Age Before Beauty (29 page)

Lord, protect my baby!

Allie’s vision went dark.

25

The emergency line buzzed. Eric glanced at Molly, who was intent on her daily report. She had been quieter than normal today, probably because he’d answered her questions about how his weekend went with clipped, one-word responses. She apparently took the hint that he wasn’t interested in dealing with her come-on today.

“Your turn,” she said with a touch of the old chumminess they enjoyed when he first transferred to this shift.

They took turns answering calls throughout the day, and she had taken the last one. Eric leaned forward and punched a button on the console, then spoke into his headset. “9-1-1 Center. What is your location?”

As he spoke, he swiveled around to check the other monitor for the last reported locations of the officers on duty.

“Two seventy Buster Pike.” A woman’s voice, tight with hysteria. “There’s been an accident. My friend ran into a cow. I heard the crash, and now her baby’s crying.”

Old man Dorsey’s cattle fence again. It was bound to happen sooner or later. Eric glanced at Molly, who nodded and reached for the controls to dispatch emergency personnel while he kept the caller on the line.

He kept his voice calm. “We’re sending an ambulance right now, ma’am. Are you at the site of the accident?”

“Yes. I’m on my cell. I can see my friend through the window, but her door’s locked. She’s … she’s not moving. I don’t see any blood.”

Molly’s voice, low and steady beside him, broadcast a ten-fifty, an injury accident, to the active duty officers, and then put out a call for a ten-fifty-two, an ambulance request. She disconnected and nodded at him.

“Help is on the way, ma’am. They’ll be there in just a minute. What is your name?”

“Darcy Wilson. Can you hear the baby crying? Should I try to break the window and get her out?”

Eric jotted the name on his pad. Darcy. He’d heard that name recently, but couldn’t remember where. The muffled cries of an infant in the background stirred his new parental instincts. The urge to pick up a crying baby was strong, but he knew better than to let a civilian touch an accident victim. “I’m sorry, Ms. Wilson. It’s best if you wait for the EMTs.”

“She looks okay. She’s in her car seat. Oh, and my friend is moving. Thank goodness.”

“Tell her to stay where she is,” Eric warned. “She needs to stay put until the—”

“I hear the sirens.” Relief saturated the woman’s voice. Eric heard a loud knock on glass, and then Darcy’s voice calling to someone. “Don’t move, honey. The ambulance is almost here.”

The next minutes were a flurry of activity as Officer Baker arrived, followed quickly by a second officer, Chad Palmer, and then the EMTs. Eric disconnected the call with Ms. Wilson and waited for an update from Baker, the first official on the scene. He opened a new incident report screen and began typing the specifics into the database.

The landline rang. The line’s display showed Chad’s cell number. Eric glanced at Molly. An officer on the scene would use his phone only if he needed to report something he didn’t want the media and others who listened to police scanners to hear. Eric leaned forward and punched the speaker button. “What’s up, Chad?”

“Uh, Eric? We have a situation here.” Chad sounded worried, something Eric had not heard before from the seasoned officer. Molly raised her eyebrows and lifted a shoulder.

“Go ahead.”

“Eric, the driver is Allie.”

The world dropped out from beneath Eric. He was vaguely aware that Chad’s voice continued, but he couldn’t concentrate. The blood drained from his head in a flash. He felt dizzy. All moisture evaporated from his mouth.

Allie was hurt. And the crying baby was Joanie. His daughter.

His whole world was in that car.

If anything happened to Allie, to Joanie … He closed his eyes, nausea settling in his stomach in an instant.

“Eric.” Molly’s warm hand on his arm pulled him from the terrible place his mind was slipping into. He looked up and saw that Kathy had stepped into the room and stood nearby. “Did you hear Chad? They’re fine. Just shaken up.”

Eric shot forward in his seat and grabbed the receiver. “Let me talk to her,” he managed to croak through a dry throat.

“Eric?” Tears laced his wife’s voice, and he heard an edge of panic. But she was talking. Thank goodness, she was able to talk.

His grip on the phone tightened. “Allie, are you okay? Is Joanie okay?”

“I th-think so. She’s crying, but I think she’s just scared.” Her voice squeaked. “So am I.”

He closed his eyes and lowered his head to the edge of the desk. He had never felt so helpless in his entire life. “I know, baby. As long as you’re okay, that’s all that matters.”

She sniffled. “My arm hurts. And my chin.”

Chad’s voice came back on the phone. “The ambulance is going to take them both down to the ER to be checked out. You want me to come pick you up?”

Eric stood so quickly the seat went rolling away behind him. He had to get to the hospital. Waiting for Chad to come get him would drive him crazy. He cast a frantic look at Kathy. “I’ve got to get to the hospital.”

She nodded. “Go. Molly and I can manage things here.”

He ripped the headset off and tossed it on the desk. He was on his way out the door when Molly’s voice called after him, “Be careful. I don’t want to have to send an ambulance after you too.”

Allie reclined on a rolling hospital bed. A terrible smoky taste like gunpowder clogged her throat and clung to the inside of her nostrils. Her left arm lay motionless on the mattress beside her. A dull ache throbbed in it, and a niggling pain in her head answered. The last time she had been in this hospital was two months ago, when she’d given birth to the precious infant who slept peacefully in the crook of her right arm. Only then she’d been here for a joyous occasion.

Mom sat in a molded plastic chair on one side of the bed, dressed in pink nurse’s scrubs. The anxiety she wore when she first rushed down from the fourth floor had left after she checked over her daughter and granddaughter, which went a long way toward soothing Allie’s own. If only somebody would calm Eric down.

She shifted her gaze up to him, where he hovered at her right side. He kept stroking Joanie’s cheek. He looked like somebody had strung a tight wire through his nervous system. When Joanie let out a soft sigh, he started.

“She’s fine,” Allie repeated for what must be the tenth time. “Ken checked her out. Mom checked her out. She’s perfectly okay.”

Eric looked unconvinced. “I still think they ought to X-ray her or something, just to be sure. I’ve never seen her cry like she was crying when I got here.”

“She was frightened, that’s all.” Allie snuggled the infant closer. “Probably sensing my fears, and all the activity, and the ambulance siren. That’s enough to scare anybody.”

The curtain surrounding the bed opened. Ken, dressed in a white doctor’s coat and carrying a large manila envelope, came through and announced, “You have a visitor.”

Joan stepped into view and rushed to the bed. She cupped a hand gently around Joanie’s head and then carefully bent over to brush a kiss on Allie’s forehead. A lock of dark hair tickled Allie’s nose.

“How are you feeling?” Joan’s whisper held a threat of tears as she searched Allie’s face.

Allie instilled her smile with assurance. “A little sore, but otherwise fine.”

Joan gave a slight nod, then straightened. She planted a hand on her hip, her lips twisted in a wry smile. “You ran over Elsie the cow?”

Allie’s mouth twitched with a grin. “Yeah, well, this diet is getting to me. I was in the mood for steak.”

Eric frowned. “It’s nothing to joke about. You could have been seriously hurt. A thousand-pound cow can total a car.”

Allie had forgotten about the car. She turned her head to look at him, ignoring the dull pain the sharp movement caused. “Is my car totaled?”

He ducked his head. “Well, no. Chad says it’s drivable. Moderate damage, mostly bodywork.”

Mom rose from the chair and stepped up beside Joan. “What about the cow?”

“Its injuries were too serious. It’s headed for the slaughterhouse as we speak.”

Allie winced and Joan laughed. “Way to go, Allie. You committed cowicide.”

Mom nodded toward the envelope Ken held. “Are those the X-rays?”

He nodded. “No fracture. Her arm is just bruised. I’m guessing you were in the process of turning the wheel when the collision happened?”

Allie closed her eyes, trying to remember. “I think so. There were cows all over the road, and I think I jerked the wheel toward the right.”

“So your left arm was across the front of the steering wheel.” Ken demonstrated with his. “When the airbag deployed, it thrust your arm into your body and probably connected with your chin, which is why you’re sore there. Rocked your head on your neck a little, but I don’t see any signs of concussion or other permanent injury in the cervical spine or thoracic films. No blood reported in the urinalysis, so your kidneys look fine. In fact, everything looks good.”

“What is this terrible smoky smell all over me?” She smacked her tongue against the roof of her mouth and grimaced. “I can taste it. Yuck.”

Eric grabbed a cup of ice water and held the straw to her lips. “It’s chemicals they use in the airbag inflation mechanism.”

Allie glanced with alarm at Ken. “Chemicals?”

“Sodium hydroxide. Might cause minor skin irritation if you get it into a cut or your eyes, but it’s not harmful,” he assured her.

“You smacked yourself in the chin?” Joan tried to cover her laugh with a hand.

One of those old black-and-white movie actors loomed in Allie’s mind, punching himself in the face. Laughter bubbled up from her chest. “Yeah, maybe I should go into slapstick as my next profession. Groucho, Chico, Harpo, and—” She made a fist and imitated slugging herself in the chin. “—Bonko.” She sucked in a hissing breath as the throbbing in her arm increased with movement. Eric placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed.

The curtain parted again, and another white-coated man stepped through. It took a second for his identity to register, but then Allie straightened in the bed. “Dr. Reynolds? What are you doing here?” She cast a suspicious look up at Eric.

He released her shoulder and spread his hands. “Hey, he’s Joanie’s doctor. I thought he should be called.”

Allie looked at Ken, a silent apology in her eyes. Would he be offended that Eric had called in another doctor? Ken shrugged. “I agree with Eric. In fact, I placed the call.”

“And that is perfectly fine.” Dr. Reynolds crossed the short distance to the bedside in two long strides and reached for Joanie. “Mrs. Harrod, this is one of those times we talked about. Remember, whenever you have questions.” He winked at her as he lifted Joanie into his arms. “Besides, I was already planning a trip to the hospital to check out a brand-new patient who arrived an hour or so ago.”

They watched as he laid Joanie on the foot of the bed and examined her. Eric grabbed Allie’s hand and held it tightly as the doctor listened to their daughter’s heart and moved every little limb. Awakened from her nap, Joanie started to fuss when her arms and legs were pulled and pushed, but no more than normal. Allie was aware that Eric’s breath had stopped while he watched.

His examination finished, Dr. Reynolds slipped Joanie’s hands through the sleeves of her ruffled pink shirt, snapped it closed, and handed her to Eric. “She’s fine. Not a mark on her.”

Eric’s breath blew out in a blast. He cradled Joanie in his arms and soothed her with a gentle rocking. At the sight of the tenderness in his eyes as he gazed into their baby’s face, a rush of emotion flooded Allie.

On the other side of the bed, Joan whispered, “Thank God.”

Allie remembered her frantic prayer at the moment of impact. She looked up into her sister’s eyes and smiled through a rush of tears. “Exactly.”

When Dr. Reynolds left the room, Ken grabbed the curtain and held it open. He spoke in his official doctor’s voice. “Okay, ladies and gentlemen, it’s time to clear this room. We need it for sick people.”

Allie laughed, and even Eric smiled. Mom lowered the side rail and helped Allie out of bed with a hand under her arm.

“I’m sure Joan has to get back to the store, but do you need me to come help you at home?” she asked. “I can get someone to cover for me upstairs.”

Eric shook his head. “No thanks. I’m not going back to work today. If we need anyone else, Mother’s there.”

Mom nodded and placed a gentle kiss on Allie’s cheek. “I’ll call later to see if you need anything. You take it easy for a couple of days. You’re going to be sore.”

Joan leveled a glance on Allie and then spoke to Eric. “You’d better drive. She looks pretty hungry. She might aim for more livestock on the way home.”

Allie groaned. “I’m never going to live this down, am I?”

Her sister flashed a wicked grin as she followed Mom through the curtain. “Not a chance.”

Allie lowered herself gingerly into the chair to put her shoes on. Ouch. Sore was right. She felt like she’d been punched around the ring by a heavyweight contender. Or maybe an overly exuberant aerobics exerciser.

Standing at the break in the curtain, Ken watched as Joan retreated down the hallway. When she was out of sight, he spoke in a low voice. “You’re still planning to come to the auction tomorrow night, aren’t you?”

If the soreness she was feeling right now was any indication of how she’d feel tomorrow, Allie doubted she’d be able to get out of bed at all.

Eric shook his head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

Ken’s lower lip disappeared as he chewed on it. “Try, okay? We’re going to take turns being the auctioneer, and Joan’s up first. So you can leave when her turn is over.” He caught Allie’s gaze. “Trust me. It will really mean a lot to her to have you there.”

Allie glanced at Eric. He looked unconvinced. But Allie knew how much Joan had been looking forward to this auction, how hard she had worked on it. And sisters supported each other no matter what. “We’ll try,” she told Ken.

“Good enough.” He tapped the X-ray envelope against his thigh. “Let me grab the nurse. She’s got some paperwork you need to sign.”