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step ahead of domestic law enforcement in each jurisdiction. Now he sat in a dead man’s pickup with hydrochloric acid etching the back of his throat. Just when he thought he couldn’t fall any further in self-esteem or professional pride, he had reached a new low.
    “Let’s go, Dara,” he said, and the driver put the Toyota in gear.
    Nolan was past caring whether Teller had left anyone at the Hyundai site to see who turned up. In any event, there weren’t any lights on the road behind them. He took a deep breath and tried to pull himself together. If he lost focus, Teller would win for certain. He pulled out the Glock and put it on the seat.
    “Do you know how to use this?” he asked, and Dara nodded yes. “If anyone tries to stop us on this road, you shoot them.”
    “I drive. You shoot.” This was wordy by his driver’s taciturn standards.
     Dara accelerated. He didn’t plan on their being caught from behind. It was barely 5:30 and still darker than a bat’s closet when they rolled back into the vacant lot. No one else was there. Nolan was uneasy being on their own, but they were a half hour early. He wasn’t breaking radio silence to report something that didn’t affect anyone else.
    “Does your phone work here?” Nolan asked Dara. Surprisingly, it did. Einme must have a cell tower. Nolan clawed once again for Millie’s card, and Dara dialed her number. She picked up on the eighth ring.
    “Hello. Who is this?” Her voice was husky from interrupted sleep.
    “It’s Bob. I’m outside Einme. We went to swap the Toyota for the Hyundai, but the family was dead and their house burned down. The Hyundai was torched, too. Teller did this. He will be coming for you. Pack a bag and go to Dubern Park now. You’ll be safe there. We’ll figure out next steps once we’re back in town. I’m still waiting for our friends to come back from their field trip.”
    “My God! Are you alright?”
    “I’m fine, but you have to get moving. Maybe you should call Abrahams and have him send an escort.”
    “I’ll call a cab right now and leave as soon as it arrives. Getting Marines here on a Sunday morning at 5:45 will take a lot longer.”
    “Call me back on this number when you're safe inside. Goodbye.” He checked his watch: one minute flat.
    It was 7:15 in the morning in Singapore. Should he wake Joanie? And tell her what, exactly? That a madman from twenty-nine years ago had risen from the dead and promised to send the dismembered bodies of their children to them via air express? Nolan’s left eyelid twitched. “Can I call Singapore with your phone?”
    Dara smiled. “No. Only Myanmar.” Nolan handed the phone back, slumping.
    Trying to reason with Teller was like setting your own children on fire. You’d only end up with ashes and tears. Right now, Teller was hunting him. Nolan put the Glock in his lap, hand over the butt. They rolled the windows down to feel the cooler air. It was still black. Even the insects were quiet.
    Two vehicles rolled in, headlights shining on the pickup. Nolan couldn’t see anything. The cars stopped sixty feet away, engines and lights shut down. He scrambled out and crouched next to the passenger door with the Glock at the ready. Ten seconds passed. He saw the glow of lighters and cigarettes from inside the two cars. These had to be Zaw’s men. Nolan lowered his weapon and sheepishly re-holstered it. He climbed back in the Toyota and quietly shut the door. Dara averted his gaze.
    Three more cars pulled up beside the other two. Nolan managed to stay where he was this time. Ryder jumped out of the back and trotted over.
    “Let’s go.” Then he stopped and asked, “Where’s the Hyundai?”
    “Burned to a crisp, along with the owners and their house. Teller killed them.”
    “Zeya! Come over here.”
     Zeya, still in ninja attire but layered in mud from head to toe, hopped out of the other door and hustled over. Ryder filled him in and told him to explain it to Zaw’s