“All depends on how stable the situation is.” The chief’s eyes never left the work, his brow furrowed in concentration. “We have to be careful not to cause the load to shift. If there is a pocket that protected them from being crushed we don’t want to disturb it.”
“How long can they survive down there?”
The chief shrugged. “We’re assuming there is a pocket, but the chances of that are slim.”
Jeffrey wanted to shake this man who spoke of death with calm and detachment. “My men aren’t dead,” he roared, his hands shaking.
“I didn’t say they were, but you do need to be prepared for that possibility.” The chief turned to face him, compassion softening his angular face. “If you are a praying man, now would be the time to start praying.”
Jeffrey stiffened at this advice and returned his focus to the crash site.
CHAPTER TWENTY
“Lizzie, Mr. Newman is out here demanding to talk to someone about their function tonight,” Stephen said when Lizzie answered her phone. It hadn’t stopped ringing all day.
“I’ll be right out,” Lizzie sighed. She smoothed her skirt and checked her face in a mirror before pushing the office door open. She greeted Mr. Newman with a warm smile. He was a squat man, maybe five feet two inches she guessed, as she looked down on his balding head covered by a comb-over of pale brown hair. His beady eyes peered out of thick folds of skin reminding her of one of those dogs with the wrinkly faces.
“Mr. Newman, what can I do for you?” she asked, guiding him away from the front desk.
“I hear some of the other guys have asked for hot hors d’oeuvres at the reception tonight. I didn’t approve that and I’m not paying for it.” He waggled his finger in her face, spit flying as he spoke.
“I’m sorry you aren’t happy with the addition to the menu, but Mr. Hamilton is listed as the group leader and he did ask for these items. You may wish to speak to him about your concerns.” Lizzie maintained a calm, sensitive tone despite her desire to laugh at this little man.
“I don’t care what your paperwork says. I’m in charge here and I demand you cancel the hors d’oeuvres!”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t do that without speaking to Mr. Hamilton. Would you like me to see if he’s in his room?”
“Absolutely not! You are to listen to me! I organized this group, I’m the top selling agent in Texas, and I’m the person you need to be talking to about any decisions regarding this group!” Mr. Newman’s face was purple with rage.
Lizzie smiled. “Congratulations on your accomplishment, you must be very proud. I do appreciate your concerns and I’ll be happy to discuss them with Mr. Hamilton, but right now, I’m afraid that’s all I can do for you. If there isn’t anything else, I believe you have a meeting to attend in just a few minutes. Would you like me to walk you to the conference room?”
Mr. Newman sputtered and shook his head. “This isn’t over,” he yelled, spinning on his heel and huffing away down the hall.
Lizzie watched, giving a little chuckle when he disappeared into the conference room. A handful of Mr. Newman’s colleagues had stopped to watch the display. A lithe woman wearing a lavender pants suit and large gold hoop earrings approached Lizzie.
“I want to apologize for Fred, he gets a little carried away,” the woman offered.
“It’s not a problem,” Lizzie waved off the incident. “It’s all part of the job.”
“Still, Fred was way out of line and I’ll make sure appropriate actions are taken.” The woman smiled and slipped off to her meeting.
At five o’clock Lizzie popped into the kitchen to check on preparations for the evening gathering. Dozens of pots covered the hot burners, steam bathing the cooks standing over them. A chorus of voices cried out orders and questions creating a well-oiled chaos. Lizzie found Chef Gustave at the end of the kitchen sampling a tray of appetizers and offering critique to his line cooks.
“Everything smells delicious,” Lizzie praised.
“It’s a disaster.” Gustave threw his hands up in the air. “A monkey could cook better than these louts.”
“I’m sure it’s not as bad as you think.” Lizzie followed him as he stormed away from the tasting table. He stopped at several stations barking orders.
“I don’t know if I can work another minute with these incompetents.” Gustave grabbed a bowl and whisk from one of the line cooks, whipping egg whites to a stiff peak. Everyone was familiar with the chef’s outbursts and continued working without pause. Gustave shoved the bowl back to the cook and moved on down the prep line.
“You know everything will be perfect, it always is.” Lizzie had become a pro at stroking the chef’s ego. Gustave stopped walking and turned to face her.
“It’s always perfect because I will accept nothing less. Tonight nothing is perfect. These pigs expect me to pull food out of thin air. We don’t keep these ingredients on hand. I had to send a boy to the store and half of what he brought back was wrong.” Gustave sighed. “It is so hard to find good help these days.”
Lizzie waited out this tirade, her smile never slipping from her face. “What can I do to help?”
“Nothing. As you say it will be perfect.” Gustave patted Lizzie’s hand. “Go home. I will take care of things here.”
Lizzie planted a kiss on his cheek. “Thank you.”
Gustave waved her off and returned his attention to the bevy of cooks working furiously to complete their tasks before six o’clock.
CHAPTER TWENTY ONE
“Where’s my husband?” cried a hysterical young woman, creating a scuffle on the sidewalk that drew Jeffrey’s attention. One of the police officers held her back as her hands flailed trying to push him aside.
Jeffrey jogged toward her. “Ma’am, what’s your name?”
“Where’s Nathan?” she screamed. Jeffrey signaled for the officer to release her.
She ran forward and beat her fists on Jeffrey’s chest. “Where is my husband?”
“Come with me.” Jeffrey wrapped an arm around her shoulder and urged her toward the trailer. Inside he sat her down and Jenny poured a cup of water for the distraught woman.
“I need to know who you are looking for,” he said.
“Nathan Christiansen, I got a call…” she dissolved into sobs. Jeffrey offered her some tissues.
“Mrs. Christiansen, I’m not sure how much you know, so let me explain the situation to you.” Jeffrey took a deep breath and she looked up at him, dabbing her eyes. “We haven’t found Nathan yet, but we aren’t giving up.” The woman’s chest began to heave; her breath came in short, loud bursts, her face turning an angry red.
“Take some deep breaths,” Jenny advised. Jeffrey gave her an imploring look over the woman’s head. “Go” she mouthed to him before kneeling beside the woman, stroking her hair in a soothing rhythm.
Jeffrey emerged from the office to the sound of more shouts. Three women now crowded around one of the police officers. Jeffrey caught the attention of his foreman and waved him over. The two men gathered the frightened wives and brought them back to the office. Once they were all seated, Jeffrey reviewed the situation for them.
“I heard two men were already pulled out. How do you know one of them wasn’t my Danny?” asked a petite blonde who looked barely eighteen.
“I called the families of those who have been taken to the hospital,” Jenny said. “Right now all we can do is wait for the rescue workers to complete their job.”
The blonde rubbed her stomach. “I haven’t even told Danny I’m pregnant yet,” she whispered.
Jeffrey felt his stomach twist and rushed to the bathroom, heaving into the toilet, sweat beading on his forehead. After several minutes, he stood up and washed his face. He looked in the mirror, at the dark circles under his eyes and the flush in his cheeks. His head ached with a renewed vengeance and he longed to crawl away and hide.
Jeffrey felt Jenny’s stern gaze the moment he returned to the office. He looked at each
of the women trying to think of something comforting he could say. The empty promises he had been offered while Camylle lay dying resounded in his head.
“Why don’t you go see if there is any news?” Jenny said. Jeffrey nodded and left the wives in Jenny’s care.
CHAPTER TWENTY TWO
The sun moved past its highest point and started its descent toward the western horizon. Every news station in town was on the scene providing a blow-by-blow account of the disaster. Jeffrey spent most of his time on the site, only checking in with the women in the office when there was news to report. Jenny ran to the grocery store for drinks and snacks but the food went untouched.
Jeffrey tried to send the crew home, but they all refused, committed to staying until their colleagues were located. By three o’clock, the firemen still hadn’t reached the remaining victims. Jeffrey stood by the fire chief hoping to hear some news over his radio.
“Sir, I believe we may have found something,” a raspy voice crackled over the radio.
“Roger that, proceed with care,” the chief responded.
Jeffrey watched as the men removed several boards. Their motions slowed to a crawl. “What’s taking so long?”
“If they pull out the wrong piece the whole thing can come crashing down. Don’t worry they know what they’re doing.”
Fifteen minutes passed. Jeffrey’s vision blurred from the pain in his head and he didn’t know how much longer he could hold on. “Shouldn’t they have them out by now?”
“I know you’re anxious but this isn’t something that can be rushed. If there is any chance they’re still alive we can’t just charge in.” The radio crackled to life again.
“Send in two stretchers.”
The paramedics scrambled forward and loaded the limp figures onto the gurneys. Jeffrey struggled to identify the faces. He leaned over each man and brushed away some of the dirt.
“We need to move, sir.” One of the paramedics touched Jeffrey on the arm.
“Their wives are in my office. Can they ride to the hospital with you?”
“It would be better if they met us there,” the medic said, pushing the gurney into the back of the truck.
Jeffrey waited a moment hoping to see the other two men pulled free but the rescuers had returned to removing materials again. He hurried to the office bracing for the message he had to give. In the office, he found Wally sharing stories with the women who offered tentative laughter. He stood when Jeffrey entered.
“Nathan and Sam were just sent to the hospital. I don’t know what their condition is, but I can have Wally take you over if you like.” Jeffrey met the eyes of each woman as he spoke.
“What about Danny and Peter?” the young blonde asked.
“We’re still looking for them.” Jeffrey moved close to Wally and spoke in a low, tense voice, “They didn’t look good. Will you stay at the hospital with the women and keep me updated?” Wally nodded. The women rose and followed Wally to the door.
Jeffrey took a seat across from the remaining wives. “I wish I had news for you, but the firemen are still looking for Danny and Peter.”
The women nodded, one of them sniffling as the other wrapped a reassuring arm around her. Jeffrey felt at a loss unable to even remember their names. He glanced at Jenny.
“Maria, Allison, I know this is hard,” Jenny jumped in, “but we aren’t giving up.”
Jeffrey stood and paced the room. “I’m going to head back out. As soon as I know more I’ll come get you.”
Jeffrey surveyed the scene from the front steps of the trailer. The rubble now stood only four feet tall as the firefighters continued to disassemble the complex puzzle. The crowd swelled with the end of the workday and more officers came to control the crowd. He recognized Lizzie in the sea of faces and jogged toward her.
“What are you doing here?” Jeffrey called as he lifted the yellow tape barricading the crowd and motioned for her to follow him.
Lizzie held up a plastic container. “I made you some more cookies. What’s going on?”
Jeffrey walked with her toward his truck. “You haven’t heard?” She shook her head and he began to tell her about the events of the day.
“Oh, Jeffrey, I’m so sorry. You must be out of your mind with worry.”
“I can’t wait for this day to be over.” He slumped against his truck.
“I feel pretty silly bringing these over now.”
“No, it’s nice to see a friendly face. I have a feeling things are going to get bad when those last two guys are pulled out. I don’t see how they can possibly be alive.”
“Is there anything I can do for you?” Lizzie laid a hand on his arm.
“Would you mind sticking around a little bit?”
“Of course.” She lifted the lid of the container and offered him a cookie. He gave her a half-hearted smile as he reached for one.
“I should get out front.” He led her back to his station with the fire chief. “Anything new?” he asked when the chief noticed him.
“We are getting close to the bottom. Are you sure these guys aren’t accounted for?”
“Positive. I’ve checked with my team leaders several times, even confirmed they both punched in this morning.”
“We got something,” one of the firemen yelled from the heap. Jeffrey felt his heart quicken as time itself slowed. Boards and blocks were removed and handed down the assembly line. Paramedics stood at the ready, two gurneys held between them.
CHAPTER TWENTY THREE
A limp body was hoisted from a dark hole. Jeffrey rushed forward as the medics worked over the silent victim with grim faces. They searched for a pulse as they hurried into the ambulance, one of the medics started chest compressions. The final worker lay directly beneath his companion and was quickly raised to the surface. Jeffrey waited until the men were loaded into the waiting ambulances, then ran to the office.
“We have Peter and Danny,” he cried as he careened through the door. The women jumped to their feet.
“Are they okay?”
“Can we see them?” The women called out at the same time.
“They’ve already been sent to the hospital.”
“I would be happy to take you to meet them,” Jenny offered. Maria and Allison accepted and followed her outside.
Alone in the office, Jeffrey sank into a chair and dropped his head into his hands. The tension of the day overwhelmed him. His body began to shake and all he could think of was getting a drink. He didn’t hear the door open.
“You okay?” Lizzie asked rubbing his back tenderly.
Her kindness was almost his undoing. His emotions raw, he ran his fingers through his hair and massaged the bridge of his nose.
“I think your crew would like to hear from you before they head home.”
“You’re right, I should talk to them.” Jeffrey tried to pull himself together. Lizzie trailed him outside, standing off to the side as he addressed the workers.
“I want to thank everyone for your support today. I know it’s been a rough day. You all should go home and spend some time with your families, remember how precious life is and how fast it can be taken from us. Tomorrow we’ll talk about what happened and how we move on from here.” Jeffrey waited for the crew to disband.
A few men came to speak to him offering their opinions on the incident. Jeffrey assured them there would be an investigation, but until then he didn’t want to make any speculations. When the last stragglers were gone, he returned to the office. His cell phone vibrated in his pocket.
“Hey, Jenny. How are things at the hospital?”
“Nathan, Sam, and Danny didn’t make it,” Jenny said softly. “Peter’s in critical condition.”
“What about Max and Ben?” Jeffrey asked of the two men who had been sent to the hospital earlier in the day.
“Ben had a collapsed lung, two broken legs, along with some ribs and one of his arms, but he is out of the woods. Max has some pretty bad head trauma with brain swelling in a
ddition to broken bones. He’s in the ICU. They may have to drill a hole in his skull to relieve the pressure if the swelling continues.”
“Should I come out there?” Jeffrey asked hoping she would tell him to go home.
“I don’t know what you can do. Mr. Hollisbrook and one of the women from public relations are already here. They are managing these wives like they might take the company over tomorrow.” Jenny’s distaste was evident.
“Why don’t you go home? I’ll come by and speak with the wives.” Jeffrey locked up the office and found Lizzie sitting on the tailgate of his truck. They slipped into the cab and he gave her the update from the hospital as they drove away.
“Would you like to grab something to eat after?”
Jeffrey realized he hadn’t eaten all day and nodded his agreement.
CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR
Wednesday evening Lizzie surveyed the living room, which now sported half a dozen gaps in the wood flooring. The damaged boards lay in a pile on the front porch. Ian stood wiping sweat from his face with a bandana pulled from his pocket.
“You make it look so easy to rip those boards out,” she said, grateful to have an experienced professional managing this project.
“When you have the proper tools it isn’t too hard.” Ian shoved the bandana back into his pocket. “If you want to hand me a broom I’ll clean up this mess.”
“Oh no, don’t worry about that I can take care of it. Why don’t you sit down and have some water. I would offer you something more, but as you can see,” she turned to the empty kitchen, “I’m still lacking a refrigerator.”
“Water’s fine.” He pulled a bottle from the small cooler sitting on the kitchen counter.
Lizzie made short work of sweeping the floor and emptying the dustpan over the edge of the front porch. In the living room, Ian reclined in one of the beach chairs with which she had temporarily furnished the house.
“How do you know Jeffrey?” she asked.
“I went to college with his fiancée. She and I were good friends. After the two of them got together we were like the three musketeers.”
“Oh, I’m sorry,” she whispered, her gaze dropping to the floor.
“He told you about Camylle?” Ian’s surprise was evident. “He and I stayed in contact for awhile after she passed, but without her we drifted apart.”