MYSTERY MAN [3]

"Bull shit," said Sam with feeling. "Sam's right," said Purna. "You don't want to help us because we deserve it for being so resourceful.

You want to help us because we're immune."

There was a moment's silence. Purna looked round at the others, a quietly triumphant look on her face. "Nothing to say?" she asked.

The owner of the voice sighed – or perhaps it was simply a surge of static – and eventually replied, "All right. I admit there is some truth to what you say—"

In a rare burst of anger Xian Mei suddenly blurted, "You caused this! You or whoever you're working for! You

manufactured

this situation! And you threw us into the mix just to see what would happen!"

"No!" the voice said, shocked. "No, it wasn't like that at all."

"So what

was

it like?" asked Sam.

"It's cards on the table time,

mystery man

," said Purna. "Why don't you start by telling us who you are?"

The pause was so long that at first Sam wondered whether the caller had rung off. Then at last, he said, "My name is Ryder White. I'm a colonel in the Banoi Island Defence Force. I'm currently speaking to you from Banoi prison."

"That funky-looking place with the tower?" said Logan.

"That's right. My wife –" he cleared his throat – "my wife is the prison doctor here."

He paused again, as if composing himself.

"Go on," said Purna.

"As I said previously," White continued, "the first full-blown victim of the virus was identified in the downtown area of Moresby around –" he did a quick calculation – "fifteen hours ago now. However, we have reason to believe that the contagion became active in the population at least twenty-four hours previous to that, that carriers were – unbeknownst to them – infecting everyone they came into contact with. Many of the resort's maintenance staff – cleaners, gardeners, janitors – commute between the city and the resort every day. The maintenance staff at the prison are similarly recruited from that area of the city…"

He paused again. Purna was the first to make the leap. "So you're saying the virus has spread to the prison?"

"I'm afraid so." White's voice was hollow. Once again, there was a pause and then he said, "My wife has been infected."

"Shit," said Sam. "Sorry to hear that, man."

"Me too," said Purna curtly. "But that still doesn't explain why you want to help us."

"Or how you knew about us in the first place," said Xian Mei.

"As I told you, our monitoring equipment here is sophisticated and powerful enough to intercept satellite signals. We are also … ah … able at times to intercept certain sensitive information from elsewhere."

"Computer hacking," said Logan, snorting laughter. "You a dirty hacker, Mr White?"

Almost primly White said, "I would prefer not to go into details, if you don't mind."

Logan laughed again. Sam asked, "So what is this information?"

"I think I can guess," said Xian Mei. "It was information about us, wasn't it? About our immunity to the virus?"

"Yes," said White simply.

"And where did the information come from?" asked Purna.

White hesitated, and then said, "Even in these circumstances, I'm afraid some information is too sensitive to impart, and therefore must remain secret. Suffice to say that my desire to help you is a purely selfish one."

"You want to find out whether our immunity can help your wife?" said Purna.

"Restore her, yes."

"How you gonna do that?" asked Sam. "You ain't gonna experiment on us, are you?"

White laughed. "Of course not. We have fairly modest medical facilities here, but enough resources to at least analyse your blood."

"You're hoping to develop an antidote?" said Purna.

White sighed once again. "It's a long shot, admittedly, but … yes."

There was silence for a moment as they all thought through what White had told them. Eventually, Purna said, "But doesn't the virus kill before it reanimates? That's what you told us."

"That's true, yes."

"So … not wishing to be blunt, but doesn't that mean your wife's already dead? That even if you manage to cure her of the virus, she still won't survive?"

"I'm hoping not," said White. "The virus in my wife's blood was identified at an early stage of its gestation. At the moment, we're managing to slow down its progression rate with drugs. But obviously, time is running out. I realize I'm clutching at straws here, but the quicker you can get to the prison, the better chance Dana has of surviving."

"OK," said Sam. "So let's say we buy this. How do we get to you?"

"You have to go further inland," said White. "Deeper into the jungle. Keep following the road that runs closest to the river, and eventually you'll come to a village. Once you're there, ask for a man called Mowen. He has a boat and knows the waterways of Banoi like the back of his hand. He can bring you across to the prison. He knows how to negotiate the minefield."

"Hang on," said Logan. "What minefield?"

"The sea between Banoi and the prison is laid with mines. But Mowen knows the way through. You can trust him."

"And what if we need to contact you at any point?" said Purna.

White hesitated, then said, "I'll text you a secure number you can reach me on. If you manage to get a signal, that is."

Purna looked at Sam and raised her eyebrows, as if silently asking him what he thought. Sam's answering expression seemed to say: Sounds OK, I guess.

"So?" White asked. "Will you come?"

Purna licked her lips. "We'll think about it," she said eventually.