Shadow Zone by Iris Johansen, Roy Johansen Page B

for a celebration.”
    “I’ll be there. I’m happy for you, Melis.”
    “Don’t be. Not yet. My lab here isn’t up to the job. I need to get that trellis to the museum right away.”
    “Hence the helicopter.”
    “Can you help?”
    “I’ll get Wilson on it. If one of the corporate copters isn’t in the area, we’ll hire one with the juice to go out there and airlift your relic out. We’ll get it to you within a few hours. Happy?”
    “Extremely. But I thought you had finally talked Wilson into taking a vacation.”
    “I thought so, too, but an hour before we left Guam, he turned up at the dock. He said he was bored.”
    “Well, working for you could never be boring.”
    “That’s exactly what Wilson said. He’ll find you a copter, don’t worry.”
    Four hours later, Hannah stood with Melis on the deck of the Copernicus, watching as the rented helicopter lifted off and headed east with its precious cargo. All around them, champagne corks popped, and crew members brought up bottles of whatever alcoholic beverages they could get their hands on. The first corks had popped the moment that Conner Two broke the surface, and Hannah had lived through enough end-of-expedition celebrations to know that the corks would still be flying at dawn.
    Hannah turned toward Melis, who gazed wistfully at the helicopter as it disappeared into the distance. “I’m surprised you didn’t make them take you, too.”
    Melis smiled. “It occurred to me, but I didn’t want to leave Pete and Susie. Not here.”
    “They’re comfortable with the other people on your team, aren’t they? The crew of the Fair Winds ?”
    “Of course. They’re like family. And if it was anyplace else, I wouldn’t hesitate to leave. But here . . . Every time I come back to Marinth, I know I could lose Pete and Susie. They might decide to leave me.”
    “That could never happen.”
    “It could. They have a special connection to the other descendents of the Marinth dolphins. I don’t know what it is. Their brains may just be wired a certain way, but they communicate differently with them than they do with any others. Dolphins communicate with each other, you know. Every time I come here, Pete and Susie disappear for a few days. I think the Marinth dolphins call them.”
    “But they always come back.”
    “Their time away has been getting longer and longer. And when our last expedition ended, they didn’t leave with us. That was a first. They finally caught up with us almost a week later, but they were . . . different. A bit listless, maybe even depressed. It took almost a month for them to get back to normal. I’m afraid it may have been a turning point for them. They were young when I found them, but I may be losing them as they grow to maturity.”
    Hannah watched Pete and Susie as they sped back and forth across the stern of the Copernicus, putting on a show for the crew. “You could stop bringing them here.”
    “No, I couldn’t do that, especially if this is where they would rather be. I’d miss them, but they know what they want.”
    “I can’t imagine you without Pete and Susie.”
    “I can’t imagine it, either.” Melis managed a smile. “Anyway, I didn’t want to just copter out of here in case this is the last day I’ll ever have with them.”
    “I think you underestimate how they feel about you.”
    Melis’s gaze never left the dolphins. “That may not be enough, Hannah. The relationship of the dolphins with the citizens of Marinth was a strange and powerful bond. Very powerful. The Marinthians protected the dolphins, and the dolphins protected them. I know it sounds weird, but I think it seems to be still in existence. It’s as if they believe the Marinthians are still here.” She shook her head. “I know. Those ancient Marinthians perished thousands of years ago. But who knows if there’s not still a lingering memory in the dolphins’ DNA. I’ve heard of genetic memory, and dolphins are strange and