Page 91 of When the Silence Breaks

They’d found his father’s body three days later, buried under six feet of snow. Ryder had wanted to yell—to roar back at the mountain, even now in this moment. But the ice would answer with silence. It always had. It always would.

I didn’t reach you in time,Dad. I could have saved you.But Dean never should have led them out onto the ice that way, and Ryder had blamed him for the longest time. The man had saved their lives back there today, giving his own so they could make it out, if possible.

I’m sorry, Dean. I nevershould have blamed you.But it was too late for Ryder to say those words. And he didn’t want Dean’s death to be for nothing, so Ryder had to get Sarah out of here. Take the chance they’d been given.

“You can do this,” Ryder called down, the words meant as much for himself as for her. They both needed reassurance now, if they were going to climb their way out of this cave and survive.

What choice did they have? She was counting on him.

I can’t fail her too.

He reached the narrow opening, heart pounding, andglanced down. Sarah clung to the icy rocks, her breath ragged in the cold.

“Almost there,” he said, forcing steadiness into his voice. “Hold on. I’ll get through and pull you up.”

Bracing himself, he fumbled to shrug off his pack, which wasn’t easy as he gripped the rock, his fingers stiff from the cold even through the gloves. With a grunt, he shoved the pack through the opening ahead of him.

“Hang on, Sarah.”

“My arms are shaking,” she gasped. “Hurry.”

He slid through the opening, out onto a snow-crusted ledge, the mountainside dropping away below to the sweep of forest they’d still have to reach. Whipping around, he shoved his head and shoulders back into the cave, arms outstretched.

“Come on. I’ve got you!”

She was still too far for him to reach, even after he slipped farther in, but any farther and they’d both tumble down the cave wall.Come on, come on,come on.

Sarah scrambled upward, boots scraping for purchase. Suddenly, one foot shot out from under her, knocking loose a chunk of stone that clattered away and vanished into the darkness below.

Ryder’s heart slammed into his throat. “Sarah! Grab my hands!”

Her fingers slipped, scrabbling at cold rock. Wide eyes filled with panic flashed up at him. She reached instinctively, grasping at air.

With a surge of everything he had, Ryder lunged deeper into the opening, anchoring himself against the ledge above. His shoulder roared with pain as he caught her wrist, his fingers clamping tight just as her body scraped against the wall, the impact rattling through them both.

She let out a sharp grunt as he gripped her.

“I’ve got you, Sarah. I’ve got you...” he said, gasping, his voice raw.

His grip locked, the snow-packed ice under his boots shifting, brittle and treacherous. He dug in harder, pulling inch by inch, until her other hand latched onto his arm.

Her eyes, wild with panic and fear, met his. “Ryder,” she choked, shaking her head, “you’re going to fall too—”

“No,” he growled. “I’m not letting you go.”

He heaved, muscles burning, breaths surging from his lungs, as he dragged her up and out. She kicked and scrabbled, shifting her weight, fighting for leverage, until—

At last she was through the opening, and with the momentum, they tumbled into a heap on the ledge, and this time, Sarah collapsed on top of him. For a beat, he didn’t move and neither did she. He stared into her eyes, and she held his gaze, both of them gasping for breath, ignoring the wind that howled around them.

Her face hovered inches from his, cheeks flushed, eyes wide. A shaky breath left her lips, half laugh, half sob.

“I guess it’s my turn,” she whispered, “to finally knock you off your feet.”

And then she grinned.

Her smile shocked him, stunned him to the core. The sudden urge to kiss her coursed through him. They’d made it out of the cave alive. Survived the avalanche. Survived their hunters and faced off with the chaos around the bioweapon in the plane.

And he couldn’t stop the truth that took hold. Ryder wanted to know everything about this woman in a deep, personal way. But now ... now wasn’t the time. Or was it?