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“Her fingers and toes; she’s got frostbite. She was really going to do it. Kill herself.”
“Yeah. We found her sitting in the snow next to where Perry fell.”
“She caused all this. Am I terrible for being glad she felt pain?”
“No, you’re human, Maddie. You have a right to be angry with her. They were your friends.”
She raised her face, inviting his kiss, and he gave her a sweet, soft press of his lips. “Ready now?” he asked.
“Yes.”
They returned to the kitchen. Hanna was standing beside the table now, and Em was stirring on the table, moaning softly.
She noted that Hanna’s expression was set. Soft, empathetic Hanna looked at her friend with a hint of disgust twisting her lips.
Nate moved from where he’d been leaning on the counter. “I’m making tea. I want to get her up to drink a cup. I think she’s playing possum now.”
Maddie nodded, then glanced at her watch. “I’ll have to call Polardyne soon. We need to make our decision.”
“Like they’ll give us a choice after what we found out? After what she did?” Hanna said.
“Let’s vote,” Maddie said, not responding. “In this moment, we decide our own fates. Who wants to leave this place? Raise your hand if you vote to get the hell off this island.”
Nate, Eric, and Hanna raised their hands. As did Maddie.
“I think it’s the right choice,” Gunn said.
“When she’s recovered enough,” Maddie said, tilting her chin toward Em, “she’s confined to her room. We’ll have to take turns watching to make sure she stays there. We’ll also have to remove anything she might use to try to take the easy way out again.”
Everyone nodded.
“Then we’ll have to start tearing down the platforms. Take your last readings. Upload them. Then, close out your reports. I want us ready to leave when the weather clears, and they can get helicopters out here.”
Nate picked up the teacup on the counter and dropped the teabag into the trash. “Gunn?”
Gunn moved toward Em and lifted her, blankets and all, and set her down on a chair.
Nate placed the cup in front of her. “Drink it down, Em. I’ll help you if you’re still shaky or if you can’t hold the cup with your hands the way they are.”
Em blinked open her eyes and swept the room with a glance before looking down at her cup. “I’ll manage,” she said, her voice sounding hoarse.
Everyone began moving around the kitchen, not paying her any mind. She didn’t deserve their attention anymore.
Nate pulled out a pan from the refrigerator. “I made cinnamon rolls. Want me to heat them up?”
“I’m not waiting that long,” Eric said, pulling down plates.
Everyone took a plate and then pulled a roll from the pan. Then they sat and ate their rolls, discussing how they’d organize to accomplish everything they’d need to do to get ready for their departure. They ignored Em, who sat with her shoulders hunched as she sipped her tea.
EPILOGUE
A week later,Maddie watched as the Polardyne helicopter departed, fully loaded with its precious cargo—all the site’s data-gathering devices that had been carefully packed for the trip back to Polardyne. Their mission was complete.
Just the day before, the weather had finally broken. Clear skies had meant the arrival of the RCMP investigator, Lieutenant Commander Navarro, and Clive Patton from Polardyne.
The Mountie had taken Em into custody and took Em’s confession letter into evidence. Over the last week, Maddie’s team had heard Em’s story because she hadn’t been able to stop herself from talking, and they relayed everything they’d learned.
Em had been approached by a Russian who’d promised her a berth on the boat their government was sending into the Arctic the following year. Her research would be fully funded, and she could study sea creatures to her heart’s content—if she’d plug a device into her computer. That’s all that was required of her.
