But Dell had stopped again, distracted by something. Cat joined him at the edge of the group and followed his gaze. At the center of the room were two large, round tables. One of them was piled high with an enormous stack of money, bundles of one-hundred-dollar bills. The other was piled with an equally high stack of clear plastic bags, each filled with a white powder. Cat glanced at Dell. Dell seemed stunned.
There was a tug at Cat’s sleeve, and Meg said, “What’s happening? Are we all right?”
“I don’t know,” Cat replied, keeping his eyes on Dell. “We’re—”
“Gentlemen!” The voice came from the other end of the room. “Gentlemen, may I have your attention!”
Cat followed the voice and came to Vargas.
“Gentlemen, it is now my pleasure to introduce you to the man who has brought you here, who has made all of this” — he spread his hands to indicate the money and the cocaine — “possible. Gentlemen — and ladies — the Anaconda!”
There was a round of enthusiastic applause, and Prince stepped between the tables. “Good evening, gentlemen,” he said, smiling. He waved a hand at the table of money. “Here we have the fruits of your efforts,” he said. “Fifty million dollars.” Then he waved another hand at the table of cocaine. “And here we have the fruits of mine. Fifty million dollars’ worth of the finest cocaine. We have come together here to combine our efforts, to our mutual profit.”
It was the first time Cat had heard Prince speak, and he was impressed. His voice was rich and pleasant, his manner confident. He might have been the chairman of some Fortune 500 company addressing his sales force. In fact, Cat thought, he probably is.
Prince continued. “This merchandise is only a tiny fraction of what I will produce here, and this money is an even smaller fraction of what you and I, together, will generate. A few hundred yards from this spot, back in the jungle, is the largest and most modern cocaine factory ever built, nearing completion. Next week we will abandon the crude and cumbersome methods which produced the product you see before you, and we will move into a new era of production. Within a month, after we have gotten the bugs out of the system, we will have increased our output by a factor of eight, and that is why you are here.
“You gentlemen, most of you chosen carefully for your success in legitimate business, will form the basis of a new distribution and sales system that will, in very short order, cover the world. We will, of course, supply you with the finest, purest product available, but we will do much more than that. During the course of your week’s stay here, my people and I will be instructing you in our proven methods — management; the hiring of salespeople; the security of your network; the buying of key law-enforcement officials; your own insulation from unlawful activity, and — when necessary — the protection and defense of your operations.
“We have a busy week planned for you, but half of each day and all of each evening will be set aside for leisure activities. We can offer you everything a good resort hotel can — and, perhaps, a bit more. There is a large library of books and videocassettes available; there are swimming and tennis; there is a small casino, and there is quite a good discotheque. There will also be female companionship, although I must apologize for the short supply. Our facilities here are in full use, and we could not import extra ladies for this occasion.” He smiled. “But our ladies are very willing, and you may be sure that none of you will have to go the whole week without company.”
Cat’s insides twitched. The young women he had seen were here to entertain the visiting firemen, and Jinx was among them.
“Finally,” Prince said, “before we go in to dinner, let me mention one or two rules we have here. You may have the run of the place, explore all you like, except for the factory and the jungle. You will see the factory on guided tours, but we do not wish the work disturbed by unscheduled visits. Do not go into the jungle, for you are unlikely to return. It is denser than you can imagine, and it is all too easy to lose your bearings and head away from our camp when you believe you are heading toward it. And there are, of course, beasts which enjoy human flesh. I must ask you, also, to be in your quarters by midnight and not to venture out until daylight. We double the guard here at night, and my people are instructed to shoot first and ask questions later.
“Finally, and most important, I must tell you that I do not tolerate the use of drugs here. I do not, in fact, tolerate the use of drugs by anyone associated with me, and you gentlemen were chosen, in part, because you are not users. Still, someone may have slipped through my net of inquiries, and I warn you now — and I am perfectly serious — I will unceremoniously shoot the first person who is caught using drugs.
“But now, ladies and gentlemen, dinner is served. You will find a place card at each seat.” Prince waved an arm and yet another set of huge doors opened to reveal an enormous dining room with a single, long table.
Cat hung back with Meg and watched Dell shuffle into the dining room with the others. “That’s my son, Dell,” he told her. “We haven’t gotten along for several years. He’s here as a buyer, and I can’t promise you he won’t turn us in, but we’ve got to take the chance.”
“Oh, swell,” Meg said, quietly.
“Something else,” he whispered. “Jinx doesn’t know either of us is here, and I don’t want her to see us without warning, if I can help it. I don’t know if we’ll be sitting together, but try to get near her and tell her both Dell and I are here, so she’ll have some warning. If you can, find out where her room is and how we might meet.”
“Right,” Meg said.
They entered the dining room to discover that everyone had gathered along one wall, which was of glass, with a door at one end. Cat and Meg followed the crowd. Behind the plate glass was a patch of jungle, brought indoors. There was a lot of greenery, and a small stream ran through the scene. Then Cat saw what everyone was looking at. Resting on a limb of a tree, parts of its body dangling, was the largest snake he had ever seen. “Christ,” he said, involuntarily.
“It’s an anaconda,” Meg said. “I’ve seen one before, a much smaller one.”
The huge reptile seemed oblivious of its audience, and the crowd gradually drifted to the table, looking for place cards.
Meg found hers, then Cat found his, across the table and half a dozen places down, near the center of the table. Dell, he saw was on Meg’s side, near the end. Dell’s expression was vacant, but he seemed calm. Then he saw Jinx take her seat, two down from Meg. Good, he thought, Meg might be able to speak to her. Then Denny took the seat between them.
Cat was in clear view of Jinx, and that worried him. Still, his appearance had changed. When Jinx had last seen him, his hair had been longer, his beard full, and he had weighed an extra fifty pounds. But Jinx would remember when he was slimmer and clean-shaven, back when she was in her early teens. Then she looked directly at him.
He looked away, then stole another glance at her. She had not reacted. Denny said something to her, but she ignored him, and he looked annoyed. Pointedly, she turned away and took up a conversation with the man on her other side.
Someone sat down next to Cat. Absorbed with watching Jinx, he ignored the man, until he spoke.
“Lovely, isn’t she?” the man asked.
Cat turned and found Prince sitting next to him. “Yes, she is,” he said. Then, after a moment: “How do you persuade such a beautiful girl to come to the middle of a jungle?” Cat wanted to pick up his fork and plunge it into the man’s face.