Part 9
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She stared at the door and answered in mock seriousness, "No, but I feel like there should be a sign overhead that says 'abandon hope, all ye who enter here'." She turned to grin at him, bumping his shoulder playfully with hers.
The door opened, and Todd stood in the doorway to welcome them in. He shook Peter's hand and embraced Kacie in a bear hug. "See, Peter," Todd grinned, "I told you I didn't think she scared easily. Either that, or she is an incredible glutton for punishment."
They heard footsteps in the hall, and Carolyn, Annie, and Kelly approached timidly. Sensing their awkwardness and seeing the tenseness on Peter's face, Kacie greeted the newcomers with a giggle. "I need you guys to settle an argument Peter and I have been having."
She grinned widely, ignoring Peter's puzzled look. "Does he, or does he not, have a 'Peter look'?"
Carolyn and Kelly burst into relieved laughter, Carolyn's eyes shining gratefully at Kacie. {Remind me to thank you for making things easier for all of us, especially my sometimes bratty sister, Kelly.} She was the first to respond. "You mean the look he gets when he wants you to do something he's pretty sure that you will say no to?"
Kelly chimed in, "The one he that gets when he knows he's in the doghouse?"
Kacie snickered, "That's the one."
"YES!" the two sisters shouted as one.
Annie giggled, too. "I've never actually seen the look, but I can hear it in his voice, ever since he was a boy. It always worked on me. Paul's the only one who wouldn't fall for it."
Peter tried to look indignant, but was too pleased that all was going well. "I don't need this abuse," he retorted in a highly indignant tone that was overshadowed by the happy grin on his face. "Come on, Todd, let's check the TV and see what time the game is coming on." The male contingency headed for the den.
"So he uses it on you, too?" asked Kelly shyly, apologizing with her eyes.
Kacie took her arm as the women struck out for the kitchen. "All the time," replied Kacie. "Or at least he tries. Sometimes I just laugh at him. Drives him crazy."
Carolyn snickered, "Let me tell you about the time..."
Dinner was soon ready, and as everyone gathered to be seated, Peter gave Kacie a quick hug. "Thanks for being you," he whispered.
She smiled at him in reply and seated herself in the chair he pulled out for her.
Annie turned her face in Kacie's direction and requested, "Kacie, would you say grace for us today?"
The young woman hesitated a moment and then agreed quietly. "OK."
She took Peter's hand, and Todd's, who was sitting on the other side of her. The others clasped hands joined to form a circle, and then all bowed their heads.
"Heavenly Father, we thank you for this day, for the family here, and the food that has been prepared. We ask that you watch over us and protect us in our work and play. Be with Carolyn and her baby; keep them strong and healthy. And Father," she continued earnestly." Please especially watch over those that we love who aren't here with us today. Keep them safe in Your hands, and bring them home again soon. Amen."
There was a brief silence after a chorus of amens went up from every throat. When Kacie opened her eyes, it was to see Peter looking at her, hazel eyes aglow with affection. He squeezed her hand before letting go, and leaned over to kiss her temple.
"Thank you, Kacie, that was beautiful." Annie's voice had a slight quiver. Kelly and Carolyn sniffled quietly, and even Todd looked a little more subdued than usual, too.
"Oh, you made that casserole again," Kacie commented happily, and the dinner conversation went on.
After the meal, Peter pushed away his chair from the table, slouched down in his seat, and sighed in contentment. "Mom, that was great. I can't eat another bite."
"I wonder why." Kacie said dryly. "You only had three helpings of roast and two of the mashed potatoes and gravy. Sure am glad the rest of us weren't all that hungry."
"Yeah," Kelly jumped in."I'm ready to go raid the refrigerator and see what I can rustle up."
"Hey, what is this, pick on Peter day?" he groused, attempting to sound disgruntled, but failing miserably.
"Just don't think you can use 'the look' when it comes time to do dishes," Carolyn warned. "It's not going to work this time, Peter. We're all on to you."
"Dishes!" Peter groaned, "Mom, help me."
"Come on, Peter." Todd stood up and began to stack the plates. "We're outnumbered today two to one, and I can see where this conversation is heading. We might as well get started, because the game starts in an hour, and we don't want to miss the kick-off."
"Come on, Peter. Be a good sport." Annie got up from her chair and reached for Peter, who took her in his arms for a quick hug. She stroked his cheek gently before calling out, "Come on, girls, let's give these guys some working room."
The four women headed for the living room, leaving Peter and Todd commiserating about the unfairness of life among females.
Dishes done, the two men were on their way to the den and the football game when they overheard the women talking. Both immediately changed course, and walked into the living room to find the women looking at family photographs. The girls would describe the picture while Annie would add her own explanations.
Kacie was holding one of Peter's favorite photos, which showed him at the police academy graduation ceremony, Paul standing proudly beside him. She looked off into the distance and shared softly, "I remember the day my brother, Kevin, graduated from the police academy in Denver. My dad was so proud. Kev was the fourth generation of policeman in the family."
"What happened to them?" Kelly asked the question before Peter could step in to stop her.
"They..." Kacie's eyes took on a haunted look, and her face twisted into a mask of pain and grief. "They..." her voice choked in a hoarse whisper. "They were both killed in a drug bust gone sour. They called in for back-up, but by the time anyone got there, it was too late." She took a deep breath and held it, choking back sobs.
Wordlessly, Annie pulled her into an embrace and held her while she cried. Kelly and Carolyn stared at one another and reached for each other's hand. Many nights they had dreaded a call about either Paul or Peter, fearing news such as Kacie described.
Annie murmured comfort as she held the girl. {Poor girl. And what has she done now, but get involved with yet another cop.}
Todd cleared his throat loudly and announced cheerily, "Who wants to watch the game with us? Only knowledgeable females need apply, so that lets you out, Carolyn."
Kacie sat up and wiped at her tears with the heels of her hands. Annie patted the distraught young woman's knee as she fought for composure. Kelly took the photo back and set it in its place on the ledge above the large fireplace.
Carolyn piped up, "I was thinking that we could all go ice skating over at Grove Lake this afternoon."
"That would be fun; we haven't gone in ages," Kelly enthused.
"I don't know," Todd disagreed with a frown. "Should you be out in the cold and taking the chance of falling on the ice, Honey?"
"The doctor says I can do anything as long as I'm careful," Carolyn told him. I don't plan to try any double axles or anything like that. And if I get tired, I'll stop."
"Double axles," Peter snorted."You couldn't do those before you got pregnant."
"You should talk." Kacie recovered from her earlier bout with tears. "I bet you're not so tough without a hockey stick in your hand, Mister!" She lifted reddened eyes to him, but her smile was genuine.
Todd checked his watch. "Come on, Peter, kick-off is in five minutes. You coming with me, or going with the girls?"
As Peter wavered over his choices, Kelly snorted, "Oh, stay with Todd and watch football, Peter. The big baby is always complaining that he can't talk 'ball' with us around. We'll leave you guys to your male bonding. Come on, Kacie," she pulled her new friend to her feet. "I think we have an extra pair of skates for you in the closet.
"Annie, my love, come join us," Todd put an arm around his mother-in-law. "You, at least, have a working knowledge of football, and Peter and I will teach you everything else you need to know."
Annie went off with him willingly, speaking over her shoulder at the trio of younger women. "You girls be careful out there. It might be cold today, but the past few days of thaw we've had might have softened that ice."
"We will, Mom," Kelly responded in that voice all children use when they are told something that they have heard innumerous times before.
Carolyn kept her word to Todd that she would be careful, and skated slowly along. Kelly and Kacie held several impromptu races with each other and tried to remember some of their skating lessons. Their attempts at some of the more basic spins and jumps were comical, and their frequent spills had them breathless with shrieks of laughter.
Carolyn was skating safely out of harm's way of the more daring duo when Kelly called over to her, "Hey, Carolyn, watch this!" and attempted another spin.
Carolyn observed her sister's antics, taking her eye off of where she was heading. Kelly experienced a modicum of success, and Kacie applauded while shouting, "Bravo, bravo."
The ice under Carolyn suddenly popped and cracked, and before any of them could react, abruptly gave way beneath her feet and she plunged into the frigid lake water.
"Carolyn!" Kelly shrieked, and started for her sister in a panic.
Kacie grabbed Kelly's arm as she tried to get to her sister. "Kelly! Kelly! Listen to me! You get Todd and Peter. Tell them what happened and to call the paramedics to get out here to treat hypothermia. Do you hear me?" She shook the still screaming girl. "Go get Todd and Peter! Go!" She practically threw the younger woman toward the land.
Kelly skated to the shore and frantically tore off her skates. She looked toward the hole in the lake and was stunned to see Kacie removing her own skates, taking off her coat, and stripping off her bulky over sized sweater to stand shivering in a light-weight short-sleeved shirt and jeans.
"What are you doing?" Kelly screamed at her in disbelief.
"Just hurry up and get help!" Kacie shouted, keeping her gaze fastened on Carolyn, who was holding on to the edge of the hole, trying desperately to keep her head above water.
Carolyn's face was laced with fear, and she was unable to do anything but gasp in the cold.
Kacie approached carefully, not wanting to break away the section that Carolyn was holding on to. She cautiously crept near the spot, crawled close to the edge, and after a moment's hesitation, slid into the water.
The initial contact with the icy lake water made her gasp. She edged her way over to Carolyn, forcing herself to concentrate on the task at hand, and not think about the way her muscles were beginning to stiffen in the cold.
Carolyn made whimpering distressful noises and clutched the edge of the ice desperately. She was shivering so hard her teeth audibly clacked together.
"Carolyn," Kacie spoke to her more calmly than she felt. "Carolyn, we need to get your coat off. It's too heavy with all that water, and it's weighing you down." She reached around the other woman and unbuttoned the coat. "I want you to let go with one hand," Kacie's own teeth were starting to chatter,"and then we'll g-get your c-coat off."
Once the coat was shed and left to sink beneath the surface of the black water, Kacie kept talking. "Now, let's t-try to g-get you up and out."
"I-I can't," Carolyn gritted through clenched teeth. "I'm t-too heavy. I c-can't p-pull myself out!" She started to cry. "M-my baby! My b-baby!"
"We're g-going to get you-you out of h-here," Kacie soothed. "N-now help me." She tried to help lift the pregnant woman out, but the extra bulk of the baby and the way it affected Carolyn's center of gravity made it impossible.
Kacie cast about desperately in her mind for what to do next. She knew it was only a matter of time before she herself would be too cold to help either one of them. {Oh, God, Kelly. Hurry back with the men.}
An idea popped into her head. It was a long shot, but right now it was all they had. "C-c-arolyn, are you still with me, C-carolyn? L-listen. I'm g-going to c-come up underneath you and when I d-do, you have to p-pull yourself out; d-do you understand? Y-you've got to d-do this for m-me, C-c-arolyn. D-do this for your b-baby. Un-un-derstand?"
The two women made eye contact, and Kacie was relieved to see that Carolyn was still aware of her surroundings. "OK. When you feel me g-grab you and l-lift, you p-pull with everything you've g-got. One--two--three."
Kacie grabbed a big 'bite' of air, and dove under. It was impossible to see in the inky blackness of the water. Kacie hadn't thought it possible to feel any colder, but when her head went under water, she nearly choked. Kicking as strongly as she could with legs rapidly numbing in the chill, she moved under Carolyn's body. Straining every muscle, she forced herself toward the surface, heaving Carolyn ahead of her as she surfaced.
With a desperate twist of her body, Carolyn slid on her side and scrambled away from the hole in the ice. Through some miracle, the section beneath her did not give way again, and she crawled closer to the shore.
Kacie attempted to follow after Carolyn, but found her body would no longer obey her mind's commands. Shivering uncontrollably, she held on to the edge of the ice and tried to remain calm for Carolyn's sake. She could feel the lake water dripping from her hair and face and kept thinking, {Peter, please hurry. I need you. Peter, please come}.
Carolyn was crying weakly, and Kacie tried to talk to her through teeth that chattered uncontrollably. "C-c-carolyn, t-t-take your s-s-sweater off! C-c-arolyn! T-take y-y-our sweater off and your b-b-b-ra and put-put my sweater on. C-c-c-arolyn, l-l-l-isten to me! G-g-get those wet c-c-clothes off and p-p-ut sweater on-n!" She clutched at the edge of the ice, trying to find something to hold on to. Once she lost her grip and dipped under the surface, coming up sputtering.
Carolyn moved slowly and still sniffled, but managed to remove her wet clothing.
Kacie's thoughts were beginning to wander, and she was having trouble thinking coherently. "N-n-now p-p-put my... coat..... on. C-c-aro-lyn? Car-o-lyn! D-d-do you hear me?" Kacie tried to shout, but her voice grew weaker and weaker. Her speech slurred and slowed. "P-p-ut c-c-coat... on-n-n! B-b-baby, C-c-carolyn! Help...b-b-ba..by." The words were becoming more garbled and required more concentration. "Hood...hood...head. Cover...h-h-head! B-b-all...c-c-curl up.....ball."
The slipping fingers found something to clutch, and she held on. As consciousness started to fade she thought she saw Peter approaching with that crooked grin of his. She smiled faintly as her eyes closed in exhaustion. {Peter. I knew you'd come.}
All at once, Peter felt a chill run down the back of his neck and shoulders. He shivered and asked Todd, "Is it cold in here?"
Todd simply laughed at him and shook his head.
Peter sat up more alertly. {I could have sworn I heard Kacie calling my name.} Looking at the clock on the wall, he commented uneasily, "Shouldn't the girls have been back by now?"
He and Todd exchanged glances and got up to walk over to the dining room. Nearly the entire side of the room was covered with windows or patio doors, and they peered out to see if the skaters were returning.
Kelly entered the backyard area, hysterically screaming for Peter. She reached the patio and collapsed at their feet when Peter and Todd burst outside to meet her there.
Kelly's face was tear-streaked and she wheezed as she tried to get enough breath back to talk. She clung to Peter's arm and gasped, "Carolyn...lake...fell in...Kacie...jumped in...after her."
"Oh, sweet Jesus," groaned Todd. Between the two of them, the men helped Kelly inside.
Peter was amazed at how calmly he was able to think and act. "I'll get our coats. Annie, call 9-1-1. Tell them we have two female hypothermia victims, one pregnant. Todd, grab some sleeping bags." They heard Annie on the phone, giving directions to the EMS before turning her motherly concern to Kelly who sobbed in a crumpled heap on the floor.
The men tore through the house donning coats and hats as they went and then snatching up sleeping bags and a rope from the garage. Taking off at a dead run, they were able to easily follow Kelly's trail through the snow.
The distance to the lake had never seemed so far before. They reached the area in less than ten minutes, but it seemed like it took hours. As they climbed the crest of the last hill, Peter scanned the lake surface before him. One still form huddled on the ice about fifteen feet from a yawning black hole near the middle of the frozen water, and his heart nearly stopped when he spotted the second figure. Only head and shoulders were free of the frigid liquid, arms stretched out and hands fixed in a death grip on something.
Peter ran down the slope and onto the ice, leaving Todd to take care of Carolyn. He started toward the dark hole but halted motionless when he heard the ice groan and protest beneath his feet.
Todd fell to his knees beside Carolyn, and he nearly wept with relief when she started complaining of the cold, alert but shivering violently. He quickly unzipped one of the sleeping bags and pulled her inside it. She clutched at him and cried, "Oh, Todd, the baby. What about our baby?" He picked her up, securely snuggled in the bag, and carried her over closer to the shore. Cradling her in his arms, he soothed, "Sh-sh-sh, it's OK honey, it's OK." He patted her back and stroked a shaking hand though her hair. "I'm here now, and help is on the way. You'll be fine, and our baby will be fine, I promise, Sweetheart, I promise."
Meanwhile, Peter forced himself to calm down and catch his wind. He urgently called Kacie's name, but she made no response. He noted that her hands had found a piece of frozen tree limb and were locked on in a death grip. He started to edge closer and the ice creaked ominously beneath his feet.
He stopped once more and seemed to hear his father's voice saying, "Focus, Peter. Become one with your surroundings." Closing his eyes, he took two slow, cleansing breaths. The inner voice spoke again, "Focus, Peter. Focus!"
Using the same concentration that had enabled him to walk the rice paper at the Shaolin temple, he stepped forward with graceful, balanced steps. The frozen surface no longer groaned as he felt himself become a part of it.
Peter reached the edge of the hole and was just about to grab Kacie up and out of the water when Todd's urgently insistent voice stopped him.
"Peter!"
He paused and looked back.
"Peter, wait!" Todd shouted.
"Todd, I've gotta get her out of there!"
"I know, I know, we will. But before you touch her just remember -- move her very slowly and carefully. If you jerk her around, you could cause her heart to stop." Todd cautioned.
Todd edged nearer the hole and spoke on. "I went on a camping trip to Canada once back in college, and one of the guys fell into the river. We got him out, and tried to help him. All our help was the wrong stuff. We were too rough with him. He had a heart attack; his heart just stopped. They couldn't get it started again. Not even at the hospital."
Peter beat down a sudden surge of panic and had to renew his focus. "Kacie? Kacie?" Can ya hear me?" He touched her face and felt no warmth there at all. Her skin was a bluish-gray and he could see no sign that she was breathing. Leaning out over the water, he reached in with one hand to grab for a belt loop on her jeans. Still maintaining his focus, he ignored the deadly chill of the water, grasping the denim fabric firmly and pulling her toward himself gently, but surely, guiding her head and torso.
He tugged the inert form free from the water and carefully inched away from the hole, dragging Kacie slowly.
When they were finally a safe distance away, Todd came alongside them and asked anxiously, "How is she?"
Peter examined Kacie's half-closed eyes and saw the vacant stare and how the pupils were dilated. He responded hoarsely, "I don't know. She's unconscious, and her skin looks and feels like-like-like soft wax. I don't think she's breathing."
Todd put his head next to Kacie's face, ear to her mouth, while taking the carotid pulse at the same time. "No, wait, I've got a pulse. It's not much, but it's there. She's still breathing, barely." He pulled a jackknife out of his pocket while instructing Peter, "Open up that sleeping bag, take off your coat and shirt, and crawl in." Flicking open the blade, he began to cut off the girl's shirt and bra, careful not to jostle her.
Peter was shocked. "What are you doing? She's freezing to death, and you're taking her clothes off?!"
"This is no time for modesty, Peter. We've got to keep her from getting any colder until the paramedics get here. We're going to put her in the bag with you." Todd maneuvered the unresponsive girl next to Peter, who held her while Todd zipped up the bag.
Peter flinched at the feel of her cold flesh against his own, yet he held her closely. {God, she's so cold...so very cold}. He could barely sense her weakening chi. {If Pop were here, he'd be able to strengthen her chi. I'm afraid I'd do it wrong and kill her.}
He felt the small, almost nonexistent movement of her breathing and the even slower cadence of her heart. There was such a pause between every beat he was terrified that each one would be the last.
"Thank God the paramedics are here."
He heard Todd as if from a great distance, and continued to hold on to the cold, still form in his arms. His throat suddenly ached, and he could remember only one other time in his life that his heart had cried out with such despair and hopelessness.