End of the Weekend - A Short Story - Part 2

It didn't take long for Heather to gather her things and get back to Sarah. It was a pleasant surprise to see Sarah awake and talking to Roy.

"Are you okay Sarah?" Heather's voice was shaky and she had a worried look on her face.

"Oh, my head hurts and I feel like it's going to explode!" She was smiling, letting Heather know that she was okay. Heather gave her a hug, not wanting to let go right away.

"Heather, I'm okay, you're squeezing me too hard!" Heather let go and both girls laughed.

"She hit her head hard, so it will take some time for the headache to go away. I gave her something for the pain, so she should start feeling better as the medication gets into her system." Roy's voice was serene and reassuring.

"Thank you, thank you!" Heather exclaimed, and with tears in her eyes gave Sarah another hug. "I thought you were going to die and I would lose my best friend."

"Well," said Sarah, "I don't know what happened, but I'm not dead. I'm here and I'm not going anywhere."

Roy opened one of the bags and pulled out some road flares. He handed them to Ed and Tom.

"Gentlemen, please light these flares starting at the other side of your car. Space them about ten paces apart walking at a slight angle back toward the edge of the road." Both men took the flares and did as directed.

Roy turned to Vivian. "Would you please stay with Sarah while I check Heather?"

"Yes, I'll do that." She replied, "You showed up really fast, did someone call you about the accident?"

 "No," Roy smiled, "I was in the area"

He put a blanket down on the side of the road and asked Sarah and Heather to sit down. Vivian took Roy's last blanket and wrapped it around Sarah.

Roy checked Heather's blood pressure, pulse and temperature. Everything was okay and she felt relaxed, knowing that they were both okay.

Sarah was listening to what was going on and asked how they were going to get home. Vivian said that her and Ed lived in Williamsburg and could drive the girls to their house. Heather's parents could pick them up there. Heather liked that plan and thanked Vivian.

About ten minutes later the Virginia State Police and the Goochland Fire/Rescue Squad came pulling up behind them.

"The cavalry just arrived," said Tom. "They got here quickly."

"Yes," agreed Ed, "We should be able to get things wrapped up and get the girls to our place."

"It's nice of you to help  out the girls; Elizabeth and I were trying to figure out how we could get them home as well." Tom had a relieved look on his face, he was concerned about the girls being so far from home.

"We have a young son and daughter who are about the same age." Ed explained. "We're just doing what we would want someone else to do if it were one of our children." 

Marcus Brown parked his squad car behind Tom's car and walked over to Ed and Tom.

"Good afternoon, I'm officer Brown. I understand we had a minor mishap here and a possible injury." His voice was not commanding, but he had a definite air about him that made you realize he was in charge.

Ed and Tom gave a brief description of what they saw and then introduced Marcus to Heather.

"Hi, I'm officer Marcus Brown. Are you and your friend alright?"

"I'm fine, but Sarah doesn't feel well. Fortunately the fire rescue gentleman has her wrapped up and ready for the ambulance. He's right over there." Heather turned but did not see Roy. She looked all around and then started asking everyone where he went.

"He was just standing here a minute ago talking to me," said Vivian. "But when I turned to see you drive up I lost track of him."

"I see," said Marcus. "What type of vehicle was he driving?" Each person turned turned to the other, but no one remembered seeing Roy pull up in a vehicle.

Marcus continued with his questions. "Well, if he was with a fire/rescue squad, did he have on a uniform? If he did what name was on it?"

"I couldn't make out the name," remarked Vivian, "and I was the closest to him. It was strange because the words fire/rescue were very clear. I don't think I was imagining any of that."

"Okay, no vehicle, unknown squad name, but he did tell you his name. Is that correct?" Marcus was looking at everyone hoping that some sense would come of this.

"That's correct. You know he just sort of showed up." said Ed. "In fact it was like he just appeared."

"He said his name was Roy Arnoe," Heather added, "and he did just show up."

"Perhaps he was Sarah's guardian angel," Marcus remarked. "I'll check with the Goochland squad and see if anyone knows him."

While the discussion about Roy was going on, the Goochland Fire/Rescue Squad had Sarah on a stretcher and was placing her into the ambulance. They said she looked fine but wanted to take her into VCU Hospital for further observation.

Marcus did talk to the crew but he didn't like the answer he received. There was a Roy Arnoe on the squad, but he died about two years ago. He was working a major accident close by here involving a number of vehicles. One of them was a gasoline truck.  Roy had pulled the driver from the truck and was heading back to the ambulance. The truck exploded and Roy shielded the driver, saving him but loosing his own life.

Writing this accident report was going to be a challenge. Marcus wondered how he could explain Roy and then realized it was simple. Just write the truth.