‘More than that,’ she said with sudden trepidation. The cylinder had split apart, hinging upwards to expose its interior. On its outer base was another recess matching the shape of the key – but she was more concerned with what was within.

Or rather, what was not. ‘It’s empty.’ She gave Eddie an alarmed look. ‘Whatever was inside . . . it got out!’

Chapter 9

9

Captain Tate watched the ice cave’s shadowy mouth with concern. Professor Wilde had forewarned him about the loss of radio contact, and Marc had checked in a few minutes earlier to let him know Janco had said everything was okay . . . but the inability to talk to the group directly was a growing worry.

He looked back at the radar. One of the signals within the iceberg, he now knew, was the Dionysius. Its being upside-down explained why he hadn’t identified it at once. The second object, though, was still a mystery.

But now there was a third—

‘What the hell?’ Tate barked. A new shape had just appeared off to starboard. He darted to the windows. Another ship was rounding the towering wall of blue and white, about a kilometre away.

He grabbed binoculars and fixed them upon the newcomer. A freighter, one of the many independent tramp ships plying their trade between the widely scattered countries around the Southern Ocean. He focused on the name upon the bow: Tahatu.

Activity on the foredeck. Several men, a blond looking back through his own field glasses. One of his companions crouched, supporting a length of metal pipe on his shoulder and also staring at the Torrox through a telescope.

No, not a telescope. A sight.

Fear rushed through the Australian. The man wasn’t holding a pipe. It was a launcher—

The blond shouted a command – and smoke and flame erupted from the tube.

The Javelin anti-tank missile took under two seconds to lance between the ships. Tate had just enough time to yell a terrified warning to his crew before over eight kilograms of high explosive blasted the Torrox’s bridge into flaming shrapnel.

‘What do you mean, it got out?’ said Eddie. ‘They’re coffins! Aliens I can believe in, but not bloody zombies.’ He was about to say more when he heard a distant boom. ‘What was that?’

‘I don’t know,’ Nina replied, listening. The sound didn’t reoccur. ‘Ice cracking?’

‘More than just a crack. That sounded big.’ He returned to the stairs. ‘Anyone else hear that?’

‘Yeah,’ said Vorster. ‘Might have been part of the berg calving into the water. If it was too close, we’ll need to leave.’

‘Giving up your salvage?’

‘Treasure’s no use if you can’t spend it,’ was the pragmatic reply.

The Yorkshireman looked back into the crystal chamber as Nina examined first the open sarcophagus, then one of its intact neighbours. ‘Are they the Veteres?’ he asked.