Colton Family Bodyguard, page 23
The road turned to the right a bit, so he did, too. And then he saw what he’d been after but had hoped not to see: a van crushed by a large tree that had fallen on its front. At least that was what it appeared to be as he approached it from behind. In fact, the road was effectively blocked by the black van and the felled tree.
“Okay, what’s happened here?” Grayson said out loud, pulling his SUV to the side and parking. He got out quickly, grabbing the medical bag he kept on the floor. He had earned his EMT certification, so he knew how to conduct more than the basics of on-site medical care that could be necessary to save a life.
He also grabbed his large flashlight and used it first to check the ground as he approached the driver’s door of the van. He saw, as he got close, that the vehicle’s markings labeled it as belonging to the Arizona State Department of Corrections, the kind of van used to transport prisoners from one place to another.
If so—well, first things first. He needed to make sure everyone had gotten out of the vehicle’s cab safely.
Only...that wasn’t the case. In the bright glow of his flashlight, he immediately saw a man in what was left of the driver’s seat, covered in blood.
Grayson’s EMT training immediately kicked into gear. He opened the door carefully and checked to see if he could remove the injured person from where he lay after disconnecting his seat belt, without having to get the tree off the van.
Fortunately, he was able to.
Unfortunately, after he gently laid the victim on the ground and began checking for vital signs, he found none. He nevertheless ran into his van and got the defibrillator, but still no response.
Even so, he yanked his phone from his pocket.
“911,” said a female voice nearly immediately. “What’s your emergency?”
Grayson identified himself and quickly explained the situation, including the fact that he believed the person he’d found to be dead.
“But in case I’m wrong—”
“We’ll get someone there as fast as we can under the circumstances, Grayson,” the operator, Betty, said. “I promise.”
“Fast” turned out to be about half an hour. Grayson couldn’t complain, particularly given the fact that there were likely to be a huge number of 911 calls that evening. Meanwhile, he attempted further CPR on the van driver—to no avail.
An ambulance eventually appeared. The EMTs in it—two guys he’d met before—took over for Grayson, but their conclusion was the same as his.
“We’ll take him to Mustang Valley General,” Sid said, while the other guy, Kurt, hooked the victim up to an IV. Necessary? Grayson doubted it, but hoped the man really was still alive.
“Thanks,” Grayson said. “Keep me informed about how things go.” Or not. Did he really want to hear that he was right, that the falling tree had killed the man?
Might as well, he figured.
He took a few photos on his phone of the fallen tree and ruined van. And as the ambulance took off, he looked around further.
He had already checked out the back of the van earlier, as he waited. The door was open, and there was no one inside.
Did the open door mean someone had been incarcerated inside? Maybe.
He’d walked around before the ambulance arrived and hadn’t seen any sign of someone else injured—or worse. But he felt obligated to check a bit farther now, just in case.
At least he knew that ambulances were currently available, if necessary. But had there been someone inside the van’s rear area? Someone this now-deceased driver had been transporting? If so, was he or she okay?
Grayson was not a cop. If whoever it was needed to be captured again, that wasn’t his job, although he could notify the Mustang Valley PD if he found him or her—most likely his sort-of best buddy there, Detective PJ Doherty; his brother Rafe’s fiancée, Detective Kerry Wilder; or even his cousin, Sergeant Spencer Colton. Though all were undoubtedly swamped right now.
But if anyone had been inside the van and was now hurt and out there somewhere in the forest, injured and needing help—well, that was something Grayson intended to find out. He would remain careful, though. Anyone who had been in the back of that van was most likely a criminal and could be dangerous.
Copyright © 2020 by Harlequin Books S.A.
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ISBN: 9781488063916
Colton Family Bodyguard
Copyright © 2020 by Harlequin Books S.A.
Special thanks and acknowledgment are given to Jennifer Morey for her contribution to The Coltons of Mustang Valley miniseries.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
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Jennifer Morey, Colton Family Bodyguard
