Water Under the Bridge || Evan Buckley [2]

chapter twenty three

family dynamics and surprises

Children's birthday parties are usually family friendly with an extravaganza of decorations, delicious snacks, fun activities, and screaming kids high on a sugar rush. This specific birthday party transpired into a nightmare due to a little gory outcome of pinning the tail on the donkey. The 118 firefighters parked at the address of the dispatch call and guided into the backyard by a young boy, the son of the wounded woman.

"I was jumping on the trampoline and the springs flew off." The visible frightened son told Bobby as they were making their way to his mom.

Bobby, Eddie, and Hen reached the woman currently pinned by the springs to the door of the shed.

"And it almost killed me." The mother faintly said.

The Fire Captain checked the other side of the door. "All right let's see what we got. Looks like she's pinned to the wall in two places." He stated, analyzing the situation. "All right let's go! Let's go!"

Eddie and Hen started working on the woman. "Ma'am, don't move." Hen advised. "With you moving could cause that spring to shift and that would not be good."

"With it traveling at top speed, it put a hole right through her hand and her torso." Eddie looked into the wounds.

Josephine, along with the other firefighters met the trio once rolling up with a stretcher.

"Is she going to be okay?" The worrisome son asked the firefighters.

Sophie stepped in to comfort him. "Give us some space and we're going to take care of your mom, we promise." She gently escorted him back to not become a distraction as they worked.

"Can you move your fingers?" Eddie asked.

Wincing, the woman nodded. "I think so."

"Good. Means the spring likely missed the tendon. No nerve damages."

She sighed in relief, "Oh, thank God. It's my selfie hand."

"Pulse is slightly elevated but BP's normal. Miraculously, she's stable." Hen declared, moving the stethoscope on the woman's back. "Getting bilateral breath sounds. Spring likely didn't puncture her lungs, but it's probably millimeters away from her spine. I can pack the wound, but I don't know how to detach her from the barn."

"We don't. Transport her with it, donkey and all." Bobby simply said. "Where's Buck?" He noticed the absence of the blond firefighter.

Josephine knitted her brows alongside the Fire Captain, searching for her boyfriend. Spotted, Buck gathered an audience of children showing off the saw in his possession.

"Buck! We need that saw." She shouted out for him. Startled by her voice, he paved his way out carefully carrying the tool.

"You went really hard-core with this party design." Hen commented.