Colder Than Ice Part 5

Michela sat down and pulled her boots off. "I don't know if I'd call it that, but I do know I'm in no mood to go another round with her tonight." She felt her upper back twinge, and she reached for her shoulder in an attempt to ma.s.sage the pain.

Sarah sat beside Michela and moved her hand away. "Here, let me do that."

Michela turned and tiredly smiled. "You're not trying to have your wicked way with me are you?"

Sarah snapped her fingers. "Darn, foiled again." She held up her hands and wiggled her fingers. "No, I'm a trained ma.s.seuse and I love my sleep."

"I don't follow," Michela said.

"Well, I figure if I can ease the pain then you won't be tossing and turning all night and then I can get some sleep."

Michela turned around and allowed Sarah to ease the stress from her shoulders. "Women and their ulterior motives, I should have known."

THE FOLLOWING DAYS were a flurry of activity as John and his team trained the group. They covered a number of topics, including snow and ice travel, both in vehicles and on foot, how to survive in extreme conditions, and how to erect a tent in a snowstorm. The day for the tent construction was made to order, and a gale blew for the duration of activity. Although the final tents were reasonable, they would definitely not suit any long-term habitation.

Despite Michael's presence as the cook, each member was taken through the ration packs that would be the primary source of food during their eight-week stay. The cooking lessons resulted in some interesting culinary creations, and the group learnt to eat what was prepared regardless of its palatability.

A full day was set aside for rappelling down as well as climbing up ice walls. In time of emergency this would allow the group to extract a team member from a creva.s.se.

Navigation took up another day, as the group learnt how to navigate both with map and GPS. Despite its size, the GPS was capable of guiding a person to within one yard of their destination. The team was equipped with GPS that "talked" directly with a vehicle, through a simple docking port. The result was the ability to pre-program a journey and allow the GPS and vehicle to make subtle s.h.i.+fts in the journey to cater to changes in terrain, while ultimate control still rested with the driver.

"ALLISON, HAVE YOU got a moment?" John asked.

"Sure," she replied and followed John to his office. She took a seat and waited while he closed the door.

"I thought it might be a good idea for me to clarify a few issues before we begin the final two-day activity tomorrow. Let me start by saying you display an amazing ability to adapt to the training we've provided."

Allison smiled and made herself comfortable. "Thank you. I've always been a bit of a fast learner."

John nodded. "But there are some issues I need to discuss with you. There's no way to do this diplomatically, so I'll be blunt. You're great as an individual but your interaction with the team is appalling." He held up his hand. "You're obviously disappointed about not being team leader. But I believe you've allowed this to compromise your working relations.h.i.+p with Dr. DeGra.s.se. She's tried every possible means to draw you into the group and you've resisted every olive branch she's extended. You continue to challenge her over the smallest of things. Just now, during the was.h.i.+ng up, you were finding food specks on plates that even a magnifying gla.s.s wouldn't have been able to pick up. As a professional you need to overcome not being the team leader. If you can't get past this then you won't be part of any team going to Antarctica."

"But I know everything there is to know about this man," Allison protested. "I'm more than qualified for this job."

"That might be so, but you're not working as part of the team. That's more important down there than any amount of skill or knowledge you may have. I'll be a.s.signed to your group for this next activity and I'd like to see a marked improvement in your att.i.tude. If not, then I'm sorry but you'll leave me no other choice."

Allison tamped down on her frustration. "I'm sorry if I've been acting poorly and you're right. It was wrong of me to allow personal opinions to compromise my perspective. I'll do everything in my favor to ensure Dr. DeGra.s.se and I get along."

"I'm not saying you have to like her, but you do have to work as part of a team. That's what I want to see: professional courtesy and teamwork."

Allison nodded and left the room. His revelations were like a shock of cold water to her ego, forcing her to prove to him that she could rise above personal dislike to secure her place on the expedition.

MICHELA PULLED HER pack onto her shoulder. "Well, team, another task bites the dust. At this rate we'll be home in no time."

"I think that leaves the final navigation leg from here to the small peak over there." Allison indicated the way. "I'll plot the next leg if you like."

"Thanks, Allison." Michela looked at the tired faces of the people around her. "If the rest of you can take a quick break, I'll check in with John." She walked away from the group to the team supervisor.

"Why the confused expression?" John asked.

"I hope you don't mind me saying but I feel as if someone's stolen Alli and replaced her with someone a h.e.l.l of a lot nicer and much more accommodating."

John chuckled. "Let's just say we had a talk the night before we started this final activity and there was a tiny bit of att.i.tude adjustment involved."

She looked at Allison and shrugged. "h.e.l.l, I don't care what you did, she's a different person. A heck of a lot more polite and very easy to work with. Thanks for your help."

"No problem. I just think she needed to be set straight on a few matters."

Michela checked the position of the sun. "By my estimation this is the final leg. Allison's plotting the bound and we should be okay to go. Are you happy for us to leave, or would you rather we camped here tonight?"

"No, carry on. There's enough daylight left, especially if Allison's navigation is as good as it has been. If not, then I suppose it will be tents again."

Michela groaned. "Camping is highly overrated. I think I'll go and ensure the navigation's on the mark."

Michela walked to where Allison was briefing the group and waited until there was a pause in the conversation. "What's the plan?"

"Rather than go up and down these mountains, I've decided that contouring around these peaks might be the way to go. We'll start here and then move to that point." Allison motioned toward a re-entrant three hundred yards in the distance. "We'll cross that and then make a steady climb toward Berester peak. What do you reckon?"

Michela checked her map and nodded. "Sounds fine. Lead on."

John interrupted before the team went any further. "Remember what I said about things you can't see. I've allowed you to walk without you being belayed together mainly because I was familiar with the ground we were traversing. But this area's had a lot of new snow and I haven't been out here for at least a few weeks. I suggest we tie a belay rope between each member of the group."

Michela supervised the activity, ensuring there was the required thirty yards between each person. Allison stepped off, with Michela directly behind her. She watched as Allison infrequently disappeared up to her waist in the snowdrifts, and then continued ankle-deep in the snow.

Michela turned to answer a question from Ewan. Almost simultaneously her feet were swept from beneath her, and she slid uncontrollably along the snowy slope to where Allison had just been standing. Michela vigorously hacked into the snow with her snow axe to find purchase and halt her progress.

With desperate effort, she finally managed to stop. She quickly rigged a makes.h.i.+ft anchor point and ensured the rope was secure and under the control of two other team members. Hearing Allison's screams, she cut herself out of her belay rope above the anchor point, and carefully edged forward.

Seeing a break in the white, Michela lay on her stomach and slowly crawled to the lip of the hole. She watched as Allison swung precariously by the rope attached to her waist. "Whatever you do, try not to move around too much."

Despite Michela's calming words, Allison continued to struggle as she attempted to gain a foothold on the icy walls. "Don't let me go. Get me out of here!"

"Alli, stop moving around, honey. Alli, look at me." Michela waited until she had Allison's attention. "Honey, I'm not going to let you fall, but you must remain still. John's anchoring off and he'll be down there in a second, but you must remain still."

Allison nodded, the look of panic barely masked on her face.

Michela looked up in time to see John step off the edge of the creva.s.se. He slowly maneuvered himself into a position that would allow him to attach a safety harness to Allison, and it was a measured crawl back up the icy face before John finally delivered Allison to the safety of the snow above.

Allison's shaky hands fought to release the clips of her makes.h.i.+ft safety harness. Michela placed a rea.s.suring hand over Allison's. "Here, let me help," she said softly.

Michela removed the harness and placed it to the side before turning back to Allison. "It's okay, you're all right now."

Allison wrapped her arms around a surprised Michela. "Thank you for saving me. I don't know what would have happened if you didn't stop my fall."

Michela gently stroked Allison's back, strangely comfortable in her embrace. "It's okay. We all worked together and that's what being a team's about. You'd have done the same for me had the tables been turned."

Allison looked up at Michela, the realization reflected in her face. "Yes I would."

John lightly touched Allison's shoulder. "Are you okay?"

Allison stepped out of Michela's arms. "Yes I am. I'm sorry about that. I guess I didn't look where I was going."

John shrugged, as if the near disaster was an everyday incident. "No harm done as long as you learn the lesson. Never be distracted so easily and always check the ground in front of you."

Shoulders slumped, Allison looked down at the snow, avoiding John's gaze. "I suppose that seals my fate then, doesn't it? No going to Antarctica for me."

John gently tugged on Allison's jacket and waited as she raised her head. "On the contrary, as far as I'm concerned you're going. You proved over the last two days that you can rise above personal issues and get the job done. And this incident, despite you being on the receiving end, you worked as part of a team, listening to your team leader and doing as you were told. I'd say you've more than pa.s.sed the test." He picked up the coil of rope used in the rescue. "In fact I think you all have. I don't know about you lot but I could do with a good bath. Let's head back."

With a small cheer, the team collected their belongings, tied off, and headed for the lodge.

Chapter Four.

My Darling Charlotte, Despite our most fervent prayers, we again encountered rough seas past Macquarie Island. I had often heard it said the waters of the southern ocean were among the most foreboding in the world and it is true. Fortunately this time half the group managed to master their horrible bouts of seasickness. You can imagine the relief of the men when the seas finally abated. That is, everyone except cook, who is back to having to provide three meals a day for the lads.

After so many days of rough seas, we finally found ourselves on what could only be the Antarctic fringe. Chunks of ice abound, and every so often a small iceberg sedately floats by the s.h.i.+p. While I understand some of these to be of mammoth size, we are yet to see such a monster. However, the ones we have observed are still of decent quant.i.ty, one such being approximately half the size of our s.h.i.+p.

The days grow longer here as we approach the continent, with little darkness to speak of. This hasn't been without its difficulties, as men struggle to sleep, while their body perceives it to be the middle of the day. It will only be a matter of time before we reach the pack ice and commence our steady traverse, for a break that will lead us to the continent. All my love, ERF.

Hobarta"2009 RICK PEERED TOWARD the harbor through the hotel window that offered the smallest glimpse of the orange-colored s.h.i.+p that would transport them to Antarctica. "Are you sure that s.h.i.+p's going to be okay to sail in? It hardly looks big enough for the trip."

Allison looked up from her work and smiled. "Of course it will be. It's one of the newest icebreakers the Norwegians have. We're fortunate the Southern Hemisphere Antarctic Division is chartering it. If we'd ended up on a smaller s.h.i.+p we most likely wouldn't have had secure storage s.p.a.ce for our equipment and provisions."

Rick scratched his head. "If she's one of the most modern there is, why couldn't we have gone sooner?"

Seeing she was unlikely to get any work done, Allison put her pen and notepad on the bed and sighed. "During the late autumn and winter, Antarctica almost doubles in size. This makes it almost impossible for the icebreakers to get near the bases they support. The first couple of weeks in October are when the first s.h.i.+ps start their journey. Hopefully by then the ice has begun to break up. And the third week of November was the earliest we could get on the s.h.i.+p. This is all in your information pack. Didn't you read any of it?"

Rick shrugged and s.n.a.t.c.hed one of the complimentary biscuits from the top of the bar fridge. "I would have if I'd more time. We've been flat out since May." He opened the fridge door and was disappointed to find it empty. "I'm going to head up to the bar for a quick drink. You coming?"

Allison shook her head. "No. There's still a lot more stuff to go through here. You go on and I'll meet you there later. I think we're all supposed to be there by five anyway."

Rick was out the door before she finished her sentence. She rolled her eyes before returning to the mess on the bed. The non-stop roller coaster of preparation for the dig hadn't been made any easier through the planning that had been conducted from opposite ends of the world. Coupled with the basic logistic requirements of the expedition, Allison had needed to ensure that the equipment to be used at the site was environmentally friendly. This had been a challenge she'd struggled with.

She mentioned one such problem to Michela, who had included it in her regular brief to Charlotte Finlayson. Charlotte's resourcefulness and business contacts solved the issue almost immediately. One of the U.S. bases was in the process of testing a portable means of providing solar powered energy to remote expeditions. They'd developed a unit robust enough to face the rigors of extreme climate but were yet to test the equipment. A word from Charlotte had secured the unit, as well as its delivery to the site. Allison couldn't help but think how fortunate it was that Michela had been providing regular updates to her patron, or they may have never solved the problem.

Allison reflected over the months since Mount Cook. While there'd been disagreements, she begrudgingly admitted the two of them made a good team when they worked together. Still, she can be b.l.o.o.d.y stubborn at timesa" it's a wonder anyone puts up with her at all. She's not bad for a Yank I suppose. Allison smiled and returned to her work.

MICHELA WALKED TO the hotel reception desk and waited for service.

"Hey, stranger, long time no see."

Michela turned around. "Hey, Sarah. It seems you're always my welcoming committee."

"I often lurk in hotel foyers, waiting to pounce on unsuspecting women."

"Pounce away but after the last six months I'm about dead on my feet. I tried your suggestion and spent a couple of days in Melbourne before coming here, but I still feel as if I could do with a week's sleep."

Sarah sympathetically patted Michela's back. "Alli didn't give you too much trouble did she?"

Michela chuckled. "I'll be honest, there were some days when I felt I was dealing with more than one woman. There was one disagreement where I nearly had to utter those awful words 'I'm the leader and that's the way we're going to do it.' But most of the time we seemed to work well together." Sarah picked up one of Michela's suitcases. Do you want a job as my valet or something?"

"Very funny. Hey, how're things on the personal side?"

Michela shrugged. "Not too bad. At least having to work long hours has meant little time for a personal life. I never did thank you for your sympathetic ear in the flight lounge in Christchurch."

Sarah waved away the thanks. "No worries. It was obvious you needed to talk about Natalie. I didn't think you could drink so much."

"I usually don't.a Michela said. "Seriously though, it was good to get it off my chest. And thanks for the motivational e-mails since then. Some days they were just what I needed." Michela smiled as she recalled Sarah's regular correspondence, and the many hints that Sarah was more than willing to take their friends.h.i.+p to the next level. Michela knew that Sarah would only ever be a close frienda"a friends.h.i.+p Michela wouldn't jeopardize with a night of what would most likely be pa.s.sionate s.e.x.

Sarah checked her watch. "Hey, it's about time to meet for drinks. How about I stop bugging you and let you get into your room and I'll head on up to the bar."

"Sound's like a plan. I'll see you there shortly."

MICHELA ENTERED THE top floor bar and was captivated by the floor-to-ceiling gla.s.s paneling that offered an unrivalled view of Hobart, its harbor and surrounds. A collage of pleasure boats liberally dotted the Derwent River, while the colorful Battery Row markets were full with a teaming ma.s.s of people.

She turned around and scanned the room, finally locating Sarah and the rest of the team.

"Hi, guys. Sorry I'm late, but when I got to my room I found I'd been put in some sort of hostel part of the hotel." The others laughed and Michela joined them. "I had to explain to them that I'd be living in a shoe box for the next couple of months and I wanted my final days before departure to be as palatial as possible."

A drinks steward approached the table. Michela sat and waited until the others had placed their orders and then placed her own.

"It won't be long now before we're finally on our way," Michela said, after the steward walked away. "Has everyone checked in their stowed luggage?" The group nodded.

Rob nudged Sarah. "So, did you manage to fit all that booze within your weight restriction?"

Sarah mocked punched him. "Yes, mate, I did, thank you. I suppose weight restrictions won't be your problem, given those blow-up dolls don't take up so much room do they?"

Allison joined in the laughter. "What about you, Di? I swear you had a fas.h.i.+on wardrobe in Mount Cook. Are you going to get under restrictions?"

Dianne smiled. "Very funny, Alli. I'm prepared to meet any contingency. After all, you never know when you may meet the man of your dreams, isn't that right, Michela?"

"I don't like your chances on Antarcticaa"the people who work there year round have a tendency to become a little feral," Michela replied. "Seriously though, if you can't meet the restrictions then you'll need to fix it in the next couple of days before we sail. And that includes any duty free you might purchase before we go."

Michela took a sip of wine. "We're also required to attend a pre-departure briefing on the s.h.i.+p the day we sail." The group groaned. "I'm sorry, but this is compulsory. Anyone who isn't at the meeting won't be allowed to sail. I'd also like you all to be on the s.h.i.+p and settled before the briefing. Is everyone okay with that?"

The others murmured agreement and Allison raised her hand. "I've about squared away the stores and equipment for the expedition and I can have the cargo manifests to you by tomorrow morning if you like."

"Thank you," Michela said.

"Was there anything else that needed doing?"

"No, not really. But I was wondering how you all felt about having a team dinner tonight. Nothing fancy. I thought we could take in one of the seafood restaurants on Battery Pointa"a sort of last decent meal before we sail."

Rick snagged a chip from the bag on the table. "Sounds like a great idea, Michela. Have you got anywhere in mind?"