Free Voyage of the Dead - Book One Sovereign Spirit Saga by David Forsyth Page A

know that no police or firemen were out there to help people anymore.  Carl might have learned more if he kept listening, but he decided to save the batteries.  He put the radio away, pulled out the thin metallic space blanket, and lay down on top of the water tower to stare at the stars and listen to the echoing moans of prowling zombies below. 

 
     
    Chapter 4: Dead Men Walking
     
    “When there is no more room in hell the dead will walk the earth.” Dawn of the Dead
     
                Shortly before dawn on April 2, 2012, the Sovereign Spirit’s flight crew began preparing the helicopter for its recon flight over Cabo San Lucas.  The bird was already fully fueled and had been in perfect operating condition when used for sightseeing flights over the Galapagos last week.  But this flight would be longer and of a totally different nature.   They would be flying more than a hundred miles over the ocean to reach Cabo and could not expect any help, or safe place to land, when they got there.  Luckily, the helicopter was a twin engine Bell 214-ST with long range tanks and emergency floatation devices mounted under the fuselage.   It had been used to support off-shore oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico until the 2010 oil spill closed them down.  Scott had purchased it for a good price and refitted it for another quarter million to make it virtually better than new.  The upgrades included new leather seating for twelve passengers, including a five seat bench at the rear that could fold out into a bed for air ambulance or camping applications.  Every passenger had access to Bose noise cancelling headphones and there were video screens that could show in-flight DVDs, streaming internet video, or views from the camera on a swivel mount below the nose of the chopper.  They could also transmit those images back to the ship if they wanted to.  The twin engines added an extra measure of safety for overwater flights.  All in all, this was one of the best helicopters they could have asked for in these circumstances.
     
    There were two pilots inspecting the aircraft as Scott emerged onto the helicopter pad and waved them over.  “Hi Mick,” he said to his chief pilot.  “It’ll be you and me up front on the sticks today.  I want Sam to stay here and get the Seawind ready to launch in case we call for help.”  Scott meant that he would act as copilot for the helicopter and leave the second pilot on the ship in case they needed the amphibious airplane to come to their rescue.  With a single pilot the Seawind could pick up four passengers if necessary, at least in a calm sea.  Scott didn’t expect any problems with the helicopter, but he was a firm believer in being prepared for the worst.  If they did encounter any mechanical problems, they couldn’t expect help from anybody on the ground.  If something went terribly wrong with the flight, Scott planned to set down on the beach, or ditch in the ocean, after calling in a Mayday, then swim away from shore until the Seawind arrived.
     
                “Sounds like a good plan, Scott” responded Mick Williams.  He and Scott had been friends since childhood and he had been very happy to sign-on as chief pilot for the Bell 214-ST.  It was a very rare and impressive helicopter that had been designed for export to the Iranian air force before the 1979 revolution.  Now it was known as a prized support helicopter for off-shore oil rigs and remote locations.  The 435 gallon fuel tank gave it a range of 500 miles and that could be extended to 750 with the auxiliary belly tank.  With its new black on blue paint job, it was a real head turner at every airport it landed at.  Mick loved to fly it.   Being Scott’s friend meant he also got a nice big stateroom on the ship and was treated more like one of the guests than a member of the crew.  “So who’s gonna ride door gunner on this sortie?  We might have to plug some zombies if that Hammer