But his color seemed okay. For now.
Mandy pulled him close. “Do you have your inhaler?”
His arms clasped her neck. “On the bus. I think.”
“My face feels sunburned,” another child said. Mandy noticed. All their cheeks resembled rubies from fire heat. She eyed the bus. Maybe it would be better, safer to get them back on. That way, she’d have the inhaler should the little guy’s asthma kick in. Plus, they’d be more shielded from smoke. Then if the tanker exploded, they might be protected from the blast and debris.
Or, putting them back on the bus could help them to die in one unit. Dread sickened her at the thought that any decision she made might hasten the manner of their deaths.
Drowning or burning. Which was worse?
Please show me what to do. I don’t know what to do. I just know I don’t want them to die.
“H-how will we get off the bridge?” Jayna persisted.
“Experts will know whom to send and what to do.” She’d been in Refuge long enough to know its townsfolk would pull together and rise above this epic tragedy.
“I want my mommy!”
“How will Daddy find me?”
“Who will come for us?” Jayna persisted.
Mandy tugged as many of them close as would fit, even though it hurt like mad to move her hand. The others huddled in, looking at her like she was their one and only lifeline.
They’re looking to me. But it has to be You. Send help. Hold up this bridge, and hold down the fires.
Peace she hadn’t felt in a decade befell her. Thankful He’d heard, and confident He’d act, she met each child’s frightened gaze. Then smiled into each face, using her eyes and—okay, mental prayers—to infuse courage, instill hope and inject calm.
“Someone strong and brave will come. I promise. Someone who rescues people all the time.”
“Who?” Jayna’s voice persisted. “Who will come rescue us?”
Mandy looked square into two frightened, tearful eyes and said with calm assurance, “Only the best.”
“There it is.” Nolan observed the unimaginable chaos. His pulse ramped at the surreal devastation.
“Whoa!” Chance’s mouth hung open. The team stood as one unit, observing the collapse from the air.
Vince inclined his torso. “Unbelievable.”
“Weird to see steel and a slab of concrete we’ve driven over time and time again…” Brock shook his head. “Just—gone.”
“Okay, guys. Gear up.” Nolan grabbed his stuff and lined up at the door. If he was gonna lead his team, he was gonna lead them. Joel was the kind of commander who hit the trenches alongside his men. Nolan would follow Joel’s stellar example of being both a humble servant and a confident leader.
As if reading his mind, Petrowski leaned over. “Being Tech Sergeant in charge, you don’t have to go, Briggs.”
“With all due respect sir, if my brothers are gonna be in harm’s way, I’m gonna be in it as well.” Wasn’t that what their creed was about? “So others may live?” Even at the risk of losing their own lives for people who may never know it?
Petrowski nodded. “Then if I can remember how to perform rescues with a hoist basket without plunging to my death, I’ll be there too.”
Vince laughed. “You’ve been sitting behind a desk rescuing your solitaire games too long is my bet.”
Petrowski’s laugh infiltrated the air. A sound seldom heard the past couple years. “Not solitaire. FreeCell. It’d do me good to get back in the real game. With you guys.”
Heavy silence ensued as the men tossed glances of respect toward Petrowski. He’d lost his wife tragically two years ago and hadn’t been on the field since. He’d taken time off to regroup and be there for his boys. No one blamed the new widower and suddenly single parent of twin babies for backing out of the dangers that came with pararescue.
Now, Petrowski was trying to do everything in his power to keep Nolan on the team. And that meant coming back.
“We can manage without you. Your call, though,” Nolan said.
“Real question is, could you manage with me faster?”
Nolan tossed him rope and a set of gloves. “Absolutely.”
Petrowski donned the gear. “Let me brief the pilots and Central Command, and I’ll be down there.”
They secured headsets, by which they’d communicate. Test clicks sounded. His team would work together like a well-oiled machine gun. Rapid. Precise. Ready for any complication. And, as with any mission, there’d be at least one.
“Showtime. Let’s go.” Nolan stepped over the edge. Pave Low hovering above, the team, stringed like black beads on a silver strand, hoisted to the barely-there bridge. Once flat-booted on it, they circled their temporary leader for instructions, then commenced duty.
A barge with firemen and trucks extinguished blazes and sprayed cooling chemicals on the tanker. Nolan quickly cleared his area. Near the checkpoint, he found Vince and Petrowski.
“River Guard divers have it under control there.” Vince scanned the water. “I’m hanging back to be sure though.”
“Aaron and I are heading to the other side to make sure they got all the kids to safety. Meet us at the DZ debrief later.”
Vince gave a thumbs-up symbol. Nolan signaled the pilots to drop hoist ropes. He locked his legs around it and held on as it went airborne, dangling Nolan and Aaron across the chasm of destruction. Closer, Nolan peered through high-powered military binoculars at the remnant of people.
His eyes lit on one, surrounded by a handful of children. He blinked. Nearly slipped. He tightened his grip on the binoculars. Shock jolted through him.
Mandy? Memories assaulted him.
The woman looked exactly like his high school sweetheart. The one his dreams had never let him release. The one no other woman competed with in his heart. Looks like her but it can’t be, his mind mumbled, fumbled with the possibilities of this happening. She looked familiar enough to elicit an old ache. Yet different enough for doubt to detonate the crazy notion.
His Mandy smiled more. This woman’s frown seemed set in stone and engraved on her face.
Except when she tended to a huddle of children. The granite softened. Granted, she’d just been in probably the most harrowing ordeal of her life. But the underlying sadness cloaking her face was different. The longevity of lines pulling her mouth into a frown had been there awhile. A long while. Like she hadn’t smiled in forever.
The helicopter hovered near the split. The pilot lowered Nolan directly above where tons of concrete entombed cars…and people so he could call an “all clear” of the area.
