The Last Odyssey (Sigma Force #15) - James Rollins Page 0,27

rusty. Or maybe it was the unusual nature of this descent. She did her best to avoid the thin stream corkscrewing around her. Still, water constantly sprayed her mask, making it hard to see. Also, the ice proved to be both rock-hard and slippery. To her, the descent was less like rappelling and more like ice-skating.

“Tunnel angles away from here,” Nuka called up. “Should make it easier.”

She wiped the spray from her mask and looked down. The first section of the descent had been nearly vertical, but the light attached to Nuka’s mask revealed the shaft heading off at a thirty-degree angle.

Thank god . . .

She happily dropped to that section, closing the distance to join Nuka. The tunnel ahead squeezed to half its size, but it was still manageable if they stayed single file.

But for how long? And would their ropes even reach the bottom?

They both had ice axes strapped to their backs, but Maria had no desire to attempt a free descent beyond the end of the rope.

As they continued, the chute grew steadily less steep, but the water also deepened underfoot, requiring them to brace their legs to either side of the strong current.

After another several yards, Nuka stopped and shifted his mask aside and sniffed the air. “Is that smoke?”

Smoke?

Maria stopped and did the same. The fresh air froze the hairs in her nostrils, but she noted a hint of woodsmoke. She knew there could be only one source of combustible material down here. She pictured the ancient ship.

Had it been set on fire by whoever took Elena?

She didn’t know, but the scent suggested they must be close. She waved Nuka on. “Let’s keep going.”

“Um, that’s gonna be a problem.” Nuka reached down and fished the loose end of his rope from the frigid current. He held it up. “We’ve reached the end of the line.”

She scooted next to him. “What now?”

But she knew what his answer would be.

He began freeing his harness from the belaying device. “Like you said. We’re close.” Once free, he unhooked his ice ax. “And it’s not too steep. I can probably just hike the rest of the way if I’m careful.”

“Not alone, you’re not.”

Despite her earlier trepidation, she felt confident enough to go a bit farther. If the tunnel became any more treacherous, they could always use their axes and crampons to reach the rope again.

“Help me off my line,” she said.

After he did, he stared up at her. With his mask pushed to the top of his head, his eyes shone brightly, enough for her to read his fear and relief. “Thanks.”

“Just get going before I change my mind.”

He set off, demonstrating the proper method. He kept his legs wide, taking each step with care, making sure his crampons had a good grip. He held the ax low in both hands, ready to jam it into the ice if he slipped.

She followed, matching him step for step.

It was tedious, but they made slow progress. Effort and tension had her sweating inside her dry suit.

“I think I see a glow ahead,” Nuka said.

She straightened and tried to peek past the kid—and promptly lost her footing. Caught off guard, she crashed into the main current, which immediately caught her body and shoved her forward. She hit Nuka and knocked his legs out from under him.

Tangled together, their ice axes were useless.

The current sped them a short run, then spilled them down a painful cascade into a wider chamber. Once in the larger space, the stream spread and lost some of its force. It split ahead, dividing around a jagged berg of blue ice.

Nuka grabbed her around the waist and hauled her to the left to avoid hitting the obstruction. He then used their combined momentum to roll them out of the river and onto a frozen bank of rock.

She patted the solid ground.

Rock . . .

They must have reached the glacier’s bottom. Maria sat up, gasping, the wind knocked out of her. Across the dark chamber, the shadowy husk of a ship smoldered in the gloom.

We made it.

Her relief was short-lived.

A shout rose from the ship, full of panic.

“RUN! GET THE HELL OUT OF THERE!”

1:33 P.M.

A moment ago, Mac had thought his eyes were playing tricks on him. He thought he’d seen ghost lights flickering by the meltwater cascade flowing into the chamber. Then he heard an eerie echo of voices. The Inuit believed some glaciers were haunted, and after learning their Tuurngaq—their demons—were fiery and real, he did not discount