Page 90 of Sincerely, Mr. Braden

“I think the cave air is getting to you,” Ellie says, and then she laughs.

By the time we make it back to the pit, Frank’s moving slower. I hook up the foot loop and the ascenders and send Ellie up first. She moves adeptly and makes it over the rim without issue. She smiles down at us and says, “Okay, send Dad up.”

Frank is flexing his gloved hands. “Think I might’ve overestimated these old joints. They’re stiff as boards.”

“That’s not a problem. We’ll go up together.” I quickly run through our options and come up with a plan to get him out of the pit. It’ll be a bit complicated to pull off, but I’m not about to let them down. “You’ll have to put both feet into one foot loop. Do you remember how to use the foot loops?”

He presses his lips together, his brows slanted. “I told you my brain is fine, but we didn’t practice with only one loop.”

“We’re improvising. I need to work your ascender and mine, and that’ll be easier if you’ve got both feet in one loop. Here’s how it’ll work. I’ll slide the ascender that’s connected to the loop as high up on your rope as I can. That will pull your legs up, so you’ll need to move with it and bend your knees, tucking your legs. Then you’ll extend your legs, which will propel you higher on the rope. I’ll slide the ascender again, and we’ll continue doing that until we reach the top. Then I’ll help you out of the pit.”

Ellie peers over the ledge as I connect the equipment and says, “Are you sure this is safe? You have to slide your ascenders, too, to stay even with him.”

“It’s tricky, but I’ve got it. Don’t worry. He’ll be secure on the rope, and if this proves too difficult, I’ll pull him up if I have to.”

“Don’t you dare let me fall, Braden,” Frank warns, his hands shaking, from the cold or nerves I can’t be sure, but my gut tells me it’s both.

“I wouldn’t dream of it.” I finish connecting the lines, and as I help him step into the loop, I try to lighten his mood. “Unless something grabs your leg. Then you’re on your own.”

Frank barks out a laugh, and Ellie grins down at me gratefully, her headlamp illuminating the pit.

My heart thunders as we start our ascent. I reach over, trying not to pull on Frank’s rope as I take hold of his ascender. “Frank, lift your legs to take some of the weight off.” He does, and I slide the ascender up. “Good. Now extend your legs and let the loop take the weight.” He does, and I say, “Perfect.”

He exhales through his teeth. “One down, six thousand to go.”

“Not quite that far.” Bracing on my own rope, I ascend beside him, then take hold of his ascender again. “Okay, Frank, lift both knees up.” I push his ascender higher, struggling not to swing his rope or mine. “Good, now straighten. Let the rope do the work.”

He grunts, his shoulders shaking, his boots scraping against the rock as he extends his legs, rising high with the effort.

“That’s it,” I say, keeping my voice calm and steady. “You’re moving smoothly. You’ve got this.” I match the effort on my own rope, ascending to his level.

“You tell anyone about this, I’ll make you regret it,” Frank threatens between heavy breaths as I reach for his ascender.

“Why would I say anything that’d make me look bad?” I shoot back as we go through the motions again. “I should’ve thought to bring you heated gloves. That’s on me.”

He lets out a strangled grunt that’s as much pain as pride, and extends his legs, moving up the rope.

“You’re almost halfway, Dad!” Ellie calls down. “You’re doing great!”

“Tell her,” Frank pants out, “to save the applause until I survive this.”

“She heard you,” I say, reaching for his ascender again. “Knees up.”

He does, and we continue with the same rhythm, alternating like fine-tuned gears. Each push drives him higher; each pause lets me ascend to stay even.

When he falters, I reach across, steadying the back of his harness with one hand. “You’re locked in, Frank. You can’t fall.”

“I know,” he mutters. “I just don’t want to make your job harder.”

“Too late for that,” I tease, and then I slide his ascender higher. “Now stand. Almost there. Two more pushes.”

“I’m fresh out of pushes,” Frank says, panting.

“Then fake it,” I say, leaving no room for negotiation, knowing we’ve got to use his adrenaline while he’s got it. I feel Ellie’s eyes on me, but my attention remains on getting her father out safely. “Lift your knees, Frank.”

Teeth clenched, breath rough, he bends his knees as I slide his ascender up. “Excellent. Now push, Frank,” I say, and quickly ascend my rope as he groans through the exertion of pushing his feet down.

“Good, now one last time. You’ve got this, Frank.”