River screamed once as they fell, but she didn’t panic. If she had, Easton might have dropped her. His hold around her was tenuous as they hung there, dangling over a crevasse they couldn’t see into. The fall had loosened his grip, and Easton could feel her slick waterproof jacket slipping.

“Tie off to the rope,” Easton panted. “River, now, before I lose you.”

River wasn’t panicking, but she wasn’t listening either. The cracking of ice beneath them was audible over even the wind, signifying there was a long, bad drop below. Fear had frozen her in place, one hand clinging to the rope and one arm gripped around his torso, as if she were holding him.

“River, I need you to listen to me. I have you. Is your carabiner broken?”

“No.”

“Let go of me and clip your tether off. I’ve got you, but I can’t hold you for long.”

“You’ll slip.”

She thought she was keeping him on the rope. For a moment, Easton’s heart swelled with sheer affection for her. She didn’t know he was tied off…how could she? It all happened so fast. As far as River knew, they were both dangling. But with both of their weight on the fixed line, Easton could feel it start to give. The fall must have weakened the integrity of the set stakes.

“River, you have to. On three, you’re going to trust me when I tell you to let me go. There’s a loop to clip off to right above your head. Do you see it?” She nodded. “Good. I’m tied off, and I’m not going to fall. One. Two. Three.”

The click of her carabiner onto the rope was the best sound he’d ever heard.

“Good job,” he breathed in her ear. “Do you have your ax?”

“I dropped it in the fall.”

“It’s okay. I have two. Can you reach my belt?”

River nodded, doing as he asked.

“Now, I’m going to do something you’re not going to like, but I need you to climb up the rope first. Crampons into the wall, set the ice ax in but not too deep. Like climbing the waterfall, okay?”

“No big deal,” she mumbled.

“Exactly.” Easton kept his voice as calm as he could. “Listen to me, River. You climb, okay?”

“What about you?”

“River, just this once, trust me. Start climbing, I’m right behind you. When you get to the top, follow the rope back to the fixed line. Get out, okay? I’m right behind you.”

Easton needed her to climb, because she didn’t understand the whole fixed line was about to rip loose beneath their weight. When he pulled his second ice ax out of his belt, watching her start upward, Easton didn’t apologize.

Locketts never said things they didn’t mean.