“Now, 120 kilometers inside the Myanmar border from India is a place called Shingbwiyang. During the Second World War it was located within the China Burma India Theater, and consequently an airbase and runway were built here.” She placed her finger on this spot. “It is lightly populated. You will fly from here to India to a location near the border with Myanmar. And then you will travel from India to Shingbwiyang, where the runway, with my secret funding, has been recently upgraded to accept a small private jet. The junta allows me to fly into this airspace for my ‘business.’ However, this time they will not know what my business is.
“You will be met there by two men whom you will stay with overnight. They will then drive you to a second location, where you will be met by three people. Their names are Thura, Zeya, and Amrita. Your initial destination is Myitkyina. Roads and trains are not really viable at the current time, too many checkpoints and other issues. And there are no flights available that will work.”
“So how do we do it?” asked Nash.
She turned back to the screen and indicated a route with a laser pointer. “You will go overland across very rugged terrain along this path. Your guides are experienced with the lay of the land and will deal with the people that you may encounter. This part will take several days via dirt bikes, horseback, and walking.”
“Horseback?” exclaimed Nash.
“You do not ride?” she said, a touch of amusement in her expression.
“No, I never have.”
“The guides will give you all the help you require.” She looked at Temple. “And you?”
“I can ride.” He looked at Nash. “I was on the polo team at the country club college my old man got me into.”
“Of course you were,” said Nash dryly.
Steers said, “The guides will get you to Myitkyina, where you will hold meetings with local businessmen who are interested in exporting their goods to America. You will be fully briefed on this before leaving Hong Kong.”
“Look, do we really have to waste time playing thisbusinessmansubterfuge?” said Temple. “It’ll just allow mistakes to be made.”
“On the contrary, it will allow you and Mr. Hope to avoid death. Two Americans traveling straight through to a highly restricted prison complex? You will be dead before you have any chance at all. The groundwork must be laid, gentlemen. The area you will be in is fraught with peril. The junta is not in control of the Kachin State, where both Myitkyina, the capital, and the prison are located. The KIA, the Kachin Independence Army, commenced its operations against the junta a few years ago. As a result KIA has taken back great swaths of land in the region, and also gained control of military bases and most of the police stations.
“The junta’s Border Guard Force is now in tatters after this offensive. Of course the junta did not take this lightly, and they conducted bombing raids among some of the villages there. But the KIA and its allies pressed on, and they have largely driven the junta out of the region. But the junta’s army, the Tatmadaw, is still a formidable force.”
“So the KIA controls the prison?” asked Nash.
“I did not say that, did I?”
“Well, do they or don’t they?” said Temple irritably.
“It is not a yes-or-no question,” she replied smoothly before moving on. “The KIA are not fools, and even though you will enter the country in secret, do not think that your presence will remain unknown for long. But if we give you roles that could actually help the Kachin State economy, which they desperately need? Your odds of success are enhanced and there will be no suspicion about you traveling in the direction of the prison complex. Now, after your meetings in Myitkyina, you will fly to Bhamo. It is a short trip on Myanmar National Airlines, which still operates in the region because the KIA allows it.”
“Won’t traveling by plane raise uncomfortable questions?” said Temple.
“Not after your positioning as an American businessman has been established. Now, once in Bhamo you will be met at the airport by more of my operatives, and driven to thevicinityof the prison. There all of you will be met by another group of my associates.”
“And then what do we do?” asked Temple, looking incredulous. “Jump the fence, fight off the guards and dogs, punch through concrete, snatch your mother, and, what, fly away like birds?”
“All in good time, Mr. Temple. I am giving you the big picture only at this point.Afteryou secure my mother, you will travel south to Lashio, which is the largest town in the northern region of the Shan State, and which sits on a low mountain spur overlooking the Yaw River Valley. The population there is roughly 130,000, which will allow you to more easily blend in. Those seeking you for liberating my mother will almost certainly believe that you will attempt to take a river ferry from Bhamo to Mandalay, which is the most obvious initial escape route out of the country, but it takes a great deal of time.”
“Are there no roads that we could take via car?” asked Nash.
“All surface roads in that part of the region are in deplorable condition, but the ferries are available, both slow and fast. But, as I just said, they will know this, and thus will commence their search on all boat traffic. But you will be transported from Lashio to Mandalay far more quickly than a ferry ride would provide. Mandalay is a city of over one million persons with an international-grade airport. Thus, while they are still looking for you on the water, you will be on a private plane and heading back here.”
“Who will be looking for us?” asked Nash. “If the prison is in the Kachin State, will it be the KIA? But will they be able to pursue us into junta-controlled regions?”
She once more studied him with. . .fascination, thought Nash.
“It matters little who will be after you, Mr. Hope. Their goal will be to kill you and retake my mother. You will have the necessary monies, human support, and logistical wherewithal to be successful, I am confident.”
“The only thing you haven’t mentioned is how do we get in and out of the prison with your mother,” said Nash. “And that’s the most important part of the plan.”
The next screen she brought up held the image of a heavyset man in a drab uniform.
“He is the principal guard of my mother. And this,” she said in a reverent tone, “is Masuyo-san.”