“Don’t get arrogant. I had a lot more hours than you in a harness when I fell over four hundred feet, and your father had even more. Humor me.”
Darice froze to stare at him. “What really happened on that climb, Dancer?”
Sumi held her own breath as she waited for the answer.
Dancer’s eyes darkened with sadness. “The anchors and belay failed.”
“Who was lead?”
“Your father.”
Tears filled Darice’s eyes as he realized Keris was responsible for setting the anchors and belay. That he’d been at fault when they failed. “Is that why you cut the rope?”
Hauk winced as anger and pain mixed inside him. He was so sick of that accusation. Furious at the way his mother and father looked at him as if he’d murdered his own brother. “I didn’t cut the rope, Darice. I didn’t have my hands free to do it.”
He scowled. “I don’t understand.”
Hauk clenched his teeth as old memories surged past the darkest place he tried to keep them relegated to. “We fell because your father hit me before I could finish tying in to the belay station. I slipped and the anchors failed until we were down to only one. I was inverted, attempting to right myself and hold on with one hand, while I was trying to steady Keris with the other.” He held his hands up to show Darice the scars he had from the rope burns. “My knot was coming undone and the last anchor was slipping. We both knew what was about to happen. Even so, I didn’t stop trying to hold on for both of us. Next thing I knew, Keris pulled out his knife and sliced through the rope before I could stop him.”
Darice fingered the scars on Hauk’s hands. “You really didn’t cut it.”
“I would have died before I cut my brother loose.”
Darice wrapped his hands around his uncle’s scars. “You were my age.”
“A few months older.”
He swallowed hard as if it finally dawned on him just how horrific that event had been. Then, he threw himself into Hauk’s arms. “I won’t fall, Uncle Dancer.”
Sumi’s throat went tight as she saw the look on Dancer’s face as he held Darice against him.
“I know you won’t, Dare. And don’t let Sumi fall, either.”
Darice inclined his head to him. “I’ll bring you back a feather.”
Dancer ruffled his hair. “Deal.” He handed Darice his climbing helmet.
Sumi offered Dancer a bittersweet smile as he met her gaze. “We’ll be very safe. I just need to get him a feather and return, correct?”
He nodded. “Remember, the sparn will attack if she thinks you’re going after her nest.”
“Don’t worry. You rest and we’ll be back before you can even miss us.”
Hauk scoffed at her words. “Not possible. I miss you already.”
She made the most adorable expression before she kissed his cheek and buried her hand in his hair.
Hauk wanted to hold her like this forever.
Unfortunately, Thia came running, which caused Sumi to release him. She handed her bright pink helmet to Sumi, and a pair of sport sunglasses. “Good luck. Try not to strangle Darice.”
Darice glared at her as he fastened his helmet on.
“Thanks, Thia. You’ll take good care of the guys while I’m gone, right?” Sumi fastened her helmet before Hauk rechecked her harness and sling.
She sighed heavily, but said nothing about his paranoia.
“Absolutely. Be safe.” Thia kissed her cheek then moved to stand beside Hauk.
Sumi inclined her head to them and clapped Darice on the arm. “Ready, champ?”
“I’m your belay slave, mu tara. Acrena tu.”
“He said after you,” Thia translated.
“Thanks.” She led the way to the approach.
Hauk watched as Sumi and Darice began the climb he’d taken with Keris so long ago. It helped his mental state that Sumi was completely calm and did appear extremely accomplished, and the two of them weren’t going at each other’s throats verbally. Still…
He had a bad feeling.
Thia put her arm around his waist while he watched them. “It’ll be fine, Uncle Hauk. You’ll see.”
He smiled down at her, hoping she was right and he was wrong. And he refused to move until they were out of sight. Only then did he return to sit and watch them through the scope in Sumi’s rifle.
While he watched, Thia went to gather rocks for her little brothers.
“So who was the first mother hen? You or Fain?”
He dropped the scope to glare at Bastien. “Meaning?”
“You two are so much alike. It’s actually scary.”
That’s because they were always having to watch out for each other. Between their parents and Keris, the only affection he and Fain could count on was from themselves.
And as Sumi and Darice vanished completely from his sight, he heard a strange sound. “What was that?”
Bastien scratched at his chin. “What?”
“That sound?”
“I don’t hear anything.”
Thia stood. “I do… Someone’s coming.”
Hauk moved to draw his blaster, but before he could, three darts went into his chest. The paralytic hit him instantly as he saw similar darts fly into Bastien, Thia, and Illyse.
Before he could ID their attackers, he passed out.
Sumi was impressed with Darice’s skill as he climbed up to her. “Who taught you?”
“My mother mostly. But Dancer’s been taking me for small climbs since I was little. Maybe once or twice a year. He’s really good at it. He actually free climbs a lot with his friends.”
She remembered seeing that from the photos. He and his friends appeared to enjoy it as a favorite pastime. With and without gear. “I’m surprised he’d ever climb again, after what happened.”
“Dancer’s very brave. He started climbing within a year of his fall.”
The fact that he defended his uncle, and was so complimentary, stunned her. It was as if he finally saw the truth of Dancer’s personality, and not the lies his mother had filled him with.
Tying in, Darice paused to look down. His eyes widened as he realized how high above the ground they were.
“You okay?”
For several heartbeats, he didn’t speak.
“Darice? You still with me, hon?”
His eyes filled with tears.
“Darice!”
He blinked twice. “S-s-sorry. I just… I never thought about how far Uncle Dancer fell with my father.” He swallowed hard and licked his lips as he twisted to stare down the sheer drop. “I’ve never been this high before. Mostly we’ve done indoor climbing.”
“Don’t look down, sweetie. And I’ve got you covered. I’m anchoring you in like a beast. I promise you won’t fall far if you slip, and it will hold ten times your plummet weight.”
He nodded as she double-checked his knot and belay. “My mother blames every bit of the fall on Dancer. She said my father was the best climber she’d ever seen.”
Sumi took a quick drink of water before she prepared to climb ahead. “Don’t think about it, Darice.”
But he continued to fret as she moved forward.
All of a sudden, he lost his foothold and slipped. Falling only a few inches, he screamed out until he realized he was safe and firmly anchored.
“It’s all right, sweetie. I told you that I have you.” She paused for him to get his bearings.
Instead of resuming his stance, he clung to the wall in terror.
“Darice? You can do this. I know you can.”
He shook his head forcefully. “No, I can’t! I don’t want to die!”
“You’re not going to die, baby. I won’t let you.”
Tears flowed down his cheeks as he stared up at her. “Aren’t you afraid?”
“I’ve had to scale glass buildings a lot higher than this. As has your uncle. And he’s already fallen without an anchor. If he can manage to continue to climb after the fall he took when he was your age, you can, too.”