Part 13 (2/2)
”If your head was so badly hurt that the doctors thought your skull was fractured, I'm surprised that they let you out of the hospital,” Rick said
”They did not let uio a few o If you had not been here, then I would have followed you to Bontoc”
Scotty asked, ”Angel, what do you know of Mr Irineo Lazada?”
Angel spat ”He has power He has hty thieves, but he is the greatest one of all The Secretary, who is his boss, is a fine man, and he will believe no evil of this Lazada No one will speak against him so the Secretary and President can hear, because if such words are spoken, the body of the speaker will be found floating down the Pasig nextThis is understood by all, and those who have proof are afraid I have no proof, or I would speakBut to prove is another”
”Do you know an Aain, there is no proof Soht, but he is not, because he does no sle?” Rick asked He was searching for so Chinese who cannot get visas to enter the Philippines He brings many of them up frouns, but the supply ran out They were Auns, stolen by the truckload after the war and sold to slers like Nast Now there are no el shrugged ”This is gossip Lazada has a yacht Who would search the private yacht of the great assistant Secretary? Even though it ell known that the yacht had been to Macao or Hong Kong and was loaded with contraband?”
Rick swiftly outlined the events of the el ”We est?”
Angel thought it over, now and then raising a hand gingerly to his bandaged head ”Everything Nast wants is in the Ifugao country, no? He can only want the gold, and it is there When Dr Okola told olden skull you seek, I was afraid, for there are still old Now Nast is after it Maybe others I do not think Nangolat wants gold, but he is an Ifugao Also, his interest is in the Ifugao country It can be nowhere else”
Angel's English so, but it was clear And so, apparently, were his thoughts Rick accepted his idea about everything pointing to the Ifugao country
”Then we should go to Ifugao”
”You have a plane We should fly over the road to Bontoc and look for the truck and the sedan with Dr Briotti If we see theuio and telephone The road to Bontoc is one way only Only one car at a time can travel”
”One way?” Scotty inquired ”You can't et back and forth?”
”I aized ”What Iboth ways So the road has been divided in parts by gates Maybe a car is going to Bontoc It arrives at Gate One The gatekeeper lets it through, then he calls Gate Two and says he has let a car couio He reaches Gate Two, and the gatekeeper makes him wait until the car froo through and calls the gatekeeper at Gate One and says a car is coate and he calls Gate Three and says that a car is coate at a tiates, and then have to wait for a car coates I forget exactly how et froates”
Banaue was in the Ifugao country, in the heart of the rice terraces It was their destination
”Let's go,” Rick said
He had worked out a plan The plane could scout the road quickly and easily By air it was only a short distance to Bontoc, but by road it was several hours of driving because of the twists and turns If they could spot the truck or a sedan with four uio and phone, and the vehicles could be held up at one of the hts were apparently the same, because Rick knew exactly what he ive us trouble We'll just have to hope that we can fly loe see one, and try to catch a look at the people in it”
”That won't be very satisfactory,” Rick said ”When we get to the airport, we'll have Angel pump those workmen some more If they're still there Like a pair of real ot to ask for details, such as what color the sedan was”
They were fortunate The work away at the runway shoulders And they did recall the color of the sedan It was dark green But they didn't know enough about cars to know the make, and they had noticed no special details
”Have you flown before?” Rick asked Angel