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The woman nodded through the shakes, and Megan took the woman’s thin arm over her shoulders and braced her weight as she helped her out. The deadweight lightened as Troy lifted the other woman’s arm. Limp from exhaustion, or maybe shock, the woman didn’t walk but allowed herself to be carried to the edge of the road, where they lowered her down. She was wearing a thin T-shirt and would need something to keep her warm in the cold night.
As if he could read Megan’s mind, Troy was already taking his coat off and draping it around the girl’s trembling shoulders where she sat on the edge of the road away from the car. With him there, Megan turned back to the car where the dog was in hysterics and snaked her arm through the front window, her fingers working to find the latch for the back door. The dog’s barking echoed in her head as she felt her fingers close on the smooth metal and pop the door. The dog limped out and stumbled, which led to more panic.
“Okay, okay, okay. Come here, calm down. Let’s go see her.” Megan tried to get the dog’s collar, but felt a tug with weight as it collapsed again. With sirens in the background, Megan lifted up the lab and carried the quivering body across the road to where the woman sat staring in their direction.
As soon as she laid the dog down next to the girl, the snout found its way into her lap, snuggling down while big brown eyes took in the sight of its owner, who after a moment, started stroking the boxy head.
“Can you tell us if you’re hurt?”
Troy turned on the light on his cellphone and flashed a pool of white light over the woman and dog. The woman looked even more like a girl than Megan had realized. Her hazel glassy eyes still stared ahead unseeing, and Megan could see the pulse fluttering underneath her skin, next to the collarbone where she was breathing short, rapid breaths.
“I don’t know if she’s in shock, but she might be having a panic attack.”
The sound of the sirens grew in the night, and a glow from the flashing blue lights traveled from the road below.
“Must have been a deer or something she saw.”
“Yeah, maybe.”
A scream tore from the girl again, and she tried to scramble back from where she was pointing. Megan’s head spun around to see a fully naked man emerge from the woods, bolting right in her direction, his eyes crazed and teeth bared.
CHAPTER16
Ascream ripped from her own mouth, and Megan threw her arms out in front of the girl and shielded her eyes from the impact.
It never came.
Instead, there was a grunt, thump, and scuffle over gravel, followed by a tangle of frantic pants that were drowned out by the approaching police car.
“Get to the ground now!” Ash yelled while exiting her cruiser.
Troy had the man around the shoulders, but was straining to keep his grip as Ash’s words barely registered.
Ash and her new partner, Officer Wilson, stood over Troy, helping to restrain the man who continued to struggle against them, trying to lash out. Between the three of them, they got him handcuffed and sitting upright just as red lights started to mix with the blue when the fire engine and ambulance arrived.
Jordan and Buzz hopped out and jogged over to get the 411 on the girl driver, but quickly detoured to where Troy was still panting from wrestling the naked man, now under a thermal foil.
The engineer headed right over to the car with a dry chemical grade extinguisher.
“What in God’s name is going on here?” Buzz asked anyone who would listen.
Ash was trying to talk to the man who was still straining against the restraints with odd jerking movements, so Megan took the lead.
“We don’t know. Just heard screaming and ran down to see the car smoking. Driver hasn’t said anything, but no visible signs of injuries, and this man just leaped out of the woods screaming at us.”
“Thank God Laura is on tonight to check them both out.”
“Pup’s in bad shape too. Maybe a leg injury.”
“Alright, well, let’s call a tow truck and get another ambulance up here.”
“On it,” said Wilson who already had his radio up to his mouth. He and Buzz exchanged a greeting, having known each other in high school, and went right back into the work.
Laura jogged over and took a look at the girl. They handed Troy back his jacket, which he draped over his shoulder, and got her a foil blanket also before asking her questions and performing an exam.
Jordan took the man, who appeared to be in psychosis. His dilated pupils and involuntary head movements led Jordan to call the hospital and request a social worker to intervene for an assessment. After a few moments, the other ambulance arrived to take the man to the hospital, and the girl started talking to Laura and used her phone to call her dad to come and get the dog and give her information to the police.
While they waited for him to arrive, the tow truck also came and started the process of extracting the car from the tree. By that time, Ash had taken statements from Troy and Megan, meaning all official business had been conducted.
