'I appreciate it. Now, go.'

'For God's sake, Jack. Stop shutting yourself away. Let's take a walk before your feet turn into fins.'

'Fins would suit me fine.'

Anawak glanced at the tunnel, unsure what to do. Of course he was impatient to go after Weaver – and not only because he had feelings for her, as he'd just admitted to Greywolf and himself No, he was sure that something was bothering her. She'd seemed agitated and tense. He couldn't help thinking of what she'd told him about Johanson.

'OK, you moulder away by yourself, then,' he said to Greywolf, 'but feel free to come and find me if you change your mind.'

He left the well deck and walked past the lab. The door was closed. He thought about popping in. Maybe Johanson would be there. Then he decided against it and carried on up the ramp towards the hangar deck to look at the mysterious wall.

As he entered the bay he caught sight of Vanderbilt and Anderson disappearing on to the elevator platform.

Suddenly he felt uneasy. What were they doing there?

And where had Weaver got to?

THE ABYSS

A strong westerly howled through the air. It was blowing in from the polar ice caps, sending white-crested waves crashing into the Independence's hull and drawing what was left of the warmth from the sea.

Beneath its turbulent surface the ocean was swirling and raging, but as the depth increased, the storm died down. It was here that, only a few months previously, icy cascades of salt-laden water had poured into the depths. It was still bitterly cold, but now the salt was being diluted as fresh water streamed in from the ice caps, which were melting rapidly because of an influx of warmth. The North Atlantic pump, which drew oxygen-rich water into the depths like an underwater lung, was slowly coming to a halt. The ocean conveyor slowed, and the warmth-giving current from the tropics dried up.

But it hadn't stopped yet. Even though the chimneys could no longer be detected, small quantities of cold water were still trickling into the depths. Through the lightless calm of the ocean they fell towards the bottom of the Greenland basin, metre by metre, till they were hundreds, then thousands of metres down.

At a depth of 3.5 kilometres, just above the silty seabed, the darkness gave way to a blue glow.

It covered a vast expanse, not as a cloud of light, but as a long tube of jelly with thin walls. It was anchored to the seabed by countless tiny feet. Inside the tube millions of tentacular protuberances were rising and falling in rhythmical waves, a meadow of feelers moving in synchrony. They were conveying big lumps of a whitish substance towards a large object. The blue glow was barely strong enough to illuminate its contours, so all that was visible were two open pods. The Deepflight stuck out of the silt at an angle, but most of the submersible was hidden in the gloom.

For some time now, the organism had been loading it with frozen white lumps, and the boat was nearly full. The supply chain ceased. One section of the tube separated off, sank towards the boat and began to encase it. The transparent substance around the hull contracted, closing the pods as it compressed. Shimmering layers of blue spread out and merged until the vessel was sealed with jelly. A long thin tube moved towards it and began to pulsate. Water was being pumped through it. Water that didn't belong there. The delicate tube of jelly was drawing it from an enormous organic balloon suspended over the boat and filled with warm water originating from the mud volcano near the Norwegian continental shelf. By all rights, the balloon should have risen to the surface, propelled by the warmer – and lighter – water inside, but its weight kept it stable.

Warmth streamed into the sac of jelly that was wrapped round the boat.

The white lumps reacted immediately. In a matter of seconds the frozen cages trapping the gas had melted. The compressed methane expanded to 164 times its former volume, filling the Deepflight with gas and inflating the sack of jelly until it was taut and swollen. It detached from the tube and sealed itself off Unable to escape, the gas rose upwards, slowly at first, but then, as the pressure around it decreased, picking up speed. The gas, the cocoon, and the submersible shot towards the surface.

LAB

With one arm clamped round Rubin and the other hand holding the scalpel to his throat, Weaver shuffled forward. She didn't get far. The door to the lab slid open. Three heavily armed soldiers stormed inside and took aim. She heard Oliviera cry out in horror. Weaver stopped in her tracks, but held on to Rubin.

Li walked into the lab, followed by Peak. 'You're not going anywhere, Karen.'

'Jude,' croaked Rubin, 'about time too. Get this lunatic off me.'

'Quiet,' Peak barked at him. 'We wouldn't be in this situation if it weren't for you.'

Li smiled. 'Karen,' she said, 'don't you think you're taking this a little too far?'

'Given what Mick has been saying… No.'

'And what has he been saying?'

'Oh, he was very helpful. Weren't you, Mick? Told us everything we need to know.'

'She's lying,' hissed Rubin.

'Hmm… Chain reactions, torpedoes full of toxins and Deepflight 3. Oh, and he mentioned that the two of you were planning an excursion – in the next few hours.'

'Tsk.' Li took a step forward. Weaver grabbed Rubin and pulled him back towards Oliviera, who was standing motionless beside the bench. She still had the test-tube rack containing the pheromone samples in her hand.

'Mick Rubin is probably one of the best biologists in the world,' said Li. 'The trouble is, he always has to prove himself. He'd give anything to be famous. That's why he finds it so hard to keep his mouth shut. You'll have to excuse him. Mick would sell his own grandmother for a taste of fame.' She came to a halt. 'But no matter. You know what we're planning so you'll understand our reasons. I've done my best to stop the situation escalating, but now everyone seems to know the secret, so you've left me no choice.'

'Don't do anything stupid, Karen,' Peak implored her. 'Let him go.'

'I'll do no such thing.'

'He's still got work to do. If you let him go, we'll talk later.'

'There's been more than enough talking already.' Li pulled out her pistol and took aim at Weaver. 'Let go of him, Karen, or I'll shoot. I'm not going to warn you again.'

Weaver looked into the small round barrel of the gun. 'You wouldn't,' she said.

'Really?'

'There's no need.'

'You're making a mistake, Jude,' Oliviera said hoarsely. 'You can't use the toxin. I was just telling Mick how…'

Li wheeled around, took aim at Oliviera and pulled the trigger. The scientist was tossed back against the bench and slid slowly to the floor. The case of test-tubes dropped from her hand. For a second she looked, surprised, at the first-sized hole in her chest, then her eyes glazed.

'What the hell are you playing at?' shrieked Peak.

The gun was pointing at Weaver. 'Now let him go,' said Li.

DECK ELEVATOR

'Dr Johanson!'

Johanson swivelled. Vanderbilt and Anderson were heading towards him across the platform. Anderson looked impassive and detached. His black button eyes were fixed on something in the distance.

Vanderbilt was beaming. 'I guess you're pretty pissed at us,' he said.

There was something chummy and casual about his demeanour. Johanson frowned as he watched them approach. He was standing at the far end of the platform, only metres from the edge. Hefty gusts of wind buffeted his face. The waves were crashing beneath him. He'd been thinking about going inside. 'What brings you here, Jack?'