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“Who wants to be the test dummy?” Declan asked, cracking his knuckles with anticipation.

No one was eager to raise a hand, and after a few tense moments, Kaiden spoke up. “I made the shot. I’ll go first.”

Alex reached out and clutched Jordan’s arm as Kaiden secured his backpack over his shoulders and stepped up to the rope.

“Here goes nothing,” he said, lowering his body over the edge.

Only when Kaiden was sure the rope would hold his weight did he begin to move, using a hand-over-hand approach to swiftly make his way across the ravine. He made it look effortless, but Alex didn’t take a proper breath until he reached the other side and drew himself up to safety.

“Are you going to let go of me now?” Jordan asked her with a knowing smirk.

She dug her fingernails in a little deeper for a vindictive moment before she released him, choosing to ignore his amused chuckle.

“Who’s next?” Declan asked.

One by one they began to make their way across the crevasse. Blink followed after Kaiden, locking his legs around the rope and pulling himself across backwards. Skyla copied his example, while Jordan adopted Kaiden’s faster—if less secure— hand-over-hand approach.

Just as Alex watched Tom pull himself to safety, she heard Pipsqueak’s sha

“I don’t have very good upper body strength,” the waif-like girl said. “What if I fall?”

“You won’t fall,” Alex assured her classmate, who appeared to be very close to hyperventilating. “You’ll be fine.”

“You promise?” Pipsqueak asked, her big blue eyes staring at Alex as if the words alone would keep her safe.

“I promise,” Alex said. Really, what elsecouldshe say? Gone was the snarky girl from earlier, and in her place was a scared teenager needing reassurance—something that Alex could provide.

“Okay,” Pipsqueak whispered, and she lowered her body over the edge and quickly wrapped her legs around the rope.

The rest of them shouted encouragement and watched as she pulled herself slowly but surely along. But something happened when she was halfway across and, for whatever reason, she stopped moving forward.

“What’s she doing?” Declan asked Alex, the two of them the only ones left to cross.

“I have no idea,” she answered, but her stomach tightened at the sight of her classmate dangling motionless so high above the ravine.

“What’s the hold-up, Pip?” Declan called.

Pipsqueak didn’t answer, but Alex could see that something was wrong when she pulled herself in closer to the rope, almost as if trying to hug it tightly. Even from where Alex was standing, she could see the tremors shaking Pip’s body and vibrating along the rope.

“I think she’s having a panic attack,” Alex whispered fearfully.

Declan groaned. “Worst possible timing.”

From the other side of the ravine, their classmates were calling out to the frozen girl too, but she was oblivious to everything around her.

“What are we supposed to do?” Declan asked. “How do we calm her down? If she doesn’t move soon, she’s going to get tired and…”

Alex didn’t need to hear the end of his sentence to know where the ‘and…’ led.

Tugging firmly on the rope, she said, “How much weight can this hold?”

He looked at it thoughtfully. “Honestly, I’m not sure.”

That wasn’t the answer Alex wanted, but she’d have to make do with it. “Do me a favour and hold onto it, just in case.”

He realised what she intended to do, and nodded, walking to the boulder where Hunter’s arrow was lodged into the rock. He gripped the rope and braced himself in preparation for something thathopefullywouldn’t be necessary.

Alex looked across the ravine to her other classmates and saw they must have noticed Declan’s position, as Kaiden and Jordan were now leaning over the edge, supporting the rope on their side. Tom and Blink took up positions behind them to hold onto them if necessary. And Skyla… well, she did nothing, but that was to be expected.