Easter found himself being studied.

“Were it not for evidence outside your knowledge,” Bony said, “I would strongly incline to agreement. I want you to understand that I do agree that she did not fall from the train or wander away from it.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” Easter said. “I thought…”

“I know, Easter. Look at this map again. See here, to north-east of the Plain and far beyond its border, is the new town ofWoomera, and away in the desert extends the rocket range. Now, much nearer, only a few miles north of Ooldea, along this east side of the plain, is the new atomic-testing ground called Maralinga. What blacks there were in that country have long since migrated to the southern extremity of their ancient tribal land, down near the coast, and so all the country of the range and testing ground is empty of native population. Now, north of this railway, as you pointed out, is merely a vacuum. We here at Chifley are almost at the western edge of the Plain, and the only station homestead within miles and miles is situated to the northwest of Chifley and called Mount Singular. Am I correct?”

“Yes.”

“You know that Security at those Government establishments is very rigid. You don’t know that Myra Thomas was a bad security risk during the war. D’youknow a man named Patsy Lonergan?”

“Never seen him,” replied Easter.“Heard of him. Once a prospector, now a dingo trapper, or was before he died at Norseman a fortnight ago.”

“What do you know about him?” pressed Bony.

“Very little. Lonergan was trapping at Mount Singular for years, even before the present people took over the place, which is seventy miles north of the railway, and built on a bluff overlooking the Plain. He used camels, and like most oldbushmen of his generation, he visited a township once every year for an extra good bender. Died when on that last one.”