THE howling wind made the blizzard swirl and spin, blowing the snow over the already very white landscape that was the Arctic. This was no weather to be out in, whether one was on the ground or in the air. The only safe place would be under the ice in the ocean, but that wasn't the case for a large green GDF Transporter Aircraft that was flying East in the appalling conditions. The weather was playing havoc with the plane's instruments and systems. Two of the engines had begun the act up and one had conked out entirely, belching black smoke as it gradually began to lose height.

Inside the cockpit was Captain Stephen Taviner and his co-pilot Lieutenant Hal Saunders. Taviner was doing his best to try and keep the aircraft in the air whilst Saunders was desperately trying to make contact with anyone. "Mayday! Mayday! Mayday! This is VK-104. Come in, please?" But all he got over the radio was static. He let out a sigh. "Still no answer, sir!"

Taviner grimaced as he looked at the blanket of pure white outside the window. "Can't see a dang thing out there!" he said in a strong Texan accent. "We must be miles off course. Crash-Procedure!"

"Sir?!"

"I said Crash-Procedure!" repeated Taviner. "We can't be far from the Vostula Exclusion Zone!"

Taviner wasn't wrong. Whilst the Arctic was large neutral ground for the world, one small section of it had been claimed by the Bereznik state who had built an underwater research station there. Whilst it was there legally, it was not uncommon for its leader, Commander Reznik-Chan, to issue threats to anyone who crossed over the border of what he had managed to claim as an exclusion zone.

Inside the control room located deep underwater, Commander Reznik-Chan observed the radar screen along with two controllers, Boztran and Ervick-Tao. All three men watched the small contact on the screen that was heading roughly in their general direction.

"Unidentified aircraft at eighteen miles and closing, Commander," said Boztran.

"Have you checked if we're due any supply runs?" Commander Reznik-Chan asked Ervick-Tao.

"Yes, sir," replied Ervick-Tao. "It's not one of ours."

The Commander turned his attention back to the screen. "How far from the Exclusion Zone?" he asked.

"Six miles," said Boztran. "But it appears to be moving rather erratically. I think it could be in trouble, sir."

Commander Reznik-Chan watched the screen again. "Prepare Defence Missiles," he ordered. "Try and get their frequency. If they don't acknowledge us or change their course…we'll shoot them down!"

5!

4!

3!

2!

1!

"Thunderbirds Are Go!"

"RETRIEVAL"

The XV-104 continued its erratic flight-pattern. Its remaining engines coughed and spluttered as they tried to keep going. But soon a second one suffered a flame-out. Down to half-power and with the other two starting to lose power, it was pretty obvious to the crew that they weren't going to be able to stay in the air for much longer. Captain Taviner wasn't prepared to cause an international incident if he accidentally strayed into the Vostula exclusion zone. "Crash Positions!" he ordered.

"Crew to Crash Positions," said Saunders.

"Automatic Mayday," said Taviner.

Saunders pressed a button on the console. "Automatic Mayday set, sir."

"Prepare to eject!"

"Co-pilot to crew," Saunders said into his headset. "Crash-Procedure…this is your checklist."

The XV-104's nose began to dip down into a controlled dive to ensure it reached the ground soon but not soon enough that the crew wouldn't have time to eject.

"Okay…get them out of here!" ordered Taviner.

"Set individual systems go!" said Saunders. "Eject at will!"

Behind the cockpit, a canopy lifted clear of the aircraft and the crewmember located there was the first to eject. Then a second canopy opened to allow the next crew-member to escape. That only left Saunders and Taviner in the cockpit as the only ones still aboard.

"They're all clear, sir," said Saunders.

"Good," said Taviner. "Now, it's our turn."

"Good luck, sir."

"And you, Hal. on three. One. Two. Three!"

The cockpit canopy was released and the two men were ejected out of the doomed aircraft. All four seats had parachutes built in and once deployed, the four men could do nothing but watch as their plane disappeared from view into the thickness of the blizzard.

Commander Reznik-Chan continued to watch the radar scope with an eagle-eye. He raised a curious eyebrow. "It's going to crash," he said.

"It looks that way, sir," said Boztran. "Although judging by its current rate of descent, it'll be outside our zone."

The Commander thought for a moment. "Are the missiles ready?" he asked.

"Yes, sir," said Ervick-Tao. "The launchers are raised and in position. Awaiting your order."

Silence fell once again as all three men turned their attention back to the radar and the contact that was the XV-104.

"No," the Commander said at last. "They will not be necessary. Stand them down."

"Yes, sir," said Ervick-Tao.

"Should we send out a search part to see who they are, sir?" asked Boztran.

"No," said Commander Reznik-Chan. "The less the world hears from us, the better. Whoever they are, I wish them luck in those conditions." He turned and walked out of the control room.

The XV-104 had reached its end. Due to not being in a steep angled-dive it didn't plummet into the ground but instead was at just the right angle to start sliding along the icy terrain before slamming into an ice boulder and the sudden impact caused a spark to ignite the fuel. There was a thunderous roar as the aircraft was obliterated in a massive explosion, sending debris flying into the air and scattering all over the place. It was fortunate that not only had all four crew-members managed to escape without injuries, but that it had also hit the ground less than two miles from the exclusion zone. Disaster, so it seemed, had been averted.

Virgil sighed impatiently as he waited for Hayley to answer his video call. He'd tried calling at least three times but each time Hayley had failed to respond. He was getting worried. This wasn't like her at all. "Come on. Where are you?" he asked in annoyance. "You've never failed to answer before."

Finally the call did get answered. Hayley appeared in her casual GDF-branded clothing. Her hair was in a mess and was clear to Virgil that she'd only just woken up. "Hey, sweetie," she said before letting out a big yawn. "Sorry it took me so long to answer."

"No, that's okay," said Virgil, now feeling guilty inside for being impatient. "You look like hell."

"Oh, I feel it," Hayley replied, rubbing her eyes. "It's been chaos here, Virgil. The fallout from the escape of The Cabal is beyond anything I've experienced. Colonel Jennings is diverting many resources to try and locate them."

"And let me guess, there's been no luck?" Virgil asked.

Hayley shook her head. "You guess correctly," she sighed. "Captain Liberty has been leading the mission whilst I've been helping coordinate here back at base."

"I get the feeling that doesn't sit well with you?" said Virgil. He knew full well that Hayley wasn't a stay-at-home kind of person.

"You're damn right," said Hayley with a grumpy tone in her voice. "I should be out there with them, not cooped up here at the base!"

"Chin up," said Virgil lovingly. "I'm sure you'll be needed sometime soon. Colonel Jennings will regret not having you out in the field."

"I hope you're right," said Hayley. "And you have no idea how tough it is keeping us a secret."

"She doesn't know?" asked Virgil.

"No, and I intend it to stay that way," said Hayley. "You remember what she said to Kayo about getting IR and the GDF involved? I can't risk jeopardising our relationship."

Virgil scowled. "She has no control over our relationship," he said. "She might be your commanding officer, but your private life is none of her business."

"I hope you're right," said Hayley. "All the same, I want to keep it quiet if possible."

Virgil wasn't sure if that was the right thing to do, but he respected Hayley's choice.

"How's Kayo doing?" Hayley asked, desperate to change the subject.

Virgil sighed. "Not good," he said. "That was some breakdown she had. I don't think we've ever seen her like this before."

"Poor thing," said Hayley with the utmost sympathy. "I mean we're all mad to have fallen for such a deception, but Kayo's clearly taken it far worse than the rest of us have."

"Well to be fair, Hayley, you don't have a personal connection to The Cabal," said Virgil. "The rest of us do…especially Kayo and The Hood."

"That might not be true anymore," said Hayley, looking mad. "I certainly intend to get even with whoever it was who deceived us, because it wasn't The Hood or any of the members that we know."

"Hmmm, yeah," agreed Virgil. "Clearly they have a new member who we know nothing about. And one that can disguise themselves just like The Hood can."

Just then, Hayley's personal pager beeped. "Oh, pardon me a second, love," she said. She answered it. "Madison here."

"Madison, it's Colonel Jennings. Come to my office immediately. I have an urgent mission for you."

Hayley and Virgil looked at each other's holograms. "I'll be right with you, Colonel," said Hayley as she signed off. She then turned back to Virgil. "Guess we're gonna have to continue this later?"

"I guess so," said Virgil. "At least you appear to have your wish of going off the base."

Hayley nodded. "Let's hope it's something to do with The Cabal," she said. "Talk later, hun."

Lady Penelope entered the dining room for breakfast. She was surprised to find her father, Lord Patrick Creighton-Ward was just finishing his up. "Ah, good morning, Penelope," he said cheerfully as he put down his paper.

Penelope gave him a peck on the cheek. "Good morning, Father," she said sweetly. "What's going on in the world today?"

"Oh, the usual tripe," replied Lord Patrick. "But I think the world is breathing a collective sigh of relief given the outcome."

"I'm…sorry, I don't follow you, Father?" Penelope said, confused as she sat down.

Parker then placed a bowl of porridge down in front of her. "Breakfast, m'lady."

"Oh, thank you, Parker," said Penelope. "Could you get my toast, egg and tea for me in five minutes, please?"

"Very good, m'lady," Parker said as he went to clear away the plate, bowl and cup from Lord Patrick. "More tea, m'lord?"

"Not at the moment, thank you, Parker," said Lord Patrick. "I will save it for when our guests arrive."

"Ah, yes," said Parker. "Very good, sir." He then left the room.

Penelope was more confused as she tucked into her porridge. "Guests, Father?"

"Yes, my dear," said Lord Patrick. "Jeff Tracy is coming to visit along with two of his sons."

Penelope's eyes lit-up. "Gordon?" she asked.

"He didn't say," said Lord Patrick. "But whoever they are, I expect to make them very welcome."

"Oh, of course," agreed Penelope. "The Tracy's will always be welcomed here." She took a mouthful of porridge and then swallowed it. "What was the outcome of whatever you were going to say?"

"Ah, yes!" said Lord Patrick. He moved the paper over towards his daughter. "Take a look."

Penelope looked at the article.

"GDF Aircraft Disaster Averted"

"It is believed that a Global Defence Force transporter aircraft known as the VX-104 has crashed in the Arctic Circle due to a freak storm. All four members of the crew were able to eject safely and have been rescued. It is very fortunate that it came down only a few miles outside the exclusion zone of the Bereznik research base of Vostula that a major political incident has been averted. It is unknown whether the transporter was carrying any cargo, but GDF commander Colonel Jennings has assured us that the crew are safe and that's all that matters."

"That's a relief then," said Penelope. "The Berezniks look for any excuse to start another Global War if they could."

"Not all of them," Lord Patrick reminded her. "Several were always against the war. It's their dictator leader who wanted it."

"True," said Penelope. She'd finished her porridge and Parker swapped the now empty bowl with a plate of eggs and toast as well as pouring her a cup of tea. "Although, I do wonder whether the whole truth is in that article."

"What do you mean?" Lord Patrick asked.

"Well…you know what military people are like," said Penelope. "I wouldn't be surprised if there was a cover-up of some-kind. Especially if that plane was carrying anything dangerous."

"I suppose," said Lord Patrick. "But if there's nothing to be concerned about, then it's none of our business, is it?"

Penelope was inclined to agree, but she was also well aware of the friction between Colonel Jennings and International Rescue. Whether there was anything to be concerned about, she hoped that she wouldn't have to find out.

Hayley entered the central control building of the GDF HQ and made her way to Colonel Jennings' office. She knocked at the door.

"Come!" a voice called from inside.

Hayley opened the door and then entered before closing it behind her. "You wanted to see me, Colonel Jennings?"

"Ah, Madison," said Colonel Jennings. "About time you got here."

Yeah, you're welcome, Hayley thought crossly to herself. "What's the situation?" she asked.

Colonel Jennings brought up a hologram image of a long green aircraft with the GDF logo on the side. "I presume you know what this is, Madison?" she asked.

"Of course," Hayley replied. "That's a XV-104 Transporter. The kind that came down in the Arctic."

Colonel Jennings seemed impressed although she wouldn't say that she was. "Correct," she said. "As I am sure you're aware, the aircraft came down in a freak storm."

"But the crew ejected and have all been recovered safely," said Hayley.

"Indeed," said Colonel Jennings. "However, our problems with this incident aren't over yet."

"How so?"

"It was carrying a very valuable cargo," said Colonel Jennings. She pressed the button again to change the hologram.

Hayley's eyes widened when she saw the hologram of what the XV-104 had been carrying. "Bombs?" she said. "Wait a second…are those nukes?!"

"Yes, they are," said Colonel Jennings. "They weren't live so you can calm yourself down. They need to be recovered so they can be transported to the depot for disposal along with all the other weapons that have been decommissioned."

"And so that the Berezniks can't get their hands on them?" said Hayley.

"Exactly," said Colonel Jennings. "This is an urgent mission, Madison. I'd normally give this to Captain Liberty. But…given that he's trying to locate leads on The Cabal, he's otherwise occupied. You're all I've got. I'm putting you in charge of the recovery operation, Madison. Those bombs need to be recovered…and by any means necessary."

Hayley nodded. "Understood," she said. "How many was it carrying?"

"Four," said Colonel Jennings. "I've already assembled a team of twenty GDF personnel to assist you in the operation. You'll also have two missile recovery vehicles as well. Each can carry two so you shouldn't have any problems."

"Two groups," Hayley said. "I don't suppose any of those you've assigned to me are capable of leading one of them?"

"As a matter of fact, yes," said Colonel Jennings. She pressed a button. "Jackson?"

"Yes, ma'am?" the voice of the secretary asked over the intercom.

"Is Captain Thompson here?"

"Affirmative."

"Send her in."

"Yes, Colonel."

"Thompson?" Hayley asked.

"Yes," replied Colonel Jennings. "Given Captain Rigby's promotion, I've decided to promote one of our most promising young NCOs."

There was a knock at the door.

"Come!"

The door opened and a young African-American woman walked in. She was around the same age as Hayley. She had jet black hair and hazel-brown eyes. She was wearing an almost identical version of Rigby and Hayley's suits, only it was green rather than red or blue.

"Captain Madison, meet Captain Thompson."

The new captain eagerly saluted Hayley, who returned it.

"Captain Madison."

"Captain Thompson."

"There you go, Madison, you have a second-in-command for this mission," said Colonel Jennings. "You good with this, Thompson?"

"Yes, ma'am. I sure am," she said.

"Good," said Colonel Jennings. "Then be on your way. The longer those bombs are missing, the greater the chance of the Berezniks of Vostula getting curious."

The two captains saluted and headed for the door.

"Oh, Madison?"

Hayley looked back and held the door for Captain Thompson. "You go on, I'll catch up."

"Roger. See you on the ship," said Captain Thompson as she closed the door behind her.

Hayley turned back to Colonel Jennings. "Yes, Colonel?"

"Remember, this is strictly a GDF mission," Colonel Jennings warned. "No calling International Rescue on this one. Is that clear?"

Hayley raised an eyebrow. "Colonel…I wouldn't bring them in to recover lost weapons," she said. "But, yes, I am clear."

Colonel Jennings seemed surprised by Hayley's response, but she was pleased. "Excellent," she said. "Don't let me down, Madison."

Hayley nodded and left. "I won't," she muttered with gritted teeth after she'd closed the door and headed out of the building.

The hum of a distant aircraft engine brought Lord Patrick and Penelope outside the front of the mansion with Parker remaining at the top of the steps. The Tray private jet appeared over the treetops of the Creighton-Ward estate and landed vertically on the lawn, much to the annoyance of the head gardener. The door opened and a ramp lowered. Jeff disembarked and Penelope eagerly awaited to see who would follow him out. To her secret dismay, Gordon did not emerge. Instead it was Alan, and only Alan.

"Pat!" said Jeff, greeting Lord Patrick warmly.

"Hello, Jeff," replied Lord Patrick, shaking Jeff eagerly by the hand. "Hello, young man," he added to Alan.

"Good morning, your Lordship," said Alan politely.

Jeff then warmly greeted Penelope. "Hello, Penny."

"Hello, Jeff," replied Penelope with a sweet smile.

"Hello, Lady P."

"Hey, Alan. It's wonderful to see you."

"Shall we?" said Lord Patrick, gesturing towards the mansion.

"Of course," smiled Jeff as the two elder men headed for the house.

"Tea or coffee for you both?" Lord Patrick asked.

"Coffee if you have it, please," replied Jeff.

"Then it shall be," said Lord Patrick as they climbed the steps. "Same for your son?"

"Yes, please."

"Make that four cups of coffee, please, Parker."

"Coming right h'up, m'lord," said Parker as he opened the door to let them all in.

Despite being disappointed that Gordon wasn't there, Penelope was actually pleased to see Alan. She hadn't seen him since he'd conquered the spirit of Sophie/ "How are you, Alan?" she asked.

"Never been better, Lady P," Alan replied.

"You certainly look and sound a lot happier if you don't mind me saying so?"

"Oh, you have no idea," Alan grinned. "Who knew that all it took was a little confidence?"

"You're sounding a lot like your father," said Penelope.

"That's good…right?" asked Alan.

Penelope giggled. "Well, of course it is," she said. "You know I see a bit of your father in each of you?"

"Really?" replied Alan with interest. "Which bits?"

Penelope gave him a warm smile. "The best bits of course," she said sweetly, which made Alan feel very proud inside.

The GDF Flyer carrying Hayley's task group was making its way North-West towards the Arctic. Inside were the soldiers and the two rocket-carrying recovery trucks that Colonel Jennings had sourced for them. Hayley was briefing the team on the mission. "These are what we're looking for," she was saying. "Four nuclear bombs that were being transported by the XV-104 which came down the other day. According to satellite intelligence, nobody has been anywhere near the crash site so we're safe to assume that nobody has been sent out from Vostula to try and see what happened."

"Are they likely to?" asked Captain Thompson.

"Unlikely," said Hayley. "The commander of that base is very secretive and seclusive. They don't tend to stray out of their zone if they can help it. Only supply runs are allowed in and out. However, we don't want to stay around too long, otherwise they might get suspicious if they're watching. Now, your vehicles are fitted with metal detectors. You may well find pieces of the aircraft scattered around a large area. Let's hope you find the bombs intact. When you do, load them up and get them back to the Flyer ASAP. Everyone clear?"

Everyone acknowledged the agreement.

"Good," said Hayley as she checked her watch. "Get ready. We'll be arriving in twelve minutes."

"You heard her," Captain Thompson said to the rest of the soldiers. "Check your gear. Let's go!"

The soldiers began to make the necessary checks to the vehicles and equipment as well as their protective suits for the Arctic conditions. The environment they were heading for was just as hostile as the neighbouring Berezniks could be.

"Quite the speech," Captain Thompson said to Hayley as they checked their own equipment.

"Ah, it's not my first mission," Hayley replied with a grin. "Between you and me, I'm just glad Colonel Jennings has given me an actual mission rather than working on the main base."

"A field agent through and through?" asked Captain Thompson.

"Sure am," replied Hayley. "I can't say I've seen you before. Is this your first mission?"

"As a Captain, yes," said Thompson. "I've worked my way up through the ranks the past few years. My ambition is to be a colonel some day."

Would rather have you in charge than Jennings, Hayley thought to herself. "Do your job well and I'm certain you will," she said.

Captain Thompson smiled. "Thank you, Captain Madison."

"Oh, please. Call me Hayley."

Thompson's smile turned into a grin. "Amanda," she said.

For some reason, Hayley felt she'd gained not just a new colleague, but a friend that could be trusted.

Twelve minutes seemed to go by very quickly. In no time at all, the Flyer had reached a location a few miles West of where the XV-104 had come down. Not wanting to risk causing significant damage to the ice with its weight for any period of time, the ramp was already starting to lower as it touched down. The two recovery vehicles, the first with Hayley inside and the second with Amanda aboard trundled out one after the other and began to make their way towards the crash site. The Flyer then lifted off again and headed out towards the open water where it would wait to be called back.

"You take the North side of the crash site, Recovery 2," Hayley said into the radio from the cab of Recovery 1. "We'll take the South."

"Roger! Good luck," acknowledged Amanda from the second vehicle as they parted ways and headed for the respective search areas.

Jeff and Lord Patrick seemed to talk for ages. Alan hadn't realised just how far back they knew each other, although it did explain how his father had managed to cross paths with the Creighton-Wards to enable Penelope to start her career as a secret agent for International Rescue - although her parents hadn't known that for quite some time.

"Ah, those were the days," said Lord Patrick as he finished his coffee. "Good to reflect."

"Indeed," agreed Jeff. "However, you asked for me to come here, Pat. You said you'd found something to show me?"

"Ah, yes," said Lord Patrick. He got up from his seat and went over to an object on the nearby table. It was covered in a smart tablecloth concealing it from view. "Whilst going through the cupboards, I came across this." He removed the tablecloth to reveal a large cup - the kind that was given to racers when they won.

Alan's eyes lit up instantly. "Woah…" he remarked. "Shiny!" And then he noticed what was on it. "Paris - London. 2040 - Winners?"

Jeff's eyes also lit up at the sight of the cup. "Oh, my!" he said. "There's something I haven't seen for years."

"What is it?" asked Alan with interest.

"I'm…also curious to know," added Penelope, who'd never seen the cup before.

"You were too young to remember this I expect, Penelope," said Lord Patrick. "Alan, you wouldn't have even been born when your father and I won this."

Alan looked at Jeff. "You never told me you did racing?!" he exclaimed.

Jeff gave a chuckle. "Not the kind of racing you're thinking of, Alan," he said. Then a thought struck him. "Say, Pat. What became of her?"

"Her?" Alan and Penelope asked together.

Lord Patrick also needed a moment to realise what Jeff was talking about. "Oh…do you mean Tiger?" he asked. When Jeff nodded, a smile began to spread out across his face. "We still have her," he said which almost caused Jeff's mouth to drop. "Although…" he added. "I dread to think what condition she's in. she's not been touched since she was put away in the barn when the war broke out."

"War?" said Penelope. "The Global Conflict?"

Jeff and Patrick both nodded.

"What's the Tiger?" asked Alan. "Is it the car you raced in?"

Jeff and Patrick looked at each other. Then Patrick spoke. "Penelope, could you summon Parker, my dear?"

"Of course, Father." Penelope went over to the bell-pull and gave it a few tugs. They could hear the jingle of the bell off in the distance.

In less than a minute, the doors to the drawing room opened to reveal Parker. "You rang, m'lady?"

"Actually, Parker, Father asked me to," Penelope said.

"That is correct," said Lord Patrick. "Parker, do you still have the keys to the barn?"

"The barn, sir?" Parker asked.

"Yes. Where we put the Tiger all those years ago."

Even Parker seemed to have trouble understanding what this meant. But after a few seconds he soon caught on. "Tiger? H'Oh! The Tiger! Yes, h'of course, sir! I'll go h'and get them!" He hurried off as Patrick invited the others to come.

"Follow me," Patrick said. "Let's go and see what she looks like."

Jeff was very excited at this, although Alan and Penelope were still confused.

"Have you any idea what they're talking about?" Alan asked.

"Not a clue, Alan," replied Penelope. "Not a clue."

Hayley's group located two of the missing bombs relatively quickly. She supervised as a powerful crane lifted them out of the ice and loaded them onto the carrier on the truck's back. "Good work," Hayley congratulated. "You head back to the rendezvous point. I'll catch a ride back with Recovery 2."

The driver acknowledged this and drove away from the area.

Hayley watched until it was out of sight before turning her attention to the remains of the crashed XV-104. There wasn't much of it left following the explosion and she was somewhat amazed that the missiles hadn't been destroyed along with it. "Glad those guys made it out safely," she remarked.

The sound of another vehicle could then be heard from behind the main wreckage. Hayley watched as Recovery 2 came into view. But straight away she noticed something wasn't right. There was only one bomb on the back. She walked over as the vehicle came to a stop. The door opened and Amanda jumped down.

"Where's the other missile?" Hayley asked.

"I don't know," Amanda replied. "We can't find it."

"What do you mean, 'can't find it'?" asked Hayley.

"I mean it's not there," said Amanda. "We've checked all that area and it's not there."

Hayley was puzzled. "It has to be," she said. "Come on, let's check all the sides."

For the next twenty minutes they did just that. They checked the West side of the crash site first. Then the South side. Then the East side and finally finished on the North side where Recovery 2 had originally been sent to check out and had found the bomb that it was carrying already. But even with the advanced metal detectors and keen look-out cameras mounted on the vehicles, there was no sign of the last bomb anywhere.

"This doesn't make sense," said Amanda. "It can't have disappeared!"

"Not still inside the wreckage of the aircraft?" Hayley asked.

"No, we checked that as we came over to you," Amanda replied. "It's simply vanished."

Hayley looked out of the window towards the wrecked XV-104. Then something caught her eye. There was a small section of ice that looked different to the rest. It looked cleaner and newer than the rest did. And then she had a thought, and it wasn't a good one. "Oh, no…"

"What is it?" asked Amanda.

"If we can't find it up here, then there's only one place it can be," said Hayley grimly.

Amanda quickly caught on. "You don't mean…?"

"Yes, Amanda," Hayley finished. "It must have gone through the ice!"