Page 108 of Broken on the Mountain
Piper exhales slowly. "That went... better than expected?"
"Your mom looked like she wanted to have me removed by security."
"She absolutely did." Piper's smile is shaky but genuine. "Chase, I can't believe you're here. I can't believe you drove all this way—"
"Where else would I be?"
Her eyes go soft, and for a second, I think she might cry. But then she straightens, glancing around the ballroom. "Okay. Let's just slip out the door, I'll make a distraction and you go first."
I glance down at Piper. "What do you mean 'slip out'? I didn’t drive all this way, just to eat gas station sushi, save you, and leave again."
Her head whips toward me, eyes wide. "You ate gas station sushi?"
"That’s not the point." I squeeze her hand. "I’m here for the party. Did you really think I would sit this one out?"
She bites her lip, glancing around the ballroom. "Chase, look at them." Her voice drops, like she's trying not to spook me. "You’re... not exactly blending in."
I raise an eyebrow, glancing down at my borrowed tux. "What are you talking about? I’m crushing it. Jamie’s tux fits like a glove, and I didn’t even spill mustard on the shirt this time."
"Chase," she whispers. "These people will eat you alive. They’re... sharks."
"And I’m a damn lifeguard," I shoot back, dropping her hand so I can drape an arm over her shoulders. "I’m not leaving. Not until they all see it."
"See what?"
"This." I gesture between us. "You and me. Us. They’re gonna have to get used to it."
Her lips part, and for a second, I think she’s going to argue. Instead, she shakes her head, her gaze softening, like she’s trying to drink me in.
"Okay. Okay, you're right."
"Excuse me? Say that again?"
She ignores me.
"But if you're staying, we need a strategy. If we're going to survive this night, you need to blend in a little. Just... mingle. Be yourself. These people love a good story."
"Mingle with Chicago's elite? I can do that."
"I want you to charm them the way you charm everyone in Stone River." She squeezes my hand. "Trust me. You've got this."
By the time Piper finds me again half hour later, I’m with a group of what can only be described as thenerdiestdudes in the room. One of them is wearing a bowtie that lights up, and another is enthusiastically explaining the blockchain to someone who does not care.
Spoiler alert: that someone is me.
“So, let me get this straight,” I say, leaning casually against the bar. “You’re telling me people buy pictures of cartoon monkeys… with fake money?”
“It’s called cryptocurrency,” Bowtie Guy says, adjusting his glasses. “And yes, NFTs are a revolutionary—”
“Sounds like a scam,” I say with a shrug, taking a sip of myvery expensivewhiskey. “But hey, to each their own.”
One of the other guys laughs so hard he nearly spills his drink. “Man, you’re funny. What do you do?”
“Mountain rescue,” I say, and immediately the group leans in like I’ve just told them I moonlight as a superhero. “You know, saving hikers, rappelling off cliffs, carrying people out of avalanches. That sort of thing.”
“Wait,” says Blockchain Guy, his eyes wide. “You're from Stone River, right? I saw that story in the news last year. The guy who got stuck on a ledge during a snowstorm? That was you rescuing him?”
“Well, it wasn’t just me,” I admit, scratching the back of my neck. “It was a team effort. But yeah, I was the one who rappelled down to get him.”
