A Randall Hero

“My coat!”

He grabbed it and laid it across her so she could keep it from falling. “Do you have suitcases?”

“Yes, in my trunk.”

“Get out your keys. I’ll stop and put them in his truck before we get in.”

“Wouldn’t it be better for me to get in and then put the suitcases in? He might drive off with them.”

“I’d rather he drive off with your suitcases than with you.”

“I hadn’t thought of that.”

He brought her out of the truck and struggled up to the road. Then he set her down for a minute to deal with her luggage. Next, he scooped Lucy up again and set her on the car seat, pushing her over so he could get in, too.

Before he shut the door, the driver took off, as if he were trying to leave John behind. Lucy shrieked and John used the door handle to hang on until he could get his footing inside the truck.

Then he sent the man a sharp look.

“Figured you was in a hurry, what with the baby comin’ and all.”

“Yeah.” Under his breath he added, “But not in that big of a hurry.”

After several minutes of seeing how the man drove, John wasn’t sure he’d improved their status any. The man was driving eighty miles an hour and taking up most of the road.

John hated to ask the question, but for Lucy’s sake, he needed to. “Do you happen to have a cell phone?”

“Sure do. Want to borrow it?”

“Yeah. I’ll be glad to pay you for your minutes.”

“Okay.”

John dialed the number for the clinic. “May I speak to Caro, please?”

“Dr. Randall is in with a patient.”

“Is Jon?”

“Yes, he is.”

“Look, go tell Caro I have a pregnant woman who thinks she’s going into labor and I need to talk to her.”

He didn’t have to wait long for Caroline to come to the phone. “Who is this?”

“It’s John. Sorry I forgot to tell the nurse that.”

“That’s all right. Your message sounded urgent.”

“Yeah. Lucy’s water broke about six. Her pains have been coming about ten minutes apart and she thinks she’s eight months pregnant.”

“Where are you?”

“A kind gentleman is giving us a ride. We should be there in about forty minutes.”

“Okay, you should arrive before she delivers, but you don’t have much time to spare. With the baby coming early we’ll need to get it oxygen right away.”

“Yes.”

“She can hear you?”

“Yes.”

“Can you tell me how you came across this woman?”

“No.”

“Is she from around here?”

“No.”

“Well, John, you’ve got my curiosity up. We’ll be waiting for both of you, and we’ll have an incubator ready, too.”

“Thanks, Caro.”

“No problem. Do you want me to call your parents?”

“Yeah, just tell them I’m all right. I’ll talk to them later.”

“All right. I will.”

When John handed the phone back to the driver, he looked at John. “That’ll be twenty dollars.”

John didn’t question the amount. He dug in his pocket for his wallet and pulled out a twenty-dollar bill. He handed it over without argument.

“How are you doing?” he asked Lucy.

“I think my pains are coming faster.”

“Caro said we should have plenty of time to get you to the clinic. She’ll take care of everything.”

“Who is she?”

“She’s my cousin, one of the doctors in town.”

“Oh, so she knows about having babies.”

“Yep. She’s had a couple herself.”