Stella barely had any strength left. She had to lean on one of the rescuers before she could even manage to sp eak.
âWe can only rescue one person in the current situation. We may have to go to the other person a little la terâ¦â
âBut then⦠Wouldnât the other person be left there to die?â
The rescuer fed Stella some water, but she coughed so hard that he accidentally let go of the water, spilling it all over the ground.
She looked at them anxiously. âPlease save both of them!â
âSorry. With our current manpower⦠We can only save one person.â
Bradley walked to Stella, held her shoulders firmly, and made her look into his eyes. âCalm down. Try to remember their last location. We should be able to save one of them⦠But if you continue to hesitate, we may not be able to save any of them!â
âYes,â
âButâ¦â Stella saw the worsening conditions and heavy snow. The snow hadnât stopped after half an hour but had instead intensified.
Bradley said to Stella, âWe have to hurry. If we waste more time, the rescuers may not be able to get back in.â
âOnly one person can be rescued⦠Only oneâ¦â The thought haunted Stella like a spell. They could only save one of the two. At this point, she finally realized how difficult it was to make such a choice. 1 Stella clenched her fists hard. She already had an answer in her mind, but it was hard to say it. After a lo ng while, she finally said slowly, âRoger is inside a cave. He should be able to hold on for a while inside. You must find him.â
Bradley froze for a moment. Although he knew her answer, he still fell into a long silence when he heard
her. After that, he stood up and said to the rescue team, Rescue Roger first.â
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As the whistling mountain wind arrived, the snow got heavier.
Stella could not see, so she closed her eyes. However, the image of Weston telling her to keep going an d not look back kept appearing in her head.
She wrapped the blanket tightly around her body. Her eyes were red with tears but she couldnât cry. It was as if all her tears had frozen in the frigid, unforgiving
snowy mountains.
Later, the snow and wind outside had finally stopped for a while. Stella was resting inside the camp halfw ay up the mountain.
Stella sat by the campfire and gradually recovered.
Someone came in and told her, âWe found Roger, but he was a little hypothermic when we found him.
Fortunately, his life isnât in danger. Heâs in the ambulance â>
Stella let out a sigh of relief and nodded. âI see. Thank you.â
She stood up and bowed to the messenger. âThank you so much.â
The man was surprised to see Stella bowing in the wrong direction. She was not facing him. Then, he rea Stella might have difficulty seeing.
He walked to Stella and waved his hand in front of her.
Knowing that he had noticed her condition, she lowered her eyes and asked, âWhat about Weston?â
The man stopped dead in his tracks and remembered that there was still one person left to rescue. He sa However, the snow is getting heavier. There are mudslides too, so we may have to delay the rescue progr Stella stumbled a step back and held onto a table to keep herself from falling over.
She heard herself asking him with a hoarse voice, âWhat are his chances of being saved?â
There was a long silence. The man knew she was asking about Weston and did not answer. However, his Stella suddenly blacked out and fainted. The noisy blizzard, winds, and snow turned to silence.
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