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The sound of wood crashing to the floor below carasp hold of the nearest crosswise support bea that her desperate scraony in her shoulder sockets, and yet, there was an instant of relief and incredulity when she realized that she had stopped herself

For the rasp upon the crossbeaers were slick with perspiration and slipping

Another scream sounded, and not fro out from beneath her

And it was then that she fully realized herself that she was dangling froood twenty feet above the floor below

She rued the long-ago wealthy plantation oho had designed such a library

"Hang on! Hang on!" Mrs O’Hara cried out to her "I’ve called 911 Books! I’ll pile some books, the cushions from the chairs, just hold on dear, hold on!"

No other thought had occurred to Darcy, but even as the woman called out, Darcy could feel the terrible pressure on her arms and shoulder blades She hadn’t really realized her own iratulated herself on catching hold of the crossbea could she hold on?

Mrs O’Hara had dialed 911 Darcy wasn’t certain that help could be there momentarily And still…

It had been seconds, surely No more than minutes Her arms ached as if she had been stretched on a , but neither was she ready for cha on, dear! There’s help co!" Mrs O’Hara called to her

Darcy looked down She shouldn’t have The distance between her and the ground floor seereater burden on her aran to fear that her fingers would slip no ine how this has happened!" Mrs O’Hara cried anxiously "Please, please…hang on" There had been no one else in the small library at that time Too early for the school children, and perhaps too late for any legal assistants or local researchers Darcy felt faint, looking at the distance between her own dangling body and the puny little cushion Mrs O’Hara was trying to arrange beneath her

She closed her eyes, in agony, wondering if she would just break ave up her hold, or if she’d break her neck and die as well Despite the pain in her ar to wrench froinning to take over She wondered desperately if she still had the strength to try to swing her legs upward and find a hold with her ankles and calves on the torn-up floor above her

"Darcy?" Mrs O’Hara called

"I always knew I should have trained for Cirque du Soleil!" Darcy tossed back, wondering why she felt that she had to sound light and okay even though she definitely wasn’t She looked up at the hole in the floor She’d have to kick through other boards to get back up But if the one had given, then , kicking at the boards above She nearly broke her toes

All the other floorboards were as tight as could be The effort nearly cost her the tenuous hold she had on the crossbea before her eyes She clenched her eyes tightly, knowing she would lose her grip any second

"Darcy!"

She was startled to hear Matt’s voice So rip on reality

"Darcy, it’sto catch you Trust o I won’t let you get hurt"

Trust hi to do with trust She couldn’t hold on any longer

Her fingers were too stiffly wound around the crossbea She never really let go

She sirasp

And a scream of instinctive terror tore from her lips

In the split second in which she fell, she anticipated her bones crushing, her blood splattering across the floor, her head…

"Darcy!"

Chapter 8

8

M att didn’t fall, but staggered back as Darcy fell into his arreat, but she was naturally trying to resist the impetus of the fall upon her body, and she flailed wildly, desperately grabbing hiht her