Page 6 of One Last Promise

“The wall is at least fifteen feet, and then you have to climb out. You have nothing to grip onto?—”

“You’ll need another person,” said Stormi. She got up, came over to stand by London. “I’ll go up. I used to water-ski. We did pyramid tricks like this.” She glanced at her brother. “Remember Brainerd?”

He nodded. “Yep.”

Okay, now they were getting somewhere. “So, you climb up on London’s shoulders and get free. Then what?”

“Then I’ll help London up,” Stormi said.

“And I’ll go for help,” London said.

He drew in a breath.

“Stop being so heroic.” London met his eyes, hers sharp. “If we want to get out of here, you need to let some of us do the work.”

Fine. “Everyone take off your crampons.”

Except him. He went over to the snowpack and leaned against the icy wall. Bent his knee. “Let’s do this.”

Ridge braced his foot on Moose’s thigh, then got a knee on Moose’s shoulder. He used the ice pack to brace himself as he put his other foot on Moose’s shoulder and pushed up.

Maybe one-eighty had been a little underestimated. The man’s feet dug into Moose’s shoulders, burning through Moose’s body. Wow, he was out of shape.

Ridge leanedagainst the ice pack.

London followed, climbing up Moose, then behind Ridge. He bent his knees, and she used his thigh to leverage herself onto his shoulders.

Please, don’t fall.

“I can see the opening.”

“Can you get through?” Moose grunted, his hips and shoulders burning.

“I think so. Or Stormi can, if I push her.”

“Can you hold us, Moose?” Ridge said, looking down.

It might be the only thing he could do. An old Bible verse filtered up to him.“Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.”

He blew out a breath. “Do it, Stormi.” He braced himself as she put her foot on his leg, then a knee next to Ridge’s foot, and used Ridge to climb up. Then, by the sounds of the grunting, she climbed Ridge and stood up behind London.

“Stormi, be careful!” Aspen, now holding onto Rome, who was losing his mind.

London had found a handhold on the ice. So much for the cold, too, because sweat pooled and now dripped down Moose’s back. His legs shook as he fought against the weight.

London bent her knees and looked at Stormi. “Don’t pull on me or we’ll both go down.”

He didn’t want to think about that crash. There was grunting from above, and London made a sound but then?—

“I can see daylight,” Stormi said. “Just a sec?—”

And then she pushed off from London. He got a glimpse of it, craning his neck for a second as Stormi’s boot clipped London’s mouth. She jerked, rearing back?—

“Don’t fall!” Aspen shouted.

But London didn’t come crashing down,and a moment later, Moose spotted London leaning into the ice, trying to find footing in a wedge as Stormi pulled her up.

“I’m up!”

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