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“Three minutes,” Penny said when Caleb looked uncertain. “It was three minutes ago.” She’d been watching the clock on the wall obsessively, counting the seconds while they waited for the ambulance.
She watched the EMTs transfer George onto the gurney and prepare him for transport.
“You did good.” One of the paramedics squeezed Caleb’s shoulder as the others wheeled him toward the door. “You might have saved his life.”
“Which hospital are you taking him to?” Penny asked.
“Brotman. You know if he’s got family?”
“They’re in San Jose.” His son’s name was Mike, she knew that much. If she could remember the name of the company he worked for, she could get in touch with him to let him know what had happened.
Caleb stood beside her, watching through the window in silence as the paramedics loaded George into the back of the ambulance. It had stopped raining at some point and the sun was shining.
“Is he going to be okay?” Penny asked when the ambulance was out of sight.
Caleb nodded, still staring out the window. “Hopefully. They got to him really fast. That’s important.”
Penny sniffled and swiped at her eyes. Caleb put a hand on her shoulder and turned her toward him.
His brows drew together as his eyes roamed over her face. “Are you okay?”
She nodded again, trying to make it look convincing. She’d never seen anyone have a heart attack before, or even seen anyone taken away in ambulance. What if George died? What if she never saw him again?
Caleb’s arms enveloped her, and she sagged against his chest and drew a hitching breath. His hands rubbed comforting circles on her back. “It’s going to be okay.”
She sniffled, trying not to get snot on his T-shirt. “How do you know?”
“Because he got help right away. The odds are in his favor.”
She nodded against his chest. “You were amazing. You knew exactly what to do.”
The bell on the door announced the arrival of a customer and Caleb let go of her.
Penny turned her face away and stepped back, putting some distance between them. She dug in her purse for a tissue as Elyse greeted the customer in a hollow voice. She was probably just as shaken up as Penny, poor thing. The woman at the counter ordered a mocha, oblivious to the fact that she’d walked into the middle of a tragedy.
Penny pressed a tissue to the corner of her eyes and made a decision. When she turned back around, Caleb was picking up the trash the paramedics had left behind. “I’m going to the hospital,” she said to him. “Do you want to come?”
He straightened, looking conflicted. “I can’t. I can’t leave Elyse on her own. And I need to call Roxanne and Reema to tell them what happened.”
Penny nodded and hiked her purse onto her shoulder. Her eyes fell on George’s newspaper lying on the counter. She remembered the look on his face as he’d crumpled to the floor. How fragile he’d seemed.
“Will you call me if you hear anything?” Caleb asked.
“Sure. Of course.” She fumbled in her purse for her phone. “What’s your number?”
He recited it for her and she added him to her contacts. C-A-L-E-B. She didn’t know his last name, so she left it blank.
Which reminded her… “I don’t suppose you know the name of the company George’s son works for in San Jose? I wanted to call him. I thought he should hear it from someone who knew his dad. I thought it would be better—not that anything can make this better. Easier, maybe. For him.” She realized she was babbling and pressed her lips together.
“Bargello,” Caleb said. “He works for a software company called Bargello.”
“Right.” Penny nodded, staring at her phone. She didn’t need to write that down. She could remember it. Why was she still staring at her phone?
“Hey.” Caleb moved closer. He lifted his hand like he was going to touch her cheek, then stopped and let it drop to his side. “Maybe you should sit down for a few minutes before you try to drive. There’s no need to rush off. It’ll be a while before they know anything.”
Penny shook her head. She didn’t want to sit around here, seeing George falling to the floor over and over again. “I’ve got to walk home first. I’ll be fine.”
Caleb nodded, but he didn’t look happy about it.
