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“Reconnect with life support systems immediately," the automated voice in Finn's helmet announced. He gritted his teeth, ignoring the implied message beneath its clinical tone: You will die soon and I don't give a shit.

“Can someone shut up the damn alert?” Rose muttered. She levered another panel off the wall. The metal came free with a screech, revealing a bundle of wires attached to a microchip board that sprang from the opening like the guts of some alien creature.

"Sorry. No can do." Liev shook his head.

"Typical." Rose sighed and thrust a hand at Finn. "Take my glove off."

No. "Rose, the water is freezing. We're talking negative temperatures here."

"Finn. I can't fix this with the damn glove on."

Fuck. Seconds ticked by like a physical weight on his chest. Fucking fuck . Finn yanked her fingers free of the glove, flinching as her skin immediately blanched in the brutal cold.

Her fingers bare, Rose prodded at the microchip board with the tip of the electronic screwdriver. Black smoke curled up from the board, contorting in the silty water.

“Reconnect with life support systems immediately.” The woman in their headsets was on a roll.

Was it his imagination or was the air in his tanks becoming soupy, harder to pull into his lungs?

Rose looked up. “Try it again.”

Luca positioned himself in front of the panel and retyped in the code.

The damn light flashed green. Access granted.

“Fuck yeah!” Luca yelled as the access door slid open. Light from above filtered down into the water, illuminating Rose in a halo of radiance. “That’s what I’m talking about!”

Finn surged forward, working in tandem with Rose to collect the spew of wires and ram the guts back into the wall. She thrust the panel back into place. A hasty patch job would have to suffice.

“Oxygen levels two percent. Advise immediate reconnection to life support systems.”

Jesus. We get the point, lady.

Finn kicked upward, his lungs struggling as he swam toward the light. He pulled Rose with him, guiding her onto the grid floor of the access lift and locked her tanks to the lift mechanism. MARV orbited the Io just on the edge of the pool of light, its tail flicking in controlled figure eights. They’d collect her robot snake later.

“Engaging lift.” Ethan held a small remote control he’d retrieved from a clip on the lift frame.

Power surged and seconds later, metal connected with the soles of Finn’s feet, and the platform rose, lifting the entire team clear of the water. Gravity took hold once more, pulling Finn downward as water sluiced from his body. The hydraulics shuddered as cool, oxygenated air bathed his face. Fuck, that’s good.

“Locks engaged. Welcome to the Io habitat.”

A different woman this time. Her voice was reminiscent of Remy, the AI they’d encountered on a previous mission, deep under Lake Baikal.

Water streamed from his faceplate to reveal a clinically white dive room. Could Remy be here? Months ago, there had been one message from Remy to Eva Petrova, Liev’s woman, but then nothing.

“Okay.” Ethan’s voice rasped in his ears. “How are we doing, Duke?”

Duke removed a small device from the slim pack strapped to his chest. He turned a slow circle, elevating a probe into the air and then moving it down in a slow sweep. “Air’s clear.”

Finn flexed his hands in his gloves. If the air was good, there was a high chance the crew were still alive. There was hope yet. He disengaged the clips of his helmet and air mask and pulled them free, sucking in deep breaths. Recycled air had never felt so good. The air was dry, tainted with a hint of antiseptic. Smelled like a damn hospital.

Exclamations of relief pattered on the comms as the rest of the Wolves removed their masks one by one, the purge of released air mingling with the splash of water against the platform’s edge.

Finn turned to help Rose with her mask.“You okay?”

Color flooded her face as he unclipped her helmet, his fingers grazing under her chin, transforming her from an armor-plated scientist into someone altogether more vulnerable.

He swallowed, his throat inexplicably dry. Focus on the mission, Jones. You’re not touching her, no matter how much you want to explore that body of hers.

“I’m fine. Thanks.” Rose cleared her throat and bent over, resting her hands on her knees.

Finn placed a hand between her shoulder blades, letting his hand fall and rise with her breathing. It calmed him to touch her and know she was within reach. “Take your time. It takes a little while to get your land legs back, especially after the dive you’ve just had.“

Ethan pulled off his dive gloves and disengaged his tanks before setting them on the platform. He gave the room an assessing sweep before turning to face the Wolves, his jaw set. “Harris was unfortunate. But we can’t let it derail us. Let’s make his death worth something. We are here to complete a mission and to do that well. Am I understood?”

Finn looked over his shoulder. Duke’s expression was stony. The mission had only begun and already they had a fatality. Finn tried hard not to think about sand the color of blood crunching under his feet only hours before.

“Once everyone is off the platform. I’ll refill my air tanks and go back and collect Harris.” Duke rolled his shoulders.

Luca jabbed an accusing finger at the Triton Core plate above the exit door that led to the rest of the habitat. “I fucking hate that thing. Every fucking time we get in the water and that shit is there, danger gets real.”

Fuck, Luca. Can’t you keep your mouth shut for five minutes?

Ethan cleared his throat and raised an eyebrow, his gaze directed at Rose.

Luca’s face froze for a second before he flashed his teeth in what was more scowl than smile. “Of course I’m sure that it will be totally different this time once we work out what was trying to stop us accessing the habitat while we were suffocating out there, eh?” He swore under his breath, the words muffled by the hiss of his regulator as he shrugged off his tanks and harness, letting them hit the grilled metal floor with a clang.

Smooth, Luca. Smooth.

“What Luca is trying to say is that even when the shit hits the fan, you will be safe with us.” Finn met Rose’s gaze, hoping he reassured her. He’d speak to Luca about his customer service later, preferably when they weren’t in the middle of a life-or-death situation.

Rose swept the wet hair away from her eyes. “Let’s do what we came here to do and then get the hell out.”