‘What about the hill tribes?’

‘These are people high up in the hills, opium growers. They will say very little as the food in their children’s mouths depends on silence. The people will be too afraid to stop them. You cannot stop the Shwit. They will keep going and not care whether people like it or not. They will push the five until they get what they want.’

Mo wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. Her lips looked burned from the strong dark liquor. In the firelight her eyes were hard and her face jowly. She had been drinking for hours and now her drunkenness slurred her words and she growled rather than spoke. Her demeanour turned cold as her shoulders slumped and she stared at the map.

‘Pah! We have killed plenty of Shwit in our time.’

‘It’s not just the Shwit.’ Alak looked across at Run Run. ‘They are led by an old enemy—Saw Wah Say is their leader. He left a message for me when he killed Mongkut. He is challenging me.’

Mo’s expression changed. Her eyes narrowed with hate as she glared at Alak.

‘See!’ Mo stood, swaying, and banged her glass down onto the table. ‘All the bad things come back to you in time.’ She spat her words at Alak who did not move. ‘Mongkut died because of you…’ She slumped back down onto the bench, her fire disappearing as quickly as it had flared. ‘He was a brave man, a good man; he was my friend. I knew him all my life. I fought with him in many battles. You killed my only son and you killed Mongkut.’ Her voice trailed and her eyes filled with tears. She poured herself another drink, and then turned, her eyes flashing with hate in the darkness. ‘You have caused so much suffering in your worthless life.’ Mo glared at him. Her fire had returned. She was suddenly upright, poised and spoiling for a drunken fight.

There was an intake of breath from Run Run as Alak’s shoulders stiffened and he glared at Mo. For a few seconds he seemed ready to leap across the table at her throat; but instead he remained in his seat, fuming but controlled.

‘When Saw and I were taken away to fight for Khun Sa we committed terrible crimes. We were wild and lawless. But I have paid for my crimes, Mo. I cannot pay for them for the rest of my life. I am a Buddhist. I have made amends.’

‘Hah!’ Mo laughed sarcastically as she turned and spat into the darkness. ‘Your God? Your God divided the Karen people. Your God works for the Burmese junta and kills his own people.’ She rocked forward and waited, daring Alak to retaliate. Mann waited too, watching Alak, who gave him a resigned smile and shook his head slowly. Then he reached for the bottle and poured himself and Mo a drink. He gave a small sigh before he raised his glass to Mo.

‘To the fight. To the four principles and to the gods—we beg their forgiveness. And to Mongkut—he was a brave man and a good friend to all of us.’

‘Pah!’ Mo did not raise her glass. Instead she wiped her mouth as if there were a bad taste in it, before sitting back down and reaching over and snatching up the bottle once more.

Mann kept his eyes on Run Run. She remained silent but her eyes, her shoulders, her soul seemed filled with a sad hopelessness as she watched Mo and Alak, still fighting after all the years. Alak sat back against the bench and he took a few deep breaths. He was a man well versed in the art of warfare but he would back down from Mo. Not only because he had too much respect for her, but also because he returned Run Run’s love and her eyes were begging him not to retaliate. But whatever it was that Alak had done to offend Mo, it wasn’t something she was ever going to forget, Mann thought. The evening seemed in danger of degenerating into a slanging match and Riley got up and excused himself. Mo sat muttering under her breath as she watched him go.

In the rest of the village, a quiet was descending. People began to excuse themselves and drift away to find a few hours’ sleep before dawn. Only the dog still continued its wakeful patrol, and now he began to growl at the undergrowth. As they all paused to see what the concern was, Mann could make out Riley talking on the phone to someone. Mo picked up a stone and threw it at the dog to shut it up.

‘We must rest now. We set off at dawn,’ said Alak. ‘Two groups, to cover more ground. My men will travel in one and we will travel in the other. Mo will remain here. We need someone to coordinate and Mo has the radio.’

Riley rejoined them. From the corner of his eye, Mann could see the shape of someone moving through the undergrowth. He looked around at the others. Only Louis seemed to be looking in the same direction as him but he looked away. Mann looked again and he knew he was right—two eyes were staring back at him from the blackness.

67

The day was just beginning to surrender its nighttime moisture to the air. It was already warm. There was a pre-dawn stillness, broken only by the coughing coming from Mo’s hut as she stirred from her bed to spit her phlegm off the side of her platform.

‘Are we set?’ Sue was looking at Mann as she stood beside him on the platform while he drank the last of his coffee. She followed his eyes out to the jungle. Mann was still looking for any trace of what it was he’d seen the night before. ‘What is it? Didn’t you get any sleep?’

‘I slept okay…you?’ Mann turned to see that Sue had got herself kitted out in her jungle outfit once more for the day’s journey.

‘You must be kidding, it’s an oven in there.’ She looked back towards the entrance to the inner room of the dwelling. ‘You feel like your skin is crawling. But at least everyone goes to bed early.’

‘Yes, no chance of catching a late movie here.’ Mann was still distracted by the forest, still hoping to catch another glimpse of whatever it was he had seen.

‘What is it?’ she asked again.

He turned and smiled at her. ‘Just thinking, that’s all.’

‘About?’

‘Last night mainly. What is it with Mo and Alak about him having killed her son?’ He looked down from the platform. He could Run Run playing with the children; Alak was talking to Captain Rangsan in the clearing.

Sue lowered her voice. ‘I’ll tell you later.’

Beneath the ladder, the rest of the parties were beginning to congregate. Gee was sat on a log smoking in his self-contained manner—same red T-shirt, same red cap on his head. He looked to be in a contemplative mood. Nearby, Dok and Keetau were packing the provisions into their bundles and tying them onto bamboo straps. Mo had kitted them out with enough food to last the next five days of their journey. By then they should be at Gee’s village and able to get more supplies. Mann threw the rest of his coffee into the undergrowth. ‘Okay, I’m ready.’ He made a last check of his bag and followed Sue down the ladder.

‘Alak and I are discussing tactics.’ Louis looked up as they approached. They were hovering over a map drawn in the earth. ‘Alak has more news this morning,’ he added.

‘Yes. My scouts came here before dawn. Saw and the volunteers are no longer in the Golden Triangle. They have returned to this area. They are somewhere in these forests.’

‘That’s good,’ said Sue. ‘Isn’t it?’

Alak looked pensive. ‘Perhaps. But we do not know why.’

Louis pointed his stick in the dirt and etched a map.

‘Alak’s men will sweep around to the west; we’ll go east and meet in five days at Gee’s village. We will keep in touch by radio.’

‘Where’s our first destination?’ asked Mann.

Alak answered. ‘The old refinery, two days’ walk from here. I think Saw will have gone there. ‘ Alak had a final word with Captain Rangsan before he and the men picked up their equipment, strapped on their new weapons, and disappeared stealthily through the village and out into the jungle. The others stood in silence and watched them go. The silence was broken by Mo’s booming voice, berating Run Run about something. Run Run walked quickly towards them, her head bowed and her face set in stone. She had obviously heard enough from her mother.