Page 5 of One Last Promise

His grip slipped—“Falling!”

Ridge helped break his fall, but Moose landed on his back with awhoof, his breath hitching out. Rome backed away from him, barking.

“Yeah, I know, I know.”

London made a face.

Moose rolled to his feet, glanced at the light. He couldn’t afford to waste any more precious time. “Okay, let’s do this again?—”

“Let me,” said London. “This isn’t my first ice climb. And I’m about half your weight.” More, she wore thin gloves. She stepped up to the wall. “Plus, you’re a foot taller than all of us—you can get me up higher.”

“I don’t like this.”

“What? Don’t be crazy. We’re all having a blast.” She shook her head, buthe caught a smile.

Rome backed up, barking as London went to the wall. She dug one foot in, and Moose braced her as she climbed up and put her other foot in the next hold.

“Don’t get handsy,” she said as he moved to push her up.

“That’s what you’re worried about?” Moose shook his head but watched his hands anyway and managed to help her to the next foothold.

“I can see the top.” She shoved her hand into the hold—the ice closing around it—and then pushed up. “I’m almost there!”

She lunged for another hold, one he couldn’t see?—

Her shout echoed off the granite as she slipped. He caught her coming down—not pretty, but enough to break her fall. They stumbled back and he thunked against the cavern wall.

Okay, so this wasn’t funny anymore.

And now it really felt like a metaphor, thank you, for the fact that no, he wasn’t getting out of this one this time. Even if they managed to escape, he still had the lawsuit, and the slide had probably damaged his chopper parked on the ice, and sometimes it just felt so . . . well, like his life had avalanched in around him.

Swallowed him whole. Again, sort of like Jonah.

London disentangled herself and stood up. Glanced at him. “Good catch.”

He managed a wry smile.

She walked back to the wall.

Stormi crouched next to her dog, who was barking.

“Did you go through Navy boot camp at Great Lakes?”

London’s question made him glance at her. “Yep.”

“I hear they have an obstacle course, not unlike the one in San Diego.”

“You mean the one for BUD/S? It’s not even a little like that one. But yeah . . .”

“When I was in training, we had a wall. Theonly way over it was to work together.” She looked at the group. “Make a human ladder.”

He wanted to ask,What training?but with the sun setting . . . “What do you have in mind?”

“Moose, you think you can hold Ridge?”

He glanced at the guy. About five-ten, lean and solid, about one-eighty. “Yep.”

“Okay. With your six-feet huge and his five-something, that’s about eleven feet.”

---