Bernes was fearful to open his eyes.

His ears rang over the sound of men shouting. There might have been two of them, or an entire navy, their yells cast his hearing adrift while a broken engine shuddered threateningly nearby. He felt he was on grass maybe, he wasn't in the car any longer. The ache along his spine was crippling, the sharpness in his rib indescribable. He tried to shift his head slightly, and felt warmth trickling down one side of his jaw.

Edith was doubled over, thrown against the stocky roots of one of the maples, protruding out of the muddy side of the road that descended to a moderate enough degree to have the car brutally overturned, where Matthew was caught, still, limbs in wrong directions. A bulky man in worn overalls came to his side and attempted to push the car off him, and then resorted to pulling Matthew out by the waist, shaking with fear and concern. He lied the gentleman in his arms onto a patch of greener grass and hesitated, paralysed with panic. "Oh... Oh Christ's name. Oh I didn't kill a man! Harry! Over here! Th-this one- n -n this gentlemen over 'ere won't open his eyes. He won't open 'em Harry!"

"Coming!" The other man cried. "I, I think this one's a Lady!" He swallowed, hands behind his neck, trembling. "Lord this ain't good, Tim. Look at her... think she might be waking though!" Carefully, he brought Edith over to where Matthew was, further down, and placed her next to him with swiveting superintendence. "Oh... I don't like the look of your lad! What've we done to them?" He then stood up and ran behind Matthews car. "Look at the bloody state of it Tim! What've we done! Good God help us - no. No, look there, there's another one of them! Lord WE NEED AN AMBULANCE!"

"Well how are we going to call one of those? The truck's busted as well! Get - get that bloke down here before the car blows! I'll check on these lot!"

"Oh, this one's awake! This one's got his eye's open, Timmy! Blinking and all! Ain't he bleeding though - absolutely covered in it! R-right - l-lemme gettim over to you now... c-come on, come on my lad."