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Pitt gazed at her through disbelieving eyes "You consider thatrespect for Doc Miller?"

"Doc is dead," she saidscience that deals with dead things Doc taught that better than anyone

The slightest disturbance could alter significant findings"

Pitt began to see a side of Shannon that was all business "After Al and I bring up Miller's remains, you and your Miles can dive and retrieve artifacts to your heart's content But ain"

"Once is enough," she said with a tight smile Then her expression turned to one of concern "Be careful and don't take chances"

Then she kissed hihtly on the cheek, turned and hurried off toward her tent

Dropping into the water went smoothly, thanks to a small crane and a motorized winch operated under the watchful eye of Rudi Gunn When Pitt was about ahi to the winch The upper, slime-laden level of the water was as tepid as expected but he did not recall it sent He floated lazily on his back, waiting for the cable to return topside before lowering Giordino

Pitt's full face mask was connected to a communications and safety line while Giordino dove free and unencunals fro buddy slid into the muck beside him, Pitt motioned doard, and they rolled forward and dove into the depths of the sinkhole They stayed close to avoid becoht of one another in the dis the incredibly clear water 4 rayish brown of the bottoloom and came up to meet them

They leveled off at 2 meters (6 feet), and Pitt made a motion to stop all movement Carefully, so he didn't stir up a cloud of silt, he removed a stainless steel shaft that was attached to a reel of nylon cord and shoved it into a pocket of silt

"How are you doing?" Gunn's voice came over the earphones inside Pitt's face mask

"We've reached botto a circular search for the body," Pitt replied as he began unwinding the line

Pitt obtained bearings fro around the shaft that protruded fro the line, as if following the path of a pinwheel He sloa frohtly to the side and rear of Pitt's fins In the transparent liquid void they soon spotted the saponified remains of Doc Miller

In the few days since he had seen the body it had changed for the worse Tiny pieces werefrom the exposed skin areas Pitt was at a loss to explain this until he glihtly speckled fish with lu one of Doc's eyes He brushed away the carnivorous fish, the size of a small trout, and wondered how it cale

He gave a hand signal to Giordino who re froht belt A deco body cannot be smelled underwater That's what they say Perhaps it was in their h their breathing regulators as if their air tanks were contaminated with it An impossibility, to be sure, but tell that to rescue tea-immersed dead

They wasted no ti the body butthe body bag over the corpse while trying not to stir up a cloud of silt The silt did not cooperate, billowing up in a dense cloud, cutting off all visibility They worked blind, carefully zipping up the bag, risly job was completed, Pitt reported to Gunn