Butterfly Bayou (Butterfly Bayou 1)

“Gracie!” Hallie was fighting to get out of her seat belt. “Where’s my baby?”

She left Armie to deal with Hallie. She needed to figure out why Gracie wasn’t breathing. There was a car seat where it should be and a diaper bag beside it. The scent of burnt chemicals filled the air, letting her know without seeing it that the airbags had deployed. Her brain quickly processed the scene, the visuals clicking into place. Baby girl’s hands were covered in doughy goo. It smelled like vanilla. Teething biscuit. She’d been gnawing on a teething biscuit and the accident had caused a chunk to lodge in her throat.

The baby’s eyes were open, desperation clear in those blue orbs. She couldn’t breathe, couldn’t cry.

Lila flipped the baby over, cradling the one-year-old head in her hand. She put her foot on the running board and rested her arm along with the baby on her thigh. The baby’s delicate jaw was cradled between her thumb and forefinger.

She was ready.

One. Two. Three. Four. Five.

Five firm blows from the heel of her right hand between the baby girl’s shoulder blades.

There was a coughing sound as the chunk of cookie hit the back seat. Then the baby wailed.

“Gracie?” Hallie was standing there, holding her arms out.

Lila turned over the baby. “What happened?”

Hallie clutched her daughter. “Momma was driving along and then she went pale and said her arm hurt, and then I swear we were going too fast and she wasn’t responding. I tried to take the wheel but I think we hit someone. Oh my god. Is that Rene?”

Lila made it to the driver’s side of the car. Hallie’s mother was slumped over the airbag, which covered the steering wheel. She was wearing a seat belt and the airbag had deployed properly. Given what Hallie had said, she had to think either cardiac arrest or stroke. No pulse. She had to take the chance and get Mrs. Herbert on the ground, where she could start CPR.

“Armie, help me get her out of here. She’s in full arrest. I don’t know how long she’s been down.”

Armie didn’t hesitate. He unbuckled the belt and eased Mrs. Herbert to the pavement.

“Get the AED from my kit.” She didn’t explain to him that she was talking about the automated external defibrillator that would be in the kit Mabel had brought with her. Armie had enough training to back her up and she was so grateful. Lila fell to her knees, found the xiphoid process, interlocked her hands, and started CPR, the rhythm ingrained from years of work. One. Two. Three. Four. Five. She kept going until she’d counted to thirty.

Lean over and breathe. Once. Twice. Listen for breath sounds.

Back to compressions.

One. Two. Three. Four. Five . . .

Around her, somewhere in the background, she knew people were crying and the world was moving, but she was caught in this moment. The world slid away and there was only her work. In this place, she was strong. In this place, there was no fear, no hesitation. There was life and death and a battle she knew well.

Armie moved in beside her. “I’ve turned it on.”

Thirty.

She tore open Mrs. Herbert’s shirt. Her skin was dry so Lila properly placed the electrodes as the machine began to do its work.

“Everyone stand back.” Her patient needed the shock the AED would administer. Lila pressed down on the button.

Mrs. Herbert’s body convulsed as her heart started again. Her eyes came open, shock plain in them. She was shaky, but Lila felt her heartbeat pulsing under her fingers.

“Gracie? What happened to the baby? My babies?” She croaked the words out.

“They’re fine. Stay down. The ambulance is on the way. I need to check on Rene. Armie, keep her comfortable and find a way to elevate her feet.” She stood, positive that Armie would do the job and the AED would keep working if she needed it to.

The deputy had shown up and she was working crowd control.

“Deputy, I need an ETA on that ambulance.” She was going to have to make a decision on who to send in the ambulance and who got the helicopter.

Mabel glanced her way. “Lila, I’m worried he’s going to have this tourniquet on his leg for more than an hour if we send Janice in the ambulance and have to wait for it to come back.”

“I’ve got a chopper coming, but I don’t know if it can take both of them. I don’t know how big it is.” He would lose the leg. She was going to have to make a decision.

“Send her,” the man Armie had called Rene said. His skin had paled considerably. “I can wait.”

She wasn’t making that choice. Not when she could make a play to save everyone. “Deputy! We’re going to need to get Mrs. Herbert to the clinic.”