Page 48 of Jagger

I was forced to struggle retrieving another hook. Going down much further was dangerous. Unfortunately, with the thin air, I was running out of time due to exhaustion, the heaving training in the worst conditions compromising my body’s integrity.

But I pressed on, driving the hook into place. “Almost there.”

We’d all been trained not to panic, but I sensed Tom was losing control. I managed another foot and was within reach.

“I’m going to wrap the rope around you, but you’ll need to attach it. Can you do that?”

“Yeah, sure.”

It wasn’t a voice of confidence, but I had no other choice but to continue at this point. The wind was getting stronger, making the rescue that much more dangerous.

“Get up here!” the squad leader barked and others tried to calm him down. The only thing that mattered was getting my team mate to safety. I’d take the goddamn consequences for my actions, no matter what they were.

“Tom. Just listen to me. Don’t fight me. I’m going to hand you down the rope now. Okay?”

“Yeah, I got it.”

“The hook is on the end. All you need to do is strap it to the ring on your safety harness.”

He made the mistake of looking down just as he reached up.

“Tom. Look at me. Just me. Tom. Tom!”

There was a split second as he glanced up at me when I knew his strength wouldn’t hold. Everything was in slow motion as he smiled, still fighting to reach my hand. I managed to grasp his fingers, trying my best to get a better grip. That’s the moment he started flailing.

“Tom. Tom!”

“Jag-ger.” A small voice broke into the horrible vision and memory, jerking me back to reality. Her voice. Bella’s voice.

Fuck me.

“You okay down there, Jagger?” David called.

I shook the cobwebs from my mind, hissing from allowing the horrible memory to carve even a second into the limited time I had to save her. “Fine. Going down.”

I allowed myself to drop more than I should, rocks somehow finding their way through the ice and snow, tumbling into the abyss.

“Jesus!” David called from above.

Ignoring him, I reached her. “Listen, Bella. You can’t fight me. We might only have one chance at this. Just lie still and I’ll get you to safety.”

Her moan meant she was still conscious. That was a positive.

I managed to wrap one arm around her. Now it was all about crawling toward the top. It was only two feet away, but it felt liketen at least. With the wind blowing snow in my face, I struggled just to slide her a few inches.

But I pressed on, noticing her long, gloved fingers were digging into the snow, helping in any way that she could. Inch by inch, we advanced. When we were close to the top, thankfully David was right there offering a hand.

As I pulled her safely to the surface, forcing us a few feet away, he let out a huge howl.

“Goddamn, man. That was incredible,” he said, whooping into the air.

I let out a deep breath, still able to hear her slight moans. “You okay, city girl?”

She muttered something and I took another deep breath.

“We need to get her to the vehicle. Now. Keep that goddamn light shining so I can see the way.” There was no time to waste. She was losing body heat.

I fumbled getting to my feet, but managed, taking another deep breath before lifting her into my arms. She felt so light, as if she’d lost half her body weight. As I cradled her next to me, she pressed her hand against my chest.

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