by Chris Pike
“Ella?” Teddy depressed a button on the tape recorder, turning it off. “I’m starting to worry about you. Reliving the first days after the attack is having a huge effect on you. You don’t have to continue if you don’t want to.”
He put a hand on my shoulder, and my tension melted away at the kind gesture.
“Ella, I can come back another time if you’d like me to. This must be hard on you.”
I didn’t answer because I couldn’t. The words were all jumbled in my head and when I opened my mouth to speak, no sounds came out. It was like a dream I’d had where I tried to desperately scream or warn someone of impending danger, but I couldn’t.
I was paralyzed with fear. I had to fight through the helplessness, to push forward, to forget the fear. Fear was in our minds. It was made up, fiction we insert into reality to prevent us from accomplishing what we need to do. I’d overcome fear before. A few spoken words certainly paled in comparison to what I’d been through.
“I guess I should pack up and leave if you’re unable to talk anymore. I understand if that’s the case,” Teddy said.
He reached for his backpack and thumped it on the table. He gathered his pencil and paper, and placed the recorder in his backpack.
I recognized the genuine concern in his voice. He was more concerned about my welfare than recording history. Oddly, he reminded me of Kyle in the way he thought of others before he thought of himself. I had been too hard on Teddy in the beginning, and I realized that now.
My life had come down to an italicized footnote. How bizarre to think the struggles, the absolute horror we endured, would mean nothing unless I stepped out of my comfort zone. I suppose in a hundred years, my story would be forgotten, relegated to a paragraph or a footnote on a term paper, hastily put together so the student could increase the length of the paper in the hopes of impressing the instructor. Maybe the instructor would take an interest in what happened to me by analyzing my story. Perhaps not. Yet my struggle was real, and it happened, as well as the struggle we all faced, and it was up to me to have it documented.
It was up to me to make sure this generation, and future generations, didn’t forget. With that resolve I was determined to carry on.
I placed my hand over his to still him. “This is necessary, and it’s something I must do. You’re the one who needs to hear this.” I smiled pleasantly. “I must confess something.”
“What’s that?” Teddy asked.
“I did a background check on you.”
“You did? Why?” Teddy was incredulous at my confession.
“I needed to find out what kind of person you are before I agreed to meet you. I asked our librarian, the one over there,” I nodded in her direction, “to send me any articles you had published.”
“Really?”
“She did, and quite clandestinely, I have to say. She made inquiries pretending to be a publisher of a new periodical who was looking for a new voice. The university was quite honored one of theirs was on the short list.”
“Nobody ever told me,” Teddy said.
“That’s because we asked for the inquiry to be kept quiet.”
“And all this time I thought you had ignored my repeated requests.”
“Not at all. I wanted to make sure you were the right person to do this. I’ve read your works, the honesty involved, the care you’ve taken with details to get the story right. I must say, you’ve done superior research. Take, for example, the piece you did about President Sayer.”
“What did you think about it?” Teddy pulled his chair out and sat back down again. “I scoured every article and interview I could find about him and what happened when Air Force One went down. He mentioned you.”
“I’m aware of that. I read his interview. It’s completely accurate except for one part.”
“Oh?” Teddy furrowed his brow. “I’m sure I didn’t leave anything out. I’m positive I read everything I could about interviews the president made when he was rescued from the pod.”
“I believe you when you say you read everything. But there was something important President Sayer didn’t mention.”
“What was that?”
“He saved the life of a very important person.”
Teddy cracked a wry smile. He pulled the tape recorder from his backpack and set it on the table. “Ella, are you ready to continue?”
“I am.”
Chapter 13
Present Day
West of Houston
The moment May screamed I jumped into action, bolting to the doorway. I put my hands on each side of it, ready to propel myself onto the slippery gravel. My first thought was to leap from the train and burst out onto the land where she had to be. Reason overcame panic because where I stood I had a high vantage point from which to scan the area where I thought the scream came from.
High grass and weeds abutted each side of the incline leading to the tracks, with a line of bushes and trees closer to the highway. Between the grass and the tree line was a patch of thorny dewberry vines. May and I had been reminiscing about picking dewberries. She had to be somewhere near those vines.
The air was still, the sun hot in the sky. I whipped my head from side to side, straining to hear anything indicating where she was. The only sound was the chirping of a bird.
May screamed again, and I pinpointed the likely place. A large oak was about fifty feet in front of me. It was shady and a good spot to take refuge. Standing as tall as I could I saw a flash of blonde hair.
“There she is!” I thrust my arm in the direction of her screams. “She’s by that oak!”
I leapt, and jumped out of the train onto the gravel.
My feet slipped out from under me and I took a hard fall flat on my back, knocking the wind out of me. I gasped for breath, and could neither inhale or exhale, waiting for my paralyzed lungs to work. It took a long second until I caught my breath, and when I did I inhaled as deeply as I could.
In the moment it took for me to be able to catch a breath and to push up to a kneeling position, President Sayer, without regard for his own life or health, catapulted into action.
When I stood, a sharp pain seized my ankle, and I yelped. I took a glance and determined I had sprained my ankle.
Crap.
President Sayer raced past me, jumped over a log, and hurled himself toward May. Kyle and Tommy ran with equal zeal behind him, sprinting like they were jumping over hurdles on a track. They were both athletic, and while I considered myself a good athlete, there was no way I was in their league.
“Travis, stay with the train,” I said, not realizing it was an order.
“Good idea,” he replied. “I’ll keep a look out.”
Dusting myself off, I gritted my teeth to prepare myself for the pain when I put weight on my foot. I half ran, half hobbled, skipping down the path laid by the hurried footsteps of the three men. I dashed as fast as my throbbing ankle would let me through the high grass and bushes, branches and leaves slapping my face and tearing at my skin.
President Sayer reached May first, and approached her cautiously, choosing his steps with care as if he was dodging hidden land mines. His eyes flicked around, searching the ground. He motioned for me to stay behind him.
“Here she is!” he yelled. “I found her.”
I came to a quick stop right behind him, favoring my sprained ankle.
May’s eyes were as big and round as a full moon, and her skin looked like the blood had been drained out of her. She cradled one of her arms and had a bump on her forehead. I resisted the temptation to go to her.
“What’s your name?” he asked May.
“Maybelline Strong. May for short. That’s my sister next to you. Please don’t joke about my name. I’m not in the mood.” May’s eyes went to President Sayer. “Wait. I’ve seen you on TV. Are you the…” she gulped, “…the president?”
“I am.”
May looked to me for confirmation. I nodded.
“Oh, I didn’t mean to s
ass you.”
“That’s not important. What’s important is what happened to you. Can you tell me what’s wrong?”
May sniffled and croaked, “A snake bit me. Am I going to die?”
“No,” President Sayer said, using a calm reassuring voice. “Out of all the people who get bit by a snake each year in the United States, only a few succumb to their injuries, and those are usually people with a weakened immune system.”
His tone was smooth, and flowed like rich chocolate milk being poured out of a carton into a tall glass. I sure was impressed, listening to him rattle off those facts. No wonder he got elected. If I remembered my facts correctly, he was a fighter pilot, so I suppose those men needed nerves of steel to fly a jet. He was also the epitome of the American dream. He was from the poor side of the tracks, raised by a single mother after the father skipped town upon learning he got a girl pregnant, never to be heard from again until the son he fathered was elected president.
I remember my mom and dad watching the nightly news, amazed that a kid with all the odds stacked against him could rise above his humble beginnings, excel in school, join the Air Force, and become a fighter pilot.
It was his ability to connect with folks of all walks of life that got him elected, my dad said.
“Tell me what happened,” President Sayer said. He gently inspected May’s arm, turning it over and testing it for flexibility.
“I was picking dewberries when a wasp got tangled in my hair. When I was running around slapping at my hair, I tripped and fell in the vines, and that’s when I heard a rattle. I stayed as still as I could, but the snake was right in front of me, and when I put my hand up to protect my face, it bit my arm. I screamed and ran away from it. I bumped my head on the tree, and it knocked me down.” She put her hand to her forehead where a red bump had formed.
With a casualness belying the seriousness of the situation, President Sayer said, “It had to have been a rattlesnake. Where did it go?”
She pointed to her left. “I think it went that way.”
“You two,” he said, pointing to Kyle and Tommy, “spread out and find that damn snake! May, can you stand?”
“Yes.”
“Okay. I’ll carry you to the train because I don’t want you moving around too much. Be sure to keep your arm at your waist. Try to stay as calm as possible.”
President Sayer picked May up as easily as if he was picking up a bag of feathers. He held her in front of him, and she laid her head on his shoulder.
“Ella, you go on up ahead and ask the train conductor if he has a snake bite kit.”
Kyle and Tommy came running back right then. Kyle held a headless snake in his hand, the rattle dangling harmlessly. He showed it to May. “Do you think this is the snake?”
She nodded.
“Tommy, you stay here with me. I need you for backup in case anything happens.” President Sayer then addressed Kyle and me. “Kyle, you go with Ella, and help her if she needs it. She’s hobbling and we don’t need another wounded person right now. Each one of us is important, so we need to stay healthy.”
I put my arm over Kyle’s shoulder, looping it across his back and neck. He held onto my hand and put his other arm at my waist to support me. Together, we made it back before the others did.
When he came to the engine car, Kyle helped me to the first rung of the metal ladder.
“What happened to you?” Travis asked.
“I sprained my ankle.”
“Can you make it up?”
“I’ll be okay. Give me your hand please.”
He extended his hand for me to take it. I grabbed him by his forearm, and he did the same to me. With a firm grip, he hoisted me into the cab.
Still favoring my bad ankle, I asked, “Do you have a snake bite kit?”
Travis scratched his head. “We should have one. I’ll check the cabinet where the medical supplies are kept.”
Kyle sat next to me. “Ella, you need to lie down and put your ankle above your heart to keep the swelling down.”
“I can’t. I need to help May.”
“You’ll be no help to anyone if you make that any worse. You should be good to go by tomorrow if you rest now. Since we don’t have any ice, I’ll find you some anti-inflammatory over-the-counter medicine that will help. I’ve got some in my backpack.”
Reluctantly, I lay down on the cot and propped my foot up with a pillow. Now that my adrenaline rush had waned, the throbbing in my ankle increased. President Sayer finally reached the cab. He came to the door, and with Tommy and Kyle’s help, they hoisted May up. As I was rising from the cot to help May, Kyle appeared and pushed me back down. He handed me two pills and a drink of water.
“Take these and stay there.”
He went to May, looped an arm around her waist, and helped her to a chair.
“Hey!” Travis raced back into the cab. “I found a snake bite kit.”
“Thanks.” Kyle took the kit, opened it, and set out the contents in an orderly fashion on the table next to May. There were bandages, alcohol wipes, a rubber tourniquet, scalpel blade, and a venom extractor pump. I didn’t recognize the other items.
Tommy came in, took one look at me, and smirked.
“What’s wrong with you?” he asked, smiling the biggest fake smile. “Tired already?”
“Tommy!” Kyle snapped. He catapulted up and stood eye to eye with his brother. “Leave her alone. She sprained her ankle and I told her to lay down.”
“Sounds like something you’d say to a girl, right before you fu—”
Kyle’s punch knocked Tommy backwards, and he fell to the floor, a thin line of blood drizzled down from his lip. He touched it gingerly, inspecting his mouth for a loose tooth. Finding none, he said, “That’s what I thought.”
Kyle shook his head in disgust. “You need to leave.”
“My pleasure.”
Tommy slunk to the door and disappeared, which was typical of him whenever the going got tough. When someone needed help, he was the first to bow out.
Kyle took his time cleaning May’s snake bite wound, being careful not to press too hard. When he was done, he put a clean bandage on it and gently smoothed the edges down. Using a pen, he drew a circle around the edge of the swelling.
“May, how are you feeling?”
“It’s starting to burn, like someone is putting a match to my skin.”
“It’s normal for it to burn and sting.”
“How long?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Aren’t you going to try to suck the poison out?” May asked.
“No. It would only irritate your skin and cause the venom to spread more.”
“What about the tourniquet? That should help.”
“Recent studies have indicated it’s best not to do that,” President Sayer said. “It restricts circulation, causing the venom to pool where the bite was. That’s bad. The good news is hardly anyone dies of a snake bite. You’re young and healthy, so that’s on your side. The best thing for you to do right now is to stay calm and quiet. Drink plenty of fluids, and let your body do the rest. I’ll check my medical kit in the escape pod. I’m sure there are antibiotics we can start you on.”
“Thank you,” May said. “President Sayer, I—”
“Call me Charlie.”
“Okay, Charlie. You’re much nicer than what they’ve been saying about you on the news.”
Charlie laughed, and I admit, even I found that funny. My dad always watched the evening news, requiring us to be quiet and to not interrupt because we would discuss recent events afterwards. It was impossible to avoid the news, and as of this moment I was glad my dad made me watch. How cool was it to meet the president of the United States?
“Well,” he said, “don’t believe everything you hear on the news.”
He stood, and I didn’t think anything of it until he stumbled back like he was drunk. He lost his balance and crumpled to the floor.
Kyle rushed to his side.
“Ella, what happened?”
I propped myself up on my elbows. “He was helping May, then the next thing I knew he collapsed.”
Kyle lifted Charlie’s wrist to take his pulse.
“Is he okay?” I asked.
“He fainted. That’s all. I’ll have to tell him that if he does this again, he could do some damage to himself.”
I laughed.
“What’s so funny?” Kyle scowled at me.
“It’s funny because when you’re in the military, you’re supposed to take orders from the president. He is the commander in chief. But you’re the one giving the orders to him now.”
“Well, the president is mortal like we are, and can bleed and get a concussion like the rest of us.”
* * *
After the two unexpected events were under control, make that three counting my sprained ankle, Travis gathered all of us into the engine room, and told us it was time we get going.
“Wait,” Charlie said. “We can’t leave yet.”
“Why not?” The irritation in Travis’s voice was apparent. “You may be president of the United States, but I’m the conductor of this train, and I say it’s time we leave.”
“I understand and respect that. Still, we shouldn’t leave supplies in the escape pod, especially medical supplies.”
“We’ve wasted enough time, and a few extra supplies won’t do us any good.”
“It will. We need to take advantage of whatever supplies we have. The pod has more than you think it has.”
“I bet it does.” Travis raised an inquisitive eyebrow. “There’s more than medical supplies in there. I’m not exactly sure what’s on Air Force One, but I’d bet my last dollar there’s more to this story than you’re letting on, and now’s the time to come clean about whatever is in the pod you don’t want to fall into the wrong hands.”