Count Me In (6 page)

Before stepping in, Ashley unbuckled her pack.

“Why are you doing that?” Tabitha asked.

Ashley turned and rolled her eyes. “So I can get out of it if I fall in, of course.” Tabitha nodded and undid her strap. She was too tired to care about Ashley's attitude.

Her cousin stepped in and sank to mid-thigh. Tabitha followed, gasping as the icy water shocked her system. She shuddered, frozen to the core from one step. Ashley pushed her leg through the water again. Now the water reached her waist.

“Maybe we should turn around,” Tabitha called.

Ashley shook her head. “Nowhere else to go but up.” As she lifted her foot, her body shifted. The water lifted her off her feet. She plunged into the current, her backpack dragging her under.

“Ashley!” Tabitha threw off her pack and lunged for her. She managed to grab a strap of Ashley's pack, but lost her footing. Her boots slipped and she landed on her butt on a rock. Waves slapped her face and threatened to pull her under. She grabbed the nearest boulder and pushed herself to standing.

But it wasn't it a boulder. It was Ashley's pack. Only Ashley was no longer attached to it. “Where are you?” Tabitha tried to keep her panic down and her feet steady as she searched for Ashley.

“Here!” Ashley's faint voice floated from downstream. Tabitha saw her clinging to a log in the middle of the creek. She must have slipped out of her pack while Tabitha was holding it.

Tabitha stepped farther into the stream.

“Stop!” Ashley called. “You'll get swept away too!”

Tabitha didn't listen. Ashley must be freezing. Where were Tess and Cedar? If they didn't get her out soon, she might die of hypo-whatever it was. She heaved Ashley's pack onto the bank and stepped back into the stream, trying to see her footing through the deep water. Another step. She wobbled in the current, but managed to hold herself up.
Don't fall. Don't fall
.

“Tabitha, stop!” a voice called from behind her.

She slowly turned and saw Tess, white-faced, on the bank.

“We have a rope! Don't go any farther.” She grabbed a large stick and held it out to Tabitha.

Tabitha took hold of the stick and pulled herself out of the water as Tess continued to give instructions. “Ashley, we'll be there in a sec! Cedar, open my pack and get the rope.”

Cedar dropped his own pack on the ground and opened Tess's. He rummaged through it and came out holding a yellow coil. He tied one end around a tree and grabbed the other end.

As Tabitha's feet found dry ground, Tess turned and saw Cedar. “What are you doing? I'm going to get her.”

Cedar shook his head. “No you aren't. I can do this.”

“You're too young. Let me go.”

“I'm ready. Hold the rope and I'll go get her.”

“Cedar, don't. I'm the one who should do this.”

Cedar's back stiffened. He turned and glared at his mom. “I'm old enough and strong enough. I'm doing it.”

Tess took a deep breath, then nodded and picked up the slack rope close to where Cedar stood. “I'll pay out the rope from here. Tying the rope to the tree is good backup, but you'd still be swept down the river if you fell.”

Tabitha's teeth chattered. “Why do you need slack? Why not just tie the rope closer to the tree?”

“He needs enough slack to move around and get Ashley, but not so much that he'll float a long way if he falls. Also, once he gets Ashley, we'll have to set a line across the whole creek.”

Cedar walked to the edge of the creek closest to Ashley. “Hold on, I'm coming to get you.”

“Wait!” Tabitha called.

Cedar stopped. He and Tess swiveled to look at her.

“You need to choose another tree. The angle's wrong with that one. If Cedar falls, the water will sweep him too far downstream, and then we'll have to get both of them!”

Tess frowned. Tabitha held her breath, waiting for her aunt to tell her off for slowing down the rescue. For once her math skills would be useful for something other than a board game, if only her aunt would listen to her.

“You're right,” Tess said. She untied the rope, moved it to a tree farther upstream and looked to Tabitha for approval. “That better?”

Tabitha nodded.

“Let's get going,” Tess called to Cedar.

“Hurry!” Ashley yelled.

Cedar splashed through the water, fighting to stay upright. Tess braced herself on the bank, dug her feet into the ground, leaned back slightly and let the rope ease through her hands as he moved forward.

Tabitha shivered on the riverbank, clutching Max. Just a few seconds in the river had frozen her. How was Ashley surviving so long?

Finally Cedar reached her. He grabbed her arm and pulled her through the water. Together they slipped and slid over the rocks. Twice, Ashley's feet went out from under her. Only Cedar's grip kept her from being swept downstream. They reached the other side of the bank, and Ashley collapsed onto the ground. Cedar tied the rope around a tree.

“I'll take your pack,” Tess said to Tabitha. “Cross to the other side quickly.”

Tabitha nodded and did as she was told. The last thing she wanted to do was to get back into the icy river, but she was so cold now, it didn't really make a difference. The water slammed into her legs as she picked her way across. She held onto the rope and managed to make it without slipping.

Tess and Cedar each made two trips with the packs. On the final trip, Tess untied the rope from the tree and retied it around her waist. Cedar gathered the slack as she crossed. Soon they all huddled on the far side of the bank.

“Get out some dry clothes, you two,” Tess said.

Tabitha dropped her pack and started pulling out clothes. Thanks to the garbage bag, her clothes weren't soaked through. She was so cold, she didn't even care that Cedar was there as she stripped off her shirt and put on a drier fleece. Ashley nodded but didn't move.

“Cedar, get some clothes for your sister,” Tess said. She began pulling off Ashley's clothes and then hugged her in a tight embrace. Cedar handed her the dry clothes, and Tess put them on her, then hugged her again. Within a few minutes, Ashley seemed to revive a bit.

“Thanks,” she said to Cedar.

He shrugged. “No big deal.”

Tess peered at Ashley's face. “How does it feel?”

“It aches,” she said.

Tess pulled out her first-aid kit and handed Ashley a white pill. “Take this painkiller.”

Ashley looked at the pill in her hand. “You always tell us not to take these.”

“I don't make a habit of using drugs for no reason, but this is a special case.”

Ashley stared at the pill. “I can't swallow it.”

“Just take it,” Cedar said.

Ashley shook her head. “I mean, I can't swallow pills like this. They get stuck in my throat. Don't we have any of the little-kid ones? Or some jam I can eat it with?”

Tabitha coughed to cover a snort. Amazon-girl Ashley was scared to swallow a pill? She'd have to eat twelve little-kid pills to make up for an adult one. She started to make a nasty comment, but stopped when she saw the misery on her cousin's face. “Put it way back on your tongue, take a sip of water and throw your head back.”

Ashley grimaced, then opened her mouth a crack and dropped the pill in. She gagged a bit, but managed to get it down. “Thanks.”

“Let's get going,” Tess said. “We need to make a fire and get everyone warm.”

They nodded and shouldered their packs.

CHAPTER EIGHT

The hike to the hut was painful. They slipped and fell and groaned. Tabitha cried more than once, but at least the rain streaming down her cheeks hid her tears. They crossed four more creeks that had turned from trickles to torrents with the rain. Tess and Cedar took turns setting the rope. Tabitha and Ashley were too worn out to want to try setting the safety lines.

Each time she crossed a creek, Tabitha had to steel herself before taking the first step into the water. Her feet knew how cold, slippery and dangerous it would be, and she had to talk them into leaving the bank. Her hands gripped the rope so tightly that she had to force them to unclench and mover farther up the safety line. Four times she splashed through water up to her waist. Four times she made it across and collapsed onto the bank.

They reached the lake at dusk. The rain still fell and the clouds hung low and gray. If she hadn't already been there, Tabitha never would have believed the lake was surrounded by mountain peaks. The oppressive gray reflected her mood. She'd never felt so tired in her life. Even going to school and facing Melissa would be better than being stuck up there in the rain.

Cedar led the way as they trudged the last few steps to the hut. Max plodded behind, his fur so wet he looked more like a river otter than a dog. By the time Tabitha got inside, Cedar was starting a fire.

“Try to find some dry clothes, and I'll get started on dinner,” Tess said.

“Good, I'm starving,” Cedar said.

By the time Tabitha came down and hung her wet clothes by the fire, Tess had started boiling water on the stove.

“Can I help?” Tabitha asked.

“There's not much to do,” Tess said. “All we're having is noodles.”

“That's it?” Cedar asked. “But I'm so hungry.”

Tess pressed her lips into a line. “We're all hungry, but we don't know how long we'll be here and we need to save our food.”

“You mean we might run out?” Tabitha asked.

“I'm sure that won't happen.” But Tess didn't meet Tabitha's eyes as she said it.

Nobody spoke during dinner. It took all of Tabitha's strength to lift her spoon to her mouth. Plain noodles with salt and pepper had never tasted so good. Ashley stared at her cup of tea, but didn't make a move to drink.

“You need to get fluid in your body,” Tess said.

Ashley nodded, but didn't do anything.

Tess sat beside her and lifted the cup to her mouth. “Drink,” she ordered.

Ashley took a small sip.

Tess handed Cedar and Tabitha one square of chocolate each for dessert. Tabitha cradled it in her hand like a precious gem. Resisting the urge to stuff the whole thing down her throat, she let the square sit on her tongue for as long as possible, savoring the taste. The sweet chocolate oozed through her mouth. She rolled her tongue around, relishing the smooth yumminess of it.

For the first time since the trip started, Tabitha slept through the night. The sound of the rain actually soothed her. It had become such a constant noise, she hardly noticed it anymore.

She woke the next morning to rustling and murmuring. Lifting her head a few inches, she saw that Ashley and Cedar still slept. It must be Tess downstairs.

“It's going to be a long day.”

Tabitha lay back on her bunk and listened. Who was she talking to? Max?

“I know, I know. It could be more than that.”

It sounded like she was talking on the phone and Tabitha could only hear one half of the conversation, but Tess had said phones didn't work up here. Otherwise they would have called for help already.

“Yeah, maybe up to a week.”

Tabitha almost fell off her bunk as the words sank in. A week? What would they eat? What would her parents do?

Who was Tess talking to?

“I miss you too.”

Now Tabitha was really confused. Who could Tess be missing? The only person she could think of was Bruce, but there's no way she could be talking to him— unless his ghost had come to visit. As quietly as she could, she slipped out of her sleeping bag and padded to the ladder. Peering over, she saw Tess cradling her teacup and staring at the box of Bruce's ashes.

As Tabitha climbed down, Tess jerked her head in surprise, then recovered and smiled.

“Morning. I didn't know anyone was up.”

“Any tea left?” Tabitha asked.

Tess pointed to the pot. “I found a stash of tea on the shelf. That's one thing we don't have to conserve.”

Tabitha poured herself a mug of tea. She opened her mouth to ask if Tess always talked to Bruce, then shut it again. It was obviously something private. If she wanted to talk to ghosts, that was her choice.

She sipped her tea and rinsed it around in her mouth. Her teeth felt furry. Her scalp itched. Her body stank. It had been three days since her brief swim in the lake. The fall in the river hadn't done much to clean her.

“I wish I could shower,” she said.

Tess smiled. “You could go stand in the rain.”

“What did you do on the big ten-day trips you and Bruce used to take?” As soon as she asked, she worried that she'd made a mistake. Would it bother Tess to talk about Bruce?

But Tess only shrugged and said, “We'd try to swim a few times. Being dirty doesn't bother me. In fact, I think bathing is a waste of time and water. I only shower every three or four days at home.”

Tabitha's jaw dropped. Ever since she was a little kid, she'd had a bath or a shower almost every day. So did her parents. She loved being clean.

Footsteps padded across the sleeping loft, and Ashley's face appeared at the top of the ladder. The swelling on her face had turned purple, and her chipmunk cheek was even more pronounced. She slowly made her way down the ladder and sat beside Tess.

“Tea?” her mom asked.

Ashley shook her head. Tess held the cup to her mouth anyway.

Cedar jumped down the ladder. “I'm starving, what's for breakfast?”

“Granola,” Tess said. She handed him a bowl with a small pile of flakes at the bottom.

Cedar raised an eyebrow at his mom. “That's it?”

Tess sighed.

“Why don't you tell them,” Tabitha said.

Everyone's heads turned her way in surprise.

“Huh?” Cedar said.

“We could be here for a week, and we might run out of food.” She tried to keep the panic out of her voice, but it didn't work.