Mac's voice was dry. "You have a valuable knack of making interesting and useful friends, Eric."

I ignored the interruption. 'She also has the theory that her male parent might be trying to get something across the border, and that she was suspected of carrying it for him. Confirm or deny, sir."

"Your friend is a fast girl with a theory. Confirm." Mac was silent briefly, then he asked, "What do you know about heroin, Eric?"

"That it's habit-forming, sir. What's going on? Are they sending guys like Martell to turn us into a nation of hop-heads so they can take us over easier? Like the British are supposed to have encouraged the opium trade in the last century to make the Chinese more tractable?"

"It's a possibility," Mac said. "But it does seem a little far-fetched."

"To go back to my friend's experience," I said. "Could Fredericks perhaps be having difficulties getting the stuff across the border these days?"

"He could."

"Serious difficulties, like having his lines of communications disrupted by crude individuals wearing badges? Serious enough that somebody'd think he was desperate enough to try using his own daughter as a courier?"

"Something like that."

"A large shipment, perhaps?"

"Quite large. It was traced from Italy to Mexico and the border was warned that it was moving north. Twice it was almost seized when The Man, as he is known, tried to bring it in through his normal channels. Various small fish were caught, but the bait was not taken with them. Rumors are that The Man made a serious error at this point."

"Such as?"

"Such as enlisting local help, which proved unreliable and greedy. You can't call it an actual hijacking, since the gentlemen below the border are quite amenable to reason, as long as it's a large enough reason in American dollars. The Man, to date, has refused to pay, although there's evidence that his supplies are getting low and his distributors are beginning to complain. Instead he sent a trusted expert south to deal with the problem, but the individual apparently wasn't quite expert enough, and disappeared. I have most of this information from another agency, which is giving us full cooperation."

"How full?" I asked. "If I fall over a guy in the dark, can I kick him hard, or is he apt to be one of Mr. Anslinger's nice young men?"

"We have a clear field," Mac said. "Up to a point. Understandably, they don't want the shipment to get loose in the country. Understandably, too, they would like very much to get something concrete and legal on Mr. Salvatore Frederici, alias Fredericks. But I have persuaded them, by lying shamefully, that we know exactly what we're doing, and that our mission must have priority, in the national interest. I'd hate to have to eat my words, Eric."

"Yes, sir," I said. "Just what the hell are we doing?"

"We are finding out what Martell is up to," Mac said. "Disgraced or not, they wouldn't waste a man of his caliber on something completely unimportant. Actually, you'll also be acting in behalf of your family, Eric. I think you can see that anything that clarifies our problem is in their best interest, particularly if you can manage to give our cooperative associates the evidence they need against Fredericks. Judging by the reports I have here, the situation of Mr. Logan and his dependents should be a great deal more peaceful with Fredericks out of the way."

"You don't have to sell me the job, sir," I said, rather stiffly. "Anyway, I'm hardly staying up nights worrying about Logan's situation, and I doubt that you are. Beth and the kids are another matter, of course, as far as I'm concerned. Am I authorized to take steps to protect them, if necessary?"

"If necessary," Mac said. "But remember, your mission is not to protect your family, or even to get the goods on Mr. Fredericks, desirable though that might be. Your immediate responsibility is to discover Martell's mission-"

"What do our cooperative friends think about it?"

"They have no theories. It came as a surprise to them that he was anything but what he seemed. Their feeling is that he was hired as a replacement for the trusted gentleman who went to Mexico and wasn't expert enough to return."

"Contradiction, sir."

"You have evidence to the contrary?"

"Not evidence, just a hunch. Martell is a replacement, all right, but I doubt that he's in line to go to Mexico. He's too new and I don't have the feeling that Fredericks trusts him very far-not a thousand miles and a good many thousand dollars, I wouldn't think. There's a man Sally trusts a good deal more."

"Logan?"

"Yes, sir. In my opinion, Martell-or Fenn-is just an insurance policy Fredericks took out so he wouldn't get his head blown off when he started putting pressure on Logan. After all, he'd just lost his previous number one, from what you say, south of the border. And that's kind of interesting, when you come to think about it."

"What do you mean?"

I said, "Martell needs a job. Fredericks' most trusted man disappears, creating a vacancy. Do you think there might be a connection?"

"The thought had occurred to me," Mac said. "The possibility is being investigated."

"Anyway," I said, "Fredericks hired Martell, or Fenn, to guard the body; but I have a strong feeling the man he wants for the Mexico jaunt is the Duke."

"Your reasons?"

"It just adds up, that's all. Why else would he be scaring women and children out at the ranch? I'll check with Beth, but I think I'm right."

"It seems like an odd selection. A man with whom he's quarreled, according to my information; a man who has good reason to hate him?"

I said, "Ah, but you don't understand these gentleman adventurers like Mr. Logan. He's a man of principle, he draws lines. He's that rarity these days a man of his word. Regardless of personalities, if the Duke says he's going to Mexico and coming back, he's going to Mexico and coming back, and Fredericks knows it. All he has to do is get the Duke to say it."

"This Logan sounds like an interesting person," Mac said.

"Yes, sir," I said. "Interesting. Did you get another man out here?"

"Yes."

"Will you send him an alert signal immediately. A safe place for something I want to put in storage temporarily and someone to watch over it. I'll check with him in twenty minutes."

"I think it can be arranged." He gave me a number to call. "Eric."

"Yes?"

"After you learn Martell's mission, you can remember the standing orders for people in his category. They should be carried out, however, with at least a semblance of legality, to keep our brother agencies happy. Keep this in mind, particularly if you should have to deal with Fredericks as well."

I said, "I'd feel silly as hell trying to make an arrest." Mac said calmly, "Unfortunately, your feelings are a matter of complete unconcern to the government you serve."

"Well, I always suspected it," I said, "but it's nice to have it in the form of an official statement… Oh, I almost forgot. A detail."

"Proceed."

"Two unsavory characters just entered, illegally, a residence at the following Reno address." I gave the address. "They were attacked and killed by a dog belonging to the mistress of the house, not present. The dog was badly injured and had to be destroyed by the first person to discover the gory spectacle. Police are trying to contact the animal's owner, currently without success. Can you fix?"

"I think so. I gather you want publicity."

"Yes, sir. Particularly the fact that the lady of the house is missing. Radio and TV if possible. And the guy who's going to destroy the dog had better be warned that it's already dead."

"I see," Mac said softly. "I love your details, Eric."

"Yes," I said. "They're nice, aren't they? Good-bye, sir."