Temptation Ridge (Virgin River #6)(112)

As soon as the trembling little girl cleared the door, the firefighter grabbed her, passed her to Jack. “Hold on around my neck, angel,” he whispered. “Almost home.” And as he slowly pulled himself up the hill, the rescue team was moving down past him, rappelling gear and harnesses in place.

The sight at the top of the hill almost threw him into a state of shock. The lights that flooded the area were Paul’s construction beams; the cable that held the bus was attached to a brace that came off a forklift that had been bolted right into the asphalt, also Paul’s. In addition to rescue equipment, there were vehicles everywhere. A paramedic rig and fire truck sat right at the top of the hill. Next to it on one side the Grace Valley ambulance with Docs Stone and Hudson at the ready; on the other side stood Mel, Cameron and Shelby beside the Hummer, the back hatch open. And there were so many people, it looked as though the entire town was present, all being kept behind a perimeter set up by sheriff’s deputies.

As soon as he put the little girl on her feet, there was a huge cheer. Cameron rushed forward and scooped the girl up, taking her to the back of the Hummer to look her over.

Right behind Jack, another child was brought up the hill, and again the cheer. Slowly, one by one, eighteen kids ranging in age from six to sixteen, were delivered to the top of the hill. There was a possible broken collarbone, a few head lacerations, lots of bruises and scrapes, and one possibly serious head injury was rushed off to Valley Hospital by Dr. Stone in the ambulance.

Jack walked to the edge of the hill to watch the last passenger come up the hill, being aided by two firefighters. Molly. He reached out for her hand to pull her the rest of the way. Blood ran down her chin and had dripped onto her jacket. The second she reached the top, the town cheered.

She looked up at Jack with tears in her eyes. “Are they crazy?” she asked in a low voice. “I thought they’d tar and feather me!”

“For ice?” Jack asked.

“I swear to God, I was going slow, for the ice…”

“Molly, you kept your head. You kept eighteen kids still for two hours. You probably saved all their lives.”

“Jack, I don’t know that I was ever so scared.”

He put a hand around the back of her neck and pulled her against his chest. “Yeah. Me, too.” He took a breath. “Me, too.”



Luke had gone to the bar, hoping to get dinner to take home for himself, Art and Shelby. Upon finding it closed, he heard about the accident and, like everyone else who heard, headed that way. There were so many people in the thick of a rescue that was well under way by the time he got there, he didn’t get too close. He stayed back behind the perimeter tape, behind a crowd of parents and townsfolk, watching in fascination as a team that combined men from town—Paul and some of his crew, Preacher, the general, Mike V.—and the rescue team worked. They bolted down a brace, fastened a heavy cable from a huge spool and ran it down the hill.

While this was going on, he saw Shelby with Mel and Cameron, saw her rush forward to lead a child to the Humvee for medical evaluation and treatment. She was in the thick of it, helping to administer first aid, soothing crying children, calming disgruntled parents, snapping to attention with every request from either Mel, Cameron or even a paramedic. She looked as if she’d been doing it all her life.

Finally, after standing for well over an hour, his breath swirling around, he saw the firefighters bring up the bus driver, the very one who’d splattered him on his way into town. He’d been listening to the talk in the crowd of towns-people, that Jack had been down there, hanging on to a rope, keeping her calm while she had the bigger job of keeping all the children from wiggling around or trying to escape the bus.

He saw Jack give her a hug, then saw Shelby go to her, take her hand and lead her to the paramedic rig to have her bleeding chin looked at. Mel followed, watching them treat her injury.

People were beginning to leave, or follow their children to the hospital or take uninjured kids home. Road-construction barriers were set up around the brace that held the cable that held the bus; California Highway Patrol was directing traffic out of the area. And Luke walked toward Shelby as she was packing supplies back into the Humvee.

“Hey, there,” he said. “What’s new?”

She jumped in surprise. “Luke! How long have you been here?”

“Little over an hour,” he said. “By the time I got here, the fire department, police and paramedics were all over the place and I had to stay behind the barrier with everyone else. I didn’t want to distract you.”

“Did you see that bus down there?”

“I didn’t want to get too close. There was an awful lot going on.”

“The floodlights are still on it. You should look. It’ll scare you to death.”

“So—what they’re saying is, you found a couple of hurt kids who got out before it slid down the hill and went for help.”

Before she could answer, Mel was beside them. “Correct,” she answered for Shelby. “You would have been impressed, Luke. She never flinched. She knew all the right things to do and remained perfectly calm. Efficient, skilled, confident.” Mel smiled. “She’s going to be an incredible nurse. You should be so proud of her.”

“I am,” Luke replied. “And not at all surprised.” He draped an arm around her shoulders.