Page 22 of A Soldier's Return

“Thank you.”

“He’s a doctor?” The man’s wife was staring at Eli with astonishment filtering through her shock and terror.

“He is. And I’m a nurse. It’s lucky we were here.”

“Not luck,” the woman said faintly. “It’s a miracle. We were going to go up to Ecola State Park this morning beachcombing, but when we were in the car, something told me to come here instead.”

They hadn’t saved the man yet. She wasn’t willing to go that far. “My name is Melissa and this is Eli.” Though that adrenaline was still pumping through her, she spoke as patiently as she could manage. The woman would have plenty of time to break down later, after the paramedics took over the situation, but right now it was important to keep her as calm as possible under the circumstances.

“Ma’am, what’s your name and what is your husband’s name?”

“Carol,” she said faintly. “Carol Stewart. This is my husband Jim. We’re from Idaho. The Lewiston area. We’ve been here for three days and are supposed to go home tomorrow. Today is our w-wedding anniversary.”

Oh, she really hoped Eli and the paramedics could resuscitate the man. It would be utterly tragic for Carol to lose her husband on their anniversary.

“How long have you been married?”

“Th-three years. Three amazing years. It’s a second marriage for both of us. We were high school sweethearts but went our separate ways after graduation. I got divorced ten years ago and his first wife died about five years ago, and we reconnected on social media.”

“Is your husband on any medication?”

“High blood pressure and reflux medication. I can’t remember which one, but I have the information on my phone.”

“You can give it to the paramedics when they arrive.”

Carol gave a distracted nod, her hands over her mouth as she watched Eli continue compressions without any visible response. “Oh, what’s happening?”

Before she could answer, the dispatcher returned to the line. “Okay. I have paramedics on the way. They should be there shortly. I’ll stay on the line with you until they arrive.”

“Thank you. I’m going to hand you over to the patient’s wife so she can answer any questions about his medical history for you to pass on to the emergency department at the hospital.”

She turned to the other woman and handed over her phone. “Carol, take a deep breath, okay? I need to help Dr. Sanderson right now and someone has to stay on the line with the dispatcher until the paramedics get here. Will you do that for your husband?”

Melissa could see shock and panic were beginning to take over as the reality of the situation seemed to be becoming more clear. The other woman had turned as pale as the clouds, and her breathing seemed shallow and rapid. Carol took one deep, shuddering breath and then another, and appeared to regain some of her composure.

“I... Yes. I think so. Hello?”

When she was certain Carol wasn’t going to fall over, offering them an additional patient to deal with, Melissa knelt beside Eli, who was giving rescue breaths.

“Any response?” she asked quietly.

He returned to his chest compressions without pause. “Not yet,” he said, his voice grim.

“Do you need me to take over and give you a break?”

“Not with your bad wrist. I’ll continue compressions, but it would help if you handle the respirations.”

She moved to the man’s head and the two of them worked together, with Eli counting out his compressions, then pausing for her to give two breaths.

She wasn’t sure how long they worked together. It seemed like forever but was probably only five or six minutes before she spotted paramedics racing toward them across the sand.

In the summertime, this beach would have had lifeguards who could have helped with the emergency rescue, but the lifeguard stations had personnel only during the weekends in May, then daily from June to August.

She knew both the paramedics, she realized as they approached. One, Tim Cortez, had gone to high school with both her and Eli and the other was a newcomer to town but someone she had actually socialized with a few times at gatherings, Tyler Howell.

She had found him entirely too much like her ex-husband, with that same reckless edge, and had declined his invitation to go out. Fortunately, he hadn’t been offended and they had remained friends.

Two more paramedics she didn’t know were close behind them.

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