There needed to be something left intact for her report—and some evidence that she’d be dedicated to the proper handling of these artifacts, despite her hasty removal of the sample.

She was beginning to like the smell. She breathed it in and felt certain, then, that the gaping skull smiled.

The tightness in her neck made it difficult to lift the crate onto the high shelf in the storage fridge. Her hands shook, and fresh blood had slicked the inside of her gloves. She felt the altitude again like a punch in the gut.

***

The ache in her body had deepened by morning, but she couldn’t stop pacing. She limped from one end of the conference room to the other, her eyes sweeping over the board that she’d papered with her sketches. She paused, pulled a pencil from her hair, and fixed a sketch. Deepened a shadow. Added texture to the rough fracture of the bones.

She ran her fingers through her hair and pulled another sliver of shale from the dark curls. She hadn’t managed a bath yet. With any luck, she’d be coated in dirt again by the afternoon, anyway.

The meeting wouldn’t start for an hour, but she needed time to prepare. They’d be looking for the first excuse to kick her out, contract be damned. But she wouldn’t let it go without a fight. This was the find of a lifetime, and it was her discovery. She wasn’t likely to ever see anything like this again—but if she got her name on this study, it could change the trajectory of her whole career.

Her knees gave, and pain shot up her legs. Her body contorted on the floor, folding over as the cramps arced across her body. Pain twisted through her hips and up her back before it faded, leaving her sweating and panting on the floor.

She’d been distracted and preoccupied on the way down the mountain. She must have pulled a tendon. Pinched a nerve. Her breath evened, and she pulled herself up into one of the rolling desk chairs. Black spots receded from her vision. She poured herself a drink of water from the pitcher on the table, spilling as she did, her hands unsteady—her fingers weak and trembling. She choked on the water, coughing splashes down her front.

Dr. Knochdieb burst into the room, Henri behind him.

She wiped her dripping chin on her sleeve.

Dr. Knochdieb stormed past her to the board covered with her sketches and photographs. His tie was slightly off-center. He must have rushed.