A Storm in the Desert (On Hold)

Chapter Six

Lily watched Jason's hands on the steering wheel, illuminated by the light from the display panel. The muted roar of the powerful engine, dragging at her eyelids, she blinked slowly, covering her yawn and said, "Maybe we should have stayed in Vegas tonight." 

"Nah, I like sleeping at home." 

"Me too." 

Jason caught her fingers as she slid her hand over his thigh, "Will you think about Tlaquepaque?" he asked. 

"It's not my decision." 

He smiled, "It is, and you know it is." 

"Doris," Lily said, "feels beholden to me. But I'll not allow it to go that far." 

"Beholden? I'm trying to remember if I've ever heard that word used in actual conversation," Jason said, winking at her. 

Smiling, Lily glanced out the windshield, "JAS-"

Lily groaned, as a beam of light stabbed her eyes. 

"Miss? Miss? Can you hear me?" 

Lily tasted metal and smoke and tried to turn her head to the voice. 

"Don't move." 

Gentle hands held her face, the eerily medical scent of latex swirled past her nose. Her head was pounding and her chest hurt. The roar of some kind of engine and the scream of rending metal made her try to cover her ears. She couldn't move her hands. 

"Jason?" she whimpered. 

A warm blanket covered her, "On three," a steady masculine voice ordered, "one, two, three. All right miss, we've got you. Can you tell me your name?" 

"Jason-" she muttered. 

"No, miss, what's your name?" 

She licked her lips and tried again, "Where's Jason?" 

"Was Jason driving the car?" 

"Yes!" 

"He's being taken care off, now, tell me your name." 

A roof appeared over her and a man's face swam in her blurred vision.  

"Where does it hurt ma'am?" 

"Lily," she whispered, another tear sliding down her cheek. 

"Is that your name, Lily?" 

"Yes." 

"Lily, everything's going to be fine. Can you tell me where it hurts?" 

"Jason?" 

"There bringing him along, now tell me..."

"Lily!" Carly rushed to the exhausted woman, wrapped in a blanket.  

Lily looked up with exhausted eyes, "They won't let me see him. Carly! They won't-" 

"Sh- we'll take care of it. Are you okay?" 

"Yes, just bruised. All I know is he's in surgery. I didn't see him." 

"Okay, okay, just take a breath," Carly clasped Lily's shaking hands and looked up at Mitch.  

He nodded to her and went to the nurse's station.  

"Don't worry, Lil, Mitch will have everything sorted in a moment. I promise," she soothed, wrapping a careful arm around the sobbing woman's shoulders. Carly looked at the blood stained phone clutched in her scraped fingers.