Married in Haste. Roz Fox Denny

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СКАЧАТЬ need you to stay here where I know you’re safe. Mrs. Miller has agreed to watch you until someone in the family comes by. She might take you home with her. You boys have been to her house before, remember? I promise I’ll be as quick as I can, but I want your word that you’ll do exactly as she says.”

      “What if Mama or Daddy comes to get us first?”

      Abby glanced worriedly away from Noah’s direct blue eyes. “You’ll go with them, of course.” She hugged each boy harder than she normally would, but wasn’t able to look back at their tearstained faces after she’d hurried off.

      “Raina, I have no idea how long I’ll be.” Abby spoke in a low voice to her good friend and fellow teacher. “Maybe I can reach some neighbors, to see if the kids’ home—and my apartment building—are still standing.”

      “Don’t worry, Abby. Do whatever’s necessary. I have a freezer full of hot dogs left over from our Super Bowl party. Jerry won’t be home. It was his day off, but he just phoned and said the precinct’s called everyone in.”

      “I hate to ask another favor, but…I called Ben Galloway to ask for an orthopedic referral for Sam. Ben’s sister is Marlo McBride, and her daughters are in the breakfast bunch.” She nodded toward the huddled girls, who sat still as mice. The older child’s arms were looped tight around her younger sister. “Would you keep an eye on them, too, until Marlo or her designee arrives? Erin told me this morning that the woman who used to baby-sit them moved to California.”

      “Hey, the more the merrier. Our house is so close to the school, it’s not a problem. If the city streets are as messy as Jerry said when he phoned, I might be a clearing house for a whole bunch of school refugees. Abby, you take extra care, hear? The streetlights have been knocked out. Some roads have buckled and others are flooded. Maybe you shouldn’t go.”

      Abby rubbed at the furrows forming between her eyes. “If it were me in the hospital and Elliot at work, he’d make every effort to reach me. Outside of Blair and the boys, I’m Elliot’s only relative.”

      “I understand. I’ll round up the twins and the McBride girls right now, and reassure them as best I can. You’ll call me when you learn something for sure?”

      “I will. Raina, I don’t know how I’ll ever repay you.”

      “Don’t start that, Abby Drummond. One favor does not make you indebted to me for the rest of your natural life.” Mustering a smile, Raina offered Abby a stick of gum, which she unwrapped on her way to the parking lot. Remembering the cars that had come through the cafeteria windows, she prayed her small compact had fared better.

      It had, and started on her first try.

      An aftershock struck when Abby was little more than a block from the school. It gave her an odd sensation. Her car seemed steady, but around her the sidewalks and curbs undulated. Trees dipped and swayed. It was as if she was viewing the world through a vibrating camera. Homes lining the street gyrated for a moment, dancing to silent music. Thankfully the aftershock was over quickly, and cars proceeded normally in both directions.

      Abby popped out the CD she’d listened to on the way to school, and turned on her radio. The ringing of her cell phone caused her nerves to jump and her heart to speed up. “Hello,” she said after groping the instrument out of its case and nearly dropping it.

      “Abby?” Ben’s voice, however welcome, sounded terribly strained.

      “Sorry, Ben. I had a little trouble retrieving my phone. I’m in the car, headed to Mercy G. We just experienced a fair-size aftershock. I’m still shaking even though the tremor stopped.”

      “I wish you’d stay put, Abby. We’ve been bombarded by the first wave of casualties. There are so many critical injuries coming in, you’d think this was a war zone. Two things, and then I have to dash. My dad’s probably examining Sam as we speak. Dad’s condominium on Queen Anne is a matter of blocks from Mercy. So tell Elliot that Sam’s in good hands. Since you’ve left school, it may not matter that I haven’t been able to raise Marlo. I did get in touch with a co-worker who said the agency sent everyone home. She also said one end of their parking garage has crumbled.”

      Abby heard worry in his words. “Ben, I doubt Marlo got that far. I don’t know the exact time she dropped the girls at school, but I saw them shortly after they arrived. In fact, I’d gone over to talk to them just before the shock hit. At the most, Marlo couldn’t have been on the road ten minutes. Oh, before I forget, I asked Raina Miller, one of our teachers, to keep tabs on my nephews and your nieces. Marlo knows where the Millers live. If no one’s at the school, she’ll find the girls with Raina.”

      “That’s great, Abby. I’m up to my ears in emergencies. All the doctors are.”

      “Can your mother collect Erin and Mollie?”

      “My folks split a long time ago. Mom lives in Rome. I’m all the family Marlo has here. Dad—well, he and Marlo rarely speak.”

      “This is the doctor you recommended for Sam?”

      “Believe me, Kirk’s patients get better treatment than his family ever did.”

      Abby had never heard Ben speak quite so sharply. Which proved, if nothing else, that she knew relatively little about the man she’d been seeing for almost a year. And she’d planned to spend a week alone with him in the mountains? Looking at it like that, she found it easier to understand Elliot’s concern.

      Abby heard Ben talking to someone else, then he came on the line again, sounding rushed.

      “I’m needed for an injured baby they just brought in. Thanks, Abby, for arranging for Erin and Mollie’s care. If you have a number for Mrs. Miller I’ll jot it down and see if maybe Dad’s girlfriend will go pick them up.”

      Abby had come to a street where the signals weren’t operating, and crossing appeared to be in the hands of the bravest. She quickly relayed Raina’s number, concentrating on traffic.

      “Thanks,” he said. “With the bridge out, you’ll have to swing south before you can cross and go north to Mercy. I’ll call again when I get a chance.”

      She dropped the phone in her lap and gripped the steering wheel tight. She surprised herself by making it across the intersection unscathed. But she couldn’t help noticing that her palms were slick with sweat. So was her forehead. Navigating around debris spilling out in the roadway claimed her full concentration.

      More than once Abby considered turning back. Love for her brother and his family kept her doggedly taking the detours that skirted the worst of the damage.

      A full two hours after she’d left the school, Abby was about a quarter mile from the hospital. A policeman directing traffic at a cross-street flagged her down and motioned for her to roll down her window.

      “Only ambulance and aid cars beyond this point, miss.”

      “But…” she sputtered, her fingers clutching the steering wheel. “The hospital contacted me. My brother and his son have been injured.” She blinked back tears. “The nurse said it was urgent, and it’s taken me hours to reach this point.” She explained how she’d started in West Seattle and had to detour along East Marginal Way, then zigzag from street to street. “Please,” she implored, panic cracking her voice.

      “I’m sorry, I can’t make СКАЧАТЬ