An uneasy feeling hung over the group the following morning. Levancon had returned at some point, and met his companions excited about the plane he had seen land while "out for a walk." The Thai cousins had slept through the landing, and neither Sato nor Taylor had bothered to investigate the source of the noise. Rene's normal sullen attitude was missing, and this caused his fellow mercenaries to adopt a very guarded manner around him. In contrast, Jao and Chariya were very pleased that the Frenchman seemed to have perked up, and was not even averse to Thai breakfast.
Bob and Gordon had resolved to minimize the amount of information passed to Levancon, and to contact their employer as soon as the job was over. The younger mercenaries, and particularly the Thai agents, were to be kept out of the loop as long as possible. Despite this arrangement, it was clear to Sato and Taylor that something was amiss. Rene himself was apparently oblivious, although he seemed far too happy for a man of his nature in the most distant part of the Third World.
The tension was broken when, passing the market, a short, thick fishmonger came barreling out of a tent and accosted Sato in rapid Thai. Chariya began arguing with the man, while Jao tried to translate for the group. "He thinks Takeshi is a Chinese fisherman who owes him very much fish. My cousin is trying to fix this, but he wants his fish." Eventually, the man gave up and stomped off to his tent, muttering under his breath. It seemed this man was the only inhabitant of the market at this time of day- there had been more even after sunset.
The north slope of the hill was steeper than the west. The grassy terrain had been replaced with a very young rubber plantation filled with Thai workers. A few Khmer men, recognizable by their clothes, worked among the Thais. Several gave the party strange looks as they passed.
"Rene." Chariya looked straight ahead, not making eye contact with the rubber workers. "These people are a displaced tribe. The French moved many of their people from the southeast to here about one hundred years ago, when they were trying to take control of this area from our people. You may find French speakers among them. If we have difficulty dealing with the leader, you may be able to learn something from them. Will you help?"
"Of course." Levancon seemed determined, making a strange contrast with his typical behavior on missions, even up to the previous day. His native tongue usually was only useful for establishing that he was not an American when various xenophobes refused to cooperate with the other mercenaries.
At the end of the neatly planted rows of rubber trees was a path leading into a typically thick Southeast Asian jungle. The valley had passed, and this path sloped slightly upward, pointing towards where, somewhere far beyond the impassable jungle, the Cardamom Mountains served as a natural barrier between Thailand and Cambodia. The walk to the village was a short one; after no more than ten minutes, a wooden sign with something white in the middle of it, suspended over the trail from two trees, came into view. As the travelers approached, they could see that the white object was a cow skull with strangely twisted horns. Khmer text was carved into the sign on either side of the skull.
A short, stocky woman in camouflage clothes leaned out from a concealed position in the jungle near one of the signposts. She carried an old bolt-action rifle on a strap, holding it improperly. After a few seconds sizing up the intruders, she barked something in Thai. Jao responded in a friendly tone, and the woman grunted, then climbed from her hiding place through the thick vegetation to the trail. She beckoned to the unexpected guests, then marched off towards the center of the village, shouting in Khmer.
The village was a mixed collection of traditional houses and more modern dwellings, built of any materials conceivable and placed seemingly at random throughout a large clearing in the jungle. Trees were scattered amidst the houses, and the entire clearing seemed to have a dirt floor. A well was visible some distance away, as well as a large fire pit. Bob judged the clearing to be roughly circular and about three hundred meters in diameter. Other trails were visible to the north and east. Under a large tent made of tarps and hanging from the trees in the far northeast, a group of children were being taught by an elderly woman. Several other women stood around the well, conversing in their native tongue.
The guard led them to a log cabin with a yellow star over the doorway near the center of the clearing, shouted something, then began making her way back to her post. A fat, sleepy-looking dog ran out from behind the house and began barking at Rene, who backed away from the beast, but was followed towards the makeshift school. The closest children to the disturbance turned to look at the Frenchman- probably the first of his kind to visit the village for many decades.
The door was flung open from within by a muscular Khmer man who appeared to be in his sixties. He fixed Jao with a fierce gaze, then shifted to Chariya. <Which of you two am I talking to?> he growled in broken Thai. <We have no business with the government.>
<We merely have a few questions.> Chariya tried to keep her voice polite. <First, what is your name, Mayor?>
<I am Mao Munney, chief of this tribe. The government knows this.> His eyes narrowed.
"Pay Mao’s money! Renminbi!" Jao grinned wildly, and some of the women at the well turned to stare at him. Gordon Weston, realizing what was going on, clamped his hand over the Thai's mouth.
The chieftain's eyes moved to the mercenaries, sizing each up. <Has the Thai monarchy conquered Europe and Africa too now?> he remarked caustically.
<No, no! These are security contractors.> Chariya knew the Khmer man would not understand those words, and correctly guessed he would be too proud to admit it. <But our questions will be fast. Have you seen any suspicious men around here lately?>
<The ones behind you.> Mao Munney regarded the whole group with an expression of contempt.
Chariya shifted from one foot to the other, then clasped her hands in front of her skirt, deliberately pressing her breasts together with her arms. <I assure you, these men mean no harm. The men we are looking for...> She raised first one, then the other shoulder, causing her bosom to move from side to side. <...are the Khmer Rouge. Do you know where they might be?> Chariya gave a faint smile.
The chief's expression, which had wavered slightly during the agent's antics, was now one of pure fury. <There is no Khmer Rouge here! You Thais always think we harbor them, but this tribe has none! If you fear our people so much, give our land back to our nation! You are not welcome! I'd have you shot if...> He allowed his voice to trail off, thinking of something. <Get out!> He pointed to the trail to the south. <And take him with you!> Rene Levancon had returned, the dog still chasing him. The chief whistled sharply at the dog, who whimpered and slunk off behind the cabin.
Chariya bade the chieftain goodbye with the same friendly tone she had been using, then headed for the exit with a brisk pace. "Speak English," she commanded. "They don't seem to understand it."
"I'll tell you once we're back in town just in case." Rene's face was grim. "Just keep up the pace." He moved to the front of the group, passing Jao, whose short legs could not carry him fast enough to keep up with the rest of the group without occasionally running a few steps. The guard watched them pass with a wary expression.
***
The fishmonger attempted to accost Sato once again, but was shouted down by Rene this time. Bob wondered where the Frenchman had picked up whatever he had just exclaimed. He inquired of Jao, who was now grinning between panting breaths, what had been said.
"He called the fish man something very bad. He did not say anything difficult." Jao laughed. "Westerners speaking Thai sound funny."
Rene led them to Bob's room at the hotel. When all were seated on the beds, he pulled a metal token from his pocket and held it up for all to see. A red star with a yellow design on it gleamed in the light from the room's single lamp.
"Where did you get that, Rene?" Zachary raised one eyebrow.
Chariya sharply drew in her breath. "That's a Khmer Rouge badge. The ones we caught when they were attacking the border years ago had those. Where did you get it?"
Rene laughed. "Well, you were right. There are French speakers there. An old man stopped the dog that was chasing me for a while, gave me that, and told me to stop the Khmer Rouge. He didn't have time to say much, but he did tell me that the tribe is enslaved by a Khmer Rouge gang."
"Rene, this sounds a bit ridiculous." Sadeski leaned back. "Is that really where you got that?"
Levancon's face reddened. "I'm serious here, Bob. That's not the worst part. He says the Khmer Rouge are headed for Bangkok to do something terrible." Rene turned to Chariya. "We have to leave. Now."
"Maybe he just wanted to make you leave, Rene." Gordon was regarding the Frenchman with a strange expression. "It could be a wild goose chase."
"Doesn't sound like a goose to me." Jao tipped over sideways on the bed. "You saw the skull at the gate? That was Kting Voar. Snake eater cow. Khmer have crazy animals like that." His voice came from behind Chariya.
"I'm with Rene." Takeshi stood up. "Did you see any men in that village? Even one, other than the chief? Someone had to produce all those kids."
"They were probably working at the rubber plantation." Bob silently cursed Sato.
Chariya frowned. "Not enough. If all the Khmer men on the rubber plantation are from that village, which isn't true, there aren't enough. Several hundred people live in that village. There were maybe a dozen Khmer workers on the rubber plantation. There isn't enough economy in this area to support all those people." She suddenly looked up, "Never mind that, I remember something. When I was fifteen, maybe younger, a Khmer terrorist who called himself Kting Voar killed Thais in this part of the country. I don't think they caught him." Chariya suddenly became aware that her cousin's face was mere inches from her posterior. <Pervert!> Jao suddenly found himself pinned to the bed by the neck.
Taylor stood up to avoid Jao's thrashing legs. <My eyes were closed!> Chariya paid no heed to her cousin's protests.
Bob sighed. "Maybe you should call your boss and get us orders."
"Good idea." Chariya released Jao and pulled out her cell phone. She began pacing as the phone rang, then switched to Thai when a dispatcher answered. After nearly five minutes of conversation, she ended the call. "Boss is with Rene too. They think it's worth us coming back for. We're leaving now!" She trotted out of the room, Jao close behind.
Rene grinned. "See, Bob? I'm not a total failure."
"That remains to be seen." Sadeski heaved himself off the bed. "Let's get going."
ns 15.158.61.8da2
