No Return from the Peak

To pay for my childs urgent surgery, I ignored my old injuries and my husbands protests to enter the rock-climbing championship.

As I neared the summit, just a few feet from the finish line, a frantic voice crackled through my earbud.

Brooke, stop climbing!

The voice was raspy, laced with a deep, consuming desperation. Strangely, it sounded hauntingly familiar.

"Hes going to release your locking carabiner. Youre going to fall, and youll be paralyzed!"

Before I could even process the warning, a sharp click echoed from my waist. The tension in my safety harness vanished.

I looked down in terror. My husband, Garett, stood on the belay platform below. He held the brake line in one hand, his eyes rimmed with red.

"Brooke, Bianca is too proud," he called up, his voice echoing. "She can't handle losing to you again, and this championship belongs to her anyway. Your harness is loose. Just forfeit the match. Don't fight her for this."

I froze on the vertical rock face, my mind going entirely blank.

But then I thought of our child lying in the hospital bed, waiting for the money to save his life. I grit my teeth and reached for the next handhold.

Suddenly, the voice in my earbud screamed, frantic and raw: "Garett isn't a broke scholar! Hes a billionaire! He only listened to Biancas lies because he wanted to test your loyalty!"

"And Jack isn't your son! He belongs to Bianca and Garett!"

The mountain wind rushed up from beneath my feet, and my fingers began to bleed against the rough rock.

How was that possible?

How could Jack not be my son?

I had endured five hours of agonizing labor, nearly dying on the operating table to bring him into this world.

My blood began to slick the stone, and a terrifying weightlessness seized my entire body.

When I opened my eyes, I was in a hospital bed, the sound of soft sobbing drifting into my ears.

"Garett, I'm so sorry," Bianca wept. "I just wanted to beat her fairly for once. I didn't mean for this to happen. I just cared too much about the trophy."

"Don't blame yourself, sweetheart," Garett replied, his voice gentle. "I know how much this competition meant to you."

This championship indeed meant everything to both of us. Years ago, when we were known as the twin stars of the climbing world, we had entered this very tournament. Halfway up the wall, my grip had failed, and I fell, shattering my left knee. Bianca had won the trophy that year.

The event took place annually, always on damp, rainy days. She had won every year since, while I could only sit in a wheelchair, suppressing the agonizing pain of bone grinding against bone, and offer her my congratulations.

This year was my first comeback since my retirement, entered solely to raise the hundred thousand dollars needed for Jack's surgery.

"But what about Brookes leg?" Bianca asked after a brief silence.

Garett sighed. "Once she donates her kidney to Jack, I'll reveal my wealth to her and make sure she lives the rest of her life in comfort."

My knee throbbed with a burning agony. I forced myself up, grabbing the edge of the bed. The movement knocked over the IV pole, the metal clattering loudly against the floor.

Bianca jumped back from Garetts embrace, her eyes wide and watery.

My gaze fell upon her throat. Resting against her collarbone was a custom silver promise pendant.

During the freezing winter we had gotten engaged, Garett had promised to take me somewhere special. He had blindfolded me, guiding me up step after step. When he finally told me to open my eyes, we were standing before a majestic mountain cathedral.

"We just walked up all five hundred stone steps together," he had said, placing the silver pendant in my hand, his palms damp with nervous sweat. "I climbed up every single step on my knees to get this blessed by the priest. He said it would bind our hearts forever."

I had stared at his scraped, red knees, touched by his devotion. "You walked up all five hundred steps on your knees?"

He hadn't answered, only leaning down to fasten the pendant around my neck, his fingers warm against my skin.

"Brooke, it's not worth much, but keep it on. Think of it as me always being by your side."

I had laughed at his sentimentality, but I had never taken it off. When I fell from the rock face, the chain had snapped, and the pendant had vanished. I had spent three days searching through the gravel, weeping when I couldn't find it.

It hadn't been lost.

It had simply found a new owner.

"Give it back," I rasped.

Bianca shrank back, her hand instinctively clutching the silver medallion. "Brooke, Garett gave this to me. If you really want it..." She bit her lip, playing the victim. "I can let you have it, but you can't say 'give it back'."

"Enough, Brooke!" Garett stepped in front of her, his brow furrowed as he glared at me. "There are millions of identical pendants in the world. How can you be sure it's yours?"

"I understand you're frustrated about your mistake during the climb, but don't take it out on Bianca. She did nothing wrong!"

"If you're angry, take it out on me."

My tears began to fall, hot and uncontrollable.

Garetts expression hardened, his tone turning irritable. "What are you crying for?" He paused, as if making a difficult decision. "Brooke, do you really want me to spell it out for you?"

I looked at him, but he avoided my gaze, staring out the window.

"You've been jealous of Bianca's victory since college, haven't you? You've got it all wrong. The day you fell, you had argued with her, and she cried all afternoon."

The air in the room felt thick and suffocating. I covered my ears, wanting to shut out his voice, but Garett continued ruthlessly.

"So, I put something in your water bottle to teach you a lesson."

My mind went entirely blank.

Six years of agonizing pain. Five years of sleepless nights on rainy days, listening to the rain as my ruined leg throbbed. All because Bianca had cried for an afternoon.

My body shook as I stared at him. "Garett, you destroyed my career, you ruined my leg, just because she cried?"

"You've had enough glory in your life, Brooke. If you weren't so stubborn..." He sighed, his tone shifting. "It was an accident. I wanted you to lose, not to get hurt."

An accident. It was always an accident.

I looked at his handsome, indifferent face, my mind drifting back to the day we had stood beneath the mountain cliffs. I had clutched his sleeve, asking if he loved me, and he had met my question with a long, heavy silence.

I had waited years for an answer, and now, in his betrayal, I finally had it.

I looked away, my voice steady and resolute. "Garett, I want a divorce."

"And I will not be donating my kidney to Jack."

Biancas face drained of color. "Brooke! How could you eavesdrop on our conversation?!" In the next instant, she dropped to her knees by my bed, her eyes swimming with tears. "I beg of you, Jack is the child you raised!"

"Why should I give my kidney to some bastard child that isn't even mine?"

A sharp slap echoed through the room. My head snapped to the side, the taste of copper filling my mouth.

Garetts eyes blazed with fury. "You are wicked, Brooke."

"Jack has called you 'Mom' for five years. He is my son, and you speak of him like this? You don't deserve to be a mother."

Bianca sobbed, her shoulders shaking. "Its my fault. I wanted Jack to have a proper family, so I arranged the swap. But Jack is innocent. He didn't choose this."

As her hand brushed against my knee, the hospital anesthetic began to wear off.

A wave of excruciating pain surged through my body, radiating from my knee, my back, and my hands. My balance wavered, and I fell forward, crashing down on top of Bianca.

She let out a piercing scream.

Garett grabbed my shoulder, dragging me off her and throwing me aside with violent force. My back slammed against the metal bedframe, and my vision went black from the impact.

"You've lost your mind, Brooke!" Garett yelled.

Bianca cowered on the floor, shaking her head as she whimpered, "The pendant... the pendant broke..."

Garett looked at me, his eyes cold. "Get in here!" he roared toward the corridor. "Tie this lunatic down!"

A heavy sedative was pushed into my IV line, and my consciousness slowly slipped into the dark.

When I finally woke, the room was bathed in the pale, cold glow of the moonlight. I tried to sit up, only to find my wrists secured to the bedframe with thick restraints.

Footsteps approached, and a heavy-set man carrying a camera slipped into the room. My chest rose and fell rapidly as I stared at him.

"What do you think you're doing? Get out!"

He offered a vile grin, locking the door behind him and setting up his camera on a tripod. I struggled against the straps, the rough material cutting into my wrists until blood began to bead on my skin.

He unbuckled his belt, taking a slow, heavy step toward the bed.

"Help! Someone help me!"

"Garett! Garett!"

The name escaped my lips before I could stop it. The memories of our past came rushing back, overriding my logic.

Years ago, during a late autumn climb, I had fallen into a deep ravine. I had screamed for help until my throat was raw, believing I would die in the wilderness. Just as my consciousness was fading, I heard footsteps.

Garett, carrying his heavy pack, had knelt at the edge of the ravine, his silhouette framed against the setting sun. His voice had been clear and reassuring: "Don't worry. I've got you."

He had spent hours pulling me out, carrying me down the mountain on his back in the pitch black. It was that memory that had taken root in my heart, a bond I had never been able to break.

But now...

The man leaned over the bed, his hands moving over my waist. "Well, Bianca paid a good price for this. You've got a nice figure, lady."

"Is it Bianca?" I gasped, my voice hoarse. "How much did she pay you? I'll double it. Just let me go."

He slapped me hard across the face. "Shut up."

He gestured toward the wall behind the bed. "Listen to that. Your husband and Bianca are pretty occupied next door. They don't have time for a crazy woman like you."

Through the thin drywall, a muffled rustling sound drifted into the room.

"Garett..." Biancas voice murmured. "I think Brooke is calling out..."

After a brief pause, Garetts low, breathless voice responded, "It's fine. Shes probably just woke up from the sedative. Focus on me, Bianca."

Tears slipped down my swollen cheeks, mixing with the blood on my wrists.

No one was coming.

The man tore at my shirt, his eyes locking onto the faded C-section scar on my abdomen. "A damaged good. No wonder your husband threw you away."

As he leaned down, I gathered the last of my strength. I lunged forward, sinking my teeth deep into his ear.

He let out a blood-curdling shriek, his fists raining down on my head and shoulders. I didn't let go until the taste of blood filled my mouth, a wild, desperate laugh escaping my throat.

"You crazy bitch!" he screamed, clutching his bleeding ear.

He wrapped his thick fingers around my neck, squeezing tight. The ceiling lights began to spin, looking like the safety ropes suspended above the climbing wall.

I thought of the child they had stolen from me. Did she look like me? Did she have my eyes, my laugh? Did she curl up when she slept? Had she ever called out for her mother?

I wanted to live. I wanted to see my daughter. I couldn't die here.

Suddenly, the door was kicked open, and a nurse rushed in, screaming at the man. "What do you think you're doing?! I've already called security and the police!"

Terrified, the man grabbed his camera and fled through the open door.

The nurse rushed to my side, quickly untying the restraints and helping me adjust my clothes. I looked at her, my throat raw as I whispered, "Thank you... thank you..."

She offered a gentle smile, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. "I know who you are, Brooke. Back in college, I watched every single one of your climbing matches."

"You were so full of life, just like your name. Whatever is happening here, whoever is trying to hurt you... you need to run. Now."

I thanked her, clutching my phone with trembling fingers as I staggered out of the hospital into the freezing night.

Suddenly, the screen lit up with a message from an unknown number: I know where your daughter is.

As the first light of dawn broke over the horizon, I ignored the sharp pain in my spine, following the coordinates provided in the text. I arrived at a massive, elegant estate.

Another message arrived: The security code is your birthday.

I entered the numbers, the heavy lock clicking open, and I rushed inside.

The main foyer was vast, a grand crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling. In the center of the room, Jack was sitting astride a little girl, holding her head down against the marble floor as he shouted, "Heeyah! Faster, pony!"

The little girl lay motionless, her cheek pressed against the cold stone.

I ran forward, pushing Jack aside, and gathered the little girl into my arms. I wiped the tears from her pale face, cradling her close.

This was my daughter. She hadn't disappeared. She had been hidden here all along.

My phone buzzed: I'm sorry. Biancas due date was a few hours after yours. To prevent you from realizing the swap, she arranged to have your daughter deprived of oxygen during delivery. She was born with severe cognitive damage.

A wave of grief washed over me, tears streaming down my face. I held my daughter tighter, ignoring the rest of the text. I lifted her in my arms and turned toward the door.

"Mom! Mom, where are you going?!" Jack cried, slipping on the slick marble as he fell and began to weep.

Alerted by the house staff, Garett and Bianca rushed through the front doors, standing side by side like a devoted couple.

"Brooke, you lunatic! How dare you push Jack!" Bianca screamed.

Her gaze fell upon the silent girl in my arms, a cruel, mocking smile touching her lips. "And look at you, running off with a dummy."

"She is not a dummy! She is my daughter!"

Garetts expression tightened as he stared at me, his jaw clenching. He waved his hand toward the door.

Two large security guards stepped into the foyer. I turned to run, but another guard blocked the hallway, grabbing my arms. I struggled wildly, my daughter letting out a frightened, soft whimper.

"Don't touch her!" I screamed.

They pried my fingers apart one by one, taking my daughter from my arms.

"Brooke," Garett said, his voice cold and flat. "Once you donate your kidney, I'll let you see her."

"Garett, she is your daughter too!" I wept.

He didn't answer, turning his back as the guards carried my daughter away. She leaned over the guard's shoulder, a thin line of saliva slipping from her lips. She had never even called me Mom.

Before they wheeled me into the operating room, Garett leaned down and covered my eyes with a silk handkerchief, tying a neat climber's knot at the back of my head.

In the darkness, his voice was close, his breath warm against my cheek. "Brooke, be good and do the surgery. Once it's over, I'll explain everything to you. We'll start over, and I will love you just like I promised at the cathedral."