Page 42 of Fighting Fire

“The eighty-second is on the way,” Sean said, inspecting the car again.

Lana knew that the weight of the car would begin to pull on the guardrail and the car would fall. “We don’t have time to wait.”

“I’ve got rope in the truck.”

“We don’t have time; you’ll have to hold my legs.”

Sean looked grim but then nodded.

Lana yelled, “Can you open the driver’s side window?”

She heard the sound of the window being lowered and a head emerged. “Stay there.”

Lana got down on her stomach and moved closer to the edge of the bridge. Sean grabbed on to her ankles and braced himself against the concrete curb.

“Sean, are you ready?”

“Yes,” he said between clenched teeth. “Go.”

She reached out into space, her stomach muscles straining. “Grab my hand. Hurry!”

“I don’t know if you can hold me. I’m pregnant.”

“Look, don’t worry about us. Worry about grabbing my hand.” The car groaned again and with a horrible scraping sound, the car started to fall.

The woman reached out and Lana lunged for her hand.

Just before the car tumbled to the ground below, Lana grabbed for the woman. She felt as if her arm was being pulled from the socket, but she held on.

The woman struggled. “Stop moving. Try to hold still.” The woman’s terrified face looked up at her. “I know you’re scared,” Lana said, her heart pumping with determination and adrenaline, “but just hold on and stay still.”

Lana slipped forward. She risked a glance back. Sean was holding them, but sweat was beginning to pop out on his forehead.

Suddenly, she felt herself slip forward again. When the woman jerked down, she screamed. Lana felt the woman’s hand slip and she fought to hold on. Soon, motorists were helping Sean pull her and the woman to safety.

She heard the sirens of the fire engine and the ambulance trying to work through the traffic on the bridge.

As soon as the woman hit the ground, she said, “The baby’s coming.”

Lana checked her, while Sean ran for the ambulance. The head was already crowning, and the woman was beginning to push. Lana stayed with her until the paramedics ran up, and Lana relinquished her spot just as the infant appeared.

Lana stood there for a moment, just stood there and watched the scene.

Sean, standing right behind her, as usual, asked, “Are you all right?”

She felt the tears start to well at the corners of her eyes.

“You all right, Dempsey?” the captain asked.

Sean looked at him. “She’s fine. It’s really me, Cap. I think I pulled something.”

Lana couldn’t stay one more minute. She walked away and heard the captain say, “Get to the hospital and take care of it. Have Dempsey drive you. We’ll sort out things here.”

She was standing at the railing to the bridge when Sean approached her, looking down at the wreckage and the sheer, terrible fall.

“Lana?”

“She had a little boy.”