“We don’t want a kaboom,” Julian said, joining them.
“So here’s what we’ll do.” Lucky spelled it out. “Pru, Abigail, and I are going to ride up the ridge and rescue Oliver.”
“I’m going, too,” Julian insisted.
“Nope.” Pru put up a hand. “To avoid a kaboom, we need the most experienced riders on this. That’s not you.” She eyed the kids. “Someone has to keep the campers safe.”
“Oh, the irony,” Abigail said. “The guy who wanted to lead them into danger now has to protect them.” She looked to her friends. “Do we trust him?”
Another small rock slide scattered down the hills from above them, and they all heard Oliver grunt.
“He can’t hold on long,” Lucky told Julian. “Do you agree to stay with the campers or not?”
He didn’t hesitate. “I’ll stay.”
“If even one of them gets a pebble in their shoe,” Lucky said, “I’m telling Aunt Cora everything.”
Julian frowned. “I’ll stay. Don’t worry. I’ll entertain them.” He moved Malu back to be with the campers. “Who wants to hear a story about my greatest adventures? I’ve been on so many… Where to even start?”
Lucky nodded at Pru and Abigail. “I hope he has a lot of interesting stories,” she said.
“We’d better hurry,” Abigail said.
Chica Linda, Boomerang, and Spirit took off toward the small path that wove around to the top of the outcrop.
“Oliver, hang on,” Lucky shouted as the horses neared the top edge of the canyon. The slightest misstep would cause rocks to fall from the top, raining down onto Oliver’s head. If he let go, he’d be swept into an avalanche of heavy stones.
“I can’t wait much longer,” Oliver whined, his voice echoing against the rocks. “My hands are slipping.”
“We have to work fast,” Pru told Abigail as she unwound a thick rope from Chica Linda’s saddle. Abigail took the end of the rope and tied it around her waist, then handed the loose end to Lucky.
“I’ll stay here and hold on like an anchor,” Abigail said, wrapping her arms around the nearest tree. “You get the rope to Oliver, and he can pull himself up.”
Lucky liked that idea. She tied the loose end of the rope around her own waist. “Okay, I’m going down to get him,” she said.
“Wait, I meant I could pull up only Oliver. I don’t think I can hold the two of you,” Abigail said, moving away from the tree. “Oliver is little. No offense, Lucky, but him plus you equals more than me.”
“I can hold you back,” Pru suggested, wrapping her arms around Abigail’s waist, and then the two of them held the tree. Even so, the unstable ground was brittle under their feet. One slip could send Lucky and Oliver and Abigail and Pru down to the canyon floor far below!
They came up with a third plan, which was to wrap the rope around the steady tree. That worked even better.
Lucky smiled at her friends and said, “I’ll be right back.” She carefully moved to the edge of the path. A small pebble skidded from under her foot and bounced its way down the rocks, narrowly missing Oliver’s right hand.
“Oliver,” Lucky said, “I’m coming down. Do not move.”
“I’m not moving,” he promised. “But hurry. My hands are very slippery.”
Lucky stepped down onto a boulder, testing the stability before putting all her weight down. Pru and Abigail held the rope tight around the tree.
She moved down another stone, and a few more, until there were about ten big stones between her and Oliver.
To keep him focused, Lucky counted them as she moved, slowly, methodically testing each rock before setting her feet firmly on it. “Three. Four. Five. Hang on, Oliver…”
“I don’t think I can much longer, Lucky,” Oliver said. “My hands really hurt.”
“Six,” Lucky said. “Don’t think about it. That’s seven. I’m almost there.”
“I can’t—”
“Want to hear the story of how I learned to ride Spirit?” Lucky suggested. She stepped to a rock just to the side of where Oliver was still hanging on for his life. “See, it started when my dad learned he was needed in Miradero.…”
As she lowered herself onto the rock next to him, which would have brought her side by side, the big stone creaked and began to slide out from under her feet. Lucky shouted to Pru and Abigail. “Hold the rope!” They pulled the rope firm and held her until she could find another place to steady her weight.
Then Lucky cried out to Julian below, “Move the kids back!” She couldn’t look to see whether he’d done it.
That one rock hit the one below it, and on and on until a rock slide formed. Lucky knew this was going to be bad. “Oliver,” she said, “grab my hand.” She reached out her palm toward him while rocks banged and crashed below them.
Oliver screamed. “I’m scared.”
Lucky looked him in the eye and said, “Me too.” She stretched her hand even closer to him.
Oliver reached out so he was clinging to the boulder with only one hand. “I can’t stay… Lucky…” Oliver shrieked as his other hand slipped and he began to fall.
Lucky swung herself forward and grabbed Oliver around the waist. She held him tight. They were both hanging off the side of the rocks. “Pull us up!” Lucky called to her friends.
“Uh, problem,” Abigail replied. Suddenly, it felt as if the rope had been loosed and they were going to plummet to the ground below, but an instant later, the rope went taut.
“Problem solved.” Abigail stuck her head over the edge and gave a small thumbs-up.
“Who’s holding the rope?” Lucky asked, trying desperately to hang on to Oliver.
There was a loud sound of hooves, and suddenly Lucky and Oliver began to rise toward the top of the outcrop, where the path was sturdy.
“Spirit,” Lucky breathed. Of course, it was Spirit!
Small pebbles fell forward, but Spirit continued to pull.
Oliver closed his eyes and put his head against Lucky’s neck.
She continued to hold tight to him as they rose slowly
