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drew his boot from the wall and hung there on the rope for a moment, so paralyzed with fear that he couldn't move. Only a few feet below him were rattlers, a whole goddamned den from the sound of them, and to reach Miranda he had to lower himself into their midst.
    Gripping the rope with his feet, he flexed his hands. Easy does it, one inch at a time. Sweat popped out on his face. It became more difficult to breathe. The muscles in his arms and legs started to quiver as he began the descent.
    Don't think. Block out the sounds. The kid is all that matters. At last, Zach drew level with the ledge.
    "Miranda, honey," he whispered.
    The sound of his voice set the snakes to buzzing again. Zach expected them to strike at any second. No wonder Miranda hadn't answered her mother.
    "Miranda, honey," he whispered again.
    Though it was a strain to hang there on the rope, Zach knew he didn't dare make any sudden moves to set the rattlers off. He also had to consider Miranda's possible reaction if he made a grab for her before he explained what he intended to do. She might try to elude him and fall from the ledge. In a ragged whisper, he said, "I'm Mr.
    McGovern, the man you saw last week. It was my dog that tore up your ma's flower bed. Do you remember me, honey?"
    An ominous rattling sound started up again to his left. Then another, and another. He fought back a wave of numbing, mindless panic. One wrong move, and he was a dead man. His skin shriveled, and he stopped breathing to peer into the darkness. After a moment, he made out the dim shape of a rattler coiled on a jutting lip of stone.
    The snake was a giant. Six feet long or better, and as thick as a man's wrist.
    With the shaking fingers of one hand, Zach slowly unbuttoned his coat. "Miranda, I'm going to grab you—real fast—and put you under my coat where you'll be safe. You understand? When I do, you grab onto my neck with all your might and wrap your legs around my waist. They can't bite you through the sheepskin."
    She gave another terrified squeak. Zach knew exactly how she felt, but unless he acted, and quickly, she'd get bitten for sure. Probably more than once.
    "I know you're scared," he whispered. "Just trust me, okay? I won't let them get you."
    Zach prayed that was a promise he could keep. Slowly, ever so slowly, he angled a leg onto the ledge to help support his dangling weight. When he moved, something hit his thigh. It felt as if a fist had slammed into him, but when he looked down, all his worst nightmares became reality. A rattler had bit him, and the goddamned thing had its fangs snagged in the denim of his jeans. A crawling, thought-robbing hysteria swamped Zach, and he nearly turned loose of the rope.
    "Son of a bitch!" Freeing one hand, he grabbed the huge snake, jerked it loose, and threw it away with all his strength. The pain in his leg spread like flames licking a spill of kerosene, down to his calf, then up to his hip.
    "Christ Almighty! Jesus Christ Almighty…"
    Zach's first instinct was to clutch his burning thigh, but there wasn't time for that. Instead he jerked his coat open, grabbed Miranda, and pulled her against his chest. Shaking violently, she clung to his neck.
    "They're gonna git me. They're gonna git me."
     
    Zach unclenched his teeth. "No … I won't let them. It's okay, honey." He drew his jacket closed around her.
    "See? They can't bite through all that sheepskin. Wrap your legs around me. Up high, so they're covered by the coat."
    Obviously too terrified to respond, Miranda just hung there and made mewling noises. The strain of his position began to tell on Zach's back and arms, but he didn't dare put more of his weight on the ledge. If the rock gave way, the fall might kill Miranda. If not, the snakes in the bottom of the well would.
    "Wrap your legs around me," he repeated. "I won't let them hurt you. I promise."
    With a whimper, Miranda finally obeyed. Zach didn't have to tell her to hang on. Once he got her to move, she latched