Stolen Course by Aly Martinez
I begin to pace around the room, trying to wrap my mind around this. I have a million questions, but I’m so enraged that I can’t even force out the words. I finally land a punch through the drywall, which seems to level me. This isn’t happening.
“Start at the beginning,” I snap.
“She was—” Sarah starts, but it’s obvious she’s trying to protect Casey. I won’t get the truth from her.
“Not you. Her.” I menacingly point my finger at Casey. The anger in my voice has Emma jumping into action.
“Nope. Not here. You are not doing this right now. If you want to talk, great. But if you want to intimidate her like that, you can do it another day when she is emotionally able to defend herself.”
“Back it up, Emma,” I say coldly.
“Shut it up, Caleb,” she responds, challenging me and blocking my view.
Casey pulls in a deep breath and bares it all. “Sarah thought she could drive but pulled over at a gas station when she realized she couldn’t. I had a friend drop me off, but I was all fucked up.”
“What the fuck?” I say as adrenaline rushes through my system. How the fuck did I miss this all these years? “Where did you go? Stephens would have seen you.”
“I wasn’t there when Stephens showed up.”
“Well where the fuck did you go? You couldn’t just disappear!” I roar, stepping close, but Emma stops me with a hand to the chest.
“Please calm down,” she says, but there is damn near nothing that can ease the rush of my emotions right now. Not even Emma.
“Where?” I demand again in a lower voice.
No one speaks up. They all just stand frozen, and I suddenly realize, judging by their faces, that this is about to get a hell of a lot worse.
“Eli was first on the scene,” Emma answers when it’s obvious Casey isn’t going to.
My ears begin to ring as that night starts to unfold in my mind. All of the missing pieces finally click together to form one perfectly devastating puzzle.
Eli Tanner, one of my best friends, has held the answers to what really happened that night all along. He sat by and watched me running myself ragged while investigating it for years. He watched Sarah fall apart from the grief and the hatred eat me alive. He stood quietly while Brett watched his wife repeatedly try to kill herself over something she’d had nothing to do with. Casey may have been driving, but Eli could have saved us all years ago.
“I’m going to kill him,” I growl through clenched teeth.
And in this moment, I mean those words with my entire being.
“WAIT! PLEASE!” I yell as Caleb turns to stalk out of the apartment.
He doesn’t even acknowledge that I’m following him as he strides down the sidewalk to his truck.
“Damn it, Caleb! Stop!” I slip on the ice while trying to keep up with him. I’m not even sure he can hear me as rage controls of his body.
He jerks open his door and climbs in his truck. I rush around to the passenger’s side and climb in too. I absolutely refuse to let him do this alone.
“Get out,” he says calmly, starting his truck.
“No, I’m going with you. You are not confronting Eli about this alone.”
“Get. Out. I don’t want you anywhere near this. You’re not fuckin’ going with me.”
“Then you will have to physically remove me from this truck, because hell will freeze over before I get out. Cuss, scream, say hateful words—whatever you need to do. But I am not budging.”
He looks over at me with wild eyes. He’s looking right at me, but his eyes never actually connect with mine. They’re glazed over as if he were drunk, flashing around the truck, probably at the same speed his mind is racing.
“Whatever.” He finally relents and peels out of the parking lot.
My only saving grace in all of this is that Eli lives a good thirty minutes away. I have a little bit of time to try to talk Caleb down.
“He was trying to protect her.”
“Fuck him,” he snaps back at me.
“She was all fucked up, and he was trying to protect her. You would have done the same for me. Or Manda.”
His eyes swing to me. “I never would have left two dying woman on the side of the road. I’m sorry, Emma. Not. Even. For. You.”
I cringe at the truth in his words, and he goes back to silently driving.
I’m not defending Eli. What he did was vile. He silently watched his friends crumble just to cover his own ass. That’s not a man, even if what he was doing was out of love for Casey. This whole situation is fucked up, but something or someone has to defuse Caleb before he explodes on Eli.
“He thought they were both dead,” I whisper, but it only serves to fuel his fire.
“Well he’s a fucking idiot then. It doesn’t take a genius to check for a pulse. You’re not talking me out of this, so please be quiet. He watched all of us fall apart for years without saying a God damn word. Casey at least had the decency to take off and disappear from our lives. Eli has sat in my fucking house pretending to be my friend while keeping this secret. I’m going to kill him!” He bangs his hand on the steering wheel, pushing his truck even faster.
“Please slow—”
Before I can even get another word out, he hits an invisible patch of ice, causing the truck to swerve.
“Caleb!” I scream before the silence takes over.
“EMMA,” I croak out as the ringing in my ears rouses me back to consciousness.
I open my eyes to find my truck lying on the driver’s side. I’m resting against the crushed glass from my window. I painfully turn my head to the side to find Emma hanging lifelessly, suspended by her seatbelt.
“Emma!” I scream, reaching for her, but I can’t quite touch her. I fight against my seatbelt, desperate to get to her. Oh God. “Emma, please. Hang on, sweetheart. I’m coming. I’m coming,” I chant as I struggle to get the damn restraint off.
It’s fucking stuck, and I’m pinned to my seat while Emma might as well be dying inches away from me. She hasn’t moved, and her head is hanging at an unnatural angle. Bile threatens to rise into my throat as I look down at her pregnant stomach being pulled snug by the seatbelt. I’m going to lose them both. I can feel it. The cycle of my life is about repeat itself.
My body finally kicks into gear and a jolt of adrenaline hits me hard, sending strength through my veins.
“Emma!” I yell while frantically pushing and pulling on the buckle of my seatbelt until, with the most magical click I have ever heard, it becomes unstuck.
I kneel up and immediately check for a pulse, ready to start CPR even before I can free her from the truck. I won’t lose them. I’m reclaiming my life here and now. The rhythm of her heart against my fingers rejuvenates me.
The relief is short-lived. She’s still alive, but even as I stroke her face, she doesn’t wake up.
“Are you okay in there?” I hear the voice of a Good Samaritan from outside.
“Call 911!” I scream, continuing to work to get Emma free. “Come on, Emmy. Stay with me,” I plead. “I need help! I need to get her out of here.”
“Can you lift her? I’ll grab her if you can get her up to the door,” The man says.
I can hear him climbing onto the side of the truck and trying to pry open the stuck door. I reach up, pull the lock, and push into his pulls. Together, we manage to get it open.
“I’m getting you out of here,” I say, unclipping her seatbelt before I press her up and out the door, into the arms of a stranger. “Be careful with her. She’s pregnant.” I call out as she disappears.
I reach up and pull myself out of the truck, jumping down to the road and racing to her side.
Someone has covered her with a blanket to keep her warm. I pause just steps away, paralyzed by my memories. I’ve seen a woman I love lying on the side of the road before. It’s only the realization that this one is still breathing that propels me the last few steps to her side.
“Emmy, wake up, sweeth
In the distance, I hear the sirens screaming. The lights bounce around the darkness as emergency crews surround us. Paramedics nudge me out of the way as they begin to work on her.
“Sir. I need you to step over here.” My body follows the command, but my eyes are unable to stray from Emma. “What’s your name, sir?”
“Caleb Jones.”
“Okay, great. And who is the woman?”
“My wife, Emma Jones.” Her name lodges in my throat as my voice gives out.
Shock has rendered me unable to form coherent thoughts, but all I know is that I need to get back to her. Even four feet away is too far right now.
I turn and head back towards her, only to get pulled away again. “Sir, please. I need you to answer a few questions.”
“Later,” I snap and shake off his touch. “Don’t fucking touch me again.” I resume my stance over Emma, and just as they begin to load her onto the stretcher, her hand clumsily lifts to pull away the oxygen mask. “Emmy!” I shout, and she immediately reaches out to the side, searching for me. “I’ve got you, babe. I’m right here.” Relief at just this small sign of life consumes me.
“Okay, load her up!” The paramedic yells quickly, moving us both into the back of the ambulance.
“WHAT’S WRONG with her? Why is she so out of it?” I ask, pacing the hall of the emergency room. Two doctors and a nurse are inside, checking her over.
“Sir, I’m not sure. Let us look at her and the baby. We can’t give you any answers until we get a better idea of what’s going on,” a nurse says, passing me by and heading into Emma’s room.
The entire way here, Emma mumbled incoherently and drifted in and out of consciousness. I can’t take this anymore. I need some answers. My imagination is running rampant, and I don’t know how much longer I’m going to be able to keep it together.
“Mr. Jones.” The doctor steps into the hallway.
“How is she?” I stop in front of him pushing a shaking hand through my hair.
“Her vitals are stable for now. We are going to focus on the baby for a minute and then take her back for a few more in-depth tests.”
I rush out a breath, willing my pulse to slow.
“As you know, Emma still has five weeks until her due date. The baby is not quite ready to be born yet, but after a trauma like this, sometimes it’s safer for us to go ahead and take the baby.”
“Wait, will he be okay? I mean, if he’s born now? Isn’t it too early?” The fear that just faded immediately climbs again.
“Most babies his age do just fine with some extra care. Besides, as long as everything looks good, we will leave him safely where he is now. Why don’t you go in and sit with her while I run down and grab an ultrasound machine.” He tries to give me a reassuring smile, but none of this feels right.
I walk into the room, and the air is filled with the soft and steady whooshing of our baby’s heartbeat. Emma is hooked up to a bunch of monitors, a white blanket covering her.
I drag the chair from the corner of the small room over next to her and lean down with my head next to hers. “Hey, sweetheart. I could really use a glimpse of those blue eyes right now.”
She immediately turns her head towards me but barely cracks an eye. However, the minute the corner of her mouth lifts an inch, I completely lose it.
Tears fill my eyes. “Oh God, Emmy.” I’ve been holding it together for years, but this—this is just too much.
Suddenly, her fist begins to beat on the bed between us as a scream tears from her throat.
“No. No,” she whimpers, and before I can even process what’s going on, the sounds filling the air slide from quick and steady to slow and sluggish.
I frantically press the nurse call button, terrified to leave her, but as I look toward the door, I catch sight of the massive amount of blood pooling between her legs, soaking completely through the blanket. I jump to my feet and sprint into the hallway.
“Help! I need a doctor! I need a doctor, now!”
A startled nurse comes running down the otherwise empty hall.
Not a second later, doctors and nurses fill the room.
“Get her to the OR. Call anesthesia and have them meet us there. She’s abrupting, people. Let’s move,” I hear the doctor yell as they unlock the wheels on her bed and push her out of the room. I don’t even get a second glance as she is rushed past me.
“Caleb!” I faintly hear shouted from behind me, but the agonizing pain in my chest won’t release me long enough to focus on it.
I stand immobile in the middle of the hallway as the images of Emma bleeding out hold me hostage.
“Jones!” I finally recognize Brett’s voice and his fingers snapping in front of me.
I manage to get out only one sentence before the potential devastation levels me. “I can’t lose her.”
My legs give way as I crash to my knees. I bargain with every possible god in the universe to let her live or, at the very least, take me with her.
“It’s okay. She’s going to be okay,” He begins to frantically repeat.
“Come on, Caleb.” I hear Jesse’s Tinker Bell voice in my ear as I’m practically dragged into a waiting room.
“This isn’t happening. Please, someone wake me up,” I beg as this all-too-familiar feeling strangles me.
Everything moves in fast forward around me as I sit rooted to a chair in the middle of a hospital. I’ve been here before, only this time, I’m responsible. Why the fuck was I driving so fast?
I look over to Brett and say words that only an hour ago sent fire through my system. Now they seem inconsequential. Who cares who was driving? The result will always be the same.
“Casey was driving the night of the wreck. Eli helped her leave unnoticed.”
“What?” He looks at me like I’ve obviously lost it.
“We’ll talk about it later. I don’t even care anymore. I just need this entire nightmare to stop. It’s like a chain of events that were set into motion just to destroy me. And if anything happens to Emma, I have no doubt it will.”
Brett squeezes my shoulder reassuringly but says nothing else.
Time passes, but that’s all I know for sure. I don’t have a clue how long it’s been or if that’s a good sign or a bad one. I know that Jesse never leaves my side. She’s been holding my hand since I sat down. At some point, I remember Sarah and Casey showing up and Brett storming over to them. I just block it all out. Occasionally I catch sight of Brett pacing around us. And regardless how much I will it to stop, the world still spins beneath me.
“Emma Jones?” a nurse announces, and it has me springing to my feet.
“Yes!” I quickly rush over to her, Sarah hot on my heels.
“Are you immediate family?” she asks, and much to my surprise, it’s Sarah who answers first.
“I’m her sister, and he’s her husband.”
I turn with silent gratitude. She offers me only a small nod.
“Follow me.”
“Please. You have to give me something here. Is she okay?” I beg.
“She will be,” she says with a warm smile.
Tears finally flood my eyes as I fight to keep some semblance of composure. I stumble backwards, but Brett grabs my arm to stop me from planting my ass in the middle of the floor. She’s alive. Emma’s heart is still beating. That’s all that matters—
“What about Collin? I mean…the baby. What about the baby?” I ask as fear creeps back into my throat.
“He’s great. Little small, but he’ll be okay too. Come on. We’ll stop at the nursery to see him first while they finish up with Mom.”
“Oh God. They’re okay. They’re both okay?” I ask again because I need to hear it one more time before I can trust it.
“Everyone’s okay,” Brett says, gripping the back of my neck and trying to catch my eyes. “Get it together. You have a son. Don’t make his first memory you crying like
“Yeah, I’m okay.” I try to shake it off, but I know that, until I lay eyes on Emma and Collin, I won’t be able to relax.
“Let’s go meet your son, Mr. Jones.” She leads the way down the maze of halls. After stopping at a nurse’s desk, she wraps a plastic hospital bracelet on my arm. “That is the key to your son. Don’t take it off, don’t lose it, and you will be just fine.” She smiles over at us both.
“Will I be able to see him too?” Sarah asks from behind me.
“Well, now that is up to Mr. Jones. All visitors must be accompanied by a parent. So as long as he gives the A-Okay, we can go back now.”
Forgiveness is a very abstract term. It doesn’t erase the past. It’s not a magical switch you can flip or a stained rug you can just turn over. It’s merely a scar that covers the deep, dark gash that hate carved in your soul. I forgave Sarah months ago for something, it turns out, she never did, but it didn’t delete the years of hate and loathing I once felt. I’m not sure Sarah and I will ever be close. And even though the rational side of my mind says that I should be begging for forgiveness from her, my stubborn heart isn’t there yet. However, the most amazing woman I have ever met once told me that a first step is better than no step at all.
“Yeah, of course she can see him,” I answer, catching Sarah’s eyes with a tender nod.
The nurse leads us back to large room with babies in small beds lined against the wall. I look at each one as I pass, searching for one who looks like Emma. Damn it! I’d give anything for her to be here with me right now.
“Here he is.” The nurse stops in front of a little bed with the tiniest baby I have ever seen in my life.
“Oh my God,” Sarah breathes from behind me.
“Oh, shit… I mean… Oh God,” I stutter in awe.
He’s lying naked except for a diaper. There’s a tube in his mouth and wires and monitors covering his tiny chest. Warm tears slide down my face before I even realized they were falling. I’ve seen him for less than thirty seconds and I know unquestionably that I would give my own life to protect him. I didn’t think I would ever be able to love another person as much as I love Emma, but looking at this tiny baby we somehow created together proves me wrong completely.