Page 74 of Entwined Hearts

After exchanging the usual code words, Jake steps onto the rock. It’s an easy slab, and he quickly scurries out of sight. I hear the occasional clipping of carabiner gates, which lets me know he’s attaching the rope to the bolts drilled into the rock for protection.

A half-moon rises above the trees behind me, casting a pearly glow over the landscape and transforming the rock’s texture into elephant skin. My fingers look skeletal in its glow as I let out rope for Jake.

A while later, the rope stops moving, meaning Jake is at the anchor. I wait for him to switch roles from climbing to belaying.

“Belay on,” he calls down moments later.

I’m quick to shift gears, too, then call out my command.

His reply cuts through the still air.

I take one last look at my surroundings. This is the last solid surface I’ll stand on for the next fourteen hours. Am I ready for this? A rush of nervous energy races over my skin. It makes my feeble breakfast curdle in my belly.

Anya Templeton doesn’t need luck, Colby said.

I need that to be true.

I take one last second to push everything out of my mind. Nothing can cloud my focus today—distractions are deadly. I also know that I can’t let Jake down.

Reaching up, I crimp the first handhold, then step onto the rock face.

The first three pitches go smoothly and efficiently. As I’m about to lead pitch four, the sun starts creeping down the wall from its peak far above. Down here, the rock is still in shadow, but there’s enough light that we don’t need our headlamps anymore. I gaze up, my eyes tracking the wide quartz dike I’m to follow until it peters out about two-thirds up the pitch. From there, it’s a friction slab with zero protection, meaning a scary, long fall should I make a mistake.

This is also the beginning of the several pitches where we’ll be beneath the potential rockfall.

“I asked Colby about Emmaline,” I say as I slide my climbing shoes on and cinch them tight, wincing at the discomfort.

Jake has unwrapped some kind of power bar. He pauses mid-bite. “Then you know how fucked up it was.”

“He didn’t see it that way.”

“Of course he didn’t,” Jake snorts.

“Can’t you let it go?” I ask, clipping my approach shoes to the gear bag. “It’s ancient history, and we all need to get along here pretty soon.”

“I don’t have to get along with him to climb together.”

I reach for the first hold. “That sounds like fun.”

“I don’t even know why we need him.”

“Marvik does.”

“But…why?” Jake says.

I always assumed Marvik included Colby because of his unique skillset. Why else would he be added to the team?

We’re above the tree line now, but I can still hear the cars on the road in between gusts of wind.

“I wish it was just going to be you and me,” Jake adds.

“Oh,” I whisper, feeling uneasy. This is not what I expected to hear.

After months apart, is Jake ready to take me back?

Twenty-One

Anya

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