Rescue Me Ch. 01

Welcome to my latest series! I hope it gives you pleasure. I'd like to thank my editor, Lil_kitty, an accomplished Lit writer in her own right. Check out her stories! --Petitmort

DAY 1

A cool morning breeze wafted through the pines and swirled along the granite cliffs that towered overhead. Cody pulled his backpack out of his jeep and slung it over his shoulder.

He scanned the sign marking the trailhead, the tumbling water in the nearby creek, and the gray-white peaks looming in the distance. He felt the familiar rush of anticipation that always accompanied the start of one his solo trips into the wilderness.

The Desolation Wilderness to be exact.

Why they called it that, he had no clue. Located in the High Sierras southwest of Lake Tahoe, it was anything but desolate. Gorgeous pine forests, ice-carved granite basins, pristine lakes, and rushing rivers.

It was the perfect place to get away from it all.

And Cody was glad to see he had it pretty much to himself. His was the only car in the parking area. He'd picked this date, mid-week in early Spring, for just that reason. They'd just recently re-opened the wilderness area after the winter and he was among the first to get a permit.

Four days and nights by himself in the High Sierra. He couldn't wait to get started. He put on his hat, cinched down the straps of his backpack, and started up the trail.

His path paralleled a fast-moving stream, with crystal clear water tumbling over car-sized granite boulders. The winter snow was mostly a memory now, with just a few white patches scattered across the granite expanse and frosting the highest peaks.

Every year, Cody would try to take one of these backpacking trips in the wilderness. It was his chance to decompress, turn down the volume, and chill. Back when he was married, he tried bringing his wife along but it wasn't her thing.

These days, he was happy to go solo.

In his mid-30's, with keen, discerning cobalt blue eyes, he had flowing light brown hair and a day-old beard. Handsome and reserved, with an athletic build, he was definitely the strong, silent type.

The weather was mild, allowing him to wear hiking shorts, boots, a khaki green hat, and a button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up.

The initial climb was steep, which Cody appreciated. He knew that would keep people away. He'd learned that if you're willing to work hard to get somewhere, you're more likely to have it to yourself.

It wasn't long before he was breathing hard, synchronizing his breaths with his long strides. His thoughts began to wander, as they always did when he was hiking alone.

Forgot how thin the air is up here. Must be close to 8000'. Just set an easy, consistent pace. Got all day to cover ten and a half miles. Should make it to the lake by dark, easy.

Sure is nice to be able to set my own pace. If Beth were here, she'd probably be complaining by this point. 'You're going too fast. Why did you choose this hike anyway? You only think of yourself.'

I wonder where she's spending her vacation? Probably at a fancy hotel on some tropical island somewhere. With him.

Alright, that's enough. You didn't come all the way out here to obsess about Beth.

He scanned the granite peaks in the distance. The perspective had already started to change as he gained altitude. He was leaving the stream behind and could hear its roar growing fainter.

He could see Red Peak off in the distance. Beyond that, McConnell Peak. He had two passes to scale, about a 3000' climb over 10.5 miles, by sunset.

After about six miles, he was nearing the first summit near Lake Doris when he heard something behind him.

"On your left," a woman's voice rang out.

He stepped to the side and a trail runner sailed past. Even uphill, she was flying. She ran like a gazelle.

"Have a good run," he called out as she bounded up the trail.

"Thanks," she answered.

She was wearing short running shorts, a form-fitting blue t-shirt, and a small backpack with a water hose attached. Her legs were lean and well-shaped, her body petite and fit.

Whoa. She is really in good shape. Great butt too. And she was moving. Pretty impressive. Six miles in and she passes me like I'm standing still.

He figured she was an out and backer, a trail runner who runs for a certain distance or time, then returns to where they started.

She'll pass me going the other way and I'll have the mountain to myself.

When he reached the first summit, he ate a protein bar and an apple while enjoying the panoramic view. Jagged granite peaks frosted with snow jutted into partly cloudy skies. The temperature was in the low 70s but it felt warmer after his climb. He unbuttoned his cotton shirt to cool his body.

At mile eight, he started the climb to the second summit, Schmidell Pass. It occurred to him that he hadn't seen that trail runner on her way back to the bottom. This wasn't a loop trail. There was only one way in and one way out.

The trail grew steeper. Cody made his way up the incline, methodically placing one foot in front of the other and even using his hands to scramble a couple of times. As he finally made it to the top of the ridge, he could see his destination, Leland Lakes, down below.

He was traversing the top of the ridge, grateful not to be climbing for a change, when he heard a faint, high-pitched wail.

At first, he thought it was a birdcall. Maybe a peregrine falcon? Then, after a pause, he heard it again. And a third time.

That wasn't a bird. That was a whistle.

He doubled his pace. Hikers sometimes blow whistles when they're in trouble. It's a form of signaling.

The whistle sounded every thirty seconds or so. It sounded weak, like it had been at it for some time.

He used his hearing to get as close to the sound as possible. But he couldn't see where it was coming from.

Finally, he found the source.

Thirty feet below the trail, on a steep escarpment of scree and manzanita, he could see a swath of blue fabric.

It was the woman. The runner. She was clinging to a branch to keep from sliding down the ravine.

"Hey! I see you!" Cody yelled.

"Thank God," she said, weakly.

"Don't worry, I'll help you," Cody called out.

Immediately, his training kicked in. First, he had to determine mental capacity and extent of injury.

"How're you doing? Are you okay?"

There was a pause.

"What do you think? I just fell off a cliff. Of course, I'm not okay."

Well, she's conscious and alert at any rate. And she still has her sense of humor. That's a good sign.

"I mean, are you injured? Any broken bones?"

"No, I don't think so. My ankle hurts. I think I may have sprained it. A few abrasions. Nothing serious."

Cody quickly sized up the situation. He was going to have to go down and get her. No way she could get up that cliff on her own.

"Just hang on tight," he said. "I've got rope. I'm going to use it to come down to you."

The woman didn't answer. Cody assumed she was exhausted. He would have to work fast.

He swung his backpack off his shoulder and unzipped the main compartment. He pulled out his rope kit, a set of pre-cut rope segments daisy-chained together. He quickly pulled out his longest segment, a 100' length of 750 paracord.

He was planning to do a one-person, rappelling pick-off. Not the most difficult maneuver in the rescue manual, but it's typically done with two rescuers.

And the cliff was full of loose rock. He could cause rocks to fall on her if he wasn't careful.

He found the best spot to descend, about 20' off to the side of where she fell. It had the least amount of talus, or loose rock, which might fall on her.

He looked up the cliff, above the trail, and found a good-sized, living tree to secure his rope to. He wrapped one end around the trunk and lowered both loose ends down the cliff.

With his back to the edge of the cliff, he wrapped the rope around his waist, stepped over the it, and put both pieces of rope through his legs and out one side. He held one rope from the tree in his left hand, pulling it taut, and the segment going down the cliff in his right.

Then, he leaned back.

Cody had rappelled without a harness lots of times. But he always took it slowly and methodically. Now, he was moving fast so he had to be careful.

He leaned way back, so the rope was perpendicular to his body, and to keep his feet firmly affixed to the side of the cliff.

A few minutes later, he had lowered himself to her level. He started to sidestep towards her, until he was within a few feet of her.

She slowly turned her head to face him. She suddenly saw a ruggedly handsome, blue-eyed man hanging from a rope next to her.

"Oh, hello," she said.

"Hi," he answered. "I'm Cody."

"Phoebe. Nice of you to drop by."

Her face, dirt-smudged as it was, was uncommonly beautiful.

For a brief moment, they smiled at the absurdity of the situation. Then, it was back to business.

"Let's see if we can get you out of here."

He fashioned a sling with the excess cord, moved in next to her, and slipped it over her head and shoulders. Once it was secure, he wrapped his strong arm around her slim waist, and held her close. She put her arms around his neck.

She watched him manipulating the rope, making knots, making sure she was secure. Everything was done so expertly, she instantly felt a bit more at ease.

Every move he made was careful and deliberate. 'Slow is smooth...smooth is fast.' That was the mantra playing in his head. That's what they taught him in the Army.

Before long, they were side-stepping to where he had descended the cliff.

Then, he helped her slowly climb up the cliff, positioning himself directly beneath her in case she slipped.

He could see she was favoring her left leg. It could hardly hold her weight, let alone push off.

He encouraged her to take it slowly, using his hands to support her footholds. After about twenty minutes, he was helping her over the lip, onto the trail.

She sat on the trail and let out a relieved sigh.

"Thank God," she said. "I was hoping you'd come by."

"What happened?" Cody asked, as he started coiling the rope.

Phoebe looked back down the trail.

"I was running and I came around that turn. And there was a bear. In the middle of the trail. I was startled and I jumped. And, the next thing I know ... I was falling."

Cody looked up and down the trail. There were no bears in sight.

"You probably scared him away," he said. "How long were you stuck down there."

She shook her head.

"I don't know. A couple hours maybe?"

"Have you been drinking water?"

"A little," she said. "I was saving it."

"Go ahead and drink some," Cody said.

She took the rubber nozzle from her Camelbak and put it in her mouth. She took a sip and let it drop.

"Drink more," he said.

Phoebe blinked a couple of times.

"I'm not sure how long I'm going to be stuck out here. I think it'd be a good idea to save..."

"Drink more," he said, firmly.

She gave him a look, setting her jaw.

"Listen, Buddy..."

"It's Cody."

"Listen Cody, I appreciate you helping me and everything. But I don't like being ordered around. OK?"

"Look," he said, "the biggest mistake people make when they get stuck in the wild is they start rationing their water. Your body needs water to function. Your brain needs water to function. I have plenty in my pack. And I have a water filter we can use. Trust me, you're gonna want to stay hydrated."

She made a face. He seemed to know what he was talking about.

"Bossy..." she muttered as she put the nozzle back in her mouth.

"Good. Now, what color is your pee?"

She looked at him, disbelieving.

"What?"

"Your urine. What color is it? The best way to monitor your water input is your urine output."

"Well, I'm sorry but I didn't get a chance to pee while I was hanging on the side of the cliff."

"Well, monitor it. It should be fairly clear and there should be plenty of it. If it's dark, you're not drinking enough water."

"Yes, sir. I'll be sure to report back to you the next time I take a leak."

He was repacking the rope and thinking about their next move.

"Can you walk?" he asked.

"I'm not sure."

"Give it a try."

Cody helped her get to her feet. Her left leg quickly gave way.

"It's my ankle. It hurts like hell. I think it's a severe sprain."

"You can't put any weight on it?"

"No."

"Okay, sit down. I'll be right back."

He helped her sit on a rock and walked down the trail to get his pack. He brought it back, laid it down, and dug out a first aid kit.

From inside, he pulled out a small packet and an Ace bandage.

"Do you want some ibuprofen?"

"Sure."

He tossed the packet to her. She ripped it open, popped the pill into her mouth, and took a drink.

"I can wrap your ankle with an Ace bandage to immobilize it."

She nodded and he gently lifted her leg so it rested on his knee. He untied her running shoe, loosened the laces, and slipped it off her foot.

"Ow," she said.

He remained silent as he slowly pulled off her sock.

He inspected the ankle. It had already begun to swell.

"It'd be good to ice this to keep the swelling down," he said as he unwrapped the end of the bandage.

"Gee, do you think there's an ice machine at the top of the hill?" she asked, sarcastically.

He began wrapping her foot around the arch, around and around.

"The streams up here are super cold. Snowmelt and all."

He was wrapping her ankle now, with great care.

"It's not too tight?" he asked. "No throbbing?"

"No, it feels fine."

He nodded and fastened the bandage. Then, he slipped her sock back on her foot.

He spread her running shoe open with his hands, slowly slipped it over her foot, and tied it loosely.

She couldn't help but flash on the fairy tale of the prince and the slipper. She wondered if he made the same association.

She always hated that fairy tale.

An archaic world view of women dependent on men. And rich men at that. A better life, not from working hard, but from marrying well.

Kind of a sore subject with her.

"We're going to have to move from here," Cody said, looking at the gathering clouds.

"How come?"

"One, there's no water source. Two, it's too exposed. Looks like we may get weather."

He pulled a topographical map from his backpack.

"We're here. Between Schmidell Pass and Leland Lakes. I think our best bet is to go toward the lakes and find some shelter near the creek."

"But that's going away from where we want to go. Right? The parking lot's that way."

"Yeah, but that's ten miles from here. There's no way to cover that ground before dark. Not with your ankle."

She thought about this given how her ankle felt.

"I probably couldn't cover ten feet, let alone ten miles."

"Yeah," Cody said. "The sun's gonna set in a couple of hours. Then the temperature's really going to drop. We're going to have to make a fire."

He looked at her in her short running shorts and t-shirt.

"Is that all the clothes you've got?"

She unzipped her mini-backpack.

"I brought a windbreaker."

"Did you bring anything else? Food? Supplies? A satellite phone?"

"Just a regular cell phone, and I can't get a signal with it. And I brought this."

She pulled out a protein bar.

"A windbreaker and a granola bar. Not exactly a survival kit."

"I was just planning on a day hike."

"Yeah. The dreaded day hike."

A look of worry clouded her face.

"What can we do?"

He looked at her, reassuringly.

"Don't worry. We're gonna be fine. I've got food. A water filter. Extra clothes. We're not going to freeze. Or starve. We just need to be smart and stay calm."

He knelt down to his backpack and started to pull things out. The topo map. The first aid kit. Some trail mix in a plastic bag. A flannel shirt. A folded space blanket. A zip lock bag with a couple spray cans in it. One by one, he stuffed them into a cinch sack and then tied the sack to her backpack.

"What are you doing?"

"Just packing a few things for the trip."

"What trip?"

"You and I are going over that ridge and finding a place to make camp."

"Do I get have any say in this?" she asked.

"It's our best move. Given the circumstances."

She shrugged as he pulled a large bottle of water out of his pack.

"Open up that bladder. I'll top you off."

She opened her Camelbak and unscrewed the cap. He poured in half his water to fill it.

"And remember..." he started.

"I know, I know," she said, making a show of taking a big drink.

He put the water bottle in his backpack and looked around until he found a softball-sized rock. He tied one end of his rope around it.

She watched him, wondering what the hell he was doing.

He held the rope in his hands and spun the rock around like a sling. Then, he sent it flying into the air and over the branch of a nearby tree.

He retrieved the rock, untied the rope, and started to fasten it to his backpack.

Soon, he was pulling the rope and hoisting his backpack high in the air.

"It's a bear hang," he explained, tying off the rope. "In case your friend comes back."

"Why don't you just carry it with you?" she asked.

He turned and smiled at her.

"Because I'll be carrying you."

"Me?"

He scratched the back of his head.

"I thought about a human crutch but the trail's not wide enough for that. Besides, it'd be way too slow."

He helped her to her feet. She stood with her weight on her good leg. He took her Camelbak and the cinch sack and helped it onto her back.

"Now, you just need to face that way."

He slipped by her to stand right in front of her. Then he stooped over with his back to her.

"Ready? Just lean forward."

Phoebe followed instructions and suddenly she was laying against his back and he was hooking his arms under her legs.

He stood up and she was riding him piggy-back.

She didn't know where to put her arms so she wrapped them around his neck.

"Um, I'm gonna need some air," he said.

"Oh, sorry!" she said, moving her hands to his shoulders. They felt strong. Really strong.

And off they went.

"Are you sure you can do this? I'm worried about your back!"

"No worries, you're small. I think my pack was heavier than you are."

She knew he was lying but she appreciated his thoughtfulness. It was surprisingly comfortable being carried this way. Her ankle didn't hurt and they were making good time.

She was bouncing around a lot though.

"Maybe if you wrapped your legs around my waist and put your arms over my shoulders. You know, to hang on tighter. Then you won't bounce around so much."

She took his advice, pressing her chest against his back, and dangling her arms down his front. This put her face right next to his.

"Is that better?" he asked.

"Much."

"And your ankle feels okay?"

"Yeah, it's okay," she said.

To Cody, it felt like she was whispering in his ear.

"You can hold on to my chest if you need to."

She pressed her arms against his broad chest. His shirt was still unbuttoned, so her fingers were touching his bare skin. He felt really ... muscle-y.

It was like she was embracing him from behind, her palms cupping his pecs.

Soon, they were really covering ground. He was breathing hard, his chest expanding and contracting. The faint scent of his sweat permeated her senses.

Pressed against him this way, she was reminded of riding a horse bareback. The way she did as a young girl on her uncle's ranch. She'd lean forward and hold the horse's neck, feeling at one with it.

She used to love that feeling -- its warm, muscled body straining and flexing between her legs. Her own body moving with it, fused, as if they were one.

That's how she felt now.