STORY ONE
THE HORRIFYING ROAD TO PEACE
"Mom! Are you there? I said, 'I love you,' Mom!" Lisa checked her phone screen. "Darn battery!" Lisa slammed her phone onto the couch of her dorm room next to her leg. I'm sure mom said, 'I love you, too, right after my battery went dead. Of course she did! I'll plug in my phone and call her back. It's always nice to hear those magic words from mom.
"Lisa? . . . Hello?" Lisa's mom checked her screen. Oh, the call dropped. I was wondering why Lisa didn't say goodbye. I'll call her back. Okay . . . speed dial one . . . enter. Voicemail? I'll try in a bit. Lisa's mother pulled out of the mall parking lot. I'll be home in a couple of minutes and call her back. Hopefully we can get together on . . . The boom of crunching metal pierced the air. The seventeen year old boy's phone rocketed from his hand upon impact; an unfinished text to his girlfriend lives on his shattered phone screen on the floorboard. Lisa's mom lay still; her head resting against the blood drenched passenger window.
A paramedic ambulance screeched to a halt; people blocks away focused to catch a glimpse of the chaos down the street. One paramedic raced to Lisa's mom. He placed the side of his face over her nose. "Not breathing!" He checked her pulse. "No pulse!" The other paramedic dashed to mom's car. "The other driver's okay. Just some bleeding and abrasions from the air-bag." "Let's start CPR on her. I'll flatten her seat back." After two minutes, the first paramedic checked her pulse. "No pulse, continue CPR." After two more minutes, the paramedic re-checked her pulse. "No pulse, continue CPR." After two more minutes and a check of mom's pulse and breathing, the first paramedic checked his watch. "Time of death . . . one thirty-one."
Later that evening, Lisa stepped into her grandmother's house. Her grandmother wrapped her arms around Lisa. Lisa cried and wailed. Her body shook. "Why did that stupid guy have to text while driving? Nothing is that important! Nothing!" Tears flowed down Lisa's cheeks. Her grandmother held her embrace. "Lisa honey, we all loved your mom. I know it's not easy losing her. My heart aches as I lost a daughter. We'll get through this, dear. We have to. Your mom would want us to go on as best we can. Live for her, sweet Lisa.
Lisa smiled for two seconds. Her lips straightened and she shook her head. "Why didn't I have enough charge on my battery! I hope she heard me say I loved her. I couldn't hear it back because my battery died . . . just like mom!" Lisa's body quivered; her tears splattered on the floor.
Seven years later...
Lisa carried a bowl of tomato soup to the coffee table at her grandmother's house. "Here ya go, grandma. This should be a good warm up for you. I'll grab us some dinner in a little while. I have to pick up your prescriptions anyway."
"Thanks, dear. You're a wonderful grand-daughter and person. I appreciate you caregiving for me since your mom passed." Grandma's eyes watered. Lisa plopped on the couch next to her and put her arm around her. Tears meandered down her face. "Grandma, we all miss mom, but she'll always be with us."
"Lisa, you're only twenty-six, and I don't want to burden you. We'll figure something out soon." "Oh, I'm fine. I can always finish college online."
Later that evening, Lisa rinsed out the soup bowl. "Grandma?"
"In the living room, dear."
"Grandma, I'm going to the store to pick up your prescriptions and some dinner. See you in about twenty minutes."
"Okay, dear. See you when you get back. Maybe we'll play a game tonight."
"Sounds good!" Lisa stepped into a pair of flip-flops, grabbed her car keys from a drawer, and walked to her old small car parked on the cracked driveway. Should I grab a jacket? I's a bit cool. Nah, I'll be back soon.
Lisa picked up a ready to eat roasted chicken, a bag of salad, milk, and a couple of chocolate bars. Grandma's gonna love this treat while we play our game. She dropped the items in her cart and strolled to the pharmacy counter. The pharmacist approached. "Hey there, Lisa." He handed her a bag of three medications. "Lisa, I don't know how you do it. Caregiving isn't easy! You're one of this world's good people. Tell your grandma not to forget to take all three medications on time, it's important!"
Lisa nodded. "Thanks, Ted. I'll make sure she stays on schedule."
She exited the store and a man from the Rescue Mission asked, "Ma'am, could you give a little to help the homeless get back on their feet?" Lisa placed a five dollar bill in the donation can. "Thank you, miss. God bless." Lisa smiled and walked to her car. It's not like I'm rich, but somebody probably needs the five bucks more than me.
Lisa checked to her left before exiting the parking lot. She made a right turn and headed home. This chicken smells good! A board game with grandma sounds fun. After a few seconds, the high beams of a fast approaching truck caught her eye in her rear-view mirror. The truck's driver flashed the high beams and blasted the horn in one steady honk for several seconds. His front end followed Lisa's car by three feet.
Lisa's wide eyes checked her rear view mirror. The male driver about thirty years old squinted as he shook his fist. Lisa's heart raced. This guy can't be serious! I'm sorry, mister, but the lane was clear. Your high speed is what caused you to catch up to me so quickly. I made a safe turn, dude! Lisa waived her hand. Sorry if you felt I cut you off. Go around, guy.
The truck continued to tailgate; the high-beams flashed on and off in a steady repetitive pattern. Chills saturated Lisa's body and goosebumps sprouted on her arms. "Why won't this guy leave me alone? He already honked and flashed his high beams at me!" Lisa jammed on the gas pedal. Maybe I can lose him! The truck had no problem catching up to Lisa's sixteen year old small car. She cried.
Lisa reached for her cell phone as it lay on the passenger seat. Her shaky finger pressed 9-1-1. "9-1-1, what are you reporting."
"Please help me! I'm on . . . " Lisa's head snapped back as the pickup truck slammed into her rear end. Her phone flew from her hand to the passenger floorboard. Lisa reached for the phone, but her outstretched fingertips pushed the phone under the passenger seat and out of reach. Her body trembled. "No! No!" She made a sharp right turn onto the canyon road and headed into the Malibu Mountains. God, please let me lose him on the curves. I've got to get grandma's medication to her!
Lisa's tires screeched as she rounded the curves. The truck accelerated and rammed the rear of Lisa's car. The rear bumper of Lisa's car dented, and the right tail-light exploded. "Is he trying to kill me because he feels I cut him off? What kind of person does this?" The truck crashed into Lisa's right rear corner as she rounded a curve. Lisa's car skidded sideways, trampling over bushes on the narrow dirt shoulder. She regained control as she crested the mountain; the Pacific Ocean and the lights of Malibu came into vision. "If I can just make it to Malibu, I'll pull into the Malibu Inn restaurant. There will be people there." The truck driver honked the horn. He motioned with his hand for Lisa to pull over. Tears cascaded down her face. There's no way I'm pulling over and being alone up here with this guy! Her heart pounded, and her stomach knotted. The truck driver grinned as he slammed into the rear of her car while on a curve. Lisa's car slid sideways; blue smoke rose from her tires as she drifted over the cliff.
Dust and rocks flew upward and bushes crushed as Lisa's car rolled over three times on its two- hundred foot tumble over the side. Her car slid upside down; the weight of the car crushed down on the roof like a trash compactor. The passenger door smashed against an oak tree, jolting the car to a stop, and preventing the car from tumbling another two-hundred feet into the creek below. Lisa lay motionless, upside down, behind the steering wheel. Her lifeless arm dangled out of the window; blood dripped off her fingertips.
A dust cloud rose from the truck's tires as it skidded to a stop on the dirt shoulder. The man examined the wreckage and smiled. "That's what you get!"
The man stormed back to his truck, reached behind his seat, and snatched a shotgun. "She needs more punishment, even if she's already dead!" His eyes widened. "Gonna make sure she won't cut off anyone again!"
He racked a shotgun shell in the firing chamber and chuckled. Lisa's right eye opened. She wiped blood away from her other eye and opened it. Her head dizzied as internal bleeding re- directed blood into her gut and away from her brain. "Please! I didn't mean to cut you off! I
thought you were further away! I'm so sorry!" Flames sprouted from the engine, dancing close to the windshield. Lisa's eye's widened. "No!" Her stomach twinged and her body shook. Her eye's closed and her body went limp. The flames melted the windshield and the dashboard caught fire.
The flames kissed the steering wheel. Lisa's eyes widened. "No! No!"
Upside down Lisa unbuckled her seat belt and fell; she smacked the top of her head on the roof of her overturned down car. She flung her upper body out of the broken driver's side window and scooted her hips towards the window. One leg moved, and the other leg wouldn't budge. Flames engulfed the steering wheel and Lisa's hair singed. She fanned the flames away from her face. She yanked her legs towards the window. My thigh is stuck cuz of the wreckage! I gotta get out of the car! Her head lightened, her skin paled, and her heart raced. She studied her leg. "Oh, wow!"
Lisa's mouth hung open as blood flowed from the spot the seven inch piece of jagged plastic dashboard lodged into her thigh. She pulled her leg, but the other end of the plastic remained part of the dashboard. She wriggled like she was a fish trying to get off a barbed hook. She screamed as blood flowed like a popped water balloon. Tears raced down her face and her body quivered. The flames grew and Lisa's hand swatted them like flies at a picnic. "Grandma, I love you. Mom, I may be seeing you soon." Lisa's eyes closed, her dizziness intensified, and the bottom of her hair caught fire.
Lisa's scalp singed. Her eyes rocketed open. "Ow!" She slapped the flames off her hair. "It's now or never." She yanked her trapped leg towards the window and screamed. The plastic piece of dashboard gave no evidence of letting go of Lisa's leg. The man laughed. "I better shoot you now so you won't burn to death. See, I'm very thoughtful!" Lisa took a deep breath and leaned hard towards the driver's window. "One, two, three!" She jerked her leg, which moved a few inches towards freedom. I'm still stuck! She swatted flames away from her face. The heat melted the rear-view mirror. Lisa cried. "I give up."
Lisa glanced out the window at grandma's prescription bag laying on the hillside next to one of her flip-flops. She closed her eyes, and thrust her knee towards her chest, freeing her leg. She screamed as she tumbled through the window onto the dirt.
She rolled away from her car, ending up on her back on the hillside. The flames engulfed the whole car. Lisa's body shook. The man's footsteps crunched on leaves as he marched closer. He stood twenty feet from Lisa. She made eye contact. "Please, help me."
He pointed his index finger at her. "You'll never cut off anyone again!
"I didn't mean to. Please!"
Her teeth chattered and the goosebumps on her arms grew. So cold! A few more leaves crunched under the man's feet as he stepped to about ten feet of Lisa. He raised the shotgun. Grandma, I tried. She closed her eyes and turned her head. A shot rang out, echoing off the hillsides. Lisa lay motionless on top of the dirt.
A woman's voice called out. "Lisa, Lisa!"
"Mom, is that you helping me cross over into heaven?"
"Lisa!" A hand shook her shoulder. Lisa opened her right eye halfway. The shine of a police officer's badge reflected off the glint of moonlight. Lisa smiled and sighed.
"I'm not your mom. I'm Officer Sue Salas."
Paramedics arrived and transported Lisa to the hospital.
Rhythmic footsteps struck the tile floor as they ran alongside Lisa's gurney toward the operating room. The lead nurse shoved open the double doors of the surgery entrance. The doctors removed broken glass, metal, and plastic from Lisa's abdomen, and stopped the internal bleeding. After surgery, Lisa lay in her hospital bed with a bandage wrapped around one hundred thirty-three stitches on her thigh.
The next morning, a woman in her mid-twenties stepped into Lisa's hospital room. Both knee's showed through the rips in her jeans. "Lisa, I'm Officer Salas. I don't know if you remember me, but we met last night."
Lisa propped up onto one elbow. "Well, you certainly look different today."
"Yeah, I'm casual today. When ever an officer gets involved in a shooting, they go on leave during the investigation. I just wanted to swing by to see how you're doing."
"I'm doing okay, thank you. I'm sore in a thousand places but doing okay." A tear dripped down her face. "I thought that jerk shot me. I heard his gun go off. I thought I died!"
"The gunshot you heard was mine, Lisa. I shot him just prior to him pulling the trigger of his shotgun."
"How in the world did you even know where I was?"
"Although you couldn't talk to her with your phone under the seat, the 911 dispatcher tracked you through the GPS on your phone, and responded me, the closest officer to your location." "I'm sure glad my phone didn't drop the call." Lisa's head sunk. I wish my call didn't drop with my mom before she died. I couldn't hear, 'I love you, too.' Stupid battery! Lisa's stomach twinged.
Lisa's next door neighbor, Mark, arrived in Lisa's hospital room, escorting her grandmother. Lisa smiled with wide eyes as her grandmother leaned over her bed and hugged her. "Grandma, I thought I would never see you again! I was so scared!"
"Oh, dear. Just like your mom, I'll always be with you." Lisa's eyes teared as she grinned. Officer Salas said, "Lisa, I had dispatch roll an officer to your house last night to advise your grandmother of your incident. The dispatcher also contacted neighbor Mark who kindly stayed with your grandmother, and agreed to care give until your brother arrives later today from the east coast."
"Thanks, officer, and thanks for being there for me."
"Call me Sue, and you're very welcome, Lisa. Oh, I saw the bag of medications laying on the dirt hillside, and made sure they were given to your grandmother so she would stay on schedule." "Thanks for all your help, Sue! You're awesome!"
"Glad to help."
"Sue, could you please tell the 911 dispatcher I greatly appreciate her efforts to get me help."
"I'll let her know." Sue smiled and added, "Oh, I left the chicken and salad in the wilderness. It probably wasn't worth saving, and I'm sure a needy animal enjoyed the free meal." Sue smiled and turned towards the door. After a few steps, she stopped, walked back to Lisa, and pulled an envelope out of a rear jeans pocket. "Oh, Lisa, here. I don't know if this is important, but I found this envelope next to your car on the hillside."
Lisa's eyebrows raised. "Oh, okay. I don't know exactly what this is, but thank you." "You're quite welcome. Now, get some rest."
Lisa's grandmother said, "Yes, you should rest dear. Mark and I will visit you later." Grandma kissed Lisa's forehead, and Mark hugged Lisa before they left.
Lisa put her head on the pillow and closed her eyes. After ten seconds, her eyes shot open. Hmm. She propped up onto one elbow and opened the envelope. Tears raced down her smiling face. I know this handwriting! The four words on the note read, "I love you, too!" Lisa's smile grew bigger. She tilted her head and focused on the blue sky beyond her window. "Thanks, Mom. I needed that!"