| |
Nora
The ambulance did beat them to the dump, but it hadn’t left yet. Nora didn’t wait for the wheels to stop turning before she was climbing out of the car and running toward the small car the DeGrave kid drove. What a miracle that kid had turned out to be. She remembered when she’d first stopped him to ask for his help. She’d felt so foolish. But what a great decision that had been.
Maybe it hadn’t been a coincidence. Maybe God knew that this was how Levi needed to get found. She didn’t know, and she didn’t need to know right now.
They had her son on a stretcher. She ran toward them. One of the paramedics tried to stop her, but the one strapping him into place recognized her from work. “It’s okay. That’s his mom.”
She grabbed Levi’s hand and burst into tears. “Oh my baby.” She waited for something to change on his face, but there was nothing. No movement, no expression. Certainly no words.
“He’s unconscious, ma’am, but don’t worry. We’re going to do everything we can.”
These words sent a chill cascading over her shoulders. “Is he going to make it?”
They started toward the ambulance. She walked alongside, waiting for an answer, but one didn’t come. Panic gripped her. No way would God bring them this far just to let Levi die. He wouldn’t do that, right? Please, God. Anything. I’ll give you anything.
“Ma’am?”
She looked over her shoulder and into the sincere eyes of the Mattawooptock pastor. “They’re trained not to answer these questions. They’re not allowed to. But it doesn’t mean he won’t be just fine.”
“Yeah,” a tall girl with short, black hair chimed in. “He was conscious just a little bit ago.”
They hoisted him into the ambulance.
“Can I ride along?”
The paramedics exchanged a look, and one of them nodded. “Sure. Hop in.” He gave her a hand, and she slid onto the warm, dry bench beside Levi. She was grateful for the warmth. She hadn’t realized how wet she’d gotten in just a few minutes outside. She looked at her son. He was drenched. His lips were blue.
The paramedic was cutting through his coat. At first this scared her, but then she realized he was likely getting ready to put an IV in. The bus lurched forward, and then they were underway with sirens blaring.
“He looks so cold. Can I cover him up?”
The man across from her nodded and pointed with this chin. “Right there.”
She turned and found a few blankets folded up neatly on a shelf. She pulled one of them out and then shook it out. Then she gently laid it on her son. The blanket wouldn’t reach from his toes to his chin, so she opted to cover his feet. She couldn’t believe how big he was. She clearly remembered snippets of the day he was born. It had been a difficult delivery, but when she’d looked down at that chubby little face, she had known that it had been worth all the pain. Back then, this new kind of love had gripped her with such intensity she had wondered how anyone could survive it. She could remember thinking that what she was feeling was a maximum love. An infinite love. There was no love in the world stronger or greater than that love she’d felt that first day she saw his face. She’d known then that she would do anything to care for, to love, to protect that boy.
And the love she felt right now in this ambulance was even stronger. How was that possible? She didn’t know. But it was there.
