Page 81 of Burnin' For You
“It’s through the pass, and from the looks of this, only a few miles from the team’s estimated position,” Reuben said quietly. He turned, and Gilly recognized his expression. The same one he’d worn when Patrick told him to sit down, to surrender.
Not a chance. Maybe Miles had forgotten who Reuben was, the grief he shouldered, but she could almost predict his next words.
“We need to go in after them, right now.”
Yes. Exactly what she was thinking. She moved around the table, leaning hard on it, fighting the pain shooting up her leg. “Listen, I’ll take a plane, drop retardant on the front edge, slow the fire down. That will clear a path for the chopper to get in.”
Miles looked at her, and she could actually see the wheels turning in his head.
“It could work,” she added. “Buy them time for Pete and the guys to get in. The PEAK team could land in the creek bed, or maybe the smoke would clear enough for them to hoist them up.” She took another step, drew in a quick breath, but masked it with a smile.
“And I know exactly how to fly that canyon—I’ve done it once already.”
She meant it sort of as a joke, but it fell flat, with Miles’s mouth tightening in a dark line. She looked at Reuben for reinforcement, but his jaw had locked so tight he could be grinding coal into diamonds. “Okay, too soon to joke, but really, I can do this—”
“I can send Jared. He’ll get in there—” Miles started.
“No! Jared won’t get low enough. The canyon winds—yeah, they’re rough, but manageable. But a DC-10 will never make that run. Jared won’t risk it—”
“And you will,” Reuben said quietly.
She frowned at him. Of course she would.
“It’s the only air tanker we have,” Miles said. “The rest of the fleet has been routed to Idaho.”
“We can take the Annie. It’s fixed. I saw it before we left.”
“Have you lost your ever-lovin’ mind?” This from Reuben, who blew out a breath. She could read the disapproval in his eyes. “Let’s, for one minute, remember who supposedly fixed the Annie, shall we?”
Her voice dropped, and she met his gaze. “Let’s remember what he said in the cabin. This wasn’t about me. I was just collateral damage. He was out to hurt you, the team. He wouldn’t sabotage the AN2, because I’m the only one with the guts to fly it.”
Reuben stared at her a long moment during which she thought he got it. The fact that this was her job, and their team needed her.
And when he turned to Miles, she expected a repeat of yesterday’s blowout.
“No,” Reuben said quietly. “Her knee is busted up. There’s no way she can control the foot pedals, keep the plane steady through all those currents. Even if the plane holds together, she doesn’t have the strength to keep it on course. You let her go, and we’ll just have another casualty on our hands.”
She had no words, her stomach dropping out from under her, her entire body numb.
He wouldn’t look at her, just kept his gaze trained on Miles. Who looked between Reuben and Gilly, his shoulders rising and falling.
“Let me go, Miles,” she said quietly, in a voice that she didn’t recognize. Probably because her real voice was screaming in her head, words that she rarely used. She knew it, shejust knewthat Reuben would overprotect, not let her do her job.
So much for them sorting it out, finding a happy ending.
“If anyone is going to save them, it will be me, and you know it,” she said stiffly.
More quiet from Miles. Then, he closed his eyes and gave a small nod.
“You’ve got to be kidding me!” Reuben roared.
“Thanks, Miles,” Gilly said.
She didn’t spare Reuben a glance as she gritted her teeth and limped down the hall.
But she didn’t get far.
“Gilly—please! Don’t do this.” Reuben on her tail. She pressed her hand to the wall, drew in a breath, mostly to let out the coil of pain.