Atherton opened his eyes and tried to figure out what had happened. Damien seemed to have disappeared. He turned around and saw the boy tearing off in the opposite direction. Atherton awkwardly reversed his field and began to skate after him, stumbling heavily, causing the minuscule fault in the ice to widen along his path.

The fault sped along in front of Atherton, faster than the bumbling man, until the ice started to crack under Damien.

Buher was the first to see it. Reacting quickly, he took off in the direction of the two skaters.

Suddenly, there were two very loud, very angry-sounding cracks, and the ice split wide around Atherton. The other skaters froze in place. The spectators on the shore began to cry out.

Buher finally reached Damien. He grabbed the boy around his waist, lifted him off the ice, and swung him around to safety, missing the crack by inches.

Atherton was terrified now. He could see what was happening, but he was powerless to do anything about it. He simply could not move off the fault quickly enough.

'Bill! Hold on!' Thorn cried out, and skated swiftly toward his friend.

More cracks sounded in the chilled air, cracks as sharp as the sound of cold bones breaking. The ice around Atherton snapped off into thick, floating chunks, leaving him marooned on a tiny, wobbling island in the middle of the cold, dark river.

The other skaters skidded to a halt around the periphery of the ever-widening hole, shouting out to Atherton to grab on as they held out hands and hockey sticks.

But it was useless. Atherton's weight began to tip his little island of safety, and he began to slide toward the dark and swirling current underneath the surface of the ice.

On shore, Ann put her hand over her mouth to stifle her scream. She could see what was going to happen, and there was no way to stop it.

Damien struggled to get out of Buher's grip. He wanted desperately to help, but Buher was far too strong for him, and held on fast to his body.

'Jump!' Pasarian screamed.

But it was too late. The ice floe beneath Atherton tilted forward under his weight, skidded out from underneath him, and pitched him headlong into the swift and freezing black water below.

Atherton went under completely. For a few seconds, he could not be seen. And then he suddenly bobbed up, gasping desperately, and reached with a gloved hand for the rim of the ice.

The men, led by Thorn, stretched out on their bellies on the ice and formed a chain, one man's hands holding onto the next man's ankles. Thorn shouted and held out his hand, trying to reach Atherton's fast-freezing fingers.