“All right. Go easy though. Try your weight on the other first. How is it?”
“All right. Here goes, Kitty.”
There was a moment of hesitation. Then the weight on Kitty’s hand was gone, there was a gasp from Tad, and Kitty, finding a hold with the released hand, dared to look up. Tad’s feet were both thrust into the crevice, and Kitty gave a sigh of relief. Tad’s legs were trembling and Kitty could hear his quick breathing above him.
“Stay where you are now until I tell you to go on,” said Kitty. “You’re perfectly safe, but you’d better rest a bit.”
“I—know,” replied Tad faintly.
There was a hail from the ground. “Are you all right, Kitty?” shouted Rodney anxiously.
“Yes! Be down in a minute or two. Get my shoes and the coats from the ledge, Rod! Now then, Tad, start along to the big crack in the rock. Make sure of your holds, though, before you put all your weight on them. I’ll follow below, and if you want help, sing out.”
Tad made slow work of it, but at that it was all Kitty could do to make similar progress. Tad had easy going compared with Kitty, and it was only the fact that his nerves were pretty well unstrung and his muscles quivering that allowed his rescuer to reach the fissure at the same moment. Once there Tad braced his knees against the sides of the cavity and looked for a moment very much as though he was going to faint away.
Kitty, seeing the danger, shouted a warning from below.