Chapter Thirty-Two
The heli couldn’t touch down. Whenever the landing skids neared the ground, a gust of wind would lift the heli into the air, or another would force it downward, causing the skids to touch the sand but then zoom upward as Zapata fought the downdraft.
The pilot had opened the vehicle’s passenger door for Cherry too, so the wind was affecting the machine even more.
“Can you make it?” Cherry asked Zapata over her comm.
“Doing my best, ma’am.”
“I understand. I just don’t want you to kill yourself.”
“Me neither.”
“Or land on me.”
Zapata chuckled.
The heli hung about fifteen meters up in the air, buffeted by the gale. Cherry had her eyes closed to slits to try to keep out the sand, and until the heli drew near all she could see of it was its lights. Her hair whipped ar
