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Once the anchor on the roof is set, I leave like we discussed and hop on my bike. I park it outside the building we picked for the other end of the zip line. I make my way to the rooftop of the designated building with a smile for an elderly woman who lives there and a story about inspecting the roof.
Once on the roof, I signal to the guys.
We run the rope, make sure it’s secured, and draw out the slack.
I wish I was with Kaye, talking her through things, but watch from a distance as Rafe sets her up and steadies her for the ride.
He fits her with the harness and shows her how to use it. In no time, we’re ready to go.
“Is she ready?” I talk to Hayes through my phone.
“As ready as she can be,” he says.
From across the distance, Kaye turns to me and gives me two thumbs up.
SIXTEEN
Kaye
Rafe and Hayescheck the rope. It’s anchored to the roof through a series of knots I don’t understand. Rafe looks at me, his eyes warm and friendly
Reassuring.
Understanding.
“Are you ready, Kaye?”
I take a deep breath before responding.
“Yes.”
But the real answer is:No way in hell am I ready.I’m not like Carmen or Rosalie. They’re brave and fearless.
Carmen jumped on the end of a rope dangling from a helicopter, literally hanging onto Rafe for dear life as they flew over the rainforests of Nicaragua.
Fear didn’t stop her.
Rosalie, grew up in those same rainforests and she escaped through them by using the trees as her highway. She not only climbed through the trees, but swam down rapids and climbed down a waterfall.
They face their fears.
Me?
I run.
And there are two things I fear the most: heights and dangling from a rope as I glide from one roof to another.
I give a reassuring smile and thumbs up. Inside, I’m nauseous and sick to my stomach. There’s no way I can do this.
Rafe checks the tension in the line one more time while Hayes adjusts the harness they wrapped around me. Rafe comes over and double-checks Hayes’s work, then they both look to me.
“Remember,” Hayes says, “you don’t do anything. You can hold the rope that goes from your harness to the line, but don’t grab the line itself. You’ll injure yourself.”
“And if I flip upside down?” This is what I fear the most. What if I fall out of the harness while I’m a gazillion feet in the air?
“You’re not going to flip.” Rafe pats me on the back. “It’s like every other zip line. All you do is slide down and go for a ride.”
“I’ve never been on a zip line before.” I swallow the lump of fear congealing in the back of my throat. “Just tell me I’m going to be fine.”
