising over Bolivia, there was an atmosphere

of bitter disappointment.  The photo minus the cruise ship came over the

aircraft's laser receiver and caused as much agitation inside the

cramped command center as in Washington's power circles.

"Where in hell did it go?" Hollis demanded.

Dillenger could only mutter blankly, "She can't be gone."

"Well, she sure is.  See for yourself."

"I did.  I can't spot her any more than you can."

"This makes three times in a row we've been shut out at the gate by bad

information, lousy weather or equipment breakdown.  Now our target ups

and plays hide-and-seek."

"She must have sunk," munfoled Dillenger.  "I don't see any other

explanation."

"I can't see forty hijackers all agreeing on a suicide pact."

"What now?"

"Beyond requesting instructions from Readiness Command, I see little

else I can do."

"Shall we abort the misssion?" asked Dillenger.

"Not unless we're ordered to turn back."

"So we keep going."

Hollis nodded dejectedly.  "We fly south until ordered otherwise."

The last to know was Pitt.  He was sleeping like the dead when Rudi Gunn

entered his cabin and shook him awake.

"Come alive,"  said  Gunn  briskly.  "We've  got  a  big  problem."

Pitt popped his eyes open and checked the dial of his watch. "Did we get

a speeding ticket coming into Punta Arenas?"

Gunn looked at Pitt in weary despair.  Anyone who awoke from a sound

sleep in a cheerful mood and instantly made bad jokes had to have come

from a broken branch of evolution.

"The ship won't enter the harbor for another hour yet."

"Good, I can doze a while longer."

"Get serious!" Gunn said bluntly.  "The latest satellite photo just

rolled out of the ship's receiver.  The Lady Flamborough has gone

missing for the second time."

"She's really dropped out?"

"Enhanced magnification can't find a sign of her.  I've just talked. to

Admiral Sandecker.  The White House and Pentagon are spitting out orders

like slot machines gone mad.  A Special Operations Force rescue team is

on the way, steamed and primed for action, but with no place to go.

They're also sending a spy plane to produce some decent aerial

pictures."

"Ask the Admiral if he can arrange a meeting between the SOF team leader

and me as soon as they land."

"Why don't you tell him?"

"Because I'm going back to sleep," Pitt  replied  with  a  loud yawn.

Gunn was at a loss.  "Your father's  on  that  boat.  Don't  you give a

damn?"

"Yes," said Pitt, his eyes flashing a caution light, "I give a damn. But

I don't see what I can do about it at the moment."

Gunn  backed off. "Anything else the Admiral should know?"

Pitt pulled the blanket under his armpits, rolled over and faced the

bulkhead.  "Yes, as a matter of fact.  You can tell him I know how the

Lady Flamborough vanished.  And I can make a pretty good guess as to

where she hides."

If any other man had spoken those words, Gunn would have called him a

liar.  But Pitt he didn't doubt for a second.

"Mind giving me a clue?"

Pitt half-turned.  "You're an  art  collector  of  sorts,  aren't you,

Rudy?"

"My  small  collection  of  abstracts  won't  match the New York Museum

of Modern Art, but it's respectable." He looked at Pitt in

uncomprehending curiosity.  "What has this got to do with anything?"

"If I'm right, we may be getting into art in a big way."

"Are we on the same frequency?"

"Christo," said Pitt as he turned and refaced the bulkhead.

"We're about to review a Christo-inspired sculpture."

A light snow had turned to a miserable, wind-driven sleet over the

southernmost large city in the world.  Punta Arenas had flourished as a

port of call before the Panama Canal was built, and died afterward.  The

city gradually returned as a sheepraising center and was now booming

after productive oil fields were discovered close by.

Hollis and Dillenger stood on a harbor pier, waiting anxiously to board

the Sounder.  The temperature had dropped several degrees below

freezing; it was a damp, harsh cold that bit at their exposed faces.

They felt like cornels in the Arctic. Through the cooperation of Chilean

authorities, they had gone undercover and exchanged their battle dress

for the uniforms of immigration officials.

As scheduled, their aircraft had landed at a nearby military airport

while it was still dark.  The storm came as an added bonus, holding

visibility to a few hundred meters and keeping their arrival unobserved.

The Chilean military command was most generous in their hospitality and

provided hangar space for Hollis's small flight of C-140s and Ospreys to

park out of sight.

They moved from the shelter of a warehouse as the research ship's

mooring lines were dropped over the dock bollards and the gangway

lowered.  Both men flinched as the full force of the icy wind struck

them.

A tall man with a craggy face and a friendly grin, wearing a ski jacket,

appeared on the bridge wing.  He cupped his hands around his mouth.

"Senor L6pez?" he shouted through the sleet.

"Si!" Hollis yelled back.

"Who's your friend?"

"Mi amigo es Sefior Jones," Hollis answered, nodding at Dillenger.

"I've heard better Spanish in a Chinese restaurant," Dillenger muttered.

"Please come on board.  After you'reach the main deck, take the ladder

to your right and come up to the bridge."

"Gracias.

The two leaders of America's elite fighting force dutifully walked up

the slanted gangway and climbed the ladder as directed.  Hollis's

curiosity was eating him up.  An hour before reaching Punta Arenas, he'd

received an urgent coded communication from General Dodge ordering him

to covertly meet the Sounder when she docked in port.  No explanation,

no further instructions.  He knew only from a hurried briefing in

Virginia that the survey ship and its crew were responsible for

discovering the deception between the Mexican container ship and the

Lady Flamborough.  Nothing else.  He was most interested in learning why

she suddenly appeared in Punta Arenas at almost the same time as his SOF

team.

Hollis did not like being left in the dark, and he was in an intensely

testy mood.

The man who hailed him was still standing on the bridge wing.  Hollis

looked into mesmeric green eyes-very opaque green indeed.  They belonged

to a lean, broad-shouldered man whose uncovered black hair was speckled

with white flakes of ice.  He stared at the two officers for all of five

seconds, time enough to complete a survey.  Then he removed his right

hand slowly from a coat pocket and stuck it out.

"Colonel Hollis, Major Dillenger, my name is Dirk Pitt."

"Seems you know more about us than we do you, Mr. Pitt.

"A situation that will be quickly rectified," Pitt said cheerfully.

"Please follow me to the Captain's cabin.  The coffee's on, and we can

talk where it's warm and private."

They gratefully stepped out of the cold and trailed Pitt down one deck

to Stewart's quarters.  Once inside, Pitt introduced Gunn, Giordino and

Captain Stewart.  The SOF officers shook hands all around and gratefully

accepted the coffee.

"Please sit down," said Stewart, offering chairs.

Dillenger sank into a chair, but Hollis shook his head.

"Thank you, I'd rather stand." He cast a questioning look at the four

men from NUMA.  "If I can speak frankly, would you mind telling me what

in hell is going on?"

"Obviously it concerns the Lady Flamborough, " said Pitt.

"What's there to discuss?   The terrorists have destroyed her.  "

"She's still very much afloat," Pitt assured him.

"I've received no word to that effect," said Hollis.  "The last

satellite photo shows no trace of her."

"Take my word for it."

"Show me your evidence."

"You don't screw around, do you?"

"My men and I flew here to save lives," Hollis said roughly. "No one,

not even my superiors, has demonstrated to me that people on board that

ship can still be saved."

"You have to understand, Colonel," said Pitt, his voice abruptly cutting

like a whip, "we're not dealing with your usual gun-happy terrorists.

Their leader is extremely resourceful.  Until now he's outwitted the

best security brains in the business.  And he keeps right on doing it."

saw through the disguise," said Hollis, throwing a left-handed

compliment.

"We were lucky.  If the Sounder hadn't been surveying in that part of

the sea, our discovery of the General Bravo might have taken a month. As

it is, we've cut the hijackers' lead time down to one or two days."

Hollis's pessimism began to melt away.  This man wasn't giving an inch.

He wondered if the rescue operation might take place after all.

"Where is the proof?" he asked bluntly.

"We  don't  know," answered Gunn.

"Not so much as an approximate position?"

"The best we can offer is an educated guess," said Giordino.

"Based on what?"

Gunn looked expectantly at Pitt, who smiled and carried the ball again.

"Intuition.

Hollis's hopes began to crumble.  "Are you using tarot cards or a

crystal ball?" he asked sardonically.

"Actually, I favor tea leaves," replied Pitt, tit for tat.

There was a brief silence, long and cold.  Hollis rightly figured

aggression wasn't going to get him anywhere.  He finished his coffee and

turned the cup round and round,

"All right, gentlemen.  I regret coming on a little too strong. I'm not

used to dealing with civilians."

There was no malice in Pitts face, just a look of amusement.  "If it

will make you feel more comfortable, I carry the rank of Major in the

Air Force."

Hollis frowned.  "May I ask what you're doing on a NUMA vessel?"

"Call it a permanent assignment-a long story we don't have time to get

into."

Dillenger caught it first.  Hollis should have caught it the minute they

were introduced, but his mind was saturated with questions.

"Are you by chance related to Senator George Pitt?" asked Dillenger.

"Father and son,"

A small piece of the curtain lifted atld the two officers saw a shaft of

light beneath.  Hollis pulled up a chair and settled in. "Okay, Mr.

Pitt, please tell me what you've got."

Dillenger cut in, "The last report showed The Lady Flamborough heading

for the Antarctic.  You say she's still on the surface.  New photos will

easily pick her out amid the ice floes.  "

"If you're betting on the SR-ninety Casper," said Pitt, "save your

money."

Dillenger gave Hollis a bleak look.  They were outdistanced. This

oddball group of ocean engineers had as much information in hand as they

did.

"from a hundred thousand kilometers an SR-ninety can reveal

three-dimensional images so sharp that you can distinguish the stitching

on a soccer ball," stated Hollis.

"No question.  But suppose the ball is camouflaged to look like a rock."

"I still don't know-"

"You'd see more clearly if we showed you," said Pitt.  "The crew has set

up a demonstration on deck."

The open deck on the stern had been covered over with a large, opaque

blanket of white plastic, firmly secured to keep it taut and prevent it

from billowing under the constant breeze. Captain Stewart stood by with

two crew members who manned a fire hose.

"During our survey of the area around the General Bravo we recovered a

roll of this plastic," Pitt lectured.  "I believe it accidentally fell

off the Lady Flamborough when the two vessels rendezvoused.  It was

sitting on the seabed among empty barrels of paint the hijackers used to

remodel the cruise liner to resemble the Mexican container ship.

Granted, the evidence is inconclusive.  You'll have to take my word for

that.  But it all points to another makeup job.  Nothing showed on the

last satellite photo because all eyes were searching for a ship.  The

Lady Flamborough no longer looks like one.  The hijack leader must be

into art appreciation.  He took a page from the controversial sculptor

Christo, who's famous for his outdoor sculptures in plastic.  He wraps

the stuff around buildings, coastlines and islands.  He hung a monstrous

curtain in Rifle Gap, Colorado, and made a fence running for miles in

Mwill County, California.  The chief hijacker went one better and

wrapped the entire cruise liner.  The liner is not a huge ship. The

basic outline of her hull could have been altered by props and

scaffolding.  With the sheets all cut and numbered as to position, a

hundred hostages and hijackers might have done the job in ten hours

flat.  They were working at it when the Landsat orbited overhead.  The

enhanced blowup was not clear enough to reveal details of the activity.

When the Seasat followed half a day later there was nothing to identify,

no features conforming to a ship, any ship.  Am I going too fast?"

"No . . ." Hollis said slowly.  "But none of it makes a hell of a lot of

sense."

"He must be from Missouri," Giordino said wryly.  "Shall we show him?"

Pitt gave a brief nod to Captain Stewart.

"Okay, boys," said Stewart to his crewmen.  "Once over lightly.  "

One man turned the valve while the other aimed the nozzle.

A fine spray was turned on the plastic sheeting.  At first the wind

carried half the mist over the side.  The crewman had ajusted the angle,

and soon the plastic was coated with a watery film.

Before a full minute passed, the frigid atmosphere turned the water to

ice.

Hollis observed the transformation pensively Then he walked up to Pitt

and held out his hand.  "My respects, sir. You made a sound call."

Dillenger stared like a rube who'd been suckered at a traveling

carnival.  "An iceberg," he muttered angrily. ,The sons of bitches made

the ship into an iceberg."

Hala awoke cold and stiff.  It was midmorning, yet there was still a

level of darkness.  The cargo container facade, combined with the

ice-coated plastic shrouding the cruise liner, shut out most of the

light.  What little penetrated into the VIP suites was just sufficient

to reveal the figures of Presidents Hasan and De Lorenzo on the bed next

to her.  Under one pitifully inadequate blanket, they huddled against

one another for warmth, their frozen breaths hanging in vaporlike clouds

above their heads before condensing and freezing on the walls.

The cold itself might have been tolerated, no matter how miserable, but

the high humidity made the freezing temperatures unbearable.  Their

condition was further aggravated by not having had anything to eat since

leaving Punta del Este. The hijackers made no effort to provide food for

the passengers and crew.  Ammar's inhuman callousness took its toll as

and fear of the unknown the cold sapped their strength, drugged their

minds.

for the first part of the voyage, the prisoners had survived on nothing

but water out of the faucets in the bathroom showers and washbasins. But

the pipes had frozen, and the torment of thirst was added to the ache of

hunger.

The  Lady  Flamborough  had  been  refitted  to  sail tropical seas and

carried only a minimum supply of blankets.  Everyone who came on board

in Puerto Rico or Punta del Este had packed for a temperate climate and

had left all winter clothing in closets at home.  The prisoners bundled

up as best they could, wearing several layers of lightweight shirts,

pants and socks.  They wrapped their heads in towels to retain body

heat. The cold-weather gear they sorely missed most was gloves.

There was no warmth anywhere.  Animar had refused all pleas to circulate

heat throughout the ship.  He could not afford the luxury.  Interior

heat would have melted the ice film on the plastic sheeting and

sabotaged the deception.

Hala was not the only prisoner awake.  Most had found it impossible to

drop off into a sound sleep.  They lay as if in a hypnotic trance, aware

of their surroundings but unable to make any kind of physical effort.

any thoughts of resistance had rapidly drained away under the onslaught.

Instead of fighting the hijackers, Captain Collins and his crew were

reduced to stru gling to stay alive against the numbing cold.

Hala raised to her elbows as Senator Pitt came into the room.

He made a strange appearance, wearing a gray business suit over a blue

pinstripe.  He gave Hala a smile of encouragement, but it was a pathetic

effort.  The fatigue of the past five days had taken away his youthful

look, and he looked closer to his true age.

"How you holding up?" he asked.

"I'd give my right arm for a cup of hot tea," she said gamely.

"for my part, I'd give more than that."

President De Lorenzo sat up and dropped his feet on the deck.  "Did

someone say hot tea?"

"Just fantasizing, Mr. President," replied the Senator. "I never thought

I'd find myself starving and freezing to death on a luxurious cruise

ship."

"Nor I," said Hala.

President Hasan gave  a  slight  moan  as  he  changed  position and

lifted his head.

"Is your back bothering you?" asked President De Lorenzo, his face

reflecting concern.

"I'm too cold to hurt," Hasan said with a tight smile.

"Can I help you up?"

"No, thank you.  I think I'll just remain here in bed and conserve

whatever strength I have left." Hasan looked at De Lorenzo and smiled

thinly.  "I wish we had met and become friends under more comfortable

circumstances."

"I've heard the Americans say, 'Politics makes strange bedfellows." We

seem to be a literal example."

"When we get out of this, you must be my guest in Egypt."

De Lorenzo nodded.  "A reciprocal agreement.  You must also visit

Mexico."

"An honor I gladly accept.

The two Presidents solemnly shook hands on it-no longer pampered heads

of state but two men whose lives shared a fate they could not control

and were determined to end with dignity.

"The engines have stopped," said Hala suddenly.

Senator Pitt nodded.  "The anchors were just dropped.  We're moored, and

they've shut down the engines."

"We must be near land."

"No way of telling with the port windows hidden."

"Too bad we're blind," said Hasan.

"If one of you will guard the door, I'll make a try at forcing the

window," said Pitt.  "Once I make a break in the glass without alerting

a guard, I'll carve a hole in the fiberboard. With luck we might be able

to see where we are."

"I'll listen at the door," Hala volunteered.

"The cold is bad enough without letting more in," said De Lorenzo

dispiritedly.

"The temperature is the same outside as in here," the Senator replied

bluntly.

He was not about to waste time in debate.  He went immediately to the

large glass viewing window in the sitting room. The port measured two

meters high by one wide.  There was no promenade deck running along

outside.  The staterooms and suite entrances faced the center of the

ship.  The windowed outer walls rose flush from the hull.

The only open areas patrolled by the hijackers were the pool and lounge

decks above and the observation decks fore and aft.

The Senator rapped the glass with his knuckles.  The return sound came

like a dull thump.  The glass was thick.  It had to be to withstand the

crushing impact of huge waves and hurricane-force winds.

"Anyone wear a diamond ring?" he asked.

Hala slipped her hands out of the pockets of a light raincoat, held them

up and wiggled her fingers, displaying two small rings mounted with

opals and turquoise.  "Muslim suitors are not in the habit of spoiling

their women with lavish gifts."

"I could use a full carat."

President Hasan pulled a large ring from one of his pinky fingers. "Here

is a three-carat.

The Senator eyeballed the stone in the dim light.  "This should do

nicely.  Thank you."

He worked quickly but carefully, making little noise, cutting an opening

just large enough to slip a finger through.  He stopped every so often

to blow on his hands.  When his fingers began to go numb, he held them

under his armpits until they limbered up again.

He did not care to contemplate what the hijackers would do to him if

they caught him.  He could almost envision his bullet-riddled corpse

floating in the current.

He cut a circular line around the small center hole, retracing the line

until the gouge went deeper and deeper.  The tricky thing was to prevent

a piece of the glass from falling down the side of the steel hull and

tinkling as it fell.

He curled a finger into the hole and pulled.  The circle of glass gave

way.  He slowly eased it backward and set it on the carpet.  Not a bad

job.  Now he had an opening large enough to stick his head through.

The fiberboard making up the false cargo containers stood half an arm's

length from the window and covered the entire length of the midship's

superstructure.  The Senator cautiously slipped his head past the

opening, careful not to slice his ears on its razor-sharp edges.  He

peered from side to side, but saw only the narrow slot between the fake

containers and the steel sides of the ship.  Upward, he viewed the crack

of light that was the sky, but it appeared dimmed as if socked in by

fog. He should have seen a thin band of moving water below.  Instead his

eyes took in an immense sheet of plastic that was attached by bracing

along the waterline.  He stared at it in amazement, not having the

faintest idea of its purpose.

The Senator felt secure.  If he couldn't see the hijackers guarding the

decks, they couldn't see him.  He returned to the bedroom and rummaged

through his suitcase.

"What do you need?" asked Hala.

He held up a Swiss Army knife.  "I always carry one of these in my

shaving kit." He grinned.  "The corkscrew comes in handy for impromptu

parties."

Senator Pitt took his time and warmed his hands before going back to

work.  He grasped the red handle, eased his arm through the opening in

the glass and began to twist, using the small blade as a drill, and then

the large blade to carve away the sides and increase the circumference.

The process went agonizingly slowly.  He dared not run the blade more

than a scant millimeter past the outer wau of the fiberboard.  There was

the nagging fear an alert guard might peer over the side and glimpse the

tiny metallic movement.  He carved very carefully, removing each layer

of the fiberboard before attacking the next.

All feeling went out of his hand, but he did not warm it.  His fist was

frozen stiffly around the red handle.  The small knife felt like an

extension of his hand.

At last the Senator scraped away enough wood shavings for a hole large

enough to observe a fairly large area of sea. He leaned his head through

the glass and pressed his cheek against the cold surface of the board.

Something shut off his view.  He poked his finger in the eyehole and

felt it touch the plastic sheeting.  He was more confounded than ever to

learn it covered the hollow containers as well as the lower hull.

He cursed under his breath.  He needn't have been so afraid of

penetrating the wood.  No one would have seen his knife blade under the

plastic anyway.  He threw off caution and quickly cut a slot in the

opaque material.  Then the Senator looked again.

He did not see the open sea, nor did he find himself viewing a

shoreline.

What he saw was a towering cliff of ice that extended far beyond his

limited line of sight.  The glistening wall was so close he could have

touched it with an extended umbrella.

As he stared he heard a deadened bass drumlike sound.  It reminded the

Senator of the rumble from a minor earthquake.

He stepped back abruptly, reeling at the implication of what he'd

discovered.

Hala saw him stiffen.  "What  is  it?"  she  asked  anxiously.

What did you see?"

He turned and looked at her blankly, his mouth working until words

finally formed ' "They've anchored us against a huge glacier," he said

finally.  "The ice wall can break away at any time and crush the ship

like paper."

Twenty thousand meters above the Antarctic peninsula, the delta-wing

reconnaissance plane slipped through the rarefied air at 3,200

kilometers per hour.  She was designed to fly twice that altitude at

twice the speed, but her pilot held her at 40 percent throttle to

conserve fuel and give the cameras a chance to sharpen earth images

under the slower speed.

Unlike her ancestor, the SR-71 "blackbird," whose natural titanium wings

and fuselage wore the color of deep indigo, the ,,stealth" technology of

the more advanced SR-90 created an incredibly tough, lightweight plastic

skin that was tinted graywhite.  Nicknamed "the Casper" after the

cartoon ghost, she was almost as impossible to detect by eye as she was

by radar.

Her five cameras could capture half the length of the United States in

one hour with only one pass.  Her photographic package filmed in

black-and-white, color, infrared, three-dimensional, and a few imagery

techniques that were highly classified and totally unknown to commercial

photographers Lieutenant Colonel James Slade had little to do.  It was a

long, boring reconnaissance from his base in California's Mojave Desert.

The only time he took manual control in flight was during refueling

operations.  The Casper's engines had a heavy thirst.  She had to be

refueled twice on each leg of the flight by aerial tankers.

Slade exam- ined the instruments with a critical eye.  The Casper was a

new plane, and she had yet to reveal all her bugs.  Thankful to find

normal readings across the board, he sighed and pulled a miniature

electronic game from a pocket of his flight suit.  He began pressing the

buttons below a small viewing window, trying to get a tiny diver past a

giant octopus to reach a treasure chest.

After a few minutes he tired of the game and gazed ahead and down at the

frozen isolation that was Antarctica.  Far below, the curved, beckoning

finger of the northern peninsula and its adjoining islands sparkled

under a diamond-clear sky.

The ice and rock and sea created a beautiful vastness, awesome to the

eye, intimidating to the soul.  The sight may have looked appealing from

twenty kilometers overhead, but Slade knew better.  He'd once flown

supplies to a scientific station at the South Pole and quickly learned

the beauty and the hostility in the permanent domain of cold went hand

in hand.

He well remembered the chilling temperatures.  He didn't believe it

possible to spit and see the saliva freeze before it hit the ground. And

he never forgot the ferocious winds that scourge the coldest of all

continents.  The 160-kilometer gusts were unimaginable until he

experienced them for the first time.

Slade could never fathom why some men were so attracted to that frozen

hell.  He had a facetious urge to call a travel agent after he returned

to base and inquire about reservations at a good resort hotel close to

the polar center.

Suddenly a female voice spoke over one of the three cockpit speakers.

"Attention, please.  You are about to cross the outer limit of your

flight path where seventy degrees longitude and seventy degrees latitude

intersect.  Disengage auto pilot and come around a hundred and eighty

degrees beginning . . . now.  The new heading for your return is

programmed into the computer. Please enter the appropriate code.  Have a

good trip home."

Slade followed the instructions and made a lazy Turn.  As soon as the

computer locked on the return heading he went back on auto pilot and

shifted to a more comfortable position in his cramped seat.

Like so many other men who flew reconnaissance missions, he fantasized

about the face and body that went with the embodied voice.  Rumor had it

she weighed two-hundred pounds, was sixty years old and a grandmother

twelve times. No pilot with a sound imagination could believe such a

myt."shattering thought.  She had to look like Sigourney Weaver. Maybe

it was Sigoumey Weaver.  He decided to explore the tantalizing

possibility on his return home.

That delicate problem solved, Slade re-checked his instrument panel and

then relaxed while the icebound land drifted away behind his tail.  Over

the sea again, he returned to his little electronic treasure game.

He saw little purpose in continuing to watch the world roll by,

especially since Tierra del Fuego was covered by thick blankets of

charcoal clouds.  He'd studied enough geography to know it was a

wretched land of constant wind, rain and snow.

Slade was almost thankful he couldn't see the monotonous landscape.  He

left it to Casper's infrared camera to penetrate the dark overcast and

record the desolate, dead end of the continent.

Captain Collins stared into Ammar's mask and had to force himself not to

avert his gaze.  There was something evil, something inhuman in the eyes

of the urbane leader of the hijackers.  Collins could sense a chilling

unconcern for mere human life about the man.

"I demand to know when you're going to release my ship," said Collins in

a precise tone.

Arnmar set a cup of tea on a saucer, patted his lips with a table napkin

and looked at Collins detachedly.

"Can I offer you some tea?"

"Not unless you offer it to my passengers and crew as well," Collins

replied dryily.  He stood erect in his summer white uniform, bitterly

cold and shivering.

"The very answer I expected." Ammar turned the empty cup upside down and

leaned back.  "You'll be happy to know my men and I expect to leave

sometime tomorrow evening.  If you give me your word there will be no

foolish attempt to retake the ship or escape to the nearby shore before

we depart, no one will be harmed and you can resume command."

"I'd rather you heat the ship and feed everyone now.  We're desperately

short of warm clothing and blankets to ward off the cold.  No one has

eaten in days.  The pipes have frozen, blocking all water.  And I don't

have to mention the sanitation problems.  "

"Suffering  is  good  for  the  soul,"  Animar  said  philosophically.

Collins glared at him.  ")"at utter tripe."

Ammar shrugged wearily.  "If you say so."

"Good God, man, there are people sick and dying on this ship."

"I doubt seriously whether any of your crew and passengers will die of

exposure or from starvation before my departure," said Ammar curtly.

"They'll simply have to survive some discomfort for the next hours or so

until you can restart the engines and heat the ship."

"That may be too late for any of us if the wall of the glacier breaks

off."

"It looks solid enough."

"You don't realize the danger.  A massive ice slab might fall any

moment.  The weight could smash the Flamborough like a ten-story

building collapsing on an automobile.  You must move the ship."

"A risk I cannot avoid.  The ice film on the plastic would melt, giving

away our location, and satellite infrared cameras could detect our

radiated heat."

Collins's face was  ed with helpless rage.  "You're either a fool or

you're insane.  What good has any of this proven?  What profit will you

get out of it?   Are we being held for ransom or as hostages in return

for freeing your fellow terrorists behind bars somewhere?   If you're

simply walking off and leaving us, I fail to see the purpose."

"You have an irritating degree of curiosity, Captain, but a dedication

of purpose after my own heart.  You will learn the reasons behind our

capture of your ship soon enough."

Ammar rose and nodded at the guard who stood behind Collins.  "Return

the Captain to confinement."

Collins refused to move.  "Why can't you provide hot tea, coffee, soup,

anything that will alleviate the suffering?"

Ammar did not bother to Turn as he walked from the dining salon.

"Goodbye, Captain.  We won't meet again."

Animar went directly to the communications room.  Ibn was standing,

watching a teletype hum out the latest wire-service news.  His

electronics man was seated at the radio, listening to an incoming

transmission while a voice recorder copied it on paper.  The radio and

teletype were powered by a portable generator.

Ibn turned at Ammar's approach, gave a brief nod in recognition and tore

a long sheet of paper from the teletype.

"The international news media are still reporting the Lady Flamborough

as lost," he reported.  "Salvage ships are only now arriving off Uruguay

to conduct an underwater search. My compliments, Suleiman; you fooled

the world.  We'll be safely back in Cairo before the West learns the

truth."

"What news of Egypt?" asked Ammar.

"Nothing worth celebrating yet.  Hasan's cabinet ministers still control

the government.  They stubbornly hold on to power.  They've played it

smart by not sending in security forces to smash the demonstrations. The

only bloodshed was caused by our fundamentalist brothers who mistakenly

blew up a busload of Algerian firemen attending a convention in Cairo.

it was thought the bus was part of a government police convoy.  The

Cairo news network is claiming Akhmad Yazid's movement is a front for

Iranian fanatics.  Many supporters are wavering in their loyalty and

there has been no mass demand for Hasan's cabinet to dissolve the

government."

"That idiot Khaled Fawzy was behind the bus explosion," snarled Ammar.

"The military, where do the armed forces stand?"

"Defense Minister Abu Han-iid will not commit himself until he views the

bodies of President Hasan and Hala Kamil to confirm their deaths."

"So Yazid has yet to make a triumphal takeover."

Ibn nodded and his expression turned grave.  "There is another news

item. Yazid has announced that the cruise ships crew and passengers

still live, and he will personally negotiate with the terrorists and

arrange for the release of everyone.  He has gone so far as to offer his

life in exchange for Senator George Pitt to impress the Americans."

A numbing, paralyzing rage swelled within Ammar, sharpening his senses

and opening his thoughts like envelopes inside his mind.  After a few

moments, he looked at Ibn.

"By Allah, the Judas goat has led us to slaughter," he said

incredulously.  "Yazid has sold out the mission."

Ibn nodded in agreement.  "Yazid has used and betrayed you.  "

"That explains why he stalled off ordering me to kill Hasan, Kamil and

the rest.  He wanted them unharmed until Machado and his scum could

remove you and me and our people."

"What do Yazid and Topiltzin gain by keeping the hostages alive?" asked

Ibn.

"By playing the saviors of two presidents, the SecretaryGeneral of the

United Nations and an important United States politician, Yazid and

Topiltzin will gain the admiration of international leaders.  They

automatically become stronger while their opponents lose ground.  They

are then free to assume the reigns of their governments in peaceful

takeovers, widening their power base and increasing their benevolent

images in the eyes of the world."

Ibn bent his head in resignation.  "So we've been thrown to the

vultures."

Ammar nodded.  "Yazid meant for us to die from the beginning to

guarantee our silence on this and other missions we've performed for

him,"

"What of Captain Machado and his Mexican crew?   What happens to them

after they've eliminated us?"

"Topiltzin would see to it they vanished after their return to Mexico."

"They would have to escape the ship and island first."

"Yes," Annnar replied thoughtfully.  He paced the communications room

angrily.  "It seems I badly underestimated Yazid's cunning.  I was smug

in thinking Machado was impotent because he knew nothing of our

arrangements for escaping to a safe airfield in Argentina.  But thanks

to Yazid, our Mexican comrade has implemented his own departure plans."

"Then why hasn't he murdered us by now?"

"Because Yazid and Topiltzin won't give him the order until they're

ready to act out their sham negotiations for the hostage release."

Suddenly Ammar turned and gripped the shoulder of the radio man, who

quickly removed his headphones.  "Have you'received any unusual messages

directed to the ship?"

The Egyptian communications expert looked curious. "Strange you should

ask.  Our Latin friends have been in and out of here every ten minutes,

asking the same question.  I thought they must be stupid.  any

acknowledgment to a direct transmission would be intercepted by

American-European intelligence listening facilities.  They'd fix our

position within seconds."

"So you've intercepted nothing suspicious."

The Arab communications man shook his head.  "Even if I did, any message

would certainly be in code."

"Shut down the equipment.  Make the Mexicans think you're still

listening for something.  Whenever they ask about an incoming message,

play dumb and keep saying you've heard nothing."

Ibn stared at him expectantly.  "My instructions, Sideiman?"

"Keep a sharp watch on Machado's crew.  Get them off balance by acting

friendly.  Open the lounge bar and invite them to drink.  Give the worst

guard duty to our men, so the Latins can relax.  This will lower their

defenses."

"Shall we kill them before they kill us?"

"No," said Ammar, a flicker of sadistic  pleasure  in  his  eyes.

"We'll leave that job to the glacier."

"Can't be less than a million  icebergs  down  there,"  said  Gior

dino bleakly.  "Be easier picking a midget headwaiter out of a colony of

penguins.  This could take days."

Colonel Hollis was in the same mood.  "There has to be one matching the

Lady Flamborough's contour and dimensions.

Keep looking."

"Bear in mind," said Gunn, "Antarctic bergs tend to be flat.

The superstructure under the plastic shroud will give the ship a

multipinnacle shape."

Dillenger's eye was enlarged four times its size through a magnifying

glass.  "The definition is amazing," he muttered.

"Be even better when we see what's on the other side of those clouds."

They were all grouped around a small table in the communications

compartment of the Sounder, examining a huge color photo from the

Casper.  The aerial reconnaissance film had been processed and sent

through the survey ship's laser receiver less than forty minutes after

the aircraft landed.

The well-defined detail showed a sea of bergs broken away from the

Larsen Ice Shelf on the eastern side of the peninsula, while hundreds

more could be distinguished near glaciers off Graham Land to the west.

Pitts concentration was aimed elsewhere.  He sat off to one side,

studying a large nautical chart draped across his lap. Once in a while

he looked up, listening, but did not contribute to the conversation.

Hollis turned to Captain Stewart, who stood next to the receiver,

wearing a headset with attached microphone.  "When can we expect the

Casper's infrared photo?"

Stewart raised a hand as a signal not to interrupt.  He pressed the

headset against his ears, listening to a voice at CIA headquarters in

Washington.  Then he nodded toward Hollis.  "The photo lab at Langley

says they'll begin transmitting in half a minute."

Hollis paced the small compartment like a cat listening for the sound of

a can opener.  He paused and stared curiously at Pitt, who was

unconcernedly measuring distances with a pair of dividers.

The Colonel had learned a great deal about the man from NUMA in the past

few hours, not from Pitt himself, but from the men on the ship.  They

talked of him as though he were some kind of walking legend.

"Coming through now," announced Stewart.  He removed the headset and

waited patiently for the newspaper-size photo to emerge from the

receiver.  As soon as it rolled free, he carried it over and placed it

on the table.  Then everyone began scrutinizing the shoreline around the

upper end of the peninsula.

"The technicians at the CIA photo lab have computer-converted the

specially sensitive film to a thermogram," explained Stewart.  "The

differences of infrared radiation are revealed in various colors.  Black

represents the coldest temperatures.  Dark blue, light blue, green,

yellow and red form an increasingly warmer scale to white, the hottest."

"What reading can we expect from the Lady Flamborough?" asked Dillenger.

"Somewhere in the upper end between yellow and red."

"Closer to a dark blue," Pitt broke in.

Everyone turned and glared at him as though he'd sneezed during a chess

match.

"That being the case she won't stand out," Hollis protested. "We'd never

find her."

"Heat radiation from the engines and generators will show as plain as a

golf ball on a green," Gunn argued.

"Not if the engineering room was shut down."

"You can't mean a dead ship?" Dillenger asked in disbelief.

Pitt nodded.  He stared at the others with a passing casual gaze that

was more disturbing than if he had thrown a wet blanket over the

enthusiasm of a breakthrough.

He smiled and said, "What we have here is a persistent urge to underrate

the coach on the other team."

The five men looked at each other and then back at Pitt, waiting for

some kind of explanation.

Pitt laid his nautical charts aside and rose from his chair.  He walked

to the table, picked up the infrared photo and folded it in half,

revealing only the lower tip of Chile.

"Now then," Pitt continued, "haven't you noticed that every time the

ship went through a change of appearance or altered course, it came

immediately after one of our satellites passed overhead."

"Another example of precise planning," said Gunn.  "The orbits of

scientific data-gathering satellites are tracked by half the countries

of the world.  The information is as readily attainable as phases of the

moon."

"Okay, so the hijack leader knew the orbiting schedules and guessed when

the satellite cameras were aimed in his direction," said Hollis.  "So

what?"

"So he covered all avenues and shut down power to prevent detection by

infrared photography.  And, most important, to keep the warmth from

melting the thin layer of ice coating the plastic shroud."

Four out of five found Pitts theory quite plausible.  The holdout was

Gunn.  He was the fastest intellect in the bunch. He saw the flaw before

anyone else.

"You're forgetting the subzero temperatures around the peninsula," said

Gunn.  "No power, no heat.  Everyone on the ship would freeze to death

in a few hours.  You might say the hijackers were committing suicide at

the same time they murdered their prisoners."

"Rudi makes good sense," Giordino said.  "They couldn't survive without

some degree of warmth and protective clothing."

Pitt smiled like a lottery winner.  "I agree with Rudi one hundred

percent."

"You're driving in circles," said Hollis in aggravation. "Make sense."

"Nothing complicated: The Lady Flamborough didn't enter the Antarctic."

"Didn't enter the Antarctic," repeated Hollis mechanically. "Face the

facts, man.  The last satellite photo of the ship showed her halfway

between Cape Horn and the tip of the peninsula, steaming hell-bent to

the south."

"She had no place else to go," protested Dillenger.

Pitt tapped a finger on the ragged mass of islands scattered around the

Straits of Magellan.  "Want to bet?"

Hollis stood frowning, baffled for a moment.  And then he caught on. His

confusion vanished and total understanding beamed in his eyes.  "She

doubled back," he said flatly.

"Rudi had the key," Pitt acknowledged.  "The hijackers weren't about to

commit suicide, nor were they going to risk detection by infrared

photos.  They never had any intention of heading into the ice pack.

Instead, they cut northwest and skirted the barren islands above Cape

Horn."

Gunn looked relieved.  "The temperatures are not nearly as severe around

Tierra del Fuego.  Everyone on board would be damned uncomfortable

without warmth, but they'd survive."

"Then why the iceberg scam?" queried Giordino.

"To appear as if they calved from a glacier."

"Calved, like in cow?"

"Calving is the breaking away of an ice mass from an ice front or wall,"

Gunn clarified.

Giordino stared down at the infrared photo.  "Glaciers this far north?"

"Several flow down the mountains and meet the sea within eight hundred

kilometers from where we're docked here in Punta Arenas," replied Pitt.

"Where do you'reckon she is?" Hollis asked.

Pitt took a chart showing the desolate fringe islands west of Tierra del

Fuego.  "Two possibilities within the Lady Flamborough's sailing range

since she was last spotted by satellite." He paused to place an X beside

two names on the chart. "Directly south of here, glaciers flow from

Mounts Italia and S ento."

Hollis said, "They're off the beaten track all right."

"But too close to the oil  fields,"  said  Pitt.  "A  low-flying

oil-company survey plane might notice the phony ice cover.

Me, if I was calling the plays for the hijackers, I'd head another

hundred and sixty kilometers northwest.  Which would put them near a

glacier on Santa Inez Island."

Dillenger studied the small island's irregular shoreline on the chart

for a moment.  He glanced at the colored photograph, but the southern

foot of Chile was blotted by clouds.  He pushed it aside and peered

through the magnifying glass at the upper half of the infrared image

Pitt had folded to condense the search region.

After a few seconds he looked up in wonder and delight. "Unless Mother

Nature makes icebergs with a pointed bow and a rounded stern, I think

we've found our phantom ship."

Hollis took the glass from his subordinate and examined the tiny oblong

shape.  "It's the right contour all right.  And as Pitt said, there's no

sign of heat radiation.  She's reading almost as cold as the glacier.

Not quite pure black, but a very dark blue."

Gunn leaned in.  "Yes, I see.  The glacier flows into a fjord that

empties in a bay crowded with small islands.  One or two medium-size

bergs, broken from the glacial wall.  No more. The water is reasonably

free of ice." He paused, a curious expression in the eyes behind the

glasses.  "I wonder how they moored the Lady Flamborough directly under

the glacier's forward wall."

Pitts eyes narrowed.  "Let me have a look." He squeezed between

Dillenger and Gunn, bent over and gazed through the powerful glass.

After a time he straightened, his face clouded with a rising anger.

"What do you see?" asked Captain Stewart.

"They mean for every one to die."

Stewart looked at the others, puzzled.  "How does he know?"

"When an ice slab fractures off the glacier and falls on the ship,"

Giordino said stonily, "she'll be shoved under the water and mashed into

the bottom.  No trace of her would ever be found."

Dillenger gave Pitt a hard look.  "After all the lost opportunities, do

you think they finally intend to murder the crew and passengers?"

"I do."

"Why not before now?"

"The myriad of deceptions was a stall for time.  Whoever ordered the

hijacking had reasons for keeping Presidents Hasan and De Lorenzo alive.

I can't tell you why-"

"I can," said Hollis.  "Akhmad Yazid is the instigator.  He planned to

take control of Egypt soon after it was announced that President Hasan

and U.N. Secretary-General Hala Kamil were abducted and presumed killed

by unknown terrorists at sea.  After he and his close supporters

established a solid power base, he would claim his agents had found the

ship, and then act the benevolent man of God and negotiate the hostages'

release."

"Crafty bastard," murmured Giordino.  "A Nobel Peace Prize candidate for

sure if he saved President De Lorenzo and Senator Pitt as a bonus."

"Naturally, Yazid would see that Hasan and Kamil met with an unfortunate

accident on their return to Egypt."

"And he'd still come out pure as the driven snow," Giordino grunted.

"A grand sting," admitted Pitt.  "Yet, according to the latest news

reports, the military has remained neutral, and Hasan's cabinet has

refused to resign and fold the present government.

Hollis nodded.  "Yes, throwing Yazid's carefully calculated schedule out

the window."

"So he's plotted himself into a corner," said Pitt.  "End of stalling

tactics, end of masquerades; this time around he has to send the Lady

Flamborough into oblivion, or face the very real threat of intelligence

sources ferreting out his role in the operation.  "

"A theory with no leaks," agreed Hollis.

"So while we stand here the hijack leader is playing Russian Roulette

with the glacier," said Gunn in a low voice.  "He and his terrorist tewn

may have already abandoned the ship and escaped by boat or helicopter,

leaving the crew and passengers confined below, helpless."

"Could be we've missed the boat," Dillenger speculated somberly.

Hollis didn't see it that way.  He scribbled a number on a slip of paper

and handed it to Stewart.  "Captain, please signal my communications

officer on this frequency.  Tell him the Major and I are returning to

the airfield and to assemble the men for an immediate briefing."

"We'd like to go along," said Pitt with quiet determination. Hollis

shook his head.  "No way.  You're civilians.  You've had no assault

training.  Your request is out of line."

"My father is on that ship."

"I'm sorry," he said, but didn't sound it.  "WMark it off to tough

luck."

Pitt looked at Hollis, and his eyes were very cold.  "One call to

Washington and I could queer your entire service career."

Hollis's mouth tightened.  "You get your kicks making threats, Mr.

Pitt?" He took a step forward.  "We're not playing touch football here.

A lot of bodies are going to mess the decks of that ship in the next

twelve hours.  If my men and I do our jobs the way we've been trained, a

thousand phone calls to the White House and Congress won't make a damn."

He took another step toward Pitt.  "I know more rotten tricks than you'd

learn in a lifetime.  I could tear you to shreds with my bare hands '

No one in the room saw the movement, saw where it came from.  One

instant Pitt was standing casually with his arms at his sides, the next

he was pressing the muzzle of a Colt forty-five-caliber automatic into

Hollis's groin.

Dillenger crouched as if ready to spring.  That was as far as he got.

Giordino came from behind and pinned the Major's arms to his sides in a

bear hug that clamped like a steel trap.

"I won't bore you with our credentials," Pitt said calmly. "Take my

word. Rudi, Al and I have enough experience to hold our own in a

shooting war. I promise we won't interfere. I presume you'll lead your

Special Operations Forces against the Lady Flamborough in a combined air

and sea assault. We'll stay out of your way and follow from the land

side."

Hollis was far from frightened, but he was dazed.  He couldn't begin to

imagine how Pitt produced a large-caliber weapon with such lightning

speed.

"Dirk is asking little of you, Colonel," said Gunn in a patient tone. "I

suggest you demonstrate a small degree of mature logic and go along."

"I don't believe for a second you'd murder me," growled Hollis at Pitt.

"No, but I can guarantee you won't have a very productive sex life."

"Who are you people?   Are you with the company?"

"The CIA?" said Giordino.  "No, we didn't qualify.  So we enlisted with

NUMA instead,"

Hollis shook his head.  "I don't understand any of this."

"You don't have to," said Pitt.  "Is it a deal?"

Hollis considered for half a second.  Then he leaned forward until his

nose was only a few millimeters from Pitts and spoke as would a drill

instructor to a raw recruit.  "I'll see you weirdos are airlifted by an

Osprey to within ten kilometers of the ship.  No closer, or we'll lose

the element of surprise. from there you can damn well hike in.  If I'm

lucky, you won't arrive until it's all over."

"Fair enough," Pitt agreed.

Hollis backed off then.  He looked at Giordino and snapped, "I'd be

grateful if you'd release my second in command."

Then he refaced Pitt.  "We're shoving off, now.  In fact, if you don't

leave with Major Dillenger and me, you ain't going. Because, five

minutes after boarding my command aircraft, our entire assault team will

be airborne.  "

Pitt eased the automatic from Hollis's groin.  "We'll be right behind

you."

"I'll tag along with the Major," said Giordino, giving Dillenger a

friendly pat on the back.  "Great minds run in the same channels."

Dillenger gave him a sour look indeed.  "Yours might run in a gutter but

mine don't."

The room cleared out in fifteen seconds.  Pitt hurried to his cabin and

snatched up a tote bag.  He made a quick trip to the bridge and

conversed with Captain Stewart.

"How long for the Sounder to reach Santa Inez?"

Stewart stepped into the chart room and made a quick calculation.

"Pushing throttles to the stops, our diesels should put us off the

glacier in nine or ten hours."

"Do it," Pitt ordered.  "We'll look for you around dawn."

Stewart shook Pitts hand.  "You take care, you hear?"

"I'll try not to get my feet wet."

One of the ship's scientists stepped over from the bridge counter.  He

was black, medium height, and wore a stern expression that looked as if

it was chiseled there.  His name Clayton Findley, and he spoke in a

deep, rich bass voice.

"Excuse me for eavesdropping, gentlemen, but I could have sworn you

mentioned Santa Inez Island."

Pitt nodded.  "Yes, that's right."

"There's an old zinc mine near the glacier.  Closed down when Chile

halted government-subsidized production."

"You're familiar with the island?" Pitt asked in surprise.

Findley nodded. "I was chief geologist of an Arizona mining company who

thought they might make the army pay through efficient, cost-cutting

operations.  They sent me down along with a couple of engineers to make

a survey.  Spent three months in that hell hole.  We found the ore grade

about played out.  Soon after, the mine was shuttered and the equipment

abandoned."

:'How are you with a rifle?"

'I've hunted some."

Pitt took him by the arm.  "Clayton, my friend, you are a gift from the

gods."

Clayton Findley did indeed prove to be a godsend.

While Hollis bnefed his men inside an unused warehouse, Pitt, Gunn and

Giordino helped Findley sculpt a diorama of Santa Inez Island from mud

scooped beside the airport's runway on an old Ping-Pong table.  He

refreshed his memory of what he'd forgottened from Pitts nautical chart.

He hardened the miniature landscape with a portable heater and

highlighted the features with cans of spray paint scrounged by one of

Hollis's men.  Gray for the rocky terrain, white for the snow and ice of

the glacier.  He even molded a scale model of the Lady Flamborough and

set it at the foot of the glacier.  At last he stood back and admired

his handiwork.

"That," he said confidently, "is Santa Inez."

Hollis interrupted his briefing and gathered his men around the table.

Everyone stared at the diorama in thoughtful silence for a few moments.

The island was shaped like the center piece of a jigsaw puzzle produced

by a drunken cutter.  The ragged shoreline was a mine of spurs and

hooks, gashed by barbed fjords and gnarled bays.  It backed on the

Straits of MageUan to the east and faced the Pacific Ocean to the west.

It was dead ground, not fit for a graveyard, 65 kilometers wide by 95

kilometers in length and peaked by Mount Wharton 1,320 meters high.

Beaches and flat ground were virtually nonexistent.  The low-lying

mountains rose like rockbound ships, their steep slopes falling in

forlorn agony to meet the cold sea.

The ancient glacier sat like a saddle on the island.  It was the result

of cold and overcast summers that did not melt the ice. Barren

escarpments of solid rock flanked the frigid mass, standing in sullen

silence as the glacier gouged its irresistible passage toward the water

where it calved section after section the way a butcher slices sausage.

Few areas of the world were more hostile to man.  The entire island

chain of the Magellans was uninhabited by permanent settlers.  Through

the centuries, men had come and gone leaving behind wrathful names like

Break Neck Peninsula, Deceit Island, Calamity Bay, Desolation Isle and

Port Famine. It was a hard place.  The only vegetation that survived was

stunted, twisted evergreens that merged with kind of a scrubby heath.

Findley swept a hand over the model.  "Imagine a barren landscape with

snow at the higher altitudes, and you pretty much get a picture of the

real thing."

Hollis nodded.  "Thank you, Mr. Findley.  We're much obliged."

"Glad to help."

"All right, let's get down to the hard facts.  Major Dillenger will lead

the air-drop force, while I'll be in command of the dive team."

Hollis paused briefly to scan the faces of his men.  They were lean,

hard, purposeful-looking men dressed entirely in black.  They were a

tough breed of fighters who had survived torturous survival training to

earn the distinction of serving with the elite Special Operations Force.

A hell of a team, Hollis thought proudly to himself.  The best in the

world.

"We've trained long and hard for ship seizures at night," he continued.

"But none where we've given away so many advantages to the enemy.  We

lack critical intelligence information, the weather conditions are

miserable, and we're faced with a glacier that can shatter at any

minute.  Perplexing problems, tough problems that stand in the way of

success.  Before we launch our assault in a few hours, we want as many

answers as possible.  If you see a grave flaw in the operation, sing

out. So let's begin."

"Island inhabitants?" Dillenger asked Findley straight away.

"None after we closed the mine."

"Weather conditions?"

"Rains almost constantly It's one of the most heavily watered regions on

the continent.  You rarely see the sun.  Temperatures this time of year

run a few degrees below freezing. winds are constant and can get violent

at times.  The willdchill factor is a bitch, and it's almost certain to

be raining."

Dillenger gave Hollis a grave look.  "We don't stand a prayer of a

pinpoint air drop at night."

Hollis appeared grim.  "We'll have to go in with the minichoppers and

scale down with ropes."

"You brought helicopters?" asked Gunn incredulously.  "I didn't think

they had the speed and range-2'

-To fly this far so fast," Hollis finished.  "Their military designation

has too many letters and digits to memorize.  We call them Carrier

Pigeons.  Small, compact, they carry a pilot in an enclosed cockpit and

two men on the outside.  Comes equipped with an infrared dome and

silenced tail rotors.  They can be broken down or assembled in fifteen

minutes.  One of our C- 140s can transport six of them."

"You have another problem," said Pitt.

"Go ahead."

"The Lady Flamborough's navigation radar can be tuned for aircraft. Your

Carrier Pigeons may have low profiles, but they can be read on a screen

in time for the hijackers to prepare a nasty reception party."

"So much for surprise from the air," said Dillenger morosely.

Hollis looked at Findley.  "any adverse conditions we should know about

for an assault from the fjord?"

Findley smiled faintly.  "You should have an easier time than the Major.

You'll enjoy the advantage of frost smoke."

"Frost smoke?"

"Foglike clouds formed from the contact of cold air with warmer water

near the glacial wall.  It can rise anywhere from two to ten meters.

Combined with the certain rain, your dive team should be cloaked from

the time they begin their approach until they climb onto the decks."

"One of us gets a bit of luck after all," said Dillenger.

Hollis nabbed his chin thoughtfully.  "We're not dealing with a textbook

operation here.  It could Turn real messy if the air drop is a foul-up.

All surprise would be lost, and without it the twenty-man dive team

isn't strong enough to engage forty armed hijackers without support."

"Since it's suicidal for your men to parachute onto the ship," said

Pitt, "why not drop them farther up the glacier?

from there they can make their way to the edge, and then rappel down

ropes onto the main deck."

"We'd be looking at an easy descent," agreed Dillenger. The ice wall is

above the ship's superstructure and near enough for us to clear the

gap."

Hollis nodded and said, "The thought crossed my mind. any one see an

obstacle with this tactict'

"Your biggest danger, as I see it," said Gunn, "is the glacier itself.

It can have an endless labyrinth of crevasses and treacherous snow

crusts that give way under a man's weight.  You'll have to take it slow

and damned careful crossing it."

"any other comment?" There was none.  Hollis gave a side glance to

Dillenger.  "How much time will you'require from air drop to attack

readiness?"

"It would help if I knew wind velocity and direction."

"Nine days out of ten it blows from the southeast," answered Findley.

"Average velocity is about ten kilometers an hour, but it can easily

gust to a hundred."

Dillenger stared pensively for a few moments at the small mountains

rising behind the glacier.  He tried to visualize the scene at night,

sense the severity of the wind.  He ticked off the time inside his head.

Then he looked up.

"Forty to forty-five minutes from air drop to ship assault."

"Pardon me for telling you your job, Major," said Pitt.  "But you're

cutting it too fine."

Findley nodded.  "I agree.  I've hiked the glacier on many occasions.

The ice ridges make it slow going."

In a smooth, greased movement, Dillenger pulled a long, wicked-looking

Bowie knife, angled between hilt and blade, from a sheath behind his

back and used the spiked tip as a pointer.  'The way I see it, we'll

make our jump on the backside of the mountain to the right of the

glacier.  This should hide our C- 140 transport from the ship's radar.

Using the preveiling winds, which hopefully will run true to pattern,

we'll glide our 'stealth parachutes' around the mountain for seven

kilometers, landing within one kilometer from the glacier's forward

wall.

Time from jump until we regroup on the ice, I'd judge eighteen minutes.

Time to walk to glacier's edge; another twenty minutes.  Six more

minutes to prepare repel operation.  Total time; forty-four minutes."

"I'd double it if I were you," said Giordino disapprovingly. "You'll

have a hell of a time meeting a deadline if some of your men fall in a

crevasse.  The dive team won't be aware of the delay."

Hollis shot Al a look he usually reserved for war protesters. "This

isn't World War One, Mr. Giordino.  We don't have to synchronize watches

before we go over the top.  Each man is custom-fitted with a

miniaturized radio receiver in his ear and a microphone inside his ski

mask.  No matter whether Major Dillenger and his team are late or mine

is early, so long as we are in constant communication, we can coordinate

a joint assault-"

"One other thing," Pitt broke in.  "I assume your weapons are silenced."

"They are," Hollis assured him.  "Why?"

"One burst from an unsilenced machine gun could bring down the wall of

the glacier."

"I can't speak for the hijackers."

"Then you better kill them quick," muttered Giordino.

"We don't train to take terrorists as prisoners," Hollis said with a

cold, ominous grin.  "Now then, if our visitors can restrain their

criticisms, are there any questions?"

Dive-team leader Richard Banning raised his hand.  "Sir?"

"Henning?"

"Will we be approaching the ship underwater or on the surface?"

Hollis simply used a ballpoint pen as a pointer.  He tapped it on a

small island in the fjord that was behind a point of land and out of

sight from the ship.  "Our team will be ferried by Pigeon Carrier to

this island.  Distance to the Lady Flamborough is about three

kilometers.  The water is too cold for a swim that far, so we'll stay

dry and move in by rubber boats. If Mr. Findley is correct about the

frost smoke, we should be able to approach without detection.  If it's

dissipated, we'll enter the water two hundred meters away and dive until

we reach the hull."

"A lot of balls will be iced if we have to wait very long for Major

Dillenger's team to get in place."

A small wave of laughter echoed from the eighty men gathered around the

table.

Hollis sighed and gave a broad smile.  "I don't intend to freeze mine.

We'll give the Major an ample head start."

Gunn raised his hand.

"Yes, Mr. Gunn," Hollis said wearily.  "What's on your mind now?   Did I

forget something?"

"Just curiosity, Colonel.  How will you know if the hijackers somehow

get wind of the assault and lay a trap?"

"One of our aircraft is filled with advanced electronic-surveillance

equipment.  It will fly a circular pattern seven Miles above the Lady

Flamborough, detecting any radio transmissions sent by the hijackers to

their collaborators outside the region.  They'd scream like madmen if

they thought a Special Operations Force was closing the net around them.

The Communications men and translators can intercept all transmissions

and alert us in plenty of time."

Pitt made a casual motion with one hand.

"Yes, Mr. Pitt."

"I hope you haven't forgotten the NUMA party." Hollis lifted an eyebrow.

"No, I haven't forgotten." He turned to the geologist.  "Mr. Findley,

where did you say the old abandoned mine was located?"

"I neglected to place it," replied Findley matter-of-factly. "But since

you're interested-" He paused and placed a match cover on the side of a

small mount overlooking the glacier and the fjord.  "She sits here,

about two and a half kilometers from the forward edge of the glacier and

the ship."

Hollis turned to Pitt- "That's where you'll be.  You can serve as an

observation post."

"Some observation post," grumbled Giordino- "In the dark and rain and

sleet, we'd be lucky to see our own shoelaces."

"CozY and safe and out of harm's way," Pitt said pontifically.  "We may

light a fire in the stove and have ourselves a picnic."

"You  do  that,"  Hollis  said  with some satisfaction. He looked around

at the assembled men.  "Well, gentlemen, I won't bore you with a gung ho

pep talk.  Let's just do our jobs and save some lives."

"And will just one for the Gipper," Giordino muttered. "What did you

say?"

"Al was saying what an honor it was to be part of an elite fighting

force," said Pitt.

Hollis gave Giordino a stare that would cut glass.  "Special Operations

Forces do not give out honorary memberships. You civilians will stay

back out of the way." Hollis turned to Dillenger.  "If any of these NUMA

people attempt to set foot on the ship before I give permission, shoot

them.  That's an order."

"A pleasure," Dillenger grinned sharkishly.

Giordino shrugged.  "They certainily know how to vent wrath around

here."

Pitt did not share Giordino's caustic mood.  He understood perfectly

Hollis's position.  His men were professional, a team.  He gazed around

at them, big, quiet men, ranged in a mugh circle around the model.  None

was over twenty-five.

As he stared into their faces he couldn't help wondering which ones were

going to die in a few short hours.

"How much longer?" Machado asked Ammar as he sprawled on Captain

Collins's settee.

With no ship's power, the Captain's cabin was dimly lit by four

flashlights strategically hung from the ceiling.  Ammar shrugged

indifferently while he read from the Koran.  "You spend more time in the

communications room than I do.  You tell me."

Machado made a spitting gesture at the deck.  "I am sick of waiting

around like a pregnant duck.  I say shoot the lot of them and get the

hell away from this barren purgatory.

Ammar looked at his peer in the business of murder.  Machado was sloppy

in his habits.  His hair was oily and his fingernails wedged with dirt.

One whiff at two paces was enough to recognize he seldom bathed.  Ammar

respected Machado as a dangerous threat, but beyond that there was only

disgust.

Machado rolled off the settee to his feet and restlessly roamed the

cabin before settling in a chair.  "We should have received instructions

twenty-four hours ago," he said.  "Topiltzin is not one to hesitate."

"Neither is Akhmad Yazid," said Ammar while keeping his eyes focused on

the Koran.  "He and Allah will provide."

"Provide what?   Helicopters, a ship, a submarine, before we're

discovered?   You know the answer, my Egyptian friend, yet you sit like

your Sphinx."

Ammar turned a page without looking up.  "Tomorrow at this time you and

your men will be safely back in Mexico."

"What guarantee can you give we won't all be sacrificed for the good of

the cause?"

"Yazid and Topiltzin cannot risk our capture by international commando

forces," Ammar said wearily, "for fear we might talk under torture.

Their blossoming empires would be chipped to pieces if one of us

revealed their involvement. Trust me, arrangements have been made for

our escape.  You must be patient."

"What arrangements?"

"You'll learn that part of the plan as soon as instructions arrive

concerning the fate of our hostages."

The deep-dyed falsehood was beginning to fray at the edges.  Machado

might see the light at any time.  As long as one of Ammar's men operated

the ship's communications network, no signals were received while the

radio was set on the wrong frequency.  Yazid, and probably Topiltzin

too, Ammar thought, must be sweating if they thought he had ignored the

original plan and murdered everyone on board, instead of keeping them

alive for propaganda purposes.

"Why not act on our own, lock them all below, sink the ship and be done

with it?" Machado's voice came thick with exasperation.

"Killing the entire British crew, the American Senator and other

non-Mexican or Egyptian nationals would not be wise. You may enjoy the

excitement and constant intrigue of being the object of an international

manhunt, Captain.  Me, I'd prefer to live out my life in comfortable

convenience."

"Stupid to leave witnesses."

The fool had no idea how right he was, Ammar thought.  He sighed and

laid down the Koran.  "Your only concern is President De Lorenzo.  Mine

is President Hasan and Hala Kamil. Our relationship ends there."

Machado stood and crossed the cabin, jerking open the door.  "We better

hear something damned quick," he grumbled nastily.  "I can't keep my men

in check much longer.  They have this growing urge to place me in charge

of the mission."

Ammar smiled agreeably.  "Noon . . . if we haven't heard from our

leaders by noon, I will Turn over command to you."

Machado's eyes widened for an instant in suspicion.  "You'd agree to

step down and place me in charge?"

"Why not?   I've accomplished what I set out to do.  Except for the

disposition of President Hasan and Miss Kamil, my job is finished.  I'll

gladly hand the final headaches to you."

Machado suddenly grinned the devil's own grin.  "I'm going to hold you

to that promise, Egyptian.  Then maybe I'll see the face behind the

mask." Then he stepped outside.

The door latch had hardly clicked after Machado's depamm when Ammar

removed the miniature radio from under his coat and pressed the transmit

switch.

"Ibn?"

"Yes, Suleiinan Aziz?"

"Your location?"

"On the stern."

"How many on shore?"

"Six have been ferried to the old mine pier.  There are fifteen of us

left on board, including you.  The going is slow.  We only have one

-man boat.  The large eight-man inflatable was slashed beyond repair."

"Sabotage?"

"It could only be the handiwork of Machado's men."

"Have they caused any more problems?"

"Not yet.  The cold keeps them off the outside decks.  Most are sitting

in the lounge drinking tequila from the bar.  The rest are sleeping. You

were wise to instruct our men to become friendly with them.  Their

discipline has loosened considerably."

"The charges?"

"All explosives have been placed in a line running parallel with the

glacier's face.  The detonation should bring down the entire frontal

wall on the ship."

"How soon before our withdrawal can be completed?"

"The use of paddles makes for slow going under a heavy ebb tide.  We

can't use the boat's motor for fear of alerting Machado's men.  I'd

estimate another forty-five minutes to clear everyone off the ship."

"We must be safely away before daylight."

"Everyone will do their utmost, Suiek= Aziz."

"Can they run the ferry operation without you?"

:'Yes."

'Bring one man and meet me at Hasan's cabin."

"We're going to execute them?"

"No," replied Anunar.  "We're taking them with us."

Ammar switched off the radio and slipped the Koran into a pocket of his

coat.

His betrayal by Akhmad Yazid would be revenged.  He was going to enjoy

seeing his magnificent plan Turn to shambles.  Ammar had no intention of

carrying through with the original operation, knowing Machado had been

hired to kill him and his hijack team.  He was angered more by the loss

of his fee than by being stabbed in the back.

Therefore, he reasoned, he would keep Hasan and Kamfl alive, and yes, De

Lorenzo too, at least temporarily, as bargaining chips.  He might recoup

after all by turning the tables and throwing all guilt on Yazid and

Topiltzin.

He needed time to think and create a new plan.  But first things first.

He had to sneak his hostages off the ship before Machado and his motley

crew caught on to his sleight of hand.

Hala's heart sank when the door opened and the hijacker's leader stepped

into the cabin suite.  She stared at him for a moment, seeing only the

eyes behind the ridiculous mask and the machine gun casually held in one

hand, and wondered with female curiosity what kind of man he might be

under different circumstances.

He entered and spoke in a quiet but fearsome voice.  "You will all come

with me."

Hala trembled and lowered her gaze to the floor, angry at herself for

showing fear.

Senator Pitt was not intimidated.  He jumped to his feet and crossed the

cabin in long strides, stopping only when the toes of his shoes nearly

touched Ammar's.

"Where are you taking us and for what purpose?" the Senator demanded. .

"I am not sitting in front of one of your camel-witt,--d Senate

investigation committees," said Ammar icily.  "Do not cross examine me.

"We have a right to know," the Senator insisted firmly.

"You have no rights!" snaPPed Amnw.  He roughly pushed the Senator aside

and moved into the room, his gaze taking in the pale, apprehensive

faces.

You're going for a little boat ride, followed by a short journey by

train.  My men will pass out blankets to ward off the damp chill."

They all looked at him as if he was crazy but none argued.

With a dreadful feeling of hopelessness, Hala slowly helped President

Hasan to his feet. she was tired of living under the constant threat of

death.  She felt as though she no longer cared.

And yet, something within her, a spark, a will to defy, still smoldered.

The fearlessness of a soldier going into battle who knows he is going to

die and has nothing to lose by fighting to the end slowly crept over

her.  She was determined to survive.

Captain Machado entered the communication room and found it empty.  At

first he thought Ammar,s radio operator had taken a brief break for a

call of nawm, but he looked 'm the head and found it empty too.

Machado stared at the radio panel for a long moment, his eyes strained

and red from lack of sleep, his face showing a puzzled expression.  He

stepped onto the bridge and approached one of his own crewmen who was

peering into the radarscope.

"Where is the radio operator?" he asked.

The radar observer turned and shrugged. ,i haven't seen him, Captain.

Isn't he in the communications room?"

"No, the place is deserted."

"Would you like me to check with the Arab leader?"

Machado shook his head slowly, not quite able to get a grip on  the

Egyptian  radio  operator's  disappearance. "Find Jorge Delgado and

bring him here.  He knows radios.  Better us than the stupid Arabs to

oversee the communications."

While they were talking, neither man noticed the strong blip that

appeared on the radarscope, indicating a low-flying aircraft passing

over the center of the island.

Even if they had been alert, there was no detecting the radar-invisible

"stealth parachutes" of Dillenger's Special Forces team as they opened

them and began gliding toward the glacier.

Pitt sat in the Spartan confines of the tilt-rotor osprey.  The

bullet-shaped craft lifted off the ground like a helicopter but flew

like a plane at speeds in excess of six hundred kilo meters per hour. He

was wide-awake; only a dead man could sleep in those aluminum seats with

ultrathin pads for cushions, the weather turbulence, and the engine

noise that roared through the barest of soundproofing.  Only a dead man,

that is, except Giordino.  He was deflated like a life-size balloon

figurethere was no other description for it-with just enough air to give

it form.  Every few minutes, as if his brain was set on an automatic

timer, he changed position without cracking an eye or missing a breath.

"How does he do it?" asked Findley in frank amazement.

"It's in the genes," Pitt answered.

Gunn shook his head admiringly.  "I've seen him sleep in the damdest

contortions in the darndest places, and I still can't believe it when I

see it."

The young copilot turned and peered around the back of his seat.

"Doesn't exactly suffer from stress syndrome, does he?"

Pitt and the others laughed and then became quiet, all wishing they

didn't have to leave the cozy warmth of the aircraft for the icy

nightmare outside.  Pitt relaxed as best he could.  He felt some measure

of satisfaction.  Though he was not included in the assault-better to

leave that to trained professionals in the art of hostage rescue-he was

positioned close enough to tag along on the heels of Hollis and his SOF

teams, and he had every intention of following Dillenger's men down the

scaling ropes after the attack was launched.

Pitt sensed no foreboding premonition nor imagined any omen of death. He

did not doubt for an instant his father was alive.  He couldn't explain

it, even to himself, but he felt the Senator's presence.  The two had a

tight bond over the years. They could almost read each other's minds.

"We'll be at your landing point in six minutes," announced the pilot

with a cheerfulness that made Pitt cringe.

The pilot seemed blissfully unconcerned at flying over jagged,

snowcapped peaks he couldn't see.  All that was visible through the

windshield was the flash of sleet slamming the glass, and the darkness

beyond.

"How do you know where we are?" asked Pitt.

The pilot, a laid-back Burt Reynolds type, shrugged lazily. "All in the

wrists," he quipped.

Pitt leaned forward and peered over the pilot's shoulder.  No hands were

on the controls.  The pilot was sitting with his arms folded, staring at

a small screen that looked like a video game. Only the Osprey's nose

showed at the bottom of the graphic display, while the flashing picture

was rifled with mountains and valleys that hurtled past under the

simulated aircraft.  In a split-screen panel in an upper corner,

distances and altitudes appeared in red digital numbers.

"Untouched by human hands," said Pitt.  "The computer is replacing

everyone."

"Lucky for us they haven't developed a knack for sex.1' The pilot

laughed.  He reached out and made a slight adjustment with a tuning

knob. " and radar scanners read the ground and the computer converts it

to three-demensional display.  I plug in the auto pilot, and while the

aircraft darts around the terrain like a Los Angeles Raiders running

back, I think about such wondrous subjects as the Congressional budget

and our State Department's foreign policy."

"That's news to me," muttered the copilot wryly.

"Without our little electronic guide here," the pilot continued,

undaunted, "we'd still be sitting on the ground at Punta Arenas waiting

for daylight and clearing weather-" A chime

sound issued from the display screen, and the pilot stiffened.

"We're coming up on our programmed landing site.  You better get your

people ready to disembark."

"What were your instructions from Colonel Hollis for dropping us off?"

"Just to set you down behind the mountain summit above the mine to hide

from the cruise ship's radar.  You'll have to hoof it the rest of the

way."

Pitt turned to Findley. 11 any problem on your end?"

Findley smiled.  "I know that mountain like my wife's bottom, every nook

and crack.  The summit is only two kilometers from the mine entrance.

An easy walk down the slope.  I could do it blindfolded."

"from what I see of this rotten weather," Pitt muttered darkly, "that's

exactly what you'll have to do."

The howl of the wind replaced the whine from the Osprey's turbines as

the NUMA crew quickly exited through the cargo hatch.  There was no time

wasted, no words spoken, only a silent farewell wave to the pilots.

Within a minute, the four men, carrying only two tote bags, were bent

into the sleet and trudging up the rocky slope toward the mountain's

summit.

Findley silently took the lead.  Visibility was almost as bad On the

ground as it was in the air.  The flashlight in Findley's hand was one

degree above useless.  The flaying sleet reflected the flashlight's

beam, revealing the broken terrain no more than one or two meters ahead.

In no way did they remotely resemble an elite assault team. They carried

no visible weapons.  No two wore the same type Of Clothing to ward off

the cold.  Pitt had on gray ski togs; Giordino wore dark blue.  Gunn was

lost in an orange survival suit that looked two sizes too large. Findley

was outfitted like a Canadian lumbe ack complete with a woolly Basque

stocking cap pulled low over his ears.  The only items they had in

common were yellow-lensed ski goggles.

The wind was blowing at about twenty kilometers per hour, Pitt

estimated-bitter but bearable.  The rocky, uneven surface was sliPPery

from the wet, and they slid and stumbled, frequently losing their

balance and falling heavily.

Every few minutes they had to wipe the buildup of sleet from their

goggles.  Soon, from the front, they looked like snowmen, while their

backs were quite dry.

Findley raked the ground ahead with his flashlight, dodging large

boulders and sparse, grotesque shrubs.  He knew he had reached the

summit when he stepped onto an outcrop of bare rock and was struck by

the full force of the wind.

"Not much further," he said over the howl of the wind. "Downhill all the

way."

"Too bad we can't rent a toboggan," said Giordino gloomily.

Pitt pulled back his glove and peered at the luminous hands of his old

Doxa dive watch.  The assault was set for 0-five hundred.  Twenty-eight

minutes away.  They were running late.

"Let's make time," he shouted.  "I don't want to miss the party."

They made good time for the next fifteen minutes.  The mountain's slope

became more gradual, and Findley found a narrow, winding track that led

to the mine.  Farther downhill the stunted pines became thicker, the

rock became smaller, looser, and their boots were able to get a better

grip.

Thankfully, the driving wind and sleet began to ease up. Holes in the

clouds appeared and stars became visible.  They were able to see now

without the hindrance of the goggles.

Findley grew more confident of his surroundings as a high ore talking

materialized in the blackness.  He skirted the pile and swung onto a

small, narrow-gauge railroad track and began following it into the dark.

He was about to turn and shout "We're here," but was cut off.  Pitt

suddenly and unexpectedly reached out, grabbed the back of Findley's

collar and jerked him to a halt so abruptly his feet flew out from under

him, and he crashed on his buttocks.  As he fell, Pitt snatched the

flashlight and switched it off.

"What in Hell?"

"Quiet!" Pitt rasped sharply.

"You hear something?" asked Gunn softly.

"No, I smell a familiar odor."

odor?"

"Lamb.  Somebody is barbecuing a leg of lamb."

They all leaned their heads back and sniffed the air

"By God, you're right," murmured Giordino.  "I do smell lamb on a

grill."

Pitt helped Findley to his feet- "Appears that someone has jumped your

claim."

"they must be dumber than a toad if they think there's any ore worth

processing around here."

"I doubt they're excavating for zinc."

Giordino moved off to one side.  "Before you doused the light, I saw a

glint over here somewhere." He moved one foot around in a semicircle. It

struck an object that clinked, and he picked it up.  He turned so he was

facing away from the Mine and flicked on a tiny penlight.  "A bottle of

ChAteau Margaux 1966- for hardrock miners, these guys have real style."

"Odd goings-on here," said Findley.  "Whoever moved in isn't getting

their hands dirty."

"Lamb and vintage Bordeaux must have come from the Lady Flamborough,"

Gunn concluded.

"How far away are we from where the glacier meets the fjord?" Pitt asked

Findley.

"The glacier itself is only about five hundred meters to the north.  The

wall facing the fjord is slightly less than two kilometers west."

"How was the ore transi3reported?"

Findley gestured in the direction of the fjord.  "By this narrow-gauge

railroad- The tracks run from the mine entrance to the ore crusher, then

down to the dock, where the Ore was loaded on ships."

"You never said anythipg about a dock."

"NobodY asked." Findley shrugged. "A small loading pier.

The pilings extend into a cove slightly off to one side of the glacier."

"Approximate distance from the ship?"

"A baseball outfielder with a good arm could lob a ball from the dock

against the hull."

"I should have seen it," Pitt murmured bitterly. "I missed it, everyone

missed it."

"What are you talking about?" demanded Findley,

"The terrorists' support team," answered Pitt.  The hijackers on the

ship need an advance base for their escape. They couldn't disembark at

sea without detection and capture unless they had a submarine, which is

impossible to find

without legitimate government backing.  The abandoned mine site makes a

perfect hiding place for helicopters.  And they can use the narrow-gauge

railroad for commuting back and forth from the fjord."

"Hollis," said Gunn briefly, "We'd better inform him."

"Can't," said Giordino.  "Our friendly neighborhood Colonel refused to

provide us with a radio."

"So how do we warn Hollis?" Gunn put in.

"No way." Pitt shrugged.  "But we might help by finding and disabling

their helicopters while pinning down any terrorist force in the mine

camp to keep them from catching Hollis and his assault teams in a vise."

"There could be fifty of them," protested Findley.  "We're only four."

"'Their security is lax," Gunn pointed out.  "They don't expect anyone

to drop in from the interior of a deserted island in the middle of a

storm."

"Rudi's right," said Giordino.  "If they were alert they'd have been

onto us by now.  I vote we evict the bastards."

"We have surprise on our side," Pitt continued.  "As long as we stay

careful and keep undercover in the dark, we can keep them off balance."

"If they come after us," asked Findley, "do we throw rocks?"

"My life is guided by the Boy Scout motto," replied Pitt.

He and Giordino knelt in unison and unzipped the tote bags. Giordino

began passing around bulletproof vests while Pitt handed out the

weapons.

He held up a semiautomatic shotgun for Findley.  "You said you hunted

some, Clayton.  Here's an early Christmas present. A twelve-gauge

Benelli Super Ninety."

Findley's eyes gleamed.  "I like it." He ran his hands over the stock as

lightly as though it were a woman's thigh.  "Yes, I like it." Then he

noticed that Gunn and Giordino carried Heckler-Koch machine guns

modified with silencers.  "You can't buy this stuff at a corner hardware

store.  Where did you get it?"

"Special Operations Forces issue," Giordino said nonchalantly. "Borrowed

when when Hollis and Dillenger weren't looking."

Findley was further amazed when Pitt shoved a round drum in an

ancient"Mompson submachine gun.  "You must like antiques."

"There's something to be said for old-fashioned craftsman ship," said

Pitt.  He looked at his watch again.  Only six minutes remained before

Hollis and Dillenger attacked the ship. "No shooting until I give the

word.  We don't want to screw up the Special Forces assault.  They have

precious little chance of surprise as it is."

"What about the glacier?" Findley asked.  "Won't our gunfire send out

shock waves that could fracture the forward wall of ice?"

"Not from this range," Gunn assured him.  "Our concentrated fire will

seem more like the distant bang of firecrackers."

"Remember," ordered Pitt, "we want to stall off a gun battle as long as

we can.  Our first priority is to find the helicopters."

"A pity we don't have any explosives," mumbled Giordino. "Nothing ever

comes easy."

Pitt gave Findley a few seconds to get his bearings.  Then the geologist

nodded and they moved out, skirting the backs of the old, weathered

buildings, keeping to the shadows, stepping as quietly as possible, the

crunch of their soles against the loose gravel muffled by the stiff

breeze that reversed and now came sweeping down the mountainside.

The buildings around the mine were mostly built of wooden support beams

covered by corrugated metal sheeting that showed signs of corrosion and

rust.  Some were small sheds, others rose two to four stories into the

sky, their walls trailing off into the gloom.  Except for the smell of

the roasting lamb, it looked like an old American West ghost town.

Abruptly Findley stopped behind a long shed and held up a hand, waiting

for the other to close around him.  He Peered around the corner once,

twice, and then turned to Pitt.

"The recreation and dining-hall building is only a few paces to my

right," he whispered.  "I can make out cracks of light spilling out from

under the door." Giordino tested the air with his nose.  "They must like

their meat well done."

"any sign of guards?" asked Pitt.

"The area looks deserted."

"Where could they hide the helicopters?"

"The main mine is a vertical shaft dropping to six levels.  So that's

out as a parking garage."

"Where, then?" Findley gestured into the early-morning blackness.  "The

ore-crushing mill has the largest open space.  There's also a sliding

door used for storing heavy equipment.  If the copter's rotor blades

were folded they could easily squeeze three of them inside."

"The crushing mill it is," said Pitt softly.

There was no more time to waste; Hollis and Dillenger's joint attack

would begin at any minute.  They were halfway past the dining hall when

the door suddenly opened and a shaft of light filtered through the rain,

cutting them off below the knees and illuminating their feet.  They

froze, guns in firing position.

A figure was silhouetted by the interior light for a few seconds.  He

stepped over the threshold briefly and scraped a few morsels from a dish

onto the ground.  Then he turned and closed the door.  Moments later

Pitt and the others flattened their backs against the crushing-mill's

wall.

Pitt turned and put his mouth to Findley's ear.

"How can we sneak in?"

"Conveyor belts run through openings in the building that carried the

bulk ore to the crusher and back to the train after it became slurry.

The only problem is they're way over our heads."

"Lower access doors?"

"The big equipment-storage door," Findley answered, his murmur as soft

as Pitts, "and the main front entrance.  If I remember correctly there's

also a stairway that leads into a side office."

"No doubt locked," said Giordino morosely.

"A bright thought," Pitt conceded.  "Okay, the front door it is. No one

inside will be expecting total strangers coming to call. We'll go in

clean and quiet, like we belong.  No surprises.  Just one of their

buddies strolling from the dining hall."

"I bet the door squeaks," Giordino muttered.

They  walked  unhurriedly  around  a corner of the crushing nial and

entered unchallenged through a high, weathered door that swung on its

hinges noiselessly.

"Curses," Giordino whispered  ugh clenched teeth.

The interior of the building was enormous.  It had to be.  A giant

mechanical machine sat in the center like a giant octopus with conveyor

belts, water hoses and electrical wiring for tenfacies.  The ore crusher

consisted of a massive horizontal cylinder containing various-sized

steel balls that pulverized the ore.

Huge flotation tanks sat along one wall that had received the slurry

after crushing.  Overhead, maintenance catwalks reached by steel ladders

crisscrossed above the massive equipment.  A cord of lights hung from

the catwalk railings, their power produced by a portable generator whose

exhaust popped away in one corner.

Pitt had guessed wrong.  He had figured at least two, perhaps even

three, helicopters to evacuate the hijackers.  There was only one-a

large British Westiand Commando, an older but reliable craft designed

for logistic support. it could carry eight or more passengers if they

were tightly crammed in.  Two men in ordinary combat fatigues were

standing on a high mechanic's stand peering through an access panel

beside the engine.  They were engrossed in their work and paid no notice

to their predawn visitors.

Slowly, cautiously, Pitt advanced into the great open crushing room,

Findley on his right, Giordino covering the left, Gunn  And Findley

together. the helicopter's two crewmen did not Turn from their work.

Only then did he see an uncaring guard sitting on an overturned box

behind a support beam with his back to the door.

Pitt gestured to Giordino and Findley to circle around the helicopter in

the shadows and search for other hijackers.  The guard, having felt the

rush of cold air from the opening-andclosing door, half turned to see

who had entered the building.

Pitt walked slowly toward the guard, who was dressed in black combat

fatigues, with a ski mask over his head.  Pitt was only two meters away

when he smiled and lifted a hand in a vague greeting.

The guard gave him a quizzical look and said something in Arabic.

Pitt gave a friendly shrug and replied in gibberish that was lost under

the sound of the generator's exhaust.

Then the guard focused his eyes on the old Thompson machine gun.  The

two seconds between puzzlement, and alarm, followed by physical

reaction, cost him painfully.  Before he could bring up his weapon and

whip sideways, Pitt had chopped the butt of the Thompson against his

skull under the black ski mask.

Pitt caught the guard as he slumped and propped him back against the

beam as though he were dozing.  Next he ducked under the forward

fuselage of the helicopter and approached the two mechanics working on

the engine.  Reaching the stand, he grasped the rungs of its ladder and

gave it a great heave, tipping it backwards.

The mechanics flew through the air, so startled they didn't shout. Their

only reaction was to throw up their hands in a futile attempt to claw

the air before thumping onto the hard wooden plank floor.  One struck

his head and blacked out immediately.  The other landed on his side, his

tight arm breaking with an audible snap.  A painful gasp burst from his

lips only to be silenced by the sudden impact of the Thompson'  butt

against his temple.

"Nice work," said Findley, dispensing with silence.

"Every move a picture," Pitt muttered loftily.

"I hope that's the lot."

"Not quite.  Al has four more behind the 'chopper."

Findley cautiously stepped under the aircraft and was astounded to see

Giordino sitting comfortably in a folding chair, staring fiercely at

four scowling captives entirely encased up to their chins in sleeping

bags.

"You always had a fetish for neat packages," said Pitt.

Giordino's eyes never left his prisoners.  "And you were always too

loud.  What was all the noise?"

"The mechanics took a nasty fall off the maintenance stand."

"How many did we bag?"

"Seven, all told."

"Four must be part of the flight crew."

"A backup pilot and copilot plus two mechanics.  They weren't taking any

chances."

Findley motioned to one of the mechanics.  "One of them is coming

around.."

Pitt slung his Thompson over a shoulder.  "I think we'll fix it so they

can't go anywhere for a while.  You do the honors, Clayton.  Bind and

gag them.  You should find some straps inside the chopper.  Al, keep a

sharp eye on them.  Rudi and I are going to look around outside."

"We'll ensure their complete immobilization," said Giordino, speaking

like a bureaucrat.

"You better.  They'll kill you if you don't."

Pitt motioned to Gunn and they stripped off the upper clothing from two

of their prisoners.  Pitt snatched the ski mask and pulled the black

sweater from the unconscious guard.  He wrinkled his nose from the smell

of the unwashed sweater and slipped it over his own head.

Then they walked out the door, making no effort to appear inconspicuous.

They strode briskly, confidently, staying in the center of the road that

ran between the buildings.  At the dining hall they cut into the shadows

and peered around the edge of a window through a crack in the curtains.

"There's got to be a dozen of them in there," Gunn whispered.  "All

armed to their molars.  Looks like they're ready to vacate the

premises,"

"Damn Hollis," Pitt grunted softly.  "if only he'd given us some means

of communicating with him."

"Too late now."

"Late?"

"It's 05:12," answered Gunn.  "If the assault had gone according to

schedule, Hollis's support forces and medics would be flying over toward

the ship by now."

Gunn was right.  There was no sound of the Special Operations Forces'

helicopters.

"Let's find the ore train," ordered Pitt.  "We'd be smart to put it out

of commission and cut all transportation between the mine and the ship."

Gunn nodded, and they moved silently along the wall of the dining hall,

ducking under the windows and halting at a corner where they paused to

cautiously scan the immediate neighborhood.  Then they swung across an

open space until they reached the railroad track, stepped across the

rails and began sprinting between the ties.

A chill crept up Pitts back as he tailed Gunn, and he clenched his fists

around the stock and forward grip of the Thompson with a growing sense

of despair.  The wind and rain had stopped and the stars were quickly

fading in the eastern sky.

Something had gone terribly wrong.

To Hollis, it seemed hours since they had launched the boats.

The compact Carrier Pigeon helicopters had flown low along the rugged

coastline and deposited Hollis's team on a small island at the mouth of

the fjord without a hitch.  The launching was executed smoothly with

effortless efficiency, but the swift, four-knot tidal current was far

stronger than anyone had anticipated.

Then the silent electric motor on the lead five-man tow boat had

mysteriously quit after the first ten minutes.  Precious time was lost

as the Special Forces men broke out the paddles and put their backs into

a desperate race to close on the Lady Flamborough before first light.

Matters had been worsened by the breakdown in communications.  To his

dismay, Hollis was unable to notify Dillenger or any of the land team.

He had no way of knowing whether Dillenger had boarded the ship or was

lost on the glacier.

Hollis paddled and cursed the deceased motor, the current at every

stroke.  His carefully calculated timetable was down the drain.  The

attack was far behind schedule, and he couldn't risk calling it off.

His only salvation was the "fog smoke" Findley had described. it swirled

around the small boats and the fiercely determined men, cloaking them

like a protecting blanket.

The mist and the darkness made it impossible for Hollis to see more than

a few meters ahead.  He navigated and watched over his tiny fleet

through an infra-red scope.  He kept them tightly grouped within a

three-meter radius, quietly giving directions over his miniature radio

whenever one began to stray.

He turned the scope on the Lady Flamborough.  Her beautiful lines now

looked like a grotesque ice carving floating in front of the cracked

porcelain wall of an antique bathtub. Hollis judged her to still be a

good kilometer away.

After exacting its toll, the tide suddenly began to slacken and their

speed soon picked up almost a knot.  The welcome relief came almost too

late.  Hollis could see his men were wearing down under the constant,

arduous paddling.  They were men hardened by rigid training, and all

lifted weights on a regular basis.  They dug the paddles into the water

noiselessly and heaved against the merciless tide, but their muscles

were beginning to stiffen and each stroke became an effort.

The protective mist was beginning to  . lift In his mind was the fear

that they would become sitting ducks in the water. Hollis looked upward,

his confidence ebbing with the tide. Through the mist's open patches he

could see a sky that was turning from black to an ever lighter blue.

His boats were in the middle of the fjord, and the nearest shore that

offered any degree of cover was half a kilometer farther away than the

Lady Flamborough.

"Put your backs into it, men," he urged.  "We're in the home stretch. Go

for it."

The weary fighters reached deep for their reserve strength and increased

the length and speed of their strokes.  It felt to Hollis as if the

inflatable boats were spurting through the water.  He put aside the

scope and paddled furiously.

They might make it, just might make it, he thought hopefuly as they

began to rapidly close on the ship.

But where was Dillenger?   he wondered bitterly.  What in hell had

happened to the assault team on the glacier?

Dillenger  was  having  no  picnic  himself.  He  was  even  more vague

on  the  situation.  Immediately  after  jumping from the C-140 wmsport,

he and his men had been immediately hurle, all over the sky by the

heavy, blowing winds.

Tight-faced, Dillenger  looked up and around to see how his team was

Managing. Each man carried a small blue light, but the driving sleet

made it impossible for him to see them.  He lost them almost the instant

his chute opened.

He reached down and pressed the switch of a little black box strapped to

his leg.  Then he spoke into his tiny transmitter.

"This is Major Dillenger- I have turned on my marker beacon. have a

seven-kilometer glide, so try and stay close to me and home in on my

position after you land."

"In this crap we'll be lucky to come down on the island," some

malcontent muttered.

"Radio silence except for emergency," Dillenger ordered.

He looked down and saw nothing beyond his survival-and-weapons pack that

dangled on a two-meter line beneath his harness- He took his bearings

from the luminous dial of a combination compass and altimeter that

extended in front of his forehead like the mirror worn by ear, nose and

throat physicians.

Without reference points or a homing beacon dropped on the landing zone

in advance-a luxury too great to risk alerttng the hiJackers-Dillenger

had to try and fly by the seat of his pants and mentally judge glide

angle and distance.

His primary concern was overshooting the edge of the glacier and landing

m the fjord.  He hedged his bet and came down short-nearly a full

kilometer too short.

The glacier materialized through the darkness, and Dillenger saw he was

descending directly over a crevasse.  A sudden side gust caught his

rectangular canopy and it began to oscillate.  He jockeyed the shrouds

to compensate and twisted into a landing attitude just as his dangling

pack struck the inner wall of the crevasse and bounced over the lip.  A

layer of snow cushioned his impact and he made a perfect landing on his

feet, only two meters from the ice fracture.

He popped his release and the parachute collapsed before it could be

caught by the wind.  He didn't bother to roll it up and hide it in the

ice for later retrieval.  There was no time to waste.  The taxpayers

would have to eat the lost chute.

"This is Dillenger.  I'm down.  Home in on my position."

He pulled a plastic whistle from a pocket of his coat and blew through

it once every ten seconds while facing in a different direction.  for

the first few minutes there was nobody to be seen.

Then, slowly, the first of his men appeared and jogged toward him.  They

had been widely scattered.  Their progress across the uneven surface of

the glacier took them far longer than Dillenger had anticipated.

Soon the others straggled in.  One man had suffered a broken shoulder,

another had cracked an ankle.  His sergeant favored a wrist Dillenger

suspected was broken, but the man carried on as though it was little

more than a slight sprain, and Dillenger needed him too badly to write

him off.

He turned to the two injured men.  "You won't be able to keep up with

the rest of us, but follow along in our tracks as best you can.  Just

make sure your lights are hooded." Then Dillenger nodded at his

sergeant, Jack Foster.  "Let's rope together and move out, Sergeant.

I'll take the lead."

Foster gave a brief salute and began checking the team.

The going was treacherous across the broken ice surface, yet they moved

along at an easy dogtrot.  Dillenger had no fear of falling into an open

lead; the line around his waist was anchored to enough beef and brawn to

lift a truck off the ground.  Twice he called for a brief stop to catch

his bearings, and then they were off again.

They crawled over jagged ice ridges and one open lead that all but

defeated them.  They wasted seven minutes before an ice grapnel bit in

the opposite side and the lightest man on the team crossed hand over

hand to secure the grip.  Another ten minutes was gone before the last

man made it over.

A sense of urgency mushroomed inside Dillenger.  His team was down two

seven men and they were falling farther and farther behind the

timetable.  He sullenly regretted not taking Giordino's unsolicited

advice and doubling his estimated time from air drop to attack.

He prayed the dive team wasn't waiting, freezing to death in the water

beneath the Flamborough's hull.  He tried repeatedly to signal Hollis

and apprise the Colonel of his tardy situation, but there was no reply.

The first faint traces of dawn were breaking behind him, revealing the

surface of the glacier. There was a numbing desolation about it, a

terrifying strangeness.  He could also see the faint glimmering of the

fjordand suddenly he realized why there was a communications breakdown.

Hollis could see the ship clearly now without the infrared scope.  And

if a hijacker with a keen eye had looked in the right direction, he'd

have spied the shadows of the inflatable boats outlined against the dark

gray water.  Hollis hardly dared breathe as the distance narrowed.

Hoping against hope, Hollis never let up on his plea for radio

communications with Dillenger.  "Shark to Falcon, please respond." He

was about to try for the hundredth time when Dillenger's voice abruptly

boomed through his earpiece.

"This is Falcon, go ahead."

"You're late!" Hollis hissed quietly.  "Why didn't you respond to my

calls?"

"Just now came within range.  We were out of horizontal sight of you.

Our signals couldn't penetrate the ice wall."

"Are you in position?"

"Negative," Dillenger said flatly.  "We've stumbled on a delicate

situation which will take a while to correct."

"What do you call delicate?"

"A string of explosives in an ice fracture behind the glacial front,

armed and ready to be detonated by radio signal."

"How long to disarm?"

"Could take an hour just to find them all."

"You've got five minutes," Hollis said quickly.  "We can't wait any

longer or we'll be dead."

"We'll all be dead if the charges go off and the ice wall falls on the

ship."

"We'll gamble on surprise to stop the terrorists from detonating.  Make

it fast.  My boats can be discovered at any moment."

"I can just make out your shadows from the glacial rim."

"Your temn goes in first," Hollis ordered.  "Without total darkness to

cover our ascent up the hull we badly need the distraction.  "

"I'll meet you on the sun deck for cocktails," Dillenger said.

"The tab will be on me," Hollis replied, suddenly buoyant with

expectation.  "Good luck."

Ibn saw them.

He stood on the old ore-loading pier along with Ammar, their four

hostages and twenty men of the Egyptian hijacking force.  He peered

through binoculars at the figures in all-black gear who were poised on

the brink of the glacier.  He watched as they slid down ropes, slashed

their way through the plastic sheet and vanished inside.

He lowered the glasses slightly and focused on the men in the boats

clustered below the hull.  He observed them shoot grappling hooks from

small launchers, and then climb the attached lines to the main-deck

level.

"Who are they?" asked Ammar, standing next to him, also gazing through

binoculars.

"I cannot say, Suleiman Aziz.  They appear to be an elite force.  I hear

no battle sounds; their weapons must be heavily silenced.  Their assault

operation was most efficient."

"Too efficient for any rabble Yazid or Topiltzin could have scraped up

on short notice."

"I believe they may be an American Special Operations Force." Ammar

nodded in the brightening light.  "You may be right, but how in Allah's

name did they find us so quickly?"

"We must leave before their support forces arrive."

"Have you signaled for the chopper?"

"It should be here shortly.

"Wat is it?" asked President De Lorenzo.  "What is happening?"

Ammar brushed off De Lorenzo.  for the first time a flicker of

foreboding came through in his voice.  "It seems we left the ship at a

most appropriate moment.  Allah smiles.  The intruders are not aware of

our presence here."

"In another thirty minutes this island will be crawling with United

States fighting men," said Senator Pitt, calmly turning the screw.  "You

might be well advised to surrender."

Ammar suddenly turned and stared savagely at the politician.  "Not

necessary, Senator.  Don't look for your famed cavalry to charge to the

rescue.  If and when they arrive, there will be no one left to save."

"Why didn't you kill us on the ship?" Hala asked bravely.

Ammar's  teeth  showed  under  the  mask  in  a hideous smile and he did

not give her the courtesy of an answer.  He nodded at Ibn. "Detonate the

charges."

"As you wish, Suleiman Aziz," Ibn replied dutifully.

"What charges?" demanded the Senator.  "What, are you talking about?"

"Why, the explosives we placed behind the glacial wall," Ammar said as

if it was common knowledge.  He gestured toward the Lady

Flamborough"Ibn, if you please."

Totally expressionless, Ibn took a small transmitter from a coat pocket

and held it out in front of him so the forward end pointed at the

glacier.

"In the name of God, man," pleaded Senator Pitt.  "Don't do it."

Ibn hesitated, staring at Ammar.

"There are hundreds of people on that ship," said President Hasan, shock

showing in every line of his face.  "You have no reason to murder them."

"I do not have to justify my actions to anyone here."

"Yazid will be punished for your atrocity," Hala murmured in a tone

edged with fury.

"Thank you for making it easier," Ammar said, smiling at Hala, whose

face became a study in bewildered incomprehension.  "Enough of these

maudlin delays.  Quickly, Ibn.  Get on with it."

Before the stunned hostages could utter further protests, fbn flicked

the power switch of the transmitting unit to "on" and pressed the button

that activated the detonators.

The explosion came like a curiously muffled clap of thunder. The forward

mass of the glacier creaked and groaned ominously.  Then nothing

appeared to happen.  The ice cliff remained firm and upright.

Detonations should have occurred at eight different locations inside the

fracture, but Major Dillenger and his men had discovered and disarmed

all but one charge before their search was cut off.

The distant thump came just as Pitt and Gunn were closing in on the two

hijackers who were busily firing up the old mine locomotive.  The

hijackers paused, listening for a few moments, exchanging words in

Arabic.  Then they laughed between themselves and turned back to their

work.

"Whatever caused the boom," whispered Gunn, "came as no surprise to

those guys.  They act as if they expected it."

"Sounded like a small explosion," Pitt replied sourily.

"Definitely not the glacier breaking away.  We'd have felt tremors in

the ground."

Pitt stared at the small narrow-gauge locomotive, which was coupled to a

coal tender and five ore cars.  It was a type used around plantations,

industrial plants and mining operations.  Quaint, stout and sturdy, with

a tall stovepipe smokestack and round porthole windows in the cab, it

looked like the Little Engine That Could, standing there puffing wisps

of steam around its running gear.

A railroad man would have classed the wheel arrangement as an 00,

indicating no leading truck wheels followed by four drive wheels with no

trailing truck beneath the cab.

"Let's give the engineer and his fireman a warm sendoff," Pitt murmured

wryly.  "It's the friendly thing to do."

Gunn looked at Pitt queerly and shook his head in bewilderment before

crouching and running toward the end of the train.  They split up and

approached from opposite sides, taking cover under the ore cars.  The

cab was brightly illuminated i by the open firebox, and Pitt gestured

with an upturned palm, signaling Gunn to wait.

The Arab who acted as engineer was busy turning valves and watching the

steam-pressure gauges.  The other shoveled coal from the tender across

the platform into the flames.  He fed a load of the black lumps onto the

fiercely burning firebox, paused to mop his sweating face, and then

slammed the door to the firebox shut with his shovel, sending the cab

into a state of semidarkness.

Pitt pointed at Gunn and then at the engineer.  Gunn waved an

acknowledgment, grasped the grab irons and leaped up the steps into the

cab.

Pitt arrived first.  He calmly approached the fireman head-on and said

pleasantly, "Have a nice day."

Before the confused and astonished fireman could respond, Pitt had

swiftly snatched the shovel out of the Arab's hands and beat him over

the head with it.

The engineer was in the act of turning around when Gunn whipped him

across the jaw with the heavy silencer joined to the Heckler & Koch's

stubby muzzle.  The Arab dropped like a bag of cement.

While Gunn guarded against intruders, Pitt propped both hijackers so

they hung half out of the cab's side windows. Next he thoughtfully

studied the maze of pipes, levers and valves.

"You'll never do it," Gunn said shaking his head.

"I know how to start and drive a Stanley Steamer," Pitt said

indignantly.

"A what?"

"An antique automobile," Pitt answered.  "Pull open the door to the

firebox.  I need some light to read the gauges."

Gunn did as he was asked and held out his hands to warm them from the

flames leaping through the opening.  "You better figure it out quick,"

he said impatiently.  "We're lit up like a Las Vegas chorus line."

Pitt pulled down a long lever and the little engine slipped forward a

scant centimeter.  "Okay, that's the brake.  I think I've figured what

handle does what.  Now, when we roll past the crushing mill, jump and

hustle inside."

"What about the train?"

"The Cannonball Express," Pitt replied with a wide grin, "does not make

stops."

Pitt released the ratchet on the forward-reverse lever and pushed it

away from him.  Next he squeezed the ratchet on the throttle bar and

eased it open.  The locomotive crept slowly ahead, accompanied by the

clanging jerk of the coupled ore cars.  He shoved the throttle to its

stop.  The drive wheels whirled full circle several times before they

bit the rusty rails. The train lurched forward and got underway.

The labored puffing came in faster spurts as the little engine picked up

speed and chugged by the front of the dining hall. The door opened and a

hijacker leaned out and raised a hand as if to wave.  He snapped it back

down when he saw the two bodies leaning from the cab's side windows.  He

disappeared into the building as if jerked by an immense nibber band,

wildly shouting a warning.

Pitt and Gunn both unleashed a blast of gunfire through the windows and

door of the building.  Then the engine was past and heading toward the

crushing mill.  Pitt glanced at the ground and judged the speed to be

somewhere between fifteen and twenty kilometers.

Pitt pulled the overhead whistle lever and tied it down with a

drawstring from inside his ski jacket.  The spurt of steam through the

brass whistle cut the air like a razor "Get ready to jump," he yelled at

Gunn above the ear-splitting scream.

Gunn didn't reply.  He stared at the rough gravel flashing past as

though it were hurtling by at jet speed a thousand meters below.

"Now!" shouted Pitt.

They hit the ground on the run, skidding and sliding but somehow

managing to keep their footing, There was no hesitation, no pause to

catch their breath. They ran alongside the train and straight up the

steps of the crushing-mill's stairs, and didn't stop until they both

stumbled, then tripped over the threshold and crashed to the floor

inside.

The first  thing  Pitt  saw  was  Giordino  standing  above  him,

unconcernedly holding his machine gun in a muzzle-up position.

"I've seen you kicked out of some pretty raunchy pubs," Giordino said in

a dour voice, "but this is the first time I've ever seen YOU tossed off

a train."

"No great loss," said Pitt, coming to his feet.  "It didn't have a club

car."

The gunfire.  Yours or theirs?"

"Ours.

"Company on the way?"

"Like mad hornets out of a vandalized nest," replied pitt. "We don't

have much time to prepare for a siege."

"They'd better be careful where they aim or their helicopter might get

broken."

"An advantage we'll play to the hilt."

Findley had finished tying the guard and the two mechanics together in

the center of the floor, and he stood up.  "where do you want them?"

"They're as safe as anywhere there on the floor," answered Pitt.  He

looked swiftly around at the cavernous interior of the building with the

crushing mill squatting in the center.  "Al, you and Findley grab

whatever equipment or furniture you can lift and convert the ore crusher

into a fort.  Rudi and I will delay them as long as we can."

"A fort within a fort," said Findley.

"It would take twenty men to defend a building this big," Pitt

explained.  "The hijackers' only hope of capturing their helicopter

intact is to blow the main door and rush us en masse.  We'll pick off as

many as we can from the windows and then retreat to the mill for a

last-ditch defense."

"Now I can sympathize with Davy Crockett at the Alamo," moaned Giordino.

Findley and GiordinO began fortifying the huge building while Pitt and

Gunn set up shop at windows on opposite corners of the building.  The

sun was beginning to cast its rays over the slopes on the other side of

the mountain.  Darkness was almost gone.

Pitt could feel the wave of anxiety that washed through his mind.  They

might prevent the Arabs who were rapidly surrounding the crushing null

from escaping, but if the hijackers on the ship eluded the Special

Forces teams and made a run for the mine, he and his pitiful little

force would be overwhelmed.

He looked darkly out the window at the little engine as it roared down

the track on its final run, picking up momentum with every Turn of its

drive wheels.  Sparks belched from the stack as a long plume of smoke

trailed sideways, driven by a flanking wind.  The ore cars rattled and

swayed on the narrow rails.  The sound of the whistle turned from a

shrill shriek to the mournful wail of a lost soul in hell as the train

hurtled into the distance.

The shock and disappointment showed clearly in Ammar's eyes when he

realized the glacial front was not about to fall. He whirled to face

Ibn.

"What went wrong?" he demanded, his voice ragged with growing anger.

"There should have been a chain of explosions."

Ibn's face was like stone.  "You know me well, Suleiman Aziz- I do not

make mistakes.  The explosives should have detonated.  The commando team

we saw drop from the glacier to the ship must have found and disarmed

most of them."

Ammar stared briefly at the sky, threw up his hands and let them drop

again.  "Allah weaves strange patterns into our lives," he said

philosophically.  Then a slow smile spread across his lips.  "The

glacier may fall yet.  Once our helicopter is airborne, we can make a

pass and drop grenades into the ice fracture.  "

Ibn matched Ammar's smile.  "Allah has not deserted us he said

reverently.  "Do not forget, we are safe here on sho  while the Mexicans

have inherited the job of fighting the Americans.  "

"Yes, you're right, old friend, we're in Allah's debt for our well-timed

deliverance." Ammar stared contemptuously at the ship.  "We'll soon see

if Captain Machado's Aztec gods can protect him."

"He was a maggot, that one ' Suddenly Ibn stopped and cocked an ear,

then gazed up the mountain slope.  "Gunfire, coming from the mine."

Ammar listened, but he heard something else-the distant cry of the

locomotive's whistle.  The sound was continuous and grew louder.  Then

he saw the plume of smoke and watched in sudden puzzlement as the train

shot down the mountainside, careening wildly on the curving switchbacks

before barreling across a long, straight stretch toward the pier.

"What are those fools doing?" Ammar gasped as he saw the train

thundering wildly down the track, heard the whistle filling the predawn

with its high-pitched scream.

The hijackers and their hostages were not prepared for the incredible

spectacle now avalanching upon them like a monster on a rampage.  They

stood petrified in disbelieving fascination.

"Allah save us!" a man uttered in a hoarse voice.

"Save yourself!" Ibn snapped.  He was the first to recover, and he began

shouting for everyone to clear the tracks.  There was bedlam as everyone

scattered away from the rails just as the ore cars, pulled by the

out-of-control little engine, her drive rods whipping in blurred motion,

shot onto the pier.

The wooden pilings and flooring shuddered at the sudden onslaught.  The

tail-end ore car bounced off the tracks but, held by its coupling, was

dragged like a screaming, unruly child by his ear across the tarred

planking.  Clouds of sparks sprayed as the steel wheels clattered

against the rails.  Then the engine ran out of track and soared off the

end of the pier.

The train seemed to arc through the air for an instant in slow motion

before the engine finally dropped and dived into the fiord.

Miraculously, the boiler failed to explode when its heated walls met the

icy water.  The engine vanished with a great hiss and a cloud of steam,

followed by a loud grinding of to  metal as the ore cars piled in on top

of each other.

Anunar and Ibn dashed to the pier's end and stared helplessly at the

bubbles and steam rising from the water.

"The bodies of our men were hanging from the cab," said Ammar.  "Did you

see them?"

"I did, Suleiman Aziz."

"The sound of gunfire you heard a minute ago!" Ammar said in a white

rage.  "Our men must be under attack at the mine.  There is still a

chance to escape if we hurry and help them before the helicopter is

damaged."

Ammar paused only long enough to give orders for one of his men to bring

up the rear with the prisoners.  He set off up the narrow-gauge tracks

at a half-run, the other members of his hijacking force trailing behind

in single file.

growing fear and uncertainty swelled inside Ammar's mind.  If the

helicopter was destroyed, there could be no escape, no place to hide on

the barren island.  The American Special Forces would hunt them down one

by one, or leave them either to freeze or starve to death.

Ammar was determined to survive if for no other reason than to kill

Yazid and find the devil who was responsible for hounding him to Santa

Inez Island and devastating his intricate plans.

The sounds of the battle increased and reverberated down the mountain.

He was panting heavily from the exertion of running uphill, but he

gritted his teeth and increased his pace.

Captain Machado was standing in the wheelhouse when he heard, felt,

really, the muted detonation on the glacier.  He stiffened for a moment,

listening, but the only sound was the light tick of a large eight-day

clock above the bridge windows.

Then his face suddenly paled.  The glacier, he thought, it must be ready

to break off.

Machado hurried to the communications room and found one of his men

staring dumbly at the teletype.

He looked up blankly at Machado's entr heard an explosion." ance.  "I

thought I Suspicion unfolded inside Machado's gut.  "Have you seen the

radioman or the Egyptian leader?"

"I've seen no one."

"No Arabs at all?"

"Not in the past hour." The radar operator paused.  "I haven't seen any

of them since I left the dining salon and came on duty.  They should be

guarding the prisoners and patrolling the outside decks, since those are

the jobs they stupidly volunteered for."

Machado studied the empty chair at the radio thoughtfully. "Maybe they

weren't so stupid."

He stepped to the counter in front of the helm and looked through the

narrow view culs in the plastic sheeting directly in front of the bridge

windows.  There was enough daylight now to clearly see the forward part

of the ship.

His eyes found several wide tears in the plastic.  Too late he saw the

ropes running from the top of the glacier down through the openings. Too

late he swung around to voice an alarm over the ship's communication

system.

He came to a dead stop before he uttered a sound.

There was a man standing in the doorway.

A man who wore all-black dress; hands and what little face that showed

through the ski mask were also blackened.  Nightvision goggles hung

around his neck.  He wore a large bulletproof chest piece with several

pockets and clips holding both fragmentation and stun grenades, three

murderous-looking knives and a number of other killing devices.

Machado's eyes suddenly squinted.  "Who are you?" he demanded, knowing

full well he was staring at death.

As he spoke he made a lightning snatch of a nine-millimeter automatic

pistol from a shoulder holster and snapped off a shot.

Machado was good.  Wyatt Earp, Doc Holiday and Bat Masterson would have

been proud of him.  His shot struck the intruder square in the center of

the chest.

With older bulletproof vests, the pure force behind the blow could snap

a rib or stop a heart.  The vests worn by the SOF men, however, were the

latest state of the art.  They could even stop a 308 NATO round and

distribute the impact so it left only a bruse.

Dillenger shuddered slightly from the bullet, took one step back and

pulled the trigger of his Heckler & Koch, all in the same motion.

Machado wore a vest too, but the older model.  Dillenger's burst tore

through and riddled his chest.  His spine arched like a tightly strung

bow and he staggered backward, falling against the Captain's chair

before dropping to the deck '

The Mexican guard raised his arms and shouted, "Don't fire!   I am

unarmed-"

Dillenger's short burst into the throat cut off the Mexican's plea,

knocking him into the ship's compass binnacle, where he hung suspended

like a limp rag doll.

"Don't move or I'll shoot," Dillenger said belatedly.

Sergeant Foster stepped around the Major and looked down at the dead

terrorist.  "He's dead, sir."

"I warned him," Dillenger said casually as he slipped another clip into

his weapon.

Foster kicked the body over on its stomach with his boot.  A long

bayonet knife slipped out of a sheath below the collar and rattled on

the deck.  "Intuition, Major?" asked Foster.

"I never trust a man who says he's unarmed-"

Suddenly Dillenger stopped and listened.  Both men heard it at the same

time and looked at each other, puzzled.

"What in hell is that?" asked Foster,

"They were a good thirty years before my time, but I'd swear that's a

whistle from an old steam locomotive."

"Sounds like it's coming down the mountain from the old mine."

"I thought it was abandoned."

The NUMA people were to wait there until the ship was secure .

"Why would they stoke up an old locomotive?"

"I don't know." Dillenger paused and stared distantly, a sudden

certainty growing within him.  "Unless . . . they're trying to tell us

something."

The detonation on the glacier caught Hollis and The team by surprise.

His team entered the dining salon immediately after a wild shootout.

His dive team had sliced their way through the plastic and found a tight

passage between the fake cargo containers.  They had passed wanly

through a doorway into an empty bar and lounge outside the dining salon,

fanned out, dodging pillars and four men covering the stairs and two

elevators, and surprised Machado's Mexican terrorist team.

All but one terrorist was down.  He still stood where he'd been hit,

hate and vague astonishment reflected in his dying eyes.  Then his body

collapsed and he fell to the carpet, staining its rich, thick pile a

deep crimson.

Hollis and his team advanced, warily stepping over and around the

bodies.  A blood-chilling of the ice wall sounded throughout the ship,

rattling the few undamaged bottles and glasses behind an ornate bar.

The Special Operations men stared uneasily at one another and at their

Colonel, but they stood firm and ready.

"Major Dillenger's team must have missed one," Hollis mused calmly.

"No hostages here, sir," said one of his men.  "All appear to be

terrorists."

Hollis studied several of the lifeless faces.  None of them looked like

they came from the Middle East.  Must be the crew from the General

Bravo, he thought.

He turned away and pulled a copy of the ship's deck layout from a pocket

and studied it briefly, while he talked into his radio.

"Major, report your status."

"Met light resistance so far," replied Dillenger.  "Have only accounted

for four hijackers.  The bridge is secure and we've released over a

hundred crew members who were locked in the baggage hold.  Sorry we

didn't find all the charges."

"Good work.  You did well to disarm enough to keep the glacier from

collapsing.  I'm heading for the master staterooms to free the

passengers. Request the engine-room crew return to their station and

restore power. We don't dare hang around under the ice cliff a minute

longer than we have to.  Watch yourselves.  We took out another sixteen

hijackers, all Latins. There must be another twenty Arabs still on the

ship."

"They may be on shore, sir."

"Why do you say that?"

"We heard a whistle from a locomotive a couple of minutes ago.  I

ordered one of my men to climb the radar mast and check it out.  He

reported a train rolling down the mountain like a bowling ball.  He also

observed it run off a nearby pier that was crowded with two dozen

terrorists."

"Forget it for now.  Let's rescue the hostages first and see to the

shore when we've secured the ship."

"Acknowledged."

Hollis led his men up the grand staircase and moved, quiet as a whisper,

into the hallway separating the staterooms.  Suddenly they froze in

position as one of the elevators hummed and rose from the deck below.

The door opened and a hijacker stepped out, unaware of the assault.  He

opened his mouth, the only movement he was able to make before one of

Hollis's men tapped him heavily on the head with the silenced muzzle of

his gun.

Incredibly, there were no guards outside the staterooms. The men began

kicking in the doors, and upon entering, found the Egyptian and Mexican

advisers and Presidential staff aides, but no sign of Hasan and De

Lorenzo.

Hollis broke open the last door at the hallway, burst inside and

confronted five men in ship's uniforms.  One of them stepped forward and

gazed at Hollis in contempt, "You might have used the door latch," he

said, regarding Hollis with suspicion.

"You must be Captain Oliver Collins?"

"Yes, I'm Collins, as if you didn't know.

"Sorry about the door.  I'm Colonel Morton Hollis, Special Operations

Forces."

"By Jesus, an American!" gasped First Officer Finney.

Collins's face lit up as he rushed forward to pump Hollis's hand.

"Forgive me, Colonel.  I thought you might be one of them.  Are we ever

glad to see you."

"How many hijackers?" asked Hollis.

"After the Mexicans came on board from the Geeral Bravo, I should judge

about forty."

"We've only accounted for twenty."

Collins's face reflected the ordeal.  He looked haggard but still stood

tall.  "You've freed the two presidents and Senator Pitt and Miss

Kamil?"

"I'm afraid we haven't found them yet."

Collins rushed past him through the doorway.  '-They were held in the

master suite just across the passageway."

Hollis stood aside in surprise.  "No one in there," he said flatly.

"We've already searched this deck."

The Captain ran into the empty suite, but saw only the rumpled

bedclothes, the usual light mess left by passengers.  His stiff-backed

composure fell away and he looked positively stunned.

My God, they've taken them."

Hollis spoke into his  crophone.  "Major Dillenger."

"Dillenger took five seconds to respond.  "I read you, Colonel.  Go

ahead."

"any contact with the enemy?"

"None, I think we've pretty well rounded them up."

"At least twenty hijackers and the VIP passengers are missing.  You see

a sign of them?"

"Negative, not so much as a stray hair."

"Okay, finish securing the ship and have her crew move her out into the

fjord."

"No can do," said Dillenger solemnly.

"Problems?"

"The murdering bastards really did a number on the engine room.  They

smashed up everything.  It'll take a week to put the ship back in

operation."

"We've got no power at all?"

"Sorry, Colonel.  Here we are, and here we sit.  These engines aren't

taking us anywhere.  They also wrecked the generators, including the

auxiliaries."

... Then we'll have to take the crew and passengers off by lifeboat,

using the manual winches."

"No go, Colonel.  We're dealing with genuine sadists.  They also trashed

the lifeboats.  Bashed the bottoms out."

Dillenger's dire report was punctuated by a deep growling noise that

emanated from the glacier and traveled through the ship like a drum.

There was no vibration this time, only the growl that turned into a

heart-stopping rumble.  It lasted nearly a minute before it finally

faded and died.

Hollis and Collins were both brave men-no one would ever doubt it-but

each read fear in the other's eyes.

"The glacier is ready to calve," said Collins grimly.  "Our only hope is

to cut away the anchor chains and pray the tide carries us out into the

fjord."

"Believe me, you won't see ebb tide for another eight hours," said

Hollis.  "You're talking to a man who knows."

"You're just full of cheery news, aren't you, Colonel."

"Doesn't look encouraging, does it?"

"Doesn't look encouraging," Collins repeated.  "Is that all you have to

say?   There are nearly two hundred people on board the Lady

Flamborough.

They must be evacuated immediately."

"I can't wave a wand and make the glacier go away," Hollis explained

calmly.  "I can take a few out in inflatable boats and call in our

helicopters to airlift the rest.  But we're talking a good hour."

Collins's voice came edged with impatience.  "Then I suggest you get on

with it while we're all still alive-" He halted as Hollis abruptly swung

up a hand for silence.

Hollis's eyes narrowed in bewilderment as a strange voice suddenly burst

over his earphone.

"Colonel Hollis, am I on your frequency?   Over."

"Who the hell is this!" Hollis snapped.

"Captain Frank Stewart of the NUMA ship Sounder at your service.  Can I

give you a lift somewhere?"

"Stewart!" the Colonel burst out.  "Where are you?"

"If you could see through all that crap hanging on your superstructure,

you'd find me cruising up the fjord about half a kilometer off your port

side."

Hollis exhaled a great sigh and nodded at Collins.  "A ship is bearing

down on us.  any instructions?"

Collins stared at him, numb with disbelief.  Then he blurted, "Good God,

yes, man!   Tell him to take us under tow."

Working feverishly, Collins's crew slipped the bow and stern anchor

chains and made ready with the mooring hawsers.

In a feat of superb seamanship, Stewart swung the Sounder's stern under

the Lady Flamborough's bow in one pass.  Two heavy rope mooring lines

were dropped by the crewmen of the cruise ship and immediately made fast

to the survey ship's deck bitts.  It was not the most perfect tow

arrangement, but the ships were not going for distance across stormy

seas, and the temporary expedient was accomplished in a matter of

minutes.

Stewart gave the command for "slow ahead" until the slack was taken up

from the tow lines.  Then he slowly increased speed to "full ahead"

while he looked over his shoulder, one eye on the glacier, one on the

cruise liner.  The Sounder's two cycloidal propellers, one forward and

one aft, thrashed the water as her great diesel engine strained under

the load.

She was half the Lady Flamborough's tonnage and never meant for tug

duty, but she dug in and drove like a draft horse in a pulling contest,

black exhaust pouring from her stack.

At first nothing seemed to happen, and then slowly, imperceptibly, a

small bit of froth appeared around the Sounder's bow.  She was moving,

hauling the reluctant cruise liner from under the shadow of the glacier.

Despite the danger, the passengers, crew and Special Forces fighters all

tore away the plastic sheeting and stood on the decks, watching and

willing the struggling Sounder forward. Ten meters, then twenty, a

hundred, the gap between ship and ice widened with agonizing slowness.

Then at last the Lady was clear.

Everyone on both ships gave a rousing cheer that echoed up and down the

fiord.  Later, Captain Collins would humorously call it the cheer that

broke the camel's back.

A loud cracking sound shattered the celebrating voices and grew into a

great booming rumble.  To those watching, it seemed as if the air was

electrified.  Then the whole forward face of the ice cliff toppled

forward and pounded into the fjord like a huge oil tanker being launched

on its side.  The water seethed and boiled and rose in a ten-foot wave

that surged down the fjord and lifted the two ships like corks before

heading out toward the open sea.

The monstrous, newly calved iceberg settled into the deeply carved

channel of the fjord, its ice glinting like a field of orange diamonds

under the new sun.  Then the rumble rolled down from the mountainside

and echoed in the ears of the stunned onlookers, who couldn't believe

they were somehow alive.

At first there was complete confusion, with much shouting and wild

shooting.  The Egyptians had no idea of the size of the force that fired

on them in the dining hall during the passage of the  . They snuffed the

lights and shot at the earlymoming shadows until they realized the

shadows weren't shooting back.

The dirt roads between the wooden buildings took on an eerie silence.

for several minutes the Egyptian hijackers made no effort to leave the

dining hall.

Then, suddenly, a half-dozen men-two from the front and four at the rear

of the building-broke from the doors, scrambling, crouching, and diving

headlong behind predetermined shelter.  Once in position, they laid down

a circle of fire to cover the rest of the men, who then followed on

their heels.

Their leader, a tall man wearing a black turban, directed the men's

movements by blowing sharp biceps on a whistle.

After a rocky start, the Egyptian terrorist team was everything Pitt was

afraid of-highly  ed, practiced and tough. When it came to

house-to-house street fighting, they were the best in the world.  They

were even well led.  The leader in the black turban was competent and

methodical.

They searched building by building, working toward the crushing Mill

until they half-circled it like a crescent.  No haphazard assault by

Animar's hand-picked killers.  They moved with stealth and purpose.

Their leader caned out in Arabic.  When there was no reply, another

terrorist shouted from a different location.  They were hailing the

guard and mechanics inside the crushing mill, Pitt guessed correctly.

They were too close now for Pitt to risk revealing himself at the

window.  He removed the terrorist's ski mask and clothing and threw it

in a pile on the floor, then rummaged through a pocket of his ski jacket

and retrieved a small mirror attached to a narrow stretch handle.  He

eased the mirror above the window sill and extended the handle, twisting

it like a periscope.

He found the target he was looking for, 90 percent concealed, but enough

showing for a killing shot.

Pitt turned the fire-select lever from FULL AUTO to SINGLE.  Then he

swiftly raised up, aimed and squeezed the trigger.

The deadly old Thompson spat.  Black Turban took two or three steps, his

face blank and uncomprehending; then he sagged, fell forward and pitched

to the ground.

Pitt dropped down, lowered his gun and peered into the mirror again. The

terrorists had disappeared.  To a man, they had dodged behind buildings

or crawled furiously under abandoned and rusting mining equipment.  Pitt

knew they weren't about to quit.  They were still out there, dangerous

as ever, waiting for instructions from their second-m-command.

Gunn took his cue and pumped a ten-round burst through a wooden door on

a shed across the road.  Very slowly the door swung open, pushed by a

body that twisted and dropped.

Still there was no return fire.  They were nobody's fools, thought Pitt.

Now that they realized they were not up against a superior force but by

a small group, they took their time to regroup and consider options.

They also realized now that their unknown oponents had captured their

helicopter and were holed up in the crushing Mill.

Pitt ducked, scurried over and crouched beside Gunn. "How's it look on

your side?"

"Quiet.  They're playing it nice and easy.  They don't want to dent

their helicopter."

"I think they're going to create a diversion at the front door and then

make a rush through the side office."

Gunn nodded.  "Sounds logical.  About time we found better cover away

from these windows anyway.  Where do you want me?"

Pitt looked up at the catwalk above.  He pointed at a row of small

skylights encircling a small winch tower.  "Climb up and keep watch.

Yell when they launch the attack and welcome them with a concentrated

burst through the front door.  Then get your ass back down here.  They

won't have any scruples about peppering the walls above the chopper."

"On my way."

Pitt moved around to the side office, paused at the threshold and turned

to Giordino and Findley.

"How's it coming?" he asked.

Giordino looked up from shoveling a pile of leftover ore for a

barricade.  "Fort Giordino will be finished on schedule."

Findley stopped work and stared at him.  "F before G, Fort Findley.  "

Giordino looked at Findley morosely for a second before returning to his

work.  "Fort Findley if we lose, Giordino if we win."

Shaking his head in awe, Pitt wondered why he was blessed with such

incredible friends.  He wanted to say something to them, express his

feelings of gratitude for risking their lives to stop a band of scum

when they could have bolted for the boondocks and hid out until Hollis

and his team arrived.  But they knew: men like this needed no words of

appreciation or encouragement.  There they'd stay, and there they'd

fight it out.  Pitt hoped to God none would die uselessly.

"Argue about it later," he ordered, "and ready a reception committee if

they get past me."

He turned and entered the damp and musty-smelling office He checked his

Thompson and set it aside.  After quickly building a barrier with two

overturned desks, a steel filing cabinet and a heavy iron potbellied

stove, he lay down on the floor and waited.

He didn't wait long.  One minute later he came to unmoving attention as

he thought he heard the faint crunch of gravel outside.  The sound

stopped and then came again, soft but unmistakable.  He raised the

Thompson and propped the grips on the filing cabinet.

Too late, Gunn gave a yell of warning, when suddenly an object crashed

through the window above the door and fell, rolling across the floor.  A

second came right behind. Pitt dropped low and tried to burrow into the

steel cabinet, cursing his lack of forethought.

Both grenades went off with an ear-bursting blast.  The office erupted

in a great roar of shattered furniture and flying wood and yellowed

paper.  The outer wall was blown outward and most of the ceiling caved

in.

Pitt was dazed by the concussion and the deafening clap of the twill

blast.  He'd never experienced an explosion in a close proximity before,

and he was stunned right down to his toes.

The potbellied stove had taken the main force of the shrapnel, yet held

its shape, the rounded sides perforated with jagged holes.  The file

cabinet was bent and twisted and the desks badly mutilated, but the only

apparent injuries Pitt could find on himself were a thin but deep cut in

his left thigh and a five-centimeter gash on his cheek.

The office had vanished and left in its place a pile of smoldering

debris, and for one apprehensive moment Pitt had a vision of being

trapped in a blazing fire.  But only for a moment-the rain-soaked old

wood of the building sizzled a bit in several places but refused to

ignite.

With a conscious effort of will Pitt switched the Thompson to FULL AUTO,

and aimed the barrel at the splintered remains of the front door.  Blood

was streaming down the side of his face and under his collar.  His eyes

never flickered as a barrage of automatic fire came pouring over his

head from the guns of four men who charged through the shattered

openings in the outer wall.

Pitt felt neither remorse nor fear as he fired a long burst that blew

away his attackers like trees before a tornado.  They threw up their

weapons, arms flailing in the manner of ftenzied dancers on a stage, and

spun crazily to the debris-piled floor.

Three more terrorist fighters followed the first wave and were as

ruthlessly stopped by Pitt-all except one, who reacted with incredible

swiftness and flung himself behind a smoking, shredded leather sofa.

Cannonlike blasts went off in Pin's ear as Findley dropped to his knees

behind him and pumped loads from his shotgun into the lower base of the

sofa.  Leather, burlap padding and wood sprayed the air.  A moment of

quiet, and then one of the terrorist's arms flopped lifelessly beyond

the sofa's carved feet.

Giordino appeared through the smoke and gunpowder fumes, grasping Pitt

under the arms and dragging him back

"Must you always make a mess?" he said, grinning.  Then into the

crushing-mill area and behind an old ore car.

his face softened with concern.  "You hurt bad?"

Pitt  wiped  the  blood  away  from  his  cheek  and  stared  down at

the crimson stain spreading through the fabric covering his leg.  "Damn!

A perfectly good pair of pants. Now that really pisses me off."

Findley knelt down, cut away the pants leg and began bandaging the

wound.  "You were lucky to survive the blast with only a couple of

cuts."

"Dumb of me not to figure on grenades," Pitt said bitterly. 'I should

have guessed."

"No sense in blaming yourself." Giordino shrugged.  "This isn't our line

of work."

Pitt looked up.  "We better get smart real fast if we want to be around

when the SOF guys arrive."

"They won't try another assault from this direction," Findley said. "The

blast knocked down the stairway outside.

They'd be sitting ducks if they tried scrambling up ten feet of broken

timber."

"Now might be a ripe oportunity to burn the helicopter and get the hell

out of here," Findley said unhappily.

"The news gets worse, and it gets better," Gunn said, dropping from a

ladder to the floor.  "I saw another twenty of them charging up the

railroad track like a prairie fire.  They should be here in another

seven or eight minutes."

Giordino looked at Gunn suspiciously.  "How many?"

"I stopped counting at fifteen."

"The opportunity to flee the coop gets even riper," muttered Findley.

"Hollis and his men?" asked Pitt.

Gunn shook his head wearily.  "No sign of them." He paused to draw a

deep breath and turned to stare at Pitt.

terrorist reinforcements, they were  ed by four hostages with two

guards.  I could just recognize them through my binoculars.  One was

your Dad.  He and a woman were helping two other men along the tracks."

"Hala Kamil, bless her," Pitt said with vast relief.  "Thank God, the

old man is alive."

"The other two?" asked Giordino.

"Most likely Presidents Hasan and De Lorenzo."

"So much for early retirement," said Findley gloomily as he placed the

final piece of tape over Pitts bandage.

"The terrorists are only keeping the Senator and the others alive to

ensure a safe escape," said Pitt.

"And won't hesitate to murder them one by one until we hand over their

helicopter," predicted Gunn.

Pitt nodded.  "Without a doubt, but if we surrendered, there's no

guarantee they wouldn't murder them anywayThey've already tried to

assassinate Hala twice and most certainly want Hasan dead too."

"They'll call a truce and negotiate."

Pitt looked at his watch.  "They won't haggle for very long. They know

their time is running out.  But we might gain a few extra minutes."

"So what's the plan?" asked Giordino.

"We stall and fight for as long as it takes." Pitt looked at Gunn. "Were

the hostages surrounded by the hijackers?"

"No, they were a good two hundred meters in the rear, trailing the main

party up the rail-bed," Gunn replied.  "They were herded by only two

terrorists." He stared back into Pitts green eyes, and then nodded in

slow understanding.  "You want me to take out the guards and protect the

Senator and the rest until Hollis shows?"

"You're the smallest and the fastest, Rudi.  If anybody can get clear of

the building undetected and circle around behind those two guards while

we distract them, you can."

Gunn threw out his hands and dropped them to his sides. "I'm grateful

for the trust.  I only hope I can pull it off."

"You can."

"That leaves only three of you to hold the fort."

"We'll have to make do." Pitt awkwardly rose to his feet and limped over

to the pile of terrorists' clothing he'd tossed on the floor.  He

returned and held it out to Gunn.  "Wear this.

They'll  think you're one of them."

Gunn stood there rooted, reluctant to desert his friends.

Giordino came to his rescue by laying a beefy hand on the smaller man's

shoulder and steering him to a maintenance passage that dropped beneath

the floor and ran around the giant crushing mill.

"You can get out through here," he said smiling.  "Wait until things

heat up before you make your break."

Gunn found himself half under the floor in the passage before he could

protest.  He took one last look at Pitt, the incredibly durable,

indestructible Dirk Pitt, who gave him a jaunty wave.  Peerrd at

Giordino, old steady and reliable, whose concern was masked by a

lighthearted expression.  And finally Findley, who flashed a sparkling

smile and held up both thumbs.  They were all part of him and he was

heartsick at leaving, not knowing if he would see any of them alive

again.

"You guys be here when I get back," he said.  "You hear?"

Then he ducked under the flooring and was gone.

Hollis paced beside the postage-stamp-sized landing pad that the Lady

Flamborough's crew had hurriedly fabricated over the swimming pool.  A

Carrier Pigeon helicopter settled onto the pad as a small team of men

waited to board.

Hollis stopped when he heard a fresh outburst of gunfire from the

direction of the mine, his face reflecting concern.

"Load and get 'em airborne," he shouted impatiently to Dillenger.

"Somebody's alive up there and fighting our battle."

"The mine must have been the hijackers' escape point," said Captain

Collins, who paced at Hollis's side.

"And thanks to me, Dirk Pitt and his friends stumbled right into them,"

snapped Hollis.

"any way you can get there in time to save them and the hostages?" asked

Collins.

Hollis shook his head in grim despair.  "Not one chance in hell.

Rudi Gunn was thankful for the sudden downpour of heavy rain.  It

effectively shielded him as he crawled away from the crushing mill under

a string of empty ore cars.  Once clear of the buildings, he dropped

down the mountain below the mine for a few hundred meters, and then

circled back.

He found the narrow-gauge tracks and began walking silently on the

crossties.  He could see only a short distance around him, but within a

few minutes of escaping the terrorists' assault on the crushing mill, he

froze in position when his eyes distinguished several vague figures

through the rain ahead.  He counted four sitting and two standing.

Gunn faced a dilemma.  He assumed the hostages were resting while the

guards stood.  But he couldn't shoot and check his assumption later.  He

would have to rely on his borrowed terrorist clothing to bluff his way

close enough to tell mend from foe.

His only drawback, and a vital one, was he only knew two or three words

of Arabic.

Gunn took a breath and walked forward.  He said, "Sa ," repeating the

word two more times in a calm, controlled voice.

The two figures who were standing took on more detail as he approached,

and he saw they held machine guns lowered and pointed his way.

One of them replied with words Gunn couldn't interpret.  He mentally

crossed his fingers and hoped they had asked the Arabic equivalent of

"Who goes there?"

"Muhammad," he mumbled, relying on the prophet's name to carry him

through, while lazily holding the Heckler & Koch across his chest with

the muzzle aimed off to the side.

Gunn's heartbeat calmed considerably as the two terrorists lowered their

guns in unison and turned their attention back to their guard duty.  He

moved casually until he was standing alongside them so his line of fire

would not strike the hostages.

Then, while keeping his eyes aimed at the miserable people sitting on

the ground between the track rails, and without even looking at the two

guards, he squeezed the trigger.

Ammar and his men were on the verge of total exhaustion when they

reached the outskirts of the mine.  The persistent downpour had turned

their clothes sodden and heavy.  They struggled over a long mound of

tracks and thankfully entered a shed that once housed mining-equipment

parts.

Ammar dropped onto a wooden bench, his head drooped on his chest, his

breath coming in labored gasps.  He looked up as Ibn entered with

another man.

"This is Mustapha Osman," said Ibn.  "He says an armed group of

commandos have killed their group leader and barricaded themselves in

the crushing mill with our helicopter."

Ammar's lips drew back in anger.  "How could you let this happen?"

Osman's black eyes registered panic.  "We had . . . no warning," he

stammered.  "They must have come down from the mountain.  They subdued

the sentries, seized the train and shot up our living quarters.  When we

launched our counterattack they fired on us from the crushing-mill

building."

"Casualties?" Ammar demanded coldly.

"There are seven of us left."

The nightmare was worse than Ammar thought.  "How many in their assault

party?"

"Twenty, maybe thirty."

"Seven of you have of them under siege," snarled Ammar, his tone heavy

with sarcasm.  "Their number.  This time the truth, or Ibn here will

slit your throat."

Osman averted Ammar's eyes.  He was frozen in fear. "There is no way of

knowing for certain," he mumbled.  "Perhaps four or more."

"Four men did all this?" said Ammar, aghast.  He was seething but too

disciplined to allow his anger to take control. "What of the helicopter?

Is it damaged?"

Osman seemed to brighten a degree.  "No, we were careful not to fire at

the section of the building where it is parked.  I'd stake my father's

honor it has not been hit."

"Only Allah knows whether the commandos have sabotaged it," said Ibn.

"We'll all see Allah soon if we don't recapture it in flying condition,"

Ammar said quietly.  "The only way we can overpower the defenders is to

strike hard and penetrate from all sides and crush them by sheer weight

of numbers."

"Perhaps we can use the hostages to bargain our way out," said Ibn

hopefully.

Ammar nodded.  "A possibility.  Americans are weak when it comes to

death threats.  I'll parley with our unknown scourge while you position

the men for the assault."

"Take care, Suleiman Aziz."

"Be ready to attack when I remove my mask."

Ibn  gave  a  slight  bow  and  immediately  began giving orders to the

men.

Ammar ripped a tattered curtain from one window.  The fabric had once

been white, but was now faded to a dingy yellow.

It would have to do, he thought.  He tied it to an old broom and stepped

from the shed.

He moved along a row of miners' bunkhouses, keeping out of sight of the

crushing mill until he was across from it.

Then he extended the curtain around a corner and waved it UP and down.

No gunfire tore through the ragged flag of truce, but nothing else

happened either.  Ammar tried shouting in English.

"We wish to talk!"

After several moments a voice yelled back.  "No hablo inglgs.  "

Ammar was taken back momentarily.  Chilean secret police?   They were

far more efficient than he thought.  He could speak fluently in English

and get by in French, but he knew little Spanish.  Hesitation would get

him nowhere.  He had to see who stood in his way of a successful escape.

He held up the makeshift flag, raised free hand and stepped out onto the

road in front of the crushing mill.

The word for peace he knew was paz.  So he shouted it several times.

Finally a man opened the main door and slowly limped Onto the road,

stopped a few paces away and faced him.

The stranger was tall, with intensely green eyes that never flickered

and yet ignored the dozen gunbarrels poking through windows and doorways

in his direction.  The eyes locked on Ammar only.  The black hair was

long and wavy, skin weathered a deep copper from long exposure to sun,

slightly bushy eyebrows with firm lips fixed in a slight grin-all lent

the masculine but not quite handsome face a deceptive look of humorous

detachment, with only a trace of cold hardness.

There was a cut in one cheek that oozed blood and a wound on one thigh

that was heavily bandaged under the slashed fabric.

The shape might have been lean under the bulky, out-of place ski suit,

but Ammar could not  e a clear assessment. One hand was bare while the

other was gloved and hung loosely beneath one sleeve of the ski jacket.

Three seconds were all Ammar needed to read this devilthree seconds to

know he was facing a dangerous man.  He searched his mind for the few

meager words of Spanish stored there.  "Can we talk?" Yes, that would do

for openers.

"Podemos hablar?" he shouted.

The suggestion of a grin widened into a casual smile.  "Porque no?"

Ammar translated that as Why not?   "Hacer capitular usted?"

"Why don't we cut the crap?" Pitt said suddenly in English "Your Spanish

is worse than mine.  The answer to your question is No, we're not going

to surrender."

Ammar was too much a pro not to recover immediately, yet he was

confounded by the fact that his adversary wore expensive skiing clothes

instead of battle gear.  The first possibility that crossed his mind was

CIA.

"May I ask your name?"

"Dirk Pitt."

"I am Suleiman Aziz Ammar ,

"I don't really give a damn who you are," Pitt said coldly.

"As you wish, Mr. Pitt," Ammar remarked calmly.  Then one of his

eyebrows lifted rightly.  "You by chance related to Senator George

Pitt?"

"I don't travel in political circles."

"But you know him.  I can see a resemblance.  The son perhaps?"

"Can we get on with this?   I had to interrupt a perfectly good

champagne brunch to come out here in the rain."

Annnar laughed.  The man was incredible.  "You have something of mine.

I'd like it returned in first-rate condition."

"You're speaking, of course, of one ummarked helicopter."

"Of course."

"Finders keepers.  You want it, pal, you come and get it."

Ammar clenched and unclenched his fists impatiently.  This was not going

as he had hoped.  He continued in a silky voice.

"Some of my men will die, you will die, and your father will most likely

die if you do not turn it over to me."

Pitt didn't blink.  "You forgot to throw in Hala Kamfl and Presidents De

Lorenzo and Hasan.  And don't neglect to include yourself.  No reason

you shouldn't fertilize the grass too.

Ammar stared at Pitt, his anger slowly rising.

"I can't believe your stubborn stupidity.  What will you gain by more

bloodletting?"

"To put the skids under scumbags like you," said pitt harshly.  "You

want a war, you declare it.  But don't sneak around butchering women and

children and taking innocent hostages who can't fight back.  The terror

stops here.  I'm not bound by any law but my own.  for every one of us

you murder, we bury five of you."

"I didn't come out here in the wet to discuss our political

differences!" said Ammar, fighting to control his wrath.  "Tell me if

the helicopter has been damaged."

"Doesn't have a scratch.  And I might add that your pilots are still fit

to fly.  That make you happy?"

"You would be wise to surrender your weapons and Turn over my craft and

flight crew."

Pitt shrugged.  "Screw you."

Ammar was shaken by his failure to intimidate Pitt.  His voice turned

abrupt and cold.  "How many men do you have, four, perhaps five?   We

outnumber you eight to one."

Pitt nodded his head at the bodies scattered beside the crushing mill.

"You're going to have to play catch-up ball. The way I see it, you're

about nine strikes down on the scoreboard." Then as an afterthought he

said, "Before I forget-I give you my word I won't sabotage your chopper.

It's yours in pristine shape providing you can take it.  But harm any of

the hostages, and I blow it from here to the nearest junkyard. That's

the only deal I'll make."

"That is your final word?"

"for now, yes."

A thought crystallized in Ammar's mind, and he was swept by a sudden

revelation.  "It was you!" he rasped.  "You led the American special

forces here."

"Luck gets most of the credit," Pitt said modestly.  "But after I found

the wreck of the General Bravo and a  splaced roll of plastic, it all

fell into place."

Ammar stood there for a moment in profound astonishment, then recovered

and said, "You do your powers of deduction an injustice, Mr. Pitt.  I

readily concede the coyote has run the fox to ground."

"Fox?" said  Pitt.  "You  flatter  yourself.  Don't you mean maggot?"

Ammar looked at Pitt through narrowed eyes.  "I'm personally going to

kill you, Pitt, and I'm going to take great pleasure in seeing your body

shot to pieces.  What say you to that?"

There was no in Pitts eyes, no hatred etched in his face.  He stared

back at Ammar with a kind of bemused disgust one might display in

exchanging looks with a cobra behind glass at a snake farm.

"Give my regards to Broadway," he said, turning his back on Ammar and

walking casually back to the door of the crushing null.

Furious, Animar burled down the flag of truce and strode swiftly in the

opposite direction.  As he moved he eased an American Ruger P-85

semiautomatic 9-millimeter from the inside pocket of his coat.

Suddenly he whirled, whipped off his mask and went into the classic

crouched stance with the Ruger gripped in both hands.  The instant the

sights lined up dead center on Pitts back, Ammar pulled the trigger six

times in quick succession.

He saw the bullets tear into the middle of Pitts ski jacket in a ragged

grouping of uneven holes, watched as the concentrated impact knocked his

hated enemy stumbling forward into the wall of the crushing mill.

Ammar waited for Pitt to fall.  His antagonist, he knew with firm

certainty, was dead before hitting the ground.

Gradually Ammar became aware that Pitt was not acting as he should.

Pitt did not fall dead.  Instead, he turned, and Animar saw the devil's

own smile.

Stunned, Ammar knew he'd been outwitted.  He realized now Pitt had

expected a cowardly attack from the rear and protected his back with a

bulletproof shield under the bulky ski jacket.

And with a numbing shock he saw the gloved hand hanging from the  ve was

fake.  A magician's trick.  The real hand had materialized, a hand

clutching a big Colt 45 automatic that protruded from the partially

unzipped ski jacket.

Ammar aimed the Ruger again but Pitt fired first.

Pitts first shot took Ammar in the tight shoulder and spun him sideways.

The second smashed through his chin and lower jaw.  The third shattered

one wrist as he threw it up to his face.  The fourth passed through his

face from side to side, Ammar rolled to the gravel and sprawled on his

back, uncaring and oblivious to the gunfire that erupted over him, not

knowing that Pitt had leaped uninjured through the door of the crushing

mill before Ammar's men belatedly opened fire.

He was only vaguely aware of Ibn dragging him to safety behind a steel

water tank as a short burst of fire from inside the crushing mill

sprayed the ground around them.  Slowly his hand groped up Ibn's arm

until he clutched the solid-muscled shoulder.  Then he pulled his friend

downward.

"I cannot see you," he rasped.

Ibn removed a large surgical pad from a pack on his belt and gently

pressed it over the torn flesh that once held Ammar's eyes.  "Allah and

I will see for you," said Ibn.

Ammar coughed and spit out the blood from the shattered chin that had

seeped down his throat.  "I want that Satan, Pitt, and the hostages

hacked to pieces."

"Our attack has began.  Their lives are measured in seconds."

"If I die . . . kill Yazid."

"You will not die."

Ammar went  ugh another coughing spasm before he could speak again.  "No

matter . . . the Americans will destroy the helicopter now.  You must

escape the island another way.  Leave . . . leave me.  That is my final

request of you."

Wordlessly, without acknowledging the plea, Ibn lifted Ammar in his arms

and began walking away from the scene of the battle.

When Ibn spoke, his voice was hoarse but soft.  "Be of strong spirit,

Suleiman Aziz," he said.  "We will return to Alexandria together."

Pitt barely had time to leap through the door, whip off the two

bulletproof vests from under the back of his coat, replace one in the

front and return the second to Giordino before a hail of concentrated

fire drilled through the thin wooden walls.

"Now the jacket is ruined," Pitt grunted, pressing his body into the

floor.

"You'd have been dead meat if he'd plugged you in the chest," said

Giordino, wiggling into his vest.  "How'd you know he was going to shoot

when your back was turned?"

"He had bad breath and beady eyes."

Findley began scrambling from window to window, throwing grenades as

fast as he could yank the activating pins. "They're here!" he yelled.

Giordino rolled across the plank floor and poured a continuous fire from

behind a wheelbarrow full of ore.  Pitt snatched up the Thompson just in

time to stop two terrorists who had somehow managed to climb into the

shattered side office.

Ammar's small army charged the building from all sides with guns

blazing.  There was no stopping the tide of the savage Onslaught- They

swarmed in everywhere.  The sharp crackle of the terrorists'

small-caliber AK-74S and the deep stutter of Pitts 45-caliber Thompson

were punctuated by the boom of Findley's shotgun.

Giordino fell back to the crushing mill, laying down a covering fire for

Pitt and Findley until all three had reached the temporary Protection of

their Mickey Mouse fort.  The terrorists were momentarily stunned to

find no enemy throwing up their hands in surrender.  Once inside the

building they'd expected to inundate their unprotected enemy with sheer

numbers.  Instead, they found themselves caught naked by a withering

fusillade from the mill and were cut down like milling cattle.

Pitt, Giordino and Findley decimated the first wave.  But the Arabs were

fanatically brave, and they learned fast.  An intensified gunfire and

the blast from several grenades engulfed the cavernous room ahead of the

next assault.

Bedlam!   The dead heaped the floor, and the Arabs took cover behind the

bodies of their dead comrades.  It was a fire-fight scene-guns blasting,

grenades exploding, the shouts and curses in two languages from two

culmms as different as night and day The budding shook from the

reverberations of gunfire and the concussions of the grenades. Shrapnel

and bullets flayed the sides of the gmt mechanical mill like sparks from

a bucket of molten steel.  The air was filled with the pungent smell of

gunpowder.

Fire broke out in a dozen places and was completely ignored.  Giordino

threw a grenade that blew off the tail rotor of the helicopter.  Even

with the last hope of escape gone now, the Arabs irrationally fought all

the harder.

Pitts ancient Thompson slammed deafeningly and then stopped.  He ejected

the fifty-round rotary dnun and inserted another-his last.  There was a

cold, calculated determination he'd never felt before.  He and Giordino

and Findley had no intention of throwing in the towel.  They had long

passed the point of no return and found no fear of death behind it. They

hung on grimly, fighting for their very existence, tenaciously giving

better than they received.

Three times the Arab terrorists were driven back and times they charged

forward in the face of the murderous fire. Their badly diminished force

regrouped again and launched a final suicide assault, closing the ring

tighter and tighter.

The Arab Mushm could not understand their enemy's ferocity, how they

could fight with such bloody-minded precision, why they were so

outrageously defiant.  The Americans fought desperately only to live,

while they themselves sought a blessed death and martyrdom as salvation.

Pitts eyes stung from the smoke, and tears streamed down his cheeks. The

whole cnishing mill was vibrating.  Bullets ricocheted off the steel

sides like angry hornets, four Of them tearing through Pitts sleeve and

slightly grazing the skin.

Recklessly the Arabs threw themselves against the crushing mill and

scurried over the makeshift barricade.  The shooting match quickly

turned into a man-to-man struggle as the two groups met in a savage,

brawling mass of bodies.

Findley went down as two bullets struck him in his unprotected side, yet

he remained on his knees, feebly swinging his empty shotgun like a

baseball bat.

Giordino, wounded  in  five  places,  gamely  heaved  ore  rocks with

his right hand, his left arm dangling useless from a bullet through the

shoulder.

Pitts Thompson fired its last cartridge, and he hurled the big gun in

the face of an Arab who suddenly up before him.  He yanked the Colt

automatic from his belt and fired at any face that lurched through the

smoke.  He felt a stinging sensation at the base of the neck and knew

he'd been hit.  The Colt quickly emptied, and Pitt fought on, chopping

the heavy gun like a small club.  He began to taste the begininggs of

sour defeat.

Reality no longer existed.  Pitt felt as if he were fighting a war. A

grenade went off, a crushing explosion that deafened him by its

closeness.  A body fell on top of him, and he was caught off balance and

thrown backward.

His head struck against a steel pipe and an expanding ball of fire

flashed inside his head.  And then, like a wave breaking in the surf,

the nightmare swept over and smothered him.

The Special Operations Forces landed and regrouped behind the ore tracks

that shielded their approach from the mine buildings.  They quickly

spread out in a loose battle formation and waited for the command to

move in.  The snipers established their positions around the mine, lying

flat and watching for movement through their scopes.

Hollis, with Dillenger at his side, crawled up to the summit of the

tracks and cautiously peered over.  The scene had the look of a

graveyard.

The ghost mine was an eerie stage for a battle, but the cold rain and

barren mountainside seemed an appropriate backdrop for a killing ground.

The dull gray sky fell and gave the decaying buildings the look of a

place that didn't belong to any world.

The firing had stopped.  Two of the outer buildings were blazing

fiercely, the smoke rolling into the low overcast. Hollis counted at

least seven bodies littering the road on one side of the crushing mill.

"I hate to sound mundane," said Hollis, "but I don't like the look of

it."

"No sign of life," agreed Dillenger, peering through a pair of small but

powerful binoculars.

Hollis carefully studied the buildings for another five seconds and then

spoke into his transmitter.  "All right, let's mind our step and move

in-"

"One moment, Colonel," a voice broke in.

"Hold the order," snapped Hollis.

"Sergeant Baker, sir, on the right flank.  I have a group of five people

approaching up the railroad track."

"They armed?"

"No, sir.  They have their hands in the air."

"Very good.  You and your men round them up.  Watch for a trap.  Major

Dillenger and I are on our way."

Hollis and Dillenger snaked around the mine takings until they found the

railroad and began jogging along it toward the fjord.  After about

seventy meters, several human figures took form through the pouring

rain.

Sergeant Baker came forward to report.

"We have the hostages and one terrorist, Colonel."

"You've rescued the hostages?" Hollis exclaimed loudly. "All four of

them?"

"Yes, sir," replied Baker.  "They're pretty well worn out, but otherwise

they're in good shape."

"Nice work, Sergeant," said Hollis, pumping Baker's hand in undisguised

exuberance.

Both officers had memorized the faces of the two presidents and the

United Nations Secretary-General during the flight from Virginia.  They

were already familiar with Senator Pitts appearance from the news media.

They hurried forward and were enveloped in a great surge of relief as

they recognized all four of the missing VIPS.

Much of their relief turned to surprise when they saw the terrorist

prisoner was none other than Rudi Gunn.

Senator Pitt stepped forward and shook Hollis's hand as Gunn made the

introductions.  "Are we ever glad to see you, Colonel," said the

Senator, beaming.

"Sorry we're late," mumbled Hollis, still not sure what to make of it

all.

Hala embraced him, as did Hasan and De Lorenzo.  Then it was Dillenger's

Turn, and he went red as a tomato.

"Mind telling me what's going on?" Hollis asked Gunn.

Gunn took grim delight in rubbing it in.  "It seems you dropped us off

at a very critical point, Colonel.  We found almost twenty terrorists at

the mine, along with a hidden chopper they planned to use in clearing

off the island.  You didn't see fit to include us in your

communications, so Pitt tried to warn you by sending a runaway train

down the mountain into the fjord." Dillenger nodded in understanding.

"The helicopter explains why the Arab hijackers deserted the ship and

left the Mexicans to fend for themselves."

"And the chopper was their transportation from the mine," Gunn added.

Hollis asked, "Where are the others?"

"Last I saw of them before Pitt sent me to rescue his father and these

people, they were under siege inside the crushing mill building."

"The four of you took on close to forty terrorists?" Dillenger asked

incredulously.

"Pitt and the others kept the Arabs from escaping as well as creating a

diversion so I could rescue the hostages."

"The odds were better than ten to one against them," stated Hollis.

"They were doing a pretty good job of it when I left," answered Gunn

solemnly.

Hollis and Dillenger stared at each other.  "We'd better see what we can

find," said Hollis.

Senator Pitt came over.  "Colonel, Rudi has told me my son is up at the

mine.  I'd like to tag along with you."

"Sorry, Senator.  I can't permit it until the area is secure."

Gunn put his arm around the old man's shoulder.  "I'll see to it,

Senator.  Don't worry about Dirk.  He'll outlive us all."

"Thank you, Rudi.  I appreciate your kindness."

Hollis was not so confident.  "They must have been wiped out," he

muttered under his breath to Dillenger.

Dillenger nodded in agreement.  "Hopeless to think they could survive

against a heavy force of trained terrorists."

Hollis gave the signal and his men began moving like phantoms through

the mine buildings.  As they neared the crushing mill they began to find

the litter of dead awesome.  They counted  n bodies crumpled in rag-doll

positions on the road and ground outside.

The crushing-mill building was riddled with hundreds of bullet holes and

showed the splintered results of grenades.  Not a single pane of glass

was left intact anywhere.  Every entry door had been blown into

splinters.

Hollis and five men cautiously entered through holes blown in the walls

while Dillenger and his team approached from the shattered opening that

was once the front main entrance. Small fires burned and smoldered

everywhere, but had not yet joined to build a major conflagration.

Two dozen bodies were heaped about the floor, several stacked against

the front of the ore crusher.  The helicopter stood amazingly clean and

pristine with only its tail section in mangled condition.

Three men still lived among the carnage-  men who looked so

smoke-blackened, so bloody, in such awful shape, that Hollis couldn't

believe his eyes.  One man was lying on the floor, his head resting in

the lap of another, whose hand was held in a gore-stained sling.  One

stood swaying on his feet, blood streaming from wounds on one leg, the

base of his neck where it met the shoulder, the top of his head and the

side of his face.

Not until Hollis was only a few meters away did he recognize the

battered men before him.  He was absolutely shocked. He couldn't see how

those three pitiful wrecks had kept the faith and won out over fearsome

odds.

The Special Operations Forces grouped around in silent admiration.  Rudi

Gunn smiled from ear to ear.  Hollis and Dillenger stood there

wordlessly.

Then Pitt painfully straightened to his full height and said, "About

time you showed up.  We were running out of things to do."

PART IV

October 27, 1991

Washington D.C.

Dale Nichols and Martin Brogan stood waiting on the White House steps as

the President stepped from his helicopter and walked swiftly across the

lawn.

"You have something for me?" the President asked expectantly as he shook

hands.

Nichols could not contain his excitement.  "We've just received a report

from General Dodge.  His Special Operations Forces have retaken the Lady

Flamborough intact in Southern Chile.  Senator Pitt, Hala Kamil and

Presidents De Lorenzo and Hasan were rescued in good condition."

The President was weary from a series of nonstop conferences with the

Canadian Prime Minister in Ottawa, but he brightened like a streetlight.

"Thank God.  That is good news. Were there any casualties?"

"Two SOF men were wounded, neither seriously, but three NUMA people were

shot up pretty badly," reported Brogan.

"NUMA people were on the scene?"

"Dirk Pitt was responsible for tracking down the cruise ship.  He and

three others kept the hijackers from escaping along with their

hostages."

"So he helped save his own father."

"He certainly deserves a major share of the credit."

The President rubbed his hands together happily.  "It's al most noon,

gentlemen.  Why don't we celebrate with a bottle of wine over lunch, and

you can give me a full report."

Secretary of State Douglas Oates, Alan Mercier, the President's National

Security Adviser, and Julius Schiller also joined the group for lunch.

After dessert, Mercier passed around copies of the transcribed report

from General Dodge.

The President toyed with his fork as he read the transcript. Then he

looked up, a mixture of surprise and triumph on his face.

"Topiltzin!"

"He's in it up to his ears," said Brogan.  "Topiltzin provided the

Mexican terrorist crew and die vessel for the switch with the cruise

ship."

"So he did conspire with his brother on the Lady Flamborough hijacking,"

the President said confidentially.

Nichols nodded.  "The facts add up that way, but it won't be easy to

prove."

"any idea as to the identity of the mastermind behind the operation?"

"We have a make," replied Brogan briefly.  This is a condensed file on

the man." He paused to hand the President another folder.  "He did a

remarkable job of disguising himself to look like the Captain of the

ship during the capture, and then he changed to a mask.  Later, Dirk

Pitt met face to face with him during a truce before the fighting.  The

name he gave was Suleiman Aziz Ammar."

"Seems odd this Ammar got lax and dropped his name," mused Schiller.

"Must be an alias."

Brogan shook his head.  "The name is real enough.  We have a

comprehensive packet on him.  So does Interpel.  Ammar must have figured

Pitt was as good as dead, and had nothing to lose by identifying

himself."

The President's eyes narrowed.  "According to your file he's suspected

of being directly or indirectly involved with over fifty murders of

prominent government officials.  Is this possible?"

"Suleiman Aziz Ammar is rated at the very top of his profession."

"A diehard terrorist."

"Assassin," Brogan corrected the President.  "Ammar specializes only in

political assassination.  Cold-blooded as they come. Big on disguise and

detailed planning.  As the words of the song go, 'Nobody does it

better." Half his hits were so clean they were written off as accidents.

He's a Muslim, but he's taken on jobs for the French and Germans and

even the Israelis.  Gets top dollar.  He's amassed a considerable

fortune for his successful operations in and around the Mediterranean."

"Was he captured?"

"No, sir," Brogan admitted.  "He was not among the dead or wounded."

"The man escaped?" the President asked sharply.

"If he still lives, Ammar cannot get far," Brogan assured him.  "Pitt he

pumped at least three bullets into him.  An extensive manhunt has been

activated.  There is no escape from the island.  He should be found in a

few hours."

"He'll be a major intelligence coup if he can be persuaded to talk,"

said Nichols.

"General Dodge has already alerted his field commander, Colonel Morton

Hollis, to take every precaution in capturing Animar alive.  But the

Colonel thinks there is good reason to believe Ammar will kill himself

when cornered.  "

Nichols shrugged resignedly.  "Hollis is probably right."

"There were no other survivors among the hijackers?" the President asked

Brogan.

"Eight we can interrogate.  But they appear to be only Ammar's hired

mercenaries and not radical Yazid followers."

"We'll need their confessions to prove Ammar was working for Yazid and

Topiltzin," said the President without optimism.

Schiller did not feel there was a setback.  "Look on the bright side,

Mr. President.  The ship and hostages have been rescued without injury.

President Hasan knows damn well Yazid wanted him dead and was behind the

hijacking.  He'll go after Yazid now with a vengeance."

The President looked at him, and then his eyes traveled from face to

face.  "Is that the way you gentlemen see it?"

"Julius has a good grasp of Hasan," said Mercier.  "He can be real nasty

if he's crossed."

Doug Oates nodded in agreement.  "Barring unforeseen developments, I

think Julius's projection is right on the money. Hasan may not go so far

as to risk riots and ignite a revolution by arresting Yazid and trying

him for treason.  But he'll certainly take off the gloves and do

everything short of murder to destroy Yazid's credibility."

"There will be a backlash against Yazid," Brogan predicted. "Egypt's

Muslim fundamentalist moderates do not condone terrorist tactics.

They'll Turn their backs on Yazid while the country's parliament gives

President Hasan overwhelming support.  Also, in my best rose-colored

view, the military will climb down out of its ivory tower and reaffirm

its loyalty to Hasan."

The President took a final swallow of wine and set the glass on the

table.  "I must confess, I like what I hear."

"The crisis in Egypt is far from over," warned Secretary Oates.  "Yazid

may be pushed out of the limelight for a while, but in President Hasan's

absence the Moslem Brotherhood of fundamentalist fanatics has formed an

alliance with the Liberal and Socialist Labor parties.  Together,

they'll work to undemiine Hasan's nile, to bring Egypt under Islamic

ties with the United States and scuttle Israeli peace agreements."

The President tilted his head at Schiller.  "Do you subscribe to Doug's

doomsday canvas, Julius?"

Schiller nodded grimly.  "I do."

"Martin?"

Brogan's solemn expression told it all.  "The inevitable has only been

stalled off.  Hasan's government must eventually fall.  The military's

support will be here today and gone tomorrow.  My best brains at Langley

project a fairly bloodless coup eighteen to twenty-four months from

now."

"I recommend we take a hands-off, wait-and-see attitude, Mr. President,"

said Oates.  "And study our options in dealing with another Muslim

government."

"You're suggesting an isolationist approach," said the President.

"Maybe it's time we took that stance," suggested Schiller. "Nothing of

substance your predecessors attempted in the last twenty years worked."

"The Russians will lose too," added Nichols.  "And our big consolation

is in keeping Paul Capesterre, also known as Akhmad Yazid, from creating

another Iranian disaster.  He would have worked to destroy our Middle

East interests at any cost.

"I do not entirely agree with your overall picture," said Brogan.  "But

in the time we have left we still have the opportunity to cultivate the

next man to rule Egypt."

A questioning frown crossed the President's face.  "What do you have in

mind?"

"Egypt's Defense Minister, Abu Hamid."

"You think he'll seize the government?'

"When the time is ripe, yes," Brogan explained patiently. "He has the

power of the military in his pocket, and he's shrewdly sought strong

support from the moderate Muslim fundamentalists.  In my opinion, Abu

Hamid is a shoo-in."

"We could do much worse," murmured Oates with a thin smile.  "He hasn't

been above accepting favors and tapping some of the billions of dollars

we've poured into Egypt.  Abu Hamid would not be the type to kick a gift

horse in the mouth. Oh, sure, he'd make the required noises condemning

Israel and cursing the U.S., for the sake of the religious fanatics, but

underneath the rhetoric he'd keep a friendly line of communications

open."

"The fact that he's on close terms with Hala Kamfl won't hurt us

either," Nichols said flatly.

The President was silent, staring into the glass of zinfandel as if it

was a crystal ball.  Then he raised the glass.

"To a continued friendly union with Egypt."

"Hear, hear," said Mercier and Brogan in unison.

"To Egypt," murmured Oates.

"And Mexico," added Schiller.

The President glanced at his watch and rose, followed by his advisers.

"Sorry to cut this short, but I have a meeting with a group of Treasury

people.  Congratulate everyone involved in rescuing the hostages for

me." He turned to Oates.  "I want to meet with you and Senator Pitt the

minute he returns."

"To discuss any words he had with President Hasan during their ordeal?"

"I'd be more interested in hearing what he learned from President De

Lorenzo on the crisis south of our border.  Egypt is of secondary

importance compared to Mexico.  We can safely assume Akhmad Yazid has

been benched for the rest of the season, but Topiltzin is a far worse

threat.  Concentrate on him, gentlemen.  God help us if we can't

stabilize the upheaval in Mexico."

Slowly, reluctantly, Pitt rose from the black depths of a sound sleep to

the brightly lit surface of consciousness only to find it was

accompanied by stiff, aching pain.  He tried to go back and reenter the

comforting void, but his eyes blinked open, and it was too late.  The

first thing he focused on was a smiling red face.

"Well, well, he's back among the living," said First Officer Finney

cheerfully.  "I'll go and inform the Captain."

As Finney passed through the door, Pitt moved his eyes without moving

his head and found a little baldheaded sitting in a chair beside the

bed.  The ship's doctor, Pitt recognized, but the name escaped him.

"I'm sorry, Doctor, but I can't recollect your,

"Henry Webster," he second-guessed Pitt, smiling warmly. "And if you're

wondering where you are, you're in the finest suite on board the

Flamborough, which is currently under tow by the Sounder for Punta

Arenas."

"How long have I been unconscious?"

"While you weremaking your report to Colonel Hollis, I was tending to

your wounds.  Soon afterward, I put you under heavy sedation.  You've

been out for about twelve hours."

"No wonder I'm starving."

"I'll see our chef personally sends down one of his specialties."

"How are Giordino and Findley?"

"Most admirable of you to inquire of your friends before yourself.

Giordino is a very durable man.  I took four bullets from him, none in

critical areas.  He should be ready to party by New Year's Eve.

Findley's wounds were far more serious. Bullets entered his right side

and lodged in a lung and kidney. I did what I could for him on the ship.

He and Giordino were airlifted to Punta Arenas and flown to Washington

soon after I put you out.  Findley will be operated on by bullet-wound

specialists at the Walter Reed Medical Center.  If there are no

complications, he should pull through in fine shape.  By the way, your

friend Rudi Gunn felt they needed him more than you did, so he

accompanied them home."

Before Pitt could make a reply, a digital thermometer was slipped in and

out of his mouth.

Dr. Webster studied the reading and nodded.  "As for you, Mr.

Pitt-you'll mend nicely.  How are you feeling?"

"I don't think I'm up to entering a triathlon, but except for a throb in

my head and a stinging sensation in my neck, I'll manage."

"You're a lucky man.  None of the bullets struck a bone, internal organ

or artery.  I stitched up your leg and neck, or, more accurately, your

trapezius muscle.  Also your cheek. Plastic surgery should hide the

scar, unless of course your women find it adds to your sex appeal. The

smack on your head caused a concussion.  X-rays showed no sign of a

hairline fracture.  My prognosis is that you'll be swimming the English

Channel and playing the violin within months."

Pitt laughed.  Almost immediately he tensed as the pain struck from

every side.  Webster's look became one of quick concern.

"I am sorry.  My bedside manner tends to get a bit too jolly, I'm

afraid."

Pin relaxed and the agony soon subsided.  He loved English phrasing and

humor.  They were a class act, he thought.  He smiled grimly and stared

at Webster with unconcealed respect.  He knew the doctor had down played

his skill and labors out of modesty.

"If that hurt," said Pitt, "I can't wait to get your bill."

It was Webster's turn to laugh.  "Careful, I wouldn't want you to ruin

my beautiful needlework."

Pitt gingerly eased himself to a sitting position and held out his hand.

"I'm grateful for what you did for the four of us."

Webster rose and shook Pitts outstretched hand.  "An honor doctoring

you, Mr. Pitt.  I'll take my leave now.  It seems you're the man of the

hour.  I think you have some distinguished visitors gathering outside."

"Goodbye, Doc, and thank you."

Webster gave a willk and a nod.  Then he walked over to the door, opened

it and motioned everyone inside.

Senator Pitt entered followed by Hala, Colonel Hollis and Captain

Collins.  The men shook hands, but Hala leaned down and lightly kissed

Pitt.

"I hope you've found our ship's service satisfactory," said Captain

Collins jovially.

"No man ever recuperated in a fancier hospital," Pitt replied.  "I'm

only sorry I can't bask in such luxury for another month."

"Unfortunately, your presence is required up north by tomorrow," said

Hollis.

"Oh, no," Pitt moaned.

"Oh, yes," said the Senator, holding up his watch.  "The Sounder will be

towing us into dock at Punta Arenas in another ninety minutes.  An Air

Force transport is waiting to fly you and Ms. Kaniil and me to

Washington."

Pitt made a helpless gesture with both hands.  "So much for my luxury

cruise."

Next came the usual round of solicitous questions concerning his

condition.  After a few minutes Hollis turned the conversation to his

current problem.

"Would you know Ammar if you saw him again?" he asked Pitt.

"I could pick him out of a lineup easily enough.  Didn't you find him? I

gave you a detailed description of his height, weight and looks before

Doc Webster knocked me out."

Hollis handed him a small stack of photos.  "Here are pictures taken and

processed by the ship's photographer of the hijackers' bodies, including

those taken prisoner.  Do you see Suleiman Aziz Ammar among them?"

Pitt  slowly  sifted  through the photographs, studying the close-up

features of the dead.  They had seemed faceless during the battle, he

recalled.  He wondered with morbid curiosity which ones were dead by his

hands.  Finally he looked up and shook his head.

"He's not in here among the living or the dead."

"You're sure?" asked Hollis.  "The wounds and deathlike expressions can

badly alter facial features."

"I stood closer to him than I am to you under conditions that aren't

easily forgotten.  Believe me, Colonel, when I say Ammar isn't among

those pictures."

Hollis pulled a larger photo  from  an  envelope  and  passed  it to

Pitt without comment.

After a few seconds, Pitt gave Hollis a questioning look. "What do you

want me to say?"

"Is that Suleiman Aziz Ammar?"

Pitt handed the photograph back.  "You know damn well it is, or you

wouldn't magically produce a picture taken of him at a different time in

a different place."

"I think what Colonel Hollis is holding back," said Dirk's father, "is

that Anunar or his remains have yet to be found."

"Then his men must have hidden his body," Pitt said firmly. "I didn't

miss.  He took a shot in the shoulder and two in the face.  I saw one of

his men drag him to cover after he fell.  No way he's running around."

"It's possible his body was buried," admitted Hollis.  "An extensive air

and land search failed to detect any sign of him on the island."

"So the fox hasn't been run  to  ground,"  Pitt  said  softly  to

himself.

The Senator looked at him.  "What was that?"

"Something Ammar said about a coyote and a fox when we met," Pitt

replied pensively.  Then he looked around at his audience.  "I bet he's

eluded the net.  Anyone care to give me odds?"

Hollis gave Pitt a dark look instead.  "You better hope he's deader than

a barracuda in the desert, because if he isn't, the name of Dirk Pitt

will head his next hit list."

Hala swept gracefully to the head of Pitts bed, wearing a gold silk

dressing gown with a modernized hieroglyphic design.  She placed her

hand lightly around his shoulder.

"Dirk is very weak," she said in an even voice.  "He needs a good meal

and rest until it comes time to debark the ship.  I suggest we leave him

alone for the next hour."

Hollis slipped the photos back in the envelope and rose. "I'll have to

say my goodbyes.  A helicopter is waiting to take me back to Santa Inez

to continue the search for Ammar."

"Give my best to Major Dillenger."

"I shall." Hollis seemed uneasy for a moment; then he approached the bed

and shook hands.  "I apologize, Dirk, to you and your friends.  I sadly

underrated you all.  Anytime you want to transfer from NUMA to Special

Operations Forces, I'll be the first to sign a recommendation."

"I wouldn't fit in too well." Pitt grinned.  "I have this allergy to

taking orders."

"Yes, so you've  demonstrated,"  Hollis  said,  smiling  faintly.

The  Senator  walked  over  and  squeezed  Pitts  hand.  "See  you on

deck."

"I'll bid my farewell there also," said Captain Collins.

Hala said nothing.  She herded the men from the room.  Then she slowly

closed the door and turned the lock.  She walked back until she stood

beside the bed.  The folds of the gown plunged and there was something

in the casual way it draped her body that convinced Pitt she was naked

beneath.

She proved it by loosening the sash and shrugging the gown from her

shoulders.  He heard the whisper of the silk as it slid down her soft

flesh.  She posed like a bronze statue, breasts thrust out, hands

flattened against her thighs, one leg slightly in front of the otherShe

reached down and pulled back the bedcovers.

"I owe you something," she said huskily.

Pitt caught his reflection in the mirrors on the closet doors. He wore

only white gauze. top of his head and the side of his face were swathed

in bandages, as was one side of his neck and the wounded leg. He hadn't

shaved in a week and the whites of his eyes were red. In his mind he

looked like a derelict any self-respecting bag lady would re-ject.

"I'm a sorry excuse for Don Juan," he murmured

"You're handsome in my eyes," Hala whispered as she gently lay beside

him and gently entwine her fingers through the hairs of his chest.  "We

must hurry.  We have less than an hour."

Pitt let out a long sigh.  He would catch hell from Doc Webster if he

overexerted and pulled out his stitches.  Abject surrender.  Why is it,

he wondered, men plan more covert schemes than an intelligence agency to

seduce women, only to have them Turn on under crazy circumstances when

you least expect it?   He was more convinced than ever that James Bond

really didn't have it all that great.

When Ammar awoke, he saw only blackness.  His shoulder felt as though a

piece of coal were burning inside his flesh.  He tried to lift his hands

to his face but one hand exploded with pain.  Then he remembered bullets

slamming into his wrist and shoulder.  He raised his good hand to touch

his eyes but the fingertips felt only a tightly bound cloth that wrapped

around his head, covering his face from forehead to chin.

He knew his eyes were beyond saving.  Not for him a life of blindness,

he thought.  He groped around for a weapon, anything to kill himself.

All he touched was a damp, flat rock surface.

Ammar became desperate, unable to repress the fear of helplessness.  He

struggled to his feet, stumbled and fell.

Then two hands gripped his shoulders.

"Do not move or make a cry, Suleiman Aziz," came the whispered words of

Ibn.  "The Americans are searching for us ."

Ammar clutched Ibn's hands for assurance.  He tried to speak, but could

no longer utter coherent words.  Only animallike guttural sounds came

through the blood-caked wrapping supporting his shattered jaw.

"We are in a small chamber inside one of the mine tunnels."

Ibn spoke softly into his ear.  "They came very close, but I had time to

build a wall that concealed our hiding place."

Ammar nodded and desperately tried to make himself understood.

It was as though Ibn could reach through the pitch ess and read Ammar's

thoughts.  "You wish to die, Suleiman Aziz?   No, you will not die.  We

will go together but not one minute before Allah decides."

Ammar slumped in despair.  He had never felt so disoriented, so

completely out of control.  The pain was unbearable, and the thought of

living out his days in a maximum-security jail cell, blind and

mutilated, devastated him.  All instinct for self--preservation had

deserted him.  He could not stand being dependent on anyone for his

hourly existence-not even Ibn.

"Rest, my brother," said Ibn gently.  "You will need all your strength

when it comes time for us to escape the island."

Annnar collapsed and rolled to his side.  His shoulders came against the

tunnel's uneven floor.  It was wet, and the moisture seeped through his

clothing, but he was suffering too much pain to notice the added

discomfort.

He became more and more despondent.  His failure had become a horror. He

saw Akhmad Yazid standing over him, smirking; then a curtain slowly

formed and parted deep in the recesses of Ammar's mind.  A faint glow

appeared, a glow that bloomed and then burst in a blinding flash, and in

that one chilling moment he glimpsed the future.

He would survive through revenge.

Mentally he spoke the word over and over until at last his

self-discipline returned.

The first decision he came to grips with was who should die at his own

hands, Yazid or Pitt?   He could not act alone.  He was no longer

physically capable of assassinating both men himself.  Already a plan

was forming.  He would have to trust Ibn to share in the revenge.

Ammar anguished over the decision, but in the end he had no choice.

Ibn would draw the coyote, while Ammar's final act would be to slay the

viper.

Pitt refused to fly home on a stretcher.  He sat in a comfortable

executive chair, leg propped on the seat of a facing chair, and stared

out the window at the snow-capped spires of the Andes. Far off to the

right he could see the green plateaus that marked the beginning of the

Brazilian highlands.  Two hours later a distant gray haze advertised the

crowded city of Caracas, and then he was gazing at the horizon line

where the turquoise of the Caribbean met a cobalt-blue sky.  from 12,000

meters the wind-mased water looked like a flat sheet of crepe paper.

The Air Force VIP transport jet was cramped-Pitt could not stand to his

full height-but quite luxurious.  He felt as though he were sitting

inside a rich kid's high-priced toy.

His father was not in a talkative mood.  The Senator spent most of the

flight working out of a briefcase, making notes for his briefing to the

President.

What little conversation took place was one-sided.  When Pitt asked how

he happened to be on the Lady Flamborough at Punta del Este, the Senator

didn't bother to look up when he responded.

"A Presidential mission," he said tersely, closing off any further

questions on the subject.

Hala also kept to herself and attended to business.  She had the

aircraft's in-flight telephone in constant use, firing off in structions

to her aides at the United Nations building in New York.  Her only

acknowledgment of Pitts presence was a brief smile when their eyes

happened to meet.

How quickly they forget, Pitt thought idly.

He turned his mind to the search for the Alexandria Library treasures.

He considered cutting in on Hala's phone monopoly for a progress report

from Yaeger.  But he drowned his curiosity with a dry martini, courtesy

of the aircraft steward, instead, deciding to wait and learn whatever

there was to learn at first hand from Lily and Yaeger.

What river had Venator sailed before burying the priceless objects?   it

could be any one of a thousand that course into the Atlantic between the

Saint Lawrence in Canada to the Rfo de la Plata of Argentina.  No, not

quite.  Yaeger theorized the Serapes had taken on water and made repairs

off what was to become New Jersey.  The unknown river had to be south,

much further south than the rivers that flow into Chesapeake Bay.

Could Venator have led his fleet into the Gulf of Mexico and up the

Mississippi?   Today's stream must be far different from what it was

sixteen hundred years ago.  Perhaps he had sailed into the OTinoco in

Venezuela, which could be navigated for two hundred miles.  Or maybe the

Amazon?

He let his mind wander through the irony of it all.  If Junius Venator's

voyage to the Americas was absolutely proved by the discovery of the

buried Library artifacts, history books needed to be revised and new

chapters written.

Poor Leif Eriksson and Christopher Columbus would be relegated to

footnotes.

Pitt was still daydreaming when he was interrupted by the steward

telling him to fasten his seat belt.

It was dusk and the aircraft had dipped its nose and was dropping into

the long glide toward Andrews Air Force Base. The twinkling sprawl of

Washington slid past, and Pitt soon found himself hobbling down the

steps on a cane hastily bent from an aluminum tube and presented by the

grateful crew of the Lady Flamborough.  He set foot on the concrete at

almost exactly the same spot as on his arrival from Greenland.

Hala came down and bid him goodbye.  She was continuing on with the

plane to New York.

"You've become a treasured memory, Dirk Pitt."

"We never did make our dinner date."

"The next time you're in Cairo, it's on me."

The Senator overheard and came over.  "Cairo, Ms. Kamil. Not New York?"

Hala gave him a smile worthy of the beautiful Aphrodite.  "I am

resigning as Secretary-General and returning home.  Democracy is dying

in Egypt.  I can do more to keep it alive by working in the midst of my

people."

"What of Yazid?"

"President Hasan has vowed to place him under house arrest."

A frown crossed Senator Pitts face.  "Be careful.  Yazid is still a

dangerous man."

"if not Yazid, there is always another maniac waiting in the wings." Her

soft dark eyes belied the fear that rode in her heart.  She gave him a

daughterly hug.  "tell your President Egypt will not become a nation of

insane fanatics."

"I'll pass along your words."

She turned back to Pitt.  She was on the brink of falling in love with

him but fought her feelings with every bit of will she possessed.  Her

legs felt weak as she took both his hands and stared upward into his

ageless face.  for an instant, in her mind's eye, she saw herself

entwilled with his body, caressing his muscled skin, and then just as

quickly she erased the thought.  She had found brief fulfillment with

him, long denied, but she knew she could never divide her love for one

man with that for Egypt.

Her life belonged to those who had no life except misery and poverty.

She kissed him tenderly.

"Do not forget me."

Before Pitt could answer, Hala had turned and hurried up the steps into

the aircraft.  He stood looking at the empty entrance for a long moment.

The Senator read his thoughts and interrupted them. "They've sent an

ambulance to take you to the hospital."

"Hospital?" Pitt said vacantly, still watching as the door closed.  The

jet engines whistled as the pilot increased the rpm and began to taxi

toward the main strip.

Pitt tore the bandages from around his head and face and threw them into

the jet's exhaust, where they were caught and sent swirling through the

air like airborne snakes.

Only when the plane was airborne did he make his reply. "I'm not going

to no damned hospital."

"Over doing it a bit, don't you  ?" think?" the Senator said with

paternal concern, full knowing it was a waste of breath to preach to his

independent-minded son.

"How are you getting to the White House?" asked Pitt.  The Senator

nodded toward a waiting helicopter about a hundred meters away.  "the

President arranged my transportation."

"Mind dropping me at NUMA?"

His father looked at him slyly.  "You're speaking figuratively, of

course."

Pitt grinned.  "You never let me forget which side of the family my

sadistic sense of humor came from."

The Senator slapped his arm around Pitts waist.  "Come on, you crazy

nut, let me help you over to the helicopter."

The tension built like a twisting knot in his stomach as Pitt stood in

the elevator, watching the numbers rise toward NUMAs computer complex.

Lily was standing in the foyer as the doors parted and he stepped out.

She wore a big smile that froze when she saw the  , bedraggled look, the

long scab on his cheek, the hump of the bandage beneath a knit

fisherman's turtleneck sweater borrowed from his father, the dragging

leg and cane.  Then she bravely broke out the smile again.

"Welcome home, sailor."

She stepped forward and threw her arms around his neck. He winced and

groaned under his breath.  She jumped back.

"Oh, I'm sorry."

Pin clutched her.  "Don't be." Then he mashed his lips against hers. His

beard scraped against her skin and he smelled of gin-and delightfully

masculine.

"There's something to be said for men who only come home once a week,"

she said finally.

"And for women who wait," he said, stepping back.  He glanced around.

"What have you and Hiram found out since I left?"

"I'll let Hiram tell you," she answered airily, taking him by the hand

and leading him across the computer installation.

Yaeger charged out of his office.  Without a word of greeting or

sympathy for Pitts wounds, he came straight to the heart of the

breakthrough.

"We've found it!" he announced grandly.

"The river?" Pitt asked anxiously.

"Not only the river, but I think I can put you within two square miles

of the artifacts' cavern."

+"Where?"

"Texas.  A little border town called Roma."

Yaeger had the smug, complacent look of a Tyrannosaurus rex that had

just dined on a brontosaurus.  "Nwned for seven hills, just like the

capital of Italy.  Pretty low, insignificant hills, I admit.  But there

are also reports of Roman artifacts supposedly having been dug up in the

area.  Scoffed at by accredited archaeologists, of course, but what do

they know?"

"Then the river is?"

"The Rio Bravo, as it's called in Spanish." Yaeger nodded. "Better known

on this side as the Rio Grande."

"The Rio Grande." Pitt repeated the words slowly, savoring each syllable

to the full, finding it difficult to accept the truth after dozens of

missed hunches, wild guesses and dead-end speculations.

"It's really a great shame," Yaeger suddenly said morosely.

Pitt glanced at him in faint surprise.  "Why do you say that?"

Yaeger shook his head heavily.  "Because there'll be no living with the

Texans as soon as they learn what they've been sitting on for the last

sixteen centuries."

At noon the next day, after landing at the Corpus Christi Naval Air

Station, Pitt and Lily, along with Admiral Sandecker, were driven by a

Seaman First Class to NUMA!s ocean research center on the bay. Sandecker

directed the driver to stop beside a helicopter squatting on a concrete

pad beside a long dock. There were no clouds, the sun was alone in the

sky.  The temperature was mild but the humidity high, and they quickly

began to sweat after exiting the car.

NUMAs chief geologist, Herb Garza, gave a friendly wave and approached.

He was short, plump, brown-skinned, with a few pockmarks on his cheeks

and gleaming black hair.  Garza wore a California Angels baseball cap

and a fluorescent orange shirt that was so blasting Pitt could still see

it after he momentarily closed his eyes.

"Garza,"  said Sandecker curtly. "Good to see you again."

"I've looked forward to your arrival," Garza said warmly. "We can take

off as soon as you board." He turned and introduced the pilot, Joe

Mifflin, who wore "Smiling Jack" sunglasses and struck Pitt as being

about as animated as a door knob.

Pitt and Garza had worked together on a project along the western desert

stretch of coast in South Africa.  "How long has it been, Herb?" said

Pitt.  "Three, four years?"

"Who counts?" Garza said with a broad smile as they shook hands.  "Good

to be on the same team with you again."

"May I introduce Dr. Lily Sharp."

Garza  graciously  bowed. "One of the ocean sciences?" he asked.

Lily shook her head.  "Land archaeology."

Garza turned and stared at Sandecker with a curious expression.  "This

isn't a sea project, Admiral?"

"No, I'm sorry you weren't fully informed, Herb.  But I'm afraid we'll

have to keep the real purpose of our work a secret for a little longer."

Garza shrugged indifferently.  "You're the boss."

"All I need is a direction," said Mifflin.

"South," Pitt told him.  "South to the Rio Grande."

They dropped down the coast along the Intercoastal Waterway, passing

over the hotels and condominiums of South Padre Island.  Then Mifflin

ducked the green helicopter with the NUMA letters on the side under a

layer of popcorn puffed clouds and swung west below Port Isabel where

the waters of the Rio Grande spilled into the Gulf of Mexico.

The land below was a strange blend of marsh and desert, flat as a

parking lot, with cactus growing amid tall grass.  Soon the city of

Brownsville appeared through the windshield.  The river narrowed as it

flowed under the bridge connecting Texas to Matamoros, Mexico.

"Can you tell me what we're supposed to survey?" asked Garza.

"You grew up in the Rio Grande Valley, didn't you," Sandecker queried

without answering.

"Born and raised up river at Laredo.  Took my undergraduate courses at

Texas Southernmost College in Brownsville.  We just passed over it."

"Then you're familiar with the geology around Roma?"

"I've conducted a number of field trips in the area, yes."

It was Pitts Turn.  "Compared to now, how did the river flow a few

centuries after Christ?"

"The stream wasn't much different then," answered Garza.

"Oh,  sure,  the  course  has  shifted  during  earlier  flooding, but

seldom more than a couple of miles.  Quite often over the centuries it

returned to its previous course.  The major change is that the Rio

Grande would have been considerably higher then.  Until the war with

Mexico the width ran from two hundred to four hundred meters.  The main

channel actually was much deeper."

"When was it first seen by a European?"

"Alonzo de Pineda sailed into the river's mouth in 1519."

"How did it stack up to the Mississippi back then?"

Garza thought a moment.  "The Rio Grande was more akin to the Nile."

"Nile?"

"The headwaters begin in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado.  During the

spring flooding season, as the winter snows melted, the water swept down

the lower reaches in huge surges.  The ancient Indians, like the

Egyptians, dug ditches so the high water ran to their crops.  That's why

the river you see now is a mere trickle of its former self.  As the

Spanish and Mexican settlers moved in, followed by the Texas Americans,

new irrigation works were built.  After the Civil War, railroads brought

in more families and ranchers, who siphoned off more water.  By 1894,

shallow and dangerous shoals put an end to steamboating.  If there had

been no irrigation, the Rio Grande might have been the Mississippi River

of Texas."

"Steamboats ran on the Rio Grande?" asked Lily.

for a short time traffic was quite heavy as trade developed upland down

and on both sides of the river.  Fleets of paddle steamers made regular

runs from Brownsville to Laredo for over thirty years.  Now, since they

built the Falcon Dam, about the only craft you see on the lower river

are outboard boats and inner tubes."

Could sailing vessels have navigated as far as Roma?"

asked Pitt.

"With room to spare.  The river was easily wide enough for tacking.  All

a ship with sails had to do was wait for easterly offshore breezes.  One

keelboat made it as far northwest as Santa Fe in 1850.  "

They fell quiet for a few minutes as Mifflin followed the meandering

turns of the river.  A few low, rolling hills appeared.  On the Mexican

side, little towns first settled nearly three hundred years ago sat in

dusty seclusion.  Some houses were built of stone and adobe and topped

by red tile, while the outskirts were dotted with small primitive huts

having thatched roofs. The agricultural part of the valley, with its

citrus groves and fields of vegetables and aloe vera, gave way to and

plains of mesquite trees and white thistle.  Pitt expected a muddy brown

river, but the Rio Grande pleasantly surprised him by running a deep

green.

"We're coming up on Roma now," announced Garza.  "The sister city across

the river is called Miguel AlemAn.  Not much of a town.  Except for

sonic tourist curio stores it's mostly a border crossing on the road to

Monterrey."

Mifflin pulled up and soared over the international bridge, and then

dropped low on the river again.  On the Mexican side men and women were

washing cars, mending fishing nets and swimming.  Along the bank a few

pigs wallowed in the silt. On the American side a yellowish sandstone

bluff rose from the riverbank up to the main section of downtown Roma.

The buildings appeared to be quite old and some were rundown, but all

seemed in sound condition.  One or two were in stages of reconstruction.

"The buildings look very quaint," said Lily.  "There must be a lot of

history behind their walls."

"Roma was a busy port during the commercial and military boating era,"

Garza lectured.  "Prosperous merchants hired architects to design some

very interesting homes and business structures.  And they've lasted

quite well."

"any one more famous than the others?" asked Lily.

"Famous?" Garza laughed.  "My pick would be a residence built in the

middle 1800s that was used as 'Rosita's Cantina' when the movie Viva

Zapata was filmed in Roma with Marlon Brando."

Sandecker gestured for Mifflin to circle the hills above the town.  He

turned to Garza.  "Is Roma named after Rome because it's surrounded by

seven hills?"

"Nobody really knows for sure," replied Garza.  "You'd be hard-pressed

to pick out seven distinctive hills.  A couple have noticeable peaks,

but mostly they just run into each other."

"What's the geology?" Pitt inquired as he stared downward.

"Cretaceous debris  for  the  most  part.  This  whole  area  was once

under  the  sea.  Fossil  oyster  shells  are  common. Some have been

found that measure half a meter.  There's a nearby gravel pit that,

illustrates the various geological periods.  I can give you a quick

lecture if you care to have Joe set us down."

"Not just yet," said Pitt.  "Are there any natural caves in the region?"

"None visible on the surface.  But that doesn't mean they aren't down

there.  No way of knowing how many caves, formed by the ancient seas,

are hidden under the upper layer. Go deep enough in the tight spot and

you'll likely strike a good-size limestone deposit.  Old Indian legends

tell of spirits living underground."

"What sort of spirits?"

Garza shrugged.  "Ghosts of the ancients who died in battle with evil

gods."

Lily unconsciously clutched Pitts arm.  "Have any artifacts been

discovered near Roma?"

"A few arrow and spear flints, stone knives and boatstones.  "

"What are boat-stones?" asked Pitt.

"Hollow stones in the shape of boat hulls," answered Lily with mounting

excitement.  "Their exact on'gin or purpose is obscure.  It's thought

they were used as charms.  They supposedly warded off evil, especially

if an Indian feared a witch or power of a shaman.  An effigy of the

witch was tied to a boat-stone and thrown into a lake or river,

destroying the evil forever."

Pitt put another question to Garza.  "any objects Turn up that confound

the historic time scale?"

"Some, but they were considered to be fake."

Lily put on her best casual expression.  "What sort of objects?"

"Swords, crosses, bits and pieces of armor, spear shafts, mostly made of

iron.  I also recall the story of an old stone anchor that was dug out

of the bluff beside the river."

"Probably Spanish in origin," ventured Sandecker guardedly.

Garza shook his head.  "Not Spanish, but Roman.  State Museum officials

were justifiably skeptical.  They wrote them off as a nineteenth-century

hoax."

Lily's hand bit deeper into Pitts arm.  "any possibility of my having a

look at them?" she asked in an anxious voice.

"Or have they been lost and forgotten, packed away in the dust of a

state university basement?"

Garza pointed out the window toward the road running north from Roma.

"As a matter of fact, the artifacts are right down there.  They've been

kept and collected by the man who found most of them.  A good old Texan

boy named Sam Trinity, or Crazy Sam as he's known by the locals.  He's

poked around this area for fifty years, swearing a Roman army camped

here.  Makes a living by running a small gas station and store.  Has a

shack in the rear he grandly calls a museum of antiquity."

Pitt smiled slowly.  "Can you set us down beside his place?"

he asked Mifflin.  "I think we ought to have a talk with Sam."

The sign stretched nine meters in length behind the highway turnoft. The

giant horizontal board was supported by sunbleached, weather-cracked

mesquite posts that uniformly leaned backward at a drunken angle. Garish

red letters on a faded silver background proclaimed SAM'S ROMAN CIRCUS

The gas pumps out front were shiny and new and advertised

methanol-blended fuel for forty-eight cents a liter.  The store was

built from adobe and designed like the Indian mesa dwellings of Arizona

with the roof poles protruding through the walls.  The interior was

clean and the shelves were neatly stacked with curios, groceries and

soft drinks.  It was an echo of a thousand other small, isolated oases

that stood beside the nation's highways.

Sam, though, didn't match the decor.

No baseball cap advertising Caterpillar tractors.  No scuffed cowboy

boots or straw range hat or faded Levi's.  Sam was attired in a bright

green Polo shirt, yellow slacks and expensive custom lizard golf shoes

complete with cleats.  His evenly trimmed white hair lay flat beneath a

sporty plaid cap.

Sam Trinity stood in the doorway of his store until the dust from the

helicopter's rotor blades slowly rolled away under a light breeze.  Then

he stepped past the asphalt drive, holding a two iron Bob Hope-style and

came to a halt about six meters from the opening door.

Garza dropped out first and walked up to him.  "Hello there,

dirt-kicker."

Trinity's dark calfskin face stretched into a big Texas smile. "Herb,

you old taco.  Good to see you."

He pulled up his sunglasses, revealing blue eyes that squinted under the

bright Southern Texas sun.  Then he dropped them again like a curtain.

He was very tall, skinny as a fence pole, arms slender, shoulders

narrow, but his voice had vigor and resonance.

Garza made the introductions, but it was obvious the names were hardly

absorbed by Trinity.  He simply waved and said, "Glad to meet yaal.

Welcome to Sam's Roman Circus." Then he noticed Pitts face, cane and

limp.  "Fall off your motorcycle?"

Pitt laughed.  "The short end of a saloon brawl."

"I think I like you."

Sandecker stood jauntily with legs apart and nodded at the two iron.

"Where do you play golf around here?"

"Just down the road in Rio Grande City," Trinity replied genially.

"Several courses between here and Brownsville.  I just got back from a

quick round with some old army buddies."

"We'd like to poke around your museum," said Garza.

"Be an honor.  Help yourself.  Not every day someone drops in by

whirlybird to look at my artifacts (he pronounced it 'arteefacts').  You

folks like something to drink, sody pop, beer?   I've got a pitcher of

margaritas in the icebox."

"A margarita would taste wonderful," said Lily, dabbing her neck with a

bandanna.

"Show our guests around to the museum, Herb.  The door's unlocked.  I'll

join you in a minute."

A truck and trailer pulled in for gas, and Trinity pau sed to chat a

moment with the driver before entering his living quarters adjoining the

store.

"A friendly cuss," muttered Sandecker.

"Sam can  be  friendlier  than  a  down-Texas  ranch  wife,"  said

Garza.  "But get on his bad side and he's tougher than a ninety-cent

steak."

Garza led them into an adobe building behind the store. The interior was

no larger than a two-car garage, but was crowded with glass display

cases and wax figures in Roman legionary dress.  The artifact room was

spotless; no dust layered the glass walls.  The artifacts were rust-free

and highly burnished.

Lily carried an attached case.  She carefully laid it on a display case,

unsnapped the latches and pulled out a thick book with illustrations and

photographs that resembled a catalogue. She began to compare the

artifacts with those pictured in the book.

"Looking good," she said after a few minutes of study.  "The swords and

spearheads match Roman weapons of the fourth Century."

"Don't get excited," said Garza seriously.  "Sam fabricated what you see

here and probably aged them with acid and the sun."

..He didn't fabricate them," Sandecker said flatly.

Garza regarded him with skeptical interest.  "How can you say that,

Admiral?   There's no record of pre-Columbian contact in the gulf."

"There is now."

That's news to me."

"'The event occurred in the year A.D. 391," explained Pitt. "A fleet of

ships  ed up the Rio Grande to where Roma now stands.  Somewhere, in one

of the hills behind town, Roman mercenaries, their slaves and Egyptian

scholars buried a vast collection of artifacts from the Alexandria

Library in Egypt '

"I knew it!" burst Sam Trinity from the open doorway.  He was so excited

he almost dropped the tray of glasses and pitcher he was carrying.  "By

glory, I knew it!   The Romans really walked the soil of Texas."

"You've been right, Sam," said Sandecker, "and your doubters wrong."

I-All these years no one believed me," Sam muttered dazedly.  "Even

after they read the stone, they accused me of chiseling the inscription

myself."

"Stone, what stone?" Pitt asked sharply.

"The one standing over in the corner.  I had it translated at Texas A

and M, but all they told me was, 'Nice job, Sam. Your Latin ain't half

bad." They've kidded me for years for dreaming up a first-rate fish

story."

"Is there a copy of the translated message?" asked Lily' re, on the

wall.  I had it typed and hung in a glassed frame.  I cut off the part

where they panned it."

Lily peered at the wording and read it aloud as the others crowded

around her.

"This stone marks the way to where I ordered buried the works from the

great Hall of the Muses.

"I escaped the slaughter of our fleet by the barban'ans and made my way

south, where I was accepted by a primitive pyramid people as a sage and

a prophet.

"I have taught them what I know of the stars and science, but they put

little of my teachings to practical use.  They prefer to worship pagan

gods and follow ignorant priests' demands for human sacrifice.

"Sevenyearshavepassedsincemy arrival. My return here is filled with

sorrow at the sight of the bones of my former comrades. I have seen to

their burial.  My ship is ready and I shall soon set sail for Rome.

"If Theodosius still lives I shall be executed but accept the risk

gladly to see my family one last time.

"To those who read this, should I perish, the entrance to the storage

chamber is buried under the hill.  Stand north and look straight south

to the liver cliff."

Junius Venator 10 August 398

"So Venator survived the massacre only to die seven years later on the

return voyage to Rome," said Pitt.

"Or perhaps he made it and was executed without talking," added

Sandecker.

"No, Theodosius died in 395," said Lily in wonder. .,To think the

message was here all this time and ignored as a counterfeit.  "

Trinity's  eyebrows  lifted.  "You  know this Venator guy?"

"We've been tracking him," admitted Pitt.

"Have  you  searched for the chamber?" Sandecker asked.

Trinity nodded.  "Dug all over these hills, but found nuthin' but what

you see here."

"How deep?"

"Used a backhoe about ten years ago.  Made a pit six meters down, but

only found that sandal over there in the case,"

"Could you show us the site where you discovered the stone and other

artifacts?" Pitt asked him.

The  old  Texan  looked  at  Garza.  "Think  it's  okay, Herb?"

"Take my word, Sam, you can trust these people.  They're not artifact

robbers."

Trinity nodded vigorously.  "All right, let's take a ride.  We can go in

my Jeep."

Trinity steered the Jeep Wagoneer up a dirt road past several modern

homes and stopped in front of a barbed-wire fence. He got out, unhooked

a section of the wire and pulled it aside. Then he climbed back behind

the wheel and continued on over a trail that was grown over and barely

perceptible.

When the four-wheeled Jeep crested a long, sloping rise, he stopped and

turned off the ignition.  "Well, here it is, Gongora Hill.  A long time

ago somebody told me it was named after a seventeenth-century Spanish

poet.  Why they named this dirt heap for a poet beats grits out of me."

Pitt gestured at a low hill four hundred meters to the north. "What do

they call that ridge over there?"

"Has no name I ever heard of," replied Trinity.

"Where did you discover the stone?" asked Lily.

"Hold on, just a little further."

Trinity restarted the engine and slowly edged the Jeep down the slope,

dodging the mesquite and low underbrush.  After a two-minute bumpy ride,

he braked beside a shallow wash.

He stepped from the car and walked to the edge and looked down.

"Right here I found a corner of it sticking out of the bank."

"This dry wash," observed Pitt, "winds between Gongora and the far

hill."

Trinity nodded.  "Yeah, but no way the stone traveled from there to the

slope below Gongora unless it was dragged."

"This is hardly a flood plain," agreed Sandecker.  "Erosion and heavy

rains over a long time period might have carried it fifty meters from

the summit of Gongora, but not half a kilometer from the next summit."

"And the other artifacts," asked Lily, "where did they lie?"

Trinity swept a hand on an arc toward the river.  "They were scattered a

little further down the slope and continued almost through the center of

town."

"Did you conduct a survey with transits and mark each location?"

"Sorry, miss, not being an archaeologist, I didn't think to pinpoint the

holes."

Lily's eyes  flashed  disappointment,  but  she  made  no  reply.

"You must have used a metal detector," said Pitt.

"Made it myself," Trinity answered proudly.  "Sensitive enough to read a

penny at half a meter."

"Who owns the land?"

"Twelve hundred acres hereabouts have been in my family since Texas was

a republic."

"That saves a lot of legal hassle," Sandecker said approvingly.

Pitt looked at his watch.  The sun was beginning to fall beyond the

string of hills.  He tried to visualize the running fight between the

Indians and the Roman-Egyptians toward the river and the fleet of

ancient ships.  He could almost hear the shouting, the screams of pain,

the clash of weapons.  He felt as if he had been present that fateful

day so long ago.  He returned to the present as Lily continued her

questioning of Trinity.

"Strange that you didn't find any bones on the battlefield."

"Early Spanish sailors who were shipwrecked on the Texas Gulf Coast and

managed to make their way to Veracruz and Mexico City," Garza answered

her, "told of Indians who practiced cannibalism."

Lily made an expression of utter distaste.  "You can't know for certain

the dead were eaten."

"Perhaps a small number," said Garza.  "And what remains that weren't

dragged off by tribal dogs or wild animals were later buried by this guy

Venator.  any they missed turned to dust.  "

"Herb's right," said Pitt.  "any bones that remained on surface ground

would disintegrate in time."

Lily became very still.  She gazed almost mystically at the nearby crest

of Gongora Hill.  "I can't begin to believe we're actually standing

within a few meters of the treasures."

An icy calm seemed to settle over them for a few moments. Then Pitt

finally echoed the other's thoughts.

"A lot of good men died sixteen centuries ago to  preserve the knowledge

of their time," he said softly, eyes staring into the past.  "I think

it's time we dig it free."

The next morning Admiral Sandecker was passed through the compound gate

by Secret Service guards.  He drove along a winding lane to the

President's hideaway cottage on the Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri.  He

stopped his commercial rental car in the drive and removed his briefcase

from the trunk. There was a crisp chill in the air, and he found it

invigorating after the steamy temperatures along the Rio Grande.

The President, dressed in a warm sheepskin jacket, came down the steps

from the porch and greeted him.  "Admiral, thank you for coming.  "

"I'd rather be here than in Washington."

"How was your trip?"

"Slept most of it."

"Sorry to bring you up here in a mad rush."

"I'm fully aware of the urgency."

The President put a hand on Sandecker's back and steered him up the

steps toward the cottage door.  "Come in and have some breakfast.  Dale

Nichols, Julius Schiller and Senator Pitt are already attacking the eggs

and smoked ham."

"Assembled the brain trust, I see," Sandecker said with a cagey smile.

"We spent half the night discussing the political impact of your

discovery."

"Little I can tell you in person that wasn't in the report I sent by

courier."

"Except you neglected to include a diagram of your proposed excavation."

"I would have gotten around to it," Sandecker said, standing his ground.

The President was not put off by Sandecker's attitude. "You can show

everyone over but."

They broke off the conversation for a few moments as the President led

him through the log-constructed house.  They walked through a cozy

living room decorated more for modern living than a hunting lodge.  A

small fire crackled away in a large rock fireplace.  They entered the

dining room, where Schiller and Nichols, dressed as fishermen, rose as

one to shake hands.  Senator Pitt merely waved.  He wore a sweatsuit.

The Senator and the Admiral were close friends because of their

closeness to Dirk.  Sandecker caught a hint of warning from the elder

Pitts somber expression.

There was one other man the President hadn't mentionedHarold Wismer, an

old crony and adviser of the President who enjoyed enormous influence

and worked outside the White House bureaucracy.  Sandecker wondered why

he was present.

The President pulled out a chair.  "Sit down, Admiral.  How do you like

your eggs?"

Sandecker shook his head.  "A small bowl of fruit and a glass of skim

milk will do me fine."

A white-coated steward took Sandecker's order and disappeared into the

kitchen.

"So that's how you keep that wiry shape," said Schiller.

"That and enough exercise to keep me in a perpetual state of sweat."

"All of us wish to congratulate you and your people on a magnificent

find," Wismer began without hesitation.  He stared through glasses with

pink lenses.  A snarled beard almost hid his lips.  He was bald as a

basketball; brown eyes wide to give a slight popped look. "When do you

expect to move dirk?"

"Tomorrow," Sandecker answered, suspecting the rug was about to be

pulled out from under him.  He pulled a blowup of a geological survey

map showing the topography above Roma from his briefcase.  Then he

followed it with a cutaway drawing of the hill indicating the planned

excavation shafts.  He laid them out on a free section of the table. "We

intend to dig two exploratory tunnels into the main hill eighty meters

below the summit.  "

"The one labeled 'Gongora Hill'?"

"Yes, the tunnels will enter on opposing sides of the slope facing the

river and then angle toward each other, but on different levels.  One or

both should strike the grotto Junius Venator inscribed on Sam Trinity's

stone, or, with luck, one of the original entry shafts."

"You're absolutely sure a treasure trove of artifacts from the

Alexandria Library is at this place," Wismer said, tightening the noose.

"You have no doubts."

"None," asserted Sandecker in a salty tone.  "The map from the Roman

stup in Greenland led to the artifacts found in Roma by Trinity.  The

pieces slot together nicely."

"But could the-?"

"No, the Roman objects have been authenticated." Sandecker cut Wismer

off abruptly.  This is no hoax, no attempt at fraud, no wild stunt or

game.  We know it's there.  The only question is how extensive is the

hoard."

"We don't mean to suggest the Library's treasures do not exist," said

Schiller quickly, a little too quickly.  "But you must understand,

Admiral, the international repercussions of such an enormous discovery

might be difficult to predict, much less control."

Sandecker stared at Schiller unblinking.  "I fail to see how bringing

the knowledge of the ancient world to light will cause Armageddon. Also,

aren't you a little late?   The world already knows about the treasure.

Hala Kamfl announced our search in her address to the United Nations."

"There are considerations," said the President seriously, you may not be

aware of.  President Hasan may claim the entire trove of relics belongs

to Egypt.  Greece will insist on the return of Alexander's gold casket.

Who can say what claims Italy will put forth?"

"Maybe I took the wrong tack, gentlemen," said Sandecker. "It was my

understanding we promised to share in the discovery with President Hasan

as a means of propping up his government."

"True," admitted  Schiller.  "But  that  was  before  you  nailed down

the location beside the Rio Grande- Now you've brought Mexico into the

picture.  The fanatic Topiltzin can make a case on the fact that the

burial site originally belonged to Mexico."

"That's to be expected," said Sandecker.  "Except that possession is

nine tenths of the law.  Legally the artifacts belong to the man who

owns the property they're buried on."

"Mr.  Trinity will be offered a substantial sum of money for his land

and the rights to the relics," said Nichols.  "I might also add, his

payment will be tax-free.,'

Sandecker regarded Nichols skeptically.  "The hoard might be worth

hundreds of millions.  Is the government prepared to go that high?"

Of course not."

"And if Trinity won't take your offer?"

"There are other methods of making a deal," Wismer said with cold

determination.

"Since when is the government in the art business?"

"The art, sculpture and the remains of Alexander the Great are only of

historic interest," said Wismer.  "The knowledge in the scrolls, that's

the area of vital interest."

"That depends on the eye of the beholder," Sandecker said

philosophically.

"The information contained in the scientific records, particularly the

geological data, could have enormous influence on Our future dealings

with the Middle East," Wismer continued doggedly.  "And there is the

religious angle to consider."

"What's to consider?   The Greek umslation of the original Hebrew text

of the Old Testament was made at the Library. This translation is the

basis for all books of the Bible."

"But not the New Testament," Wismer corrected Sandecker.

"There may be historic facts that dispute the founding of Christianity

locked away under that hill in Texas.  Facts that would be better left

hidden."

Sandecker gave Wismer a cold stare, then turned his eyes to the

President.  "I smell a conspiracy, Mr. President.  I'd be grateful for

the reason behind my presence here."

Nothing sinister, Admiral, I assure you.  But we all agree, this has to

be conducted within stringent guidelines."

Sandecker  was  not  slow;  the  trap  had  sprung.  He'd known almost

from the beginning what was going down.  "So after NUMA-" he paused and

stared at Senator Pitt 'and especially your son, Senator, have done all

the dirty work, we're to be pushed aside."

"You must admit, Admiral," said Wismer in an official tone, this is

hardly a job for a governmental agency whose bureaucratic

responsibilities lie underwater."

Sandecker shrugged off Wismer's words.  "We've taken the project this

far.  I see no reason why we can't see it through to the end."

"I'm sorry, Admiral," said the President slowly, "but I'm taking the

project out of your hands and turning it over to the Pentagon."

Sandecker was stunned.  "The military!" he blurted.  "Whose harebrained

idea was that?"

An embarrassed look came into the President's eyes.  Then they flicked

to Wismer for an instant.  "It makes no difference who conceived the new

plan.  The decision is mine."

"I don't think you understand, Jim," said the Senator quietly.  "What

you stumbled upon goes far beyond mere archaeology.  The knowledge under

that hill could very well reshape our Middle East foreign policy for

decades to come."

"Reason enough why we have to approach this thing as if it was a highly

secret intelligence operation," said Wismer.  "We must keep the

discovery classified until all documents are thoroughly examined and

their data analyzed."

"That could take twenty or even a hundred years, depending on the number

and condition of the scrolls after underground storage for sixteen

hundred years," Sandecker protested.

"If that's what it takes. . . ." The President shrugged.

The steward brought the Admiral's fruit bowl and glass of milk, but

Sandecker had lost his appetite.

"In other words, you need time to add up the value of the windfall,"

Sandecker said acidly.  "Then negotiate political bargains for the

ancient charts showing the locations of lost mineral and oil deposits

around the Mediterranean.  If Alexander hasn't turned to dust, his bones

will be traded to the Greek government toward renewed leases for our

naval bases. All this before the American people find out you've given

away the store."

"We cannot afford to go public," Schiller explained patiently.  "Not

until we're prepared to move.  You fail to realize the tremendous

foreign policy advantages you've laid in the government's lap.  We can't

simply throw them away in the name of public curiosity about historic

objects."

"I'm not naive, gentlemen," said Sandecker.  "But I do confess to being

a sentimental old patriot who believes the people deserve better from

their government than they receive.  The treasures from the Library of

Alexandria do not belong to a few politicians to barter away.  They

belong to all America by right of possession."

Sandecker didn't wait for them to answer.  He took a quick swallow of

milk, then retrieved a newspaper out of his briefcase and casually

tossed it on the center of the table.

"Because everyone is so wrapped up with the big picture, your aides

missed a small item from Reuters wire service that was carried in most

of the newspapers around the world. Here's a copy of a St. Louis paper I

picked up at the car-rental agency.  I circled the piece on page three."

Wismer picked up the folded paper, opened it and turned to the page

indicated by Sandecker.  He read the heading aloud, and then began the

text.

"Romans land in Texas?

"According to top-level administration sources in Washington, the search

for a vast underground depository of ancient relics from the famed

Library of Alexandria, Egypt, has ended a few hundred meters north of

the Rio Grande River in Roma, Texas.  Artifacts found over the years by

a Mr. Samuel Trinity have been acknowledged as authentic by

archaeologists.

"The search began with the discovery of a Roman merchant ship, dated

from the fourth century A.D., in the ice of Greenland '

Wismer stopped, his face reddening with anger.  "A leak!   A goddamned

leak!"

"But how . . . who?" wondered Nichols in shock.

"Top-level administration sources," Sandecker repeated. "That can only

mean the White House." He looked at the President, then at Nichols.

"Probably a disgruntled aide one of your supervisors either passed over

for promotion or sacked."

Schiller looked glumly at the President.  "A thousand people will be

swarming over the place.  I suggest you order out a military force to

secure the area."

"Julius is right, Mr. President," said Nichols.  "Treasure hunters will

dig those hills to pieces if they're not stopped."

The President nodded.  "Alright, Dale.  Open a Wx to General Metcalf of

the Joint Chiefs."

Nichols quickly left the table and entered the study, which was manned

by Secret Service and White House communications technicians.

"I strongly advise we clamp a lid on the entire operation said Wismer

tensely.  "We should also spread a story that the discovery is a hoax."

"Not a good idea, Mr. President," counseled Schiller wisely.  "Your

predecessors found out the hard way; it doesn't pay to lie to the

American people.  The news media would smell a coverup and chew you to

bits."

"I'll side with Julius," said Sandecker.  "Close off the area, but go

through with the excavation, hiding nothing and keeping the public

informed.  Believe me, Mr. President, your administration will be far

better off putting the Library artifacts out in the open as they're

recovered."

The President turned and looked at Wismer.  "Sorry, Harold. Perhaps it's

all for the best."

"Let us hope so," said Wismer, solemnly staring at the newspaper story.

"I don't want to think about what might happen if that lunatic Topiltzin

decides to make an issue of it."

Sam Trinity stood and watched Pitt connect a pair of electrical leads

from two metal boxes that sat on the open tailgate of his Jeep.  One had

a small viewing monitor and the other a wide slot with paper unreeling

from it like a flattened tongue.

"A wild-looking rig," observed Trinity.  "What do you call it?"

"The fancy name is electromagnetic reflection profiling system for

subsurface exploration," Pitt replied as he jacked in the leads to a

strange double-humped contraption with four wheels and a push bar.  "In

plain speech, it's a ground-probing radar unit, the Georadar One,

manufactured by the Oyo Corporation."

"I didn't know radar could go through dirt and rock."

"It can provide a good profile down to ten meters, and deep as twenty

under ideal conditions."

"How's it work?"

"As the portable probe moves across the land a transmitter sends an

electromagnetic pulse into the ground.  The reflecting signals are

picked up by a receiver and then relayed to the color processor and

graphic recorder here in the Jeep. That's pretty much the gist of it."

"Sure you don't want me to tow the  mitter buggy?"

"I have better control if I push it by hand."

"What are we looking for?"

"A cavity."

"You mean cavern."

Pitt grinned and shrugged.  "Same thing."

Trinity gazed across the ridge of hills they were standing on toward the

summit of Gongora Hill, four hundred meters away.  "Why are we looking

on the backside of the wrong hill?"

"I want to run some tests on the unit before we tackle the prime site,"

Pitt replied vaguely.  "Also, there's the slight possibility Venator

buried more artifacts someplace else." He paused and waved to Lily, who

was peering through a surveyor's transit a short distance away.  "We're

ready," he shouted.

She waved back and approached, carrying a board with sheet of graph

paper tacked to it.  "Here's your search grid,!  she said, pointing a

pencil at the markings on the paper.  "The boundary stakes are set in

place.  I'll walk behind the Jeep and monitor the transmissions.  Every

twenty meters or so I'll plant a small flag marker so we can keep our

lanes straight."

Pitt nodded at her.  "Ready, Sam?"

Sam moved behind the steering wheel and started the Jeep's engine. "Say

the word."

Pitt turned on the machine and made a few adjustments.  Then he took the

handle of the probe wagon in his hands and pointed ahead.

Sam dropped the Jeep into drive and crawled forward while Pitt followed,

pushing the transmitter-receiver unit five meters from the rear.

A light cloud overcast dulled the sun to a dim yellow ball. 'Thankfully,

the day was mild and comfortable.  Back and forth, they traveled,

dodging rocks and bushes.  The morning wore into afternoon as the

monotony associated with search and surveys stretched out of all

proportion.

They ignored lunch, stopping only at Lily's command as she studied the

recordings and made notations.

"A good reading?" Pitt asked, taking a breather, sitting on the back of

the tailgate.

"We're on the edge of something that looks interesting," answered Lily,

engrossed in the recordings.  "Maybe nothing, though.  I'll know better

after we cover the next two lanes."

Trinity graciously passed around bottles of Mexican Bohemia beer from an

ice chest in the Jeep.  It was during these short breaks that Pitt

noticed a growing number of cars parked at the bottom of Gongord Hill.

people were fanning out over the slope with metal detectors.

Sam noticed too.  "A lot of good my 'No Trespassing' signs did," he

grumbled.  "You'd think they was advertising free

"Where are they coming from?" asked Lily.  "How did they find out about

the project so soon?"

Trinity peered over the rims of his sunglasses.  "Mostly local folks.

Somebody must have blabbed.  By this time tomorrow they'll be rolling in

from every state in the Union."

The telephone in the Jeep buzzed, and Trinity answered. Then he passed

the receiver out the window to Pitt.

"for you.  Admiral Sandecker."

Pi" took the call.  "Yes, Admiral."

"We've been backstabbed; we're no longer on the excavation," Sandecker

informed him.  "The President's advisers have talked him into turningng

the operation over to the Pentagon.

"It was to be expected, but I'd have preferred the Park Service. They're

better equipped for an archaeological dig."

"The White House wants to break into the storage chamber and remove the

scrolls for study as quickly as possible.  They fear a nasty

confrontation with countries that might demand to share in the

discovery."

Pitt struck his fist against the roof of the Jeep.  "Damnit!  They can't

go down there and throw everything into trucks as though it was

secondhand merchandise.  The scrolls could crumble to dust if not

handled properly."

"The  President  has accepted responsibility for the gamble."

"The past has no priority over politics, is that it?"

Not the only problem," said Sandecker tersely.  "Some aide inside the

White House leaked everything to a foreign wire service.  Word is

spreading like the plague."

"Crowds are already converging on the site."

"They're not wasting any time."

"How does the government get around the fact the property belongs to

Sam?"

"Let's just say Sam is going to get an offer he can't refuse," Sandecker

replied angrily.  "The President and his cronies have a grand scheme to

make a political bonanza out of the information contained in the Library

scrolls."

"My father among them?" asked Pitt.

"I'm afraid so."

"Who exactly is taking over?"

"A company of Army engineers from Fort Hood.  They and their equipment

are being transported by truck.  A security force should be dropping in

on you any time by helicopter to seal off the perimeters."

Pitt thought a moment, then: "Could you use your clout to arrange for us

to hang around?"

"Give me a cover story."

"Except for Hiram Yaeger, Lily and I know more about the search than

anyone who will be excavating.  Claim we're vital to the project as

consultants.  Use Lily's academic credentials as a backup.  Say we're

conducting an archaeological survey for surface artifacts.  Say

anything, Admiral, but con the White House into allowing us to remain on

the site."

"I'll see what I can do," Sandecker said, warming to the idea, although

he didn't have the vaguest idea of what Pitt was shooting for.  "Harold

Wismer should be the only barrier.  If the Senator throws his support

our way I think we can handle it."

"Let me know if my dad drags his feet.  I'll get on him."

"I'll be in touch."

Pitt handed the receiver back to Trinity and turned to Lily. "We're off

the case," he informed them.  "The Army is taking over the excavation.

They're going to haul the artifacts away as fast as they can throw them

in the back of a truck."

Lily's eyes widened in shock.  "The scrolls will be destroyed," she

gasped.  "After sixteen hundred years in an underground vault the

parchment and papyrus manuscripts must be treated delicately.  They

could disintegrate from a sudden temperature change or the slightest

touch."

"You heard me give the Admiral the same appraisal," Pitt said

helplessly.

Trinity looked washed out.  "Waal," he drawled, shall we call it a day?"

Pitt looked at the stakes that marked the outer limit of the search

grid.  "Not yet," he said slowly, deliberately.  "Let's finish the job.

The show is never over till it's over."

The Mercedes stretch limousine stopped at the yacht club dock in the

harbor of Alexandria. The chauffeur opened the door and Robert

Capesteffe climbed from the back seat.  Wearing a tailored white linen

suit with a powder-blue shirt and matching tie, he no longer looked like

Topiltzin.

He was guided down a stone stairway to a waiting launch. He sat back in

the soft cushions and enjoyed the ride across the harbor and through the

enwmce where one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the famed

lighthouse known as the Pharos of Alexandria, once stood, a towering 135

meters high.  Only a few stones built into an Arab fort were all that

remained of its ruins.

The launch headed for a large yacht that was moored around the harbor

and off the long wide beach.  Capesteffe had walked her decks on

previous occasions.  He knew her length to be forty-five meters.  She

was Dutch-built, with sleek, aircraftstyle lines.  She had transoceanic

range and a cruising speed of thirty knots.

The pilot eased back on the throttle and slipped the launch into reverse

at it approached the boarding steps.  Capesterre was met on deck by a

man dressed in an open silk shirt, shorts and sandals.  They embraced.

ifre as ii re

... A - lcotne, bt(,,there," saiki Paul Capesterre.  "It's been too

long.

"You look healthy, Paul.  I'd say you and Akhmad Yazid have gained about

eight pounds."

"Twelve."

"Almost seems strange to see you out of uniform," said Robert.

Paul shrugged.  "I get tired of Yazid's Arabic gear and that stupid

turban." He stood back and smiled at his brother. "You're a fine one to

talk.  I don't see you in your Aztec god outfit."

"Topiltzin is temporarily on holiday." Robert paused and nodded at the

deck.  "You've borrowed Uncle Theodore's boat, I see."

I-He hardly has use for it any more since the family left the drug

business." Paul Capesterre turned and led his brother into the dining

salon.  "Come along, I've had lunch set.  Now that I've learned you

finally developed a taste for champagne, I've dusted off a bottle of

Uncle Theodore's finest vintage."

Robert took an offered glass.  "I thought President Hasan placed you

under house arrest."

"The only reason I bought the villa is because of a hidden escape tunnel

that runs underground for a hundred meters and comes up in a mechanic's

repair shop."

"Also owned by you."

"Of course."

Robert raised his glass.  "Here's to Mother and Father's grand scheme."

Paul nodded.  "Although at the moment, your end in Mexico looks more

promising than mine in Egypt."

"You're not to blame for the Lady Flamborough fiasco.  The family

approved the plan.  No one could foretell the cunning of the Americans."

That idiot Suleiman Aziz Ammar," said Paul harswy, "he blundered the

operation away."

"any news of survivors?"

"Family agents report most were killed, including Ammar and your Captain

Machado.  Several were taken prisoner, but they know nothing of our

involvement."

"Then we should consider ourselves lucky.  With Machado and Ammar dead,

no intelligence agency in the world can touch us.  They were the only

link."

"President Hasan didn't have any trouble putting two and two together or

I wouldn't be under house arrest."

"Yes," agreed Robeil, "but Hasan can't act against you without solid

evidence.  If he tried, your followers would rise up and prevent any

trial.  The family's advice is to keep a low profile while consolidating

your power base.  At least for another year, to see how the wind blows."

"for now the wind blows at the backs of Hasan, Hala Kaniil and Abu

Hamid," said Paul wrad"lly.

"Be patient.  Soon your Islamic fundamentalist movement will sweep you

into the Egyptian parliament."

Paul looked at Robert with a cagey expression in his eyes. "The

discovery of the Alexandria Library treasures might speed things a bit."

"You've read the latest news reportst' asked Robert'

"Yes, the Americans claim they've found the storage chamber in Texas."

"Possession of the ancient geological charts could be to your advantage.

If they point the way to rich oil and mineral reserves, you can claim

credit for turning Egypt's economy around.  "

"I've considered that possibility," said Paul.  "If I read the White

House correctly, the President will use the artifacts and scrolls as

bargaining chips.  While Hasan begs and haggles for a paltry share of

Egypt's heritage, I can go before the people and raise the issue as an

outrage against our revered ancestors." Paul hesitated, his mind

leapfrogging.  Then he continued, his eyes narrowing.  "With the right

semantics I think I can twist Muslim law and the words of the Koran into

a rallying cry that will crack Hasan's government."

Robert laughed.  "try and keep a straight face when you speak.  The

Christians may have burned most of the scrolls in A.D. 39 1, but it was

the Muslims in 646 who destroyed the Library forever."

A waiter began serving Scottish smoked salmon and  an caviar.  They ate

for a few minutes in silence.

Then Paul said, "I hope you'realize the burden of seizing the artifacts

falls on your shoulders."

Robert stared over the rim of his champagne glass.  "You talking to me

or Topiltzin?"

Paul laughed.  "Topiltzin."

Robert set down the glass and slowly raised his hands in the air as if

beseeching a fly on the ceiling.  His eyes took on a hypnotic look and

he began to speak in a haunting tone.

"We will rise up by the tens of thousands, by the hundreds of thousands.

We will cross the river as one and take what was buried on our land,

land that was stolen from us by the Americans.  Many will be sacrificed,

but the gods demand we take what rightfully belongs to Mexico." Then he

dropped his hands and grinned.  "Needs a little polishing, of course."

"I believe you've borrowed my script," said Paul, applauding "What's the

difference so long as we're family?" Robert took a final forkful of

salmon.  "Delicious.  I could eat smoked salmon by the boatload." He

washed it down with the champagne.  "If I can seize the treasures and

hold on to them, then what?"

I only want the maps.  Whatever else can be smuggled out gole's to the

family to keep or sell on the black market to wealthy collectors.

Agreed?"

Robert thought a moment, and then nodded.  "Agreed."

The waiter brought a tray of glasses, a bottle of brandy and a box of

cigars.

Paul slowly lit a panatella.  He looked questioningly through the smoke

at his brother.  "How do you intend to grab the Library treasures?"

"I had planned to launch a massive, unarmed invasion of the American

border states after I gained power.  This strikes me as a good

opportunity for a test run." Robert stared at his glass as he swirled

his brandy.  "Once I set the wheels of my organization in motion, the

poor in the cities and the peasants of the country will be gathered up

and transported north to Roma, Texas.  I can assemble three, perhaps as

many as four hundred thousand on our side of the Rio Grande in four

days."

"What about American resistance?"

"Every soldier, border patrolman and sheriff in Texas will be helpless

to stop the crush.  I plan to put the women and children in the first

wave across the bridge and river.  Americans are a maudlin lot.  They

may have slaughtered villagers in Vietnam, but they won't massacre

unarmed civilians on their own doorstep.  I can also play on White House

fears of a nasty international incident.  The President won't dare issue

orders to shoot.  Static resistance will be inundated by a human tide

that will sweep up through Roma and occupy the underground vault

containing the Library treasures."

"And Topiltzin will lead them?"

"And I will lead them."

"How long do you think you can hold on to the vault?" asked Paul.

"Long enough for ancient-language translators to assess and remove any

scrolls pertaining to long-lost mineral deposits."

"That could take weeks.  You won't have the time.  The Americans will

build up their forces and push your people back into Mexico within a few

days."

"Not if I threaten to burn the scrolls and destroy the art objects."

Robert patted his lips with a napkin.  "My jet should be refueled by

now.  I'd better return to Mexico and set the operation in motion."

Respect for his brother's inventive reasoning showed in Paul's eyes.

"With their backs against the wall, the American government will have no

option but to deal.  I like that."

"Certainly the largest horde of people to invade the United States since

the British in the Revolutionary War," said Robert.  "I like that even

better."

They began arriving in the thousands the first day, in the tens of

thousands the next.  from all over northern Mexico people inspired by

the unpassioned mvings of Topiltzin traveled by car, overloaded bus and

truck, or walked to the dusty town of Nfiguel Ale  across the river from

Roma.  The asphalt roads from Monterrey, Tampico, and Mexico City were

glutted with a continuous stream of vehicles.

President De Lorenzo tried to stop the human wave rolling toward the

border He called out the Mexican armed forces to block the roads.  The

military might as well have tried to stop a raging flood.  Outside of

Guadalupe, a squad of soldiers about to be swept away by a crush of

bodies fired into the crowd, killing fifty-four, most of them women and

children.

De Lorenzo had unwittingly played into Tbpiltzin's hands. It was exactly

the reaction Robert Capesterre had hoped for.

Riots broke out in Mexico City, and De Lorenzo he had to back off or

face mushrooming unrest and the lighted match of a possible revolution.

He sent a message to the White House with his sincere regrets for

failing to stem the tide, and then he called off the soldiers, many of

whom deserted and joined the crusade.

Unrestrained, the throng swarmed toward the Rio Grande.

The Capesterre family's hired professional planners and Robert's

Topiltzin followers raised a five-square-kilometer tent city and set up

kitchens and organized food lines.  Sanitation facilities were trucked

in and assembled.  Nothing was overlooked.  Many of the poor who flooded

the area had never lived nor eaten so well.  Only the clouds of dust and

exhaust smoke from diesel engines swirled beyond human control.

Hand-painted banners appeared along the Mexico bank of the river

proclaiming, "The U.S. stole our land,"

"We want our ancestors' land returned,"

"The antiquities belong to Mexico." They chanted the slogans in English,

Spanish and Nahuatl.  Topiltzin walked mnong the masses, agitating them

into a frenzy rarely seen outside Iran.

Television news teams had a field day taping the colorful demonstration.

Cameras, their cables meandering to two dozen mobile field units, stood

tripod to tripod on top of Roma's bluff, lenses panning the opposite

shore.

Unwary correspondents who wandered through the crowds did not know that

the peasant families they interviewed had been carefully planted and

rehearsed.  In most cases the simple, impoverished-looking people were

trained actors who spoke fluent English, but answered quesfions in a

stumbling, broken accent.  Their tearful appeals to five permanently in

California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas drew a wave of sob-sister

support across the nation when the segments ran on the evening news and

the morning talk shows.

The only ones who stood grim and unimpressed were the dedicated men of

the U.S. Border Patrol.  Until now, the threat of a massive incursion

had only been a nightmare.  Now, they were about to witness the

realization of their worst fears.

Border patrolmen rarely had call to draw their firearms. They treated

illegal immigrants humanely and with respect before shipping them back

home.  They took a dim view of the Army covering the U.S. side of the

river like nests of camouflaged ants.  They saw only disaster and

slaughter in a long line of automatic weapons and the twenty tanks whose

deadly guns were trained on Mexico.

The soldiers were young and efficient as fighting units.  But they were

trained for combat with an enemy who fought back. They were uneasy about

facing a wave of unarmed civilians.

The  commanding  officer, Brigadier General Curfis Chandler, had

barricaded the bridge with tanks and armored cars, but Topiltzin had

planned for that contingency.  The riverbank was packed with every kind

of small boat, wooden raft and truck inner tube gleaned within two

hundred miles.  Footbridges made of rope were stretched out and knotted

to be carried across by the first wave and positioned.

General Chandler's intelligence officer estimated an initial rush of

twenty thousand before the flotilla returned, loaded and ferried the

next wave.  He couldn't begin to guess the number of swimmers.  One of

his female agents had penetrated the dining trailer used by Topiltzin

aides and reported the storm would be launched in the late evening after

the Aztec messiah had whipped his devotees into near-frenzy.  But she

couldn't learn which evening.

Chandler had served three tours in Vietnam; he knew first-hand what it

was like to kill fanatical young women and boys who struck without

seaming out of the jungle.  He gave orders to fire over the heads of the

mob when they began their move across the water.

If the warning barrage did not stop them- Chandler was a soldier who

performed his duty without question.  If ordered, he would use the

forces under his command to repel the peaceful invasion rrgardless of

the cost in blood.

Pitt stood on the second-story sun deck of Sam Trinity's store and

peered through a telescope used by the Texan to gaze at the stars.  The

sun had dropped over the western range of hills and daylight was fading,

but the staged spectacle on the other side of the Rio Grande was about

to begin.  Batteries of multicolored floodlights burst out, some

sweeping patterns in the sky while odiers beaxned on a tall tower that

had been erected in the center of the town.

He focused on and magnified a tiny figure wearing a white ankle-length

robe and colorful headdress who stood on a narrow platform atop the

tower.  Pitt judged it-from the upraised and brisk movement of the arms

that the center of attraction was engaged in a fervent speech.

"I wonder who the character is in the jazzy costume stirring up the

natives?"

Sandecker sat  with  Lily,  examining  the  underground  profile

recordings from the survey.  He looked up at Pitts question. "Probably

that phony Topiltzin," he grunted.

"He can sway a crowd with the best of the Evangelists."

"any sign they'll attempt the crossing tonight?" asked Lily.

Pin leaned back from the telescope and shook his head. "They're hard at

work on their fleet, but I doubt if it will come for another forty-eight

hours.  Topiltzin won't launch his big push until he's certain he

commands the lead news story of the day.  "

"Topiltzin -s an alias," Sandecker informed him.  "His real name is

Robert Capesterre."

"He's got himself a thriving racket."

Sandecker held up one thumb and forefinger an inch apart. "Capesterre is

that far away from taking over Mexico."

"If that convention on the other side of the river is any indication,

he's after the entire American Southwest too."

Lily stood up and stretched.  "This sitting around is driving me crazy.

We do all the work, and the army engineers get all the glory. Preventing

us from watching over the excavation and keeping us off Sam's property-I

think it's rude of them."

Pitt and Sandecker both smiled at Lily's feminine choice of words.  "I

could put it a little stronger than rude, " said the Admiral.

Lily chewed nervously on the tip of a pen.  "Why no word from the

Senator?   We should have heard something by now."

"I can't say," replied Sandecker.  "All he told me after I explained

Dirk's setup, was that he'd somehow work a deal."

"Wish we knew how it was going," Lily murmured. Trinity appeared on the

stairs below wearing an apron. "Anybody care for a bowl of my famous

Trinity chili?"

Lily gave him an uneasy look.  "How hot is it?"

"Little lady, I can make it as mild on your stomach as a marshmallow or

as fiery as battery acid.  any way you like it."

"I'll go with the marshmallow," Lily decided without hesitation.

Before Pitt and Sandecker could put in their order, Trinity turned and

stared through the dusk at a stream of headlights approaching up the

road.  "Must be another army convoy," he announced.  "Been no cars or

trucks come this way since that General closed off the roads and

rerouted all the traffic to the north

Soon they counted five trucks led by a hunner, the vehicle that replaced

the durable jeep.  The truck bringing up the rear pulled a trailer with

a canvas-covered piece of equipment.  The convoy did not Turn off the

road toward the engineers' encampment on Gongora Hill or continue into

Roma as expected.  The trucks followed the hummer into the driveway of

Sam's Roman Circus and stopped between the gas pumps and the store.  The

passengers climbed from the hummer and looked around.

Pitt immediately recognized dirty faces.  Two of the men were in uniform

while the third wore a sweater and denims.  Pitt climbed carefully over

the railing and lowered himself until he was only a few feet off the

ground.  Then he let go and landed directly in front of them, uttering a

low groan at the sudden pain from his wounded leg. They were as startled

by his sudden appearance as he was by theirs.

"Where'd you drop from?" asked Al Giordino with a broad smile.  He

looked pale under the floodlights and his arm was in a sling, but he

looked testy as ever.

"I was about to ask you the same thing."

Colonel Hollis stepped forward.  "I didn't think we'd meet up again so

quickly."

"Nor I," added Major Dillenger.

Pitt felt a vast wave of relief rush over him as he grasped their

outstretched hands.  "To say I'm glad to see you has to be the year's

understatement.  How is it you're here?"

"Your father used his powers of persuasion on the Joint Chiefs of

Staff," explained Hollis.  "I'd hardly finished my report on the Lady

Flamborough mission when orders came down to assemble the teams and rush

here by vehicle transportation, using back-country roads.  All very hush

and classified. I was told the field commander would not be apprised of

our mission until I reported to him."

"General Chandler," said Pitt.

"Yes, steel-trap Chandler.  I served under him in NATO eight years ago.

Still thinks armor alone can win wars.  So he's got the dirty job of

playing Horatio defending the bridge."

"What are your orders?" asked Pitt.

"To assist you and Dr. Sharp on whatever project you've got going.

Admiral Sandecker is to act as a direct line to the Senator and the

Pentagon.  That's about all I know."

"No mention of the White House?"

"None that's down on paper." He turned as Lily and the Admiral, who had

taken the long way down the inside stairs, walked out the front door. As

lily embraced Giordino, and Dillenger introduced Hollis to Sandecker,

Hollis pulled Pitt aside.

"What the devil is going on around here?" he muttered.  "A circus?"

Pitt grinned.  "You don't know how close you are."

"Where do my special forces fit in?"

"When the free-for-all starts," said Pitt,  g deadly serious, "your job

is to blow the store."

The backhoe the Special Operations Forces had transported from Virginia

was huge.  Wide treads moved its massive bulk up the slope to a site

marked by one of Lily's small marker flags.  After ten minutes of

instruction and a little practice, Pitt memorized the lever functions

and began operating the steel behemoth on his own.  He raised the

two-and-a-half-meterwide bucket and then brought it down like a giant

claw, striking the hard ground with a loud clang.

In less than an hour a trench six meters deep and twenty meters in

length had been carved on the rear slope of the hill. That was as far as

the excavation progressed when a Chevrolet four-wheel Blazer staff car

came barreling through the underbrush with a truckload of armed soldiers

following in its dust.

The wheels had not yet stopped turning when a captain with a

ramrod-straight back and the eyes of a man driven by an inspired

dedication to army discipline and standard operating procedure jumped to

the ground.

"This is a restricted area," he snapped smartly.  "I warned you people

personally two days ago not to reenter.  You must remove your equipment

and leave immediately."

Pitt indifferently climbed down from his seat and stared into the bottom

of the trench as though the officer didn't exist.

The Captain's face went red and he barked to his sergeant, "Sergeant

O'Hara, prepare the men to escort these civilians from the area."

Pitt slowly turned and smiled pleasantly.  "Sorry, but we're staying

put."

The Captain smiled back, but his smile was scorching.  "You have three

minutes to leave and take that backhoe with you."

"Do you care to see papers authorizing us to be here?"

"Unless they were signed by General Chandler, you're chewing air."

"They come from a higher command than your general."

"You have three minutes," the Captain said flatly.  "Then I will have

you forcibly removed."

Lily, Giordino and the Admiral, who were sitting out of the sun in

Trinity's borrowed Jeep Wagoneer, walked over to take in the show.

Lillie was wearing only a halter and tight shorts. She saucily paraded

up and down in front of the line of soldiers.

Women who have never worked the streets as hookers cannot walk with a

seductive swing and sway that appears in a natural phenomenon.  They

tend to exaggerate, to the point of slapstick.  Lily was no exception,

but the men could not have cared less.  They ate up the performance.

Pitt began to tense with anger.  He knew pompous people. "You have only

twelve men, Captain.  Twelve engineers with less than a hundred hours of

combat.  I have forty men behind me, any two of whom could kill your

entire force in less than ten seconds with their bare hands.  I'm

telling you to back off."

The Captain made a casual three-hundred and sixty degree scan, but all

he saw besides Pitt were Lily standing in front of the troops, a man

named Sandecker, who was unconcernedly puffing a large cigar, and a man

he hadn't seen before wearing an arm sling.  They were both leaning

against the Jeep as if they were half-asleep.

He glanced quickly at Pitt, but Pitts eyes gave no hint of emotion.  He

made a forward motion with his hand.  "Sergeant, move people the hell

out of here."

Before his men had taken two steps, Colonel Hollis seemed to appear as

if by magic.  The colors of his camouflaged battle fatigues and

grease-blurred hands and face were incredibly faithful to the

surrounding foliage.  Standing less than five meters away, he blended

into the underbrush nearly to the point of invisibility.

"Do we have a problem?" Hollis asked the Captain about as charitably as

a sidewillder eyeing a gopher.

The Captain's mouth dropped open and his men froze in position.  He took

a few steps closer and gawked at Hollis more carefully, seeing no

obvious sign of rank.

"Who are you?" he blurted.  "What is your outfit?"

"Colonel Morton Hollis, Special Operations Forces."

"Captain Louis Cranston, sir, 486th Engineering Battalion."

Salutes were exchanged.  Hollis nodded toward the line of engineers,

their automatic weapons at the ready.  "I think you can give the order

for your men to stand at rest."

Cranston was unsure what to make of an unfamiliar colonel who appeared

out of nowhere.  "May I ask, Colonel, what a Special Forces officer is

doing here?"

"Seeing that these people are allowed to conduct an archaeological

survey without interference."

"I must remind you, sir, civilians are not permitted in a restricted

military zone."

"Suppose I told you they have the authority to be here."

"Sorry, Colonel.  I am under direct orders from General Chandler.  He

was very explicit.  No one, and that includes yourself, sir, who is not

a member of the battalion is to be allowed to enter-"

"Am I to understand you intend to throw me out as well?"

"If you can't present signed orders from General Chandler for your

presence," Cranston said nervously, "I will obey my instructions."

"Your hardnose position won't win you any medals, Captain.  I think

you'd better reconsider."

Cranston knew damned well he was being toyed with and he didn't like it.

"Please, no trouble, Colonel."

"You load up your men and return to your base, and don't even think of

looking back."

Pitt was enjoying the encounter, but he reluctantly turned away and

climbed down into the trench.  He began probing the dirt on the bottom.

Giordino and Sandecker idly strolled over to the edge and watched him.

Cranston hesitated.  He was outranked, but his orders were clear, He

decided his stance was firm.  General Chandler would back him if there

was an investigation.

But before he could order his men to clear the area, Hollis took a

whistle from a pocket and blew two shrill blasts.

Like ghosts rising from the graves of a horror movie, forty forms that

looked more like bushes and undergrowth than men suddenly materialized

and formed a loose circle around containing Cranston and his men.

Hollis's eyes turned venomous.  "Bang, you're dead."

"You called, boss?" said a bush  that  sounded  like  Dillenger.

Cranston's cockiness collapsed.  "I . . . must report this . . . to

General Chandler," he stammered.

"You do that," said Hollis coldly.  "You can also inform him that my

orders come from General Clayton Metcalf of the Joint Chiefs.  This can

be verified through communications to the Pentagon.  These people and my

team are not here to interfere with your excavation on Gongora Hill or

get in the way of the General's operations along the river.  Our job is

to find and preserve Roman surface artifacts before they're lost or

stolen. Do you'read, Captain?"

"I understand, sir," replied Cranston, gazing around uneasily at the

purposeful-looking men, whose facial expressions appeared frightful

under the camouflage makeup.

"Found another one!" Pitt shouted, unseen below ground.

Sandecker excitedly waved everyone to the trench.  "He's got something."

The confrontation was momentarily forgotten as the Engineers and SOF men

clustered around the rim of the trench.  Pitt was on his hands and

knees, brushing away loose dirt from a long metallic object.

In a few minutes he pulled it free and very carefully passed it up to

Lily.

The flippancy was gone now as she examined the ancient relic.

"Fourth-century sword with definite Roman characteristics," she

announced.  "Neatly intact with little corrosion."

"May I?" asked Hollis.

She held it out to him and he gently clasped his hand around the hilt

and lifted the blade above his head.  "Just think," he murmured

reverently, "the last man to hold this was a Roman legionary." Then he

graciously passed it to Cranston.  "How'd you like to fight a battle

with this instead of an automatic firearm?"

"I'd prefer a bullet any day," Cranston said thoughtfully, "to being

hacked to shreds."

As soon as the Engineers left on the short drive back to their

encampment, Pitt turned to Hollis.

"My compliments on your camouflage.  I only detected three out of your

whole team."

"It was eerie," said Lily, "knowing you were all around us but not

visible."

Hollis looked genuinely embarrassed.  "We're more used to concealment in

jungle or forest.  This was a good field exercise for semi-arid

terrain."

"An excellent job," added Sandecker, pumping Hollis's hand.

"Let's hope General Chandler buys the good Captain's report," said

Giordino.

"If he bothers to hear it," Pitt replied.  "The General's most urgent

business is to stop half a million aliens from flooding across the

border and grabbing the Library's art and knowledge.  He doesn't have

time to fool with us."

"What  about  the  Roman  sword?"  asked  Hollis, holding it UP "That

goes back in Sam's museum collection."

Hollis looked at Pitt.  "You didn't find it in the trench?"

"No."

"You get a Turn on digging holes?"

Pitt acted as though he hadn't heard Hollis.  He walked a short distance

to the summit of the hill and looked down the slope into Mexico.  The

tent city had swelled to twice what it was the previous day.  Tomorrow

night, he thought.  Topiltzin would unleash the stampede tomorrow night.

He turned to his left and stared up at the slightly higher Gongora Hill.

The Army Engineers were digging exactly where Lily had placed her stakes

four days ago.  They made two separate excavations.  One was at the

common tunnel, complete with overhead supports.  The other was an open

mine, a gouged crater in the side of the hill.  Work was going slowly

since General Chandler had pulled away most of the Engineers to help in

the border defense.

Pitt turned and came back down the trench.  He walked up to Hollis.

"Who's your best demolition expert?"

"Major Dillenger is one of the best explosive ordinance men in the

army."

"I need about two hundred kilograms of C-six nitroglycerin gel .

Hollis looked at him in genuine surprise.  "Two hundred kilograms of

C-six?   Ten kilos can take out a battleship.  Do you know what you're

asking?   The nitrogel mix is shock-hazardous."

"Also a battery of spotlights," Pitt pressed on.  "We can borrow them

from a rock-concert group.  Spotlights, strobe lights, and

ear-drum-blasting audio equipment." Then he turned to Lily.  "I'll leave

it to you to find a carpenter who can knock together a box."

"Why in God's name do you want all that stuff ?" Lily asked, eyes wide

with curiosity.

"You don't want to know," Giordino moaned.

"I'll explain later," Pitt hedged.

"Sounds crazy to me," said Lily, uncomprehending.

The lady was only half right, Pitt thought.  His plan was twice as crazy

as anything she could conceive.  But he kept everyone in the dark.  He

didn't think now was the right time to tell them he planned to take his

act on the stage.

The green Volvo with the taxi markings stopped at the drive of Yazid's

villa near Alexandria.  The Egyptian army guards, who were posted by the

personal order of President Hasan, stiffened into alertness at the gate

as the taxi sat there without anyone's getting out.

Ammar sat in the back seat, his eyes and jaw heavily bandaged.  He wore

a blue silk robe and a small red turban.  His Only medical treatment

since escaping Santa Inez had come during a two-hour visit to a

back-street Buenos Aires surgeon before chartering a private jet to fly

him across the ocean to the small airport outside the city.

He no longer felt pain in his empty eye sockets.  The drugs took care of

that, but it was still agony to speak through his shattered jaw.  And

although he felt a strange sense of tranquility, his mind functioned as

ruthlessly and efficiently as ever.

"We ate here," said Ibn from the driver's seat.

Ammar visualized Yazid's vffla in his mind-every detail as if he could

actually see.  "I know," he said simply.

"You do not have to do this  g, Suleiman Aziz."

"I have no more hopes or fears.  " Ammar spoke slowly, fighting the pain

of each syllable.  "It is the will of Allah."

Ibn swung from behind the wheel, opened the rear door and helped Ammar

to climb out.  He led Ammar up the driveway and turned him so he faced

the heavily guarded gate.

"The gate is five meters in front of you," Ibn spoke haltingly in a

voice heavy with emotion.  He gently embraced Ammar.  "Goodbye, Suleiman

Aziz.  I will miss you."

"Do what you promised, my friend, and we will meet in Allah's gar-den."

Ibn quickly turned and retraced his steps to the car.  Ammar stood

without moving until he heard the sound of the engine fade in the

distance.  Then he approached the gate.

"Stop right there, blind man," ordered a guard.

"I have come to visit my nephew, Akhmad Yazid," said Ammar.

The guard nodded to another, who disappeared into a small office and

came out with a folder containing twenty or so names.

"Uncle, you say.  What's your name?"

Ammar enjoyed making his last play as an impostor.  He had collected on

an old debt from a colonel in Abu Haniid's Defense Ministry and received

the list of names of those permitted entry into Yazid's villa.  He

selected one who couldn't be immediately contacted.

"Mustapha Mahfouz."

"Your name is here all light.  Let's see your identification."

The guard studied Ammar's counterfeit ID, fruitlessly trying to compare

the photo with the heavily bandaged features.

"What happened to your face?"

"The car bomb that exploded in the bazaar at El Mansura.  I was struck

by flying debris."

"Too bad," the guard said without sincerity.  "You can blame your

nephew.  It was his followers who set it off." He gestured to a

subordinate.  "If he clears the metal detector, guide him up to the

house."

Ammar held out his arms as if he expected to be frisked.

"No need for a body search, Mahfouz. if you're carrying a weapon, the

machine will spot it."

The metal detector revealed nothing and did not sound.

The front door: Ammar gloated as the Egyptian army security guard led

him up the steps to the front door.  No having to sneak in a side

passage this time.  He sorely wished he could see the look on Yazid's

face when they met.

He was guided into what he perceived to be a large entry hall by the

echo of the guard's boots on the tile floor.  He was helped to a stone

bench, and he sat down.

"Wait here."

Ammar heard the guard mumble to someone before returning to the gate. He

sat in silence for several minutes.  Then he heard approaching footsteps

followed by a contemptuous voice.

"You are Mustapha Mahfouz?"

Ammar recognized the voice instantly.  "Yes," he answered casually.  "Do

I know you?"

"We have not met.  I am Khaled Fawzy, leader of Akhmad's revolutionary

council."

"I've heard good things about you." The arrogant jackass, thought Ammar.

He doesn't know me under the bandages or by the slow rasp of my speech.

"it is indeed an honor to meet you.  "

"Come along," said Fawzy, taking Ammar by the arm.  "I'll take you to

Akhmad.  He thought you were still on a mission for him in Damascus.  I

don't think he's aware of your injuries."

"The result of an assassination attempt three days ago,,, Ammar lied

artfully.  "I left the hospital only this morning and flew straight here

to brief Akhmad first hand."

"Akhrnad will be pleased to hear of your loyalty.  He will also be

saddened to learn of your injuries.  Unfortunately your visit is poorly

timed."

"I cannot meet with him?"

"He is at prayer," Fawzy said curtly.

Despite  his  suffering, Ammar could have laughed. He slowly became

aware of another presence in the room.  "It is vital he receive me."

"You  may  speak  freely  to me, mustapha Mahfouz." The name was spoken

with heavy sarcasm.  "I will relay your message."

:Tell Akhmad it concerns his ally."

'Who"" Fawzy demanded.  "What ally?'

"Topiltzin."

The name seemed  to  hang  in  the  room  for  an  interminable time.

The stillness became intense.  And then it was broken by a new voice.

"You should have stayed and died on the island, Suleiman," said Akhmad

Yazid in a menacing tone.

Ammar's calm did not desert him.  He had set his genius and last bit of

strength for this moment.  He was not about to wait for death.  He was

going to step forward and embrace it.  Not for him a life of perpetual

darkness and disfigurement-revenge was his deliverance.

"I could not die without standing in your forgiving presence one last

time."

"Save your babble and remove those stupid bandages. You're losing your

touch.  Your crude imitation of Mahfbuz was fourth-rate for a man of

your skills."

Ammar did not reply.  He slowly unwrapped the bandages until the ends

came free, and he dropped them on the floor.

Yazid audibly sucked in his breath when he saw the hideous disfigurement

of Ammar's face.  Sadistic blood ran in Fawzy's veins: he stared with

the perverted duill of one who enjoyed the sight of human wreckage.

"My payment for my service," Annnar slowly rasped.

"How is it you're alive?" Yazid asked, his voice shaken.

"My faithful friend Ibn hid me from the American Special Forces for two

days until he fashioned a raft out of driftwood. After drifting with the

current and paddling for ten hours, by the grace of Allah we were picked

up by a Chilean fishing boat that set us ashore near a small airport at

Puerto Williams. We stole an airplane and flew to Buenos Aires, where I

chartered a jet to bring us to Egypt."

"That does not come easy to you," muttered Yazid. "You realize you

signed your death warrant by coming here," Fawzy purred with

anticipation.

"I expected little else."

"Suleiman Aziz Ammar," said Yazid with a trace of sadness.  "The

greatest assassin of his time, feared and respected by the CIA and the

KGB, the creator of the most successful assassinations ever carried out.

And to think you should end as a filthy, pathetic beggar in the

streets."

"What are you saying, Akhmad?" asked Fawzy in surprise.

"The man is already dead." Yazid's disgust was slowly turning to

satisfaction.  "Our financial experts will arrange for his wealth and

investments to be taken over in my name.  Then he will be turned out in

the streets with twenty-four-hour guards to make certain he remains in

the slums.  He will spend the rest of his days begging to exist.  that

is far worse than a quick death."

"You will have me killed when I tell you what I came to say,"  said

Ammar conversationally.

"I'm listening," said Yazid inpatiently.

"I dictated a complete fifty-page report of the entire Flamborough

affair- All names, conversations, and dates were carefully itemized,

everything, including my observations on the Mexican part of the

operation and my opinion on the connection between you and Topiltzin.

Copies are being read at this moment by the intelligence services of

western countries and members of their news media.  However you deal

with me, Akhmad, knowing you're finished '

He broke off abruptly, gasped as his entire head burst into excruciating

agony.  Fawzy's face was livid and teeth gnashed in rage, struck Ammar

with his fist.  The impact did not carry the solid weight of a planned

punch.  Fawzy's unthinking, explosive action came from complete loss of

self-control.  The blow glanced off one side of Ammar's injured jaw.

A  man  in  good  physical condition would have pulled it Off, but he

was a wounded man on the brink of unconsciousness.  Delicate scar tissue

around his eyes and jaw split apart He fell backward, warding off

Fawzy's blows with his hands and arms, fighting to clear ills mind of

the pain, face white, blood spurting.

"Stop!" Yazid shouted at Fawzy.  can't you see the man is trying to die.

He maybe lying, hoping we'll kill him here and now."

Ammar reclaimed a measure of mental control, positioning the sound of

Yazid's voice, the location of Fawzy.

He reached out with his left hand and moved slowly forward until he was

certmn he touched yazid's arm.  Then he clutched it and made a movement

that brought it up behind his neck.

The composite knife was pressed tightly into the slight indentation just

to the right of Ammar's upper arm secured by white surgical tapeKnown as

a utility device by undercover operatives, it was designed to pass

safely through metal detectors.

Annnar tore the thin, triangular-shaped, eighteen-centimeter blade from

his back, whipped back his elbow like a piston, then rammed the knife

into Yazid's chest just under the rib cage.

The vicious thrust lifted the revolutionary Muslim impersonator off his

feet.  Paul Capesterre's eyes bulged in shock and terror.  His only

sound was a hoarse gurgle.

"Farewell, vermin," Ammar croaked through his bleeding mouth.

And then the knife was jerked free and he made a sweeping arc toward the

spot where he sensed Fawzy was standing.  The knife wasn't designed for

a slashing attack, but his hand came in contact with Fawzy's face, and

he felt the blade slice the cheek.

Ammar knew Fawzy was right-handed and always carried a gun, an old

nine-millimeter Luger in a holster slung under the left armpit.  He fell

against Fawzy, attempting to clutch the arrogant fanatic, while shoving

the knife upward again.

Without sight, his timing was late.

Fawzy had swiftly drawn the Luger.  He pushed the barrel into Ammar's

stomach and triggered two rounds before the knife drove into his heart.

He dropped the gun and clutched at his chest.  He swayed a few steps to

his side, staring down with a swaying quizzical look at the knife

protruding on an upward angle below his sternum.  Finally his eyes

rolled upward and he dropped to the floor only a meter from where

Capesterre had fallen.

Ammar very slowly sank to the ceramic tile floor and settled on his

back.  There was no more pain, none at all.  He saw visions without his

eyes.  He could feel his life ebbing away as if it were floating down a

stream.

His fate had been decided by a man he'd only met briefly. The unage came

back of the tall man with the green eyes and the set grin.  A wave of

hate surged and just as quickly passed. Dirk Pitt-the name was etched in

the darkening reaches of his mind.

He felt a euphoric contentment close over him.  His last thought was

that Ibn would take care of Pitt.  Then the slate would be wiped

clean....

The President sat in a leather armchair and stared at four television

monitOrs- Three were tuned to the major networks, while the fourth was a

direct feed from an ArTny communications truck at Roma.  He looked  ,

but his eyes glistened with intensity.  They roved steadily from one

monitor to the next; his face was set in concentration.

"I can't believe so many people can exist in so small an area," he said

wonderingly.

"Their food has about run out," said Schiller,  g from an

up-to-the-minute CIA report.  " g water is scarce, and the sanitation

facilities are backed up."

"It's tonight or never," sighed Nichols wearily.

The President asked, "What kind of numbers are we looking at?"

"A computer head-wunt from an aerial photograph shows nearly four

hundred and thirty-five thousand," replied Schiller.

"And they're going to pour  ugh a corridor less than a kilometer wide,"

Nichols said grimly.

"Damn that murdering bastard!" the President said savagely. "Doesn't he

realize or care that thousands will be killed or drowned in the crush

alone?"

"A majority of them women and children," added Nichols.

"The Capesterres aren't known for charity and goodwill," muttered

Schiller acidly.

"Still not too late to remove him." This from CIA director Martin

Brogan.  "Killing Topiltzin would be comparable to assassinating Hitler

in 1930."

"Providing your hired gun got close enough," commented Nichols.

"Afterward, he'd be butchered by the crowd."

"I was thinking of a high-powered rifle from four hundred meters."

Schiller shook his head.  "Not a practical solution.  A clear shot could

only come from an elevation on our side of the river.  The Mexicans

would know immediately who was responsible.  Then things could Turn real

ugly.  Instead of a peaceful crowd, General Chandler's troops would be

facing a maddened mob.  They'd storm Roma with any weapons they could

find, guns, knives, rocks and bottles.  Then we'd have a real war on our

hands."

"I concur," said Nichols.  "General Chandler would have no choice but to

open up with everything he had to save his men and any American citizens

in the area."

The President struck the arm of the chair with his clenched fist in

frustration.  "Is there nothing we can do to prevent mass slaughter?"

"any way we look at it," said Nichols, "we're on the short end of the

stick."

"Maybe we should say the hell with it and Turn over the Alexandria

Library's treasure to President De L4orenzo.  Anything to keep it out of

Topiltzin's filthy hands."

"A meaningless gesture," said Brogan.  "Topiltzin's only using the

artifacts as an excuse for a confrontation.  Our intelligence sources

report he plans the same immigrant invasions from Baja into Southern

California and across the border at Nogales into Arizona."

"If only we can stop this madness," muttered the President.

One of four phones buzzed, and Nichols picked it up.  "General Chandler,

Mr. President.  He's coming through on a scrambled frequency."

The President let out a long breath.  "Staring into the face of the man

I may have to order to kill ten thousand people is the least I can do."

The  monitor  faded  for  a  moment  and  then  came  back with the head

and shoulders of a man who was in his late forties.

His face was gaunt and his heavily silvered hair was bare of helmet or

cap.  The stress of command showed in the lines around the blue eyes.

"Good morning, General," the President greeted him.  "I regret I can see

you and you can't see me, but there is no camera at this end."

"I understand, Mr. President."

"What is the situation?"

"A heavy rain is just starting to fall, which should prove a godsend for

those poor people.  They can replenish their water supplies, dust will

be dampened, and the stench from their latrines is already beginning to

diminish."

"Have there been any provocations?"

"The usual taunts and banners, but no violence."

"from what you can observe, have any of the crowd become discouraged and

started drifting back to their homes?"

"No, sir," replied Chandler.  "if anything, they're more enthused.  They

think their Aztec messiah brought the rain, and he's pounded his chest

to convince them of it.  Groups of Catholic priests have been

circulating among the people, preaching and begging them to return to

the church and their homes.  But Topiltzin's goons quickly escort the

good fathers out of town."

"Martin Brogan thinks they'll make their move tonight."

"My intelligence agrees with Mr. Brogan's timetable." The General

hesitated before asking the fateful question.  "any change in orders,

Mr. President?   I'm still to stop them at any cost?"

"Until I tell you different, General."

"I must state, sir, you've placed me in a very awkward situation.  I

cannot guarantee my men will cut down women and especially children if

so ordered."

"I'm in sympathy with your position.  But if the line is not held in

Roma, millions of poor Mexicans will see it as an open invitation to

pour into the United States unhindered."

"I can't argue the point, Mr. President.  But if we let loose a wall of

modern firepower into half a million people jammed shoulder to shoulder,

history will convict us of committing a crime against humanity."

Chandler's words  triggered  the  horror  of  Nazi  vileness  and the

Nuremberg tnals in the President's mind, but he stiffened his resolve.

"Repugnant as the thought is, General," he said solemnly, "the

consequences of unaction are unlikely. My National Security experts

predict that a wave of self-preservation hysteria will sweep the

country, resulting in the formation of vigilante amiies to beat back the

flood of illegal immigrants.  No Mexican-Americans will be safe.  The

death toll on both sides could climb to astronomical proportions.

Conservative legislators will rise up and demand Congress vote a formal

declaration of war against Mexico.  I don't even want to think about

what happens after that possibility."

Everyone in the room could clearly see the confusion of conflicting

thoughts and emotions that were swirling through the General's mind.

When he spoke it was in a quiet, controlled voice.

"I respectfully request we stay in close communication until the

incursion."

"Understood, General," agreed the President.  "My National Security

advisers and I will gather in the Situation Room shortly."

"Thank you, Mr. President."

The image of General Chandler was cut to a closeup of a small barge

being pulled into the water on rollers by nearly a hundred men using

ropes.

"Well," said Schiller, shaking his head as if marveling at it all,

"we've done all we can to contain the bomb but failed to keep the

explosion from becoming irreversible.  Now all we can do is sit by and

be consumed."

They came an hour after dark.

Men, women and children, some barely able to walk, all held lighted

candles.  The low clouds that lingered after the rainstorm glowed orange

from the spraw g ocean of flickering flame.

They came in one gigantic swell toward the shoreline, voices slowly

rising in an ancient chant.  The sound grew from a hum to a loud drone

that rolled across the river and cau  windows to vibrate in Roma.

Country refugees and city poor, who had abandoned their mud hovels,

corrugated tin shacks and cardboard carton shelters in destitute

villages or noxious slums, came as one. They were galvanized by

Topiltzin's pro se of a new dawning of the once-mighty Aztec empire on

former lands in the United States.  They were desperate people on the

bottom rung of wrenching poverty, driven to grasp at any hope for a

better life.

They moved at a snail's pace, one short step at a time to the waiting

fleet of boats.  They came down the roads that were muddy and puddled

from the rain.  Small children whined in fear as their mothers carried

or led them onto unstable rafts that dipped and bobbed during the

boarding.

Hundreds  were  fo into  the  river  by the crush behind.

Frightened cries came from a multitude of young victims as they were

pushed into water over their heads.  Many went under or drifted away

with the current before they could be rescued, a near-impossible job,

since most of the men were grouped farther to the rear.

Slowly, in disorganized confusion, the hundreds of boats and rafts began

to pull away for the opposite shore.

The American Army's floodlights, joined by those of the television

crews, brightly illuminated the turmoil swelling across the river.

The soldiers stared in uneasy fascination at the tragedy and the human

wall advancing toward them.

General Chandler stood on the roof of Roma's police station in the

center of the bluff.  His face was gray under the lights, and there was

a look of despair in his eyes.  The scene was far more appalling than

his worst fears.

He spoke into a small microphone clipped to his collar. "Can you see,

Mr. President?   Can you see the madness?"

President stared fixedly at the huge monitor in the Situation Room.

"Yes, General, the transmission is coming in clearly."

He sat at the end of a long table, flanked by his closest advisors,

cabinet members and two of the four Joint Chiefs of Staff.  They all

gazed at the incredible spectacle that was displayed in stereophonic

sound and vivid color.

The fastest boats had touched shore, and their passengers quickly

scrambled out.  Only when the first wave was fully across and the fleet

on its way back for the next passengers did the mob assemble and press

forward.  The few men who had crossed over were walking up and down the

shore with bullhorns, encouraging and urging the women forward.

Clutching their candles and their children while chanting in the Aztec

language, the women began scrambling up the bluff like an army of ants

gathering around a rock in expectation of joining again on the other

side.

The terror-haunted looks of the children and the determined faces of

their mothers as they stared into the muzzles of the guns were shown by

the cameras.  Topiltzin said his divine powers would protect them, and

they fervently believed him.

"Good lord!" exclaimed Doug Oates.  "The entire first wave is made up of

Women and little kids."

No one commented on Oates's alarming observation.  The men in the

Situation Room watched with growing dread as another crowd of women

began to lead their children across the bridge and toward the tanks and

armored cars solidly blocking their way.

"General," said the President.  "Can you fire a volley over their

heads?"

"Yes, sir," replied Chandler.  "I've ordered my troops to load blank

rounds.  The risk of hitting innocent people beyond the town is too

great to use live ammo."

"A sound decision," said General Metcalf of the Joint Chiefs.  "Curtis

knows what he's doing."

General Chandler turned to one of his aides.  "Give the command to fire

a blank salvo."

The aide, a major, barked into a radio receiver.  "Blank salvo, fire!"

The thunderous roar spat a wall of flame into the night.  The concussion

came like a gust of wind, blowing out many of the candles held by the

throng.  The ear-splitting clap from the tank cannon and the crackle of

small-arms fire reverberated throughout the valley.

Ten seconds.  Ten seconds it took between the commands to "fire" and

"cease fire," and for the rumble to echo back from the low hills behind

Roma.

A paralyzing silence, pierced by the pungent smell of cordite, fell over

the stunned multitude.

Then the screams of the women shattered the quiet, quickly joined by the

shrieks of the terrified children.  Most dropped in horror to the ground

while the rest remained standing, frozen in shock.  A great outcry

followed from the other side as the men, held back from crossing with

their wives and children, feared the fallen were dead or wounded.

Pandemonium erupted, and for the next few minutes it looked as though

the immigrant invasion had been stopped dead in its tracks.

Then spotlights from the Mexican shore blazed to life and were beamed to

a figure standing atop a small platform supported on the shoulders of

several men in white tunics.

Topiltzin stood with arms outstretched in a parody of Christ, shouting

through speakers, ordering the women who were hugging the ground to rise

up and press forward.  Slowly the shock diminished and everyone began to

realize there were no bloody, mangled bodies.  Many laughed hysterically

to find they were neither injured nor dead.  A rolling cheer went up

that turned deafening as the throng mistakenly thought Topiltzin's

powers had miraculously swept aside the destruction and shielded them

from harm.

"He turned it against us," said Julius Schiller ruefully.

The President shook his head sadly.  "Just as it's happened so many

times in our nation's history, our humane efforts backfire."

"Chandler's in for it," said Nichols.

General Metcalf nodded very slowly.  "Yes, it all falls on his shoulders

now."

The time for the fateful decision had arrived.  There was no dodging the

agonizing issue any longer.  The President, sitting safely deep in the

basement of the White House, remained strangely silent.  He had deftly

passed the time bomb to the niiliL-uy, laying the groundwork for General

Chandler to become the sacrificial scapegoat.

He was between the proverbial rock and a hard place.  He could not allow

an army of foreigners to simply storm across the borders unhindered, but

neither could he risk the downfall of his entire administration by

directly ordering Chandler to slaughter children.

No President ever felt so impotent.

The chanting women and children were only a few short meters away from

the troops entrenched a short distance back of the shoreline.  Those at

the head of the snakelike column of candles crossing the international

bridge were already close enough to look up at the gun muzzles of the

tanks.

General Curtis Chandler had a long and illustrious military career to

look back upon, but nothing to look forward to except a guilt-stricken

conscience.  His wife had died the year before from a long illness, and

they had no children.  A onestar Brigadier General, he had no more rank

to attain in the short time before his retirement.  Now he stood on the

bluff watching hundreds of thousands of illegal inunigrants flood into

his nativ  land and wondered why his life had cruelly culmanated at this

place and time.

The expression on his aide's face bordered on frantic.  "Sir, the order

to fire."

Chandler stared at the little children nervously clutching their

mothers' hands, their candles revealing their wide, dark eyes.

"General, your orders?" the aide implored.

Chandler mumbled something, but the aide couldn't hear it over the

chanting.  "I'm sorry, General, did you say 'Fire'?"

Chandler turned and his eyes glistened.  "Let them pass."

"Sir?"

"Those are my orders, Major.  I'm damned if I'll go to my grave a baby

killer.  And for God's sake don't even say the words 'Don't fire,' in

case some dumb platoon commander misunderstands."

The Major nodded and hurriedly spoke into his microphone. "To all

commanders, General Chandler's orders; make no hostile move and allow

the immigrants to pass through our lines, repeat, stand down and let

them through."

With immeasurable relief, the American soldiers lowered their weapons

and stood stiff and uneasy for a few minutes. Then they relaxed and

began flirting with the women and, kneeling down, playing with the

children and gently cajoling them to wipe away their tears.

"Forgive me, Mr. President," said Chandler, speaking into a camera.  "I

regret I must end my military career by refusing a direct order from my

Commander-in-Chief, but I felt that under the circumstances .

"Not to worry," replied the President.  "You did a magnificent job." He

turned to General Metcalf.  "I don't care where he stands on the

seniority list; please see that Curtis receives another star."

"I'll be more than happy to take care of it, sir."

"Good call, Mr. President," said Schiller,  realizing  the  President's

silence had all been a bluff.  "You certainly knew your man."

There was a faint smile in the President's eyes.  "I served with Curtis

Chandler when we were Lieutenants of Artillery in Korea.  He would have

fired on a vicious, out-of-control, armed mob, but women and babies,

never."

General Metcalf also saw through the facade.  "You still took a terrible

chance."

The President nodded in agreement.  "Now I have to answer to the

American people for the unopposed invasion of their land by masses of

illegal aliens."

"Yes, but your show of restraint will be a strong bargaining chip for

future negotiations with President De Lorenzo and other Central American

leaders," Oates consoled him.

"In the meantime," added Mercier, "our military and law enforcement

agencies will be quietly rounding up Topiltzin's followers and herding

them back across the border before the threat of vigilante warfare

breaks out."

"I want the operation to be conducted as humanely as possible," the

President said firmly.

"Haven't we forgotten something, Mr. President?" asked Metcalf.

"General?"

"The Alexandria Library.  Nothing stands in the way now of Topiltzin's

looting the artifacts."

The President turned to Senator Pitt, who had been sitting quietly at

the end of the table.  "Well, George, the Army has struck out, and

you're the last man at bat.  You care to enlighten everyone on your

stopgap plan?"

The Senator looked down at the table.  He didn't want the others to see

the uneasy apprehension in his eyes.  "A desper-ation long shot, a

deception created by my son, Dirk.  I don't know how else to describe

it.  But if everything goes right, Robert Capesterre, a.k.a. Topiltzin,

won't lay his hands on the knowledge of the ancients.  However, if all

goes wrong, as some critics already suggest, the Capesterres will rule

Mexico and the treasure will be lost forever."

Thankfully, the outpouring of religious zeal and Topiltzin's maniacal

grab for power did not end in bloodshed.  There was no death by

misunderstanding.  The only real tragedy was that of the young victim

who had drowned during the first crossing.

Unbound, the massive crowd flowed past the army units and through the

streets of Roma toward Gongora frill.  The chanting had faded and they

shouted slogans in the Aztec tongue that all American and most Mexican

observers could not comprehend.

Topiltzin led the triumphal pilgrimage up the slope of the hill.  The

Aztec god unposter had carefully planned for his role of deliverer.

Seizing the Egyptian treasures would give him the necessary influence

and forcing aside the long reigning Institutional Revolutionary Party of

President De Lorenzo without the inconvenience of a free election.

The head of Mexico was within four hundred meters of falling into

Capesterre family hands.

News of his brother's death in Egypt had not yet reached him.  His close

supporters and advisers had deserted the communications truck during the

excitement and missed the urgent message.  They walked behind

Topiltzin's hand-carried platform, driven by curiosity to see the

artifacts.

Topiltzin stood erect in a white robe with a jaguar-skin cape draped on

his shoulders, clutching a raised pole that flew a banner of the eagle

and the snake.  A forest of portable spotlights were aimed at his

platform, bathing him in a multicolored corona.  The glare distracted

him, and he gestured for some of the lights to sweep the slope ahead.

Except for several pieces of heavy equipment, the excavation seemed

deserted.  None of the Army Engineers was evident near the crater or the

tunnel.  Topiltzin didn't like the look of it.  He spread his hands as a

signal for the advancing mob to halt.  The order was repeated through

loudspeakers until the forward wall of people slowly came to a stop,

every face turned toward Topiltzin, reverently awaiting his next

command.

Suddenly, a bansheelike wail rose from the summit of the hill and

increased in volume until its shrill pitch forced the crowd to cover

their ears with their hands.

Then, an an aray of strobe lights sparkled and flashed across the sea of

faces.  A light display with the magical dazzle of the northern lights

danced in the night sky.  The people stood rooted, gazing entranced at

the extraordinary sight.

The light show grew to an indescribable intensity while the shriek

whipped the air around the countryside with the eerie timbre of a sound

track from a science-fiction movie.

Together the flashing lights and the eerie sounds built to a

breathtaking crescendo, and then the strobe lights went out and the

silence struck with stunning abruptness.

for a full minute the sound rang in everyone's ears, and the lights

skyrocketed in their eyes.  Then an unseen light source very slowly

highlighted a lone figure of a man standing on the peak of the hill. The

effect was startling.  The light rays shimmered and glistened off

metallic objects surrounding his body.

When the man was fully revealed, he was seen to be wearing the fighting

gear of an ancient Roman legionary.

He wore a burgundy tunic under a polished iron cuirass. The helmet on

his head and the greaves protecting his shins were shined to a high

gloss.  A gladius-a double-edged sword-hung at his side, clasped to a

leather sling that went over the opposite shoulder.  One arm held an

oval shield while the opposite hand gripped an uptight pilum thrusting

spear.

Topiltzin stared with curious fascination.  A game, a joke, a theatrical

hoax?   What were the Americans scheming now?   His immense horde of

believers stood in hushed silence and stared at the Roman as if he were

a phantom.  Then they slowly turned back to Topiltzin, waiting

expectantly for their messiah to make the first move.

A bluff born of desperation, he decided finally.  The Americans were

playing their last card in an effort to block his superstitious,

dirt-poor followers from approaching the treasures.

"Could be a trick to kidnap and hold you as a hostage," said one of his

nearby advisers.

There was contemptuous speculation in Topiltzin's eyes. "A trick, yes.

But a kidnap, no.  The Americans know this mob would go on a rampage if

I was threatened.  The ploy is transparent.  Except for the envoy whose

skin I sent back to Washington, I've denied all appeals for talks with

their State Department officials.  This theatrical production is simply

a clumsy attempt at a final face-to-face negotiation.  I'd be interested

to learn what offer they've thrown on the table.  "

Without uttering another word and without listening to further warnings

from his advisers, he ordered the platform lowered to the ground, and he

stepped off.  The spotlights stayed on him as he advanced up the hill

alone and arrogant.  His feet did not show beneath the hem of his robe

and he appeared to glide rather than walk.

He moved at a measured pace, fingering a hoistered Colt Python .357

revolver on a belt under his robe.  He also kept one hand on an orange

smoke bomb in case he required a visual effect to screen a quick escape.

He approached until he could clearly see that the figure in the Roman

legionary costume was a department store mannequin.  It wore an insipid

smile, and the painted eyes stared blankly into nothingness.  The

plaster hands and face were faded and chipped.

An unmistakable curiosity spread on Topiltzin's face as he studied the

dummy, but there was also a look of wariness.  He was sweating freely,

and the white robe had wrinkled and gone limp.

Then a tall man in range boots, denims and a white turtleneck sweater

stepped into the spotlights from behind a thicket of mesquite.  He

peered through opaque green eyes that were as cold as an Arctic ice

floe.  He stopped when he stood beside the mannequin.

Topiltzin felt he had the advantage.  He wasted no time.  He spoke first

in English.  "What did you hope to gain with the dummy and the light

show?"

"Your attention."

"My compliments.  You were successful.  Now if you'll kindly relate your

government's message."

The stranger stared at him for a long moment.  "Anybody ever tell you

your outfit looks like a bed sheet the day after a college fraternity

toga party?"

Topiltzin's expression hardened.  "Did your President hope to insult me

by sending a clown?"

"I believe this is where I'm supposed to say, 'It takes one to know

one."'

"You have one minute to state your case ' he paused and made a sweeping

gesture with his hand- "before I order my people to resume their march."

Pitt turned to the rear of the hill and looked questioningly toward the

many kilometers of dark, open country.  "March where?"

Topiltzin ignored the remark.  "You can begin with your name, your title

and function in the American bureaucracy."

"My name is Dirk Pitt.  My title is Mister Pitt.  My function is United

States taxpayer, and you can go straight to hell."

Topiltzin's eyes blazed darkly.  "Men have died horribly for showing

disrespect to one who speaks directly to the gods."

Pitt smiled with the bored unconcern of the devil being threatened by a

television evangelist.  "If we have to talk, let's cut out the hype and

hot air.  You've misled the poor of Mexico with stage gimmicks while

promising them new lifestyles over the rainbow you can't possibly

deliver.  You're a fraud; from top to bottom you're a fraud.  So don't

talk down to me. I'm not one of your garbage pickers.  I'm not impressed

with criminal scum like Robert Capesterre."

Capesterre opened his mouth, then snapped it shut.  He took a step

backward, surprise showing in his eyes, unable to fully believe what

he'd heard.

Seconds passed while he stared at Pitt.  At last he spoke in a hoarse

whisper.  "How much do you know?"

"Enough," Pitt replied casuaily- "the Capesterre family and their shiny

business are the talk of Washington.  Champagne corks popped all over

the White House when word came in about Your grease-head brother, the

one who he's a Muslim prophet.  Poetic justice, him getting killed by

the terrorist who ordered him to hijack the Lady Flamborough and murder

the passengers.

"My brother ' Capesterre could not spit out the word "dead."

"I don't believe you."

"You didn't know?" Pitt asked, mildly surprised. "I talked to him less

than twenty-four hours ago," Topilwn said adamantly.  "Paul . . . Akhmad

Yazid is alive and well."

"A corpse is not one of his better imitations."

"What do you or your government hope to gain by these games?"

Pitt stared at Capesterre coldly.  "I'm glad you brought that up. The

idea here is to save the Alexandria Library and we can't very well do

that if you unleash your groupies inside the depository chamber. They'll

steal whatever they can to buy or trade for food, and destroy books and

what they don't value."

"You alone can stop them!"

"My followers do what I command."

"The books  and  artworks  have to be catalogued and surveyed by

Archeologists."

"I do not have to allow anything, Mr. Pitt. There will be no

concessions."

"Your military wouldn't turn my people back at the river, therefore the

treasure is mine.

If any attempt is made to stop our removal of the treasure to Mexico, I

shall order it all burned and destroyed."

"I have to give you credit, Capesterre," Pitt muttered in disgust.  "You

think big.  A pity you're allowed to run loose. You could make up a

fifth Napoleon for a poker game in an asylum."

Irritation flickered at the edge of Capesterre's eyes.  "Goodbye, Mr.

Pitt.  My patience is exhausted.  I will genuinely enjoy sacrificing you

to the gods and sending your flayed skin to the White House."

"Forgive me for not having any decorative tattoos."

Capesterre found Pitts free-and-my indifference unnerving.  No one had

ever talked down to him before.  He turned and raised a hand toward the

hushed mass of people.

"Don't you think you should inventory your new wealth before you Turn it

over to them?" Pitt asked.  "Especially Alexander's golden casket."

Capesterre's hand slowly dropped.  There was a flush at his temples.

"What are you saying?   Alexander's casket exists?"

"And so do his remains." Pitt motioned toward the excavated runnel.

"Would you like a guided tour before you throw open the storage chamber

to your adoring public?"

Capesterre nodded.  With his back to the crowd he slipped the Colt

revolver from the belt beneath his robe and held it out of sight under a

loose, draped sleeve.  His other hand gripped the smoke bomb.  "The

slightest move by you or anyone hidden inside the tunnel to harm me, and

I will blow your spine in two."

"Why would I possibly want to harm you?" Pitt asked with mock innocence.

"Where are the engineers who were working the excavation?"

"Every man who could carry a gun was sent to the defense line at the

river."

The lie seemed to satisfy Capesterre. "Raise your shirt and drop your

pants below your boots."

"In front of all these people?" Pitt asked, smiling.

"I want to see if you're armed or wired for sound."

Pitt pulled his turtleneck above his shoulders and lowered the denims to

his ankles.  There was no sign of a bidden mutter or gun on his body or

inside his boots.  "Satisfied?"

Topiltzm nodded.  He waved the gun toward the shaft entrance.  "You

lead, I'D follow."

"Mind if I carry the dummy inside?   The weapons he's holding are real

artifacts."

"You can leave them just inside the entrance." Then turned and  waved  a

signal  to  his  advisers that all was safe.

Pitt adjusted  his  clothing,  removed  the weapons from the mannequin

and entered the shaft.

The roof was slightly less than two meters high, and Pitt had to duck

under the support beams as he walked.  He deposited the spear and sword,

but kept the shield, placing it over his head as if to ward off falling

rock.

knowing the shield was as useless as a sheet of cardboard against rounds

from a .357-magnum handgun, Topiltzin made no protest.

The shaft sloped sharply down for twelve meters and then leveled off.

The passage was lit by a stnug of lights that hung from the beams.  The

Army Engineers had cut the walls and floor almost perfectly flat so the

going was easy.  The only discomfort was the stuffy air and the dust

that rose in swirls from their footsteps.

"Are you'receiving sound and picture, Mr. President?"

asked General Chandler

"Yes, General," answered the President.  "Their conversation is coming

in quite clear, but they walked out of camera range when they entered

the tunnel."

"We'll pick them up again in the casket chamber, where we have another

concealed camera."

"How is Pitt wired?" asked Martin Brogan.

"The microphone and transmitter are inserted in the front seam of the

old shield."

"Is he armed?"

"We don't believe so."

All those in the Situation Room became silent as their eyes moved to a

second monitor that was displaying the excavated chamber under Gongora

Hill.  The camera was focused on a gold coffin raised in the center of

the chamber.

But not all eyes were on the second monitor.  One pair had not left the

first.

"Who was that?" Nichols blurted.

Brogan's eyes narrowed.  "Who do you mean?"

Nichols pointed at the monitor whose camera was still aimed at the

underground entrance of the hill.  "A shadow passed in front of the

camera and moved into the tunnel."

"I didn't see anything," said General Metcalf.

"I saw it too," the President agreed.  He leaned toward the microphone

sitting on the table in front of him.  "General Chandler?"

"Mr.  President," the General replied swiftly.

"Dale Nichols swears he saw someone  enter  the  tunnel  after Pitt and

Topiltzin."

"One of my aides thought he caught someone too."

"So I'm not seeing things," Nichols sighed.

"Do you have any idea who it might be?"

"Whoever it was," Chandler said, alarm showing on his face, "he wasn't

one of ours."

"I see that you limp," said Capesterre.

"A little memento of your brother's mad scheme to murder President Hasan

and Hala K l."

Capesterre gave Pitt a questioning look but he did not pursue the

subject.  His mind was taken up with keeping an eye on Pitt's every move

while staying alert for the least sign of in trigue.

A little farther on the tunnel broadened into a circular gallery.  Pitt

slowed and came to a stop in front of a coffin supported on four legs

that were carved in what looked like erect Chinese dragons.  The entire

work gleamed gold under the overhead lights.  A stack of Roman legionary

weapons leaned against one wall.

"Alexander the Great," Pitt announced.  "The art and scrolls are stored

in an adjoining chamber."

Capesterre moved closer in awe.  He hesitantly reached out and touched

the top of the casket.  Then suddenly, he jerked his hand back and spun

to face Pitt, his face a mask of rage.

"A trick!" he shouted, his voice echoing through the tunnels.  "This is

no two-thousand-year-old coffin.  The paint isn't dry.  " 'The Greeks

were very advanced-"

"Shut up!" Capesterre's right sleeve fell away,  exposing  the revolver.

"No more  smart  talk,  Mister  Pitt-  Where  is  the  treasure?"

"Give me a break," Pitt begged.  "We haven't hit the main depository

chamber yet." He began to edge away from the coffin, feigning fear.  He

backed up until his shoulders touched the wall holding the ancient

swords and spears.  His eyes darted to the casket as if expecting its

resident to sit up.

Capesterre caught the furtive glance and his lips glazed into a knowing

smile.  He pointed the revolver at the coffin.  He pulled the trigger

and four holes appeared on one side but exited in great shredded gouges

on the opposite.  The reports were deafening inside the rock chamber.

They sounded as if the gun was fired under a giant bell.

Capesterre took hold of the rid over the coffin's upper half. "Your

backup, Mr. Pitt?" he snarled.  "How simple-minded of YOU."

"There was no place to hide him," Pitt breathed regretfully.  The green

eyes showed no fear and his voice was tightly controlled.

Capesterre threw open the lid and stared inside.  His face went deathly

pate and he shuddered in horror before letting the lid drop with a loud

thump.  A low moan escaped his lips, growing into a long, drawn-out "no"

sound.

Pin turned slightly so the shield covered the movement of his right

hand.  He edged away from the chamber wall until he stood facing

Capesterre's left side.  Then he glanced uneasily at the hands of his

watch.  He was almost past his deadline.

Capester stepped fearfully toward the coffin again and lifted the lid;

this time he let it fall open and backward.  He forced himself to stare

inside.

"Paul . . . it really is Paul," he stammerrd in shock.

"from what I was told," said Pitt, "President Hasan wasn't about to

allow Akhmad Yazid's followers to entomb him in a shrine as a martyr. So

the cadaver was led here where you two can lie together."

Grief slowly replaced shock as Capesterre stared at his brother.  Then

his face twisted in bitterness and he asked in a vicious undertone,

"What was your part in all this?"

"I headed the team that found the key to the Library treasure site. That

was a dedicated effort.  Then your brother's hired terrorists tried to

kill me and my friends but only succeeded ravaging my classic car.  That

was a big mistake.  Next, you and your brother took my father as a

hostage on the Lady Flamborough.  YOu know the ship I'm talking about.

Now that was really a blunder.  I decided not to get mad, but get even.

You're going to die, CaPesterre.  In another minute you're going to lie

as cold and stiff as your brother.  A damned small payment for the men

whose hearts you cut out and all those children who drowned because of

your insane power grab."

Capesterre's body tautened and the grief cleared from his eyes.  "But

not before I kill you!" he said savagely as he spun around and crouched.

Pitt had prepared for the attack.  The sword he'd snatched from the

stack by the wall was already raised above his head. He brought it down

in a slashing sideways arc, Capesterre it-antically lifted the Colt. The

muzzle was only centimeters from lining up on Pitts head.  The gleaming

blade sliced through the air, glinting under the hanging lights.  The

gun, with Capesten-e's hand clutching the grip, finger tightening on the

trigger, seemed to detach from his arm and sail toward the ceiling. They

rotated through the air, end over end, before dropping to the limestone

floor, still locked together.

Capestet's mouth sagged open and a thin scream echoed through the

excavation.  Then he sank to his knees, staring dumbly at the severed

limb, unable to believe it was no longer a part of him, oblivious to the

spreading stream of blood.

He knelt there, swaying side to side, the pain tightly held in check by

shock.  He slowly looked up at Pitt with dazed eyes. "Why this?" he

whispered.  "Why not a bullet?"

"A small payment for a man by the name of Guy Rivas."

"You knew Rivas?"

Pitt shook his head.  "Friends of his told me how you mutilated him. How

his family stood at the grave site not knowing they were burying only

his skin."

"Friends?" Capesterre asked blankly.

"MY father and a man who lives in the White House," Pitt said coldly. He

glanced at his watch again.  He stared down at Robeii Capesterre, but

there was no pity on his face.  "Sorry I can't stay and help with the

mess, but I have to run." Then he turned and headed for the exit tunnel.

He took only two steps before he came to an abrupt halt- A short,

swarthy man, wearing a pair of old and worn army combat fatigues, stood

in the center of the chamber entrance holding a four-shot pistolized

shotgun that was pointed at Pitts stomach.

"No need to hurry, Mr. Pitt," he said with a heavy accent, his voice

maner-of-fact.  "No one is going anywhere."

Though they had been aware of a third party entering the tunnel, the

sudden appearance of the menacing stranger still took everyone by

surprise in the Situation Room.  Calamity began to loom as they

helplessly watched the scene being played out deep under Gongora Hill.

"General Chandler," said the President sharply, "what in hell is going

on?   Who is the intruder?"

"We're viewing him from our monitoring unit too, Mr. President, but the

best guess is he's one of Topiltzin's men.  He must have penetrated from

the north, where our security line is spread thin."

"He's wearing a uniform," said Brogan.  "Can he be one of your men?"

"Not unless our quartermaster is issuing Israeli Army battle fatigues."

"Get some men down there to help Pitt," ordered General Metcalf.

"Sir, if I sent a squad of men anywhere near the excavation, the mob

would think we were out to either harm or capture Topiltzin.  They'd go

berserk."

"He's right," said Schiller.  "The crowd is getting edgy."

"The intruder stole inside  the  tunnel  under  their  noses,"

Metcalf persisted.  "Why can't a couple of your men do the same?  '

"it was possible ten minutes ago, but not now," replied Chandler.

"Topiltzin's crew have set up more floods.  The whole slope is swimming

in bright light.  A rat couldn't run in there without being seen."

"The excavations face south toward the people," explained Senator Pitt.

"There are no exits behind the hill."

"We're lucky as it is," Chandler continued.  "The gunfire echoing from

the tunnel sounded like distant thunder and no one was sure where it

came from."

The President looked at Senator Pitt darkly.  "George, if the crowd

begins to surge forward, we'll have to end the operation before your son

can escape."

The Senator passed a hand in front of his eyes and nodded solemnly. Then

he looked up at the monitor.

"Dirk will make it," he said with quiet confidence.

Nichols suddenly came to his feet and pointed at the monitor.  "The

mob!" he rasped despairingly.  "They're moving!"

While others debated his chances of survival 2,500 kilometers away,

Pitts main concern was the black mouth of the shotgun pistol.  He didn't

doubt for a second it was held in the hand of a man who had killed many

times.  The face behind the gun wore a bored expression.  Ho-hum,

another one, Pitt thought.  If he didn't have his insides splashed

against a wall in a few seconds, he would be crushed by tons of earth.

He wasn't keen on either choice.

"You mind telling me who you are?" Pitt asked.

"I am Ibn Telmuk, close friend and servant to Suleiman Aziz Ammar."

Yes, thought Pitt, yes.  The sight of the terrorist on the road in front

of the crushing mill came back to him.  "You guys go to any length for

revenge, don't you?"

"It was his last wish that I kill you."

Pitt very slowly dropped his right arm so the sword hung down pointing

at the chamber floor.  He made the show of a brave man accepting defeat

and relaxed his body, shoulders sagging, knees slightly bent.  "Were you

on Santa Inez?"

"Yes, Suleiman  Aziz  and  I  escaped  back  to  Egypt  together."

Pitts  dark  eyebrows  came  together.  He hadn't thought it possible

Ammar had lived after the shootout.  God, time was running out.

Ibn should have shot him without a word, but Pitt knew the Arab was only

toying with him.  The blast of fifty pellets would come in the middle of

a sentence.

There was no reward in stalling.  Pitt stared at Ibn, measuring the

distance between them, figuring what direction he would leap.  With

casual ease, he edged the shield across his body.

Capesterre wrapped part of his robe around the bleeding stump, moaning

from the increasing pain.  Then he held up the blood soaked cloth in

front of Ibn.  "Get him!" he cried.  "Look what he did to me.  Shoot him

down!

I am Topiltzin."

"His real name is Robert Capesterre," said Pitt.  "He's a colossal

fraud."

Capesteffe scrambled over to Ibn until he was sitting at the Arab's

feet.  "Don't listen to him," pleaded Capesterre.  "He is a common

criminal."

for the first time Ibn grinned.  "Hardly that.  I've studied a file on

Mr. Pitt.  He's not common at anything."

Looking better, Pitt thought.  Ibn was momentarily distracted by

Topiltzin.  He slipped sideways a few centimeters at a time, trying to

place himself so that Capesterre lay between him and Ibn.

"Where is Ammar?" Pitt asked abruptly.

"Dead," replied Ibn.  The grin was quickly replaced with lip-tightening

anger.  "He died after killing that pig Akhmad Yazid."

The bombshell stunned Capesterre.  His gaze automatically turned to his

brother's body in the coffin.

"So it was the man my brother hired to hijack the ship," Capesteffe

uttered in a hoarse croak.

Pitt fought the urge to say "I told you so," and moved another

centimeter.

Ibn's eyes registered incomprehension.  "Akhmad Yazid was your brother?"

"Two peas in a pod," said Pitt.  "Would you'recognize Yazid if you saw

him?"

"Of course.  His appearance is as familiar as the Ayatollah Khomeini or

Yasir Arafat."

Pitts mind raced with new modifications to his desperation plan, taking

advantage of the few crumbs thrown his way. Everything hinged on how

well he could read Ibn's mind and predict the killer's reaction to

seeing Yazid.

"Then take a good look in the coffin."

"Do not even think of making a move, Mr. Pitt," said Ibn. His eyes hung

warily on Pitt as he shuffled toward the coffin. When his right hip

touched the pallbearer's handle he stopped and took a quick glance

inside, and then back at his quarry.

Pitt had not moved a centimeter.

It all depended on the unexpected.  Pitt planned on the classic double

take.  He took the gamble that Ibn's first cursory glimpse inside the

coffin would cause a delayed reaction followed by a second longer look.

And Ibn did exactly that.

In the Special Operations Forces command truck, parked half a kilometer

west of the excavation, Hollis, Admiral Sandecker, Lily and Giordino

gazed at a TV monitor, their attention solidly locked into the drama

being acted out under Gongora Hill.

Lily stood motionless, her skin eggshell-white, while Sandecker and

Giordino fidgeted in frustration like a pair of zoo tigers with a

platter of fresh meat just beyond reach of their cage.

Hollis was pacing the small enclosure, nervously clutching a small

multi-frequency detonation transmitter in one hand while the other held

a phone receiver.

He was shouting at an aide of General Chandler's.  "Like hell I'll

detonate!   Not until the crowd passes the danger perimeter.  "

"They've moved too close now," the aide, a colonel, countered.

"Another thirty seconds!" snapped Hollis.  "Not before."

"General Chandler wants that hill blown now!" demanded the Colonel, his

voice rising.  "That's an order that comes from the President."

"You're only a voice over a phone, Colonel," Hollis stalled.

"I want the order direct from the President."

"You're asking for a court-martial, Colonel."

"It won't be the first time."

Sandecker shook his head fearfully.  "Dirk will never make it, not now."

"Can't you do something?" pleaded Lily.  "Talk to him.  He can hear you

over the speaker connected to the TV camera."

"We don't dare distract him," answered Hollis "Break his concentration

and that Arab will kill him."

"That's it!" Giordino muttered, infuriated.  He tore out the command

truck door, jumped to the ground and dashed over to Sam Trinity's Jeep.

Before Hollis's men could stop him the car was bouncing through the

brush toward Gongora Hill.

In one quick leap, Pitt uncoiled like a rattler and drove the shield

against Ibn.  The sword blurred and slashed again.

His muscled arm swung with all the strength of his shoulder behind it.

He felt and heard the blade edge clang against metal before it struck

something soft.  An explosion went off, seemingly in his face.  He

flinched as the main force of the blast struck the middle of his shield

and ricocheted against the rock ceiling.  The armored plastic sheeting

that had been riveted to the laminated wood by Major Dillenger that

afternoon was denied but not penetrated.  Pitts sword hand finished the

arc, and he launched a murderous backhand swing.

Ibn was fast, but his shock at seeing Yazid cost him a precious second.

He caught Pitts attack out of the corner of one eye and squeezed off a

badly aimed snap shot before the sword blade glanced off the breech of

the shotgun and sliced through his hand, severing his thumb and fingers

just behind the knuckles.

Ibn uttered a ghastly groan.  The pistolgripped shotgun fell to the hard

limestone floor almost on top of the Colt Python still gripped in

Capesterre's severed hand.  But Ibn recoiled enough to duck away from

Pitts swing.  Then, in one violent twisting motion, he lunged at Pitt.

Pitt was ready for the assault, but, as he dodged to one side his right

leg folded under him.  In a flashing instant he knew that one or two of

the shotgun's pellets had missed the shield and struck him in the same

leg that had been wounded on Santa Inez Island.

Before he could react and dance away, Ibn dropped on him like a panther.

The black eyes gleamed satanically under the string of lights, the teeth

ghoulishly bared.  Pitt lost his grip on the sword hilt as Ibn knocked

it away.  His other arm was trapped under the inside straps of the

shield.  Then slowly, deliberately, Ibn's good hand closed around Pitts

throat.

"Kill  him!"  Robert  Capesterre  shrieked  repeatedly like a mad man.

"Kill him!"

Pitt heaved in a corkscrew motion and brought his fist up from the

floor, striking Ibn in the Adam's apple.  With the cartilage of the

larynx crushed, most men would have gagged to death-the rest should have

at least gone unconscious.  Ibn did neither.  He simply clutched his

throat, made a terrible gurgling voice and reeled backward.

They both struggled drunkidly to their feet, Pitt hopping on one leg,

Ibn gasping for air, his mangled right hand hanging useless.  They stood

there, facing each other like wounded pit bulls catching their breath

for the next round, warily eyeing each other to see who would make the

first move.

It came from an unexpected quarter.  Capesten-e suddenly came to his

senses and threw himself on the Colt,  fiercely struggling one-handed to

pry the frozen fingers from the grip.

The dead hand fell away.

Then, like a game of musical chairs, Capesterre's grab triggered a like

response from Ibn and Pitt.  They quickly looked around for the weapons

nearest them.

Pitt lost.  The shotgun was in Ibn's corner.  So was the Roman sword.

any port in a storm, Pitt thought.  He kicked out wildly with the foot

of his wounded leg, connecting with Capesten-e's rib cage, but suffering

a grinding pain from the effort.  He also hurled the shield like a

Frisbee at Ibn, s g the Arab on the stomach and knocking the wind out of

him.

A loud wailing cry gushed from Capesterre's lips.  He dropped the Colt

and Pitt caught it in midair.  It was a nearperfect catch-His hand

slipped around the bloodied grip and his finger through the trigger

guard.  Ibn, doubled over by the blow from the shield, was still

awkwardly lifting the pistolized shotgun with his left hand when Pitt

fired.

Pitt tightened his grip for the next recoil.  The Arab stumbled backward

against the chamber wall, and then his body fell forward onto the floor

and his head struck with a repugnantthud.

Pitt stood panting through  clenched  teeth.  Only  then  did  he hear a

familiar voice shout through the speaker.

"Get out of there!" Hollis was yelling.  "for  Jesus'  sake,  run for

it!"

Pitt was temporarily disoriented.  He was so busy fighting Ibn he forgot

which passage led to the easier tunnel and which to the more difficult

crater exit.  He took a last fleeting glimpse of Robert Capesterre.

The face was ashen from the loss of blood but not, Pitt saw, with fear.

Hate filled the eyes of Topiltzin.

"Enjoy your trip to hell," Pitt said.

Capesterre's reply was the smoke bomb.  He had somehow pulled the primer

pin.  Smoke instantly burst and fined the interior of the chamber with a

densely packed orange cloud.

"What happened?" the President asked, staring at the strange orange mist

that blocked out the camera view of the chamber.

"Capesteffe must have been carrying some kind of a smoke-screening

device," Chandler answered.

"Why haven't the explosives gone off?"

"One moment, Mr. President." Chandler looked off-camera and conversed

angrily with an aide.  Then he turned back. "Colonel Hollis of the

Special Operations Forces insists on a direct order from you, sir."

"Is he in charge of the detonation?" demanded Metcalf.

"Yes, General."

"Can you patch him into our communications network?"

"One moment."

Four seconds was all it took before Hollis's face was peering from one

of the monitors in the Situation Room.

"I-you  can't  see  me,  Colonel,"  said  the President.

"But you'recognize my voice."

"I do, sir," Hollis answered through tight lips.

"As  your  Commander-in-Chief, I'm ordering you to blow that hill, and

blow it now."

"The mob  is  swarming  up  the  hill,"  Nichols  said  in  near panic.

They all tensed and swung their eyes to the monitor sweeping the hill.

The huge throng was slowly moving up the slope toward the summit,

chanting Topiltzin's name.

"If you wait any longer you'll kill a lot of people," said Metcalf

urgently.  "for pity's sake, man, detonate." Hollis's thumb was poised

above the switch.  He spoke into his transmitter.  "Detonation!"

But he didn't press the switch.  He used the enlisted man's gambit:

Never refuse an order and be tried for insubordination, but answer to

the affirmative and never carry it out. Inefficiency was one of the most

difficult of charges to prove at a court-martial.

He was determined to squeeze every second he could for Pitt.

Holding his breath as though he were diving under water, eyes tightly

closed against the stinging smoke, Pitt willed his legs to move, to run,

to crawl, to do anything which would rush him clear of that horror

chamber.  He made it into a passage, not knowing if it led to the tunnel

shaft or the crater.  He kept his eyes shut, feeling his way along the

wall, half-hopping, half-hobbling on his bad leg.

He felt a burning rage to live.  He simply couldn't believe he'd die

now, not after having survived the last few minutes. Finally he opened

his eyes.  They burned as if stung by bees, but he could see.  He had

passed the worst of the smoke.  It was only an orange vapor now.

The shaft through the limestone began to rise.  He felt a slight

increase in temperature and a light breeze.  Then he stumbled outside

into the night.  The stars were there, almost blotted out by the bright

lights shining up the hill.

But Pitt was not clear.  There was a snag.  He had the unsettling

realization that he had exited through the crater tunnel. The slanting

sides rose up another five meters.  So close, yet so tormentingly far.

He began clawing his way up the incline, his wounded leg, totally

useless now, dragging along behind.  He could only dig in and push with

one foot.

Hollis had gone silent.  The Colonel had no words left to say.  Pitt

knew the explosion he'd so carefully planned was going to take him with

it.  Fatigue swept over him in great floating waves, yet he stubbornly

crawled upward.

Then a dark form appeared over the rim of the crater and a massive hand

reached down, grabbed the shoulder of Pitts sweater and heaved him onto

level ground.

With seemingly incredible ease Giordino flung Pitt into the open

tailgate of the Jeep, leaped into the driver's seat and jammed the

accelerator pedal flat onto the floorboard.

They had barely covered fifty meters when Hollis pressed the demolition

switch.  The signal set off the two hundred kilo  of C-6 nitroglycerin

gel deep inside the hill with a monstrous roar.

for one brief moment it was as if a volcanic eruption was about to

hurtle from the bowels of the earth.  The hill shook with a rumble.

The great mass of Topiltzin followers were thrown to the ground, their

mouths agape in horror, the concussion sucking the air from their lungs

into a vacuum.

Then the whole summit of Gongora Hill rose almost ten meters into the

air, hung there in the night as if clutched by a giant hand, and

cnimbled and fell inward, leaving a huge plume of birowmg dust as a

ghostly tombstone.

November 5, 1991

Roma, Texas.

Five days later, a few minutes past  dnight, the President's helicopter

set down at a small airfield a few miles outside Roma.  Accompanying him

were Senator Pitt and Julius Schiller.  As soon as the rotor blades

swung and drooped to a stop, Admiral Sandecker walked up to the door and

greeted them.

"Good to see you, Admiral," the President said graciously.

"Congratulations on a splendid job, though I must say I didn't think

NUMA could pull it off."

"Thank you, Mr. President," replied Sandecker with his usual cocky air.

"We're all grateful you had enough confidence in our mad plan to give us

the go-ahead."

"A neat scam, a very neat scam indeed." The President turned and looked

at Senator Pitt.  "But you have the Senator to thank for my backing.  He

can be very persuasive."

After a few words between Sandecker and Schiller, they all climbed a

short ladder  ugh a concealed door into the bed of a huge tandem,

ten-wheeler dump truck.

Two of the President's Secret Service agents, wearing work clothes,

climbed into the cab with the driver.  Four more piled into an old

battered Dodge van parked in the rear.

The exterior of the truck had a worn, dusty and faded-paint look.  But

the interior of the four-and-a-half by two-and-a half-meter bed was

converted into a room containing a kitchen bar and six roomy chairs. The

top had been covered by side boards and covered with two centimeters of

gravel to complete the disguise.

The door in the dump bed was closed, and they settled into the

comfortable chairs mounted to the floor and fastened their seat belts.

"Sorry about the unusual transportation," said Sandecker. "But we can't

afford to give the show away with choppers flying in and out of the

site."

"This is my first ride inside a gravel dumptruck," the President joked.

"The suspension doesn't compare to the White House Lincoln limousine."

"We've converted six of these as undercover transports", explained

Sandecker.

"A good choice," laughed the Senator, rapping the metal wall with his

knuckles.  "They come bulletproofed."

The smile on the President's face died and he turned serious.  "the

secret has been kept?" he asked.

Sanddecker nodded.  "I've seen nothing to indicate otherwise from our

end."

"There won't be any leaks from the White House," Schiller guaranteed,

picking up on the General's veiled insinuation.

"The lid is nailed tight."

The President was silent for a moment.  "We were damned lucky to get

away with it," he said finally.  "Topiltzin's mob of followers might

have gone on an orgy of revenge after they realized he was dead."

"After the shock wore off," said Sandecker.  "They wandered around the

hill, staring into the explosion's crater as if it was a super

phenomenon.  Bloody rioting was kept to a minimum because of the

presence of women and children, that and the fact that Topiltzin's close

supporters and advisers quietly ducked out and beat a fast retreat for

Mexico.  Unleaderless, and hungry, the crowd slowly began filtering back

across the border to their cities and villages."

"According to immigration," said Schiller, "a few thousand took off

north, but a third of them have already been rounded UP."

The President sighed.  "At least the worst is over.  If Congress passes

our aid plan to Latin America, it should go a long way in helping our

neighbors to the south climb back on their financial feet."

"And the Capisten-e family?" asked Sandecker.  "How will they be dealt

with?"

"The Justice Department is going after any assets they have in this

country." The President's face was expressionless, but his eyes had a

steel-like glint.  "This is just between us, gentlemen, but Colonel

Hollis of our Special Operations Forces is planning an assault exercise

on an island in the Caribbean that shall remain nwneless.  If any of the

Capesterre family happen to be in the vicinity at the time . . . well,

that's too damn bad for them."

Senator Pitt gave a sarcastic smile.  "With Yazid and Topiltzin gone,

our foreign relations will seem pretty tame for a while."

Schiller shook his head negatively.  "We've only plugged two holes in

the dike.  The worst is down the road."

"Don't cry doom, Julius," said the President, now in a jovial mood.

"Egypt is stable for the moment.  And with President Hasan stepping

aside for health reasons and turning over his office to Defense Minister

Abu H d, the Muslim fundamentalists will be under enormous pressure to

reduce their demands for an Islamic government. ,

"The fact that Hala Kamil has consented to marry Hamid won't hurt the

situation either," Senator Pitt summed up.

The conversation was interrupted as the truck came to a stop.  The

concealed door was opened from the outside and the ladder set in place.

"After you, Mr. President," invited Sandecker.

They stepped to the ground and looked around.  The area was surrounded

by an ordinary chain-link fence and dimly lit by widely spaced pole

lights.  A large sign beside the entrance gate read, sAm sAM'S GRAVEL

COMPANY..

Except for a pair of gravel loaders, a large excavator bucket and

several dump trucks and gravel  lers, the entire yard was deserted.

The underground security guard units and electronic detection equipment

were virtually invisible to anyone walking around the equipment yard.

"Can I meet Mr. Trinity?" asked the President.

Sandecker  shook  his  head.  "Afraid  not.  A good man, Sam.

A good patriot.  After voluntarily signing over the rights to the

artifacts to the government, he took off on a playing tour of the

world's top one hundred golf courses."

"We compensated him, I hope."

"Ten million tax-free dollars," replied Sandecker.  "And we damned near

had to hogtie him to take it." Then Sandecker turned and pointed out a

deep excavation a few hundred meters away.  "The remains of Gongora

Hill.  Now a gravel pit. We've actually made a profit on our

sand-and-crushed-rock operation."

The President's face clouded as he stared into the huge open pit that

was once the summit of the hill.  "Did you happen to dig up Topiltzin

and Yazid?"

Sandecker nodded.  "Two days ago.  We sent their remains through the

rock crusher.  I believe they're both part of a roadbed."

The President seemed satisfied.  "Just what the bastards deserve."

"Where is the tunnel?" asked Schiller, looking around.

"In there." Sandecker gestured toward a well-used mobile home trailer

that was converted to an office.  A sign by one window advertised the

"Dispatcher."

The four Secret Service agents in the van had already exited and begun

patrolling the area while the two in the cab of the truck jumped to the

ground and entered the office to check it out as a matter of routine.

After the President's party passed through two doors into a small,

ban-en office at the rear of the mobile home, Sandecker invited them to

step to the center of the room and hold onto a railing that protruded

from the floor.  He waved at a TV camera in one corner of the ceiling.

Then the floor began to lower through the trailer and into the ground

below.

"Pretty slick," said Schiller admiringly.

"Yes indeed," murmured the President.  "I can see why the project hasn't

been penetrated."

The lift dropped through the limestone and came to a jerking halt thirty

meters under the ground surface.  They stepped off into a wide-tunneled

passageway lit with fluorescent-tube lights.  for as far as they could

see the tunnel was lined with sculptures.

A woman waited to greet them.

"Mr.  President," said Sandecker, "may I introduce Dr. Lily Sharp,

director of the cataloging program?"

"Dr.  Sharp, we're all deeply in your debt."

Lily blushed.  "I'm afraid I was only a small cog in the wheel," she

replied modestly.

After she was introduced to Schiller, Lily began the guided tour of the

the Alexandria Library.

"We've  ed and catalogued 427 different sculptures," she explained,

"representing the finest work of the early bronze age beginning in 3,000

B.c. and ending m the transcendental style of the Byzanum era of the

early fourth century. Except for a few stains from water seepage through

the limestone, which can be removed by chemicals, the marble and bronze

figures are in a remarkable state of preservation."

The President walked speechless through the long passage, stopping every

so often to gaze in admiration at the magnificent classic sculpture,

some of it five thousand years old.  He was overwhelmed at the sheer

numbers of it.  Every age, every dynasty and empire was represented with

the best its artists turned out.

"I'm actually seeing and touching the Alexandria museum collection," he

said in reverence.  "After the explosion I couldn't believe it wasn't

all destroyed."

"The earth tremors stirred up some dust and caused a few bits and pieces

of the limestone to fall from the roof," said Lily.  "But the artifacts

came through just fine.  You're seeing the sculpture just as Jumus

Venator last saw them in A.D.

391.'

After nearly two hours of studying the incredible display, Lily stopped

at the last artifact before entering the main gallery.  "The golden

casket of Alexander the Great," she announced in a hushed tone.

The President felt as if he was about to meet God.  He slowly approached

the golden resting place of one of the greatest leaders the world had

ever known and peered through the crystal windows.

The Macedonians had laid their king out in his ceremonial armor.  His

cuirass and helmet were pure gold.  The Persian silk that once made up

his tunic was mostly gone, rotted away after nearly twenty-four

centuries.  All that was left of the great subject of romantic legend

were his bones.

"Cleopatra, Julius Caesar, Mark Antony, all stood and gazed at his

remains," lectured Lily.

Each took his Turn, hardly able to conceive what lay beneath their eyes.

Then Lily led them into the great storage gallery.

Nearly a hundred people were hard at work.  Several were examining the

contents of the wooden crates stacked in the gallery's center.

Paintings, stained and soiled, but restorable, along with delicate

objects carved from ivory and marble or cast from gold, silver or bronze

were catalogued and repacked in new cases for transport to a secure

building complex in Maryland for restoration and preservation.

Most of the archaeologists, translators and preservation experts were

gently handling the bronze cylindrical tubes that held the thousands of

ancient books, translating the copper tags and recording descriptions of

the contents.  The containers and their delicate scrolls were also

carefully packed for shipment to Maryland for study and research.

"Here it is." Lily gestured around the chamber proudly.  "So far we've

found the complete books of Homer, much of the lost teachings by the

great Greek philosophers, early Hebrew writings, manuscripts and

historical data showing new insight on Christianity.  Maps illustrating

previously unknown tombs of ancient kings, the locations of the lost

trading centers, including Tarshish and Sheba, and geological charts of

mines and oil deposits long forgotten.  Enormous gaps in ancient

chronological events will be filled.  The history of the Phoericians,

Mycenaeans, Etruscans, and civifintions that were only rumored to exist,

they're all here and accounted for in vivid detail.  If restorable, the

paintings will give us a true Picture of what the immortals of the

ancient world looked like."

for a moment the President had nothing to say.  He was numbed.  He

couldn't begin to digest the immensity of the astonishing accumulation.

As art, it was priceless.  As knowledge, its value was incalculable.

Finally, he asked in a hushed voice, "How long before you'll be finished

here?"

"We'll move the scrolls first, then the artwork," replied Lily.  "The

sculptures will go last.  Working around the clock, we hope to have the

passage and gallery emptied and the entire collection safely in Maryland

by New Year's."

"Almost sixty days," said Sandecker.

"And the translation of the scrolls?" Lily shrugged.  "That preservation

is the slow part.  Depending on budget restrictions, we're looking at

anywhere between twenty and fifty years to make all translations and

gain a full understanding of what we have."

"Don't worry about funding," said the President excitedly the project

will have the highest priority.  I'll see to that."

"We can't fool the international community much longer into believing

these magnificent treasures were destroyed," warned Schiller.  "We've

got to make an announcement, and soon."

"True," said Senator Pitt.  "The uproar from our own people and those of

foreign governments has not slackened since the explosion."

"Tell me about it," the President muttered dryly.  "My popularity poll

has dropped fifteen points; Congress is chewing my tail, and every one

else is..."

"If you gentlemen will forgive me," said Lily shyly, "but  if  you  can

hold off  for  another  ten  days,  I and the project members can

produce some film and video tape of the major pieces of the inventory."

Pitt looked at the President.  "I think she has just handed us a

bombshell.  A dramatic disclosure by the White House, backed by a

documentary, sounds like a hell of an idea."

He took Lily's hand and patted it. you, Dr. Sharp.  You've just saved my

life."

"Oh, thank you, Mr. President!" Lily gasped, throwing her arms around

him in unabashed enthusiasm.

Admiral Sandecker shook his hand.  "Thank you, sir.  I think you've just

made everyone's day."

Schiller leaned over and spoke softly into Lily's ear.  "Just make sure

you translate the geological data first.  We may keep the artworks but

the knowledge should be shared with the world.

Lily only nodded.

After the fever of excitement and the questions eased a bit, Lily led

the Presidential group over to a corner of the gallery where Pitt and

Giordino were sitting around a folding table with a Latin/Greek  slator

who was examining a cylinder's tag with a magnifying glass.

The President recognized them and swiftly walked over. "Good to see you

alive and healthy, Dirk," he said with a warm smile.  "On behalf of a

grateful nation I wish to thank you for this astonishing gift."

Pitt came to his feet, leaning heavily on a cane.  "I'm only happy it

turned out so well.  If not for my friend Al here and Colonel Hollis,

I'd still be under Gongora Hill."

"Will you please clear up the mystery?" asked Schiller. 'How did you

know the Library treasures were beneath this lower hill instead of the

higher Gongora?"

"I don't mind admitting," said the President, "you had the hell scared

out of us.  All we could think of was 'What if you blew the wrong hill."

"I apologize for being vague," answered Pitt.  "Unfortunately, there was

no time for a lengthy explanation to ease everyone's fears." He paused

and gave his father a wide smile.  "I'm only glad you all trusted me.

But there was never a real doubt.  Junius Venator's description of the

location that was inscribed on the stone found by Sam Trinity, said to

stand north and look straight south to the river cliff." When I stood

north of Gongora Hill and stared on a line due south, I found that the

Roma bluff stood almost half a kilometer to the west on my right.  So I

moved farther west and slightly north to the first hill that fit

Venator's directions."

"What's it called?" asked the Senator.

"This hill?" Pitt held up his hands in a blank gesture.  "So far as I

can tell, it has no name."

"It does now," said the President laughing.  "As soon as Dr. Sharp gives

me the go-ahead to announce the greatest treasure discovery in the

history of man, we'll say it came from No Name Hill."

A dawn mist was lifting from the river and the glow of a new sun rising

over the Rio Grande valley when the Presidential party returned to

Washington, their minds thoroughly awed by what they had seen.

Pitt and Lily sat on the summit of No Name Hill and smelled the dampness

of morning and watched the lights of Roma blink out. it looked like a

painting by Grant Wood.

Lily smiled into his eyes.  They did not look hard and fierce now, only

soft and pensive.  The sun shone on his face, but he did not see it,

only felt the warmth.  She knew his mind was roving in the past.

She had come to learn he was a man no woman could ever completely

possess.  His love was an unknown challenge somewhere over the horizon,

a mystery that beckoned with a siren only-he could hear.  He was a man a

woman desired for an impassioned affair but never married.  She knew

their relationship was fleeting; she fully intended to take advantage of

every moment that was left to her until she awoke one day and found him

gone in search of the enigma waiting beyond the next hill.

Lily sat against him, head on his shoulder.  "What did the tag read?"

"Tag?"

"The one on the scroll you and  Al  seemed  so  interested  in."

"A tantalizing clue to more artifacts," he said quietly, still staring

into the distance.

"Where?"

"Under the sea.  The scroll was labeled 'Recorded Shipwrecks with

Valuable Cargoes." She looked up at him.  "A map to underwater

treasure."

"There is always treasure somewhere," he said almost distantly "And

you're going to find it?"

He turned and smiled.  "Never hurts to look.  Unfortunately, Uncle Sam

rarely gives me the time.  I've yet to search the Brazilian jungles for

the golden city of El Dorado."

She gave him an intuitive stare and then lay back, gazing at the fading

stars.  "I wonder where they're buried."

He slowly shook off the vision of sunken treasure and looked down.

"Who?"

"The ancient adventurers who helped Venator save the Lib  collection."

He shook his head.  "Junius Venator is a hard man to outguess.  He could

have buried his Byzantine comrades most anywhere between here and the

river-"

She placed her hand gently on his head and drew him down to her level.

Their lips met and pressed tightly for several moments.  A hawk spiraled

above them in the orange sky, but seeing nothing appetizing, it winged

south into Mexico.  Lily's eyes opened and she pulled back, smiling

coyly.

"Do you think they'd mind?"

Pitt looked at her curiously.  "Mind what?"

"If we made love over their grave.  They might very well be lying

beneath us."

He rolled them both over until she was on her back and he was above,

looking down into her eyes.  Then his lips curled into a sly grin.

"I don't think they'd care.  I know I certainly wouldn't."