Rescue Me

by Sandy Nadeau

  Without looking back, Steve waved as he rushed after the nurse.

  7

  Class attendance was light the week of Thanksgiving, so they did mostly review. Ronnie was relieved. Concentrating on complex problems was beyond her these days. Dealing with her mistake ripped her up inside. What could she have done differently? If only…

  Steve wasn’t there, thankfully. She couldn’t face him yet.

  Jeannie sat by herself at a middle table.

  “Hi, Jeannie. Can I sit with you?”

  “Hi, Ronnie, sure. Have a seat.”

  “Thanks.” Ronnie sat and flipped through her notebook.

  “How are you doing?” Jeannie’s brow creased.

  “OK, I guess. How ‘bout you?”

  “I’m good. I suppose Steve won’t make it tonight.” Her glance, ever hopeful, scanned the room. “I heard he took some time off to take care of his mom.”

  “Yeah, I suppose.”

  “Why the look?”

  “Oh, nothing. I just wish they didn’t have to go through what happened. I wish I’d have done things differently.”

  Jeannie put a hand on Ronnie’s arm. “She’ll be OK. What else could you have done? It was a tough situation. It seemed like a good idea. I might have done it myself.”

  “I can’t think about it anymore. So tell me…have you been able to get Steve’s attention yet?”

  “No. I’m not sure it’s worth it. He’s nice and all, certainly nice on the eyes, but he never bites when I throw out my line.”

  “That sounds like him. Typical guy. Maybe you should just ask him out?” A funny catch occurred in Ronnie’s heart when the words left her mouth. She had to keep pushing those two together. Anything to prevent her from getting any closer to him. Especially now. Surely he wouldn’t even consider seeing her after she made such a stupid mistake and risked the life of his mother.

  It proved nearly impossible to keep her mind on the topic of class. Thankful it had been overview, she could always study it again later.

  ~*~

  Thanksgiving Day. Every year since her dad died made it hard for Ronnie to feel thankful. For her mom’s sake, she put on her happy face. Ronnie was glad she didn’t have to work the holiday since she couldn’t seem to get her groove back for the job. Would she ever feel capable of this work again? Her mind seemed intent on playing her failure over and over again. She hadn’t seen Steve either, which didn’t make her guilt ease. During the class Monday, she hid her edginess, wondering if he’d walk in late. Any ability to concentrate was shot. Probably a good thing since she had no idea what she would say to him. An apology seemed so shallow. Hello, Steve. Sorry I almost killed your mother with my negligence…

  Her family held Thanksgiving at her apartment since her mom’s house was packed up. They would move Mom’s things to the condo the next day.

  “Have you heard how Debra is?” Her mom washed her hands after placing the turkey roaster in the oven.

  “Not really. I get updates from the guys at the station.” A deep sigh escaped Ronnie’s chest. “Steve hasn’t been around.”

  “You didn’t call?”

  “No.”

  Her mom leaned against the counter as she dried her hands on a couple of paper towels. Then she gave “the look.”

  Ronnie turned away to prevent it from boring into her brain.

  A hand touched her shoulder, gentle and comforting. “Honey…the accident isn’t your fault.”

  “Yes it is, Mom. If I hadn’t tried to shove a log under the front end…”

  “You tried to save her. You did the best you could given the circumstances.”

  “If I had waited for the truck…they pulled up just as the car went over. They could have tied it off. I should have helped Matt hold it down. Steve had to have seen it go over.” Her hands flew up, agitating in the air. “Can you imagine seeing that happen to your mother? And there I stood, helpless to stop what I caused.”

  “You can’t torture yourself like this. Things happen. We can’t always stop the bad things. Come on. Let’s go sit down and have a cup of coffee. Adam will be here soon.” Her mother refilled their cups. Handing Ronnie one, she motioned toward the couch.

  They sat quiet for a while.

  Ronnie’s eyes fixated on the ceramic pilgrims positioned on her coffee table.

  Her mom reached out and picked up a figurine. “Can you imagine coming to a new world, raising a family in an untamed land?” She turned the figure around in her fingers. “I wonder how many struggled with feeling as if they made a mistake sailing across the ocean, hoping to start a new life. They couldn’t go back. Encountering Indians, hunger, disease, uncertainty…”

  The topic puzzled Ronnie.

  “When your dad died, I had to start a new life. I had no choice. I couldn’t change what had happened. I had to move on. As much as I didn’t want to at first, I had to. I also had to come to terms with his decision to do what he did. I couldn’t change that, either. Sometimes you have to accept the fact that it is what it is, and you have to deal with it.”

  “I could have killed her.” Tears drizzled down Ronnie’s cheeks.

  “But you didn’t. She’ll get through this. So will you, but you have to forgive yourself.” Her mom scooted over and wrapped an arm around Ronnie’s shoulders.

  “I’m so tired of crying over this. How can I ever expect to be a professional at this job when it wears me down like this?”

  “Your dad felt the same way in the beginning. When he started out as a rookie, he would come home and talk about how hard it was to remember all of the training techniques.”

  “Dad struggled?”

  “Oh, yes. It takes practice. Then every situation is different, so you all have to be so flexible in decisions. There’s no right answer for everything that happens. And the harder the call, the more emotions you have to deal with. Your situation right now is tough. Your dad had a difficult time, too.”

  A knock hit the door. “That must be Adam. We better get the rest of this dinner started.” Her mom let him in.

  “When do we eat? I’m starved.”

  “Not for three hours or so, you better have a donut.” Ronnie pointed to the pastry box on the table.

  ~*~

  “I don’t need to go to class.” Steve flipped the eggs over. He always made a big breakfast on Saturdays.

  “Yes you do. You’ve skipped one already, and I know how bad you want to get your EMT. So go. I’m tired of your hovering.” Steve’s mom winked at him. “I’ll be fine.”

  “All right. But I’m coming back right after it’s done.”

  “Only if you bring me a treat.”

  “Pistachio ice cream?”

  “Of course.”

  “What if they don’t have it?”

  “Then there’s no reason to go in there.” His mom only half teased about her ice cream choice.

  He climbed in his jeep and leaned his head against the headrest for just a minute. Exhaustion slapped him upside the head as he drove off to class in the darkness. The first couple of days were the hardest when he had to wake her every couple of hours due to the concussion.

  He’d been off work for a week now, fixing things for her, cooking, cleaning. She managed to get around pretty good on the crutches now, but he wanted to stick around to help. Her concussion had been mild, but he still worried.

  He should have called Ronnie. He’d been so absorbed in taking care of his mom and making sure she healed up that he just didn’t think about it at the right time. She’d be at class so he could talk to her there.

  Steve went through the propped open door and stood just inside scanning the room.

  Ronnie would have to hurry or she’d miss the start of class.

  Troy raised a hand in greeting.

  Steve groaned a bit inside, and walked over to him. “Hey, Troy.”

  “Hey, man. How goes it?”

  “Great. Mom’s on the mend. So…” he looked around again. “Have you seen Ro
nnie?”

  “No, but Jeannie’s looking for you. She’s over there.” Troy pointed to the other corner of the room.

  “Hey, Jeannie. Troy said you were looking for me,” Steve greeted as he came near.

  “Hi, Steve. Glad you could make it to class. How’s your mom? I…we’ve all been so worried.”

  “She’s much better. The first few days were tough. She’s recovering well from the concussion, and her leg is mending.”

  “I’m so glad she’s all right. Do you want to sit together tonight?”

  No sign of Ronnie. He figured he shouldn’t be rude. “Sure.” A heavy sigh escaped, as his mind and heart wondered where she might be. Was she avoiding him?

  Jeannie looked his way, a slight question in her expression.

  He smiled at her, not wanting to express his doubts about Ronnie being absent. Jeannie was nice enough and very good at her job, but seeing her didn’t spark one bit of interest in his heart. Now, Ronnie…she made his insides go all mushy, and, if hearts could do cartwheels of joy, his would do that, too. Not that he’d ever admit that to the guys. They’d rib him for the rest of his life if they ever found that out. A man had to have standards.

  Jeannie broke into his thoughts. “It must have been so hard for you to see your mom’s accident happen.”

  “Yeah, but she’s going to be OK. Her head has cleared pretty well. I think the shock of it all was the worst part for her. Did I miss much from the last class?”

  “Nothing you don’t already know. I can give you my notes if that would help.”

  “Sure. That’d be great. Thanks.”

  Ronnie walked in.

  Their gazes met briefly, and then she rushed over to a table near the back wall.

  Humph. Well, guess he’d sit with Jeannie tonight.

  ~*~

  Ronnie had spotted Steve, contemplated turning back to run to her car, but instead she darted to a rear table with an empty chair. She didn’t care who she sat next to tonight as long as it wasn’t Steve. Even if she had to sit next to Troy.

  Surely Steve wouldn’t want to sit with the person who sent his mom into the icy waters of the creek and caused all that pain and suffering. How would she ever stop this obsessive repeating of the scene inside her mind?

  Troy leaned his shoulder into hers. “Guess we get to partner up tonight. Maybe we could practice mouth to mouth resuscitation.” His right eyebrow raised up.

  “Focus, Troy. You’re here to learn something, remember?” She really disliked his constant attempts to impress her. Or whatever he thought he was doing.

  The instructor began the class explaining how they were to now start their rotations with the ambulance teams. His warnings about the things they would see and experience made Ronnie cringe a bit. Part of the job though. If she wanted to be an EMT, she’d have to face some serious traumatic injuries. Hopefully she’d never come across someone she knew again.

  Saturdays were the long class. For six hours she avoided Steve. Hiding out on breaks in the ladies room was not her most grown-up decision, but she couldn’t think of a better way to keep away from him.

  Near the end of the late afternoon lesson, every pager in the room went off.

  All talking ceased as they listened to the dispatcher. “Major rock slide on the highway. Mutual aid needed to extract the victims of a bus, semi, and two vehicles. Be advised, tanker truck on its side and leaking.” Dispatch gave the location.

  “Everybody head to the scene.” The instructor was brisk. “Sounds like they need all the help they can get.”

  8

  Firefighters and rescue personnel jumped to their feet. Chairs scraped against the floor as they headed out. In the truck bay, everyone worked as a team to load gear and themselves into the necessary vehicles, even as the large doors began to rise. People rushed to put on protective clothing and equipment, not sure what would be needed, but preparing just in case.

  Lights began to flash, sirens began to scream.

  Adrenaline coursed through Ronnie’s veins.

  A rock slide. This could be bad, especially if mutual aid had to be called in.

  There hadn’t been any mud or rock slides for a while, and they rarely caught vehicles. But with the snow storms lately, followed by the melting from sunny days, it increased the danger of earth moving and falling.

  The line of trucks headed down the ramp onto the highway. The sun had already slipped behind the surrounding hillsides shadowing the canyon. Red and blue lights circled the roadway, bouncing off the rock walls to the side of the highway. Cars sat one after the other in a solid line of red tail lights. Another bad sign.

  The drivers might have difficulty allowing them through. They did their best to move over to the side or squeeze together so the emergency vehicles could pass on the shoulders.

  Highway patrolmen joined the race.

  A few miles ahead, a patrol car was sitting sideways preventing the cars from proceeding.

  The chaotic scene came into view under the portable lights that rose up from the trucks, illuminating the mess in the canyon.

  A large casino-bound bus sat at an awkward angle with the front end crushed in. Several emergency windows were opened. Rocks of every size were strewn all over; one, the size of a microwave oven, sat in the middle of the hood of the car that had been in the lead. One car had crashed into the bus and all of it blocked both lanes. A semi tanker truck that had been coming from the other direction lay on its side. Rocks had piled up next to it.

  “Where do we begin?” She muttered aloud. Ronnie shivered uncontrollably not knowing if it was from the nighttime air moving in or the seriousness of the scene. She tightened up her collar.

  A fire truck ahead of her rescue rig had stopped and yellow clad people, helmets in place, poured out of the vehicle. Firefighters rushed to tend to the victims. The other two departments were extricating wounded people off the bus. They had set up a triage area several yards ahead of the whole scene.

  Matt pulled their vehicle into the chaos.

  Ronnie jumped out and ran with the large medical bag up toward that area. Her heart lurched and she hoped no one had been killed.

  The deafening noise of several Jaws of Life working at removing twisted metal dimmed the screams from pain. The heavy smell of diesel filled the air. Everyone worked together doing what they were trained to do. Dispatch called over the radio for the rock mitigation teams to get to the scene. Hazmat teams already surrounded the leaking fuel with absorbent pads. They’d have to bring in another tanker and transfer the rest of the fuel, which would be a whole other issue with the size of this slide.

  Ronnie reached one victim, who had been placed on a tarp. The woman had a lot of blood on her face and one arm had an obvious compound fracture. Ronnie shivered, despite her experience. Compound fractures were the worst, the pain was unrelenting. She went to work, cleaning and bandaging the woman’s head. An EMT came over to take care of the arm.

  The woman moaned, but her eyes didn’t open, which was a blessing, despite the seriousness of her condition.

  An odd popping noise echoed nearby. Ronnie looked around, trying to discern the source of the sound. It happened again.

  EMTs carried what appeared to be the last victim away from the bus. All the other personnel also walked away.

  Pop. Pop. She searched again. A few small rocks were coming down. Several more rapid pops echoed in the canyon. She jumped up, her breath hitched in her throat before she found the strength to scream. “Get out of there! It’s going to slide. Move!” She waved her arm, shrieking as loud as she could. “Move it! Move along! Get out!”

  Crews didn’t hesitate. One of their own was screaming instructions and they obeyed instantly. Ambulatory victims were hurried along by the emergency personnel.

  Ronnie grabbed the tarp under her own victim, the EMT gripped the other side and they picked up the woman, taking her to the triage area, away from the wrecks. Ronnie and her unknown partner, set the tarp down, trying not to
jostle their charge too much and then threw themselves over the woman, shielding her body from what was to come.

  Everyone hit the road face down, some of the personnel arched over their victims, just as Ronnie and her partner had done.

  Dirt, brush, rock, and boulders slid off the mountain, finishing off the bus and pushing the semi further into the ditch. The roaring that filled the air as tons of earth cascaded off the mountain caused her to cover her ears.

  Movement stopped and an eerie silence filled the air. Someone coughed, breaking the thrall that held them as people warily waited for more. Dust hung over the area like a fog. And then everyone scrambled to check on each other. Names were called as people checked in with their teams.

  Thankfully, enough ambulances had arrived and gurneys had been stationed next to the tarp, so Ronnie assisted loading patients to get them out of the area as the choking dust began to clear.

  No one mentioned what was on all their minds.

  There could be even more instability up on the mountain, and it could release just as easily as it had before.

  They had to get the injured out of there.

  ~*~

  His Ronnie had saved every single person on the scene. His Ronnie. She’d object to that, but as Steve searched his heart, he knew it to be true. She was his once-in-a-lifetime love. He tucked the information away to savor for another time, and renewed the vow in his soul to make her see she was meant for him alone.

  Steve went back to check the semi’s leak. The liquid had been sopped up by the excess soil from the second slide. Thankfully, nothing had ignited; the dirt had smothered any sparks. Dust still hung in the air, but visibility was much better than even a few minutes ago. And this was the most frightening thing he’d ever seen. They’d had rocks come down before, but this one took most of the hill and blocked the entire road. And therein was another big issue. All the vehicles from Steve’s department were on the other side of the massive pile of boulders, trees and dirt.

  The chief walked up.

  Steve pointed to the mountain that had rolled down to stand between them and their trucks. “Looks like we’ll have a problem getting home. This will take some time to clear.”