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“No. I’m thinking about safety. I know that cloud is small, but if that’s not in the forecast, the forecast could be wrong about other things too.”
“There’s safety, and there’s paranoia,” Madden said.
“No, there’s safety and more safety,” Nash emphasized. “Seriously. I don’t like the look of that cloud.”
ThenMadden looked, but he just shrugged again. “We’ll keep an eye on it.”
“Keep an eye on it or becaughtin it?” I barked.
Madden huffed. “Caught in what? That’s tiny.”
It was. But as Pippa liked to say,It’s not the size of the dog in the fight…
When Madden leaned in, I wrinkled my nose at his stale breath.
“If we don’t fly, we’ll have to refund everyone,” he reminded me. “What would Henry say about that?”
“Henry would err on the side of caution. We have a perfect record—”
“Ihave a perfect record,” Madden emphasized, cutting me off.
Nash put a hand on my arm before I socked the man.
“I’ve seen the Marines ground all units based on a tiny wind shift,” Nash warned.
I appreciated his help, but I resented the need for it. Why would Madden listen to Nash and not to me?
Okay, easy answer. Because Nash was a man, and Madden was a misogynistic ass.
Madden wavered for a few seconds, and I didn’t know whether to hope or not. Staying grounded ruined my chances of piloting my own flights, but going aloft might prove irresponsible.
Finally, Madden shook his head. “The wind could just as easily shift in our favor.” He shoved the clipboard back at me and climbed into the basket. “It’ll be fine.” Then he raised his voice. “All right, guys. Climb in one at a time, from different sides.”
The hair on the back of my neck signaledDanger. Danger. Don’t go.
“Do you sense anything?” I asked Nash. “Any weather shift, I mean?”
“No, but if you do…”
I warmed at his trust. But, hell. I’d been wrong in the past. What if I was wrong again?
Nash shook his head. “Forget it. Don’t go.”
I weighed my choices. Madden was going to fly, no matter what I did. And if that weather system proved insignificant, I would have forfeited my chance to fly for no reason.
I gritted my teeth, looking between the balloon and the clouds.
Nash’s whisper went all gritty. “What if it’s Harlon?”
I stared at the sky, thinking of the out-of-nowhere wind shifts during Harlon’s flight with Madden. But those were minor, and Harlon was currently out of town, so…
I stepped toward the basket, finally resolute. “Worst case, we’ll keep it short. We could land as close as Deer Mountain if necessary.”
A quick up-and-down trip, I figured, trying to convince myself.
Nash frowned. “I don’t like this.”
Neither did I. But now that I’d convinced myself it would be all right…
