Cold night air

“We have a huge accident blocking light traffic along on Falcon Levies Blvd, we’re gonna need two ambulances. I have multiple injuries sustained. One is non-responsive,” the officer radioed to the dispatcher.

He flashed his light on the cracked windshield on the beat up Chevy truck, looking at the man still bleeding on his head, limp and lying down on the steering wheel.

“Does he have anyone we can contact? Anyone in his wallet or phone?” Another officer asked their partner.

“I saw a number on his phone he last called. One that looks like he calls often enough to possibly get a lead to either a job he works at or family. An Avery. I am not sure. The phone isn’t in working order but we got the number.”

“Does he have a pulse?” The officer asked, trying to see through the tangled wreck of the head on collision if the man was still breathing. “It seems like a horrible irony that the drunkard that hit this man was left with almost no injury, yet…”

The officer put up his hand and said clearly, “He’s got a weak pulse. We can’t focus on the specifics just yet. But I did a read out for the other guy and it’s off the charts.”

The other officer started to ask what it was but got distracted by the ambulances coming in.

They were able to pry open the truck door with a crowbar and get out the unidentified man, getting him on the gurney to get inside the ambulance.

“Apparently, he had just been kicked out of his house by his wife. Had a drinking bender all day at a bar and then started driving around at night. 1.480 BAC. Highest I ever heard of. It’s lucky he’s not dead.”

The officer arresting the man in question overheard the paramedic talking to the other officer and scoffed.

“At least I didn’t kill anyone. Right?” The man with a slow slur and sobering up voice said.

“Don't borrow trouble from tomorrow,” the officer answered in an ominous manner.

“What the fuck does that m-mean?”

“You did enough for today. Let tomorrow speak for itself.”

They said nothing else as he loaded the drunk driver into the other ambulance, both looking morose and silent now.

The paramedic okayed the driver to start to prepare to leave.

“Can we contact anyone that could be next of kin?” She asked the officer.

“Not that we are aware of. Just this person called Avery. He doesn’t seem to have much contacts and his phone is damaged. Can’t do much.”

“Okay, we’ll get in touch as soon as we get him on life support.” She got the number and sighed.

“Drunk drivers disgust me. This keeps happening. Always. I feel powerless to stop it. All we can do is keep trying to save the victims…” she said in an exhausted voice.

The officer saluted her, giving her what looking like a slightly torn wallet.

“This was near his person. I would keep it just in case if he wakes up,” he said, nodding to her as they closed the doors.

She nodded, securing the doors as they started to leave in a rush of lights and alarms.

She noticed the thick leather wallet was a bit ripped, and had a picture of two men in it. She barely looked at it as she rushed to get more vitals and oxygen to the now more stable but comatose patient.

It was a tall man with a salt and pepper crew cut and a five ‘O clock shadow with a dapper and suave grin, and next to him was another even more attractive man(in her opinion), slightly shorter, with bright, amber eyes, long brown wavy hair. Eyes that looked oddly familiar.

Huge, penseive, expressive amber eyes she believes she has seen before about a murder trial that has occurred earlier that year.

She shook off the chill that seemed to crawl up her back, and did her duties in a silent, calm, methodical way, waiting for the opportunity to get away from that feeling of strange apprehension.

Those eyes were familiar, way too familiar, she kept telling herself.

It must be the cold night air, she lied out loud. Yeah, just the cold night.

The moon was full and heavy looking as they went into the hospital, a phone call being made with devastating effects.

**

Author note: to catch up with John and Edward’s full story Atonement, please click here.

Thank you 😊