Page 87 of The Lighthouse at the Cove
“I... I, um...”
Kaiah trailed off as she began to sway, her tongue beginning to grow thick and hot in her mouth.
Becca took her arm. “Ky? You okay?”
She felt another prick on her neck, then on her forearm. Pain radiated down her back, continuing to her arm and shoulder.
What was that?
She stopped short, and a wave of nausea washed over her as she felt the color drain from her face.
“Kaiah, you’re pale.” Becca’s voice shook as she led Kaiah toa bench. “Sit,” she ordered, and Kaiah complied. Worry fell over Becca’s face. “What’s wrong?”
“I don’t...” Kaiah dipped her chin down and found a waterfall of welts cascading down her right forearm. “Becca, I don’t... feel well.”
Her head started to pound, and her throat felt thick. Suddenly she couldn’t swallow, and she could hardly breathe. It was as if there was a large knot clogging her throat.
“B-Beck,” Kaiah stuttered. “I think... somethinth ith...” But her voice sounded funny. Her words were slurred. She wilted back on the bench as she suddenly found it hard to breathe. She wheezed.
“Kaiah!” Becca pulled out her phone as her features were frozen in fear. “I think you were stung. Do you have an EpiPen?” Her voice was full of panic.
Kaiah shook her head.
A man rushed over. “Do you need help?”
“Call 911,” she said before reciting the address. “My dad is out front by the table. Ask him to come back here.”
“Becca?” Sue appeared in Kaiah’s peripheral vision. “Oh! Kaiah! What’s happened?”
“I think Kaiah’s having an allergic reaction to a sting,” Becca said, but her voice sounded far away. “We need help!”
“Blake!” Sue called. “Get some ice!”
Kaiah tried to focus, but her vision was fuzzy at the edges. She tried to watch as people rushed around, but nothing made sense. Voices were hollering, and it sounded like a little girl was crying.
What’s happening?
Becca knelt in front of her as she punched in numbers on her phone. Kaiah tried to watch her, but her eyes felt so heavy, they kept wanting to close.
And why was it so hard to breathe? Was someone sitting on her chest?
“Reid!” Becca yelled. “Reid! I’ve been trying to call you. It’s an emergency. Get to Mom’s house—quick! It’s Kaiah. She’s having an allergic reaction to a beesting. She needs an EpiPen, and I don’t have one!” Her voice broke, her breaths grew ragged. “Get here, Reid.Please!”
Dots swam in front of Kaiah’s eyes, and then everything went black.
Reid rested his hands on his lap. Chris and Cash addressed the crew while they stood in the bay beside the fire engines. It was their usual afternoon debrief.
Nothing too intriguing to discuss. The most exciting call they’d had was when one of Cash’s neighbors had accidentally set his yard on fire while burning some trash, but it didn’t take long to extinguish it. Reid appreciated dull days when they only had a couple of calls and no one was seriously hurt. Not only were the residents okay, but he also didn’t have much paperwork. It really was a win-win for both Reid and the team.
Reid’s phone vibrated with a call, and he ignored it. He couldn’t stand it when his team studied their phones while he was addressing them. Instead, he expected to receive his team’s full attention, and he always did his best to extend the same courtesy to his captain and his chief. Folding his arms over his chest, Reid tried to concentrate on the meeting.
When his phone began vibrating again, Reid assumed it was a spam call. Surely it was someone trying to sell him an extended warranty on the Suburban or some other scam.
But then unease gripped his chest. It was something he only felt when his sister was anxious about something. It was their “twin thing,” as they’d called it since they were little.
Something’s wrong.
He couldn’t stop himself from fishing his phone from his pocket. His eyes focused on his sister’s name on the screen. Becca knew better than to blow up his phone when he was at work. She would only repeatedly call him if she had reason to—if it was serious. That anxiety that had been building in his chest morphed into something deeper.
