Silver Lining

Chapter 5

I focussed on the positive aspect – there was a way out. Not the negative – my best friend was slowly bleeding to death.

I hurried over to the hole with Xavier, Jasmine and Mel, leaving Ilish with Lacy and Elliot. “Get this bigger, now!” I ordered, beginning to tear at the hole. I felt a breath of subtle wind and started yelling for help. The other's joined me. “Help us! Hello? Somebody help us!”

“Yo! Over here!” I let Mel do the yelling – she was the louder one out of all of us. I thought I heard voices outside but I didn't focus on it in case it gave me false hope. A few minutes later and a face appeared on the other side of the hole, so suddenly that I jumped and scraped my hand against the rubble.

“Are you three okay in there?” The man asks, someone's legs appearing behind him.

“Six.” I corrected automatically. “There are six of us in here. Two of us are injured, one critically.”

“Are you one of them, ma'am?” The man asks and I laugh in confusion.

“No, I'm fine!”

“Stand back then please.” I moved swiftly away from the hole, Mel, Xavier and Jasmine following closely. We moved back to Ilish, Lacy and Elliot, huddling together as the professionals widened the hole and three rescue workers entered the small space, followed by four paramedics. There was barely enough room for the six of us, let alone the seven new-comers.

The paramedics jostled us aside, two tending to Lacy and the other two to Elliot. I shot him a reassuring smile as one of the rescue workers took my arm and gave me a gentle push towards the exit. The second was scoping out the area and another was crouched just inside out recently created hole, ready to help us out to a fourth rescue worker on the other side. Jasmine and Mel went first and each of them uttered a curse at the bright light of the outside world. Something their eyes hadn't been exposed to for a while. I also muttered a curse and I practically felt my eyes sizzle and shrivel up inside their sockets. Thankfully someone steered my across the yard of the school to where, as my eyes grew accustomed to the bright light, several ambulances were waiting. The lights inside of the ambulance seemed brighter than the natural light outside. Hands prod me and my skin burns. “Miss, we're going to take you to the hospital to treat you properly.”

“I'm fine!” I tried to object but hands keep me still. “Why does everyone keep telling me otherwise?” I didn't get a reply and to be honest, I wasn't expecting one.

From somewhere outside I heard sirens becoming distant quickly, followed by another set. I gathered that they were the ambulances containing Lacy and Elliot. If travelling in an ambulance was the fastest way to get to the hospital, then I'd let them take me. If they could still see the marks on my face and body, then it had to be bad. I heard someone enter the ambulance and saw Ilish sit down opposite me. “I'm her sister.” Ilish smiles pleasantly. “She goes, I go.” the crew nods, closing the door and calling for the engine to be started.

“I seriously look that bad?”

“'Course you do! It's almost an improvement on your morning face!” Ilish laughed and I kicked her. Not hard enough to hurt her and I did it with a smile, but the ambulance crew didn't seem to approve. “But seriously though,” Ilish's face turned serious. “it doesn't seem any to be getting any better.” Whilst the ambulance crew would've considered this a rather weird statement, I realised that I wasn't healing.

I considered it a mini-miracle that the school was only three minutes from the hospital. By the time we got to the hospital my face was beginning to sting quite bad and I wondered how I hadn't noticed it before. My worries only grew when the paramedics herded me through into a small white room that stank of disinfectant. I was met by a Doctor who looked shell-shocked at the sight of my. “Good Lord!” he exclaimed, rushing to my side. “Fetch Doctor Martinez and send Doctor Anderton down to surgery at once!” the doctor ordered and the two paramedics left, leaving Ilish and me alone with the apparently concerned Doctor. “Name?” he asked, pointing to Ilish.

“Ilish McFadyen.”

“Her name?”

“Grace Keisha. We're adopted sisters.”

Apparently I now couldn't speak for myself. “Are you over sixteen?” The Doctor demanded and I nodded. “Then you give us permission to sort you out?” Again, I nodded. “Good.” the door swung open and another Doctor joined us. He didn't look too impressed at the sight of my obviously mangled face. “Martinez come with me. Miss McFadyen wait here. Miss Keisha, with us.”

And that was how I found myself laying on a table in an operating theatre, anaesthetic being pumped into me and wondering if it would have any affect and how I was going to explain everything if it didn't work.

Apparently I had nothing to worry about though as when I blinked I found I was staring at a different ceiling and I was rather tired and sore. I struggled into a sitting position and noted that Ilish was doodling in the corner. I tried to talk but my tongue felt like it was coated in glue. “You're awake then.” she noted a minute later when I hit the bedside table with my hand in attempt to get her attention. I gave her a look that screamed 'Duh!'. “Don't give me that look. You were meant to be knocked out for another few hours.” Ilish set her books down and walked over to me and I noticed that she'd been patched up too. She had bandages on both her arms and through the fabric of her shirt I could just make out a bandage around her ribs. I looked at her. “What? I couldn't exactly look fine when I was covered in blood and had just been pulled from rubble!” I presented her with another look and she sighed. “The wound on my middle was still bleeding slowly so that was stitched. I didn't have to do anything there. As for my arms, well, there was a broken coffee cup in the bin of the room I was left alone in. I used it to 're-create' the scratches on my arms. Don't worry I didn't cut anything important.” She added hastily as a look of panic crossed my face. “And I don't think I'll be doing it again. It was uncomfortable.” She fell into silence for a few minutes before I motioned for water. She grinned and disappeared, returning a few moments later with a nurse and a glass of water. The nurse waited patiently for me to drink the water before checking me over.

“We weren't expecting you up so soon after surgery.” She smiled. “Are you in pain?”

“No.” I croaked. “What time is it?”

“That's good. You'll be able to remain conscious now. And about three AM dear.”

“Come again?” I spluttered and the nurse laughed. “Your sister here can explain. I'm needed across the hall. Holler if you need me!”

“She's nice isn't she?” Ilish smiled once the nurse had left.

“Three AM?” I prompted and Ilish sighed dramatically, flopping down next to me on the bed.

“Here's the timetable of what happened. School goes 'Boom' at eleven oh five yesterday. Twelve people in the black seating area: us seven, and five others. Rescue workers hear moving about at eleven fifty nine. They estimate that we'd been unconscious for at least forty five minutes. We get out at twelve thirty seven. Lacy's rushed to hospital three minutes later and we follow a further two minutes behind. Elliot's in the ambulance behind us with Mel, Jasmine and Xavier.” I opened my mouth to ask how many people were dead but Ilish shushes me. “The explosion was thought to have been a bomb planted at the end of corridor E, twelve feet from us. It took out corridor E, the black lounge, corridor G, half of corridor F and cut block D in half. There are twenty people missing and a confirmed thirteen dead.”

I was quiet for a minute, letting this sink in. “And the others?”

“Lacy's on a heart monitor and has a breathing tube. She's in a medical induced coma. Family only allowed to see her. Xavier had a broken right foot, shattered left ankle, fractured femur and dislocated hip. He's wheelchair bound for the next two months. Elliot has two broken ribs and a sprained wrist. Jasmine has a cracked collarbone and Mel had mile concussion. I had the obvious injuries and you had a broken cheek bone, broken nose, split lip, twelve gashes on your face, three gashes on your neck and a broken wrist.” I glanced down at my right wrist and saw that she was right. How hadn't I noticed that before? Ilish had already scrawled 'Clutz! Get better soon. Ilish :) Fire-truck!' on the top of the cast. I looked up again to see her holding her phone out to me. On the screen was a picture of my mangled face. I winced.

“Ow.”

“Just a little, yeah.” Ilish laughed. “I'm off to see the others but you have to stay here. I'll bring Xavier back as he's the only one able to move.” Ilish waved already on the way to the door. “Have fun!” Have fun with what I wasn't exactly sure but she was gone before I could ask.