Page 97 of Chasing Justice
Her head pounded. Her fingertips rubbed dirt and small pebbles on the ground. The smell of burning flesh assaulted her.Am I on fire? Is that my flesh burning?
A bitter metallic taste made Maya want to spit, but she couldn’t move.
Is this what it feels like to die?
Darkness wrapped around her.
A hand shook Maya’s shoulder. She opened one eye. Then the other. Her fingers moved. Her legs still worked.
“Officer?”
I don’t think I’m dead.
Maya stared at the face scrutinizing her. The man looked like a fellow Marine she’d served with. He’d died from a roadside bomb. Maybe shewasdead. “Matt?”
“No, I’m not Matt. I’m a paramedic. I need to make sure you’re okay.”
“I’m fine, but Pops...”
Maya scrambled to get off her grandfather. Juniper jumped to her feet and shook off, an indignant look on her face. Josh, feeling Maya move, sat up too.
“I’m okay. My grandfather, the sheriff—he needs help, and Deputy Colten—”
“I’m good,” Josh said. “But I think the sheriff is unconscious.”
They stood, both wobbly on their feet, and stepped back so the paramedic could do his job. She hugged herself with her arms until she felt Juniper come up and nudge her. She stooped down and put her arms around her dog, tears streaming full force. All the emotions of war, losing Doug, and now the possibility of losing her grandfather came out at once.
A hand started to rub her back, and Maya was ready to shake it off and pull herself together. She didn’t need the SWAT guys to see her lose it, but as she turned her head to say something, Maya realized it was Josh. He didn’t do anything more than just keep his hand on her as he watched the paramedics work on her grandfather. She was glad that he didn’t try to tell her something crazy like everything would be okay. That was something neither of them knew.
Juniper leaned up against Maya’s legs, pushing into her, which helped, but she felt powerless. Some more paramedics arrived on scene with a carry litter. They loaded Pops on and started carrying him toward the ambulance that was parked back by the command post. Maya, Josh, and Juniper followed behind.
She glanced over at Josh. He had a cut across his cheek and his clothes were shredded around his vest. A large gash started up at his shoulder and took a crooked path down his arm. Blood flowed down and trickled onto the ground leaving a path of droplets in the dust. Dirt and other debris stuck to the wound.
“Josh, you’re bleeding,” Maya said, taking the last wrap from her trauma kit. She stopped him and wrapped the arm up. “You’ll probably have to get that looked at. It might need stitches.”
He shrugged. “We’ll see. I don’t think it’s that bad.”
“You don’t have to be tough for me. At least get the wound properly cleaned.” She paused. “You protected us. Thank you.”
He smiled. “I’ll always protect you.”
Maya reached up and touched Josh’s cheek where some dirt was smeared across his face. She wiped away the smudge. “Thank you. It’s good to have a friend.”
She turned and continued walking toward the command post, where her grandfather was being loaded in the ambulance. Maya was ready to go join him, but the back doors shut with a final click. She stopped and wrapped her arms around herself.
A few men who had escaped the compound before the explosion were being handcuffed and taken away. The SWAT team was setting up a perimeter and heading down to finish clearing what was left of the Ray Ranch. Firefighters surrounded the area, working to make sure the explosion didn’t torch any of the dead trees in the forest.
“Come on,” Josh said. “Let’s get you to the hospital and find out how your grandfather is doing.”
“It’s the same nightmare. Like with Doug. What if he doesn’t make it? I don’t think I can handle that,” Maya said. She leaned into Josh and his arms circled around her. For a moment she let go and enjoyed the strength of his arms. The smell of aftershave and sweat mixed together with the metallic odor of blood and gunpowder stung her nose.
“Your grandfather is a tough guy. If anyone can make it through all this, it’s him. Let’s go,” Josh said.
“Okay,” Maya said, holding back tears as he let her go. A part of her wanted to ask him to hold her again, but Juniper was standing by her side, tail down but still wagging. Maya reached down and rubbed her head. “You’re the best dog, Juniper.”
Juniper responded with a quick leap up to slurp Maya’s face.
About forty-five minutes later, Maya and Josh walked through the hospital doors.
