Chapter 46: The accident
WARNING MATURE CONTENT!
We got the call Saturday, that they would be returning Sunday at 10 AM. Dad made us draw straws, as we all wanted to go to pick them up. Susan and I won the straw draw. Dad has the top down as we drive to the airport. It's a little chilly but the sun makes up for it, and the fact there is hardly any traffic this early in the morning.
Andrew had a wonderful weekend, he bedded a few girls at the bush party, he'd done quite a lot of drugs and had downed at least a keg of beer. He was on his way into work. He needed this job, but he would have preferred to stay with that nice kittycat. Mammal was she hot. He was in a bit of a hurry, so he was breaking the speed limit, but not by much. He gave a snort in to try to clear his nose. This was when the last hit of fentanyl laced cocaine dropped. His body went into convulsions, his paw matted the gas pedal, and he passed out. He was driving by the airport entrance when this happened. People in the airport could see his fancy bush buggy picking up speed as it was going down the road. It had a solid steel winch bumper connected to a skid plate under the truck. As his truck picked up speed it began to swerve back and fourth. It hit the barrier on the right doing about 60 miles an hour. It shot across two lanes of traffic at about 30-degree angle, and went down into the median. It flew out of the median straight into oncoming traffic. Nick had no chance to get out of the truck's way. The truck plowed into the side of Peters big old boat of a car. They were pushed sideways into the cement pillar the light standard was on. The pillar cut the car in half right behind the front bench seat, and in front of the back seat. The back half of the car was then spun 180 degrees and was facing traffic. The truck then continued down the embankment and into the river.
Nick just had a moment when he saw the truck come out of the median. It plowed into the car breaking his left arm and both of his legs. He got a concussion when his head hit the bumper of the truck. Judy fared a little better, as her right arm was broken along with her right leg, and a blood vessel in her right eye burst when her head hit the door. She also received a concussion at this time. The front half of the car came to rest at a 130-degree angle to the line of travel. Susan came out the best she had bumps and bruises, Daniel had a broken jaw and muzzle, but they were both ok.
Evelin had been driving this road for years now, she was heading for the airport where she had a day job. She was texting on her phone, when it fell out of her paw and landed on the floor. "Shit" she said as she looked down to try and find it. Her car started to drift to the right. She looked up at the sound of the crash. She nailed the brakes but it was too late. She saw the back half of a car facing her, with two kits strapped to the back seat. She prayed that her car would stop in time. She froze and didn't try to turn the wheel. She plowed into the back half of the car right into the back seat.
Peter and Vivian had been standing out front of the airport waiting for their ride. They saw the whole accident happen, but didn't know it was his car. "Vivian call 911 I'm going to help the victims". "Right love". Peter got down on all fours and started to run.
911 what's your emergency?
Yes, there's been an accident in front of the airport, a car was cut in half by a pickup.
Can you see any victims?
Yes, there appears to be two mammals in the car and at least one in the pickup.
Is there fire?
No, no fire.
Dispatching emergency crews now.
My husband has gone to see if he could help, he's an MD.
Peter, as he runs, hopes that it is not a fatality. As he gets closer, he can see it's his car. "No, NO, Oh GOD NO". Peter reaches the car and can see that Nick and Judy are badly hurt, he reaches in and shuts the motor off. He takes the keys and heads for the trunk of his car. When he gets to the back half of his car, he can see the car planted in the back seat, and a female cheetah screaming hysterically. He grabs her to try and calm her down. But she just keeps repeating "the Kits". He then notices the blood on the back seat. Peter jams his key in the trunk lid and tries to open it. The lid pops a bit, but does not go up. Peter grabs the lid and forces it up enough to get his medical kit out of trunk. He then screams at the female to back her car up. She snaps out of her hysterics just long enough to do as he asked.
Peter gets around to the back seat to see Susan and Daniel have had their heads crushed into the seat back. Daniels muzzle and Jaw are broken, and Susan's head is a bit misshaped, but they are both still breathing. Peter inserts an endo tracheal tube into Daniel to help him breath and tapes his jaw and muzzle to the tube to keep it immobile. He finds no other injuries on them; the bumper was high enough to just hit their heads. He hears the sound of sirens, and breaths a little easier. He calls Vivian.
"Love, I'll be going to the hospital with two of the victims, Vivian it's Nick and Judy, Daniel and Susan". Vivian just held the phone to her ear in a state of shock. "Love, they are all alive, but pretty messed up. I've got Daniel and Susan, please make your way home, there's nothing you can do for at least three hours, go home love I've got them". "Ok, Peter if your sure". "Yes, love I'm sure".
We are having the time of our lives in the back seat. The wind blowing, and good tunes on the radio. When the truck comes out of no where. It slams in to the side of the car, and pushes us sideways. As the truck goes through the car, I can feel my muzzle break on the bumper as it goes by. We are spun around and are looking at traffic coming at us. We can see the car not slowing down, we hear the brakes come on but we know it's to late. I look at Susan, "love you", was all I had time for, before the bumper put out my lights.
Two ambulances show up, and head for the front half of the car. "You back here". One of the crews come to the back half of the car. They see the two kits and can tell it's a lost cause. But Peter Reading them right takes charge. "You get that gurney over here, you put that back board away, they don't need it". They gently lift them up and place them on the gurney, and straps them down. Peter tries to enter the ambulance, "sir you can't ride with us". "Like hell I can't there my grand kits. Move we need to get them to Mercy General".
"Sir that's ten minutes further than the closest hospital". "I don't care just do it". "Sir…" "Look I'm head of pediatrics at Mercy General JUST go". They both start to have trouble breathing. An endo trachea tube is inserted into Susan and both are now being bagged. As soon as their stable he calls the house. "Mavis put me on speaker phone. Mis Watts you there"? "Yes Peter, I'm here". "Good, there's been an accident, I need you to get the kits to the hospital, family members have been badly hurt, and I need the kits for blood for Daniel and Susan. We are 17 minutes out from Mercy General please get there and tell the nurse you are there to give blood for an accident victim". Peter can hear the shouts of dismay coming from the house, "look guys I know this is a lot to take in, but Daniel and Susan need your help". At this point Daniel and Susan flat line. Everyone in the house can hear this. "Got to go everyone, get to the hospital as soon as you can".
"Give me the defib", "Sir, let them go". "NO, I will not, defib now". "Sir we can't separate their paws", "then don't, saline solution now". They hand him the saline; Peter soaks a towel in saline and wraps it around their paws. "Defib 100, clear", Peter put the paddles one on Daniel's Chest and one on Susan's chest. And zaps them. No response, "200 clear". They both convulse, but still are flat lining. "Adrenaline now", he is handed the syringe Peter plunges it into Daniel's heart and gives him half. He plunges it into Susan's heart and gives her the other half. "Clear", he shocks them again, "nothing sir". "300 clear", they convulse again, no response. "Again". "Sir, just let them go". "NO, again", they convulse again, but this time there is a faint heart beat.
They arrive at the hospital and are rushed into emergency. Peter finds that the blood draw from the kits is going well, he takes the first bag to Daniel and hooks it up, the second bag he hooks up to Susan their heart beats become a little stronger. They are stabilized, and rushed into surgery. It's a long and arduous surgery for both Daniel and Susan. Both have shunts put into their heads, to drain off any fluid build up. Daniel has the bleeders in his muzzle cauterized, and his bottom jaw wired together. They have bone setter/ stabilisers attached to their heads. Susan's is holding the side of her face in place. Daniel's goes around his head and hold the pieces of his muzzle and jaw in place. Susan's looks like a stainless-steel halo, and Daniel's looks like a muzzle. They are placed on ventilators and put into medical induced comas.
We wake up in the meadow with mom and dad, Gab comes over with a sad look on his face. "I'm sorry about your accident guys. But only two of you can go back, the other two must pass on". Mom and dad hug us, "I guess this is goodbye Daniel, Susan". "Yes, dad it is". we all walk over to the veil. "Remember us"? "We will dad, mom". Susan and I look at each other and we both nod yes. "DAD, MOM, FREEZE". "Daniel what are you doing"? "DAD LINK YOUR LEFT PAW TO MOM" S RIGHT PAW". Susan and I take their other paws. "Guys what are you doing"? "Dad, Susan and I know how messed up we are compared to you two, and the family needs you more". With that we start to feed them power. "Guys please don't do this". "Dad, mom, remember us, we love you". "Please guys, don't do this. We need you too". "Sorry dad, the needs of the many out weigh the needs of the few. We love you guys, take our final gift, and love our family". Nick and Judy both have tears in their eyes. "We will son, and Susan our daughter". Nick and Judy slowly fade away. As the last of our power is given to them, they fade out completely.
Gab comes over with a sad look in his eyes. "Why did you do that you two"? "We did that Gab because the family needs them more". "But your family needs you too". "We know Gab, but we know our gift will be put to good use to help others, mammals we don't even know. And what's done in love, can't be bad can it"? "Very noble of you guys, come here". We go over and Gab is crying but he wraps us up in a hug. "I wish we could have had more time together, but I'm proud and honored to have known you. Go you two, the veil awaits". "Thanks, Gab, for being our friend". We step back, and paw-in-paw step through the veil. Gab wipes his tears, and plastering a grin on his muzzle walks into the meadow.
Nick and Judy are transfer to Mercy General a few days later. They are both wheeled in to see Daniel and Susan several times a day, they stay for a bit, and later, crying, leave the room. Most of the family is in the hospital. DeDe comes in to see them as often as she can, but she can barely hold it together. The kits talk to them as often as they can, but there is no response, not even white noise.
Peter come in a few weeks later to give them the bad news. "Guys", he has tears in his eyes and he starts again. "Guys, Daniel and Susan are gone. They don't have enough brain activity to breath on their own. The ventilator is the only thing keeping them alive". Nick and Judy have tears in their eyes, "we know Peter, they gave us all the energy they had, just so we would survive". "I would like your permission to shut the ventilator off". "Not yet Peter we want the whole family there when we do".
"Also have you thought about organ donation"? "Yes, we have Peter, but we won't sign anything tell they are gone". "When would you like to do this"? "Saturday would that be ok"? "Yes, it would, I'll inform everyone". "Thanks Peter". After Peter leaves, "Nick I know I will break down before I say everything I want to say, will you speak for us"? "Yes, Judy my love I will, but I might break down too".
Saturday rolls around, and it's a very somber bunch in the operating room. Biggest room to allow that many people. Most are in the observation gallery. The medical transplant teams wait just off the operating room out of sight. Mr. Delaront, Clawhauser, chief Bogo, Fangmyer, Mis Watts, Jack, Skye, and the whole family is present. Nick and Judy are carried to the head of the bed.
"Daniel our son, Susan our daughter, we love you both. We thank you for the gift you gave us, we don't know what we did to deserve it, but we are going to live the rest of our lives trying to live by your example of selfless sacrifice. Go in peace our son and daughter". Peter lifts Nick high enough to kiss Daniel and Susan on the top of their heads. Vivian lifts Judy to do the same. They are then set down into the wheel chair provided for them. the immediate family gathers at the foot of the bed. Peter and Victor one of the other doctors, go up to the head of the bed. They disconnect the ventilators, and shut them down. They then pull the trachea tubes out of them. We all watch the oxygen saturation monitors fall. 90%...80%...70% …. 60% their hearts start to speed up. 50%...40%...30%...20%.
this is the end of the first part of the story, the second part is "Daniel and Susan's Story". Thank you to all who took the time to read my story so far, your comments were much appreciated.