And now here he was, holding on to what he devoutly hoped was a deeply rooted bush, his toes balanced on a small outcropping of rock. An outcropping which might support his weight and might not – a bush which might continue to keep itself rooted in the cliff face, or might suddenly give way or tear itself loose. I’m gonna die here – no one’s gonna hear me, and my hand’s gonna slip on this damned plant – no, no, this WONDERFUL plant, don’t listen to what I said, plant, you’re wonderful…or this plant’s gonna break off. You won’t do that, will you, plant?

Matt pressed himself as tightly as he could against the cliff, once more trying to drag enough breath into his lungs to yell. He was as near to total panic as he’d ever been in his life. It was even worse than when that creep, Robert, had burst into their apartment and attacked Phil, in June. His hair was plastered wetly to his forehead, and it kept getting in his eyes…he could only shake his head to get it out, not daring to let go his grip on the bush to use his hand – and even shaking his head was dangerous; what if he jerked the bush loose…?

"HELP! Somebody – Joe – somebody, please, HELP!" He screamed it again and again, stark terror in his voice. Could anyone possibly hear him, over the wind and the rain and the sound of the pounding waves below?

Matt could feel the rain falling, the drops hitting his head with impersonal, implacable force, driving into him. He was getting so cold….Frantically, he tried to tighten his hold on the plant, but his fingers were growing numb.

"JOE! Somebody! Help! Help me – please!"

If I move my feet and slip, it’s all over…if the rain makes that little ledge my feet are on too slick, and I slip, it’s all over…if the rain makes the bush too slippery and I lose my grip, it’s all over. Splat. I’ll hit the water and never be seen again….He clenched his teeth, trying not to see himself falling – falling backwards – hitting the rocks – the cruel rocks, the waves tossing spume and spray upwards. Never be able to take pictures for Joe and Vanessa of the lighthouse…never to see Macey again…oh God!

He knew he was panicking, and he couldn’t help it. He couldn’t stop how he felt. He could think of nothing except that he was going to die, right here and now. That and screaming for help. Could Joe get to him? Save him? He didn’t know Joe well enough to be sure Joe could. Frank, now – Frank could. He was sure of that. He trusted Frank. But Joe? Joe was an unknown quantity; aside from that first encounter at the apartment, they’d only met a couple of times since. Was Joe as good – as capable – as his older brother? Must be…to get out of all those scrapes Phil’s told me about…told me about how Joe got Frank out of the woods when he was so badly hurt, in Tahoe. But that was for Frank…could he do it for me? Would he?

"HELP! Somebody, please!" A gust of wind buffeted him, trying to tear him loose from the cliff, icy-cold raindrops battered him. He was shivering now, cold and fright and shock combining to overwhelm him. Cold – so cold – so wet….so hard to…hang on….

"MATT!"

He jerked, hearing his name. Did I hear that? Or was it just my imagination? The wind picked up again, drowning out sound, and Matt ducked closer to the cliff, trying to huddle beneath the insufficient shelter of the bush, trying to get away from the gusts which threatened his fragile hold.

"MATT! Can you hear me?" The voice sounded further away. "Matt?"

NO! Don’t leave! "JOE! Man, I’m here, Joe! I can’t hold on much longer, man – I’m trying, but—" Frantically, Matt screamed upwards, trying to project over the wind, the rain, the waves. He risked moving his head, trying to look upwards, staring into the darkness.

"Matt! I’m right above you, hang on."

Joe had to be yelling, Matt knew, but man, his voice sounded so far away, like he was shouting through a long tunnel. He could hear Joe saying something else, not to him:

"Vanessa, there’s a rope in the back of the Aztek, get it, quick; RUN, babe!" Then he was yelling to Matt again: "Just hold on, Matt. I’m going to lower a rope down. You just have to get your arms through it. So just hang on a little longer; we’ll get you up in just a minute."

Relief – mixed with uncertainty. "Joe – dude – if I let go to put the rope around, I’m going to totally go splat all over the rocks! Just…ya know…" Matt’s voice caught in his throat, and he was unable to continue. He was so totally terrified…all he wanted to do was rest. To relax. He wanted to not be scared spitless, and to not be wet and freezing cold, and to not be stuck on this cliff. I want to be up on top. Safe. Somewhere safe. Somewhere warm. Somewhere inside, where it’s not raining and cold and wet and I’m not gonna drown, or be smashed to bits on the rocks. Oh God, I don’t want to die….He was shaking so hard – so hard. He wasn’t sure he could hold on much longer.

"Matt." The voice caught his flagging attention, penetrated his terrified thoughts. He looked up again, and now could see Joe above him in the dimness, closer now, leaning towards him. He must be lying on his stomach, hanging over the cliff edge. Almost as if he could reach me – but no, not that close. It was six feet. Maybe more. He couldn’t tell – no matter what it was, it was too far, and Matt didn’t want to figure it out, just now.

Suddenly, a bright light blossomed, and Matt blinked, looking down, squeezing his eyes shut. Cautiously, he squinted them open. Light was flooding the immediate area, illumination dispelling the rainy dusk. Matt took a deep breath and looked upwards. It was still rainy and cold and windy, but somehow, things didn’t seem quite so bleak, now. At least I can see Joe now – his silhouette, at least. Whatever. He didn’t want to think about it any more.

"Matt, listen to me." He sounds so calm. The thought flicked through Matt’s brain. He wondered if the younger man really was as calm as he sounded. "You can do this," Joe continued, loudly projecting his words while still managing to keep his voice steady and reassuring. "When I drop the rope, let go with one hand and grab it. You’re still going to be holding onto the bush with the other one. Put the loop around you, then switch hands. Tighten the loop, and we’ll pull you up. It’s okay, Matt; I’m not going to lose you, buddy. You don’t weigh hardly anything, we’ll have you up in no time."

Matt took a deep, shuddering breath. "O-okay." He was still scared, but if this was how it was going to have to go down, well….He waited, hearing a jumble of conversation above him, hoping Vanessa had gotten the rope there by now.

And here it came – a soft, heavy rope slithering down the cliff towards him, a sort of large lariat at the end. As it reached his level, Matt gulped and reluctantly released his hold on what was most definitely his most favorite plant in the whole world, bar none, and grabbed it with one arm. He pulled it over his arm and shoulder and head, then hastily grabbed the bush again with his free hand. After a moment to catch his breath, he released the other hand, and settled the rope into place under his arms, pulling the loop taut about him.

"G-got it." He looked up, and could see Joe’s encouraging grin above him.

"Good. Let go, now." Joe instructed. "Don’t worry, I’ll hold you."

Timidly, Matt let go of the plant for good, and felt the rope tighten again as it took his weight. The rope felt much more secure than any silly shrubbery. The best bush in the whole world, most definitely…but still, shrubbery. Not nearly as secure as the rope.

"All set? Okay, just hold on tight, Matt. We’ll have you up in just a minute," he heard Joe yell at him.

Matt nodded, and flashed a hasty ‘OK’ sign, before grabbing the rope tightly with both hands. Again, he heard Joe’s voice, but more distantly – not speaking to him.

"Van, stand behind me and take up the slack when I pull the rope – yeah, that’s it." Then, more loudly: "Okay, Matt, here we go!"

Matt took a deep breath and shoved down on the ledge, trying to give himself a push – and felt it crumble away beneath his feet. "OHMIGOD! JOE, get me outta here!"

Clinging desperately to the rope cinched tightly about him, scrabbling with his feet to gain the slightest purchase on the cliff face; inch by inch, Matt was pulled up the six or eight feet – he couldn’t decide how far it was, and didn’t really care anyway – to the top; and after what seemed like an eternity…and ten more eternities…and a frantic effort at the edge, with Joe apparently intent on pulling his arms from their sockets, he found himself lying on the ground in front of his friends, flat out on the wet grass, shaking so hard his teeth rattled in his head.

"Matt? Are you okay?" It wasn’t Joe’s voice – it was Vanessa’s, sounding extremely anxious. She’s worried….Matt managed to roll his head to one side and look up through a tangle of wet hair to offer her a weak smile. She’s got pretty eyes…blue-gray. Very pretty. Sweet-looking. Yeah…very pretty. Good eyes…."Matt? Did you hear me?"

"Yeah….Just learning…how to breathe…again," Matt panted. "I’ll…be fine." Oh yeah, just fine, once I stop shaking, which is going to be never, I think….

Joe was leaning over him now, loosening the rope from about him, and Matt managed a tight grin at the younger Hardy. He shoved himself shakily to his elbows, trying to help remove the rope.

"You were good at that, man," he gasped, willing his breathing to return to normal. "Yeah – you were good at that. Didn’t think – I was going to make it, you know? Thought I was going to be – fish bait by now. You know? Thought I’d just go splat all over the rocks, and they’d just find little pieces of me, you know? Couldn’t think how anyone was gonna tell Macey, ya know? Or Phil? That I’d fallen off a stupid cliff, and gone total splat….Oh God, Joe…."

He felt Joe’s hand fall reassuringly on his shoulder. "Shhh…shhh. It’s okay, Matt. Just relax – just breathe. It’s okay, pal. You’re all right – everything’s all right, Matt. Shhh…take it easy."

But Matt couldn’t seem to halt the words tumbling from his mouth. Joe and Vanessa exchanged smiles over his head – smiles of amusement and extreme relief – and listened, letting him talk. "I’ve never been so close to dying, man, ever in my life, and I never want to come that close again. Dude, when that rope came down, it was the best thing ever, and the light! I love that light!" He paused, suddenly. "Where did the light come from? I mean, the beacon wasn’t—"

It was Cherise who replied. She was standing above Matt, sheltering him with one umbrella and holding the other above her own head, her boot-heels sinking into the muddy ground and the long golden skirt sodden in the wet grass. "I’ll explain about the light, Matt—"

"Do it while we get him to the car," Joe commanded brusquely. "Matt, do you think you can walk?"

Matt, who had let his head sink onto his arms again, lifted it slowly. "Not sure, man," he rasped, suddenly aware that he’d screamed his throat nearly raw. "I don’t seem to recall having legs, at the moment." He attempted a weak laugh. "I’m pretty sure they’re jelly. No – jam. Strawberry jam. I like strawberry jam…it’s my favorite." He sighed wearily. "I don’t think strawberry jam is gonna hold me up, even if I’m not as tall as you and Vanessa." The words snapped off abruptly as Matt’s teeth started chattering again. "What a stupid thing to say….I’m…like…really sorry, guys. I c-can’t s-seem to s-s-stop…shaking…."

Joe and Vanessa had laughed at Matt’s comment about the strawberry jam, but now exchanged slightly more worried looks. "Come on, let’s get you out of the wet," Joe suggested. They helped Matt to his feet, and Joe wrapped his arm securely about his shivering friend. "Hang onto me, Matt."

"M-my…c-c-cameras…." Leaning heavily against Joe, Matt looked around, blankly. "M-my – hat…."

"Vanessa will get them," Joe told him, steering him firmly in the direction of the car. Beside him, Cherise tried to keep them sheltered with one of the umbrellas. "Come on now, you need to get warmed up."

"Warm…yeah, warm is good, man…." Matt tried to match his stumbling footsteps to Joe’s. "Cherise – you were going to tell me about…the light?"

"It’s often turned on during storms, as a backup to the GPS," the young woman explained, keeping pace with their slow steps. "But even if there hadn’t been a storm tonight, Matt – I would have made sure it got turned on. Finding you was definitely a good cause for using it!"

Matt managed an appreciative chuckle, and for a moment he felt his cheeks warm with a blush. He wished he could distribute the heat to the rest of his body!

When they reached the cars, Joe braced Matt against the Aztek while he delved into the trunk for the blankets he kept there. He wrapped Matt in one, and then bundled him into the front passenger seat, and tucked another about him. Matt heaved a deep sigh of relief as Joe shut his door, shutting away the rain – the cold – the wind. The cliff.

Cherise turned to go. "I’ll just go and make sure everything’s shut down okay, and check in with Mr. Carter, before I leave," she said. "And I’ll probably see you here tomorrow. Matt, take it easy – go home and get thawed out! Goodnight!" She hurried away through the rain as Vanessa panted up, carrying Matt’s case and his broad-brimmed hat.

"V-vanessa, did you…find my other camera?" Matt asked, worriedly, as the girl placed the case in the back seat and scrambled in after it, hurrying to get out of the wet.

"Other camera? No, I just saw the case. One’s in it. I didn’t see another one."

"D-darn it," Matt grumbled. "Th-that was an expensive camera! I can’t b-believe I lost it! I had it on wh-when I f-fell. I’d j-just switched c-cameras….I m-must have d-dropped it when I grabbed onto the plant."

"Better to lose the camera than you," Joe commented sagely, slamming his door shut and inserting the key into the ignition.

"T-true, man." Matt shivered and pulled the blankets closer about himself. "I – I c-can replace it."

Joe started the engine and immediately hit the heat controls, turning them up full blast. "This should help pretty soon, Matt. And I’ll have you home as quick as I can."

They drove away from the lighthouse, headlights stabbing through the darkness and the windshield wipers working at top speed. As they departed, Vanessa glanced out her window, then leaned closer to it, peering through the rainy gloom. "That’s odd."

"What?" Joe briefly raised his eyes to the rearview mirror.