Chapter 38

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A paramedic kneeled beside me and flashed a small penlight into each eye as he asked me where I was experiencing pain. "I think I sprained my left wrist, and my side and left hip hurt. I hit my head on something," I said.

The street resonated with the squealing of the hydraulics as firefighters worked the jaws of life to free the Uber driver less than fifty feet from us. I worried for Antara, angered that our assailants treated him as nothing more than an inconsequential sacrifice in their attempt on my life. I hoped Antara would come out of this without suffering more than he already had, and I was concerned for his family. "Is the driver going to be alright?" I asked, raising my quavering voice over the noise of the extraction machinery, which seemed to amp up the pressure in my aching head.

"Too soon to tell," the EMT replied. "Once they have him out of the vehicle, we'll know more."

The paramedic took my right wrist to get my pulse and wrapped a blood pressure cuff around my upper right arm. "Do you have a headache?"

"Yes ... Throbbing. I feel like I need to close my eyes and lay down."

"Do you feel nauseous?"

I slowly shook my head no.

"How many fingers do you see?"

"Three."

"Are you dizzy or feeling faint?"

"I'm kind of woozy."

"Are you on any medications, like blood thinners or anything for your heart?"

"No."

"Do you have a pacemaker, or have you had stents implanted?"

"No, nothing like that."

After gathering my answers and vital signs, he asked, "Were you wearing a seatbelt?"

"I was," I said, "but I'd just unfastened it so I could get to my cell phone right before the accident."

"I'm as big a proponent of wearing seatbelts as there is," the EMT said. "We see too many bad things happen when people don't wear them...."

"But...," I protested.

"... but in this case, not having one on probably saved your life," he continued. "I understand a big truck hit you dead center where you sat."

"I think so," I said, remembering the enormous shadow before the collision.

"That the Prius wasn't moving forward, and your body was free to move sideways likely helped mitigate some of the energy in the impact."

This stroke of luck was sobering. "So, it's good I was unfastened, then...," I said.

"But don't tell anyone you heard that from me," he said, smiling gently. "Always keep your seatbelt on." He clicked off his light. "You've suffered a concussion and need to go to the hospital. The doctors will check you for internal bleeding or injuries."

"I can't...," I started.

"Concussions are tricky. They mess with your judgment. Football players end up with CTE because they think they can go right back into games after suffering one. It's not worth taking the chance. I've applied butterfly bandages to your head wound. But you'll need further attention to manage any scarring; someone should look at that wrist. Is there a hospital you'd prefer we take you to?"

"Look, I appreciate everything you've done, but I can't go to the hospital," I said, not wanting to be separated from my purse or have anyone looking through it. "I want to see my regular doctor; she'll provide me with whatever treatment I need."

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