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seventeen
months. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, shoving down the vividness
that had not lessened with time. My only goal was to try and speak from a place
on the sidelines.
    You can do this, Tori…tell
her. Tell her the facts, then you can get back to work.
    “It was a three day
weekend in April, eight weeks before graduation. I was working at Dallas East, and
studying for my Boards. That night was my sister’s birthday dinner held out at
my parents’ house in Middleton. I got off late, so I was running behind
schedule, but I made it in time for the dinner.”
    Just in time to be
seated and avoid the dirty looks from my mother. She would see my tardiness as
rude, even though I had been awake for nearly twenty-six hours straight. She
had no clue that I had just aided in an emergency C-section where both mother
and baby were in critical condition when I left.
    But there are no
excuses in the Sales house.
    “The party went well
into the evening. After the cake and gifts, the guests started to leave. I had
only had one day off, and I really wanted to get caught up on sleep so that I
could study. When I left, I noticed a change in the temperature outside, but
chalked it off to the weird weather patterns of Dallas. About two miles down
the road, Stacie called and said there was a severe weather warning issued for
all Collin and Dallas Counties. She told me I should turn around and go back and
stay with them for the night.”
    I paused; reflecting
for a moment on what was my biggest regret from that night, and likely my whole
life.
    I had ignored her
warning. I did not turn around.
    Why didn’t I just turn
around? I was too selfish and self-centered; I thought I was immortal.
    Unfortunately, I was.
    “But the roads and sky
were clear, and I saw no immediate threat. I just wanted to get home. I thought
I could get back to my apartment before the storm hit, but a few minutes after
I hung up with Stacie, I heard the sirens start.”
    “The tornado sirens?”
    “Yes. Just seconds
after I heard them I saw the first lightning flash, and then felt the rumble of
the thunder.”
    I paused again. This
time it took longer to push the memory down and find the facts.
    What were the facts?
    “You’re doing great,
Victoria, please continue,” she said, leaning into my space.
    The hail came next.
    “The hail started. It
came down hard and fast. I slowed my car some, but the tornado sirens urged me
to find shelter as quickly as possible. The hail continued to get more intense
and larger in size. I thought it was going to come right through the roof of my
Honda. The buildup of hail on the ground made it slick and I couldn’t see
anything. The power on the road had gone out and I couldn’t even see the yellow
divider between the two lanes anymore. There was no shoulder to pull off to and
no shelter nearby.”
    I shifted uncomfortably
on the sofa, rubbing my palms on my knees, creating friction.
    “As I approached a
slight curve I saw the headlights of an oncoming car. I was trying to pull over
to the far right of my lane, but had barely started to slow when the back of
the oncoming car appeared out of the hail. It all happened so fast.”
    Dr. Crane sat looking
at me intensely, no longer writing on her notepad. She waited for me to
continue.
    “As my front bumper
slammed into the rear wheel of the driver’s side, both vehicles spun to opposite
sides of the road. I got out of my car the second I came to and crawled across
the road to the other vehicle. It had spun completely around and was pointing
back in the direction it had come from.
    “The hail had shifted
back to hard rain when I reached up, opened the front passenger door and looked
inside. When my vision focused, I saw the driver slumped down in the seat,
unconscious. I crawled across the seat, assessed her injuries and was able to
support her neck with a jacket that I found on the floor. I looked in the back
and noticed the passenger door was ajar. That’s when I