“Have any of the women with this look ever hit you with a hammer?”
“No,” Emerson said.
Riley made an effort to relax and unsquint her eyes. “There’s always a first time.”
Emerson hooked clamps and anchor plates onto the rope and hammered the anchor plate into an outcropping of rock close to the creosote bush.
“That should do it,” he said, dropping the free end of the secured rope into the hole.
“I didn’t hear it hit bottom,” Riley said.
“Nevertheless I’m sure it did. By my calculations we have more than enough rope. Have you done any rappelling?”
“No. None.”
“I didn’t pack a harness so we’ll have to make do.”
Emerson found a smaller length of rope, wrapped it around Riley’s waist, tied it in a knot, and passed it between her legs.
“How do you feel?” Emerson asked her.
“Like I’m wearing a rope thong.”
“That’s an erotic comparison,” Emerson said. “I like it.”
“You’ve done this harness thing before, right?” Riley asked. “You know what you’re doing?”
“I was into rope bondage for a while in Japan. They call it kinbaku-bi, which means ‘the beauty of tight binding.’?”
“You’re joking, right?”
“If it makes you feel more comfortable, then yes.” He bound the ropes together in a big loop at her waist and attached a carabiner with a spring-loaded gate onto it, then fed the rope through a large, intricately designed hook with a lever on the side.
“This device is called a descender,” he told her. “Grab the lever and it will control your rate of descent.”
“Couldn’t they come up with a more ominous name for it?” Riley asked. “Maybe a ‘drop into hell machine’?”
“You’re using humor as a defense. Very good.”
“Will it defend me against falling to my death?”
“No. Put these on,” he said, handing her leather gloves and the headlamp. “Turn the headlamp on once you’re fully in the cavern.”
“Wait a minute. What about you?”
“I can manage with less equipment. When you reach the bottom give me a signal so I can descend.”
“You’re going to send me down first?”
“I thought you would want to go down first.”
“I want to go down never.”
“It would be easier for me to help you get started if you go first.”
Riley looked over the edge of the hole. “What’s the big deal? You just jump in, right?”
“More or less,” Emerson said.