snapped his fingers nervously as he recalled what to do about head injury.
Her eyes fluttered open then closed. She groaned then winced. Alvin checked her pulse concentrating on the count. It was a little fast, but strong.
What am I going to do? he thought. I've got to get everybody out of here.
He made his way back to the front of the plane. McChesney was still where Alvin left him, sitting in the aisle looking down at his body.
He found Tony at the front of the plane with an arm full of blankets trying to open the forward passenger door. He was cursing because the door wouldn't open.
"What am I doing wrong, Alvin? I don't have my glasses, I can't read the damn instructions."
"Right, let me have a look." He pulled a flash light from one of the many pockets in his jacket, shone it on the door and in two seconds had the door open. When he did, the emergency exit chute opened automatically, shot out, hit the ground and bounced into a tree then folded back covering the door.
"Great. Something tells me this thing wasn't designed to be opened in the middle of a forest," Tony laughed cheerfully.
"Can you climb down, Tony? Wait a minute, do you have a rain coat?"
"Yeah, in the overhead."
"Okay, stay here, I'll be right back."
Old people catch cold easy, Alvin remembered. I have to make sure he stays warm and dry.
Alvin made his way back to Tony's seat, climbed up and began opening luggage bins, those that hadn't already torn free and dumped their contents into the cabin. He found the old man's raincoat, and a muffler. He remembered Tony had a hat and looked around for it. He found Tony's Borsalino on the floor and his glasses case in a seat pocket. He took the coat, hat and glasses back to the front of the cabin and helped him put them on.
"I'm going to help you get out, okay?"
He smiled. "I'm okay, Alvin, don't worry. Let's do it."
They pushed the slide out of the way Tony eased himself down it, on his seat. It was only four feet and he was on the ground.
"Find a place nearby where you're out of the rain, somewhere under a tree, okay?"
"Sure, I'll be all right. You go get the others out. I'll be nearby."
Alvin nodded and went back into the wreckage. When he got to the back of the plane, McChesney was still sitting on the floor, only now he was carefully feeling his arms, legs, the rest of his body. Alvin knelt in front of him.
"Mister, can you see me," he shouted.
McChesney frowned, looked at him. "Of course I can see you, I'm not blind?"
"Miss Willis is hurt. I can't carry her. You've got to help me."
McChesney stared at him blankly. Alvin couldn't stop the anger. Here was this...giant and he wouldn't help. He punched McChesney as hard as he could.
"Damn you, wake up. I've got to get her out of the plane, it could blow up...don't you smell the gas?"
McChesney still stared at him. Alvin hit him again.
"What word did you not understand! Mr. Stupid. Mr. Useless Coward!"
Mr. America woke him up. "Hey, quit punching me ya little runt, what did you say?"
"Miss Willis is hurt, back there. We've got to get her out of the plane. I smell gas everywhere. I can't lift her."
McChesney looked genuinely concerned and struggled to his feet. He swayed for a moment, looked around. He shook himself. He didn't know what was wrong, he felt fuzzy-headed, out of contact.
Alvin moved to the rear of the plane. "Back here, c'mon, hurry."
McChesney finally sensed Alvin's urgency and followed him back to where Sherry lay on the deck. He knelt to pick her up.
"Be careful, she has a head injury."
Alvin followed McChesney back through the plane shouting instructions all the way. He made him wait by the door while he found a blanket and together they wrapped it around her and covered her head.
Alvin leaned out the door. "Mr. Genoa, where are you?" He shined the flashlight around the area.
"On my way." They heard his voice through the trees. He pushed the folds of the slide out of the way and stood near the door.
"Is she all right?"
"I don't know. She banged her head. I'm going to give you the flashlight. Find a place out of the rain and make sure she stays dry. I got another flashlight in my pack. I'll get it and my camping stuff. Don't go too far."
"Okay. Don't you stay in that plane, boy. The smell of gas is real strong."
"I won't."
Tony led McChesney off into the woods. Alvin watched them for a moment and wished he were big and strong so he could carry Miss Willis. He didn't dwell on it. There were a thousand things to do and he had to remember them all.
The thought that he would forget some important thing, something that would help them survive gnawed at him constantly.
First get the pack, find a fallen tree, make a shelter, get a fire going. She has to be kept warm. I must not forget anything!
The interior of the plane was dark except for light from the occasional bolt of lightning. The door to the flight deck was buckled. He looked at it and understood too easily what must have happened. He told himself he would go back as soon as he had the others safe.
Alvin struggled to get the pack over his shoulder and the straps locked in place. Before he left he filled his arms with blankets and zipped three of the small airline pillows inside his jacket.
Outside it was raining so hard he couldn't smell the forest. He wanted to smell the forest. It was a known thing, familiar, comforting.
"Mr. Genoa, shine your light."
Fifty yards ahead he saw a light waving about. When he reached them the three survivors were huddled under the branches of a huge fir.
"Are you all right, Mr. Genoa?" Alvin put his hand over his heart unconsciously.
"I'm fine son. I don't have to take that stuff very often and it works pretty good."
"Great. How's Miss Willis?" They had her propped against the base of the tree with the blankets covering her. McChesney was standing nearby, shivering.
She looked up from under the blankets. She tried to smile. "I'm okay, Alvin. I could sure use an aspirin."
"Darn, of course, I should have thought of that. I’ve got to remember." He struggled out of his pack. McChesney made no effort to help.
Alvin dug around in the pack and came out with a first-aid kit. "How many? I think two now, and two more in an hour. You shouldn't take too many until we know if you have a concussion."
"You're the doctor, Alvin."
He smiled shyly. "I wish I was. Just hold them for a minute, I'll see if I can find water." Before he left Alvin removed a hatchet from his pack.
"What's the matter, kid, afraid you'll meet up with a bear?" McChesney said.
Alvin ignored him. He took a deep metal pot from the pack, part of a set of four, and walked off into the trees.
McChesney grumbled. "We should have stayed in the plane. If it was going to catch fire it would have done it by now."
Alvin found a newly formed brook within fifty feet of where he left the others. He filled the pot and set it down near the brook. A crash of lightning speared down into the forest nearby and he glimpsed a large fallen fir tree another fifty yards up toward higher ground.
He nodded as he ticked off one of the key items on his internal `to do’ list. From his pocket he removed a metal tobacco can and dug out half a dozen inch long plastic rods. He selected