Tales from the Trail | C.A. Marie

Description

“Evelyn, hurry up!” Dave called down from above.

She didn’t respond. Instead, she buried the lower part of her face deeper into her drawn-up collar. Now so close to the summit, the air was even colder, and it hurt to breathe.

Why was Dave in so much hurry, she thought, glancing at her watch.

Too late; her bare hand felt the shock of cold air like a thousand pinpricks on her skin.

Cursing, she thrust her hand back into her jacket pocket for warmth.

It was now 4:30 AM. She and her team had been hiking up the mountain since midnight when they broke camp.

“Evelyn, answer me, will you?” Dave called out again, this time louder. He was only a few meters ahead of her on the trail.

“Coming!” she shouted back.

Dave and six of their friends were racing to get to the top in time for the sunrise. She, on the other hand, was content to go slow, relishing the sound of silence by the side of a mountaintop in the Cordilleras.