Page 59 of Eruption

But the big clock kept counting down.

Mauna Loa had two rift zones, on its northeast and southwest. Their group was on the northeast side today. There was no more conversation as they made their way the last fifty yards or so to the rim. The roar from the caldera had built up even more, and the sky had darkened somewhat, clouds lower than the top of Mauna Loa.

“I’ve never heard it like this!” Jenny had to shout even though she was inches from Mac’s ear.

He was about to tell her that neither had he when he suddenly felt like his feet were on fire.

He looked down at his hiking boots and saw the thick soles with their wide treads were beginning to curl up and melt away, the way the tires of the jeep had a few minutes ago.

Mac saw Jenny and Rick and Iona staring down at their own boots, which were detaching at the soles.

“That’s it!” Iona yelled. “I’ll see you guys back at the jeep.” He stared hard at Mac. “You want to tell my bosses I deserted, go right ahead.”

He started back down the mountain.

“When the going gets tough,” Mac said as he watched him go.

“The tough really do get going,” Jenny said.

“Just curious, Mac. Are we still fine?” Rick Ozaki asked, furiously stamping his feet on the ground and extracting from his pocket a roll of duct tape to repair his boots.

Mac shrugged. “We’ve come this far.”

Then the three of them were looking down at a lava lake, the heat shimmering off the silver surface.

“This lake… it’s new, right?” Jenny yelled to Mac.

Mac nodded. The opening of a new lava lake near the northeast summit confirmed that the lava would head in the direction of Mauna Kea and the Military Reserve.

On the other side of the lake, small amounts of lava were pushing through cracks, and tiny geysers shot lava toward the sky.

“If I could still breathe,” Jenny said, “this might actually take my breath away.”

“Mac,” Rick yelled, “we need to get out of here or we’re going to be walking barefoot on hot coals back to the jeep.”

“Gimme one more minute,” Mac said, taking out his cell phone. “I need to take some pictures.”

“For what?” Rick said. “The top of your casket?”

Then he watched as Mac scrambled up and over the rim.

CHAPTER 37

Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, Hawai‘i

Rebecca Cruz waited for Mac and his crew at the observatory. He’d called her from his car and asked her to meet him there, said they were on their way back from the army base, where they’d gone after leaving the caldera.

When he told Rebecca about the trip to the summit, she pronounced it the second-dumbest stunt ever. “What’s the first?” Mac asked.

“I don’t know,” she said, “but there must be one.”

She heard him laugh.At least somebody around here has a sense of humor,she thought. “One more thing,” she said.

“What’s that?”

“Next time you better take me with you,” Rebecca said.

What little she knew of him so far, she liked, starting here: He was sure of himself in an almost cocky way, and he was clearly used to being the smartest guy in the room.