by Jaime Maddox
Ella screamed in horror as Cass, already positioned precariously on the top rail, went tumbling over and down into the ravine.
Jumping up, Ella ran down the path toward the stream, mindful of the loose rock and steep pitch of the trail. When she rounded a bend, ahead on the other side, she spotted the Scouts she’d seen earlier. She looked up the cliff face to where Cass had been standing; there was no place she could have landed except the water. Scanning the stream as she ran, she looked for some sign of her, and then, after a few seconds, she saw a head and arms appear above the white water, only to disappear again a split second later.
She could never reach her on time! Ella was fifty yards behind where she’d seen Cass, and the current was so swift it would carry her away too quickly for Ella to catch up.
The Scouts might be able to reach her, though!
“Help!” Ella screamed as she ran, waving her arms. “Help!” How could anyone hear over the roar of Roaring Brook?
To her amazement, a young boy looked up at her and touched the arm of another Scout beside him. Ella pointed with both arms at Roaring Brook, and as if carried on the wings of angels, at that moment, Cass’s head and arms appeared again above the surface.
All at once, the entire troop burst into action, rushing a few steps ahead, locking arms and racing into the choppy water. Two, then three, then six of them made it in, spanning nearly half the width of the stream. The boy farthest out was a head taller than the smallest one, and the water was nearly up to his head. Cass, who was barely five feet tall, was surely buried under the water.
Then Cass came up again, pushed by the current or the angels, to within a few feet of the last Scout. Ella saw him reaching as the others stretched to lengthen their human chain, and then he turned, as if he felt something, and she cried with joy as he pulled Cass toward him. The others gathered around him, helping him bring her ashore.
Ella hurried back upstream to a trail of rocks that crossed the water, looking over her shoulder to see the rescue efforts. The Scouts had pulled Cass up onto the rocks beside the water. She didn’t appear to be moving.
Fighting for footing against the raging current, Ella crossed the rocks as quickly as she could, and when she reached the other side, she sprinted in wet sneakers to the circle of humans that had formed downstream. “Is she okay?” she shouted when she was closer, and they turned.
Through a break in the circle she could see the female Scout leader doing CPR, and Ella began sobbing as she ran. “No! Cass, no!”
Pushing through the perimeter, she knelt beside Cass just as her rescuer pulled up from delivering a breath. Then, as if hearing her cries, Cass began coughing.
“She’s alive!” Ella shouted, and she began to shake her. “Cass, open your eyes! It’s Ella, Cass. Talk to me.”
Cass tried to murmur something that came out as a cough.
“She’s alive! Did anyone call 9-1-1?” she asked.
“Yes. They’re on their way.”
“Good! Cass, open your eyes. You’re going to be okay.”
On command, Cass opened her eyes, and Ella leaned close and hugged her again. “You’re okay, too,” she said.
“Yes, yes, I’m doing much better now that I know you’re okay.”
“The baseball player said you fell in the gorge. I went to save you.”
“The baseball player? What baseball player?”
Cass coughed again.
“Cass, what baseball player?” Ella asked. In her fervor to rescue Cass, she’d forgotten about the man who caused this near catastrophe. He’d been wearing a cap and jersey, and suddenly Ella was filled with dread as she waited for Cass’s answer.
“The baseball player. He knows me from the RailRiders, but I didn’t know him. He said you fell and hurt your leg, and I had to help you right away. There wasn’t even time to tell Mom.”
Ella heard a siren drawing closer and breathed a sigh of relief. Even though Cass seemed to be okay, Ella wanted her checked out by the professionals. She had nothing against the Scouts but thought it prudent that Cass go to the hospital.
As if defending herself against Ella’s unspoken vote of no confidence, the female Scout leader spoke. “Cass, my name is Jody. I know first aid, and I just want to make sure you’re not hurt, okay?” The woman looked at Cass and then to Ella for approval.
Raising both hands, Ella nodded. “By all means,” she said.
“Does anything hurt you?” she asked.
“No. Not any more. Last week I had an earache, though. My mom took me to the doctor, and it’s all better now.”
Ella wanted to hug her for her sweet innocence and was immediately reminded that someone had tried to kill her. The baseball player had lied to her and lured her to the gorge, then pushed her over the rail. Why? Why would anyone want to hurt Cass? It didn’t make sense. Everyone loved her.
“Are you breathing okay?” Jody asked.
“Yes, really okay.”
“You really shouldn’t swim in the gorge, Cass,” one of the Scouts said. “It’s very dangerous.”
Ella wanted to tell them she hadn’t been swimming, that she was pushed, but she didn’t think it was right to scare them unnecessarily. She’d tell the police and let them decide what to do. Truthfully, it wasn’t likely that any of them had seen a thing from their angle downstream, but maybe they’d seen the man earlier. Thinking the police might want to talk to the Scouts, Ella asked for Jody’s contact information. “Would you mind giving me your name and number, Jody? I’m sure Cass’s family will want to thank you and your troop.”
“Sure. Do you have something to write on? Or your phone?”
“It’s up there. Would you mind walking up with me?” she said, and as she looked, she saw the ambulance crew picking their way down the steep slope. Apparently that was the easiest way out. “We can walk up when they take Cass.”
“Sure, of course,” Jody said.
In another minute, the first medic reached Cass, and in addition to asking the same questions Jody had, she checked Cass out, squeezing her neck and her stomach, listening to her lungs. Two more medics followed with the stretcher, and they placed an oxygen mask over Cass’s face before lifting her onto the mattress. A moment later, an entire squadron of rescue personnel and two police officers arrived on the scene. Six of them flanked the stretcher and carried it over the rough terrain back toward the crossing.
“It’s too tight,” Cass complained of the mask.
“I’ll fix it,” the medic said with a smile, and their progress halted for a moment while she fulfilled the promise.
“It looks like you knew just what to do,” Ella said to Jody as they began moving again. “Thank you,” she said as she squeezed her arm.
“I’m a merit-badge counselor for first aid. It’s good to put it into action. It shows the boys how important the things they learn are in real life, not just in scouting.”
“That’s for sure. I wish I knew a little first aid. If it was up to me…I hate to even think of what would have happened.”
“I suppose we were in the right place at the right time,” Jody said.
Ella didn’t share her philosophy that much of the very good in life involved being in the right place at the right time, because, at the moment, she didn’t have the energy for a mental debate. She wasn’t even sure if her legs could carry her across the stream and up the hill. But they had to, because with the baseball player on the loose, she wasn’t about to leave Cass’s side.
After waiting for the medics to navigate the stream with Cass’s stretcher, she crossed and began the trek up the cliff. Stopping briefly, she gathered her things—which, thankfully, were just where she’d left them, then quickly typed in Jody’s contact information. It took only a few seconds to catch up to Cass again. Even with six rescuers carrying her, the climb was a slow one.
At the top, they maneuvered her stretcher toward the ambulance, and Ella rushed to one of the two officers. The other had stayed behind to talk to the
Scouts. “Hi, Officer. My name is Elizabeth Townes. Cass—the victim—she’s my neighbor. I saw the whole thing.”
He shook his head. “What was she doing there by herself?”
Ella glanced in Cass’s direction. They’d almost reached the ambulance. “Officer, I really need to talk to you, but I can’t leave her. She’ll be scared. Can you come to the hospital?”
“Yes, of course,” he said. Then, “Guys, this woman is going to accompany your patient, got it?”
With that instruction, the medics parted and ushered Ella into the back of the ambulance, where they helped her into a seat complete with seat belts. “Hi, Ella. I never rode in an ambulance before,” Cass said.
“First time for me, too,” she said.
“I have something special for you, then,” the medic, whose name was Tiffany, said to Cass. Reaching into a cabinet behind her, she pulled out a plastic fire hat. “This is for you. It makes you an official volunteer member of the rescue team.”
She playfully rubbed Cass’s still-wet hair before crowning her with the hat, and when everyone was buckled up, the ambulance took off. “It’ll be just a few seconds to the hospital. Okay, Cass?”
“Wait,” Ella interjected. “Do you have to take her to this hospital? I mean, I have nothing personally against this one, but her sister works at the other one. Dr. Ryan. She’s an ER doctor.”
“Reese?” the medic asked, surprise on her face.
“Yes, Reese Ryan. This is Cass, her sister.”
The medic turned and shouted to the driver. “Change of plans, Todd. We’re going down the hill.”
“I should call Reese,” Ella said. “And your mother.”
“Good idea,” the medic said. “They’ll need some information at the hospital, so it’ll be good if a family member’s there.”
Ella met her gaze and mouthed her question. “She’s okay, right?”
“She’s fine.”
Ella wasn’t religious, but she said a three-word prayer of gratitude and then pulled her phone out to call Reese.
Chapter 22: Exposure
As the phone rang, Ella told herself she was calling Reese because she was a doctor and this was a medical emergency, but she knew it was more than that. She wanted to talk to Reese, to be the one to tell her that Cass was okay, to be the one to comfort her. Since Reese had been the one to end their…relationship, Ella wondered if she’d answer the phone. Obviously, Reese didn’t want to talk to her.
It surprised her, then, when Reese’s breathless “hello” interrupted her thoughts.
Ella wasted no time. “Reese, it’s Ella. There’s been a small accident. Everything is fine, but Cass fell in the gorge, and we’re taking her to your ER as a precaution.”
“Is she awake and talking?” Reese asked.
“Yes. The medic thinks she’s fine.”
“Who’s the medic?”
“Her name is Tiffany.”
“Tiffany White?”
Ella confirmed the medic’s identity and relayed the information to Reese.
“I’m already in the car. I’ll be there in fifteen.”
The phone clicked in Ella’s ears, but it stung her heart. Obviously, Reese really didn’t want anything to do with her. Swallowing her emotions, she turned to Cass, pushed the hat up on her head, and pulled down the mask.
“I wanted to make sure it was you. I can’t see your beautiful face with all that stuff on.”
“Can I take off this mask now?” she asked.
Ella looked at Tiffany for the answer. “You know what? Why don’t I check you without it. Then I’ll be able to give the doctor a better report.”
Moving carefully, she removed the mask and immediately turned her eyes to the monitor sitting on the stretcher between Cass’s legs. “See that white number?” she said as she pointed it out. “Right now, it’s 100. That’s perfect.”
“Like a test,” Cass said.
“Exactly. It’s testing your lungs to see if you need this oxygen mask. Let’s see if you can stay at 100, or even 99 or 98, without the mask. If you do, then it’s bye-bye mask,” she said, bending her fingers frantically in a comical wave.
The ambulance came to a stop, and then Ella heard obnoxious beeping as it began moving backward, and she realized they’d reached the hospital. Glancing at the white number, she was relieved to see it hadn’t changed.
The rear door opened, and the medics went to work again, pulling the stretcher out and popping down the legs. Ella hopped out and went to Cass’s side, wanting her to know she was still there.
“Hey,” she said gleefully. “This is my sister’s hospital!”
Ella breathed a sigh of relief that, rather than fear, Cass seemed to feel excited to have just finished her first ambulance ride, only to end up at Reese’s hospital. It had been an instantaneous decision, but she was glad she’d redirected the medics here instead of letting them take Cass to the closer hospital.
A cruiser pulled in behind the ambulance, and Ella was relieved when the same officer she’d spoken with at the park stepped out of the vehicle. Since Cass seemed so comfortable, Ella would have a chance to step out of the room and tell him exactly what she’d seen, and what Cass had told her about the baseball player.
Motioning with her hands, Ella let the officer know she was going inside, and he nodded. Obviously, taking care of Cass was his priority, too.
They wheeled Cass directly to a large room sporting fancy equipment on every wall. It even had a light hanging from the ceiling. A hospital-style chandelier, she supposed. After Cass scooted from their stretcher to the hospital’s, Tiffany transferred the wires and hooked up the monitor on the wall. Ella looked for the white number, relieved to see it had dropped only a point. Maybe a drop wasn’t good though. She asked Tiffany. “You said ninety-nine is good, right?”
“Yes. She’s been off the oxygen for a few minutes. If it was going to drop, it would have done it by now.”
Ella smiled at her and then at Cass. “Do you know what that means?”
Cass mimicked the medic’s earlier motion by waving her hand. “Bye-bye, mask.”
They both laughed, and Tiffany repositioned Cass’s helmet. “Listen, Cass. I have to go take care of the sick people, but I’m leaving you in good hands. All the people who work here know Reese, and they’ll take excellent care of you. Thanks for being such a great patient.”
Cass nodded soberly. “You’re welcome.”
“The nursing staff will be in momentarily, or sooner when they realize they have a VIP in here.”
“Thank you so, so much.”
“My pleasure.”
Ella barely had the chance to adjust the blanket over Cass’s wet clothes, when Tiffany’s prediction proved accurate. Three women entered the room. One introduced herself as Dr. Light and told Cass she knew her sister.
“She knows everybody, I think.”
As she began to ask Cass questions, the policeman appeared at the door, and Ella slipped to his side. “My name is Elizabeth Townes. I’m her neighbor. I saw the whole incident.”
“Where are her parents?”
“Gosh, I’m not sure. I should call them. With all the excitement, I forgot. I did call her sister, though. She’s a doctor here. She’s on her way.”
“Good, good. So how did she fall in?”
“That’s why I didn’t want to leave her, Officer. She didn’t fall. Someone pushed her. From the path just above where they pulled her out of the water.”
Leaning back, the officer studied Ella as if she had three eyes. “Wait a minute. Someone pushed her? Like clowning around, and she slipped and fell, or pushed her, like on purpose.”
“Definitely on purpose.” Ella told him everything she saw.
“Wait a minute, wait a minute,” he said as he waved his pen. “Wasn’t she at the park with you?”
“No, and that’s another thing. The man who pushed her was wearing a dark cap and baseball jersey. Cass told me a baseball player told her I fell in t
he gorge and needed her help. When I saw her, she was standing on the top railing, leaning over toward the water, apparently looking for me. That’s when he pushed her.”
Ella stood behind him and demonstrated by placing her hands on his mid-back and shoving him.
He turned, and once again he studied her. “You’re telling me someone dressed like a RailRider lured her into the park and then practically threw her into the gorge?”
Ella nodded. “If you don’t believe me, ask her.”
“Oh, I will,” he said, and turned toward the doctor. “Doc, would it be okay if I ask the patient a few questions?”
Nodding, she agreed. “They’re coming to shoot a chest X-ray, so you’ll have to step out of the room then. But otherwise, I think she’s fine to talk to you.”
“Hi, Cass,” he said and then introduced himself. “I have to ask you some questions. Now I don’t want you to worry, because you’re not in any trouble, okay? I just want to know what happened, so we can make the park safe. I don’t want anyone else to fall in and hurt themselves. Okay?”
Cass nodded, and Ella sensed that the police officer, by his title alone, made her nervous. Moving a step closer, she grabbed Cass’s hand in both of hers and began stroking it.
“How’d you fall in?” he asked.
She told him she was looking for Ella in the gorge, but she couldn’t see her. The baseball player told her she would see better if she stood on the fence, and so she did.
“Did you lose your balance?” he asked.
Nodding her head, she made a lopsided frown. “I’m very clumsy.”
The officer tried not to smile. “Do you think the baseball player might have…bumped you when you were on the railing? Did you feel anything like that?”
She shook her head.
“How did you meet the baseball player?”
“I was at my house, in my yard, and I saw him. He plays on the RailRiders.”
“Do you know his name?”
“No.”
“Did you ever see him before?”