Polar Quest

“But you do it anyway,” Annja said.

Trevor nodded. “Maybe the real world just isn’t my cup of tea. I think I like it down here better than I ever would back there.”

Annja finished her oatmeal. Trevor stood. “You want some more?”

Annja held up her hand. “I don’t think I have time. Still have to brush my teeth and then climb into my gear. Oh—”

Trevor smiled. “I got your parka from Dunning. I’ll see you off when you come back down, if you don’t mind.”

Annja nodded. “Sure. Thanks.”

She went back upstairs and used the toilet and then brushed her teeth. Trevor seemed like a nice guy and he’d certainly been a big help to her last night. But what would make a guy like that want to run away from the real world? What had driven him down here in the first place? she wondered.

She slid a thick hat onto her head and then climbed into her snow pants and boots. She’d left the parka downstairs. She could put it on when she was headed out the door.

She took a final glimpse at her room. Comfortable, she thought. And it had certainly been a nice place to crash last night. She wondered where she’d be sleeping from here on out.

Trevor was as good as his word and met her at the bottom of the stairs by the front door. “Got everything you need?”

Annja nodded. “I think so. But honestly there’s not much to bring. Just my laptop in my bag and a few articles of clothing and toiletries. Beyond that, what’s the use?”

“You left the bathing suit at home, in other words.”

“Exactly.”

Trevor smiled and held up a small resealable bag. “Here, take this with you.”

“What’s this?”

“Some of my coffee. You seemed to like it an awful lot, and I can’t imagine where you’re going there’s anything nearly as good as this. So, please, take the bag of it. I insist.”

“Thanks, Trevor, that’s awfully nice of you.”

“Just remember me when that coffee’s the only thing keeping you from freezing your ass off out in the woolly cold.”

Annja smiled. “I will.”

From outside, she thought she could hear an engine somewhere off in the distance.

Trevor seemed to hear it, too. “Sounds like your ride,” he said.

“Guess so.”

“You be careful out there, Annja. Okay?”

She looked at him. “Why so concerned?”

Trevor shook his head. “You seem like a smart woman. I don’t like seeing good people get into things over their heads, you know?”

“Okay.”

“All I’m saying is be careful. I’ve heard what happened out there—the environmental spill and all. I just hope it’s not all that bad. Spoiling the natural beauty of this place would be a great shame. And I’d hate for you to get mixed up in any of that crap.”

Annja squeezed his shoulder. “I’ll be careful. I promise.”

“All right, then.”

The engine noise grew louder. Annja turned for her parka.

“Let me help you with that,” Trevor said.

“Thanks.” Annja slid into the parka and then zipped up the front. Trevor eyed her. “Ribs still feeling okay?”

“Pretty good, actually, yeah.”

“Okay then, Miss Creed, I hereby pronounce you ready for Antarctic exploration. Godspeed to you.”

Annja smiled and pulled her hood up. The engine noise had diminished to an idle right outside the door.

Annja stepped outside and felt the Antarctic morning greet her with a solid one-two punch in the blast of frigid air. She hustled over to the Sno-Cat and heaved her bag up into the cab.

She climbed up on the track and slid inside, pulling the door shut tight behind her.

“Good morning,” Dave said. “How are you feeling?”

Annja smiled. “Oh, let me tell you about that.”

Dave slid the Sno-Cat into gear. Annja looked out the window at Trevor, who still stood silhouetted in the doorway.

Just as she was about to wave goodbye, he closed the door.

9

“Someone attacked you?”

Annja nodded. “That’s right. It happened right after I left the bar. As soon as I turned onto Main Street.”

Dave shook his head. “Sometimes, I tell you, this place seems less and less like the Antarctica I fell in love with and more like Dodge City.”

Annja shrugged. “Well, whoever it was, they definitely wanted me out of the way. And they did it in such a way that it would have looked like an accident. A strange one, but an accident nonetheless.”

Dave steered the Sno-Cat farther out of McMurdo. “You talk to anyone about it?”

“Uh, yeah. I needed medical attention for my ribs and then the marshal came to see me. And he was a bit peeved that I hadn’t had my in-briefing with him as of yet. Apparently, someone neglected to tell me it was standard procedure for all new arrivals.”

Dave cleared his throat. “Yeah, sorry about that. Zach told me he wanted you brought into McMurdo as quickly as possible. Plus, it was suppertime. I didn’t see much point in bothering Dunning about it.”

Annja watched the dark sky lighten just a little. “Any other procedures or protocols I need to know about?”