“Oh!” Mandy slid another foot down the nearly vertical slope. One hand clutched the loosening root while the other clawed at the dirt for another purchase, but there wasn’t anything else for her to grab. Pebbles and dirt cascaded into the river below.

“Stop moving.” Danny coiled the rope and threw it again. It bounced on the slimy slope beside Mandy’s head. She inched a hand toward the rope ring until she gripped it in a tight fist. Slowly, she pulled it to her body and worked it over her head and one shoulder. The root sprang free.

“Ah!” She let go and caught the rope in both hands. Danny shifted back on his haunches and pulled on the rope. He dragged her up over the edge and back onto the trail.

She lay still in the mud for a minute.

Danny crawled over to her. He put his hand on her back. “Are you all right?”

She nodded and sat up. Her hood had fallen back. Rain plastered her hair to her head, and her sodden ponytail dripped. Mud splattered her face. “We have to get moving.”

That’s my girl. Danny stood and helped her to her feet. He picked up her pack and stuffed the wet rope inside. She led the way up the trail while the rain, driven sideways by the wind, lashed their faces. A hundred yards farther, she stopped and pointed to the left. “There!”

Danny looked where she pointed. Between the sheeting rain and the dark, he didn’t see shit.

She led him away from the river. The trail widened around an outcropping of boulders. Thirty feet of sheer rock rose from the earth. Danny put a hand to the wall, which was already blocking some of the deluge. They continued, circling to the side opposite the river. Millennia of rock movement had resulted in a five-foot-deep, ten-foot-wide overhang that looked as inviting as a five-star hotel.

Mandy shone her light into the space. “Empty.” She sounded disappointed, as if maybe the girls could’ve found this tiny hole. Danny was just glad there weren’t any bears inside.

She scuttled into the space. Danny followed. He couldn’t stand without hunching his shoulders and ducking his head, but the tiny shelter was blissfully dry.

The tent and a fire wouldn’t both fit in the tiny space. Since the overhang was blocking the rain, the warmth from a fire won the mental coin toss. “Let’s see if we can start a fire.”

“OK.” Mandy’s voice trembled, and her teeth chattered. “Our chances of finding dry wood aren’t good, but I have fire starters, which should help.” She set her pack on the packed earth. Her hands were shaking from cold or effort or both. “I’ll scrounge up some mostly dry wood.”

He was not sending her out in the rain. Danny emptied one of the packs. “I’ll do it.”