Unfailing Love

by Kelsey MacBride

  “Tracy! Tracy!” He was standing so close, but his voice was so far away. Wasn’t he supposed to say ‘I do?’ Why was he calling her name?

  Tracy mustered all her energy and opened her eyes. The vision disappeared, but the voice got louder. She looked ahead of her and saw that the walls of the church had changed from wood and stained glass to branches and sea grass. Where was she?

  “Tracy! Tracy!” Paul’s voice was getting louder, but she couldn’t see him anywhere. She tried to get up to look for him but couldn’t move. She felt as if every bone in her body was weighed down and she was completely paralyzed. She tried to scream but nothing came out. She wasn’t even sure if she opened her mouth. Everything was going black, and she slipped back into unconsciousness.

  Paul kept moving through the thick brush, calling Tracy’s name as he went. “Tracy! Tracy, I’m here! Tracy! Where are you?”

  As he rounded another large thicket of shrubs, Paul caught a glimpse of the ocean below. He knew he was nearing the edge of the cliff and feared the worst. He could hear Randall calling Tracy’s name in the distance but was afraid they might be too late.

  Bracing himself for the worst, Paul took a step toward the edge of the cliff. He looked back over his shoulder and estimated the distance from the cave to where he now stood to be about 20 yards. He had no idea if Tracy could have made it this far, but he prayed she hadn’t. Because there was nothing past the edge of the cliff but a thirty-foot drop to a rocky shore below.

  Paul turned back to the sound of the ocean and moved slowly, making sure to stay steady on his bad foot. He had left the crutches by the cave and now wished he had brought them with him. He took a deep breath as he took one final step closer to the edge of the cliff. And that’s when he saw her. Tracy was so dirty she blended in with the wet sea grass and branches. Her blonde hair was matted with dirt and twigs and was indistinguishable from the foliage it laid in. If it wasn’t for the bloody tourniquet on her leg, Paul wouldn’t have even spotted her.

  “Tracy!” Paul screamed as he hobbled over to her. “She’s here! I found her!” he shouted over his shoulder so that Randall and the captain could hear him. Then he turned back to Tracy and wondered if he should have called them yet. She wasn’t moving. What if she wasn’t alive? Paul knew Randall wouldn’t be able to take that. And he was pretty sure he couldn’t either. Paul wouldn’t let himself believe that she was gone. Despite his fear and pain, he brushed everything aside and held onto every last hope that she was alive.

  “Oh, Tracy! I’m here now,” Paul said as he collapsed by her side. “Tracy, Tracy, can you hear me?” Paul reached down and brushed her hair off her face. Her skin was cold and damp. Paul reached and pulled her outstretched arm back from the ledge and checked for a pulse.

  “Please, God, please,” he prayed quickly and earnestly. He closed his mouth and tried to feel her pulse over the pounding of his own heart. After several seconds, he made out a very weak beat in Tracy’s wrist.

  “We need those blankets!” Paul yelled to the captain as he and Randall appeared behind him. “She’s gone into shock. Quick, get the blankets,” Paul said to the captain, knowing full well that Randall would not leave his daughter’s side.

  “Oh Tracy!” said Randall, making his way into the cave. “Oh, my sweet thing. Oh, my precious daughter!” Randall let the tears flow, unconcerned with how he looked. He was just grateful that his daughter was alive.

  “Daddy?” Tracy asked in a thick and quiet voice. “Daddy? What are you doing here?” she asked through chattering teeth.

  Paul and Randall looked at each other as they each held one of Tracy’s hands. At the sound of the voice, the two grown men both broke down in tears.

  “Shhhh,” Randall said as he stroked her dirty hair. “It’s alright now. Just quiet down. We’re gonna get you out of here, peanut.”

  The boat captain unpacked the blankets they had brought in the backpack and tossed them to Paul. Randall and Paul wrapped Tracy in the blankets and tried to warm her. The captain returned to the boat and signaled for the coast guard rescue team to come ashore with the gurney. While they waited, Paul and Randall sat in silence, holding Tracy’s hand. They looked in each other’s eyes, each seeing a love for Tracy the other had always known was there.

  The coast guard team arrived moments later. “Move aside please,” said the lead coast guardsman in a commanding accent. “Please give us room.”

  Randall stood up and let the team get to work, but Paul refused to move. Instead, he helped them by providing key information about her condition.

  “She suffered a broken tibia, a hemorrhage to the head, possible skull fracture, abrasions and contusions, and most likely multiple rib fractures leading to a punctured lung, possible two.”

  Randall listened to the extent of the damage his daughter had suffered as Paul went on. “Dehydration, delirium, significant blood loss, possible clotting issues on the tibia fracture. Head contusion stable and clotted after 12 hours. Short and labored breathing producing bloody mucus.”

  Randall turned and walked back a few yards, away from the wreckage that was his daughter. It was too much. He couldn’t listen to all the injuries his daughter had suffered. He tried to calm himself but was so upset that he had been relaxing, enjoying himself for two days while Tracy had been laying in a cave, near death. And then, when they realized she was missing, she had to spend another excruciating, agonizing two days alone, wondering if she would live or die, only to pull herself across the filthy ground to the edge of a cliff. She could have died so many times.

  “It’s okay,” Paul said a moment later when he walked over to Randall. He left the guardsmen and medics to tend to Tracy, knowing that she was stable and in good hands. “I know. And it’s okay. We did everything we could, and she’s gonna be okay.”

  Randall turned and looked at Paul with mountains of guilt in his eyes. “It’s just ...” he couldn’t finish his sentence.

  Paul reached out and hugged Randall, taking the full weight of Randall’s guilt on his shoulders. Paul patted Randall’s back and spoke softly. “It’s okay. She’s gonna be okay. Everything will be alright.”

  When Randall could compose himself, he released Paul and wiped his face. “I’m sorry, I just ...”

  “No need to apologize,” Paul said. He had seen this type of reaction a lot as a paramedic. People would often be overcome with emotion and react violently and with complete despair. Guilt was a common emotion after a trauma.

  Randall took a few deep breaths and watched as the guardsmen carried Tracy down the hill on the gurney. He looked around at the hillside and the cave, still amazed that Tracy and Paul didn’t die from the crash. Then his eyes went to the cliff up to the road. It had to be at least a hundred feet, thought Randall. He looked at Paul with questioning eyes, then back at the cliff.

  He realized that Paul had climbed that hill, despite the injuries he sustained. And even when he finally got near the top, pushed through a scorpion bite, just to get to safety. Paul’s injuries weren’t life threatening. At least, not before the scorpion bite. He could have survived several more days, maybe indefinitely, in the cave. From what Randall had seen inside the cave, with a fire, food, and water, Paul could have survived at least until help arrived. But Tracy couldn’t. He realized in that very moment that Paul had risked his life to save Tracy’s.

  Randall looked at Paul with a new sense of gratitude in his eyes. His heart spilled over, and he tried to verbalize his feelings. “You risked your life,” he began. But Paul stopped him.

  “No, I wasn’t at risk. I was fine. I just needed ...”

  Randall held his hand up to Paul. “It’s my turn.” He smiled warmly and continued, “You risked your life to save my daughter’s. You did it even after all the hurt she caused you. And whether you did it out of obligation or love, you did it. And for that, I will be eternally grateful.”

  Randall stuck his hand out in front of him. Paul looked down and smiled. “I love her,” he
said as he shook Randall’s hand. “I still love her.”

  Randall smiled and now it was his turn to hug Paul. “Welcome back, son,” he said as he let go. Paul just smiled and grabbed his crutches from the captain, and the three of them made their way back to the boat. The captain started the motor and turned to follow the coast guard cutter back to the harbor.

  As they rode, Paul looked up and waved to Kenneth and Howard, letting them know everything was fine and they could go. The chopper rose into the air above the cliff, its blades whirling faster as it disappeared over the road. Paul watched as the cliff, the cave and Jeep disappeared from sight. He turned his attention to the boat in front of him, and knowing that Tracy would be okay, finally allowed himself to breathe.

  Chapter 11

  “Get her in here,” said the orderly, quickly rushing Tracy from the ambulance to the emergency room.

  The hospital staff flanked her as they began calling out procedures, injuries and treatments. Randall and Paul entered the emergency room just as they were about to wheel Tracy off for surgery.

  “Wait!” Paul called out, wanting to see Tracy again.

  “You can’t come in here,” commanded the thick-tongued nurse wearing a white cap. “She’s getting prepped for surgery.”

  “I just need to tell her one thing. Please, it will just take a second,” Paul pleaded.

  “Are you family? Only immediate family allowed!” she barked, unmoved by the look in Paul’s eyes.

  Paul stammered, unsure what to say. “Yes, he is,” Randall’s voice answered for him. Randall looked at Paul and smiled. “Well, what are you waiting for? Go on in, son!”

  Paul smiled back at him and ran through the doors to the pre-operating room. He pushed his way up to Tracy’s bed and grabbed her hand gently, careful not to disturb the IV already inserted in her tender skin.

  “Hey,” he said softly.

  Tracy opened her sleepy eyes. They had already given her medication and were about to sedate her when Paul got there. “Hey,” she said back.

  “I just want you to know that I’ll be here when you get out. I’m not going anywhere.” He bent down and kissed her forehead as she closed her eyes and smiled.

  “Okay, Romeo, that’s enough,” said the nurse sarcastically. “Juliette will be out in a few hours. Now, can we please drain her lungs?”

  Paul watched as the large nurse pushed the gurney through the doors of the operating room and out of his sight. When he was sure Tracy was inside, he turned and hobbled back down the hall to his own room. He had promised his mother that once Tracy was safe he would re-admit himself so that he could get his permanent cast put on and continue the antibiotic for the scorpion bite.

  “So, she’s gonna be okay?” asked Kenneth as Paul entered his room. Kenneth was sitting on the chair in the corner, playing on his phone.

  “Yeah, she’s gonna be alright. Physically, at least.” Paul thought about the trauma of the past few days. “But emotionally, it could take a while.”

  “Well,” Kenneth said, keeping his eyes on his phone. “At least she’s got you to get her through.”

  Paul laid back and smiled. There was no denying it now. Everyone knew how he felt about Tracy. But he couldn’t remember if she knew. He recalled telling her. But what if he had only imagined it? What if she couldn’t remember? Would he have to tell her all over again? He needed her to know. He had to make sure she knew how he felt. He was laying on the bed thinking about that when Courtney stormed into the room.

  “What are you doing?” she yelled at Kenneth. “We have to be at the cake tasting. Remember? We put it off because of Tracy and Paul. But now ...” Paul could see the frustration building in Courtney, but Kenneth just kept punching things into his phone, paying no attention to the storm brewing in front of him.

  “The wedding is just two days away! Two days! And we have so much to do!” Her voice was rising with every word. “Kenneth! Are you even listening? And what do you keep doing on that phone?”

  Courtney walked over to snatch the phone from Kenneth but stopped when she saw the look in his eyes. “Don’t you ever touch my phone!”

  Paul watched as a dark side emerged in his brother. Kenneth had the potential to be a hothead, but Paul hadn’t seen that side of him in years. Ever since he had been with Courtney, he had been calm. It was as if Courtney tamed the wilder side of Kenneth. But his true colors were showing now.

  Courtney stopped and looked at Kenneth in shock. “What! Why can’t I see your phone? What are you hiding?”

  Kenneth saw the tears in his fiancée’s eyes and moved quickly to diffuse the situation. “I’m sorry babe,” he said, standing up from the chair. “I’m just a little edgy after all this ...” he waved his hand toward Paul.

  Courtney’s look softened as Kenneth reached his hands out to grab hers. “And I don’t want you looking at my phone because I might have something on there I don’t want you to see ... I mean I am marrying you in two days, and isn’t it customary for the groom to get the bride a present?”

  Kenneth oozed the words out as he pulled Courtney into his embrace. She fell hard and leaned into him as she spoke. “I’m sorry. You’re right. I’m just tense. After all of this, now knowing that they are okay. But we’ve still got to pull everything together in just two days. It’s just a lot to do.”

  “Well, don’t worry. I’m here to do it all with you,” Kenneth said as he kissed Courtney on the lips. “Now,” he said, turning to Paul. “If you don’t mind, I’ve got some cake to eat.”

  Paul smiled and waved good-bye as Kenneth and Courtney left the room giggling. The doctor came in just as they were leaving.

  “Well, glad you made it back.”

  “Yeah, me too,” said Paul. They chatted for a few minutes about the cast that Paul would be getting. The doctor went over the treatment plan for the scorpion bite and explained that Paul would need to take an oral antibiotic for several weeks and then follow up with blood work when he got back to California.

  “As far as the cast,” he said. “You’ll get it on now and then see your own doctor in three weeks back in the states.”

  Paul listened obediently, knowing not to argue with the doctor. He had already accommodated Paul’s wishes and discharged him against his will. He was more than happy to comply now that he and Tracy were safe.

  “How is she?” Paul asked, referring to Tracy.

  “She’s going to be fine. We didn’t find any internal bleeding. But the lung was close to collapse. It’s a good thing we got to her when we did. Once her leg is reset, it should heal well. But she will be in a cast for about six weeks. So when you get out of yours, you can help her around.” The doctor smiled, knowing full well that Paul was head over heels in love with Tracy.

  “But I have to say,” continued the doctor, “you two are very lucky.”

  “Yeah, I know. I saw the Jeep,” said Paul.

  “Not just that,” said the doctor as he took Paul’s vitals. “There have been many accidents in that same spot and the people weren’t so lucky.”

  “Oh?” asked Paul. “What type of injuries did they sustain?”

  “Fatal ones,” said the doctor in the most somber tone. “I’ve never seen anyone survive a crash from that road.”

  Paul felt a lump rise in his throat as the doctor spoke.

  “Some God must really have been watching out for you two,” the doctor said as he finished checking Paul.

  Paul watched as the doctor left the room. “Yeah, some awesome God,” he said as he rested his head on his pillow. “Thank you, God.”

  The medication began to take effect, and Paul dozed in and out of sleep. The doctor woke him a few hours later and took him to the casting room to have the permanent cast put on his leg.

  “Is she out yet?” asked Paul, knowing the doctor would have an answer.

  “She’s in recovery,” he said, pushing him toward the elevator. “She won’t be awake for a while. You should be able to see her by the time we�
�re done with your cast.”

  “How is she?” he asked, uncertain if they had discovered any other internal injuries.

  “She’s fine,” the doctor said. “Her injuries were just about what you had surmised. Except the ribs. She had several broken ribs. So she’ll be quite uncomfortable until those heal. I can only imagine the pain she must have been in every time she breathed or coughed.”

  Paul thought back to the many coughing fits Tracy had while they were in the cave. She was a tough woman. She had overcome so much and made it through. A feeling of happiness and relief washed over him as he entered the casting room.

  Chapter 12

  The nurse helped Paul off of the table and into his wheelchair. “You look like you’ve done this before,” she joked as she maneuvered him into the chair.

  “Yeah,” Paul laughed, remembering back to the skiing accident that broke his leg in high school. “And I’ve done what you’re doing, too.”

  “Oh,” said the short, older woman. “Are you a nurse?”

  Paul shook his head as he positioned himself in the seat. “A paramedic. I just deliver them. We’ve got the easy job,” he said.

  “Oh no, honey. You got the toughest job. You’ve got to calm everyone down and still save their lives.” The nurse lifted the foot pedals for Paul and then released the brake. “All we do is take fluids, take notes and take orders.” She tilted her head jokingly to the doctor in the corner as she pushed Paul out of the room.

  They made their way down the hall toward Paul’s room. “Excuse me,” he said, stopping the nurse by the elevator. “Can we go to post-op? There’s someone there I’d like to see.”