She carefully twisted her head back toward Rafa. Oh damn. He was farther away than she thought. He had a worried look on his face, though it was no match for the fear swirling in her stomach.
He scooted to the face of the wall, reaching out his hand for her. But he was still much too far. Six, seven feet at least to reach his hand. “Here, take your time,” he said, motioning for her.
Miri repositioned her foot to get more leverage, then reached her hand onto a nubby piece of rock jutting out from the wall.
“That’s it,” he said, coaxing her back toward him. “You’ve got this. Now go real slow.”
He spoke calmly to soothe her nerves.
“Yep, keep going. Deep breaths,” he said.
He smiled at her, his face soft and gentle, and she smiled back.
“See?” he said, holding out his hand. “You can do this. That’s because you’re a badass—”
“Ah!” she screamed out as her foothold gave way.
“Miri!”
Rafa reached out for her, but it was too late. She went sliding down the rock face, trying to grab on to anything that would stop her, but it was no use.This is it. This is how I die.The thought flashed through her head as she tumbled to the ground, pain zapping her from all angles before she landed on her side with a thud.
She groaned, slowly opening her eyes to a blur of greens and browns. Unable to focus, she brought her hand to her head, rubbing the side.My glasses!Her hand shot to the ground, searching for her specs without luck.
“Miri! Miri! Are you okay?! Miri, answer me!” Rafa’s panicked voice called from above, peering over the edge to spot her.
“I’m alive,” she called back, her voice shaky.
But even without being able to see her injuries, she knew she wasnotokay.
“Stay there. I’m going to find a way down,” he said.
Stay here?A tiny laugh escaped her lips. As if she had any other choice.
She inspected her body as best she could. Thankfully, nothing seemed broken. But her pants were ripped. Her hands, forearms,and knees were bloody. And her confidence was totally and completely shot.
A rustling of leaves sounded above her, directing her attention to the wall of dirt and vines to her side.
“I’m coming,” Rafa called as he slowly descended into the gully or whatever the heck it was that she’d gotten herself into. She watched as he lowered himself with ease on a vine that must have been wrapped around a tree up top.
“Sure, take the easy route,” she joked. At least she still had her sense of humor.
When Rafa was a few feet off the ground, he jumped down, then hurried to Miri’s side.
“Are you okay? Did you break anything?” he said, examining her arm.
“I’m fine,” she said, twisting her arm to check for scrapes and bruises. “Nothing’s broken that I can tell. Just the ole pride.”
He let out a long breath. “You scared the shit out of me.”
“I scared it out of myself.” Her eyesight was good enough that she could see his features, although the definition was a little fuzzy so she couldn’t be sure of his reaction, she decided to clarify. “I mean, not literally.”
He laughed and hung his head, setting her at ease. “You really are something,” he said. “Come on, let’s get you cleaned up.”
Rafa searched through Miri’s backpack for a first aid kit, and then got to work on her wounds. She winced as he applied antiseptic to her raw flesh, but he continued working all the same.
“Here,” he said, handing over her glasses.
The lenses weren’ttooscratched up, but it would be annoying hiking back with her vision impaired. Thankfully, she had another pair back at the resort. A little tip she’d learned several digs ago after accidentally dropping them down a dig pit.
