by Jill Sanders
He saw the blood on Haley’s forehead and shoulder and gasped. There was a board with nails sticking out of it imbedded in her left shoulder.
“Don’t remove it,” Grant said, rushing back over with a large towel from the cabinet across the room.
He took it and applied pressure to her other cuts. Grant took over so he could run his hands over her, making sure she didn’t have any broken bones. He could see her breathing and felt a steady pulse, but that didn’t stop him from worrying.
“Sheriff says an ambulance is on its way. They will have a crew remove the tree,” Alex said from the top of the stairs. “Lauren and Chase are half an hour away.”
He didn’t even acknowledge them; his mind was completely focused on Haley.
“Haley?” he said when she started to move. Holding her steady, he murmured, “Hold still, honey.”
Her eyes opened and she reached out for him. “Ricky?” she said in a weak voice.
“He’s here, he’s okay. Everyone is okay,” he assured her, brushing her dark hair away from her face and taking stock of a few cuts along her forehead.
“I jumped. I couldn’t throw him like mama did. I just couldn’t let him go. So, I jumped. Oh, my leg,” she cried when she started to sit up.
“Shhh,” he said. “It’s okay. You’ve broken it. An ambulance is on the way. Hold still until they get here.”
“I couldn’t throw him. I couldn’t,” she repeated.
“You did great. You did the right thing,” He said, trying not to break.
“Why didn’t she jump?” she asked, her green eyes going dark with tears. “Why?” she repeated before fainting.
Wes stood over Haley and waited for her eyes to open again. She’d been in and out of consciousness since they had arrived at the small clinic, which was serving as a triage clinic for now. He still had pressure on her wounds, but his patience was wearing thin. The small room was full of other people, all holding towels up to their cuts, or helping loved ones who were injured. The place was loud and crazy.
His parents had found him a few minutes ago. He’d called them when he’d arrived at the clinic with Haley. They hadn’t been affected and been out helping others since the storm had ended.
When the doctor walked back in looking a little frazzled, he got everyone’s attention.
“We need those of you who aren’t injured to go the church’s gym, across the street. We don’t have enough room here to house everyone who isn’t injured. Those who have severe injuries or people with small children can have one family member stay with them. But”—he raised his voice over the grumbles—“in order to help everyone, my staff and I need to be able to move around in here.”
Wes looked over to his folks and Haley’s family and nodded. “I’ll let everyone know how she’s doing.”
Lauren started to object, but Chase tugged on her arm. “Let’s get Ricky home. We need to tend to the animals. Wes will keep us posted.”
Once the room was half cleared, the doctor and nurses started moving around.
“Wes.” Doctor Conner nodded to him as he stepped up to Haley and looked at the chunk of wood sticking out of her shoulder.
Then there were nurses there, pushing his hands away as they got to work on her. “Why don’t you sit down, sweetie. Let us take care of your girl now,” one of them said, walking him to a chair a few feet away.
He sat there and watched as they did their magic, cleaning and dressing all her wounds.
“We need to move her so we can get x-rays on that leg. I think it’s a clean break, but I’d like to make sure.”
He nodded and stood. “I’d like to go with her, if possible.”
The nurse nodded. “Follow me.” She started wheeling Haley’s bed down the hallway.
Haley reached up for his hand. Her wrist was covered in bandages. He gently took it. He didn’t know tears had been falling down his face until she reached up and wiped one away.
Less than an hour later, as he watched the nurse building a cast on Haley’s right leg, he called his family and hers and updated them.
The doctor was going to release her and let her go home, with strict instructions that she see him again in a week. It took another half an hour for the nurse to finish putting on Haley’s new red cast.
“In a few weeks, we can give you a removable cast, one that you can take off to shower,” she said, handing Haley some crutches. “Have you ever used crutches before?”
She shook her head and winced a little with pain. As the nurse gave her instructions, Wes talked to the doctor about her other injuries.
“She has seven stitches in her shoulder, a few others here and there. We’ll need to see her in a week, once everything settles down around here.” He looked around the room, which was still pretty full, with more and more people being brought in all the time.
By the time they drove through town, it was too dark to see anything. Most of the power was out, except for at the clinic, the church across the way, and the town hall on the corner.
They could see a large crowd gathered at the town hall. Other car lights and floodlights were at several houses along the roads as people searched for others.
“Wes.” Haley said, touching his arm. “Maybe we should stop and help?”
He nodded. “But you will stay in the truck. Got it?” When she nodded, he parked and hopped out.
Wes walked up to where the sheriff was addressing everyone and stood next to Grant and Chase.
“Hey,” he said.
“Hey.” Chase looked over at the truck. “How’s she doing?”
“Good.”
“If you want, take her back to Saddleback, then come back. We’re going to go house by house to make sure everyone is okay. Lauren, Alex, and Ricky are there. I’ve got the generator going out there, so there is power. ”
Wes nodded. “I’ll be back.”
By the time he persuaded Haley to stay with her sisters, they were already driving up the long drive. All the lights were on in the main floor and when they drove up, Lauren and Alex were on the front porch, ready to help Haley in.
“The guys called,” Lauren said, holding up a cooler. “There’s water and sandwiches. Enough for a dozen people. I’ll make some more and bring them down later.”
He shook his head. “The roads aren’t safe. There are several power lines down. The crews are working on it now. Just give us a call and I’ll come back for them.” She nodded. “Take care of her,” he said when Haley and Alex were inside. “Here.” He handed her Haley’s pills and the instructions from the clinic.
When he drove back into town, there were more floodlights from the construction crews. Hundreds of people worked in the lit-up areas, searching for survivors of some of the worst-hit homes.
An hour later, dog rescue teams arrived, followed by a flood of people from the Red Cross and other charity organizations.
By morning, there were three large medical tents set up in the parking lot of the town hall. They had set up a kitchen at the church, where everyone could walk in and get fresh water, food, or rest, if needed.
The high school housed the families who had been displaced, and donation trucks flooded the parking lot. Volunteers had cleaned most of the roads, so travel in and out of town was a lot smoother.
Power had been restored to most of the areas that had sustained minor damage. The gas and water for the entire town was still down. They’d been told that it might take up to a month before the gas could be turned back on, though less than that for the water.
So far, Wes had heard of two casualties. He’d helped dig out a few survivors himself, but was thankful he hadn’t known any of those who had lost their lives.
By the next evening, when he, Chase, and Grant returned to Saddleback, they were all exhausted, dirty, and starved.
Chapter Fourteen
Haley watched her sisters come in from her spot on the couch. She’d been babied ever since arriving home late last night. She’d slept through most of
the night, but woke early with pain in her shoulder and leg.
Alex had cooked her favorite breakfast. She followed it up by swallowing a half dozen pills that were large enough to feed to her horses.
Then Ricky settled down on her lap so they could watch Bug’s Bunny while her sisters went out to try and catch the loose animals.
When they came back in around lunchtime, they were both caked in mud.
“That calf of yours is either the smartest animal I’ve ever seen, or the dumbest,” Lauren said, shaking her head.
“What has Roger done now?” she asked, laughing.
“You don’t want to know,” Alex said, stepping in beside her sister. Lauren had a lot of mud on her, but Alex was completely covered. Haley could even see some coming out of her sister’s ears.
“I don’t know how you catch that little bugger,” Alex said, trying to wipe her face with a large towel.
Lauren laughed. “You should have seen it. I think when it comes to roping a calf, your sister is out of practice.”
“I am not!” Alex gasped, then shook her finger at Haley. “That is no ordinary calf. He’s like a . . . a super villain.” She put her hands on her hips.
Haley smiled; her sisters were the best medicine in the world.
By that afternoon, when the men walked into the house as dirty as their wives had been, all the animals were accounted for and safe. Old Betty had been the only casualty, but since the blue truck hadn’t run in the last three months, everyone considered it an acceptable loss. Lauren told her that the barn would have to be repaired, and that they had lost half of their hay reserves for the winter.
When Wes walked into the room, she smiled and tried not to let it show that she’d missed her pain pill for lunch. She didn’t want to take it, since it made her sleepy.
He walked over to her, placed a kiss on her cheek, and frowned down at her. “You’re in pain,” he said, sitting next to her.
She shook her head. “I’ll be fine. How bad is it?”
He leaned his head back and sighed. “Mama’s, the bookstore, a dozen or so houses along first and third.”
“Any deaths?” she asked quietly, since Ricky was napping on the couch across from her.
He nodded and held up three fingers. “Several animals as well. There are a dozen dogs running through town. The shelter is trying to pick up all of them and hold them until the owners can pick them up.”
“Anyone we know?” she asked.
He nodded. “Steve, from the bank, lost his father. He survived the tornado but died from a stroke while helping dig his neighbor out of the rubble. The other two I didn’t know.” He shrugged. “If it’s okay, I’m going to go shower. Would you like to stay here?”
She nodded, knowing that the slightest movement caused the pain to triple. He stood up, then leaned over her and kissed her slowly. “I’ll be back soon. I love you.”
She smiled then shook her head. “Get some rest. You look beat. I’ll still be here in the morning.”
He nodded. “But tomorrow, you’re coming home with me for good.” He smiled. “I don’t want more than one night without you by my side.”
She nodded, not knowing what to say. Her throat had closed up with want.
“Wes,” Alex said, rushing into the room. “Oh, good you’re still here.” She shoved a large container into his hands. “Dinner. Steak, potatoes, carrots, and rolls. Just nuke it for five minutes when you get home.”
Wes nodded, then walked out of the room.
“When are you going to put him out of his misery?” Alex asked, walking over and sitting next to her.
“What do you mean?”
“That boy loves you; he’s proven to you that he’s back to stay.”
“I know,” she nodded. “We are engaged.” She held up her ring finger.
Her sister just looked at her, then finally said, “You know what I mean. I bet you haven’t told him you love him, again.”
Haley frowned. Just then she realized that her sister was right. Since he’d returned, she hadn’t said those words to him. He’d told her several times that he loved her.
Could that be what was missing? Could that be the reason she felt like there was a rift between them still?
She sat there for the next hour and thought about it. Wes had done everything since returning home to prove to her that he’d made a mistake. He’d apologized, proven to her he was reliable, and had even won her heart back. Yet, she’d held back something as important as saying those words to him.
Could that be the only thing she’d been missing? It couldn’t be that simple, could it?
Chase walked in an hour later, freshly showered, with a big bowl of popcorn in one hand. “Want to watch an old flick?”
She shook her head. “No, thank you. I need your help.” She laughed. “I might need everyone’s help.” She looked down at her cast.
Wes woke the next morning sorer than he’d ever been. Every muscle in his body ached. The hot shower did little to soothe the aches and pains, so he stayed in there an extra ten minutes until he felt almost human again. When he walked into his living room to head over to the main house, he was shocked to see Chase sitting on his couch, looking pissed.
“What’s up?” He sat across from him.
“Grant needs our help down at the courthouse. It seems that old man Peterson is trying to sue us.”
“What?” Wes stood up. “The man we pulled from the pile of rubble last night? That used to be his house?”
Chase nodded. “He’s down at the courthouse and wants to meet with us all in”—Chase looked at his watch—“ten minutes ago.”
“Damn, well come on then. Let’s go nip this in the bud.” Wes walked to the door.
Chase drove and Wes hardly noticed that most of the town had been cleaned up. He did notice that there were large boards covering the front of the bookstore and Mama’s place. He’d had a long talk with Jamella the day before; she was on board to rebuild and had even talked about taking over the building next door to expand. The bookstore owner, Holly Bridles, had also explained to everyone that she would rebuild.
Now as they parked in front of the courthouse, he started to worry. Not only was Grant standing in front of the town hall, but almost everyone in town stood out there as well.
The sun was shining and if he hadn’t know better, he would have never guessed that a large tornado had hit there just two days ago.
“What’s all this? Is old man Peterson going to sue the whole town of Fairplay?”
Chase chuckled. “No, but the whole town of Fairplay came out today to see you get married.”
Wes’s eyes were glued to the crowd as it parted. Haley stood with the help of her crutches, dressed in a simple cream-colored sundress. Her cuts and bruises went unnoticed as he played over Chase’s words in his mind.
“Today?” he asked, without taking his eyes off of Haley.
“If you ever get out of my truck, that is.” Chase laughed and got out himself.
Wes followed slowly, not blinking from the sight of the sun streaming through Haley’s hair. It felt like it took an eternity for him to walk the pathway towards her. The crowd of people filed in beside the walkway and stood smiling at him.
“Hi,” he said, coming to a stop in front of her.
“Hi.” She smiled. “Want to get married today?”
He laughed. “I thought you wanted a big wedding?”
Her eyebrows shot up. “How much bigger do you think we could get?” She motioned with her hand to the two hundred guests standing around them in front of the town hall.
He laughed. “I guess you’re right.” He reached over and took her hand. “I’d love to marry you today.”
“Well, that’s good,” the new mayor, William Davis, said. “Shall we begin?”
“’Bout damn time,” someone shouted, followed by a large boom of laughter from the crowd.
After the quick ceremony on the green lawn of the town hall, everyone filed into the
First Baptist Church’s gym for a reception. Barbeque sandwiches, fried catfish, and baked beans were dished out, followed by watermelon and homemade ice cream.
Someone had given Haley a wheelchair to use so she could wheel herself around and talk to everyone. He took great care in making sure she stayed off her feet, so he ended up wheeling her around most of the day. Her sisters occasionally took over when he was busy talking to someone.
They talked to Sheriff Miller, who was very vocal about his relationship with Jamella. Apparently, the two had been an item for almost ten years without anyone in the town, or her kids, knowing. Wes thought that the two of them were great together.
“They fit, don’t they?” Haley smiled and nodded towards the pair.
He chuckled. “I was just thinking the same thing. It’s hard to believe that no one guessed about their relationship sooner.”
Haley shook her head. “Alex has been the closest to Jamella for years. You would have thought that she had some clue. But look at her.” She chuckled. “She’s still in complete and utter shock.”
He looked at his new sister-in-law and laughed. “She looks like she just found out that the world is round.”
They both laughed.
“I hear she’s going to take over the empty building next door and build a whole new diner.”
He nodded. “She said, and I quote, ‘Good ting my insurance is paid up.’” He laughed.
“It’s just a good thing she and Willard weren’t hurt. It’s hard to believe they were in there when the tornado hit.”
He nodded and felt even luckier than before. “Really, the whole town was lucky. It could have been so much worse.”
Wes hadn’t realize how much time had passed, since he’d been so entertained, but when someone mentioned that the sun was going down, he realized it was time to head home.
“Shall we get out of here?” he whispered to Haley.
“I thought you’d never ask.” She smiled. “I have another surprise for you, but it will have to wait until this is gone.” She nodded to her cast.