White Death (NUMA Files 4)

"Better than nothing at all," Jorgensen said, settling into the cramped area behind his desk. "Tell me, did you ever hear anything further from that lovely woman, the attorney who was having cof- fee with you in Torshavn?"

"Therri Weld? As a matter of fact, I'm having dinner with her tonight."

"Lucky man! I'm sure she'll be a more enjoyable companion than

I was," Jorgensen said with a chuckle. "Well, did you enjoy Skaal- shavn?"

Enjoy isn't the word for it. Skaalshavn is a surprising place.

Thanks for letting me use your cottage and your boat." "My pleasure. It's incredible country, isn't it?" Austin nodded. "Speaking of Skaalshavn, I was wondering how your lab tests turned out."

The professor rummaged through the Mt. Everest of papers on his desk. Miraculously, he found the file he was looking for. He took his glasses off and replaced them. "I don't know if you're acquainted with my main areas of expertise. I specialize in the effects ofhypoxia. I study how oxygen deficiency and temperature change affect fish populations. I don't claim to be an expert in every area, so I've run my findings by various colleagues in bacterial viruses. We have tested dozens of water samples and fish taken at various locations near the

Oceanus operation for signs of anomalies. We wondered if there was a parasite. Nothing."

"What about your original theory that there might be trace chem- icals in the water?"

"No, to the contrary. The Oceanus people weren't exaggerating when they bragged their filtration system was state-of-the-art. The water is absolutely pure. The other fish farms I tested produced waste from feed and so on. In short, I found nothing that would affect the Skaalshavn stocks."

"Which begs the question, what is decimating the fish popula- tion?"

Jorgensen pushed his glasses up on his forehead. "There could be other reasons we haven't touched. Predators, habitat degradation, a disruption of the food supply."

"Have you ruled out a link to the fish farm completely?"

"No, I haven't, which is why I'm returning to Skaalshavn to make more tests."

"That might be a problem," Austin said in an understatement. He proceeded to give the professor a condensed version of his ex- ploration of the fish farm, his narrow escape and rescue. "I'll be glad to pay you for the loss of the boat," he added.

"The boat is the least of my concerns. You could have been filled" Jorgensen was flabbergasted. "I ran into patrol boats when I was making my tests. They looked intimidating, but they never attacked or threatened me."

"Maybe they didn't like my face. I fnow I didn't like theirs." "You may have noticed I am not exactly a movie star," the profes- sor said. "No one tried to kill me."

"It's possible that they knew your tests would come up negative.

In that case, there was no reason to scare you off. Did you discuss your work with Gunnar?"

"Yes, he was always there when I returned from my field tests and seemed very interested in what I was doing." A light dawned in the professor's eyes. "I see! You think he was an informant for Oceanus?"

"I don't know for certain, but I was told that he worked for

Oceanus during the construction of the fish farm. It's certainly pos- sible that he continued to be employed by the company after the plant was built."

Jorgensen frowned. "Have you mentioned this episode to the police?"

"Not just yet. Technically speaking, I was trespassing on private property."

"But you don't try to /fill somebody simply for being nosy!" "That does seem like an overreaction. However, I can't see the Faroe police department pushing the matter. Oceanus would deny that our little dust-off ever took place. The way they reacted to a lit- tle harmless snooping tells me they must have something to hide. I'd like to poke around quietly, and the police would simply stir things up."

"As you wish. I know little about intrigue. My realm is science." His brow wrinkled in thought. "That creature in the tank that scared the devil out of you. You don't think it was a shark?"

"All I know is that it was big and hungry and as pale as a ghost." "A ghost fish. Interesting. I'll have to think about it. In the mean- time, I'll prepare for my return trip to the Faroes."

"Are you sure you want to go? It might be dangerous after my en- counter.

"This time, I'm going in a research vessel. Besides safety in num- bers, it will provide access to a full range of research gear. I'd love to bring along an archaeologist to research those caves."

"Not a great idea, Professor, but there's someone in town who might be helpful in that area. Her father visited the caves, and