Polar Quest

by Alex Archer

  Annja opened her eyes and looked up at him. “Someone tackled me.”

  “You said.”

  “They wanted me dead. They got me on my back and then they were going to run me over with the Sno-Cat.”

  Trevor frowned. “Who the hell would do that?”

  Annja had a few thoughts. The two thugs in the bar earlier hadn’t seemed very warm. But who were they? Annja didn’t even know their names. “I don’t know. There were some threatening guys at the bar.”

  “Which bar?”

  “Gallagher’s.”

  Trevor shook his head. “Most of the bad characters hang out in the smokers’ bar. Gallagher’s is usually okay. We don’t normally have any trouble. Especially this time of year.”

  Annja looked at him. “You have police down here?”

  Trevor frowned. “Didn’t you get the in-briefing?”

  “The what?”

  “You were supposed to be met by the special deputy U.S. marshal. He greets everyone who comes in here, especially Americans. He gives the in-briefing about the fact that if you commit a serious crime down here, you can be extradited back to the U.S. for prosecution. It’s boring and stuff, but we all have to go through it. Some kind of legal thing.”

  “Never saw him,” Annja said.

  “Huh.” Trevor got off her bed and walked toward the door. “I’ll go see where the medics are. And then, maybe you’d better have that talk with the marshal. His name’s Dunning.”

  Annja closed her eyes. “Okay.”

  Trevor closed the door behind him and Annja sighed. How many times was she going to fly into some place new and within hours get someone pissed off at her? She really had to work on how she interacted with the percentage of permanent losers that seemed to inhabit the planet.

  She laughed. “Yeah, right.”

  Her voice seemed quiet in the thickly insulated bedroom. She couldn’t even hear the wind howling outside. She pulled the blanket up under her chin and felt the first waves of drowsiness starting to wash over her.

  At least she’d made it back alive.

  Someone knocked on her door. “Come in.”

  Trevor entered first, followed by a man and woman wearing red parkas that they quickly stripped off. They both carried big bags of gear.

  The woman took the lead. “Annja? I’m Martha, the head medic on duty right now. You want to tell me what happened?”

  “Tackled and driven to the ground. I felt an elbow go into my ribs, heard a crack. I think it might be broken.”

  “What makes you so sure of that?” Martha asked.

  Annja smiled. “It’s not the first time it’s happened to me.”

  “Do you get into a lot of fights?” the medic asked.

  “Trouble seems to have fun hanging out with me. But it’s not something I go in search of, if that’s what you’re getting at.”

  Martha grinned. “Ah.” She felt for Annja’s pulse and checked her pupils. “Well, you seem in okay shape. You mind if I take a look?”

  “It’s going to hurt like hell, isn’t it?” Annja asked.

  “Probably.”

  Annja grinned. “At least you’re honest.” She tried to maneuver on the bed and Martha helped her. Annja lifted her shirt and Martha ran her hand over Annja’s rib cage.

  Annja felt her gently prod the area and then her fingers went a little farther and Annja grunted loudly. “Yow.”

  Martha nodded. “Yeah, well, that’s the area. There’s some nice bruising, but it’s not as bad as you think. I don’t think the break went all the way through. Someone heavier, yeah, then maybe. But whoever did this was lighter than necessary to get the break clean.”

  Annja nodded. “So now what?”

  “You know the drill. Taped up and some painkillers. A few weeks from now, you should be good to go. Sleeping will be a pain in the ass for some time, though.”

  “Great,” Annja muttered.

  Martha and her teammate wrapped the thick, stiff tape around Annja’s midsection until it felt as if she were wearing a girdle. Annja took some breaths and everything seemed as well as could be expected.

  Martha handed her a small bottle. “These are powerful. Don’t overdo it with them, okay? Just one when you need it, no more.”

  “Got it.”

  She stood and packed her gear. “I’d say welcome to McMurdo, but it seems someone has already done so. So I’ll just wish you a better stay than what you’ve had thus far.”

  “Thanks.”

  The medics left and Trevor stood there smiling at Annja. “You okay?”

  Annja dry-swallowed one of the pills. “As soon as this bad boy hits, I should be fine.”

  Trevor nodded. “Yeah, well, try to stay awake a little while longer.”

  “Why?”

  “I called the marshal. Dunning. He’s here now. And he wants to see you.”

  7

  When Dunning walked into the room, Annja could tell right away he was a cop. He had the hard-edged look to him, and his eyes betrayed the cumulative experience that all cops acquire after years on the job. The crap he’d seen, the faces and the pictures of tragedies, they clung to him and he carried them everywhere. Combined with the bristling short hair that was gray at the temples and the strong jawline just starting to soften, Annja knew he was a career law-enforcement type.

  He held out his hand and Annja shook it. It was hard as stone. “Thanks for coming,” she said.

  “You missed my engrossing briefing.”

  Annja tried to shrug but was rewarded with a stab of pain. “No one told me there was any such thing.”

  “I had slides and everything planned. Got my new laser pointer just for the occasion.”

  Annja smiled. “Sorry about that. Someone grabbed me at the plane before I could figure out my bearings.”

  Dunning frowned under the bushy mustache he wore. “Yeah, I’m working on making it mandatory, but this area presents its own unique problems in that regard.”

  “Like what?”

  “Well, there are over a dozen nations down here doing this and that, and not one of them wants to have anything to do with a little law and order. Antarctica, they say, represents the last real frontier in terms of land on Earth. And, of course, they don’t much like the idea of Americans telling them what to do.”

  “That’s understandable,” Annja said.

  Dunning smiled. “I agree. But even on a frontier like this, where everyone is ostensibly your next-best friend, people get into spats. And if that happens, there’s got to be someone around who can protect the population.”

  “And that would be you.”

  “At least for this year, yeah. We rotate down for a year-long stint. I’ve got a partner with me, so we can back each other up. Plus, if things get really hairy we can always call the New Zealanders in from Christchurch. Their department is top-notch, and we have a good working relationship with them.”

  “You ever have to call them in?”

  “Not for anything too horrible. Most of the people down here are reasonably stable folks. The snow gets to you, but if anyone starts showing signs of becoming a problem, they get rotated out pretty darned quick.”

  Annja winced as another stab of pain sliced through her breathing. The pain medication wasn’t yet working. “I think there are two guys down here who might be good candidates for being shipped home.”

  “Yeah? Tell me about it?” Dunning said.

  Annja filled him in on what had happened at Gallagher’s. Dunning listened and stroked his mustache thoughtfully as she supplied the details. “And you didn’t get their names, huh?”

  Annja shook her head. “I doubt they would have obliged me, anyway. They seemed fixated on my friend Zach.”

  “Why so? What do you think made him so interesting to them?”

  “I don’t know,” Annja said. Zach had asked her to keep the necklace confidential and she wanted to respect that.

  Dunning looked into her eyes. “You sure about that?”
r />   “Of course. Why would I lie about that?”

  “I have no idea. I just find it tough to fathom why two guys would walk over and look to start trouble with your friend. Unless there was some underlying reason for their interest.”

  “None I can think of, that’s for sure.”

  Dunning patted her bed. “All right. Well, I’ll head down to Gallagher’s and see if anyone there can give me some more information. Unfortunately, you know how this is going to play out.”

  “How?”

  “Your word against theirs. That’s if we even find them. It’s not like our streets are crowded around here at this time of year especially. If you guys were tussling out there, no one saw it. People get into bed early during the winter. And without another witness, I can’t really do all that much except warn them to be on better behavior, that I’ll be keeping an eye on them, that sort of thing.”

  Annja nodded. “Well, maybe that will be enough.”

  “Yeah. Maybe it will.” Dunning stood. “Well, try to get some sleep. At least you’re safe now.”

  “Until tomorrow,” Annja said.

  “What’s tomorrow?”

  “I’m going off-site.”

  Dunning frowned. “Whereabouts?”

  Annja thought hard. “I’ve been asked to take a look at the environmental situation out at Horlick Mountain.”

  “Ugh, I don’t envy you. It’s a long trek to get there and from what I’ve heard, the place is a real mess.”

  “Wonderful.”

  “Well, best of luck to you, then. Mind those ribs and if you can think of anything else you haven’t mentioned yet, give me a call.”

  Annja watched him shut the door and then she slumped back on her pillow. She felt drowsy and exhausted from everything that had happened so far.

  She glanced at her clock. Ten o’clock. She’d need to be up by three to get herself squared away and then meet Zach and Dave for a four-o’clock departure time. That left five hours to get some rest.

  Not much time. But she’d survived on less.

  Trevor poked his head in again. “You need anything else for the night, Annja? Or are you all set?”

  Annja smiled. “Just need some rest now, Trevor. But thanks.”

  “My pleasure.”

  “And thanks for all your help just now. I really appreciate it.”

  He nodded. “I’m going to fix the lock on your door so it locks as I shut it. That way you don’t have to get out of bed, okay?”

  “Okay.”

  “Rest well.”

  Annja closed her eyes and listened as the door clicked shut. Trevor tested the doorknob outside and couldn’t open the door. Annja turned and set the alarm, then reached for the light switch closest to her bed and managed to find it without putting herself into too much pain.

  She slumped back on the bed.

  She lay there in the dark thinking. What would make two guys want to kill her so soon after meeting her? Annja smirked. Yes, she thought, my personality can be abrasive when I want it to be. But was that all there was? Or was there another reason why she’d been marked for death so quickly? Why would someone want her out of the way this fast? She’d only just arrived in town and someone was measuring her for a coffin.

  It didn’t make sense.

  Unless Zach’s necklace was more of a threat than they thought.

  But to whom? And why?

  I need to rest, Annja told herself. And I need my ribs to heal fast or else I won’t be much good on the site.

  She took a deep breath and sank into herself. In her mind’s eye, Annja could see the sword hovering in space, waiting to be used. Annja reached for it and touched the handle. A jolt of energy seemed to surge through her body as it always did when she prepared to unsheathe the blade.

  The dull glow extended from the sword blade up her hands and wrists now. Annja watched it spread farther. Can I will this to cover my body? she wondered. On cue, the glow spread farther up her arms until she could feel the prickliness of its energy encompassing her entire upper torso. Annja willed it farther down toward her cracked rib. The energy seemed to vibrate and then pulse.

  Annja continued to breathe deeply, feeling the sword’s energy flow through her entire body now like the pulsing effect she’d heard mentioned in relation to ki energy in Japan.

  The sword glowed brighter and the energy seemed to increase.

  Annja could feel a more powerful flow rushing through her body. She started to sweat and then shiver as alternating currents flowed through her.

  And then the glow of the sword started to diminish.

  She opened her eyes in the darkness of her room. Her side didn’t ache nearly as much as it had only moments before. Perhaps her pain medicine was finally kicking in.

  Or perhaps the sword had helped heal her.

  It wouldn’t be the first time she’d been aided by the mystical blade. Or by the strange plane of existence where it resided.

  Thank God I have that, Annja thought. Otherwise, there was no telling how much of a liability she’d be to Zach and Dave on the mountain.

  She yawned and took a deep breath.

  It was time to sleep.

  And time was already ticking toward her three-o’clock wake-up call. The last thing she wanted was to be sleepy tomorrow when they set out.

  She had a lot of questions for Zach.

  And she intended to get some answers.

  “JUST A CRACKED RIB.”

  “That’s what I heard.”

  “For all that trouble and you only managed to bust her rib up? What’s the point of doing something if you can’t even manage to carry it out all the way through?”

  “We tried.”

  “You didn’t try hard enough. And now you’ve got the marshal’s attention, haven’t you?”

  The man from the bar listened to the voice on the other end of the phone. “Yeah, well, he’ll get a bunch of descriptions. We could be any two guys down here.”

  “In the summer, that would be fine. But how many people are in town right now?”

  “Maybe two hundred.”

  “Exactly my point, you idiot. Two hundred lowers the odds substantially, doesn’t it? All the marshal needs is one good description and at the very least, he’ll want to talk to you.”

  “He can’t hold us on any charge, though. No one saw us try to take her out. No witnesses.”

  He heard a sigh on the telephone. “That doesn’t matter. You’ve drawn attention to yourselves. And the marshal will be keeping an eye out now for potential troublemakers.”

  “We can take her right now. Go to her place and break in. I know where she’s staying.”

  “The idea, you louse, was to make it look like an accident, albeit a bizarre one. Now you want to go charging in and just kill her? That’s not exactly the most intelligent thing to do, now, is it?”

  “I guess not.”

  He heard another sigh. “You guess not. How wonderful.”

  “So what do you want us to do, then?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Nothing? But I thought—”

  “No,” said the voice in his ear. “You didn’t think. You didn’t think at all. And that’s why this simple little matter has suddenly become infinitely more complicated than it ever had to be. You and your partner there will do nothing more against her. Do I make myself clear?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Tomorrow, when she and the two others leave, you will follow them. Covertly, mind you. I don’t want them knowing you’re tracking them.”

  “Then what?”

  “Follow them out to the dig site. Make sure they get there intact and that nothing happens to them.”

  The man frowned. “You want us to make sure they’re okay?”

  “Yes.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “Obviously. You get them out there intact. Once they’re on the site, their attention will be focused elsewhere.”

  “Okay.”

  “At
which point,” the voice on the phone said, “I will be able to ensure none of them ever returns to McMurdo Station.”

  8

  When Annja’s alarm clock erupted at three o’clock, she moaned and wanted nothing more than to slam the snooze bar down and sleep for another year. Her dreams had been mostly scattered images of her past adventures and how many injuries she’d sustained throughout them. It felt as if she’d been reliving the greatest hits of her past rather than enjoying the deep levels of sleep that would heal her.

  Despite the reckless smorgasbord of dreams, Annja woke with her rib feeling much better than it had when she’d gone to sleep. She probed around the injury and decided that it must not have been as bad as she’d feared.

  “That’s something, anyway,” she said to herself as she gingerly got out of bed. Her feet touched the warm carpet and she padded into the bathroom.

  Once there, she carefully stripped off the tape around her midsection. The deep purple that had colored the bruised area last night was now a light yellow. Annja frowned. Was it really possible that the sword had healed her?

  She started the water for her bath and watched the clouds of steam fill up the bathroom. Annja added some soap and waited as the bubbles blossomed in the water, rapidly filling the entire tub.

  She took a deep breath and finished stripping off the rest of her clothes. She felt as if she had thousands of miles of road grunge on her. She hadn’t bathed in over a day and was certain that she must have a peculiar array of scents wafting about even now.

  The bathroom was filled with steam when she finally turned off the spigot. She looked at the bubbly surface and then eased herself into the bath. The water greeted her like a warm blanket and she slid all the way into the tub, letting the water cover her.

  The scent of the lavender soap filled the air as the bubbles began popping from her movements in the water. She lathered up and felt as if she were molting a layer of grimy skin.

  When she was done she stepped from the tub and wrapped a towel around her head and a plush robe around herself. At the mirror, she wiped off the condensation and then checked herself over. She looked fatigued, but she was rapidly waking up. She ran a brush through her moist hair and noticed there was a hair dryer plugged into a wall-mounted unit.