Chapter Five

Chapter Five

"Oh, God," Bobby thought. "Eames…I wish Eames…"

Another blow from the bottle struck him in his right side. It sent Bobby reeling from the masked man and out of the direct path of the car. As the car sped forward, its rusted and dangling front bumper ripped into Bobby's right leg, but its full force drove upon the man holding the bottle. Bobby fell to his knees as the car pinned the man against the store. A scream of pain shot over the sounds of the storm. As he fought against waves of pain, he turned back to look at the wrecked car. One man was sprawled across the car's hood, which was folded like an accordion. The other, blood starting to soak his mask, stared glassy-eyed out the cracked window.

"The gun…he probably still has it," Bobby thought. "I gotta…" He still clutched a gun in his hand. He struggled to rise from the pavement, but his right leg gave him little support. He dragged his body across the parking lot. "The kids," he thought. He looked up and realized his car was moving towards him.

"No…Get away…Get away…" he thought. He looked at the wrecked car and saw the man inside fighting to get the door open. His car jolted to a stop near him, blocking his view of the other car and spraying water over him. The back door of Bobby's car flew open.

"Bobby!" Drew shouted. "Get in!" The boy reached for him.

"No!" Bobby yelled. "Get out of here!"

"We're not leaving you!" Emmie yelled back. "Hurry…He's almost out of the car!"

Bobby realized the kids wouldn't leave him. He knew if their positions were reversed he wouldn't leave them. He reached up for Drew's arms and grabbed at the open door, but he lacked the strength to pull his body up and Drew lacked the strength to pull him in.

"Go!" Bobby screamed. "Go…and I'll hold on!"

"Drew…Hang on to him!" Emmie gunned the car.

Bobby clung desperately to the car door and fought the waves of pain coming from his legs as they were dragged across the pavement. "Hang on…Hang on…" he thought. "If you let go, the boy will go with you. He won't let go…"

Drew clutched Bobby's left arm so tightly that the boy's fingernails dug into the man's skin. Bobby heard several gunshots, but none reached their target. "He's as bad a shot as me," Bobby thought. After several agonizing minutes, Emmie slowed and stopped the car. Drew still held desperately on to Bobby's arm. Bobby struggled to climb into the car, but the searing pain in his leg stopped him. He heard a door slam, and a few seconds later Emmie was by him.

"I held on, Emmie," Drew gasped. "I held on."

"Yea…you did good, Drew." Emmie was clearly terrified, but doing a good job of calming her brother. "C'mon…Let's get him in the car…"

Bobby concentrated on getting in the car. His leg hurt terribly, and he felt bruises rising on his face and side. It took several painful minutes but the kids managed to help him get in the back seat, where his large frame scarcely fit. Drew huddled in the small space between the front passenger seat and the back. The cold rain and wind rushed through the open door, and Bobby shivered from the pain and cold.

"Here," Emmie said and started to unzip the jacket.

"No…" Bobby said weakly. "You…You gotta stay warm…Blanket…There's a blanket…First aid kit…in the trunk…"

Emmie nodded, reached into one of the jacket's pockets, and handed Bobby's cell phone to Drew. "Call the sheriff and get an ambulance." She disappeared.

Bobby, arching his back in pain, looked at Drew. "Warn the sheriff," he said. "About the two men…" He studied the frightened boy. "You're doing great. That was a very brave thing the two of you did."

The boy paused dialing. His eyes shimmered. "We couldn't leave you…Not after you came back for us."

The car door opened again, allowing the storm's invasion. Emmie draped a damp blanket over Bobby. "I'm sorry…Everything is so wet…I'm going to try to take care of your leg."

A surge of pain blurred Bobby's vision and thoughts. He was dimly aware of Drew speaking to the dispatcher.

"Bobby…Bobby…" Emmie's voice broke through the fog. "Your leg is bad…There's a lot of blood…"

Bobby stared at his right leg. There was a lot of blood coming from a deep and ragged slash just above the knee. The fact it wasn't spurting out was a small consolation.

"Damn," Bobby said. "And I just got the car cleaned…"

"I…I know some first aid," Emmie said as she opened the first aid kit.

"Do what you can," Bobby said, trying not to betray his pain or fear. "And let's get out of here…Head to the nearest hospital…"

"A deputy and an ambulance are coming," Drew said. He stared at Bobby's leg. "It'll come from the east…We can drive towards it…That…that looks bad…"

Emmie nodded, and her wet hair flicked drops on Bobby. "Drew…help me get a bandage on his leg…Then we can go."

The children tried to be gentle, but after several moments Bobby would've been soaked in sweat from the pain if his skin hadn't already been saturated from the rain.

"We're both scouts," Emmie said, as much to comfort herself as Bobby and Drew. "Lift his leg, Drew…Be really careful…"

"I just got my merit badge in advanced first aid," Drew said.

"I bet," Bobby said, stiffening his body. "You never expected to…Oh…"

"Sorry," Emmie said.

"It's…it's ok," Bobby reassured her, although his leg felt almost as if the rusted metal still ripped into it. "Just…just get it wrapped up…" He turned and tried to look out in the darkness. He didn't want the children to know that he was afraid that one or both of the would-be robbers would descend on them.

It seemed a very long and painful time before Emmie and Drew finished wrapping Bobby's leg with nearly all of the bandages in the kit.

"I…I'm afraid it's still bleeding," Emmie said uncertainly.

"It's…ok," Bobby said. It was harder for him to maintain his mask. "Please…We…We gotta get out of here…"

"We should get this leg up," Emmie said. "Drew…help me again…"

She bent Bobby's left leg so that it offered the right some support. She then carefully bent his right leg so that its foot lay flat on the seat. Bobby hissed in pain.

"I'm sorry," Emmie said.

"It…it's all right…You're doing the right thing…Keeping it up will…will keep it from bleeding so much." He didn't know if it was loss of blood or exhaustion or both, but Bobby felt he was loosing his grip on consciousness.

"I'll help hold in place," Drew said.

Bobby leaned back against the door. He was so exhausted and hurt that he didn't notice the handle pushing against his back. He shivered as Emmie shut the back door and slid into the driver's seat.

"I'm sorry," she said as she started the car. "That it took so long to get to you…I had to adjust the seat…Figure out the car…"

"It…it's ok." Bobby shivered and winced. "Just…thank you…thank you for coming back…"

The ride took place in a painful haze for Bobby. He was aware of Emmie's careful driving and of Drew's care in keeping his leg safe. At some point he thought he heard the beeping of his phone, but he couldn't focus on the sound or Drew's words as the boy answered it. At another point, the sound of a siren and the pulsing of a bright, red light filled his head. He sensed the car stopping, and a deputy who looked barely older than Emmie loomed over him. EMTs surrounded him, and Bobby found himself in an ambulance. Through the trip he kept wondering if Eames had received his messages, if she was all right, what she would've done. "She's going to be so mad at me," Bobby thought. "I screwed up again…Eames…Eames…"

"Bobby…Bobby…"

He blinked, and Emmie's face focused over him. "Bobby…Who's Eames?"

END CHAPTER FIVE

I have a dream, by the way, that some day I'll write a fanfic were none of the characters wind up in a hospital. Ain't happening now, though.