‘I don’t know,’ she answered. ‘Somebody on the Torrox’s crew told them, maybe?’

‘If they did, they got killed for it.’

‘There must be a spy,’ said Cheng. ‘Someone who knew about Krämer in Germany, and knew we were coming to this iceberg!’

‘The only people who knew all of that are us three,’ Eddie countered. ‘Pretty sure me and Nina aren’t spies – which just leaves you!’

‘I’m not a spy!’ Cheng protested, voice rising. ‘Why would I—’

He broke off as Harhund returned. ‘Most of the coffins are intact, but they are fixed to the floor,’ he announced. ‘We need to lift them out. Set up the winches.’

His team was apparently prepared for any eventuality, having brought coils of rope and a couple of ascender units: compact, self-contained powered winch systems able to haul several hundred pounds. They also had tools ranging from crowbars to drills – and, Nina saw with alarm, gas masks. Were they expecting a specific danger?

‘They’re going to drag those things out of here?’ said Vorster in disbelief. ‘They must weigh half a ton each!’

‘Then you will help us move them,’ Harhund said. ‘You,’ he pointed at Vorster, then at Eddie, ‘you, and . . . no.’ He drew back his finger from Cheng. ‘A fat weakling is no use.’

Cheng’s face flushed with outrage, but he said nothing.

‘You got a problem with women?’ Nina asked sarcastically.

‘No. They make excellent hostages.’ He turned away before she could come up with a suitably affronted response and started back into the mausoleum. ‘Put on your masks. When we break the coffins free, gas will leak.’ He and his men donned the masks, the black rubber and glass rendering them almost insectile.

‘We’ll just stand back and hold our breath, then!’ Eddie shouted after them. He faced Nina. ‘How would he know there’s gas in those things?’

‘He knows way more about this place than we do,’ she replied. ‘But how? If someone’s spying on us, they’d have to be psychic, because we didn’t know what was in here!’

She looked into the lower chamber. Harhund and his masked team were examining the central sarcophagus. Muffled discussion, then the leader retreated to give the others room to work. Clanks and scrapes echoed up into the throne room as they prised at its base, then—

‘There!’ one man cried as metal broke. ‘Got it – oh shit!’

He and his companions hurriedly withdrew. ‘Stay calm!’ barked Harhund as a puff of yellowish smoke swirled around them. ‘Don’t let the coffin fall over.’ They returned to support the metal and crystal container. ‘Plug the pipe.’

‘God, there really is gas!’ Nina said in dismay. But they were already taking action to contain it, one man working at the base of the sarcophagus. The haze dispersed, slowly rolling down to the chamber’s foot. ‘Looks like they plugged it, though.’