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Olivia’s heart pounded. ‘Where did you leave his things? Near us?’ She didn’t know if Sergei was the threat, but all she knew was that she didn’t want him stalking their camp.
Wind blasted them both, forcing them down to huddle against the pulk before Melissa could answer. Her radio bleeped and she frowned as she listened.
‘What was that about?’ Olivia asked once she had put the radio back in her jacket.
‘I’m not sure. But I think you better get back to your bivvy. And the gear? I’d left it right here. He must have collected it already.’
‘Sergei’s here?’ Olivia whipped her head around, scanning the snow for a sign of him or his footprints. But she couldn’t see anything.
Melissa furrowed her brow. ‘I wouldn’t worry too much about it. If he has any sense, he would’ve taken his stuff and headed straight to his new boat.’
‘Why do you say that?’
‘Because that’s exactly what we’re going to do. I don’t think we’re going to be camping here after all. We need to get back to the ship.’
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Melissa strode back up to the plateau, leaving Olivia trotting behind her, struggling to keep up. Her heartbeat hadn’t slowed since hearing that Sergei was on the continent.
She thought coming here meant she was safe. She’d even begun to relax into the experience of the night. But that was all stolen away now. He could be anywhere.
She needed to be with people. And when they got to the top of the mound, no one was asleep in their bivvies. Instead, they were up and looking out towards the water.
Olivia squeezed in next to Patty and Annalise. A gasp of awe went up from the far side of the crowd. It was yet another calving, Antarctica proving just how unstable the continent was. Huge chunks of ice were tumbling off the glacier, dropping with large splashes into the water. The sun was just below the horizon, turning the icy cliffs various shades of purple and blue, almost like they were bruised. Wounded by their presence.
‘You just missed a big one,’ said Patty. ‘At first, a full-on waterfall spouted from the cliff. Then it’s been shedding ice like crazy since then. It’s amazing.’
There was another rumble like low thunder from the glacier, and beside them, Annalise squealed, scrambling to point her camera in the direction of the cliff. ‘Do you think more of it is going to go?’
‘Wait, look! Oh my God.’
A ripple of shock coursed through the group. Patty reached out and grabbed Olivia’s wrist. The scene in front of them didn’t look real. At first, Olivia doubted her eyes. A crack appeared near the top of the glacier wall that started to grow, slicing through the ice like a lightning bolt. A piece of glacier the size of a house broke away, shedding boulders of ice into the water, before the whole thing dropped into the sea.
With horror, they watched as the newest iceberg to be born into the Southern Ocean drifted with intent towards theVigil.
‘Fuck me,’ said Dr Vance, sliding his knitted hat from his head and holding it against his chest as if he was in mourning.
Melissa was on the radio. She turned away from the group, but she couldn’t hide the worry in her tone. ‘I’ll gather everyone up.’
Olivia could hear the resignation in the woman’s voice. And maybe a hint of something else. Fear. When she turned around, she was frowning.
‘Anyone seen Liam?’ she asked the group. No answer. There was more scratching over the radio as Melissa pressed it against her ear to hear the reply. ‘I got it,’ Melissa replied into the mouthpiece.
The wind blew hard, and Melissa shielded her face with her arm. When it died down, she had a steely look of determination. She gestured to Arthur. The two of them talked, heads close, for a moment. When she turned back, they both looked grave.
‘Sorry, everyone, we have to cancel the camping.’
‘What?’ shouted Robert from the back of the group. ‘Because of all that ice? Surely not.’
Melissa exchanged looks with Dr Vance. ‘No. While a calving that size is a sign of major instability in the area, we’ve just been informed by the captain that a storm is heading for the bay.’
Olivia gasped. It must be the same storm that the captain had been worried about in the Drake Passage. Had it changed course?
Melissa continued talking: ‘Combined with the strong katabatic winds we’ve been experiencing from the interior ice caps, we could be at major risk of flying debris, severe temperature drops and sea conditions that would make it impossible for us to return to the ship if we wait.’
‘We would be marooned here, without food or adequate shelter,’ said Arthur.
‘Why were we brought here in the first place if it wasn’t safe?’ asked Lucinda.