Page 49 of Mountain Void

Beau shook his head. “Find somewhere to put us down, Tristan. We need to be down there.” He unfolded a map, bracing it against his thigh as the helicopter jolted again.

Four pairs of eyes focused on the map.

“He was heading south. From here.” Beau traced a line along the plastic surface. “That’s a roughly eight-kilometer stretch of corridor, if we start from here and work back north.”

“All of it bad ground,” Hugo said.

Lorenz leaned forward, one hand braced on the seat next to him.

Hugo was right. The Chorde corridor was known for being steep and unforgiving. But Lorenz had done it before. Most recently, during his training for the desert race.

“I can run it,” he said.

“Of course you can,” Ry said.

“I did it last month. I think I invited you to join me,” Lorenz said.

“Did he decline the invitation?” Alex asked, laughing.

“If it was a choice between spending a day off with Isla, or out here with this guy, I’m surprised you hesitated at all,” Hugo joined in.

“Who says I hesitated?” Ry said, punctuating his words with a brief laugh.

Beau didn’t join in the banter. His gaze flicked up from the map, measuring. “It’s a long run.”

“I know. Two hours if I push it.” In this wind, over that terrain, carrying gear—it wouldn’t be fun. But the visibility was good. He could do it. “Tristan can pick us up, when I find him.”

Still, Beau hesitated.

Ry shot Beau a glance. “I’ll go with him, keep an eye on our resident daredevil.”

“You think you can keep up?” Lorenz asked, arching an eyebrow.

“Somebody needs to keep an eye on you,” Ry drawled, “and I’d like to be there when we find him.”

Beau nodded. “Fine. Lorenz, Ry, get your packs ready. Tristan will let you off here. Hugo, Alex, you will go back to the north end and start the search from there. Just in case. We don’t know where he got into trouble. Tristan and I will keep circling.”

Impatience settled in Lorenz’s belly as Tristan circled. Finally, the helicopter flared low, kicking loose stones into the air as it settled.

Lorenz was already moving before the skids fully settled.

“Stay in touch, you two,” Beau said.

“Sure thing,” Ry replied, shouldering his heavy medic pack. Lorenz would have offered to carry it for him, but he knew there was no way Ry would let it go.

The helicopter lifted off almost immediately, banking away.

“Lead the way, Lorenz,” Ry said. His lips curled into a small smile. “I’ll let you know if I can’t follow.”

Lorenz laughed. Everybody on the team was fit. He had no doubt Ry could do this. But still, he’d keep an eye out for his teammate.

He started off at an easy jog. After a few minutes, he increased the pace, picking a line through the angled slabs.

“This is hell on the knees,” Ry muttered behind him.

“It’s lucky you take collagen with your coffee every day, then,” Lorenz replied. They’d all seen the bottle Ry kept in a drawer of his desk.

“Hey. Don’t knock it till you’ve tried it,” Ry replied.