herself starting to drop back into the depths below, but there was nothing she could do about it, her air, and her strength with it, spent.
She’d been so close. Then, just as she’d been about to surrender to the blackness that longed to drag her down, a pair of hands shot through the circle of light above and grabbed her outstretched wrists.
She grasped the person’s wrists with all she had left. Though she could feel herself being dragged upward, she succumbed to the darkness and knew no more…
Chapter 13
Annja awoke to find herself bundled up in warm clothing and tucked into a sleeping bag in one of the prefab shelters. She luxuriated in the fact that she was still alive and then pushed herself up into a sitting position.
“Sleeping beauty awakens, I see.”
She turned at the sound of Garin’s voice and found him sitting in a camp chair on the other side of the room. “Hello, Garin.”
“Cutting it a bit close, weren’t you? If I hadn’t seen your dive light coming up…”
Annja nodded. “It wasn’t intentional, believe me. If I hadn’t tussled with that other diver, I would have had…”
“Wait! What did you say? Another diver?”
“Yes. There was someone else down on the wreck with me. He would have surfaced just before I did.”
Garin frowned. “No one came up out of that lake but you. I was standing by the dive hole the entire time.”
“That’s not possible, Garin. I’m telling you thatthere was someone else down on the wreck with me. He’s the one who discovered the satchel.”
A cold thought ran over her.
“You did get the satchel, right?” she asked.
Garin nodded. “And the gold bar. Nice job on that, by the way.”
Annja shrugged. She didn’t see it as all that unusual; it was what she did, after all.
Garin frowned. “Tell me about this diver you saw.”
Annja explained what happened, including the fact that she’d managed to injure the man, though she didn’t know how severely.
“If no one came out of that hole before me…” she began.
“There has to be another way in,” Garin finished for her.
Annja had been unconscious for about two hours, so the other diver was sure to have made his getaway by this point, but they organized a search anyway, just to be sure.
Annja, Garin and Paul boarded one of the supply helicopters and began searching the surface of the lake with the floodlight mounted beneath the aircraft while Garin’s men fanned out along the shoreline, searching the area on foot.
Twenty minutes after they started, Garin took a radio call from one of the search teams. He listened to whatever the other man was saying for a moment and then leaned around the seat to speak to the pilot. The aircraft began making a sweeping turn to the right.
“Griggs found something on the far side of the lake,” Garin told them. “We’re going to take a look.”
Ten minutes later the helicopter touched down and the three of them hurried out from under the still-whirling blades to where Griggs waited for them.
He led them to the shoreline where several flares had been arranged in a large rectangle, illuminating the area within.
A set of vehicle tracks started at the edge of a hole in the ice and disappeared out of sight in a straight line away from the lake and into the mountains.
Could have been anything from a snowmobile to a Sno-Cat , Annja thought.
“We also found this,” Griggs said, leading them farther along the water’s edge. A dry suit had been discarded a few yards away from the water. It was navy blue, which Annja thought might have been the color of the suit worn by the diver she’d encountered. The kicker was that when she picked it up and examined it, she found a long gash across one thigh.
Clearly, this was the dry suit her attacker had been wearing.
She said as much to the others.
“What do you think he was after?” Garin asked.
“Whatever is in that satchel, I guess,” Annja replied.
Paul frowned. “Doesn’t that seem kind of
She’d been so close. Then, just as she’d been about to surrender to the blackness that longed to drag her down, a pair of hands shot through the circle of light above and grabbed her outstretched wrists.
She grasped the person’s wrists with all she had left. Though she could feel herself being dragged upward, she succumbed to the darkness and knew no more…
Chapter 13
Annja awoke to find herself bundled up in warm clothing and tucked into a sleeping bag in one of the prefab shelters. She luxuriated in the fact that she was still alive and then pushed herself up into a sitting position.
“Sleeping beauty awakens, I see.”
She turned at the sound of Garin’s voice and found him sitting in a camp chair on the other side of the room. “Hello, Garin.”
“Cutting it a bit close, weren’t you? If I hadn’t seen your dive light coming up…”
Annja nodded. “It wasn’t intentional, believe me. If I hadn’t tussled with that other diver, I would have had…”
“Wait! What did you say? Another diver?”
“Yes. There was someone else down on the wreck with me. He would have surfaced just before I did.”
Garin frowned. “No one came up out of that lake but you. I was standing by the dive hole the entire time.”
“That’s not possible, Garin. I’m telling you thatthere was someone else down on the wreck with me. He’s the one who discovered the satchel.”
A cold thought ran over her.
“You did get the satchel, right?” she asked.
Garin nodded. “And the gold bar. Nice job on that, by the way.”
Annja shrugged. She didn’t see it as all that unusual; it was what she did, after all.
Garin frowned. “Tell me about this diver you saw.”
Annja explained what happened, including the fact that she’d managed to injure the man, though she didn’t know how severely.
“If no one came out of that hole before me…” she began.
“There has to be another way in,” Garin finished for her.
Annja had been unconscious for about two hours, so the other diver was sure to have made his getaway by this point, but they organized a search anyway, just to be sure.
Annja, Garin and Paul boarded one of the supply helicopters and began searching the surface of the lake with the floodlight mounted beneath the aircraft while Garin’s men fanned out along the shoreline, searching the area on foot.
Twenty minutes after they started, Garin took a radio call from one of the search teams. He listened to whatever the other man was saying for a moment and then leaned around the seat to speak to the pilot. The aircraft began making a sweeping turn to the right.
“Griggs found something on the far side of the lake,” Garin told them. “We’re going to take a look.”
Ten minutes later the helicopter touched down and the three of them hurried out from under the still-whirling blades to where Griggs waited for them.
He led them to the shoreline where several flares had been arranged in a large rectangle, illuminating the area within.
A set of vehicle tracks started at the edge of a hole in the ice and disappeared out of sight in a straight line away from the lake and into the mountains.
Could have been anything from a snowmobile to a Sno-Cat , Annja thought.
“We also found this,” Griggs said, leading them farther along the water’s edge. A dry suit had been discarded a few yards away from the water. It was navy blue, which Annja thought might have been the color of the suit worn by the diver she’d encountered. The kicker was that when she picked it up and examined it, she found a long gash across one thigh.
Clearly, this was the dry suit her attacker had been wearing.
She said as much to the others.
“What do you think he was after?” Garin asked.
“Whatever is in that satchel, I guess,” Annja replied.
Paul frowned. “Doesn’t that seem kind of
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