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“NICK!” I scream as loud as I can. He’s a doctor. He’ll know what to do.
“Josie, baby, can you hear me?” Her lips move, but there’s no sound coming out of her mouth. Next to me, Noah is crying, begging his mother to wake-up. I look up at the people around us, all family, all concerned.
“Where’s the damn ambulance?”
“It’s on its way, Liam,” Je
Nick and Xander bust their way through the on-lookers and bend down next to her.
“What happened?”
“She was watching Noah and Liam and started to wobble. I caught her before she fell,” Mr. Preston tells Nick, who has his pen light out and is shining it in her eyes. He’s doing things I’ve never seen him do before. I’ve only seen him be a part of my son’s life, not trying to save one.
“Nick, is my mom going to be okay?”
“We need to get her to the hospital so she can be looked at. Remember, Buddy, I’m a doctor for kids like you.” But that doesn’t stop Nick from checking her over. When he places his hands on her belly, I start to panic.
“Ashford, is something wrong with the baby?”
“I can’t tell, but I believe she’s in labor.”
“It’s too early,” both her mom and mine say at the same time. I glance quickly and find them standing together, holding each other.
I’ve never been so relieved to hear sirens in my life. The EMT’s are instructing people to get out of their way as they bring the gurney over to us.
“What happened here?” One of them asks, but is only focusing on Josie. Her father recounts the story while they take quick vitals and place a backboard under her.
“How far along is she?”
“Um… thirty-five weeks.” Answering that question is the hardest thing I’ve ever done. I used to think nothing would compare to finding my grandma on the floor or watching JD go down, but this, by far, is the worst.
“What’s her name?”
“Josephine Westbury,” her father answers for me. I give him a nod in appreciation, hoping he understands why I’m tongue-tied. All around me orders are being barked out and I don’t understand a single one of them.
“You need to let go of her, Sir.”
“Wh… what?” I ask, shaking my head. “She’s my wife. I can’t.”
“You can ride along in the truck, but you have to let go of her.” When they start to lift her, I lock down. There’s a force inside of me fighting. My brain is telling my limbs to move, to let them take her, but my heart is saying no, to hold on tight. I’m losing the battle and can’t stop it.
Strong hands clamp down on my shoulders, pulling me away from her. I fight, but another set of arms grab a hold of me. Harrison and Xander are keeping me sandwiched in. I could take Harrison, but Xander would give me a run for my money.
“Come on, mate. You need to be calm for your missus. They’ll let you go with her in the ambulance if you can keep yourself under control. You don’t want that sod going with her, do you?”
Nick is ru
“I’m cool,” I say, and the hands drop. I take off ru
“What’s your name?”
“Liam.”
“Okay, Liam. We’re going to get your wife to the hospital. Everything will be okay.”
The truck takes off with a lurch, causing me to wobble a little. I lean down so I can talk to my wife. “I don’t know what’s going on, but I need you to be strong.” As I’m whispering in her ear I hear beeping. The last time I heard this, JD was in a coma. Sweat starts to pebble on my forehead and my heart starts racing.
“What’s that noise?”
“Heart monitor for your wife and baby.”
“Okay, that’s good, right?”
“It is. I’m making sure she’s stable right now and that the baby isn’t in distress.”
I know I have to trust her to do her job, but in the back of my mind I fear she’s not doing enough. My wife is unconscious and they won’t tell me why.
“We’re here.”
Before I have time to react, the back doors are open and Josie’s gurney is being pulled out from under me. The EMT’s are ru
“You look lost. Can I help you?” I look down at an older lady with white hair and a grandmotherly face. For a minute, I think she looks like my grandma.
“That was my wife they just rushed in there.”
She nods and places her hand on my bicep as pushes me toward the doors. “I’m Ethel. I volunteer here in my free time. It’s the best thing for me in my old age. I can spend hours rocking newborns to sleep while their moms rest.”
“My wife is pregnant. She passed out at our son’s baseball game today.”
“The staff here is wonderful. They’ll take care of her. Come on, I’ll show you where to go.”
Ethel takes me to the emergency room, where the lady tells me they’ve taken her to labor and delivery.
“Well, we best get on up there.” Ethel is slow and I want to run there, but I’m not sure if I’d make it. I let her show me the way because right now she’s keeping me somewhat calm.
“Good afternoon, Ethel.”
“Hi, Lois. This young man is looking for his wife. They just brought her in by ambulance.”
Lois smiles, but it’s not very reassuring. I just want to see my wife. “She’s with the doctors now. Ethel can take you to the waiting room.”
Ethel tugs on me to follow her and I do. When she sits down next to me, I feel like asking her if she has someplace else that she needs to be, but the truth is I don’t want to be alone. I don’t know how much time passes until I hear familiar voices. Noah comes sprinting toward me and I stand up and catch him as he launches himself into my arms. Everyone is frantic, except Nick, who is calmly speaking with the nurse.
“What’s going on, Liam?” Mrs. Preston asks.
“I don’t know,” I say, shaking my head and holding Noah in my arms. I don’t care how old your child is, when their mom is hurt, they’re just like babies again. I set him down and pull him into my side.
“Where is she?” her father asks.
“The doctors are with her now. We have to wait until they come out.” I’m useless in this situation and my hands are tied. I want to be in there with Josie, but know I’d be in the way. I’d have to touch her, hold her, and they need the space to work on her.
We cram into the waiting room, which isn’t big enough to hold our family. JD, Nick and Harrison all take spots on the floor. Je
Ethel appears out of nowhere with a tray full of coffee and juice for the kids. Right now I think she’s the greatest lady I’ve met in a long time because she’s taking care of my family without even being asked.
When she stops at my mom, she smiles softly. “You know, you look like this actress I used to love on the big screen.”
“Is that so?” I eye my mom out of the corner of my eye and watch her. Her silver screen days have been over for so long that her movies are hard to find.
“Oh yes, she stopped acting though, and just disappeared.”
“What was her name?”
I don’t know if my mom is fishing or just making conversation, but either way, their chatter is keeping the mood light.
“Bianca Page. She just lit up the screen when she’d smile.”