see him anywhere. She hurried around it, clearing the way by yelling that she was a doctor. When she reached her destination, she was stunned to see that the victim was an elderly man, his head and torso visible. He was also still conscious, but obviously in agony, moaning, his eyes blankly searching the faces of those gathered around him.
There!
She spied Kaleb kneeling beside the man, along with several other people she recognized from the hospital. His hands were busy feeling beneath the cart. For what? The spot where it was resting on the victim’s legs?
How were they going to get it off him? They couldn’t just push it back upright. Not without risking crushing the man’s legs as the vehicle slid over them a second time.
How, then?
Kaleb conferred with several other people, then stood. “I need about ten men. Four for the front of the vehicle and four for the back. And I need two men to find me some concrete blocks or some heavy timbers.”
Volunteers came forward immediately. A police officer arrived as well. Kaleb told him what he needed and the officer got on his radio. Within five minutes there was a pile of concrete blocks.
“We need to lift the golf cart straight up, or we’ll risk injuring him more than he already is. Can I get one person on each end to slide blocks under the cart as we lift it? We’ll do it by twos. Push two blocks beneath it, then two more on top of those and so forth, until we can get his legs clear.” He glanced around at the assembled group. “Questions?”
Several heads shook.
“Let’s get this done, then.”
Without a lot of discussion, each man found his spot and waited for the signal. Kaleb had ahold of part of the undercarriage, while Jamie Brooke, the hospital’s cardiothoracic surgeon, remained next to the patient’s head. “On three. As soon as we lift, you other men shove the first of the blocks beneath the cart.”
Maddy joined Jamie, feeling helpless. “We’re going to get you out in just a few minutes.”
The man didn’t respond, but, then again, Maddy hadn’t expected him to. Jamie placed two fingers on the side of the victim’s neck, taking his pulse as the volunteers got ready to lift.
“...three!”
The golf cart groaned along with several men as they strained to lift the thing. But up it went. Just a few inches, but enough to wedge those bricks underneath it.
The victim cried out for a second, before going quiet again.
Maddy worked with Jamie, trying to see if there was enough room to pull him out, but she couldn’t see much space under the vehicle at all. The ground was soft, though, so the first set of blocks had probably sunk a little under the weight of the cart.
The cardiothoracic surgeon called up. “We need to get it higher.”
“Right,” said Kaleb. “Okay, everyone, on three.” A trickle of sweat made its way down his temple, the only visible evidence of the struggle under way. “One...two...threeeee.”
Up it went another six inches. This time she could see the man’s legs. Both of his shins were sliced open from the impact, and there could be crush injuries as well. “I can see his legs.” She turned to Jamie. “Can we get him out?”
“I think so.”
Kaleb instructed the men to hold their positions while he came around to where Maddy and Jamie were and peered beneath the vehicle. He let out a low curse, probably hoping the same thing everyone else was: that the man hadn’t severed any deeper vessels. But they wouldn’t know that until they got him free. There was no better person to be on the scene than Jamie, though. He dealt with delicate surgery and blood vessels on a regular basis.
Kaleb looked up at the men who were around the cart. “The blocks should hold the weight, but I need you all to stay there and make sure it doesn’t shift as we try to pull him backward.”
Kaleb grabbed one of the man’s shoulders, while Jamie took hold of the other. They glanced at each other.
“Let’s try to make this quick.” He nodded at Maddy to clear out of the way. “Okay. Go.”
She stood to the side, mentally pulling with the two doctors as they dug in their heels and used the leverage to haul the victim backward with them. Within seconds they had him out from under the cart.
The sound of clapping went up from those around them. Despite the momentary victory, most of those gathered knew that crush injuries could wreak havoc with blood pressure and other vital systems. They weren’t out of the woods yet.
She couldn’t worry about that now, though. She and Jamie immediately moved to the man’s legs to assess his injuries while Kaleb helped the men push the golf cart over until it flipped off the bricks and landed back on its wheels. Twin rust-colored streaks marred the lower edge of the vehicle.
Several more medical professionals gathered around the man, forming their own triage team. Each knew his job and did it well.
Kaleb knelt beside her. “Ambulance is on its way.”
“Good.”
The man, thank God, had finally passed out from the pain and trauma.
“His legs are intact,” Jamie said.
She understood immediately what that meant. Neither limb was severed. His shins were sliced all the way down to the bone and blood oozed in a steady stream down his calves. But somehow, it appeared there were no actual breaks or sliced arteries that she could see. “We need to bind those wounds with something.”
A bystander offered up a T-shirt, and Kaleb and Jamie worked to wrap it around both of the man’s legs, using a broomstick someone handed them to crank the garment tight enough to compress the wounds without being so tight that it cut off the blood supply completely.
The telltale sound of a siren came from a distance. “Here comes transportation,” she said.
Five minutes later, two EMT workers were beside them. Details were relayed to the pair, while Maddy pushed the man’s thin white hair off his forehead. He was still out, but he was breathing and his pulse was strong enough. She’d been worried that his blood pressure might bottom out once the cart was lifted off him. It hadn’t. He might look frail on the surface, but the man was obviously tough inside. Where it counted.
“Anyone know who he is?” This time it was Kaleb’s voice.
Neither of them had even stopped to wonder if he might have relatives nearby. But it was strange that no one had stepped forward.
“I was told he works for the park service.” The police officer was back. He checked the man’s pockets and found his wallet. “I’ve got some contact information here.” The officer eyed Kaleb and Maddy a little closer. “Don’t I know you from somewhere?”
Maddy had no idea what he was talking about. How could he know...?
Oh, Lord. He was the same police officer who’d caught her and Kaleb making out in the park. Heat rushed into her face. Maybe he wouldn’t remember them.
Just then the officer’s brows went up. “Okay. I’ve got it.” A ghost of a smile played around his lips. “I need to make a few phone calls and see if I can have someone meet him at the hospital. But I’ll need to get a statement from you about what happened.”
“We didn’t see it happen,” Kaleb said. “We just came over to help. We’re both doctors. In fact, several of us are.”
That seemed to take the officer by surprise. He nodded. “Good thing you were here.”
Kaleb checked on their patient again as Jamie and the EMTs got the man ready to transport, passing some last-minute instructions back and forth. They used a backboard to get him onto a stretcher. Once he was on board, the surgeon jumped in with the man and the back doors slammed shut. The driver hopped into the truck,