Chapter 18, The Heights Summary

Several hours earlier, Rudi watches the sun rise as he presses on towards the summit. He feels the sun on his face and does not cough in the thin air. He knows to keep a slow pace so he does not exhaust himself. He sees footprints in front of him but no sign of Saxo himself. Rudi despairs about leaving his uncle and the captain, but he pictures himself planting his father's shirt on the peak. He presses on until he finally sees Emil Saxo on the narrow ridge directly in front of him. Rudi calls for Saxo to stop and catches up to him on the knife ridge itself.

Saxo tells Rudi to go back and that he is going to climb the summit himself. He does not want his great feat to be associated with a "kitchen...