Death is Forever

blades diminished to a lazy whap…whap…whap that told of a machine throttled down to idle.
    “Ready to fly?” he asked her. “Maybe by the time we get back, Wing’s army will have the new plumbing straightened out for a shower and a washing machine.”
    The casual words enraged Erin. She thought about refusing the conversational gambit but decided she would appear even more foolish than she already felt after displaying her jealousy.
    “Just wear your clothes when you shower,” she said, trying to sound as matter-of-fact as he had. She didn’t succeed. She’d never been a very good actress. “A shower gets the clothes clean enough. I did it all the time in Alaska.”
    “Washing clothes with you in them, huh? Sounds like fun.”
    The sensual teasing was unexpected, baffling her even as it made her more angry. “It’s a game for one,” she said in a clipped voice. “Like solitaire.”
    “That doesn’t sound like fun.”
    “Don’t worry. I’m not the only woman in the Kimberley whose clothes need washing.”
    “You’re the only one whose clothes I want to wash.”
    Her breath came in hard. “My God, I know I was stupid to talk about love, but even stupidity has its limits. I’m not blind. If I’d come in a few minutes later, Lai would have been all over you like a rash.”
    “But I wouldn’t have been all over her.”
    “Bullshit,” Erin said angrily.
    The sunlight that had changed Lai into a diminutive golden statue sent streamers of fire through Erin’s hair and transformed her eyes to brilliant green gems. Unlike Lai, Erin was unaware of her own allure, her color and heat and shimmering life.
    Cole wasn’t. He wanted Erin until he had to look away or reach for her; because if he reached for her now, she would refuse him. He didn’t trust his own temper if that happened. He was never at his best during buildup and he knew it.
    “Don’t let Uncle Li get away with it,” Cole said, when he could trust his voice not to betray his rage.
    “With what?”
    “Putting Lai between us.”
    “You should have thought of that sooner. You sure as hell didn’t mind where Lai was standing a few moments ago.”
    He made a throttled sound. It had been a long time since he’d lost his temper, but he felt it slipping away now. His head ached, the scab on his thigh pulled with every motion, he hadn’t slept more than a handful of hours since Los Angeles, the temperature at the station was well over one hundred, the humidity wasn’t far behind, and now Erin was watching him like a stranger, wary and distant, like she’d never been tangled with his naked body and whispered her love.
    “Look—,” he began harshly.
    “I did,” she cut in. “Unlike you, I didn’t like what I saw.” Then, before she could stop herself, she asked, “Who is she?”
    “Wing’s communications specialist,” Cole said through his teeth.
    “You know what I meant. Who is she to you?”
    He slammed his coffee mug down with enough force to shatter it. Before the pieces hit the floor he took a long stride forward, coming so close to Erin that she had to tilt her head back to see his eyes.
    Nothing in his eyes comforted her, but she didn’t back up an inch.
    “To me,” he said in a low, savage voice, “Lai is a living, breathing reminder of how rock stupid a man is to trust a woman’s cries of love. Abe had the right idea about women. Fuck them, but don’t love them.”
    Abruptly Cole turned and headed toward the back of the house. “Lai knows where your new camera gear is. Get it and be out back in three minutes.”

27
Abe’s station
    Angrily Erin walked to the bedroom. Lai knows where your new camera gear is.
    But Erin would happily roast in hell before she’d ask the gorgeous Ms. Lai for a drop of water, much less anything as important as camera equipment. Fiercely Erin grabbed her battered camera bag and went outside.
    The violence of the sun brought her up short. It had been hot and sticky in the house. It was insufferable outside, a steaming sauna with no walls and no exit.
    Flies flocked to her.
    She waved them away automatically and walked toward the helicopter that was crouched off to the rear of the house. If the chopper had ever had doors, they had been removed.
    Cole was talking with the pilot. After a moment the man climbed down and let Cole into the pilot’s seat. He looked at gauges and brought up the revs. The rotors whirled more quickly, sending billows of grit into the sky. Artificial