04 The Rescue by Nicholas Sparks

Author:Nicholas Sparks [Sparks, Nicholas]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 16

Taylor was sitting in his kitchen two evenings later, doing paperwork, when he got the call.

An accident on the bridge between a gasoline tanker truck and an auto.

After grabbing his keys, he was out the door less than a minute later; within five minutes he was one of the first on scene. He could hear the sirens from the fire truck wailing in the distance.

Stopping his truck, Taylor wondered if they’d make it in time. He scrambled out without shutting the door and looked around. Cars were backed up in either direction on both sides of the bridge, and people were out of their cars, gawking at the horrific sight.

The cab of the tanker had rolled up onto the back of the Honda, completely crushing the rear, before smashing through the wire barrier that lined the bridge. In the midst of the accident, the driver had locked the wheel as he’d slammed on the brakes, and the truck had whipsawed across both lanes of the road, completely blocking both directions. The car, pinned beneath the front of the cab, hung off the bridge like a diving board from its flattened rear tires, balanced precariously in a downward position. Its roof had been torn open, like a partially opened can, as it ripped through the cable along the side of the bridge. The only thing that kept the Honda from falling into the river some eighty feet below was the weight of the tanker’s cab, and the cab itself looked far from stable.

Its engine was smoking badly, and fluid was leaking steadily onto the Honda beneath, spreading a shiny veneer over the hood.

When Mitch saw Taylor, he came rushing forward to fill Taylor in, getting straight to business.

“The driver of the truck’s all right, but there’s still someone in the car. Man or woman, we can’t tell yet—whoever it is is slumped over.”

“What about the tanks on that truck?”

“Three-quarters full.”

Smoking engine… leaking over the car…

“If that cab explodes, will the tanks go with it?”

“The driver says that it shouldn’t if the lining wasn’t damaged in the accident. I didn’t see a leak, but I can’t be sure.”

Taylor looked around, adrenaline coursing through his system. “We gotta get these people out of here.”

“I know, but they’re bumper to bumper right now, and I just got here a couple of minutes ago myself. I haven’t had a chance.”

Two fire trucks arrived—the pumper and the hook and ladder, their red lights circling the area, and seven men jumped out before they’d come to a complete stop. Already in their fire-retardant suits, they took one look at the situation, started barking orders, and went for the hoses. Having come to the scene without going by the firehouse first, Mitch and Taylor scrambled for the suits that had been brought for them. They slipped them over their clothing with practiced ease.

Carl Huddle had arrived; so did an additional two police officers from the town of Edenton. After a quick consultation they turned their attention to the cars on the bridge.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.