The Switch Read Free Page A

wore it when Mona was around. And that would cause hurt feelings. Tia tried to ignore her growing headache. “Whatever you want, Mom.” She was relieved when her brother-in-law, Garrett, walked in to pick up Samantha to go out for ice cream.
    “Hey, Mrs. B. Good to see you.” His brown hair flopped over his eyes and a scruff of beard attested to his disdain for razors. He scooped up Samantha, tickling her armpits before turning to Tia. “Feeling better?”
    “Much. Thanks for agreeing to take the girls for a few hours. I really do need to get out tonight.”
    Mona plopped a can of cream of mushroom soup on the counter with the other food.
    “We’re not allergic to any of those things,” Tia protested.
    “It’s better to be safe than sorry.” Mona closed the last cupboard door. “I suppose that’s my cue to leave. I’ll throw these out on my way.”
    “Mom,” Tia reached out and put a restraining hand on her mother’s arm. “I’ll take care of it. I appreciate you help and concern.” If appreciate wasn’t quite the word that came to mind, she didn’t have to admit it.
    “You’re sure?”
    “Yes, I can handle it. Anyway, I need to get ready. A couple of ladies from my neighborhood are going out for dinner and a movie together. Just the girls.” It would be heaven to get out for a while.
    “Okay, dear. I’ll call you tomorrow. Take care of yourself.” Mona hugged Tia briefly, then kissed each of her granddaughters on the cheek before hurrying out the door.
    Tia helped move the car seat and booster to Garrett’s car, giving the seat belts an extra tug in defiance of her mom’s suggestion that she didn’t know what she was doing. She kissed the girls goodbye, and returned to the kitchen to put the food back in the cupboards.
    Her mom had these dramatic life-or-death reactions to things two or three times a year. They rarely lasted for more than a few weeks and fighting Mona always made things worse. Tia had long-ago learned to go along, or at least pretend to, in the interest of family harmony. Hopefully this one would be short lived and the bracelets would never surface.
    She put it out of her mind. Tia had fifteen minutes to freshen up her makeup before Nichole picked her up for their girl’s night.

Three
    Danny was relaxing at home Tuesday night, listening to the news while he stretched out on the sofa. He’d spent the afternoon teaching a CPR/First Aid class to pre-teens at the community center and was ready for some downtime. He listened to news about upcoming elections, then swiveled his head to stare at the screen when the anchor announced they had received word of a major bus accident near Independence.
    “Reports say a white van rolled across the median and into a large charter bus heading west along I-35. Information is still coming in and we’ll give you updates throughout the evening as we learn more.”
    Danny switched his pager so he could listen to radio traffic. His cell phone rang. “Tullis,” he answered.
    “It’s Stu. Can you come in and cover at the station?” his commander asked. “We’re sending some units and extra hands to the bus accident. Have you heard about it?”
    “It just hit the news.” Danny stepped into the bedroom to grab a clean uniform. “I’m on my way.” Bus accidents were an emergency worker’s worst nightmare. Injuries could include anything from cuts and scrapes all the way to deaths and major injuries—and on a massive scale. The weather was wet and miserable, which wouldn’t help any, but at least it wasn’t winter yet.
    The pager squawked and hummed between reports coming in from police and emergency workers on the scene. By the time he reached the station, the news rolling in wasn’t good. At least four dead, several others in critical condition. Hospitals in a sixty-miles radius were bound to find their emergency departments crowded and the next six to twelve hours would be sleepless for most everyone involved.
    An hour passed,