Jack was outside waiting for them when they came down the stairs from the communications room. Bahadur asked if they were all ready. Jack answered, “Ready to go” and told Bahadur the packs were checked and down on the dock. Bahadur said his pack was already loaded in the River Runner, a broad-beamed 18-footer with no cabin.

Bahadur said, “This boat may not look like much, but for running upriver against the flow from the spring melt of the snow in the Himalayas, it is the best. There will be five of us. Normally, I would not carry so many but the ladies are trim, so it should be okay. We’ll have to move around quickly at times when we hit the standing waves. Some of them will be five to six feet high. My best river pilot Chitra will join us. In fact, he is better at running upriver than I am.”

Jack asked Bahadur what the principle rules were in running up this river. Bahadur answered, choosing the right channel was the most important. At points the river splits into several channels. As a general rule, you should take the channel that looks like it is carrying the most flow. From week to week the channels can change. You cannot memorize or chart the course. The standing waves must be taken head on, and you have to judge if the flow of the water over the rocks is deep enough to pass over them at full power. At times the boat, even with the best pilot, can get stalled and pushed broadside by the power of the current.

“Look downriver when we enter the river from this sheltered cove. If the boat should stall and get swept downstream, none of us would survive. Our only chance is to get the outboards or at least one running so we can have some steerage. Just to make it more interesting, you will notice the crocodiles sunning themselves on the mud bank just as we make a sharp right turn to the north to enter the Narayani. They are always hungry and very aggressive.”

Bahadur looked up at Jack and said, “Now after my briefing, are you ready to go? I promise you it will be the ride of your life. If all goes well, we should pass Devghat where you had breakfast this morning in no more than two or three hours. A mile or so past Devghat and we will be going ashore to start the overland push to Kathmandu.”

Bahadur looked back at the camp as one of his men was calling him to come back. He excused himself and trotted back up the trail.

As soon as Bahadur was out of earshot, Jack said, “Bahadur will not want the people on the shore at Devghat to see him taking clients upriver. I am sure he intends to kill us on the river or at a stop in some very remote sheltered cove. He won’t make any moves while the river is challenging us. It would be too risky. One of us may grab the wheel or jump the pilot. Be alert and take action, even if you are not sure they are ready to move. Our strategy is to take them before they get us. No use getting into a gun fight. Step over close to me. I’m going to give Anita a handful of real shells. Load the magazine and quietly chamber a round.

“Bahadur is coming back with our river pilot. Oh, one more thing, keep separated from me on the boat. Anita, take Bahadur when the action starts. I’ll take Chitra. Kathy, be ready to pick up a weapon and join in. Make sure one gun cannot get us all. No use making it too easy for them to watch and control us. Not to worry. I like our odds. Smile and look at the scowl on Bahadur’s face. I’ll bet he has heard some bad news from his communication system that suddenly came back up.”

Jack conjured up a big smile and called out to Bahadur, “Everything okay? Are we still good to go?”

Anita, in a murmur from behind Jack, said, “This should be interesting. Bet he gives us some bullshit story.”

Bahadur was now on the dock. His scowl had changed to a grin and he said, “Damn clients! Constant bitching and complaining when my schedule doesn’t fit theirs. I told them I would be tied up for about a week. If you are ready, let’s get started. Okay, Chitra, start up the outboards.”

Jack stood by the bow line, and Bahadur manned the stern line. Bahadur gave the order, and they cast off, moving slowly, almost drifting down the inlet that grew wider and faster as they approached the river. Twenty yards before their sharp right turn upriver, the engines sputtered and then went silent. At first Jack thought it was part of Bahadur’s plan, but when he began yelling to drop anchor at the same time he was frantically trying to get one of the outboards running, Jack knew this was not planned. Chitra was coolly trying to ride the current toward the inlet bank. Jack gauged the distance to the bank to be less than 20 feet. Then he heard a series of splashes and saw the crocodiles launching themselves into the water. Ten or fifteen of them remained on the muddy bank with their ugly heads raised and pointing at the drifting boat. The Narayani was now in full view. The turbulent water racing south would make short work of the River Runner and her crew.

Jack knew he was probably the strongest, if not the fastest, swimmer in the group. He grabbed the bow line, stepped up on the gunnels, and crouched to launch himself toward the bank. After one look at the raging water, the crocs looked like the least of the two dangers. Jack was leaning forward into his spring, when he heard the motor start and felt Kathy grab his belt. Now with both outboard motors running, Bahadur cut the dragging anchor line, and the River Runner lived up to her name and surged up river against the current.

Anita looked at Bahadur and said, “Bahadurji, that was a helluva start. Do you do that all the time? It should get the attention of your clients.”

“It must be you. Trouble follows you. Fuck no! That’s the first time it happened. From now on, we warm up the outboards a little longer. The gas we get is not always the best. Jack, were you really going to try for shore?”

“Three more seconds and I would have been gone. I’ve never been swimming with crocodiles before, but it looked like a better option than drifting into turbulent water. That is the worst I have ever seen. Thank God, you got the outboards running before I tried for shore.”

Kathy, still hanging on to Jack said, “I feel like I need to put a leash on you. Please stop making my heart churn.”

Buy “Justice Beyond Law” on Amazon, as well as the rest of the Jack Brandon series and other books by Barry Kelly, a former CIA agent and adviser to President Reagan.