NaNoWriMo

Nov 15
Farris had not felt this kind of intense tingling in a long time. He once accidentally touched something with wet hands and received a shock when he was a kid. He was lucky that his father was there to pull him away from the source of danger. All that he knew at this moment was pain, and a bit of confusion. He knew that moving any part of his body would be a very difficult task.
The older officer named Frank immediately ran up to Farris and pull the prong out of Farris’ shoulder.
“My god Jeremy! Why did you do this?” Frank shouted at the young rookie policeman.
“I’m sorry, but the taser must have malfunctioned.” Jeremy looked at the gun part that he held in his hand. “I only put my finger on the button. I didn’t press it.”
Cars and big eighteen wheeler trucks continued to pass by but at a slower pace.
“Mister, we think the taser misfired. Officer Bartles didn’t mean to zap you.” Frank handed the prong part to his fellow officer.
Farris was beginning to get some feeling in his extremities. His mind began to clear enough for him to focus on speaking.
“Oh yeah. I don’t think so.” He began to rub the area where the prongs were. “I want both of your names and badge numbers so I can file a complaint.”
“I need to see some identification from you also sir.” The older officer requested. “According to our records, this car belongs to Aiden Costo. “
“I dropped my IDs. I’ll get them off the floor.” Farris bent slowly down to the floor where the driver’s license and insurance ID fell.” Each additional movement was still slightly painful. As he handed the cards to the policeman, he rubbed his shoulder again. He would ask Haley to look at the spot and then he remembered that he had not told her that he had an emergency. He would have to call her after he got to the hospital. She would understand since she was close to her family also.
“I see that you are a Mister Farris Costo. Who is Aiden Costo?” the policeman handed the cards to the younger policeman to check on his computer for any warrants.
“He is my younger brother. I have his car since our father took the keys away from him when he discovered the tickets on his bureau.” Farris tried to stretch his legs to make them feel a little better.
The younger policeman returned with the cards. “He is okay. I do want to apologize for the accidental tasing.”
“I tried to tell you that my parents were in a car accident. I really need to get to the hospital.” Farris’s voice was stronger now and very emphatic. He held out his hand for the cards.
“Well tell your brother to pay his tickets. If he doesn’t do it, then there may be some jail time in his future.” The older officer gave Farris his cards and stepped back.
“Yea. When I see him and right after I come back from seeing about my parents.” Farris started the car and slowly drove away. He began shifting his attitude from anger to one of concern for his parents.
As Farris went down the right lane of the highway, Frank turned to Jeremy and began discussing protocol for taser safety. He reminded the younger policeman that he would need to file a report and get another taser. Jeremy agreed and went to his car to go to his next assigned spot for speed control. He had to go to an area that had complained that some kids were hot rodding down a long street.
Frank returned to his patrol car and radioed in that he was finished with this stop. He hoped that this would be the only problem that he would have for the next few days. On Monday, he would be taking his wife on a trip that they had planned for a couple of months. They would be leaving the city and flying to a destination for a well-earned vacation.
The emergency room, in the hospital where the Costos would be taken, was fuller that normally on a Saturday. Bernice the head nurse of the shift was more tired than usual because she had not slept well that night. In her neighborhood a couple of houses down, someone had a loud, music-filled party that lasted until early morning. And with people parking in front of her house, Bernice’s dogs barked whenever they came out to leave. She would be talking to her neighbors about the music later today.
As she walked around, checking that the patients either had a form to fill out or dismissal papers, she saw a young Hispanic lady with her son in a corner. The little boy did not look like he was feeling very well. He started to vomit and his mother looked up to see if anyone would come to help.
Bernice walked over to the mother and child. The boy, about six years old, turned to grab ahold of his mother’s arms.
“Have you filled out any forms?” she asked.
“I no speak English.” Said the lady very slowly.
“Espanol?”
“Si.” The lady took a rag from a pocket and began to wipe the boy’s face.
Bernice knew that the hospital had a few Spanish-speaking staff members. She knew that many times these staff members were in the rooms with the doctors.
“Please wait. I’ll go see what I can do.” She turned around and walked to the admissions desk to see who was available.
The boy relaxed a little as she moved away. But Bernice had a bad feeling about the little boy. He did not seem to have an ordinary case of the flu or a cold. There was something about his whole look and breathing that made her worry. She knew that the sooner he got in, with an interpreter, the sooner her ‘bad feeling’ would go away. She hoped.
As Bernice walked to admissions and general help area, the sound of more ambulances pierced the air. She guessed that there was more than one. And with that her mother’s saying that bad luck comes in threes rang inside her mind.