I glanced round at the ring of tight, set faces. They were all watching me, seeing my fear, blaming me now for not getting them out. I suddenly felt I hated them all. Why should I have to fly the damned plane to save their skins?
‘You must get Tucek to do it,’ I heard myself stammering. ‘You must wait till he comes out of—’
‘That is not possible,’ Sansevino cut in.
Hacket stepped forward and patted my arm. I could see the level set of his dentures as he forced a smile. ‘Come on, now, Farrell. If we’re prepared to risk it—’
Reece thrust him aside. ‘Are you going to let us all die here?’ he said angrily.
‘I can’t fly the plane’ — the words seemed to be forced out of me. ‘I daren’t.’ I was half-sobbing.
‘So we’re all to die here like rabbits in a trap because you’re scared. You rotten, yellow—’
‘You’ve no right to say that.’ Hilda hauled him away from me. ‘How dare you?’ she stormed. ‘He has done more than any one. Ever since the eruption started he has been fighting to save us. Did you go to get Dr. Sansevino for Max? No. You were too busy getting the dust out of yourself. And you didn’t go near the lava. Dick has faced death twice to-day. And you have the nerve to call him a coward. You have done nothing — nothing, I tell you.’
She stopped then. She was breathing heavily and she wiped her hand across her hair. Then she took my arm. ‘Come. We will go and get clean. We shall feel better when we have had a wash.’
I followed her upstairs to the bathroom in a sort of daze. I wanted to crawl into a corner and hide. I wished I was back on that roof top. I’d welcome the approach of the lava now. If only it would come. I wanted it to end — quickly. ‘I can’t fly that plane,’ I told her.