23
Patty blinked to clear the sweat that was pouring down into her face. The moment Mick had opened his door, a wave of hot, sulphurous stench washed into the cabin.
Mick had been right; death had very stinky breath.
She rode the helo another fifty feet downslope to make sure she was clear of Mick’s landing zone, skidding on a cushion of blazing hot air.
The Linda was just five feet above the harsh rocks and moving too fast, but Patty was out of options unless she wanted to go swimming in a pool of lava.
She wrenched back on the cyclic and yanked up on the collective for all it was worth. The Linda cried. Every system alarm roared in panic, but she stalled into a hover.
Patty shoved open the door and jumped. She landed hard, banged her helmet harder, then rolled to get down into a cr
