Free Outland (World-Lines Book 1) by Dennis Taylor

wanting to eat me before we step through that thing.”
    Richard glared at her for a few more seconds, then seemed to deflate. He hung his head and shrugged. “Yeah, okay, that sounds reasonable. I’m not keen on becoming lunch either.  Go ahead and talk to her. But make sure she’s sworn to secrecy, all right?”
    Bill grinned at Erin. “Tell her we have a sign-off from a geologist, now we just need a biologist to rubber-stamp our little amusement park.”
    “Oh for God’s sake,” Matt rolled his eyes. “All in favor of stuffing Bill through first to see what eats him? Opposed? It’s unanimous, Bill. You’re the main course.”
    The group exchanged smiles. A whole world to themselves, the possibility of large amounts of money for not much work, eventual fame. What’s not to like?
     

In the News
    In other news, activity continues to increase in the Yellowstone National Park. USGS representatives stress that this is not unprecedented. Yellowstone gets dozens of small earthquakes every day, and there have been lava excursions in the past. Spokesperson Robert Danell is quoted as saying, “It’s a long way from a bit of volcanic activity to an impending supervolcano explosion.”
    ---
    In Washington, Republicans are loudly questioning if FEMA would have the resources to handle an eruption. They point to budget cuts that have forced FEMA to cut programs and are demanding that the Democrat administration confirm that they have a plan.
    Democrats are quick to point out that the cuts to FEMA funding were all enacted by Republican administrations, and that FEMA would have a much more generous budget if the Republicans would stop blocking all attempts to give them one.
    ---
    Discovery Channel has announced that they will be rerunning their Supervolcano series this week due to viewer demand.

Monica and Erin Have Lunch
    June 30              Erin
    “Hey, buttercup!”
    Erin smiled at the familiar voice. There was no question about who was at the other end of that yell. Her friend Monica had always been brash and loud. Monica Albertelli had been raised in a large traditional Italian home, always competing for attention and air time. She had a voice that carried and when necessary could shock people into astonished silence.
    The two had known each other since before grade school and had been delighted when they learned they would be going to the same university. Monica was taking biology with an emphasis on zoology. She was fond of saying that plants were less interesting because they just sat there.
    Monica and Erin were a sharply contrasting pair. Where Erin was tall, slim and athletic, Monica was five-foot-four with dark, long wavy hair and a figure that could—and on at least one occasion had— made men walk right into telephone poles. Monica often joked about her effect on men and made no pretense about not enjoying it.
    Erin had arranged to meet Monica at La Mexicana . Both girls loved Mexican food, and Erin admitted to herself that she was getting tired of burgers.
    Monica motioned Erin over and indicated a seat at the table. She waved a menu at Erin and said, “So hey, what’s all this big deep mystery? You been recruited by the see eye aye ?” Monica laughed.
    “Oh, for crying out loud! No, this is about that project that Matt has gotten involved in. It’s turned into something, um, interesting . And I do mean like in the Chinese curse.”
    “Oooooh. Danger. Intrigue. C’mon, give.”
    “Sorry, no. I don’t think you’d believe it without seeing it. Anyway, they made me promise, and it’s their show. The boys will want to show you a few things, then explanations. Bottom line though, they need someone with some zoological background, and you are it.” Erin paused to dig into the salsa and nachos.
    Monica leaned forward. “So any of these bro’s interesting? And I don’t mean like the curse!”
    “Hmm…” Erin thought about it for a few seconds while chewing. “Well, Richard is hot.