Dust

Chapter 9 (A few months later)

Tim POV: Gracie is six months old today, marking half a year since the scariest day of my life. They really didn't think she'd make it...

Faith is about a month pregnant right now. We were discussing whether or not to wait a little while for another, but she decided to stop taking her pill, and let "divine intervention" occur.

Today we are driving down to my mother's in Louisiana. We weren't even going to entertain the thought of trying to put Gracie on an airplane, so we are driving eight hours. We are on hour number four right now, on the state line of Mississippi and Alabama. I feel Faith grow a bit more tense as we pass the signs for Jackson.

I grab onto her hand, and look into the rearview at Gracie in her carseat. She's smiling and looking out the window. I smile, and peel my eyes away from the mirror. Faith's hand suddenly releases as I hear the crunch of metal in front of me.

The evening sunset blinds me, causing me to not have enough time to stop. Our car smashes into another wreck between a semi and sedan, which makes it like hitting a brick. I don't even have time to reach in front of Faith before we slam into them.

Everything goes black for a few moments, until my eyes begin to slowly flutter open. My sight is blurry, while the air is filled with dust. I look in front of me to see the back of the car ahead of us is on top of the hood.

I look over to Faith to see her covered in blood. It starts to become harder to breathe, as I see more of her injuries. I try to look back at Gracie, but I can't turn that far. I keep pushing myself to turn all the way around, but it's like my legs won't move, and are anchoring me down.

"Ba — baby?" I try to spit out. Faith turns toward me, and looks down before screaming. The sound of her screams are making my head sting. Does she not remember me? Did she hit her head again? Faith unbuckles herself, and immediately goes to start helping me.

"Just hold on honey..." She says, tears falling from her eyes.

"Gr—" I try to spit out. She thinks I'm just groaning as she goes toward my legs. I follow her, and see what she's screaming about.

The car ahead of us isn't on top of the hood... The hood is now shoved into the car, and my legs are crumpled into the ball of metal. My chest is jammed against the steering wheel, while the cars begin to shift. I feel the car in front of us move as the people inside begin to move. There's a lot of blood...

"Gracie." I finally scream out. Faith puts her hand on my jaw.

"Gracie's fine, baby. She's just fine." She says. At that moment, I hear Gracie whine from the backseat. I wish I could see for myself... "Okay, Tim. Hold onto my hand." Faith says. I do exactly as she says, as I feel the most horrible pain...

Faith moves back my seat, dislocating my hips, but also relieving the pain on my chest. I can finally breathe a little better, but I wouldn't rule out a broken rib.

"You okay?" Faith says, wiping tears out of her eyes with her forearm. I nod quickly, trying to forget the pain in my legs. "You're going to be alright..." She assures me. Gracie begins to shriek from the back seat, throwing Faith off. Faith looks at me, before going back to get Gracie. She holds her in front of me for a moment, letting me see her. A wave of relief begins to hit, as I hear the sound of horns behind us.

Another impact hits us, as a car slams into the back. I watch as Faith's head slams against the dash, with Gracie in her arms. My head hits the steering wheel as I hear a loud crack. I feel numb all over, as I try to reach Faith. I can't move.

"Faith?" I cry out. She isn't moving. "Faith!" I scream louder. "Goddamnit, wake up, baby..." No reaction. I see Gracie squirm a little, taking my breath away. I begin to pray that no other cars hit, knowing Gracie is in a horrible position. Her head is about an inch from the dash.