“If that’s the case,” said Sammy, “and they have an insider at the hotel, my team is liable to be burned as soon as we check in. Too coincidental with that many Canadians showing up. I’d better split the team and put us up in different hotels nearby.”

“Good idea,” said Jack. “See what it’s like when we get there, but for the most part, I think you should keep as much distance between us as you can. Ensure that everyone going has their cellphones programmed to work over there.”

“What about the Thai police?” asked Rose. “We need to have someone with guns if things go to hell.”

“My understanding is there are a lot of good ones,” said Laura, “but they also have a problem with corruption. When I was there last, we dealt with our Liaison Officer in Bangkok and he arranged for a couple of trusted officers to assist.”

“I’ll contact the LO myself,” said Sammy. “See what we can come up with.”

“What do you think your chances are of The Shaman showing up?” asked Rose.

“I’ll really push to meet him,” replied Jack. “If we do, and we can get the right type of conversation from him to prove he’s importing and exporting heroin, we would never have to worry about him again.”

“Thailand has the death penalty,” added Laura. “Lethal injection. You definitely don’t want to be caught trafficking in that country.”

“Might also be the death penalty for both of you,” said Rose, “if they decide to put you on a polygraph.”

“Speaking of which, did you talk to Isaac?” asked Jack.

“I did. He shook his head and muttered something, but he okayed it.”

“Perfect,” said Jack.

“The only problem is that you will not get permission to travel to Burma,” said Rose. “Too dangerous.”

“We could find a poppy field and a lab for them,” said Jack, feeling frustrated.

“I know. But between the corruption in Burma and guerrilla gangs controlling vast areas, it isn’t worth it. You could be telling them something they already know … or own. You’ll have to come up with an excuse to tell Lee that you’re not interested in seeing that part of his network.”

“Okay,” sighed Jack. “I’ll tell him that I don’t want to visit the lab because if the place is ever raided, he might blame me. Besides, in theory, all we’re interested in is the final product. Not how or where it is made. I’ll see if we can convince him to let us examine the heroin once it arrives in Thailand.”

“Lee did say you can easily take a ferry and drive the round trip from Koh Samui to Burma and back within the day,” said Laura. “So if we convince Lee to let us see the heroin when it arrives, it shouldn’t take long.”

“Good,” replied Rose. “Even that has to be arranged and pre-approved.”

“Understood,” said Jack. “I don’t fancy myself receiving a lethal injection.”

The next two weeks went by fast for Jack and Laura. Rose arranged for a polygraph operator by the name of Larry Killaly to work with them.

Jack and Laura soon learned that Larry was acutely aware of even the smallest nuances when it came to detecting liars. On their last session, Larry had Jack prepare an account of what he did on his last two days off. Some of it was made up, while other parts were true. Larry was quick to spot the lies as he questioned Jack about his activities.

“You made eye contact with me about three seconds longer than you should have when you answered that last question,” Larry said.

“I thought direct eye contact was an indication I wasn’t lying,” replied Jack, feeling upset that Larry spotted his falsehoods so easily.

Larry shook his head. “We are taught to believe that as children. So as adults, we think we can deceive someone by maintaining longer eye contact. Also, don’t forget to be conscious of which direction your eyes veer to when you are asked to recall something. Remember, for most people, it is opposite directions when they recall something that is true versus using the imaginative side of their brain to fabricate a reply. And if you pause to think about it, I know you’re being deceptive, so try again.”

At the end of the session, it was clear that Larry had accurately pinpointed many of the lies that Jack tried to tell him.

“And this is before you even put me on the machine,” said Jack in amazement. “I knew you were good, but I had no idea how good.”

“Don’t beat yourself up,” replied Larry. “For the most part, you learned exceptionally well. I think you would bring about inconclusive results for the verbal interview and even the majority of the questions you would be asked once you are on the polygraph. Unfortunately, if you are on the polygraph, it would only take a couple of questions, like, have you ever worked for a police force or provided information to the police? You might be able to control your outward appearance, but inside, your body would react. You wouldn’t fool a qualified polygraph operator. Every question would be like playing Russian roulette, only they wouldn’t stop until every question was answered. There would be no passing the gun. Sooner or later, they would hit you with one of the questions I just asked.”

“And there aren’t any drugs I can take to prevent or numb involuntary reactions?”

“Dead giveaway,” replied Larry, shaking his head.

After Larry left the apartment, Laura looked at Jack and said, “Guess we better find out who The Shaman is before any polygraph operator shows up.”

“Finding out who he is doesn’t give us the evidence to convict,” replied Jack. “We need to meet him. Get him saying something we can use in court.”

“I know, but from what Goldie told us, that won’t happen without passing the lie detector.”

“Guess we better force the issue and demand to meet him before the test, then,” said Jack, sombrely.

Oh, man …

Rose called Jack on the morning he and Laura were heading to the airport.

“Just a comment from Isaac,” she said. “Larry apprised him on the outcome of what would happen if they put you on the lie detector — basically that you would be dead. Guess I don’t need to tell you that under no circumstances are you to take it. If push comes to shove and they insist, then we’ll get Sammy’s team and the Thai police to extract you.”

“For sure,” replied Jack. “I’m not suicidal.”

“Isaac said to wish you good luck. He also suggested that it would be nice if a suspect was brought home in handcuffs rather than a body bag.”

32

Lee was all smiles as he met Jack and Laura in the departure level of the Vancouver International Airport. Their conversation was light as they boarded the plane. The first leg of the journey would take over fourteen hours to Hong Kong. There, they were to change planes before continuing on to Bangkok, arriving six hours after that.

Jack and Laura appreciated the comfort they felt as they sat in first class. The role they were playing demanded that they at least appear to be rich, when in fact, every penny spent had to be accounted for. Lee took the comforts of first class for granted.

Sammy, along with three of his colleagues, took the same flight the day before. Jack grinned to himself when he recalled Sammy’s tongue-in-cheek demand that he should fly first class with Jack and Laura as part of the cover team. Rose suggested that, based on her experience with the narcs she knew, they were nothing but a bunch of dirty dogs. She told Sammy he was lucky they didn’t cage him and put him in the baggage compartment.

Three hours into their flight, Lee placed his glass of Grand Marnier down and said, “I have some unfortunate news I forgot to mention. Some unexpected business arose on an unrelated matter and I have to stay in Hong Kong for a couple of days while you continue on.”