Under the Ice

And somehow he seemed to always find time for Laurie. While growing up, she looked upon him as her best friend, always there with a smile and an interesting story to tell. When she was ready for school, she was sent to the very best available. Science and mathematics always came easiest to her, and for as long as she could remember, her goal was to be a famous scientist like her father.

Through the years, her natural good looks didn’t go unnoticed by members of the opposite sex. In high school, she had her fair share of dates, but for the most part she found those boys boring and vain. Of course, there was always the natural inclination to compare them to her father. And in every instance, none came close to matching Dr. Frank Lansing in brains, charm, or force of personality.

Her social life was almost nil in college. She was much too busy mastering the challenging principles of applied physics or probing into the intricacies of advanced engineering. During summer vacations, she went to work for her father in the Naval Arctic Lab.

Because of the strategic importance of the Arctic Ocean, the US Navy was interested in knowing all it could about the region’s unique physical makeup.

Surprisingly little past research had been done in this area, and her father’s lab was helping to coordinate this new effort.

Advances in technology were changing the character of Arctic research. Exciting new inventions such as the laser-guided surface-scanning Fathometer were finally coming out of the test stage and being applied to actual, operational hardware.

To Laurie, there could be no more exciting field than this. Though she had several other attractive offers, there was never much doubt in her mind as to the direction of her graduate curriculum, and finally, with a doctorate in advanced Arctic studies in hand, she applied for a position on her father’s staff. She was instantly accepted, and spent the next five years assisting her father develop what one senior admiral in the Pentagon called “the most significant advancement in under-the-ice technology since the advent of the nuclear reactor.”

All their hard work came to fruition six months ago, when the US Navy notified the lab that it was accepting one of the laser-guided Fathometers to test on an actual sub. After the briefest of celebrations, they went to work preparing an operational system.

Because they had to meet a sailing deadline, they had little time to tarry. Fourteen-hour work days were not uncommon, and a day off was almost unheard of. Yet during the entire six-month period, never once did Laurie hear one of the staff voice a complaint. For they really believed in the project, and were willing to sacrifice their personal lives to insure its success.

Of course, no one was as dedicated to this effort as Dr. Frank Lansing. Going to the extreme of setting up a cot in the lab, he worked tirelessly for hours on end.

It was a chore for Laurie to even get him to break for meals, and several times she actually had to drag him away from his work in order to get some decent food into his system.

Two weeks before their deadline was upon them, her father moved into the lab permanently. It was at this point that the hundreds of hours of hard work began to show in his eyes and general physical appearance.

He seemed to be uncharacteristically slovenly, and it was obviously an effort for him to drag his tired, bent body around the laboratory. Several times he complained of attacks of what he called heartburn, but whenever Laurie advised that he should see his physician, he inevitably changed the subject.

She knew now that she should have been firmer with him about seeking medical treatment. Yet her work schedule was equally as intense, and when it came time to begin installing the Fathometer into the Defiance, it was all she could do to find the time to take care of her own personal concerns.

On the morning of the day the installation was to be completed, Laurie found herself on her way to the docks to personally supervise the final calibration of the scanning lasers. Since her father wished to be on the scene also, she stopped at the lab to pick him up.

It was a brisk, clear autumn day, and as she expectantly pulled up to the three-story brick building where their offices were located, she spotted a pair of police cars parked immediately in front of the entranceway.

Not really giving these vehicles much thought, she entered the central foyer and encountered two policemen intently interrogating Will Harper, one of the project’s senior technicians. It only took one look at Will’s face for her to know that there had been some sort of tragedy. But little was Laurie prepared for what she was soon to learn, when the bearded scientist took her aside and with tear-stained eyes explained the grim discovery he’d made that morning.