High Risk

CHAPTER 35

It was something Marcus thought he’d never get used to—a person suddenly appearing out of nowhere, parting the clouds. Colin twisted into sight, lowered on a fixed rope. Marcus intended to stay aside, out of the way of his team and the reunion about to take place. Becki had different ideas as she dragged him with her as she rushed forward, only letting his hand free when her brother’s feet hit the ground.

“You stupid, stupid, stupid fool.” Becki nearly leapt on Colin in her need to make sure he was okay. “I have no idea why you thought climbing out of season was a good idea.”

Marcus grinned as Colin glanced around sheepishly, accepting his sister’s clutch and her condemnation. “Well. The mountain was there. It had to be climbed, you know?”

“Sorry to intrude. I need your rope, dude.” Xavier shouldered between the siblings without a qualm to work the safety knot from Colin’s belt. “So, until hell broke loose, was it a good climb?”

“Awesome.” Colin grinned, streaks of dirt and blood on his face, the hours of waiting in the cold forgotten. “I can’t wait to come back and do it again. Well, without the Rob-hurting-himself part.”

Xavier nodded. “Sounds like a plan. You let Becki look you over for a minute, okay? I think you’re all right, though.”

Marcus approved of it all as his team slipped easily into action around him. Alisha had dropped another rope from the anchor she’d set on the ledge. Anders worked to attach the stretcher and medical supplies. Devon was already belaying Xavier as he headed up to work his magic on the injured climber.

Becki had taken her brother aside and was assessing him, her training crystal clear in every move. This was what she was meant to do, and if she was willing to work with Marcus’s team, he’d feel privileged.

He wasn’t going to lie, either, and pretend her skills were the only reason he wanted her.

Becki waved him over, and he responded quickly. “What’s up?”

“He’s good, as far as I can tell. You have any heating pads in the supplies before I go digging through everything?”

“I don’t need to be babied,” Colin complained, glaring at his sister. He glanced at Marcus. “Tell her I don’t need heating pads.”

“You expect me to argue with your sister? Not likely,” Marcus said, stepping aside to grab what she’d asked for out of the medic bag.

“She’s not that scary,” Colin insisted. “And she’s a total wimp when it comes to ridge running.”

Yeah, this kid was going to be interesting to watch. Marcus caught Becki’s eye, doing his own assessment of her now that her brother was safely on the ground. Dark shadows under her eyes, weary body positioning. She was headed for a crash, the adrenaline rush wearing off, leaving room for everything else she’d been dealing with to surface. “Becki, grab some food and drink. You need a sit-down before we head out. I’ll take over checking Colin.”

“I don’t need . . .” She snapped her mouth closed on the near-mirror complaint to the one her brother had just uttered. After one final scruff of Colin’s hair, she scrambled to her feet and marched past Marcus, bumping him with her shoulder and whispering as she went by. “Bastard. I’ll get even with you for that one.”

He chuckled. “I hope you try.”

She stopped unexpectedly, cupping his face tenderly before moving to follow his directions.

Marcus wanted to grab hold of her and squeeze her tight. To pick her up and swing her around in celebration of all the successes she’d had that day. The quiet dignity she showed, though, was exactly right. Totally Becki.

Whatever life was going be like in the coming days, it was never going to be boring.

Becki found a spot to the side where she could lean on a rock, see everything and not be underfoot. The granola bar and drink she’d grabbed did help—Marcus had been right.

The setting remained otherworldly, people at the edges of the working space shifting in and out of her vision as the clouds rolled through. Sometimes higher, sometimes lower. A thick layer of condensation coated everything.

She tugged her jacket tighter against the cold. Colin moved to the right a couple of steps and vanished, and her heart jolted until she realized he was fine, just hidden in the mist.

The stretcher came into view, and she rose to her feet as Marcus rushed forward to help Devon guide the solid platform. The tired and pain-filled face of a young man barely out of his teens appeared as the flat surface lowered to the ground.

“You enjoy your roller-coaster ride?” Marcus asked.

Rob nodded. “You guys are like angels.”

A snort escaped Marcus. “Well, that’s a new one. I’m usually called the opposite.”

“Relax, Rob. We’ve got a ways to go, but you shouldn’t have to spend the night on the mountain.” Devon squatted beside the stretcher, adjusting straps.

“Thanks to Colin. He was awesome.” Rob’s words slurred as he closed his eyes. “I thought I was fucked. Of course, the mountains wouldn’t be a bad place to die. I wouldn’t mind it, you know, being buried here, but not for another eighty years or so. . . .”

Xavier landed beside them, unknotting and moving back into position to check Rob. “You aren’t dead, you aren’t dying. Please, my artistry is so underrated.”

He glanced at Becki and winked, lowering his voice. “He’ll be either out in a few minutes or singing to the forest elves. I gave him a painkiller to take the edge off.”

Becki nodded, stepping away as Anders and Xavier relocated the stretcher to the side of the clearing to rig a carrying system. She swayed, the euphoria of having made it this far making her light-headed.

Marcus brushed her cheek with his fingers. “I’m going to gather gear with Alisha and Devon. We’ll be heading out in less than ten. Take a rest. You did great.”

She smiled and nodded, but there was something not quite right with her legs as she returned to her place against the wall. The torn-up sections of her palms burned, and her fingertips were cold, so she sat and tucked her hands under her arms.

. . . wouldn’t be a bad place to die.

Rob’s words echoed in her head. Becki’s heart gave a giant thump, and she jerked upright, searching the scene frantically. Anders and Xavier were barely visible now, hidden by the trees. The only thing visible in that direction looked like a body lying flat out on its back.

. . . the mountains wouldn’t be a bad place to die.

Her breathing sped up. Blood rushed to her head. Becki pressed against the rock and fought to stay alert, but a rush of blackness swept over her and everything went dark.

She was nearing the edge. The point of no return. Becki clung to her knife blade even as she scrambled frantically to find a way to avoid sliding toward the cliff.

As suddenly as it started, everything stopped, the heavy weight of Dane’s body at the other end of her rope no longer dragging her.

She wanted to scream in delight. To cry and laugh and celebrate that she’d survived. Only there was no way to know exactly why they were no longer moving. If Dane was tangled on an unsteady rock, their reprieve could be short-lived.

She scrambled to set a real anchor, using her hammer to pound in a long screw. She set a quick emergency rope before taking the time to make a bombproof one. Only then did she stop to breathe and rejoice a tiny bit.

“Dane,” she shouted. “Can you hear me? We’re going to be okay. We made it. I’m coming to get you.”

A quick sip of water, a bite of an energy bar to get some strength into her shaking limbs. She sucked back a power gel, set a rappelling rope, and willingly went over the edge that had nearly killed her.

She was strong. It had been the most frightening experience yet in her climbing career, but they’d avoided fate. They were going to make it.

The clouds were still there. The wind, the moisture. A few drops of rain hit, and the idea of a downpour made her happy. It would make things miserably cold, but the cloud patterns would change.

They were going to make it.

Over her right shoulder she spotted him. “Dane, I’m coming.”

He didn’t move, his body a long line collapsed on the brink of the ledge. The platform was wide enough to be safe, and he was roped to her safety rope, so she wasn’t worried about him rolling away before she reached him. Becki down-climbed cautiously, her fingers and arms protesting. She didn’t give a damn how much she hurt. They were both alive.

She could put up with a few aches and pains.

Another base. Another anchor. Becki wasn’t leaving anything to chance. She rearranged ropes to make sure she was attached to the wall, Dane still attached to her, before she even moved to his side.

She stroked Dane’s hair from his face. “Hey, wake up. Nap later—it’s your turn to carry me.”

His eyes fluttered open, and he groaned. Pulled himself up on one elbow. “Crap, I thought I was dead.”

“Rock fall.” She wouldn’t bother to tell him right now what else had nearly happened. That was a story to share over beers in a warm bar once they were completely off the mountain. “How you doing? Any injuries?”

He shook his head. “I’m fine. Fuck. How did that happen?”

She helped him up and stabilized him until he was no longer rocking on his feet. “This all happened because you were supposed to go first. I’m sure of it. Hey, where you going?”

He’d stepped to the edge to peer over. She joined him, a rush of nausea hitting at how close a call they’d had. If the three-foot-wide ledge hadn’t been there, the steep cavern at their feet would have been their grave.

“It’s so unfair,” Dane whispered, turning back to her, staring at the wall behind her as if he weren’t seeing anything. “People come out here all the time. To the mountains. They drive past in their cars, and they point up and say, ‘Look how beautiful. I’m so glad we came.’”

Becki caught Dane by the arm, pulling him farther from the cliff edge. He sounded . . . confused. “We do get a better view from here, don’t we? Although their cars seldom fall off cliffs.”

“It wouldn’t be a bad place to die.” Dane breathed the words slowly, and Becki’s gut tightened.

“Dane? What’s wrong?”

He pulled off his helmet and tossed it aside, the streaks of dirt on his cheeks and his tangled hair making him look a little mad. “Nothing. Everything.”

Shit. He’d gone into shock. “Come on, I’ll make us something warm to drink; then we can—”

“I’m dying, Becki,” Dane blurted out. “Some weird-ass form of muscular dystrophy. A stupid genetic thing that isn’t any fault of mine, but it’s going to take me away from here. Put me in a car until all I can do is look up and say, ‘Oh, aren’t they beautiful’ from there. Never climb again.”

Nothing made sense. “You’re dying?”

“Found out when I met my birth mom. Did some tests.” He shook his head in frustration. “All my muscles will shrivel up. Until I can’t breathe on my own. And it’ll happen so slowly, I’ll know what I’m losing.”

“Oh God, Dane, I’m sorry.” Becki caught him against her. The time for talking this through was once they were away from the mountain, but now she understood why he’d been acting strangely.

Dane held her tight, like he was never going to let go. When he finally released her it was to lift his fingers to gently stroke her cheek. “It sucks. Not your fault. You’ve been great.”

“Let’s go. Get out of these cold wet things. We’ll talk, okay?” Something jerked her waist harness, and she glanced down to discover he’d taken his knife and cut the rope between them. “Dane? Let me untie you. You don’t need to cut it.”

He shook his head. “I don’t want you rescuing me. I will choose where I die. And it won’t be in some hospital bed after months or years of not really living.”

Oh my God. A flash of understanding hit too late. Becki reached for him to drag him to safety, but he shoved her back violently. She staggered away, fighting to keep her balance.

Dane turned and stepped off the cliff.

Becki screamed.

The world went dark.