“Her foot is caught under the dash. It’s probably got some significant damage. We need a machine in here to cut her loose.”

I heard Church order them to be careful with me. But one of the paramedics jostled my side as he tried to make room for himself next to me so that he could get to my captured foot. It wasn’t a big bump but it was enough to make me scream like I’d never screamed before. I felt like lightning was ripping through every limb. I saw stars but they were blinking rapidly in a field of black and that darkness was calling to me, promising me relief from the searing agony that was pulling my body apart. I heard other voices yell. I heard a loud pop and smelled gunpowder as well as the blood and gasoline that I was choking on … then everything went black and I finally stopped hurting.

Church

I was going to pull the paramedic that made Dixie scream out of the crumpled wreckage of the SUV by the back of his neck and shake the ever-living shit out of him for causing her more pain. She looked like she was barely holding on. Her face was as white as chalk and there was blood covering most of her skin. The crimson droplets were dripping from her curls at an alarming rate, and I could barely stomach looking at the way her shoulder was cleaved open by that piece of glass. I’d seen battlefield triage up close and personal, but none of that prepared me for seeing the woman I dared to love clinging to life as everything vital and necessary drained out of her.

The little fool had risked everything to save everyone but herself

“Step back, son. Let them do their job. The quicker they get her out the quicker we can get her the help she needs.”

I let my dad pull me away but I couldn’t take my eyes off the smashed vehicle where her small body was trapped. The sense of helplessness, of not being able to do anything to help her, had all those old feelings of inferiority and unfairness rearing their ugly little heads. I wanted to help her, but I couldn’t and if she died … I didn’t want to think about what that would do to me, but it was almost impossible to keep the stark and dreary thoughts at bay. I’d just found my way home, but I knew if Dixie didn’t make it there was a really good chance that I would end up lost and adrift once again, no matter how sturdy and strong my roots were.

“This is all your fault!” I heard the accusation screamed at me, but I was so lost in thought and tied up in my concern for the woman stuck in the wreckage that it took a minute for me to realize that the words were being hurled wildly at me from a hundred yards away.

I turned to look at Joseph Erikson, bloodied, listing to one side, but still able to stand under his own power with that gun he’d used to terrorize Dixie clutched in his shaking hand. He had police on either side of him, moving slowly towards him with their weapons drawn. Once again he was surrounded with nowhere to go but he refused to give up.

“How did he manage to keep hold of the gun when he was thrown?” I asked the question under my breath and saw Jules shake his head in response.

“No clue, but his luck ends right here.” He unsnapped the holster that held his service weapon and smoothly pulled the gun out. “Joseph Erikson, you are under arrest for the murder of Marie Erikson and the kidnapping and false imprisonment of Dixie Carmichael. Put the weapon down.”

The man laughed hysterically and wavered on his feet. One half of his face was covered in blood and I couldn’t be certain but it looked like he was missing a couple of his teeth. He hadn’t escaped unscathed but I wanted him in as much pain and suffering as Dixie was fighting her way through.

“She could have loved me. She should have loved me. I did everything right.” His words were garbled and he started to cough, which made the gun wobble in his hands. The deputies that were closest to him started to move in closer but stopped when he snapped the weapon back up and pointed right at me. I heard Jules swear under his breath but my attention was stolen as Dixie’s pale and fragile form was finally freed from the twisted metal that had kept it captive. They maneuvered her onto a stretcher but she wasn’t moving and I couldn’t tell if she was still breathing or not. It was every fear I’d spent a lifetime running from chasing me down and forcing me to face it head-on. I’d done everything in my power to avoid this very situation, a woman I loved hovering on the brink of death with my heart in her hands, but there was no denying this was where I was meant to be.

“She was never going to love you because she loved me. I didn’t want her to, but she never does what’s best for her, because she’s always doing what’s best for everyone else.” I turned to walk towards the ambulance not caring what happened behind me because I was only moving towards what waited in front of me … the best thing that ever happened to me. I wasn’t going to let the bad that was threatening take any more of it away. I trusted Jules to watch not only my back, but to keep Dixie safe as well.

There was screaming, some obligatory ugly words, and then the sound of gunfire. I didn’t know who pulled the trigger but the crazy talk stopped, so I figured it was one of the good guys and I selfishly hoped it was my dad because that was almost as good as me getting to pull the trigger.

“How is she?” I asked the paramedic that was closest to me as they loaded Dixie into the back of the ambulance.

“Better than she looks. That slice in her shoulder is ugly and deep. I won’t be shocked if she needs surgery. She’s lost a lot of blood, which is why she blacked out, but she’s coming around. Her ankle was stuck pretty good, but by some miracle I think it’s only a bad sprain. She’s incredibly lucky. I’ve seen crashes less severe than this one where I still had to use the Jaws of Life to get bodies out instead of patients. The debris from the fence they went through did a number on her clavicle and I would place good money on her having a couple busted ribs. She’s having some trouble breathing, so we’re watching for a collapsed lung, but right now there’s no need for a tube. We’re taking her to Tupelo but they might need to airlift her to somewhere more well equipped to handle her injuries.”