Chapter 36

Betts ensured that his parachute was fully stowed in its accompanying bag, and that all the communication equipment that he needed was removed from the dead man’s body.

He then proceeded to drag the body towards the large overhanging cliffs to the side of the glacier where they had landed. This was much harder than he could have imagined, with the thick powder snow, the weight of Kevin in all of his heavy survival clothing and the lack of grip for footholds on the steep side slopes of the Glacier de Bellecote.

Betts managed twenty metres before his breathing escalated to a level where he had to have a rest. Although the effects of altitude were slight, the exertion at this height made him desperate to have more oxygen and, as he was well aware, he was not becoming any younger.

Once he had had a couple of minutes rest and his breathing started to return to normal, the Petty Officer walked ahead to see where the best place would be to drag the body to before pushing it over the cliff. He found a spot where the cliff provided a sheer drop. This led to the bluish haze of an ice sheet, and below the ice was the visible wooded belt of trees that helped to span the valley between La Plagne and Les Arcs.

Betts then unhitched the coil of rope that he had been carrying with his parachute rucksack and tied this off to an upright, jagged rock adjoining the cliff face. He walked back down the slope and placed a coil of the rope under Kevin’s arms and tied the loop off into a bowline. He had been taught the beginnings of the knot by a yachtsman he had met in his early days. “It’s easy,” he used to explain. “The bunny rabbit comes up out of its hole, goes along the field, around the tree and back down into its burrow.” This in-built knowledge allowed Betts to complete the remainder of the rope work automatically.

Taking the loose end of the rope he walked up to the cliff edge and used the leverage of the rock to winch the body up to where he was standing. It was then an un-ceremonial pushover that sent Kevin tumbling, his body falling like a sack of potatoes in mid-air until it hit the ice-sheet. The collision with the ice-sheet saw the body being catapulted forward for several hundred metres before tumbling out of view.

It was time for Stuart Betts to report in, otherwise his current position may look even more suspicious than necessary. He pulled out his CB radio and checked that he was using the correct frequency.

“This is Comms. Seven, over, are you receiving?”

After what seemed like a long pause Archie replied, “Hearing you, Comms. Seven, state your position, over.”

“Above Glacier de Bellecote ice-sheet, will meet you at intended rendezvous. Comms. Three has had a bad landing, over, I repeat a bad landing.”

It was clear that Malcolm was surprised as the voice that came back whilst still authoritative, was slightly shaken:

“Bad landing noted, see you at rendezvous, 1200 hrs, out.”

So Betts had approximately an hour to ski over to the original rendezvous located in the shadow of this mountain and protected from the stormy weather and higher winds. The good weather window was now closing and the cold front was pushing in with the wind starting to intensify. The sooner he was on his way the better.

This mountain had served him well; his mission was more than on track and had already caused his leader rightful concern. Well, Lieutenant Archie Malcolm, there was going to be more of that concern, Betts thought. If Betts could influence the position, then Malcolm would not cope.