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Lee Tong was in no mood for his grandmother's Oriental philosophy.
"Do not concern yourself unnecessarily," he said acinly.
"A government investigating team would have eventually stumbled onto the yacht anyway. We could not make the President',4 transfer in broad daylight without running the danger of being seen and stopped.
And since the yacht wasn't reported after sunrise, simple mathematics suggested that it was still somewhere on or below the river between Washington and Chesapeake Bay."
"A conclusion Mr. Pitt apparently had no trouble arriving at."
"It changes nothing," said Lee Tong. "Time is still on our side.
Once Lugovoy is satisfied at his results, all that remains for us is to oversee the gold shipment. After that, President Antonov can have the President. But we keep Margolin, Larimer and Moran for insurance and future bargaining power. Trust me, aunumi, the tricky part is past. The Bougainville corporate fortress is secure."
"Maybe so, but the hounds are getting too close."
"We're matching ourselves against highly trained and intelligent people who possess the finest technology in the world. They may come within reach, but they'll never fully grasp our involvement."
Mollified somewhat, Min Koryo sighed and sipped at her ever present teacup. "Have you talked to Lugovoy in the past eight hours?"
"Yes. He claims he's encountered no setbacks and can complete the project in five more days."
"Five days," she said pensively. "I think it is time we made the final arrangements with Antonov for payment. Has our ship arrived?"
"The Venice docked at Odessa two days ago."
"Who is ship's master?"
"Captain James Mangyai, a trusted employee of the company," Lee Tong answered.
Min Koryo nodded approvingly. "And a good seaman. He hired on with me almost twenty years ago."
"He has his orders to cast off and set sail the minute the last crate of gold is loaded aboard."
"Good. Now we'll see what kind of stalling tactics Antonov will try. To begin with, he'll Do doubt demand to hold up payment until Lugovoy's experiment is a proven success. This we will not do. In the meantime, he'll have an army of KGB agents combing the American countryside, looking for the President and our laboratory facilities."
"No Russian or American will figure out where we have Lugovoy and his staff hidden," Lee Tong said firmly.
"They found the yacht," Min Koryo reminded him.
Before Lee Tong could reply, the vineo screen turned to snow as the tape played out. He set the control for rewind. "Do you wish to view it again?" he asked.
"Yes, I want to examine the diving crew more closely."
When the recorder automatically switched off, Lee Tong pressed the "play" button and the picture returned to life.
Min Koryo watched it impassively for a minute and then said, "What is the latest status report on the wreck site?"
"A NUMA salvage crew is bringing up the bodies and preparing to raise the yacht."
"Who is the man with the red heard talking with Pitt?"
Lee Tong enlarged the scene until both men filled the screen.
"That's Admiral James Sandecker, Director of NUMA."
"Your man was not seen filming Pitts movements?"
"No, he's one of the best in the business. An ex-FBi agent. He was contracted for the job through one of our subsidiary corporations and told that Pitt is suspected of selling NUMA equipment to outside sources."
