“Don’t move.” Neve squeezed her shoulder. “What’s your name?”
“Diane.”
“We’ll get your baby, Diane. Is there anyone else in the car?”
“N-no. Please,” Diane ended on a wail, her speech thick, unnatural.
Shouldn’t Neve hear a child crying? Some kind of noise besides this distressed mother? She didn’t dare entertain what the silence might mean. “Is your baby in the back seat?”
While she waited for a response, she twitched with questions. What should she do? Run to the passenger side to check on the child? Stay here with the mother? Her mind was laser-focused, yet she felt as if it were stuck in a sticky cloud.
The woman mumbled something unintelligible that escaped like the hiss of a deflating balloon. Neve picked out a few words that translated to a different plea: The woman didn’t want to die.
The damn airbag continued blocking Neve’s way. “Diane, I’m going to take my hand away, but I’m still right here. I’m getting out my knife so I can deflate the airbag.” No answer. Neve dug the pocketknife she generally carried from the front pocket of her jeans and quickly opened it. She’d read somewhere that you should never cut an airbag, but this vehicle had far more damage than any she could inflict on it.
“Stay with me, now. I’m going to get this airbag out of the way. Diane?” Neve struck the air bag, puncturing it. As the thing deflated, the woman’s face came into view. Blood ran from her mouth, soaking her chin and her clothing. Her eyes fluttered open and locked on to Neve. Recognition seemed to enter them, followed by a wildness. Neve didn’t think, simply grasping the woman’s cold hand and lightly stroking her face with her other hand. “I’m here, Diane. Right here.”
Dear God, please don’t die on me.Neve schooled her features so the woman wouldn’t see the panic welling inside her. If Neve’s was the last face Diane would see, then Neve needed to project kindness, comfort, humanity. She needed to be strong for this woman. She needed to—
“Neve,” came Reece’s deep, tranquil voice from right behind her. She latched on to that calmness and pulled it inside herself as she turned toward him. He crouched beside her. “Hey, let me take a look. Why don’t you go call 911?”
“Her name’s Diane, and she says there’s a baby in the car.”
“Anyone else?” His voice might have conveyed a serene vibe, but an undercurrent of urgency thrummed just below the surface. He was in full-on emergency mode.
“She said no. I’m not sure if the baby’s in the back or—”
“Hey, do you need help down there?”
They both turned. A man stood silhouetted at the edge of the road.
Neve sprang to her feet. “Call 911!”
“No cell service here. I’ll drive to the turnout and call from there.” He had to be a local if he knew where to pick up cell coverage.
“You have our mile marker?”
“I’ve got it.” He disappeared from view.
Reece had taken over Neve’s spot and was talking to Diane in a soothing voice as he quickly stepped through checking her airway and her pulse—routine emergency procedures Neveshouldhave remembered to do herself. Diane seemed to waver between unconsciousness and aconsciousness that kicked up a powerful urge to get to her child, no matter the consequences to her own well-being.
Neve was on the verge of dashing to the other side of the vehicle when Reece turned his moss-green eyes to her. They locked on to hers with an intensity that caused her to freeze in place. “Stay here with Diane.”
He stood, his movements calculated, deliberate, measured. In contrast to Neve’s inner ping-ponging, he seemed fully in control of his mental faculties and actions. She had no clue how the hell he maintained a cool demeanor in the face of such a dire situation, but she continued to siphon his strength, damn grateful he was there.
He rested a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “I checked for leaks and didn’t see anything that raises red flags, so there’s no reason to move Diane right now. We need to keep her where she is and keep her still. Can you do that?”
“I got this.” He was gone in a flash, and she repeated the mantra as she parked on the edge of the doorframe so she could face Diane, who sat motionless, her eyes closed. Blood continued flowing from her slack mouth, and Neve pulled off her scarf to soak it up. The woman came to in a panic and turned her head side to side. Neve grasped it gently and laid it against the headrest.
“Shh. I’m here, Diane.”
“My baby! Oh no, oh no, oh no!” Diane began to flail.
Oh shit, oh shit! Keep her still!
“My partner’s an EMT. He’s taking care of your baby right now.” Neve pulled off her coat and carefully tucked it around Diane’s shoulders and chest to keep her warm and immobile.
The woman seemed to gulp air. “Are you an EMT?” Again, her speech was slurred.
