Chapter 2
He felt a
stab of pain in his side, then another from his leg. The wail became an urgent
howl as the light above began to flash in rapid succession. A huge burst of
pain hit him all at once and he fell on the ground, curled in agony. Sounds
began amplifying, confusing in their complexity and volume. The Camp faded away
and he was suddenly aware of coldness and the sensation of water on his face.
Loud noises... voices, he realized... echoed above him in the dark. Something
grasped his shoulders, hard. There was a huge sound like tortured metal being
ripped, and an immense burst of fresh pain…
He had to
concentrate with every bit of energy to focus. A face, hovering overhead,
familiar but not quite...
Howie.
It was
Howie, and he was saying something that sounded urgent. Kevin frowned as he
fought for clarity. He opened his mouth to reply but was unable to make any
sound other than a groan. For a brief moment everything faded, then snapped
back into focus.
"...come
on, Bro... Look at me. Kevin? Can you hear me?" came Howie’s desperate
plea.
"H- unh…"
"Easy
there,” said a stranger’s voice. It belonged with a face he didn’t know. “We
just got you out of the car, you need to keep calm. Where does it hurt? Leg?"
Kevin found
that if he steeled himself, he could nod briefly.
"How
about your side?"
A wave of
blinding pain shot through him, nearly blotting out his consciousness. It was
hard to pinpoint a specific spot, it was coming from so many places, but he
finally nodded.
"Okay.
Kevin, hang in there. The ambulance just arrived and they’ll be getting you to
the hospital right away.”
“Where’s…
Howie…” he managed to croak.
“Right
here,” came the worried reply from his side. “I’m right here, Kev. I called the
guys, they were only about fifteen minutes behind us. Just… take it easy."
Howie was trying hard to be calm, but even in his current state Kevin could
hear the panic in his voice.
The
ambulance’s flashing red lights came close, its sirens going silent as it
pulled up. He was drifting in and out of awareness, seeking an anchor in the
chaos.
"Dad?"
he called raggedly, searching for that comfort once again. There was no reply
at first, then he heard one phrase echo gently through his mind:
Courage, son, you are
not alone.
Kevin felt
a wash of warmth and caught an image of flowers bobbing in the breeze. Hundreds
of flowers...
"...was
that? What did you say?" the rescue worker asked as he went about his task.
"Dad,"
he sighed softly, reassured by the image. "Dad..."
"Kevin,
focus, okay? Don’t go out on me again…" he heard Howie say desperately.
"Yes...
will t-try. Will... fight...” Kevin whispered in promise.
Uncertainly,
Howie watched his brother shift focus. The light behind green eyes faded as he
slipped into unconsciousness.
"Dammit,
hang in there," he urged. "Don’t let this thing get you."
“It’s going
to be all right,” the rescue worker said to the distraught Howie. “It’s best he
isn’t awake when we try to move him. I need you to step aside and let the
others through.”
Howie stood
uncertainly, not knowing quite what to do next. Hearing a shout, he turned to
see Nick, who had just arrived with AJ. The pair rushed toward the wrecked car.
“Where’s
Brian?” he asked before they had stopped.
“He’s over
there talking to a cop,” said AJ with a gesture. “Trying to get some
information.”
"Oh my
God!" the youngest cried when he saw the twisted metal and broken glass.
"H-Howie?” he asked, his voice a pitch above normal. He couldn’t bring
himself to look past the vehicle, did not want to see…
"There
was this car, it ran us off the road, right into the telephone pole,” came the
rushed explanation. “The rain made things worse," he added unnecessarily.
“Are… are you okay?” AJ wrenched his eyes from the
prone figure on the ground to his clearly panicked friend.
“I’m fine,
I think. Just some scratches. We hit… on the driver’s side,” Howie managed to
say. “He… it looks pretty bad.”
Nick forced
himself to look down but was uprepared for what he found. He let out a gasp;
Kevin’s clothing was covered with blood,
the large cut on his forehead flowing freely despite the worker’s attempts to
apply pressure. His leg was at an unnatural angle, obviously broken... his skin
was paler than he’d thought possible. Bruises had already started to form along
his jaw… his labored breathing rattled disturbingly, audible even from a
distance. This isn’t Kevin, it
can’t be…this isn’t happening…
"Has
he been awake at all? Did he say anything?" AJ asked, moving out of the
way of the paramedics who had just arrived.
"He’s
been pretty much out of it, he was calling for someone for a bit," Howie
said, letting a professional rescue worker take his place at Kevin’s side.
"Who?"
he asked.
"His
Dad,” Howie provided. “We- whoa!”
His cry
snapped AJ’s attention over to Nick, who was staring in utter shock at the
scene. His face drained of color; an instant later the blond’s eyes rolled
upwards and it was all AJ could do to keep him from hitting the wet pavement
face first. With Howie’s help, they lowered Nick to the ground.
Brian ran
over, his blue eyes wild. “What happened?”
“Nicky-” AJ
began.
“Kevin!”
Brian exclaimed as he looked beyond the youngest. He automatically moved
forward, trying to reach his cousin’s side, but Howie held him back.
“No, Bri,
let them work. Let them do their job,” he urged.
“What
happened?” Brian demanded again. “Howie, did you get hurt?”
“I don’t
know how, but I barely got a scratch,” the dark-haired man answered.
“You’ll
need to be checked out, sir,” said a calm voice behind them. “Can you come this
way with me?”
Gently, the
paramedic took Howie by the arm and led him away from the scene while another
crouched by the slightly stirring Nick. Brian and AJ hovered anxiously while
the new paramedic glanced their way.
“Was he
involved in the accident?” the woman asked, turning back to her charge and
checking for signs of awareness.
“No, he
just kind of passed out after he saw- saw Kevin lying there,” AJ managed to
explain.
“Yeah, he’s
kind of shocky, but I think he’ll be okay. Are you related?”
“We’re
family,” Brian supplied without hesitation.
“What’s his
name?” she asked.
“Nick,” AJ
said.
The
paramedic leaned close and checked pupil response and pulse, then listened to
his breathing for a moment. With a nod, she leaned forward and called to him in
a loud voice. After a couple of tries and a small ammonia tablet held under his
nose, Nick gasped and leapt into the conscious world once again.
Confusion
gave way to embarrassment rather quickly, and a hot blush replaced the pallor
of his skin when he realized that a paramedic… a woman paramedic… was staring at him very
intently.
Brian
crouched down and put a hand on his best friend’s shoulder. “Frack, you okay
now?”
“Yeah, I
didn’t mean to… to pass out,” he mumbled.
The
paramedic patted his arm and gave him a kind smile. “It’s perfectly
understandable, it happens a lot more than you might think. Let’s all get out
of this drizzle, if you feel like you can stand now.”
Nick was
grateful for her professional attitude, and felt a bit of his embarrassment
vanish. “Yeah, I can walk, I’m okay.”
AJ
supported his elbow for the first shaky steps until Nick grew steady. By the
time they reached the rescue unit he was doing fine. He turned and looked past
Brian just in time to see Kevin lifted onto a stretcher.
“K-Kevin?”
he said in a trembling voice.
“He’s is in
good hands, the best,” the paramedic assured him. “Are you feeling okay now,
hon?”
“Um, yeah,
I think so,” came the distracted reply.
“Okay then.
I’ve got to ride in with the squad, I imagine you will want to come to the hospital
in your vehicle. Do you know where Mercy Memorial is located?”
“Yes
ma’am,” Brian said as the ambulance doors shut on both Howie and the
still-unconscious Kevin.
“Good.
Drive carefully, now, you don’t want to add to the drama any more tonight.”
The three
remaining Boys stood there numbly, the impact of the accident and what had
happened taking its toll. Finally, as the ambulance pulled away, Brian found
his voice.
“Let’s get
going, guys. There’s a ton of calls and stuff we have to make once we get
there.”
The ride to
the hospital was completed in silence.
***
