Page 72 of Mountain Struggle

Numb with terror, Damien watched Dubois raise his gun towards Tess.

“Maybe you should learn what it’s like to live without either of them.”

Dubois’s words brought Damien out of his stupor. And even though he knew he’d never get there on time to save them both, Damien leaped towards Dubois. He slammed himself onto the man’s shooting arm, just as the shot went off—its sound echoing loud and dry in the mountains.

Damien didn’t stop to confirm whether the shot had found its mark—his entire being was focused on the rope slipping through the madman’s palm.

Damien heard his son’s scream as he started falling. He knew his son’s life depended on him being able to grab on to the rope. From his position belly down on the ground he had little grip, but he wrapped his palms around it, feeling the burn as it slid through his hands fast. Gritting his teeth he tightened his hold on it, using his elbows to anchor himself against the metal grating beneath him.

The rope stopped moving. Damien felt his son’s weight on the end. Faint with relief, he held his son.

“Daddy!”

I’ve got you, son. And I’m not letting go.

A second later, Damien heard a noise behind him and realized his mistake. He’d kicked Dubois to the side, but like a newbie he hadn’t incapacitated the man.

Fucking idiot.

That mistake could cost his son his life.

Damien looked around for something to anchor the rope to—just as the gun slammed onto the side of his face.

Damien saw stars. He tightened his hold on the rope, knowing it was the only thing that mattered now. The second blow came, to the back of his head this time. Damien fell onto his stomach.

With his last remaining strength he twisted his wrist, wrapping the rope around it. No matter what happened, he wouldn’t be letting go.

The third blow opened a cut on his forehead. Blood poured onto Damien’s eye, obscuring his vision. Still, he gritted his teeth and held on.

Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw a slim shape crawling towards the rope.

Tess, she’s alive.

“Die, die!” Dubois yelled, his voice hoarse with rage.

Through a curtain of blood, Damien saw the madman reach down—the sight of the knife in his hand chilled Damien’s blood.

Sharp enough to cut through the rope.

As Dubois brought down the knife, Damien shifted his free hand higher up the rope. He felt the knife point dig into the back of his hand, felt the red hot pain as it struck something that could only be bone. The agony in his hand barely registered—he’d stopped the knife from cutting the rope, and each second he could hold on to that rope, hold on to his son, was worth any amount of pain.

But Dubois was strong. With a hard pull that brought tears to Damien’s eyes, Dubois freed the knife. Red blood spurted from Damien’s hand and he struggled to stay conscious. He raised his arm in an arc to follow the knife, but his movements were sluggish and Dubois was faster.

This time the knife came down on the rope and sawed once, twice, three times—until the ends of the rope flew apart.

“Nooooo!” Damien wailed, watching the rope holding his son slide inexorably towards the edge.

Chapter 23

Tess

“His son! He chooses his son! Please!”

As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Tess had realized how futile they were. Dubois was toying with Damien—he wasn’t planning on letting either of them live. He wanted Damien to suffer as he had suffered, and that involved taking everything away from him.

Her movements jerky and uncoordinated—she’d been kneeling for so long one of her feet had gone to sleep—Tess launched herself towards Jamie. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Damien was on his move as well, hurling himself towards Dubois.

The bullet stopped her in her tracks. It slammed into her shoulder, turning her body around and sending her crashing to the floor. Her back hit the ground hard, but she barely felt it for the all-consuming heat coming from her shoulder. The burning sensation, which couldn’t yet be called pain but was quickly building up to something she’d never felt before, began to take over her focus.