There was a grim, stony weariness in her face. "The Japanese say so. What other explanation is there?"
"But," said Fallon, "why not South America, too?"
"They were probably afraid the monsters might get out of hand and tackle their own people," said Joan bitterly.
"Maybe." Again Fallon's eyes were distant. Then he clapped his hands sharply and sprang up. "Yes! Got it, Joan!"
The quick motion ripped at the wound across his back. He swayed and caught her shoulder, but he didn't stop talking.
"Einar Bjarnsson! He was my last job. I interviewed him the day before the quake. I want to see him, Joan. Now!"
She took his wrists, half frightened. "What is it, Webb?"
"Listen," he said softly. "Remember the radio calls from the islands? The monsters came out of the west here, didn't they? Well, out there—they came out of the east!"
Fallon explained, as he sent the car screaming perilously along winding mountain roads. Einar Bjarnsson was an expert on undersea life. He had charted tide paths and sub-sea 'rivers,' mapped the continental shelves and the great deeps.
Bjarnsson's recent exploration had been in the Pacific, using a specially constructed small submarine. His findings on deep-sea phenomena had occupied space in scientific journals and the Sunday supplements of newspapers throughout the world.