Page 50 of Mountain Void

They joked, but the ground demanded their constant attention. At the speed they were going, every step had to be measured, often corrected, to avoid a fall. But they didn’t have the time to go slower.

Gerard Lodain didn’t have the time.

They scanned left and right, looking for anything out of place. One of the things Lodain might have done was hunker down some place for the night. A fine survival idea, but not great for a rescue. So they had to look for anything that didn’t fit.

After an hour of running, they slowed to a walk, sipping water.

“We don’t have much time. The wind seems to be picking up again,” Ry said.

Lorenz had noticed as well. He pulled his buff higher, so it covered his neck. Beside him, Ry did the same.

“I’ll follow you,” Lorenz said, letting Ry set the pace this time. He followed at an easy lope, scanning left, then right. Then back again.

“Hold up,” Ry suddenly said.

Lorenz caught up with him and stopped. Ry was looking downslope, eyes narrowed.

“What?”

Ry pointed. “There.”

At first, Lorenz saw nothing out of place.

Then—

Something black, half-hidden between rocks—too uniform to be rock.

They moved together, angling down. As they approached, the shape resolved into that of a man.

Gerard Lodain—they could only assume it was him—was wedged awkwardly against a small rock outcrop.

No wonder we didn’t spot him from above.

One arm was tucked beneath him, the other slack across his chest. His face was horribly swollen.

Lorenz frowned. “That’s not trauma.”

Ry was already on his knees, next to his heavy medical pack. “He’s been stung. Multiple times.”

Lorenz looked around, but everything was quiet.

“I think it was bees,” Ry said. “But not here. They stung him, but he was able to get away.”

And then collapsed.

Shit.

“He must have disturbed a ground nest. Look at the way the stings cluster around the head and neck.” Ry took the man’s pulse. “Gerard? Can you hear me?”

The man moaned softly.

Up close, it looked worse. The skin around his eyes was puffed nearly shut, the lips and area around the mouth thickened.

“What can I do?” Lorenz asked.

“Call it in,” Ry asked. “Multiple bee stings. No other obvious trauma. Airway maintained—for now. We need extraction fast.” He paused for a second. “Gerard, stay with us.”

“Beau? We found him,” Lorenz said into his earpiece. He gave their precise position. Even Tristan wouldn’t be able to land a helicopter here, but they could extract him with a cable.