Phoenix Inheritance Read Online Free PDF Page A

get to go first. It’ll be fun. Think of it like Batman helping Robin climb a wall.”
    â€œYou’re not Batman,” he said.
    â€œCaptain Marvel, then, like my T-shirt,” she said. “She’ll help you fly.”
    â€œI like Captain Marvel. She punches dinosaurs.”
    She explained the plan to him. His face scrunched up in fear.
    â€œYou can do it. I know you can. Being afraid is okay. But sometimes you have to work past it. You can work past it.”
    â€œOkay.” His voice was muffled against her coat.
    â€œBesides, we’ll be doing it together. Remember what Captain Marvel says?”
    He nodded firmly. “Higher, further, faster, more!” And, now, he smiled.
    Not for the first time, she thanked God Charlie shared her love of superheroes. “And then we’ll get hot chocolate.”
    â€œGreat.”
    Yes, he was fully on board and willing to try. She tightened her grip on the scarf and wrapped it one more time around her wrist so it would have some tension. Her shoulder, already sore, felt as if her arm was being pulled from the socket. But this wouldn’t take long.
    She put her arm around Charlie’s waist and helped him crawl over her back. Calm, she thought. Piece of cake. She’d done rescues like this before. They’d always turned out well. It was going to be fine.
    Don’t think about the fact that one slip and they would both go tumbling over thirty feet to the jagged rocks at the bottom.
    Charlie knelt on her shoulders. “Stand up,” she ordered.
    He did, though he held on to one of her hands to steady himself. Step one, accomplished. Just a few feet higher and he’d be able to grab one of the tree branches overlooking the edge of the cliff. All he’d need after that was one big shove and he’d be safe.
    She moved her hand to his bum and pushed up. “Steady.”
    â€œOkay.”
    He was heavier than she remembered. This would have been easier before his growth spurt. Ack.
    â€œI’m almost there.”
    He sounded happy, almost exhilarated. Great. “I knew you could do it.”
    â€œI got it!” His hands firmly curled around the lowest branch of a tree.
    Yes! “Awesome. Now pull yourself over and I’ll be right behind you.” She hoped. It was only a few feet. Maybe she could make a leap for it with the scarf as her safety rope.
    Wood cracked overhead.
    â€œMa!”
    â€œSteady! Get up there! Don’t worry!”
    She craned her neck to see what tree or branch was threatening to topple over. Just one more second, she pleaded to the storm. Let her son have one more second.
    Charlie was halfway to solid ground now. “Just about there,” she called to him.
    A louder crack. Wood splintered somewhere above them. Bits of bark rained down on her face. She ducked her head to avoid getting them in her eyes.
    The falling tree slammed into the branch Charlie was hanging on to. It gave way. Charlie screamed. She screamed. Her scarf went slack. Her son fell. Oh, shit. She lunged sideways for Charlie and snagged his coat collar again by the merest of inches.
    â€œGotcha!” she yelled.
    Breathing heavily, she hauled him back to her and the relative safety of the sideways birch tree. She lost her footing, fell back against the trunk hard and Charlie slammed into her. Pain fired through her shoulder and back. It didn’t matter. Charlie was crying and his sobs nearly ripped out her heart. She wrapped her arms tight around her son.
    â€œIt’s okay. I got you,” she wheezed out. Safe. He was still safe.
    â€œI hate heights!”
    â€œI know, I know. Easy, Charlie. I’ve got you. Mom’s here.”
    Out of sight, more wood crashed against wood with a horrible, solid thud. Snow and leaves rained down on them. Something big whooshed by them, too fast for her to even be scared of it.
    The tension in her scarf went slack.
    A loud crash echoed from below as the