"Thanks," he said.
"So, you think Jerome Shipton cut the line so it looked like someone was trying to kill him and then used the remaining portion to loop through an anchor so he could then rappel down?"
Dean smiled at the young lady's perception. "I guess I considered it as a possibility. But it doesn't answer his injuries, does it?"
"The jerk didn't know what he was doing in the first place. He might have just fallen, luckily closer to the bottom than the top, or he'd be a dead man. It's not hard to misjudge out there, especially a rank beginner like Shipton, doing it alone."
"Why would he go to so much trouble?" Dean asked.
Penny thought a moment. "He was pretty pissed at you. Maybe he wanted to dump a little do-do on your parade...pretend like you were trying to kill him."
"He'd be taking a big risk and going to a lot of trouble just because I took a couple of swings at him."
She shrugged. "He sure didn't fall all the way down from where the line was cut and I doubt anyone cut the rope when he was half way down the cliff. No one was seen up at the top when he fell, right?" Dean nodded. "Then what you were suggesting makes sense. He himself could have cut the rope-the short end they found tied up top- set up a second rappel at a nearby spot and gone down on it. What a bastard! I'm glad he messed up and fell." She thought a moment and then turned to Dean, a puzzled look on her face. "There is one more possibility."
"What's that?"
"A second climber. No one would have seen him so he could have cut the line and then rappelled down, on a looped line, after Shipton fell. Just a thought." Before Dean could comment, she asked, "You going to try ice climbing yourself? Mick and I will take you up to the ice park if you want to give it a go. We'll teach you to do it the right way."
Dean thanked the personable young lady but passed on the invitation. But he thought he'd learned what he wanted. He could now picture how Jerome Shipton might have caused his own fall. What remained was the question why. And Penny's final observation about a second climber opened a whole new perspective. The only other party involved with Shipton who was an ice climber was Donald Ryland.
Later the same morning, Dean took advantage of the cold but clear day for a little biking. He was concentrating on the roadway, miles from Ouray, when Franny Mulligan passed him, slammed on her brakes, and waved him back to where she parked.