Page 33 of Valley Girls
Rilla glanced at Adeena for an explanation.
“She’s got the rope clipped into the pro now,” Adeena said. “Youtighten up that slack. The reverse of what you just did.”
Following Adeena’s instructions and trying to move as smoothly as possible, Rilla pulled the rope taut without getting crossed or letting go. Allowing herself one relieved sigh, Rilla anchored the rope at her hip and tipped her chin to Petra. “Got you,” she yelled.
Adeena smiled. “See? You’re doing great. Just go smooth and steady andthink. I promise, you’ve got this.”
Rilla nodded, a whisper of a smile crossing her tensed jaw as she stayed focused on Petra’s upward movement.
The sun blistered Rilla’s shoulders and the wind kissed away the burn. And somehow, in the wind and the sun and the intensity of watching Petra and listening to Adeena’s instructions, Rilla forgot everything else. All that was real was her focus on keeping Petra secure. It made her feel useful. Like she was needed—because for this one second, even with Adeena there as backup, that was true.
They continued on until Petra called down that she was off belay and Rilla could pull the rope out of the Grigri and tie in.
Tie in?
Rilla stared stupidly at her waist and tried to remember how to tie the knot.
“Let me know if you need a refresher,” Adeena said.
Rilla pushed air out of her cheeks and undid the rope from the Grigri. “Let’s see.” Clipping the Grigri to her harness, she double backed the rope, and knotted it with a figure-eight follow-through. Walker’s blue eyes flashed in her memory. “I forget how to tie the backup knot.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Adeena said. “It’s not really a backup. It’s just to keep the tail from whipping in your face if you fall. People just call it that.” She shrugged.
“Oh.”
“That tail is pretty short. You’re fine.”
Rilla hated it when the rules changed. It left her unsettled and on edge—a terrible feeling anytime, but definitely when she was about to ascend a cliff. Swallowing her feelings, she dropped the rope and tried to move on.
“You ready?” Petra called. “I’m going to belay you from up here.” The rope went taut, pulling upward on Rilla’s harness. “When you’re climbing, use your legs more than your arms. Push up, don’t pull. Take your time.”
“Okay.” Rilla nodded. Her heart raced. It was too late. Too late to turn around. Was this peer pressure? She was going to die from peer pressure.
“Okay?” Adeena asked. “Don’t forget to have fun.”
Rilla nodded, her heart firmly fastened into the back of her throat.
Adeena stepped back. “Tell your partner you’re climbing.”
Oh.
Shit.
Rilla stepped to the edge of the granite, fingers trembling as she skittered over its surface, looking for anything where her hands could rest. “Belay on?” she croaked into the fathomless sky.
“On belay,” a thin voice replied.
“Climbing,” Rilla said.
“Climb on.”
This was just like playing.Playing.Rilla told herself as she pushed off the ground. Her body weight seemed to double. Her limbs too long or too short or too something. Her fingers slipped and she scrambled to move up.Playing.She reached and pulled, remembering halfway Adeena’s admonition topush. As she went, the rope stayed taut, and after a few heart-pounding moments, Rilla relaxed.
Petra hadn’t been lying. The climbing was easy. For a moment even, it was fun.
A thick stretch of granite had cooled millions of years ago as a fold—creating a perfect space for her to grip the blunt edge and step along its curving line up toward Petra.
The rock itself was smooth but finely textured, rough and sharp against her bare fingertips like a heavy grit sandpaper, and her shoes—the ones Petra had handed her—stuck firmly.
