Crouching, she continued forward, wishing she'd brought a treat. "I know you're scared. I am too. But let me get us out of this."
Trembling, cold, and wet, he shrank against the porous bedrock, deeper into the small recess. Then Paco sprang from his hiding place and dashed between her and the rocks, his short legs carrying him faster than she would have thought. Except he was in survival mode, adrenaline fueling his doomed getaway.
But it also fueled Remi, and with everything in her, she reached out for Paco.
But he slipped away. "No!" She raced after him as more salty water rushed toward them. "Paco, come back." You're going to die if you don't!
He slowed, turning back in fear as the tide chased them.
His hesitation gave her the chance she needed. She sprang forward and snatched him, careful not to crush his small body while still maintaining her grip. Barking and biting, he tried to wriggle free, his sharp little teeth sinking into her thumb, but she ignored the pain and held him against her. "I've got you. It's going to be okay."
Rushing forward out of the water's reach, she gently tucked Paco inside her heavy raincoat to keep him warm. The terrier seemed to finally trust her, or he succumbed to exhaustion, but either way, he settled against her inside the coat. His trembling form reminded her of her own predicament.
Their predicament.
Remi pressed her back against the cliff, then raced toward the rocky outcropping that could trap her and block her escape to the staircase up to Cedar Trails Lodge at the top of the bluff. Waves washed back out to the ocean, but she saw now what she'd feared. The tide had already come in, blocking her way to the steps to safety.
So she turned and headed north in search of a place on the cliff where she could find traction and climb higher. Rescue crews would be hard-pressed to reach her in time out here, and she couldn't afford to wait for help.
Her radio squawked. She fished it out of her pocket. "I got him. I just need a way out."
"Use Jo's ladder!" Erika's voice sounded garbled over the radio. "Roger that."
Jo had secured a rope ladder at the end of the campsites in case of an emergency until they could build another set of actual steps, but Remi had never found a need to use it. They'd always been adamant about when the beach was safe and when it was not safe, especially in the winter months, during the storms that people came to the lodge to watch. Today, someone had violated those rules.
Paco squirmed inside her jacket, and she continued to speak to him in soothing tones. The cold wind knocked into her, bringing salty, cold spray along with it as she jogged forward. Polished rocks—large and small—made up most of the beach and were a tripping hazard if she didn't watch where she stepped. Half jogging, half slow-stepping, she made her way to a patch of wet, gray sand.
She should almost be near where the campsite ended on top of the bluff, and she paused to stare up the cliff face. Jagged edges melded with patches of dirt and bedrock, and at the top, loamy earth and thick evergreens. In places along the coast, the cliffs were as high as a hundred and fifty feet. Here, it was half that. Still...
Tidewater rushed around her ankles, reminding her that time was slipping away, along with her way out of this.
There...
She spotted the marine rope ladder that Jo had secured for the unfortunate scenario of getting trapped by the tide. Her heart jumped with hope.
But to get to the ladder, Remi had to traverse significant piles of driftwood stacked against the cliff. Sighing, she rushed forward, weaving her way around the large, pale tree trunks, some of them massive, which meant she'd have to climb over them. She stepped over one driftwood log after another, slid down between two larger ones, then crawled over the last log.
Once the water started rushing in, she'd have more to worry about than sneaker waves or breakers that could smash her against these rocks. She would be crushed by the driftwood.
She stood at the bottom of the cliff and looked up.
