“How do you know this?”
“I got through to someone who is… well, a friend who heard a news report.”
“What should we do?
Through the broken window they could hear yelling from outside.
“We have to let the parents in.”
“It will be crazy, they will trample each other.”
“Not if we do it systematically. The police can help us with that.”
“And just how will we convince the police to let the parents in?”
“Leave it to me.”
Diana headed toward the front doors, and when she got there, she saw the backs of the police spread out in front of the doors. Their hands were on their holsters. Just a few feet beyond, angry, hysterical parents were jeering, shaking their fists. Surprisingly, one door was unlocked and she slipped outside.
“Excuse me. Officers?”
One turned around and said “You shouldn’t be out here. Are you a teacher?”
“I’m Diana Chase, the assistant principal. I think you should know that the bus drivers can’t get here because there’s a huge traffic jam. It was just on TV. Many of the drivers want to turn back, but probably won’t get too far. Traffic is at a complete standstill.”
The crowd got quiet and tried to hear what she was saying. The cops looked at Diana and then at one another.
“Do you understand? No buses are coming.”
“No buses?” one of the cops said. “How come we haven’t heard this?” He looked at the other cops.
“What should we do?”
“Phone lines are jammed as well,” said Diana. “It might be a good idea to let the kids go home with their parents. Many have parked their cars to walk up here, and it’s probably those cars that are blocking traffic. If they left with their kids now, things could get moving, don’t you think?”
Parents edged in to hear her speak. One father suddenly yelled out, “No buses! You gotta let us take our kids!”
One cop pulled out his cell phone and tried to make a call. The parents closed in.
“We’re going in to get our children! Let’s go!”
In a riotous push parents stampeded past the cops and funneled in through the one open door. Soon all the doors were unlocked from the inside. Diana pressed against the wall just inside the front lobby. Jane’s fear was coming true. With the wall at her back she inched along until she got to the stairway and quickly raced to Mrs. Aron’s room and put a note on the door that said “Mrs. Aron’s class is in the front office.”
About half a mile away, Jen, Ralph, Mrs. Aron, and the two children neared the road. Several cars were already abandoned but some drivers hung out on their car roof or on the ground. When they finally reached Jen’s car she found a few bottles of water and juice and she quickly fumbled to open the bottle of KI pills. She popped two in her mouth and gave one to Ricky. She held out the bottle to Ralph who shrugged, took two, and gave one to Julie.
“How do we know if this will ever help?” he asked.
“We don’t. It’s just a precaution.”
They stood there in shock, like survivors on a battle field.
“What do we do now?” she said to Ralph.
“I guess we wait. What else is there to do?”
Panting, Mrs. Aron had crawled into Jen’s backseat to lie down. Perspiration had soaked her hair.
Jen moved closer to Ralph and whispered, “She doesn’t look so good.”
Ralph looked over at the teacher now clutching her belly. He took the bottle of KI pills and walked over to her. Her eyes were shut tight, her face twisted in discomfort.
“Mrs. Aron? You okay?” he said to her. “Do you want to take this pill for the radiation?”
“I want my husband. I want him here.”
“I know. We’ll try to reach him, but there are problems with cell phones just now. Does the baby feel okay?”
“I don’t know.”
Her hands carefully moved around her bulbous belly, like a human stethoscope seeking a pulse, a heartbeat, anything. Then her hands moved quicker, jerking from one side to the other.
She pushed herself up and looked at Ralph. “I don’t feel the baby. She’s not moving!”
Jen heard the woman’s strained voice and walked over to her.
“Not feeling the baby is okay, Mrs. Aron. It doesn’t mean anything is wrong.”
“No. No. There is something wrong. I just know it. I want my husband. Can’t you try to call him? Now?”
“Yes. We will. What’s his number?”
Ralph motioned Jen out of ear shot from the teacher.
“What happens if she goes into labor?” he whispered. “Have you ever delivered a baby?”
“No. Just did the pushing, not the pulling.”
Suddenly the teacher moaned. The two kids startled and looked toward the car. Jen and Ralph rushed over.
“My water broke! I have to get to the hospital! Oh my God!”
“Stay with her,” Ralph said to Jen. “We have to find help.”
He raced down the road, poking his head into windows of cars that weren’t yet abandoned. Someone here had to know how to deliver a baby, or at least have a working cell phone.
Finally a young woman sitting on the hood of her car brandished a working cell phone.
“Are you getting through to anyone? We have a woman in labor a few cars back, and we need help,” Ralph said to her.
The girl automatically handed the phone to Ralph.
“Thanks, but do you mind calling the hospital or 9-1-1 and see if they can even get someone here? We’re about ten cars back. I’m gotta try to find someone who can deliver a baby.”
Back at the car, Jen held Mrs. Aron’s hand and tried to calm the frenzied teacher.
“I don’t want my baby born in this poisonous radiation!”
“We don’t know for sure if there even is any radiation that’s airborne. Please try to breathe.”
“No! I can’t, I won’t give birth here! Please!”
“We are trying to find someone who can help us,” Jen said. “Take slow, deep breaths. Try to focus on the baby, on giving birth. The baby will be fine.”
Ricky and Julie leaned over the front seat, looking wide-eyed at the teacher.
“You guys wait outside the car, okay?” Jen told them.
The teacher’s contractions were coming closer together. Jen started to panic. Could she do it? Deliver a baby?
Suddenly Ralph appeared with a woman by his side.
“This is Leslie—she’s a retired nurse—used to be an RN at the hospital. She may be able to help us.”
The woman craned her neck into the back seat. She touched Mrs. Aron gently on her arm.
“Can I see how much you are dilated?”
The teacher glared. “Who are you?”
“My name is Leslie, I’m a nurse, and I think we are going to have a baby.” Her eyes twinkled, and she helped re-situate the teacher in the back seat to examine her. Jen smiled and looked at Ralph.
“How did you find her?”
“About fifty cars up. Someone was bound to be in the business.”
The nurse eased into the back seat and held Mrs. Aron’s hand, coaching her to breathe.
Ralph walked over to Julie and Ricky to make sure they were okay. Jen followed him.
“Looks like we’re stuck. No moving her now, even if we could,” she said. “Do you want to walk home with the kids or wait it out?”
“Could. My house is closer,” he said. “It should take less than an hour if we hoof it.”
“I think it’s safer than staying on the road. God knows where the radiation is, or if it’s even reached a danger level.”
Ralph nodded and turned to the kids. “You guys want to hike back to the house?”
Ricky looked at Jen. “What about you, Mom? Are you coming too?”
“I’m going to stay with Mrs. Aron, and when traffic starts up I can take her to the hospital. I think you should go to Julie’s house and get off the road. The sooner you get there, the safer you’ll be.”