Mark nodded, watching the flames begin to lick around the wood Jimmy had added. "I can deal with some cold." He thought about all that time he and Stelios had spent at Hadrian's Wall, and despite having experienced even icier climes since then, there was very little that could compete with that sheer damp, raw cold that seeped right through to the bones. "I'll keep this fire going. It'll be cozy enough in here." He didn't say it, but he was more concerned for Jimmy who would be out in the elements. But then these journeys weren't meant to be physically or mentally easy.

It would have been easy to joke or make some light-hearted retort to Jimmy's comment about finding what was left of him, but Mark didn't. "Late afternoon. Okay." It would be a long, anxious wait. "You fucking better be in one piece."

Once Jimmy left, Mark gathered up some more firewood from outside to feed the fire throughout the night and found some jerky that Lily had packed for him, not that he felt he had much of an appetite right now. What surprised him more was that he didn't feel like drinking anything stronger than water. That need for alcohol that always itched at the back of his head was quiet for once.

He sat again by the fire, pulling one of the blankets around his shoulders. The rifle was near to hand if needed, but other than that, all he could do now was wait for Jimmy to come back off the mountain tomorrow, or worst case go search for him.