Whisper (28 page)

“Hell of a mess you got yourself into. Can you shut the engine down?”

“Can’t reach the key.”

“You hurt?”

“Who the hell knows?” Again a lingering silence before he said, “I can’t feel my legs but I’m pinned in here real tight. There’s some blood but nothing too damn bad.”

“Good, take a nap while I shut down your truck.”

“You sure as hell can’t get in here, there’s not enough room.”

“It’ll take some time, but we’ll get you out.” He heard Liam laugh. “I can only imagine what this’ll cost. And I don’t give a shit.”

“I’ll get to work. You need something, call out. I won’t be far.”

John’s brothers met him at the back of the wreckage to confer. They’d already begun hooking chains to the frame between the rear axles to stabilize the cab.

The fire chief and three State Highway patrolmen joined the conversation as they walked to the safety line. One officer asked, “So, the primary goal is to get the truck turned off?”

“Yeah, I’m catching fumes from the vapor recovery on the gas tanker. If the diesel starts getting a steady dose of them, the motor could over-2

Forbidden Thunder

rev and a lot of bad things could happen if it starts running wild.”

“One of my men could climb in and do it,” the fire chief said.

“Not a chance unless you have a kid working with you. There’s just a small gap, and everything’s so twisted someone would have to actually crawl inside with no extra gear. I think the only chance we have is to start cutting and get in through the door.

Again, not only one hell of a drop if someone makes a mistake, but cutting involves spark and with the fumes…”

The shouts of one patrolman brought them all whirling around. “Hey, where’s she going?” A small blonde had ducked through the crowd and was sprinting toward the tractor. John broke into a run. “You! Hey, get the hell away from there!” The slender, athletic body stepped onto the guardrail and jumped to the rear tires. Without hesitating, one footstep took her to the frame before inching her feet toward the back of the cab. In a single leap, she grasped the handrail on the exhaust stack and swung onto the fuel tank. Sidestepping her way, she finally made it to the driver’s door.

He had to get her off. If she lost her grip…

“Come on lady, get down. Let the authorities handle this.” He got as far as standing on the rear tire before the cab shifted. He froze. He yelled to his brothers, “Get some tension on those chains now!” The woman clung to the small opening that used to be the window of the driver’s door. When she glanced back, her dark blue eyes held a determination he hadn’t seen in any woman in a long time.

“Here, work your way back to me. I’ll get you out of here. You’re going to kill yourself.” She didn’t reply. He tried again. “Look, your weight could make us go over.”

3

Kathleen Lash

She reached inside and struggled before placing her feet back on the fuel tank. “I can’t reach it. I have to go in.”

Before he could move, she jumped, used her arms for leverage and shimmied through the opening headfirst. The cab vibrated as she shifted around inside and within seconds, the motor rumbled to a stop. A loud cheer went up from the crowd. Anger soon replaced relief as the truck lurched and John lost his balance.
Damned little
fool!
“Lady, get out of there. Do you hear me?” Back on the tires, heading for the frame, the truck shifted under him.

“Caila, what the hell are you doing here?” John heard Liam ask. It figured she’d be a McKenna, taking a bad situation and making it worse.

“I came to help.”

“Your boot is on my crotch!”

More shifting.

Sorry, I’m wedged in.”

“Baby Girl, get your ass out of here.”

“Can’t. I’m stuck.”

“Stuck!” Liam and John cried in unison.

“My left leg. The more I pull…Ouch.”

“Are you hurt?” John called.

“Nope, but something shifted. Wait, let me see if I can squeeze my leg… Damn!”

“Show me your hand, I’ll pull you out.” Her fingers appeared in the opening and then her hands. His disbelief was conveyed with a whistle as he moved forward, slowly retracing her footsteps.

All at once, with a great screech of metal, the truck pitched to the right. John grabbed the handrail and held tight as the cab twisted away from the bridge. Men shouted to get the hell out of the way. Then nothing but stunned silence as the tractor dropped. Seemed like a mile, but was probably no 4

Forbidden Thunder

more than a foot. The motion stopped with a tremendous jolt as the entire weight of the truck was held by the chains his brothers used as anchors, and a not-so-secure looking fifth wheel. The cab was twisted almost completely over onto the passenger side, but safe for the time being.

Her fingers appeared in the opening. He said,

“Reach a little higher.”

“Sorry, that’s it.”

“Liam,” he called, “can you push her out?” He listened as they struggled and she yelped.

“She’s pinned as tight as me. I’m just making it worse.” John crept to the driver’s door and grabbed her hands.

The cab jumped beneath them again. Caila shrieked. The screech of metal grinding against concrete and asphalt marked the progress of what seemed inevitable. If the cab went over, the trailer would be next, and from where the trucks were mashed together, the tanker could follow. Groaning, trying to keep from falling by wedging his boots between the fuel tank and body panel, his fingers threaded with hers when Alex, his next youngest brother said, “You have got to be kidding!”

“There’s not a damn thing funny about the situation,” John called.

“Well, Christ, John, crawl back over!”

“I can’t.”

“Why not?”

“Don’t talk, work the chains.”

“Sorry about this,” Caila said.

His fingers clenched her small hands a little tighter. “You will be, little girl, you will be.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Liam asked.

“I’m going to get you both out of this mess, take your sister to my truck and splinter her rear end.” 5

A word about the author...

Kathleen Lash is a multi-published, award-winning author who enjoys writing in various romance genres. She loves strong heroes and stronger heroines who can stand up to adversity and find their own happily-ever-after.

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