Page 18 of Alluring Adventure

She carefully unzips my jacket and feels for the phone. I give her my code and she unlocks it.

“No signal.”

“Fuck,” I hiss.

“Well, I can just walk down into the valley. We’re in Fellside, the mountains aren’t that high. Shouldn’t take me more than an hour or two—”

“Keeley, there is no way down. We’re on a ledge with a rock face above and below.

“Oh, okay.” She looks around like the answer to our problem lies in the trees.

“What if I walk up towards the rock face? When I get out of the tree line, I might have reception and if not, I can send a text. Sometimes they go through even if the signal is sketchy.”

I appreciate her optimism but I’m not sure at this point I share it.

“How will you make sure you don’t get lost?” Horrible visions of her searching for me, tripping and falling down the rock face fill my mind.

“I… I don’t think it’s far, it looks a lot brighter up there and I’ll keep looking back. As long as I can see the chute in the trees I’ll keep going because I know I’ll be able to find my way back.” She sounds resolute in her plan.

“Worth a try I guess.” Another wave of pain shoots through me, making me feel sick.

“Are you going to be safe here?” It’s a valid question. The slope is steep but I don’t think it’s steep enough for me to slide further down.

“I should be,” I mumble.

“Wait, I’ve an idea.” I hear some noises of branches breaking, but I can’t see Keeley and I don’t dare move.

“My knots aren’t the best but I think this’ll have to do.” She slides the end of a line through the harness I’m still wearing. “I’ve tied it to that massive boulder over there. That should stop you from sliding.”

“Where did you get the line from?”

“The rope? Oh, it’s attached to the chute in the tree.” She shrugs.

“I would take your helmet off but—” She doesn’t need to finish the sentence. We both know that it’s important not to move me if my spine might be injured.

“I won’t be long. I promise.”

“If you get through, tell them that we’re below the summit of Ghyll Pike, north side.”

“Ghyll Pike, north side,” she repeats, typing on my phone. "No way I’ll remember that in 5 minutes." She is right, and I'm glad she thought of it.

“Oliver, please try to stay awake,” she whispers before pressing her lips to mine. What would I give for us to have stayed in bed today.

Chapter 11

Keeley

My head and leftwrist hurt a little, but otherwise I seem to be fine. I slowly climb up the slope, which takes longer than I thought it would. Not just because I keep turning around every two or three metres to make sure I can still see the chute, but also because I have to crawl over roots, boulders and bushes.

When picturing a forest, you might expect smooth ground between trees, but this hell hole couldn’t be further from that. The wind is howling through the treetops, but down here in the undergrow there’s hardly a breeze.

I turn again and search for the parachute. Luckily it’s bright yellow so I spot it easily in the dark greens and browns of the wood, although it gets more difficult the further I go.

I’m out of breath and sweat is forming on my forehead, but none of that matters. We need to get help. Oliver needs to get to a hospital.

As I climb higher, I come to a section that is too steep for me to just walk up. I hold onto roots and bushes as I drag myself up over the slope. When I get to the top of it, I turn around again. Deep down I spot a bit of yellow. If I go any further, I won’t be able to see it anymore.

A look up the slope tells me that I’m nowhere near a clearing. If I continue I’ll lose the line of sight but I still don’t have any signal as one look on Ols’ phone confirms. I’m not super outdoorsy, but I know that in a place like this, where everything looks the same, it’s easy to veer off the straight line you think you’re on. You don’t even notice it. The thought of not being able to find my way back to Oliver frightens me more than anything.

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