by Suzy Shearer
Earlier he had rang Carl and asked him if he’d been able to get through to Jessica at all. He told Aiden that he and Jess had a brief conversation around six, six-fifteen. Carl had been trying unsuccessfully to reach her since he’d heard about the tornado.
“Her room was on the seventh floor, Aiden. I’m worried. There’s been a hazy short video on the television. There’s this huge swath of rubble through the city. It’s all gone. I couldn’t even see the hotel. I don’t know if it was in the path or not.”
“I’m on my way. I’ve got Gray’s jet. Keep me posted. If you manage to get through or get any sort of news, ring me.”
“I will. Find her. Keep us posted. Good luck!”
They finally landed. Rob taxied the jet to the edge of the runway, as close as he could to the gate. Aiden promised he would ring him as soon as they knew what was happening. Rob told him he would make sure the plane was filled and would be on standby until Aiden needed it.
Aiden gave him his keys and wallet, pulling off his suit coat he said, “Better I leave all this with you. I’ll just keep my phone.”
Aiden raced down the stairs and out through the gates. Looking around he saw a four wheeled drive, a Jeep, flash its lights and he raced to it.
“Aiden! You made good time.”
“Thanks for this, Sal.”
“I’ve got in contact with the police in Brownsville. The hotel was hit bad.”
Aiden groaned.
“I don’t know how close we will be able to get. There’s blocked road and debris everywhere. I figured with the four-wheeler we could get to places a car couldn’t. Everything is in chaos, the tornado only touched down about ninety minutes ago. Emergency services are stretched to the max as they’re trying to start the rescue efforts.”
“Thanks, Sal. Just get me as close as you can.”
Sal drove as fast as he could but even so, it took them another six minutes to reach Brownsville. Sal momentarily stopped as they looked at the destruction. Neither could believe it. Darkness was falling but they could see fires had broken out everywhere. Flashing lights from emergency vehicles were scattered all over.
It was as if a giant bowling ball had been rolled through the centre of the town. Buildings alongside them were unrecognisable. They were scattered across the roads. Trees were uprooted. It was impossible to even know where they were.
“Okay. The GPS says the hotel is to the right, four kilometres away.”
Sal engaged gears and they rolled forward slowly. Aiden was sure they would never have made it as close to the hotel with a normal car. Somehow Sal managed to get the Jeep through the wreckage. The high beam of the headlights made the destruction stand out in its beams. They could hear people crying, some survivors were stumbling around in a daze in the growing darkness. A man stepped out in front of the car, waving his arms at them. Sal slammed on the brakes and the Jeep slid sideways as Sal tried avoid him.
“Help me! Please help me, it’s my son and my wife. They’re trapped. I can hear them calling me, I need help!”
Sal looked at Aiden.
“I don’t think I can get you much closer. You go ahead and I’ll see what I can do here to help then go back to the airport. The hotel should be about thirty metres directly in front of us.”
Aiden nodded. Sal drove the car closer to where the man had pointed, trying to aim the headlights on the ruined building. Both men got out of the car. Sal went with the man to help and Aiden raced ahead.
When Aiden reached the location of the hotel, for a moment he stood stunned, unable to comprehend what he was seeing. In the darkness, it looked was a flattened mess. He thought the building had collapsed. There were people everywhere. A few emergency crews were searching through the rubble. Two ambulances, their flashing lights piercing the darkness stood waiting. A fire engine and the ambulances had been angled so that their headlights hit the rubble. Aiden had no idea what to do or which way to go.
He walked to the closest ambulance, crossing his fingers as he spoke to a paramedic loading supplies into a case.
“My fiancée, she was here. Do you know if there are any survivors?”
“Yes. They’ve got about four dozen people out so far but there are still people trapped, we can hear them calling for help. Sorry, but we’ve also pulled out some who’ve died.”
Aiden groaned. “Is there a list? Someway I can find out if she’s been found?”
The paramedic pointed him to another man, beside a fire engine who was putting a battery into a large torch. Aiden walked over to him and went through the same speech.
“I’ve got a few names, some people were unconscious. What’s her name?”
“Jessica. Jessica Williams.”
The fireman looked down his list and shook his head.
“Not on here. Maybe you should check at the hospital. It’s been damaged but they are still working there.”
“Where is it?”
“About three kilometres that way.”
He pointed off to the left. Aiden went to walk off and the man grabbed his arm.
“Sorry, mate, but there’s also a makeshift morgue in the church hall down the road. About half a kilometre south.”
Aiden stood rooted to the spot at his words. There was no way he would even consider that Jessica was among the dead. Still he was torn. Should he stay or should he go? If he went where should he go first?
Someone shouted and the man beside him ran forward, torch in hand. Aiden followed. There was a man standing, torch in hand.
“There’s a dozen people alive down here, Steve, and one of them said they thought they heard someone moaning in the lift well also.”
Steve looked at Aiden. “Stand back, sir.”
He shone his torch forward. Aiden halted and stood away from a gaping hole about two and half metres deep. It led off down into darkness. The fireman, Steve, who had spoken to him went over to the other man. He had a rope which he tied off then shimmied down into the darkness, Steve followed and shone his torch ahead.
One by one, they helped the people out. Aiden ran forward to help. Most had minor cuts and were in shock. Aiden lay on his stomach and reach down into the pit. Steve and the other man lifted the survivors up to him one at a time. One woman was crying hysterically as they lifted her. Like all the others, she was covered in dust and blood. He carefully got her under the arms and raised her up.
He laid her on the ground beside him then stood and picked her up. Settling her in his arms, he carried her to the paramedic then went back. The three of them worked for the next half hour, getting the dozen people out and to the ambulances. Aiden looked around. There were a few emergency workers scattered everywhere. He gave the fireman a hand to climb back up.
“What about the person they heard in the lift well?”
The fireman shouted down to the other rescuer.
“I’m almost there. I’ll check.”
They both heard him clambering through the rubble.
“I can’t get through, there’s so much debris down here. Going to have to move some of it. I can hear someone yelling for help, think it’s a man.”
Steve looked at Aiden.
“Can you help us still? I know you want to find your girlfriend but if she’s at the hospital, she’ll be taken care of. If she’s still here, you have a chance to find her. There’s only five of us here. We’ve had to split our resources throughout the city. We’re stretched to the limit.”
Aiden realised he was right. It made sense to help, even though he would love to go to the hospital and check.
“What can I do?”
“We need to move some of the debris down there. Have to be careful it’s safe but we know there’s at least one person still alive down there.”
He and Steve climbed down the hole.
“Where are you, Phil?”
“Your left, about three metres. I’ll flash my torch for you.”
Steve and Aiden saw the flash of light and carefully made their way toward it
. Slowly they began to move forward inch by inch through the broken building. They found a man, dead, and Aiden and Steve carried him back to the entrance. Steve climbed up and Aiden passed the body to him. When Steve climbed back down, he told Aiden they’d set up an area for the bodies alongside the fire engine.
“They’ve pulled more out. Three men.”
Soberly, they went back to work.
Aiden lost track of time. He lost track of the amount of bodies they pulled out.
All he knew was whenever he touched a limb, a torso, or a head, his heart would stop until Steve or Phil’s flashlight hit on the body and Aiden could see that it wasn’t Jess. Only then would his heart begin beating again. Still, they managed to move forward albeit slowly and tortuously.
Hour after hour, inch after inch.
The three of them went way past exhaustion. They just acted on instinct. Aiden would never have believed it if someone told him it would take over four hours to move just eleven metres. Occasionally they heard the man weakly calling to them. They shouted back, trying to reassure him, to give him hope.
At last, as their flashlights pierced the darkness, they saw that several metal beams had fallen and then sheets, of perhaps a ceiling, covered them. It made a natural tunnel. They wouldn’t have to dig anymore. Wriggling on their hands and knees, they crawled slowly forward.
Steve’s light hit the startled face of the man they had been searching for. He groaned in relief. He wasn’t in one of the lifts, but rather just outside them.
“Are you hurt?”
“Think I’ve got a broken leg. A few cuts. There’s another man here and a woman. They look bad.”
Phil crawled past the man and checked on the other two.
“Think it’s shock combined with their injuries. They look like they’re in their sixties, although it’s hard to tell.”
Somehow they made it back out. Aiden had no idea how they managed it. Steve climbed up for a backboard from one of the ambulances and they used it to ferry the three people back, one by one. It was hard, awkward work but they finally managed it.
Aiden saw the covered bodies by the fire engine had grown to at least fifteen. Hesitantly he walked over to them. Taking a deep breath he checked to ensure none were Jessie. His heart was pounding as he lifted the plastic sheet covering each one. He walked away after checking the last body and sank to his knees.
Steve walked toward him.
“That man we just pulled out said there’s a woman trapped in one of the lifts alongside where he was. He heard her a few times but not as much now as at first. Can you give me a hand to check?”
“Okay.”
Wearily, Aiden got to his feet and followed Steve back down into the black maw of the pit.
“Phil’s already gone in.”
They began crawling along the track they’d made earlier when they heard Phil call to them.
“Can you get me a crowbar? I can hear something.”
Steve shouted back that he would.
“I’ll get one off the truck.”
He turned and crawled back. Aiden continued crawling along till he reached Phil. Aiden crawled through the hole toward Phil’s flashlight. Phil shone his torch at one of the lift doors.
“There’s a huge piece of metal across this lift’s doors. I heard someone inside moaning softly a couple of times. We need to clear away the wood that’s holding the door shut tight, but it’s also holding up the metal beam. We’re going to have to be fucking careful.”
Phil waved his torch around the area so Aiden could see what they faced. The torch began flickering, it was failing.
“Damn battery’s just about had it.” He hit it a few times. It glowed feebly, then went out.
“Fucking torch!”
Steve arrived with the crowbar and his torch so they could see again. Steve used the crowbar to hammer in wedges of broken wood underneath the piece of metal, keeping it firm while the Phil and Aiden had hold of it.
They could see that while the lift was actually tilted in the shaft, it was wedged tight, probably saving it from dropping further. Aiden saw that the huge metal beam was across the doorway.
“Can you lift that wooden barrier there? It’s pressing against the lift door so we can’t get it open.”
Steve swung the crowbar like an axe as well as he could in the narrow confines of the area. It was awkward, but he managed to knock the wood aside then drag it off the elevator door. At last they had a clear access to the door, with the metal beam safely wedged. Steve used the crowbar to force open the lift door. He shone his torch inside and they all could clearly see a foot trapped under the ceiling of the lift.
“Hold the doors open. I don’t know if they’ll shut, but we can’t take the chance.”
Aiden and Phil held them apart while Steve crawled through.
“Be careful! With the extra weight it might drop!”
The elevator car was almost on its side and Steve went carefully aside.
“It’s a woman. She’s alive!”
He called to the other two. They heard him grunting as he lifted the debris off the woman. It was hard to know what was happening in the dark. The only torch was now with Steve as he tried to extricate the woman. He then began to drag her backward toward the other two. He pulled her out, then Aiden and Phil let go of the doors.
“Take my torch, Phil, and lead the way. Can you take her feet mate?”
They manoeuvred the woman back toward to hole leading upward. Aiden had her feet while Steve held her under the arms. They half-carried, half-dragged her, unable to see anything but the dancing torchlight from Phil ahead. Aiden could feel a sticky wetness on both his hands, and he just hoped he wasn’t doing more damage to whatever wounds the woman had.
They finally reached the pit entrance and Phil climbed up.
“I’ll get a backboard.” He shouted down to the other two.
It was impossible to see if she was young, old, badly injured, or not in the darkness. All they knew was she was alive and drifting in and out of consciousness.
“Don’t know about you, mate, but I’m buggered. Think we should take a break, even just half an hour. Get some fluids in. Have a breather. I’m thinking we’ve got the last survivors out of here.”
Aiden grunted his approval. He was exhausted. They both heard Phil come back and clamber down. He was awkwardly carrying the backboard and the torch.
As he reached , the light bounced across the woman’s face.
“Backboard! Someone grab it?”
“Jessie!” Aiden screamed. “Oh my god, Jessie.”
She opened her eyes briefly, then closed them again. Phil turned the torch onto her face and ran it along her body. In the torchlight, Aiden looked at her. She had blood all over her face and clothing.
“This your fiancée?”
Aiden could only nod. Tears were pouring down his face.
“Let’s get her onto the backboard. We can strap her to it and then pull her up.” He and Steve carefully lifted Jess while Phil slid the board underneath her.
Steve laughed at him. “Looks like you found your missing girl.”
Aiden could only grin in relief. He wanted to drag her into his arms but was worried at how injured she may be. All he knew was she was alive.
They finally got Jessica strapped down. It was an awkward manoeuvre, but they managed to get her to the surface. Together they carried her over to an ambulance and slid her inside.
Aiden stumbled against the door and looked in as the paramedic worked on her.
“She may have a broken ankle, not sure, but there’s a lot of cuts across it and her foot. She’s got lots of cuts that will need stitches. She’s drifting in and out of consciousness. Probably a concussion from whatever hit her head and cut it. It’s a pretty deep gash. She’s lost blood.”
“Can we get her to hospital now?”
“Yeah. I’ve got to go back anyway. Need more supplies and there’s another ambo here now. I’ll get her stabilised and w
e can go.” He took Jessie’s engagement ring off and gave it to Aiden. “Here, you better hold onto this. She’ll been scanned, better you know where it is and keep it safe.”
Aiden pushed the ring down hard onto his little finger. He went over and thanked the other two men. They hugged, slapping each other on the back. The hours they’d worked together had brought about a closeness that could only exist and grow in such dire circumstances.
“Thanks, mate. Appreciate your help. Glad you found your girl. Is she going to be okay.”
“I hope so.” Aiden looked passed them. “Do you think anyone is left here?”
“Just talked to the other rescue workers, we think we’ve got everyone alive. A fresh ground crew has just arrived and they’ll do a search to make sure. One’s got a dog to help.”
“What about you two?”
“We’ll catch some shuteye, then start searching again. Take care of your girl. And thanks again.”
They shook hands and Aiden walked back and got into the ambulance. The paramedic looked over at him as he climbed behind the wheel.
“Hope that wasn’t an expensive suit mate.”
Aiden looked down. One leg had a tear from just above the knee to the cuff. He could see a long cut through the tear. Dirt caked the wound. His shirt was torn, filthy, and covered in blood. He couldn’t recognise his tan leather shoes. They were gouged from rubble and black. Aiden rubbed his head, his hand came away sticky. He looked at his hands, they were covered in cuts and scratches. At some point he must have knocked his watch, as the glass covering the face was shattered and the watch had stopped.
“What time is it?”
“4:40.”
Aiden glanced back to where Jessica lay. She was moving slightly and would groan whenever she did. He prayed she wouldn’t have any internal injuries. He pulled out his phone, intending to ring Gray and Carl.
“Won’t do you any good. The phone towers are down. Think some of the landlines at the hospital are working though.”