by Tina DeSalvo
Jewell gasped, trying to find her next breath. Her world had just tilted.
Her foot slipped off the brake, onto the gas pedal, and she jerked forward in a screeching acceleration. She pounded hard on the brake, but it was too late. Beau’s beautiful, clean, sleek, expensive, once-perfect sports car was perfect no more as she rear-ended Tante Izzy’s solid old neon pink truck.
”Da car is on fire!” Tante Izzy shouted from somewhere not too far away from where Jewell remained in the wrecked car.
Oh, my God. Fire.
Smoke filled the cab. Jewell shoved at the deflated airbag. She twisted to unbuckle the seatbelt. It was locked so tight across her chest she could hardly move.
“There’s so much smoke, I can’t see Jewell!” Pearl screamed from outside the car. Jewell knew she had to get out right away, but her hands shook. Fear made her fingers clumsy. Hurry. Hurry. Hurry. The red tab on the seatbelt was right there, but she couldn't depress the button to release the belt.
“Someone call nine-one-one! Get out of the car, Jewell!” She heard Ruby scream. “Hurry!"
The driver-side door flew open; a heavy arm reached across her body and unfastened the seat belt. With watery eyes Jewell looked up through the smoke. “Beau.” She wrapped her arms around his neck. “Fire. Help.”
“No fire, chère. It’s not smoke. It’s the powder from the airbag deploying. Relax. I got you.”
She rested her head against his chest, smelling his clean, warm scent. Even though she was shaking all over, she felt safe in his arms. Tears welled, blurring her vision. She cried for the loss of her perfect, honest, grand-mère. She felt she’d discovered that there was no Santa Claus all over again. And she’d crashed into this sad place using Beau’s beautiful car.
“Your car,” she said, her voice barely a whisper. She'd thought she’d hit the dry, empty bottom of her financial barrel and was now finally starting to refill it. But God had a wicked sense of humor. She'd have to sell her organs to pay for this damage. “I’m sorry. Oh, God. I’m sorry. I wrecked your beautiful car.”
“It’s okay.” She tried to get out of the car but he stopped her. “Hang on. Relax.” He eased back, squatted next to her. “Are you hurt?” His voice was calm, but his eyes were intense, studying her eyes before examining her body.
“I’m fine.” Except for the emotion clogging her throat and making it hard to breathe. “I’ve got to tell Mimi I’m not hurt.” Still she thought of her frail grand-mère. She couldn’t be angry with her. Disappointed. Hurt. Yes, those things, but Mimi was too childlike for Jewell to be angry. “She’ll be frantic.”
“She knows you’re okay. Ruby is with her.” He stared hard into her eyes as she shifted to try to get out again. He shook his head. “I know you want out, but we need to wait for the paramedics to make sure you’re okay before you move around. It’s safer to stay still and in place.” His eyes softened. “And since you know there is definitely not a fire and the airbag powder is settling, it’s all good.”
“All good? Really? Have you seen your car?” Her voice caught. She realized she needed to see his car. She tried to get out once more, but Beau stopped her. “I’m okay.” The damage must be bad for him to be so concerned about her injuries, she realized. Oh, God. She started to speak, but had to clear her throat to get the words past the tightness in her throat. “I’m really sorry, Beau.”
He shrugged. “Are you sure you’re not hurting anywhere? Any pains in your chest from the seatbelt or airbag?” He stood, looked her over, running his hands over her arms. “Any pain at all?” He touched both sides of her ribs.
She lifted her hands to his face. His neck. “Are you hurt? How do you feel?”
“I was in Izzy’s truck, remember? It’s built like a steel tank.” He covered her hand with his, and then removed it. She felt his warmth one moment, a chill the next.
“Thank God, the ladies got out of both vehicles before the accident.” She bit her bottom lip, trying to keep herself from crying. “I’m sorry, Beau.”
“Jewell, you didn’t answer me,” he said, sounding concerned. “Do you feel any pain anywhere? Is your vision blurred? Answer me, damn it.”
She pressed her hand to her chest. “A little sore here, but nothing much. Just what you’d expect. Nothing feels broken.” She lifted her hand to her left cheek. “This hurts here a little.” He lifted her chin and studied her face, eyes serious.
“Looks like you have a bruise forming on your cheekbone. Probably where the airbag hit you when it deployed.” He ran his thumb gently over it. “How bad does it hurt? Nothing looks broken. It’s not swollen. Just discolored a little. We still need to get you checked out.”
She touched the spot. Shook her head. Getting it checked sounded expensive. Unnecessary. “It's not broken," she didn't think it was anyway. Besides, Jewell wondered a little hysterically, what could be done for a broken face? A cheek splint?
Beau squatted next to her, again. He patted her reassuringly on the thigh as he looked at her with a tenderness she’d never before seen in his eyes. Was she that transparent? God, she hated looking exactly as she felt—weak, overwhelmed and upset. So she smiled, stiffened her spine and tried to sit straighter.
“I’m uninjured,” she said, firming up her voice and looking into his beautiful green eyes. “I’m fit as a fiddle. See?” She did a few bicep curls. He grinned. “I get that waiting for the paramedics is textbook…but not necessary. Really. I want to get out of the car.” She shoved hard against his shoulder, throwing him off balance, and he had to stand to keep from falling. She took the opportunity to climb out of the car. The full force of the sunlight in the cloudless day hit her in the eyes after being in the shade of the interior of the car. Black dots danced through her vision as her knees buckled. She reached for the door, trying to find her equilibrium, but Beau grabbed her around the waist before her hands found the door. He lifted her and cradled her in his arms.
“Stubborn woman.”
“I’m fine, Beau.” She blinked, and then shaded her eyes with her hand. The spots were still there. “Really. I can walk.”
“Yeah. I know. Fit as a fiddle.” He was frowning. He was stubborn too. She didn’t want to make a scene and argue with him in the middle of the parking lot when she knew he would win this battle. Besides, she wasn’t entirely certain her shaky legs could hold her, not yet. Not that she’d admit that to him.
He carried her toward the church. Jewell tried to look at the damage to the car as they passed the front of it, but people were gathered around it and she couldn’t see past them. She smelled oil, or something like it. Did some mechanical fluid leak from the car?
Dear Lord, how bad was it? Bad enough for people to gawk? And what about Tante Izzy’s truck? He said it was built like a tank, but there had to be damages, right? She’d have to pay for the damage to that too.
She only had the minimal required state liability insurance. It wouldn’t pay for this. Even if it would, filing a claim would raise her rates. She couldn’t afford that. This would have to come out of pocket.
Beau placed her on a bench under an oak tree that was positioned along the walkway near the parking lot. The shade from the tree made it a few degrees cooler, but that certainly had nothing to do with why she was trembling. The realization of what she’d done and the ramifications of it made her a physical wreck. They weren’t very far from the church entrance, and she considered running inside and prostrating herself before the Holy Tabernacle, begging God for mercy.
She didn’t have time to make the dash inside because she spotted Mimi. She was standing six feet away, holding onto Ruby, crying. “Mimi,” she called to her, waving her over.
“Ma sucrée” she sniffed, her eyes red-rimmed and wet with tears. Her lined mouth was in a deep frown. “Are you hurt?” she asked when she neared her.
Jewell’s heart broke. Mimi must’ve been so worried, frightened. Ruby was kind and attentive to her, but she obviously wasn’t able to console her. Jewell und
erstood why. Mimi might be confused about a lot of things, but she was always aware of how much she depended on her. To think something bad had happened to the one person who took care of her, that saw to her needs, that was her companion, had to be terrifying.
“I’m fine, Mimi. I’m not hurt at all.” She smiled, tried to get up to go to her, but Beau squeezed both of her shoulders to keep her seated. He shook his head.
“Come sit next to her, Mignon,” he said, before Jewell could tell him where to get off. Then, to her surprise, he repeated for Mimi to come sit in Cajun French. “Assez-vous s’il vous plait.” His voice was calm, kind. He looked at Jewell. “Don’t worry, Boots. I don’t speak French. That’s one of the few phrases I know. Besides the cuss words.”
“You heard him?” Mimi asked Jewell. “He vous’ed me instead of tu’ing me. He’s so respectful and nice. He must really like me. ”
“I do,” Beau said without hesitation. “How can I not?”
Ruby helped Mimi sit next to Jewell who grabbed her hand. Mimi rested her head on Jewell’s shoulder, receiving as much comfort as she gave. Mimi’s familiar scent, compounded with her favorite drugstore face powder and hairspray, reminded Jewell of home and family. It no longer mattered that Mimi had known who her father was. Her not telling her or denying knowing must’ve been done because she was trying to protect her from a father who hadn’t cared. He and his family hadn’t wanted to bring his child into their fold. Mimi brought her daughter’s illegitimate child into hers, though. That was reason enough to deny knowing her jerk sperm donor.
“I thought you were dead,” Mimi said, tears rolling silently down her cheek. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
Jewell sucked in a harsh breath. Fought back the tears. “It’s just a fender-bender, Mimi.” She stroked her hand, hoping what she said was true. “I’m good. I’m…”
“Fit as a fiddle,” Beau said, interrupting Jewell and making her laugh. Despite not knowing how she’d pay for the damages to Beau’s car and having her distraught Mimi clinging to her, she actually was laughing a real genuine, heartfelt laugh. A laugh she was certain bordered on hysteria, judging from the odd breaths mixed in.
“Mais, is she laughin’ or havin’ a seizure?” Tante Izzy said, walking up to the bench. “I t’ink she got a brain injury.”
Mimi looked up at her and smiled. “She’s not having a seizure, Izzy. That’s how my Jewell laughs when she’s happy.”
Happy? Oh, dear, Lord. Do my happy and hysterical laughs sound the same? She patted Mimi on the hand. She was smiling now.
Beau knelt in front of her. He ran his hands over her knees and lower limbs again. She knew he was looking for injuries, since she’d collapsed on her shaky knees. She moved her legs out of his reach, but he remained kneeling near her.
“Beau. Is she really all right?” Ruby asked, bending over his shoulder.
“Seems like it.” He shrugged, looking at Jewell for confirmation.
She nodded. “I’m good.” Mimi rested her head on her shoulder again.
“You look okay, Jewell.” Ruby added, still looking worried. “Thank God, you don’t have no twisted limbs. Oh, my, you do have a nice shiner on your cheek.” She squeezed Beau’s shoulder. “The paramedics will tell us for sure. They should be here any minute. We called the ambulance, right away.”
“And the fire department when we saw the smoke,” Pearl said, looking over Ruby’s shoulder. “But then Beth told us that the airbag did that.”
“We called the po-lice too.” Tante Izzy squeezed in closer to Jewell by using Beau’s shoulder as ballast. “And Beth called Father Mark out of the rectory, in case you needed last rites.”
A man with a black golf shirt, black slacks, gray hair, and light eyes waved as he walked up to the cluster of Bienvenus encircling Jewell. She finger-waved to him and he waved back.
“Father, no matter what Ruby says about bringing in Miss Praline for a benefit, don’t do it,” Jewell told him. His brows lifted, but to his credit, he didn’t ask her what in the world she was talking about. He probably thought she had a brain injury too.
”I called Jesus, Mary and Joseph,” Mimi said, looking up at her. “I called them to protect you in the fire and carry you to safety. Only it was Beau who carried you to safety.” She looked at Beau and smiled. She took one of the last three rings off her finger and gave it to him. “Thank you, for saving my grandbaby.” Now, Tante Izzy, Ruby and Beau each had one of her special rings.
Ruby sniffed, wiped the tears off her cheek with her sleeve. “That’s so sweet…it’s enough to send a menopausal woman into sobs,” she cried.
Beau accepted the ring with a smile. “She’s safe and unharmed now, darlin’.” He put the ring on his right pinky. It fit just past the first knuckle. Jewell’s heart suddenly felt lighter in her chest as warmth flooded into every pore inside her body.
She looked at Beau, who was listening to her grand-mère talk about the ring, telling him some ridiculous story of how she’d gotten it from a boyfriend who was a New Orleans Saints coach. He was grinning and nodding. Beau was such a nice, kind man. A caring man who respected and loved his family and respected and showed kindness to hers. If only…
If only what, she thought, uncertain where her thoughts were headed, but certain they weren’t based in reality. They were based in gratitude, maybe. And only gratitude for a few acts of kindness he’d shown to them. She had to not let her judgment be distorted by how he treated Mimi when he’d just recently accused her and Mimi of scamming his family. Yes, Jewell had to be wise in remembering she had to think as a researcher, using only the facts. The last time she’d let her emotions corrupt her judgment, it left her in big trouble…life changing trouble.
“Tante Izzy says I should call your mother too.” Ruby said, whispering to Jewell. “She says she’d want to know her daughter was in a car crash. I tried to discourage her. I told her you’re a grown woman who can call her momma if she wants to. It’s not like you’re incapacitated or in need of a blood transfusion.”
Jewell went on full alert. “No. Don’t call her. This incident is over. It’s not serious.” She stood. She had to get away from any more discussion of a mother she’d spoken to only once in five years. She didn’t want to explain why she didn’t want to call her or hear them try to talk her into contacting her. Beau stood too.
“Where are you going, Boots?” He slipped his arm around her waist. She felt the cool, smooth metal of Mimi’s ring on her side. “You should just hang out here for a little bit.”
“I need to walk.” She looked at Mimi. “You’re okay?”
“Yes. I’m fine.” Mimi said. “Because you’re fine. And Beau will protect you.”
Beau gave her side a squeeze.
“Don’t let her comment swell that already overindulged ego of yours, Beauregard.” Jewell shook her head, feeling both annoyance and relief that he was at her side.
Father Mark, who’d been in a private conversation with Pearl, spoke to Jewell for the first time. “We’ll take Mignon into the church hall to have refreshments,” he said, sounding friendly, with a heavy Southern, non-Cajun, drawl. The deep lines in his cheeks attested to his being a man who smiled easily, as he was doing now. “I’m glad you’re well, Jewell. Nice meeting you.” He shook her hand.
“Nice meeting you, too.”
“And I’m very grateful that I didn’t have to meet you while I was performing your last rites, as Pearl had claimed you needed.” He glanced at Pearl with humor in his eyes.
“Well.” Pearl threw up her arms. “Better safe than sorry. I didn’t want her to spend eternity in purgatory or worse.”
“Ma sucrée is going straight to heaven.” Mimi pointed a crooked finger at Pearl. “She’s a good girl. Besides that, I’ve offered my month of first Friday masses for her—three times—to make sure of it.”
Father Mark’s smile deepened. “Let’s go have some punch and cookies now.”
“And my cake and bouillé
,” Tante Izzy added. “Beth, you got it out my truck like I tole you, right?”
“Yes, ma’am, I did.”
“I want some refreshments too,” Ruby added, helping Mimi up from the bench. “We’ll just have a little bit, though. We don’t want to spoil our appetite for the potluck afterward.”
“I’m goin’ to wait here,” Tante Izzy said. “I need to talk to Captain Naquin. He always come to accident scenes in da Hook and Ladder truck. I’ll meet y’all right after.”
“Beth, stop texting for half a minute,” Pearl said as they walked away. “I don’t want to pick you up off the ground like I did at the Piggly Wiggly because you’re not watching where you’re going. I swear, I think you have a texting addiction.”
“More likes a gossipin’ addiction.” Tante Izzy harrumphed, sitting on the bench as Father Mark escorted the other ladies toward the church hall.
“Shall I expect that everyone in Cane will know what an idiot I am for rear-ending a bright pink tank of a truck that you can spot miles down the road?” Jewell motioned to Beth.
“I’d say what happened passed into the Bayou grapevine thirty seconds after the accident.” Beau looked toward the street as sirens approached. “Even without the town texter, the cavalry charging in with full sirens blaring would’ve alerted everyone.” A fire truck and ambulance were racing down the highway toward them.
She sighed and he turned her face toward him. He looked like he wanted to say something, but had second thoughts. Her mind couldn’t wrap around what it might’ve been. All she could think about was how she’d crushed his beautiful car. At least she thought she did. Maybe, if she was lucky, the damage was minimal. She’d heard airbags deployed with minimal damage sometimes, right? Her optimism felt thin, though. Might as well take a look at Beau’s car and either put herself out of her misery or plunge further into it.
Jewell walked to the front of the car, as the sirens neared. Beau still had his hand around her waist as she saw the damage from the wreck for the first time. The bumper looked like a crumpled sheet of paper. “Oh, God.” She looked up at Beau, who was staring at the mangled bumper of his car. He didn’t say it, but she could see that it hurt for him to look at his once beautiful sports car. “I’m sorry. So very sorry.”