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Soon another ambulance whizzed by, quickly followed by two police cars. By now, the other motorists were also beginning to wonder what was happening. Through the swishing of her windshield wipers, Abby could see blurred red and blue flashes of light, less than half a mile up the road. The thought came to her that maybe Jake's bus was stuck in traffic, just as she was now. But, the longer she sat there, the more nervous she became. What if... Abby didn't allow herself to finish the thought.

She looked to the side of the road. Yes, the terrain looked suitable enough for her jeep to drive on. Turning her wheel, Abby turned off onto the rugged, uneven ground beside the freeway. The jeep's wheels thumped and thudded, bumping Abby up and down in her seat, as she carefully made her way beside the highway. Motorists stared at her, some laughing at her ingenuity, while others cursed her for doing something that they wished they could do, themselves.

As Abby came closer to the flashing lights, she could make out the outline of a long bus, laying on its side in the pouring rain. She immediately came to a stop. Above the bus' front window, she read the destination, "Three Mile Bay." Abby felt sick. Jumping out of the jeep, she ran to a policeman who was busy trying to get the traffic moving.

"Excuse me?" she shouted, struggling to be heard over all the commotion.

The officer, however, was too distracted to notice her. There were paramedics from the fire department all over the place, bandaging the wounded, and administering first aid to the injured passengers of the bus. Abby frantically searched the faces to see if Jake was among them.

"Clear!" she heard someone shout. It was followed by a loud "Whap!" and then another, "Clear!"

Abby spun around. Emergency medical technicians were working on a man, lying on the ground. She moved a little closer, and suddenly realized that she knew him. It was Gary!

"Excuse me, Ma'am," said a firefighter, "but you can't be here. Please go back to your vehicle."

Abby numbly nodded, her eyes fixed on Gary's still body as she moved away from the wreck.

"My friend," she mumbled, "I think he's on the bus."

Abby struggled to remember Jake's last name, but couldn't. There was just too much going on for her to be able to think clearly.

When she reached her jeep, Abby made the decision to continue her drive to Chaumont. From what she had been able to see, Jake was not on the bus. On the other side of the wreck, the highway was clear, so Abby was able to once more get back onto the road.

When she finally reached Chaumont, Abby pulled into a gas station to get some directions, and to fill her tank.

"Yes, I know where Dr. Jacoby's office is," said the gas attendant. "Just go down this street to the stop sign, then turn right. Go straight ahead two blocks and make a left. His house is at the end of the street."

Considering Abby couldn't remember Jake's last name, she was amazed that she had been able to recall the name of his Christian therapist. As she drove down the street, Abby noticed that she was gripping the steering wheel so hard, that her knuckles were white. At last, she saw Dr. Jacoby's house, for it had a sign out front, indicating that the building also doubled as an office.

Abby parked the jeep and got out in the rain, for it was still coming down in buckets. Her coat was doing little to shed water, and in her concern over Jake, she forgot to use her mother's umbrella. Wiping the rain from her eyes, Abby splashed up the walk and rang the doorbell. She held her breath as the door opened.

"Yes, may I help you?" asked a white-haired man, wearing a brown knit sweater.

"Is Jake here?" she asked, her voice full of concern.

"Yes, he's in the dining room," replied Dr. Jacoby, opening the door so she could enter. "Are you by any chance, Abby?"

"Yeah, that's me," sighed Abby, wearily.

Dr. Jacoby led the drenched young woman into the dining room, where Jake was sitting at the table, enjoying a hot cup of coffee, and finishing the last of his apple pie.

"Look who just arrived!" announced the doctor, as they entered the room.

continued on next page...

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