Page 42 of One Last Shot
“I won’t let Huxley edit something in, or out, that you didn’t mean to say. Or... if you even want to stay completely off-screen, I’ve got your back. I will not let them use... well, your past to promote the show, let them drag you back through social media or even in any way betray you.”
Oh. Wow.
And again, she had nothing.
“That’s all. Just... we’re in this together, and... you promised to do your best to keep me safe... and I’m making you the same promise.”
She shoved her hands into her pockets andfor the first time found a response. “If I remember right, you said you could take care of yourself.”
He just let a small smile ride up his face. “I did say that.”
Another beat, and maybe she was the most foolish girl on the planet but, “I want to trust you, Oaken. I do. But the fact is, I have a good thing going here, and... this is my last shot. This gig goes south, I don’t know where I’ll end up.”
He frowned. Then nodded. “I get that. I really do. But you’re already signed up for the fun and games. It can be torture, or you can give me a chance and trust me a little. Or a lot.” He held out his hand. Raised a stupidly handsome eyebrow. Looked at her with those hypnotic blue eyes.
She could probably claim temporary insanity, but what choice did she have? This could be three weeks of torture or... “Okay, Oaken Fox. It’s a deal. I watch your back, you watch mine.”
She took his hand and let it close around hers, warm and solid and real. And tried not to listen to the person shouting in the back of her head.
Oaken didn’t want to make any proclamations, but really, he was nailing this gig. Starting with his ability to rappel and anchor onto the ledge and “rescue” Axel, still playing the victim.
And maybe success included the thawing work relationship with Boo, who had told him a rare “Good job” today as he’d tied his own bowline on a bight, the clove hitch, an overhand knot, and a mule hitch. Of course, this was said quietly as she stood out of the camera’s view, but it counted. He’d gotten a lesson from London yesterday on the climbing knots and spent most of the evening practicing, but to have Boo notice and then assign him to rappel down the cliff felt like a victory.
An actual callout might be another story, somethingthat Huxley had been arguing with Moose about earlier today when he arrived at the Tooth. He wanted to raise his hand and say that, hello, he wasn’t a real rescuer and he certainly didn’t want to put anyone’s life at risk.
Been there, done that.
“How you doin’, Axe?” he said now as he landed on the ledge.
Axel gave him a thumbs-up, his gaze on Oaken now working his rope through the carabiner below his descender, then twisting to tie a mule hitch. Oaken then pulled out a foot of rope and tied an overhand knot to the rope above the descender.
“Good job,” Axel said. His gaze travelled past Oaken to where Beto hung on another rope, capturing the rescue. “We have self-locking descenders, but this teaches you how to tie a brake in case you don’t have one.”
Oaken gave him a thumbs-up, ignoring the camera. “I’m supposed to assess your wounds.”
“I have an ankle injury,” Axel said. “But the priority is to get me off the cliff. In this case, I don’t need a litter. The best scenario here is for you to clip my harness to your rig, then continue with the descent.”
Oaken pulled out his walkie and relayed the information to Shep, who stood on top with Moose and London. They had him on belay, but only as a secondary safety. The rest was all him.
They’d worked out the scenario at the Tooth, in the gear room, with Boo showing him how to affix Axel’s harness to the carabiner on his descender, transferring the weight onto the rope.
Despite the cool air in the massive shed, a thin line of sweat dripped down his spine. But he ticked off the steps in his head.
Connect Axel’s harness to the descending rig with a carabiner. He knelt and clipped a carabiner to his rig, then bent and connected that to the carabiner on Axel’s harness.
“Now, while you’re still off load, take off the brake and ease meonto the rope load.”
He untied his braking system, then put the rope around Axel, drawing him closer, and looked down.
Thirty feet to the ground, so not a huge fall, especially with the padding, but?—
“You got this,” Axel said quietly.
Oaken nodded, then pushed away from the cliff, easing Axel with him. The descender immediately released, and adrenaline rushed through his veins.
But he braked and held, pushing out with his legs, Axel’s body almost seated in his lap.
“It helps if you grab my harness, right around my leg strap, just to steady me as we descend,” Axel said. Oaken grabbed the thigh strap and worked his hand into it, the other controlling the rope.