Written by J.P.G.

{Jacob Finding His Way is partly fictional. As I am writing this story, I am above the age of 21. If you want a story with lots of sex, look elsewhere. This is a love story. Seeing, as it is a love story, sex is in there, but it is in realistic balance in the characters' lives.

Any similarity to any real events, names, or life events is purely accidental. If you are underage, (according to your state laws, a minor), if this literature is offensive to you or to anyone around your viewing area, or it is illegal for you to view such content where you are reading it, stop reading the story.

This story cannot be distributed in any way, shape or form without the author's expressed written consent.}

Story Written by: J.P.G.

Edited By: "Daddy" Rick

Edited By: Trevor Johnson

I have a home page for you to see what the characters look like or what the places look like. If you want to walk in their shoes, please go to: http://jacobmillertex.com/

Chapter 82

Jacob and Dewayne somehow got over the crumpled truck and back down onto the freeway in less than a couple minutes. Neither of them cared about themselves. All they cared about was getting to their friends that were trapped underneath the eighteen-wheeler. They're the ones that are struggling right now and have no idea what happened.

The minute Jacob planted his feet on the freeway. He started looking for Tom's truck, but the only thing he could see at first was pieces of debris of the semi. Not being able to see Tom's truck, Jacob started to worry, and freak out, but deep down inside he knew he had to get control of himself and find his friends.

Pushing back his fears of what he might find, he began scanning the wreckage. It didn't take long for him to locate the truck. When he went running towards what he thought was the front end of the truck, Dewayne and the others kept looking. They didn't notice what Jacob was seeing, yet they didn't question why he was running towards the wreckage.

As soon as Jacob got to the truck, he started moving some of the loose debris. He looked back at his friends and yelled at them to help. They immediately start running toward where Jacob was and by the time they got there, Jacob was already pulling out what they could tell were parts of the eighteen-wheeler. It didn't once cross their minds that Jacob was pulling on one of the doors of Tom's truck.

He didn't give a thought about himself or what could come loose and hurt him. The only thing that Jacob was thinking about was getting to his friends. Seeing how the truck was underneath the bigger vehicle, he knew it was only a matter of time before those two trapped ran out of time. There was no way he was going to lose any of his friends if he could help it.

Alex pushed by Dewayne and started helping Jacob pull the door open. When Dewayne saw that they were unable to even budge the door, he looked at the others without saying a word and they made their way to Jacob and Alex as fast as they could. Somehow, between them, they were able to get the door open enough so they could look inside.

Dewayne stepped back to give his boyfriend and Alex room to work. He stood there waiting on pins and needles for some kind of positive news. He was closer than the others were to the wreck, when he heard a voice cry out that the others didn't hear. At first, he couldn't make out the voice because the one speaking was talking between sobs. When the voice cried out for the second time, Dewayne was able to make out that it wasn't Tom meaning the voice crying out for help was the other young kid he met for the first time last week.

All of a sudden Dewayne saw Jacob turn around and sit down with his back against the crumpled F150. He couldn't believe that somehow Jacob was able to get his body in between the door frame and the door, but he did. Once he got settled, he started kicking and pushing with his legs with all of his strength, but the door wouldn't budge.

He was mesmerized by what Jacob was doing, so he didn't notice Alex getting up and moving past him. Alex shouted louder and louder pulled Dewayne out of his daze. He turned around and saw Alex trying to pick up a light pole. Without a second thought, he ran towards Alex, while Matt and the others joined in to pick up the pole.

When they all got a grip, they quickly made their way back to Jacob. Who saw them coming with the huge light pole and got out of the way. They wedged the pole in between the door and the cab of the truck, leaving them enough free space so they all could grab hold of it. At the count of three they started pulling backwards on the bar, but it wasn't moving the door at all.

Chase got over the semi-trailer just as his friends were wedging the light pole into what he thought was the eighteen-wheeler. The closer he got the more he was able to make out that it wasn't the wreckage of the big rig they were trying to move, but it was Tom's brand-new F150. He stumbled over several pieces of debris as he made his way to the guys. When he got to them, he pushed his way in and started to pull at the pole. Even with his help, the door wouldn't budge at all.

Unwilling to give up, Jacob looked around and started yelling for help. Several onlookers joined in and with their help they were able to move the door enough that they could get to Thomas and Tom. Quickly they pulled out the pole and threw it to the side. Jacob and Alex dropped to their knees and looked into the truck.

Chase, Dewayne and the others stepped back to give Jacob and Alex's as much room as possible. Dewayne started looking around and wondering where in the hell the police and the paramedics are. They have been working on the truck for at least fifteen minutes, and none of the proper authority figures have even attempted to take over the situation.

As he was looking around he spotted more TV crews than police cruisers, ambulances and fire trucks. The only police cruisers he saw were the ones that were chasing the eighteen-wheeler when it went over the median. Frustrated at seeing them sitting there on their asses not doing anything, he walked over to them.

As Dewayne approached the officers and heard what they were talking about, he got even madder than he already was. "We pay you guys to be doing what we are doing down there! What the hell are you guys doing up here talking about where you are going to go and eat lunch?" Surprising even himself, Dewayne was yelling at the officers. He never thought the day would ever come that he would be showing this kind of disrespect to those who uphold the laws.

"Have you guys even called for ambulances and fire trucks?" Dewayne turned and pointed at the two trucks. "You can't tell me you're not worried about that eighteen wheeler on top of the other truck. The way it landed it had to rupture fuel lines. Gas is leaking everywhere! I can smell it even up here! It will only take some stupid idiot to light a match or throw a cigarette on top of the fuel that is leaking."

One of the officers stepped forward and placed his hand on top of Dewayne's left shoulder. "We are doing everything we possibly can. That includes getting the right departments down here as fast as we can. In the meantime, we were instructed to stay back and keep control of the citizens around the wreckage. Until we are told otherwise, we're not going to go near those trucks."

Stunned by the response he got, Dewayne was lost for words. He kept looking back and forth from the officers to the wreckage, trying to put some kind of common sense to the orders that the officers got. Not able to do so, he started to turn around and walk back to his friends to see what he could do when one of the officers threw out a sly remark. He turned around and walked right back up to the officers without a care of what would happen to him.

"Whoever made that remark, repeat it, but repeat it to my face, not with my back turned." Dewayne looked around at the officers, but none of them spoke up. "If you guys are refusing to help because of what happened to your chief, we will sue you. Don't think we won't or even have the money to do it. You already know that we do have the ability to do it!"

Dewayne started his way back over to the wreckage, but stopped and turned around. "Your chief was dirty and got caught. If it wasn't for that guy down there who is risking his life that brought out the facts of how dirty your boss was it would have been somebody else. He is never going to come back, so you'd better get used to it and do your fucking jobs! Get off your asses and get over there and help us to save our friends in that truck."

The officers looked at the young kid that was pretty much telling them off. Even though every word he said was correct, they still didn't move. Frustrated, Dewayne turned and started walking back over to his friends. Just as he reached them, an ambulance drove up.

He looked over at Jacob and Alex and saw something that disturbed him. Not asking why his boyfriend was inside the cab of the truck, he just ran over to them. Before he could get there, Chase grabbed a hold of him. He tried to get free, but Chase had a grip on him that he couldn't break free of.

Just as he gave up, Alex pulled Thomas out of the wreckage. All of a sudden the crowd broke out in applause, which didn't make Dewayne or any the guys happy. They figured instead of them applauding and cheering them on, they should be helping them out. Seeing that they weren't going to lend a helping hand, the guys ignored them and turned their attention back to Alex and Thomas.

Chase and David separated from the group and made their way over to Jacob. Dewayne wanted to be with his boyfriend, but he started helping out with Thomas. Every chance he had, he looked over to check and see if Jacob had gotten out of the cab of the truck. As each minute passed that Jacob was in the truck, Dewayne got more and more nervous.

Back in the truck Jacob didn't want to be in there anymore than Dewayne wanted him in there. However, he wasn't about to leave a friend behind. Once Thomas was out, it gave him more room to maneuver. He moved in a little bit more and was able to see clearly Tom's eyes looking back at him. At first, he thought the worst because Tom wasn't talking, but that silence didn't last for very long.

"Get out of here Jacob, please get out. I'm stuck in here, but you're not. So please get out before you end up getting stuck in here like me or worse!"

"I'm not getting out of here without you Tom. It's my fault that you're here and there is no way I'm going to leave you. So stop asking me to leave and tell me how you are so I can figure out how to get you out in one piece."

Tom tried to tell Jacob to get out again, but Jacob put his fingers over Tom's mouth. "I won't hear any of this, you understand me? I mean it Tom. The next words out of your mouth I want to hear is yes you understand me." Jacob removed his fingers and Tom said yes he understood.

With that, Jacob yelled back to Chase and David that Tom is conscious and talking. David started to cry, but these tears were tears of joy not sorrow. He was happy to hear that not only Jacob had found Tom, but, he was alive. After getting control of some of his emotions he turned around and told the rest of the guys that Tom was alive.

Hearing that news, Dewayne took a deep breath and relaxed a little. He was able to give is complete undivided attention to what was before him, Thomas. Just as he turned to ask Alex what he should do, some of the police officers finally showed up. They pushed their way through and once they started to take over the situation, Dewayne got up rejoining Jacob.

Jacob was barely able to more, but he was talking to Tom. Those who were standing outside of the cab were unable to hear what those two were saying, but whatever it was was keeping the situation inside the cab calm. David, Chase and Dewayne stood there waiting to see what Jacob wanted to do next as far as getting their friend out.

"Can you tell me if you can move your legs?" Jacob asked and quickly got his answer, no, which threw him off for a few seconds. "Okay, let's not start to worry until we have to. Tell me this much can you move your body at all?" Once again Jacob got a negative answer. "Don't worry my friend, let me see what's causing your inability to move, okay?"

Softly Tom said `yes' as Jacob started to look around. He could barely see Tom's face, much less past it. He moved around trying to get a better position, but couldn't. No matter how he tried to position himself, the dashboard of Tom's truck was crushing him. There was no doubt in Jacob's mind that his friend's legs were pinned and were going to be a bitch to get free.

Worried that his moving was going to bring more of the truck down on them, Jacob stopped. When Tom saw that, he knew that Jacob wasn't going to be able to help him. He wanted to tell him to get out again, but knew that his friend was going to refuse.

Jacob was thinking of all the possible ways they could lift the dashboard up and get their friend out of there. The more he thought, the more he wasn't able to come up with anything. His mind was drawing nothing but blanks, which was getting him madder by the minute. There was nothing else more that he wanted to do than help one of his best friends.

Reality was setting in that he was not going to be able to come up with any bright idea to set his friend free when one came to him. "Chase, David are you guys still out there?" At the same time both of them answered along with Dewayne. "Good! Can one of you go back to my truck and get the jack from the back and bring it back over here FAST?"

Chase jumped up and started his way back over the wreckage to get what Jacob needed. While he was doing that, Jacob started to move what he could out of the cab. A lot of the components of the dashboard were just hanging there and with a simple tug, they came free. One by one he handed them to either David or Dewayne. By the time Chase got back. Jacob had everything cleared out of their way to move Tom out when the time comes.

"Listen guys, I'm going to need all of your help if we are going to get Tom out of here in the next few minutes. First thing I'm going to do is place this jack in the middle of the dashboard. Once it is secure, I'm going to start jacking it up." Jacob looked into Tom's eyes. "You need to tell me while I'm doing this if you are in pain. We don't know where your legs are and if any part of the inside of this truck is embedded in your legs. I don't want you to bleed out."

"Trust me I don't want to bleed out either. I'll tell you if I'm in pain or if I see or feel any blood gushing out."

"Cool! Now while I'm doing what I'm doing, I need you guys to keep an eye on everything inside this truck and outside of it. If you see anything moving, let me know. I don't want to make anything worse than it already is. There is no doubt in my mind that any time the truck above can crush us and that can happen with a simple move we might make down here."

All the guys agreed with Jacob. Chase and David stood up to keep an eye on the roof, or what they could see of the roof of the truck, while Dewayne kept an eye on the cab. Once everyone was set, Jacob slowly moved the jack to the middle of the dashboard. Doing the best that he could, he secured the jack. He looked over at Tom and smiled at him.

"Remember what you agreed to do for me Tom." Tom tried to nod his head, but couldn't due to the room that he had. He then verbally answered Jacob. "I am going to count down from three and then start to jack up the dashboard. When we have enough room and your legs are free, I am going to be locking the jack in place and start to move you out. If at any time while I am pulling you out you get snagged on to anything, let me know."

Just as the last word left Jacob's mouth, several firemen walked up and asked what the situation was. Jacob put his plan on hold and explained to the firemen what he saw and what he was about to do. They asked Jacob to hold on for just a few minutes to see if they could change places and if his plan was going to work.

One part of Jacob was glad that the fire department finally showed up and was willing to trade places with an experienced firefighter. However, another part of him didn't want to leave his friend. He wanted to walk away from this accident with all of his friends, in one piece and at his side.

While Jacob and Tom laid there on the floor of what once was a brand-new F150, the firemen talked over Jacob's plan. Every so often they would look back at the truck as they talked. It took them a little longer than they expected to talk out Jacob's plan, but when they did return to the guys, they were for sure what they wanted to do.

"Before I go any further, can I get your name young man?" One of the firemen spoke as he tapped on Jacob's shoe. When Jacob felt that tapping, he knew it was him the firemen was asking the question to him, so he gave his name. "It is nice to meet you Jacob, my name is Frederick, but you can call me Fred for short. You and I will be doing the talking."

Jacob laughed and called Fred by his full name, causing Frederick and the others to laugh. "It's good to see that still have a sense of humor. What I'm about to ask you to do is something I'd rather not, but I have no other choice. You are already in there and we're afraid that if we have you move out and one of us tries to move in, it might do more harm than good. I will understand if you want one of us to take your place."

Without any hesitation, Jacob answered. "There is no way I am going to leave my friend here. So let's just get going and get him out of here as soon as we can."

"That's the answer I wanted to hear. I understand that you can't see past your friends face, is that correct?" Jacob answered yes. "I also understand that your friend can't feel his legs, is that correct?" Once again Jacob answered yes, but this time he introduced Tom to Frederick. He felt that if Frederick knew Tom's name, it would personalize things a bit.

"Tom I don't know if you to hear me, but it is good to meet you as well. You stay strong under there and I promise you we will do everything we can to get you out in one piece." Tom yelled out to Frederick that it was good to meet him as well. "Okay guys, this is what will need to do in order for your plan to work.

First, make sure that jack you are using is completely secure on the floor so that once you start to jack up the dashboard it won't move." Jacob turned his attention to the jack and started to move it around until he was comfortable it was on the most level part of the truck. Once he felt that he found the right place, he informed Frederick.

"Also make sure that the bar that you are going to use to pump up the jack is pointing towards you Jacob or towards where the engine used to be." At first Jacob was confused on the request, but when Frederick explained to him why the bar needed to be pointing in a direction that neither he nor Tom will touch when they move out of the cab. Once he understood that, he moved the jack once more before telling Frederick they were ready.

"Okay, let's do this slow and easy. We don't want to move fast because in this instance speed could do us more harm than good. So you're going to slowly pump the jack. After every pump, you're going to check in with Tom and the rest of us. Once you get the green light that everything is okay, you're going to repeat the process until you're able to move Tom out of there. Do you have any questions so far Jacob?"

"None whatsoever; just tell me when you want me to start." Jacob looked over at Tom and winked at him. The wink got Tom to laugh, but he stopped because it hurt him in his gut. He didn't tell Jacob that because he didn't want his friend to worry even more about him.

Jacob counted down from three before he did the first pump. Following the instructions Frederick gave him, he checked in with everyone. Repeating the countdown, he pumped again, checked in with everyone, and repeated the procedure over and over again for almost twenty minutes. When Tom yelled out at him that he was able to move his waist, he stopped pumping and locked the jack into place.

"Good, very, very good that you're able to move your waist Tom, I'm glad to hear that! Now the next step we are going to do is more dangerous than the one we just finished. The reason for that is because you two guys are going to be moving at the same time. By having two people moving in a tight space that you are in and with uncertainties about where everything is at, anything can go wrong. I need you both to be prepared for that."

At the same time Jacob and Tom said that they were prepared for anything. "If I tell you guys to stop moving, you must stop moving instantly. Don't speed yourselves up if you hear me ask you to stop. Again speed is our enemy and it will do more harm than good here."

Jacob and Tom promised Frederick that they will follow his instructions. Frederick took the boys' word. He instructed Jacob to move on his back and expand his legs. As soon as Jacob turned around and got on his back, Frederick instructed him to move his hands under Tom's shoulders and not stop until his hands were in the armpits. Jacob did what he was instructed to do. As he searched for Tom's arm pits, Tom started to laugh.

He didn't stop laughing until Jacob had his hands where they were supposed to be. At the same time they yelled out to Frederick that they were ready for the next step. "You guys are done in there. The rest is up to us. We are going to pull you two out slowly. Just like when Jacob was pumping up the jack, we are going to pull once and check in with everybody. Does anyone have any questions about this procedure?"

No one said a word! Frederick gave everybody a job to do before turning his attention back to Jacob and Tom. He counted down from three and started to pull them out. At first, Tom wasn't in pain at all, but after the third pull, a sharp pain shot from his waist all away up to the top of his head and back down. He yelled out in agony, which stopped everybody in their tracks.

Immediately Jacob looked over at Tom to see what was going on. He saw the guy in tears, grasping at his legs. Feeling sorry for his friend, he moved his right hand out from beneath to calm and start patting him on the shoulder. After a few minutes of just massaging Tom's shoulders, he started to calm down and was able to tell them what was going on.

"It feels like my legs are being ripped out of my body, but they're still there." Frederick asked Tom to explain what kind of pain he is going through. "I don't know how to explain it but to say it really hurts. It hurts from my waist all the way up to my head and down again. It just feels like my legs are being pulled away from my body."

Hearing Tom's explanation, Frederick knew exactly what was going on. The way the pain was being explained to him, Tom at the least has crushed legs. Not wanting to make things worse, Frederick kept his assumptions to himself. Before continuing, he made sure that Tom and Jacob were able to continue. It didn't take much to get Tom to give the thumbs up.

As they settled back in and started the countdown, they heard a loud explosion coming from the front end of the eighteen-wheeler. The firemen started to move back, pulling Dewayne and the others with them. No matter how much they struggled to get back to Jacob and Tom, the firemen and the police officers held them back, claiming it was for their safety.

When the police officers felt they got far enough from the two trucks, they let go of Dewayne and the others. They stood there watching with the crowd as the front end of the eighteen-wheeler burst into flames. Engine parts exploded into the air, landing everywhere, almost hitting several of the bystanders.

Neither the police officers nor the firemen moved from where they were standing. Still angry on how the officers refused to go down and help Jacob and Alex, Dewayne was getting even angrier with them refusing to do their job. Just as he was about to tell them something, the officer that talked to him earlier pulled him to the side!

"Before you say a word young man, I would watch yourself. We let your fit go the first time, but we won't let it go a second time." The officer looked at Dewayne angrily. "We just can't just go rushing in there halfcocked. If we would do that, a lot more people will get hurt, if not worse, die. We need to stand back and let things settle before we put people in harm's way."

"I understand all that, but you need to understand this. If you guys would have done what you were supposed to do when you first got here, we could have had everyone out of there by now. But no, you guys stood over there discussing how nice the weather is and where you were going to go out and eat. I am sorry, but I and everyone that pays your salary have the right to be angry after seeing that." Standing toe to toe to the officer, Dewayne was refusing to back down.

The officer didn't like this young teenage kid talking to him the way he was. "You listen to me and listen good. We were doing our job no matter what you think or say. So you'd better stop saying that we weren't. Plus, you better stop throwing in my face that you pay my salary. You are just a high school student who hasn't worked an hour in his life. Wait until you get out into the real world and actually work for a living. I can promise you when you do that, you will be singing a different tune."

Dewayne couldn't help but laugh at the officer on what he said. That made the officer even angrier. He was about to have Dewayne turn around and put his hands behind his back, but another explosion went off. He looked over at the trucks and saw the eighteen-wheeler engulfed in flames, where Jacob and Tom were trapped, couldn't be seen anymore. The parts that flew into the air from the explosion covered up the entrance.

Meanwhile, back in Austin, Al was involved in a critical negotiation meeting between the leaders of the state house and senate when he was passed a note about what is going on in El Paso. At first, he did not think that his grandson and family were involved. He continued the meeting until his secretary walked in and handed him a second note.

When he read it, he didn't believe what was on the paper. He looked up at his secretary and all she did was nod back at him. Looking back down at the note he re-read it to make sure he got all the facts straight. When he got to the end, he excused himself from the meeting and quickly made his way back to his office. When he walked in, he turned on the television to see what was being reported.

It didn't matter which television station he turned on. Every one of them was reporting about the major accident on I-10 in El Paso Texas. When the studio went live to the scene, Al couldn't believe what he was seeing. The all the eastbound lanes were closed off due to an eighteen wheeler on its side in flames. He started looking around to see if he could see Jacob or anyone for that matter from the hotel, but the camera never broke away from the truck that was on fire.

He grabbed his remote, and turned it up in order for him to hear what the reporter was saying at the scene. "Approximately eight minutes ago the semi fuel tank exploded and once it caught on fire, it started a chain reaction. As you know these trucks have several fuel tanks and most the time the drivers keep them filled and that is the case here."

"Don what is going on with the rescue efforts dealing with the young teenager that's trapped in his vehicle underneath the semi? Have the police and the fire department freed him yet, or is he still stuck underneath that wreckage that is now on fire?"

"You know that is a very good question, all I could find out is that one of the two teenagers was successfully pulled out of the truck, but there are still two more stuck in there. One is the driver of the truck by the name of..." The reporter looked down at his notes to make sure he got the name right before saying it. "Tom Dickson and the other is his friend that went in to help him get free by the name of Jacob Hernandez."

When Al heard his grandson's name, he didn't hear anything else. He walked round his desk picking up the phone. By memory he dialed the mayor's office and a few rings later the mayor's secretary answered the phone. He asked to speak with the Mayor after telling her who he was. After hearing his name, the secretary immediately patched him through.

While Al was trying to get to the Mayor, Dewayne and the others were trying to get back to Jacob and Tom. Every time they tried, either an officer or a fireman stopped them. Not wanting to, but not having any other choice, Dewayne and the others gave up. They just stood there, watching the truck going up in flames.

Jacob was able to move a lot more than Tom because Tom still couldn't move his legs. They were free, but Tom couldn't feel them. So Jacob moved as close as he could to his friend and made sure he was okay. He asked Tom several questions to keep his friends mind off what is going on outside, but was unsuccessful.

Not only were they able to hear the explosions, but they started feeling the heat. On top of that the smoke was now getting into the cab of the truck, making it very hard for the boys to breathe. Jacob quickly pulled off his shirt and with his teeth started to pull it apart. Once he had a good-size piece separated, he handed it to Tom and asked him to put it over his nose and mouth. Tom at first didn't understand why, but once he did what Jacob asked him to do, he realized it was a lot easier to breathe.

Knowing it was just a matter of time when the smoke was going to be the least of their worries, Jacob started looking around for a way out. He knew that the fire above them was going to get so hot. They were going to be cooked alive. There was no way after all he has been through so far in his life that he was going to give up and die here.

Seeing that the only way out was the way he came in, he maneuvered his body and somehow was able to flip around so his face and arms were towards what used to be the door. Without a care of what was going to happen to him, Jacob wrapped the remainder pieces of his shirt around his hands and started to push the burning debris out of his way.

Little by little he was able to somehow clear a path for him and Tom to get out. He flipped back around and just as he did, something heavy fell on top of the truck. Automatically he and Tom covered their heads in case the roof caved in. Whatever fell on them only caved in a portion of the right hand side rom where Tom was.

When Jacob opened his eyes and saw that a good percentage of where Tom was is now completely caved in, he started scrambling towards him. He yelled out for Tom, and when he didn't get a response immediately, he knew his friend was in a bad shape.

As soon as he got to Tom, he put his finger over his mouth and nose to see if his friend was breathing. When he felt the air coming out of the nose and mouth, Jacob began to breathe a little easier. That moment though didn't last very long. He knew that it was now or never. If he didn't get his friend and himself out of there very soon, they were both going to die.

Jacob got onto his back and moved as far as he could underneath the dashboard towards Tom's legs. When he couldn't move any more, he pushed up the dashboard as far as he could to see where his friend's legs were at. Unable to hold the dashboard up for very long, he quickly looked around and saw that his legs weren't pinned or caught on anything.

Letting down the dashboard, Jacob looked around for something that he can use to hold up the dashboard long enough for him to get his friend out of there. Through the corner of his eye, he saw the radio hanging by a few wires. He reached out and pulled it loose. Once he had it in his hands, he pushed the dashboard back up placing the radio under it. It only gave him about four inches of space, but it had to do.

Jacob reached over and pulled Tom's left leg out first and then the right one. Once he had freed both of the legs, he moved back to the head of his friend placing his hands under his friend's shoulders. Remembering what Frederick told him, he started to move out of the truck slowly, but when he started to feel the heat getting worse, he started moving a lot faster.

As his legs went through the rest of the remaining debris, Jacob felt as if they were on fire. Little did he know that they were actually on fire. He just kept moving, pulling his friend out. When his body was completely out of the truck, he didn't look around. He kept his mind on the task he was doing and finished pulling out Tom.

The smoke from the fire was so thick; those that were looking on didn't see Jacob getting out of the truck. They couldn't see anything of either of them until Jacob walked out, carrying Tom in his arms. He was struggling to keep Tom from falling, but somehow he was able to hold on and keep going.

When the firemen and the police officers saw Jacob walking towards them carrying his friend, they couldn't believe their eyes. They quickly ran over to Jacob and took Tom from him. As soon as they had Tom, they threw Jacob to the ground. At first Jacob did not understand why they were throwing him to the ground, but when he found them patting his legs and feet, he looked down and saw the flames for the first time.

Sitting there staring at his legs, Jacob didn't understand why his legs were the only things that caught on fire. When he got out of the truck, he was literally standing in the middle of the fire. Any part of his body could have caught on fire and should have, but some reason that didn't happen. The only thing that came to his mind and explained it was that it was the man above watching over him and Tom.

Little by little, Frederick's voice got louder and louder until Jacob snapped out of it. "Son, Jacob do you hear me?" Frederick snapped his fingers several times. "Jacob please say something or do something to let me know that you can hear me." Frederick snapping his fingers until he got a reaction from Jacob.

"I can hear you!" Is all that Jacob said as he tried to get up, but Frederick didn't let him.

Jacob started looking around for Tom. When he didn't see him right away, he started to worry. After he glanced around the second time, he spotted Tom on a gurney being rushed into a waiting ambulance. He quickly turned his attention to Frederick and asked where they were taking his friend. When he did not get an answer right away, he asked again, but this time he asked with a commanding voice, almost yelling.

"Your friend is unconscious and we don't know the extent of his injuries. So he is being rushed to the closest hospital." Nodding his head, Jacob tried to get up, but Frederick stopped him. "I'm sorry, but until you are completely checked out, we're not letting you move an inch. You were actually on fire when you got to us and there is no way I'm going to let you walk away without being checked by an EMT."

Trying to object to Frederick's request, Dewayne walked up and made it clear to Jacob that he must follow Frederick's advice. Reluctantly, Jacob settled back down and didn't move until the EMT'S came running up with another gurney.

As soon as they knelt down, they started asking Jacob if he had any pain from the burns. Jacob shook his head as he looked at the EMT'S cutting his pants. They stopped when they got to where the pants were burnt into Jacob's legs. Seeing that they were unable to do much with what they had, the helped Jacob up and put him on the gurney.

When they picked him up, Jacob started to feel the pain. Not wanting to show that he was hurting, he tried to keep a straight face. He bit his tongue and didn't say a word, but he wasn't fooling Dewayne. Dewayne knows all of Jacob's facial expressions, and the one that was on his face right now was telling him that his boyfriend was in a lot of pain.

The minute they got to the ambulance, one of the EMT'S turned around and informed Dewayne and the others that only one of them could drive with them to the hospital. Everyone knew who that person was going to be. Chase grabbed Jacob's truck keys and stepped back to let the EMT's do their job. Once Jacob was loaded onto the back of the ambulance, Dewayne got in, followed by an EMT.

Chase and the other guys that stayed didn't move until the ambulance started to pull away. When the sirens started to blare, Chase turned around and started to make his way towards the truck, but stopped in his tracks. He had completely forgotten for just a few moments about the semi on its side in flames. The fire department was already hard at work putting out the fire. However, Chase and the others knew they were going to be stuck there for a while.

While Chase and the others made themselves comfortable, Jacob and Dewayne were being rushed to the hospital. When they pulled up to the emergency room entrance, Jacob sighed. He didn't want to be in hospital again. The last time he was they are dealing with his surgery, he thought it was going to be his last time as a patient, but boy, was he wrong.

The back doors of the ambulance flew open and several doctors and nurses put their heads in and greeted Jacob. Jacob smiled back at them as his gurney was being pulled out of the ambulance. As soon as the gurney with completely out, the nurses and doctors started asking question after question. Not giving Jacob time to answer, they didn't get any answers.

When they pulled him into a bay, they started asking him questions about how it was being inside the truck while it was on fire. Jacob once again didn't answer the questions that were being asked. Instead, he asked questions of his own. He wanted to know not only where Tom and Thomas were out, but how they were doing.

None of the staff working on Jacob were able to answer his questions. All of a sudden, the curtains to his bay flew open and Dr. Whitmore walked in. He looked at Jacob, smiled, and then looked down at his lower legs and feet.

"You can't seem to stay away from this place, can you?" Dr. Whitmore asked his patient as he patted him on the shoulder. "I asked you the last time to make sure the last time was your last time, but here you are again in an emergency room. I think the next investment you need to make is an investment into a hospital because you are keeping this one open." Dr. Whitmore started to laugh and was joined in by all the other staff members working on Jacob.

"On a serious note, we need to see how bad the burns are before we let you go. So you'd better get comfortable because you're going to be here for awhile." Jacob looked at his doctor shaking his head as he asked where Tom and Thomas were. Dr. Whitmore looked over at his colleague and then back over at Jacob.

"Dr. Mitchell was here when Thomas was brought in. He was already doing the surgery when I scrubbed in to give a helping hand. Your friend Thomas was brought in with several internal injuries that we were able to fix. He will have a cast on his left leg, and permanent screws in his hip. Other than that, he is going to be exactly the same as he was this morning.

Now as far as your other friend Tom, we don't know exactly how bad his injuries are. We stabilized him and he's currently down in x-ray. As soon as we run all the tests we need to, we're going to do whatever we need to do to make sure he walks out of here as well. No one, I mean no one leaves this hospital through the back door while I am practicing."

That put a big smile on Jacob's face, but it didn't last. The nurses that were working on getting his shoes off pulled too hard, causing him a lot pain. When he yelled out, Dr. Whitmore looked down and saw the nurses had pulled some of Jacob's skin off along with the shoe. Whitmore immediately asked one of the nurses to bring Jacob some pain medication.

It took over fifteen minutes for the painkiller to kick in, but the nurses didn't wait. They kept on working on getting the burned clothing and shoes off of Jacob. Every time they removed a piece of clothing, the pain was worse than the time before. They left the rest of the tennis shoes to the end because they were burned the most.

When they had nothing else left on the legs, they started working on the shoes. They cut off a piece at a time of what once was Jacob's new Nikes that he had just bought a couple weeks before. Jacob hated seeing his brand-new shoes already ruined, but was thankful that was the only thing that was ruined, besides his pants. He sat there watching the nurses working as he gave thanks to the man above for letting him and his friends get out of that wreck alive.

Dewayne didn't leave his boyfriend's side. They sat there holding hands as they watched the pieces of the burnt clothing and shoes being removed. He couldn't help but think how Jacob was going to look once he healed. Images of fire victims flashed through his mind, making him sick to his stomach. He started to hope that his boyfriends beautiful body wasn't blemished some more. Jacob had already undergone several surgeries that left their marks on his body as well as the bullet wounds he received a couple years ago.

The doctor was in and out of the bay for the first thirty or so minutes. The last time he walked in, he told Jacob and Dewayne that they were about to go into surgery with Tom, but didn't give them any more information than that. Worried for their friend, they kept asking the nurses that were working on Jacob's legs to go and check how things were going with the surgery. The fifth time they asked, the nurses told the boys that one of the doctors will come out when they had news to deliver. Seeing that they were getting under the nurses skin, they stopped asking.

When the nurses were almost done cleaning out Jacob's wounds, a doctor Jacob had never seen before walked in. He looked at the wounds and then at the chart before even looking Jacob's direction. When he got whatever he was looking for in the chart, he put it back on the table and walked over to the head of the bead.

"Mr. Hernandez..." The doctor placed his hand on the rail of the bed. "Is it okay if I call you Jacob?" Jacob nodded his head. "Thank you Jacob, my name is Dr. Lukas Rothenberg. Dr. Whitmore and I went to school together, but went down different paths when it came to selecting our specialties. As you know he is one of the top surgeons in this state, where as I am one of the top plastic surgeons.

He called me to come down here and take care of you. After hearing all the stories about you, I jumped at the opportunity to work with you. I really wanted to meet you before today. Now after seeing what you did for your friends, I couldn't wait to come in and shake your hand." Dr. Rothenberg extended his hand for Jacob to shake it. He then looked over at Dewayne and they shook hands.

"I do wonders with burns, and I plan to do the same with you. The burns you got by walking through that fire, saving your friend, are severe, but nothing I can't handle. I will work my magic on your legs and feet so when you walk out of here, it would be like you never were burned, okay?" Jacob smiled as he nodded.

Dr. Rothenberg went into detail on how he plans to make his promise become reality. Every so often, Jacob or Dewayne stopped to ask him a question or two. Rothenberg didn't mind the questions. He took the time to answer all of them, even the one that Jacob asked towards the end on how much all this was going to cost him.

"Don't you worry about the cost." Dr. Rothenberg placed his hand On Jacob's shoulder. "The work I do, most of the time isn't covered by normal medical insurance policies, but for you I don't want you to worry. I'm going to do this at no cost because of what you did. This world needs more people like you. So whenever someone like you comes along and is hurt while he or she is helping out another, they shouldn't have to worry about medical costs."

Jacob was about to object when a nurse walked in with a phone in her hand. She handed it to Jacob and then left the bay. He couldn't make heads or tails out of what just happened. Looking over at Dewayne to see if he had an answer, he only got a confused look back. Slowly he raised the phone to his ear and softly said hello.

"Finally I got you" a worried Al spoke. "I was in a meeting when I was told about what was going on there. Immediately I got out of the meeting and turned on the television to see what was happening. Not getting much from there, I called the Mayor and made it clear to him that he needed to bring all of you guys out safe."

"Grandpa I know this is going to go in one ear and out the other, but you don't have to worry about us. We're doing fine and will always take care of each other."

"Don't you ever say I don't have to worry about you and the rest of the family! That is all I do besides work for the Governor. There's not a moment that goes by that you guys don't cross my mind." Al sat down in his seat and took a deep breath. "I wish I was there and I will be there hopefully no later than late tonight."

"No!" Jacob yelled, not meaning to. "I mean there's no need for you to stop what you're doing and come down here. You're needed there right now. I don't want you to keep catching the next plane out whenever something bad happens down here because you will be down here every other day. Please grandpa, just stay there and do what you love. Help the Governor pass those bills so Dewayne and I and others like us can get married when the time comes."

Al didn't know how to respond to what his grandson just said. He is torn by where he wants to be. His head is telling him to stay put and be the best chief of staff possible for the Governor. Then there is his heart telling him that he should head home to be with his family; a family that seems to have nothing but bad luck all the time!

"Jacob I was going crazy down here when I got the news about the accident. Then I was on the phone with the Mayor when I saw you walking out of the fire holding Tom. What the hell is wrong with you? You need to stop putting your life at risk all the time. There are other people out there that are trained and could have done what you did."

"From what I've been told those that are trained to do what I did refused to lift a finger. Then when things got bad, they went running for the hills instead of doing their job. If I would have stood back like them, I know without a doubt Tom and Thomas would be dead right now. They are here because Alex, Matt, Chase, Dewayne and the rest of us reacted, and didn't stand around."

Hearing what his grandson had to say, gave Al a lot of things to think about. He knew that the fire department and police department stood back when the semi-truck exploded, but he had no idea they didn't do anything before the explosion. Before thinking the worst, he asked Jacob to clarify what he just said. Jacob didn't, instead he handed the phone to Dewayne, who went into detail about what was said, and when it was said before handing the phone back to Jacob.

"Okay I am going to do what I can here. As soon as I get off the phone, I am going to call the Mayor again and demand answers. If those officers refused to help because they ran your plate number and found out who you were, they should be relieved from duty. Even if it was you that brought down the former chief-of-police, they have to do their job. That includes putting their lives on the line for those they don't like.

While I make phone calls and talk to the right people from here, I am going to send Virginia back home. You guys need to have someone around to help when you get back to the hotel. I know there is Francesca and others adults at the hotel right now, but I would rest easier if Virginia is there looking over things for me.

Now, if things turn bad there, I will take the next plane out and I won't hear anything about that. You guys are my family. I am not supposed to outlive my kids and grandkids. You keep that in mind before you go and do something as dangerous has you did today. If you do that again, I'm going to come down there and make your regret you were ever born! Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes grandpa I promise I will think before I act." Jacob looked over at Dewayne with a big grin. "Oh, one more thing before you go; Alex, Matt and a couple of the others guys drove with Thomas when he was brought here in the ambulance. You won't believe who walked in when they arrived." Al had already been told that Ashton was in custody, but he didn't tell Jacob.

"Stupid fool that the kid is, Ashton walked in just as Alex and the others were walking into the ER waiting room. Alex was the first to see him and let me just say Ashton didn't get the greeting he thought he was going to get when he arrived. Alex took him to one side and made it clear to him that he stepped over the line when he talked with Lorenzo and the other three."

Al liked hearing Jacob all chipper, even more so considering what he had just been through. "I feel a lot better that Ashton is now in custody and won't be going anywhere. That doesn't mean that you guys can relax security around you or the hotel. There are still ugly people out there, gunning to get their hands on a rich kid for a quick payday."

"I know grandpa, I know. I've no plans to change anything as far as security. In fact, I already told Jackson to do what he needed to do to make sure the new house is secure as it is going up. I know we are using the same construction company that the Governor used when he built his house, but you never know. I don't want any more problems!"

"You and me both, Jacob; you and me both!" Al laughed as he leaned back in his chair. "Hey listen, we need to cut this call short. I have to get back to that meeting I was in, but when I'm done I will call your cell phone. Make sure you get it back from Chase so I can speak to you, not him."

Jacob promised to get his cell phone back before saying goodbye to his grandfather. As soon as he hung up he apologized to Dr. Rothenberg, who began summarizing what he had already explained. He wanted to make sure Jacob and Dewayne understood everything before they got started. Once he was done, he got all the forms he needed signed.

"Okay now that we've got all that out of the way, I am going to have you taken into surgery. In a couple of hours you should be out and things will be as they were once the bandages are removed." Dr. Rothenberg asked Jacob to remove his shirt. "All the surgical scars and these..." The doctor pointed to where Jacob was shot. "I can actually remove them as if they were never there. If you want that, I can do it all done while you're under."

Before answering the good doctor, Jacob looked over at Dewayne for some guidance. Dewayne didn't need to be asked. He instantly told Jacob that he should go for it. Getting the answer he had hoped for, he turned his attention back to the doctor giving him the okay to do what he could to get rid of all his old scars as well.

Dr. Rothenberg walked out and a few minutes later several nurses walked back in. At first, Dewayne thought he was going to be asked to leave while the nurses were prepping his boyfriend for surgery, but he wasn't. The nurses let him stay as long as possible. When they pulled Jacob out of the bay to take him to surgery, they asked Dewayne at that point to go to the waiting room. Hesitantly, the two boys said goodbye.

Dewayne stood there in the middle of the hallway and didn't move until he couldn't see Jacob anymore. Once the double doors to the surgical wing closed and he could no longer see his boyfriend, he turned and made his way to the waiting room. When he walked out, he found everyone sitting there in a group.

Chase was the first to see Dewayne walking towards them. He jumped up from his seat and asked what was going on. He was worried that something went wrong because of the way Dewayne looked, but found out very quickly he had nothing to worry about, at least for Jacob that is. As far as Tom, no one has any idea what was going on with him.

They all sat down and waited in silence to hear something from any of the doctors that were working on their family members. Outside the press and a huge crowd had gathered and the guys could hear them. At one point Chase wanted to go out there and tell them to find something else to report on, but decided against it.

The only reason he did that was because Jacob and Alex did something heroic and the story needs to get out there. They also need to repot how the police just sat there on their butts not lifting a finger to help. That way the officers that were there not doing a thing would be held accountable for not acting when they should have.

An hour into the wait, the news stations started to report what caused this whole mess. David got up and walked over to the television to turn it up. The reporter was summarizing what happened once the semi-truck went over the median, when she was done; she turned over the program to her fellow reporter.

"We are now able to report with confidence on what started the chain reaction of events early this morning. The driver of the eighteen-wheeler lost control of his vehicle. When the first officer on the scene saw the semi coming down the road, he thought the driver was drunk by the way he was swerving all over the place. He had no idea that the driver was barely holding on.

He had a heart attack while driving, and he tried to bring his truck to a complete stop. However while doing so he was slipping in and out of consciousness. Every time he passed out at the wheel and came back, he was more lost than before. By the time he hit the median, he was so disoriented he had no idea where he was or what he was doing.

The first officer that gave chase radioed for back-up and by the time the semi-flipped over on its side, there were six police cruisers involved in the chase. None of them thought of laying down spikes to slow down the vehicle or do anything else. They all assumed the driver was trying to get away from getting a ticket."

"Hold on, I'm sorry to interrupt. How do we know the driver suffered a heart attack? The information we have is that the driver's body hasn't been removed yet from the scene. It was found, but since the fire isn't completely out, they haven't gone in to get the body."

"That's a good question and let me try to explain how we know all this information. When the driver began to have the heart attack, he did what he was supposed to do and that was radio into his dispatch. The dispatch operator informed the police what was going on while he had the driver on the radio. Somehow the communications from 911 didn't get to those officers that were chasing the semi, because if it had, I believe they would have done things differently."

The reporter went on to explain that the semi company that the driver was working for had the entire conversation on tape and released it to the press. They then started to play the tape and it gave chills up and down the spine to everyone that was listening. The voice of a man who knew he was dying begging for help that never came.

The most haunting part of the recording was when the driver asked his dispatcher to tell the police to run him off the road. At that point he had no control over the truck and knew if he wasn't stopped, many people would get hurt, if not killed. The dispatcher gave that information to the 911 operator, but nothing was done with it.

Chase and the others listened closely to that part of the recording as it was being played for the first time. Driver: "Dispatch I just passed..."

Dispatch: "Can you repeat that please, you are going in and out. I did not get the last part."

Driver: "Dispatch I need help, please help... I just... Sunland Park... I am in the clear right now. Please tell the police behind me to... road. It has to be now since there is nothing..."

Dispatch: "Again you are breaking up and I am not getting everything you are saying." At this point, the dispatcher was yelling. "If I understand you right, you have just passed Sunland Park exit and you want the officers behind you to somehow push you off the road."

Driver: "Yes you heard me right! I don't want to get to Executive because once I'm there; there are too many businesses at the side of the highway. Here is nothing but open land. So please tell the police to run me off the road. That way I am the only one that will get hurt."

Dispatcher: "Hold on and let me call in your request." The dispatcher put the driver on hold and got on the phone. "Are you still there operator?" The 911 operator answered yes. "My driver is requesting the officers that are chasing him to run him off the road right now while they still can in an unpopulated area."

The 911 operator put the dispatcher on hold, but you could make out what the operator was saying in the background. She was relaying the request to the police dispatcher, but that dispatcher objected to the request. The 911 operator got back on the line and informed the trucking company that the police would like them to see if their driver could stop the truck. The trucking company dispatcher made it clear it wasn't the right move before getting back to the driver of the semi.

Just as she was about to inform the driver what the police wanted him to try and do, the sounds of the truck going over the median was heard. The dispatcher tried to get the driver back on, but wasn't able to. Within a few seconds of hearing the truck going over the medium and crashing down onto the other side of the highway, the microphone went dead.

Stunned hearing what they heard, the guys just looked at each other. The driver had enough sense to know he needed to be stopped, but the police refused to do it when they had a chance. As a result several people are now in the hospital because of their reluctance to make the right decision when they needed to.

Dewayne got up and turned down the television since the reporter was replaying the tape that they just heard. As he made his way back to his seat, Drs. Whitmore and Mitchel came walking into the waiting room. Everyone stood up and braced themselves for worst. Dr. Whitmore looked around at the worried faces before breaking the uncomfortable silence.

"The surgery went very well with Thomas Juarez. He had a crushed left lower leg, which we put back together and casted it. We also had to go in and put in a couple of screws into his hip in order to put it back together. Other than that, the young man is very lucky. He should be out of here in a week or so.

Tom Dickson is a different story. He was more pinned under the dashboard than Thomas was. His injuries were a lot more severe. When the truck on top of his exploded and more parts landed, on top of his truck, they crushed him even more and that didn't help matters. In fact, we believe it made the injuries a lot worse."

Dr. Whitmore looked around at the guys to make sure they were ready for the news he was about to deliver. "Mr. Dickson, Tom will never walk again." David fell back to his seat. Hearing what the doctor just said felt like the world was turned upside down. Thoughts of Tom sitting in a wheelchair unable to do the things he loves to do started flashing through his mind.

"I am sorry that we were unable to do what we promised Jacob. He came to us already in bad shape and we did everything we could to keep this outcome from becoming reality. I'm not trying to make excuses for Tom not walking and me not doing what I promised to do. All I am trying to do is explain why we are here at this outcome.

The dashboard of the truck was crushed right into Tom's lower back, the end of his spine. That is where I believe he got his injury. We might have been able to do something if Tom was pulled out before the dashboard came crushing down on him the second time. When that happened, it shattered all chances we had to do anything to get Tom to walk again. There was just nothing left for us to work on."

"Dr. Whitmore is there a chance that Tom might get the use of his legs again?" Chase was the first to speak out of the guys. "I mean this guy is an athlete and there is no way he'll be able to live in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. Is there any way that he has a chance to walk again?"

"I won't stand here and tell you one hundred percent that he will never walk again nor will I say he has a chance to walk again. I have seen miracles happen. Just look at Jacob. He survived so much when many have said he should be gone. Seeing that and a couple others, I will not pass it by that Tom one day may get out of his wheelchair and start walking again.

However, you guys need to be patient with him. Don't push him to do something that he's not ready to do because it can backfire in many ways. One of which, could be that he crawls inside himself and gives up! Another thing that can happen is that he does more damage to himself. Right now he doesn't have the use of his legs, while everything else seems to be okay."

Between Dr's Whitmore and Mitchell, they went down the list of what they can and can't do with Tom. When they finished, they answered all the questions the guys asked. Once there were no other questions, the doctors promised to check in on Tom, Thomas and Jacob throughout the night to make sure everything was doing fine.

When they mentioned Jacob, it reminded them that they still didn't know the outcome of his surgery. It got them thinking, and worrying. They were told the surgery was only going to be a couple of hours at the most, but here they are going into the third hour.

David got up and looked around the waiting room. Everyone looked at him, wondering what he was looking for. When he started walking towards the restrooms, they thought he needed to use it, but when he walked back out in seconds, they knew he was looking for something else. Tony, Marie and Chase got up and walked over to David to see if they could help him.

"David what are you looking for?" Marie spoke up. "Maybe we can help you find whatever you are looking for!" David looked at Marie with a blank look on his face.

"Um, I need to call Tom's parents and let them know what is going on. I promised them that I was going to take care of Tom..." David broke down and started to cry. "But I broke my promise to them. Tom will never walk again because I was unable to protect him like I promised. I should have been the one in there trying to get him out, not Jacob. I should been the one pinned, not..."

"No David no one should be where Tom is right now, no one." Chase pulled his friend into his arms. "You didn't break your promise to Tom's parents. What happened today was not your fault, Tom's or any one else's for that matter. It was just a chain of bad events that we were caught up in. So stop blaming yourself."

"Yeah don't blame yourself on this because it isn't your fault." Tony walked up to David and Chase, followed by the rest of the guys. They stood there in a circle comforting each other. Once David got control of his emotions, he broke away from the group and walked over to the help desk to use their phone. He dialed Tom's parents number, and after a few rings. Tom's mother's voice came over the line.

TO BE CONTINUED...

WRITER'S CORNER:

{Hey everyone welcome back to another filled chapter of "Jacob Finding His Way". Even though the chapter didn't even get through a day, a lot happened. I bet you guys weren't expecting what happened in this chapter to happen. If any of you did expect it, well you are getting way too used to my writing, LOL!

Anyway let's get down to business and summarize this chapter. As I said it didn't cover that much except the accident so I am going to talk about that here. It picked up from the last chapter where we left. It also included where I left off at in `Beneath the Mask' chapter fifty-one. I tried not to repeat myself, so if I did, let me say sorry.

Jacob did what many of us hope we would do if we ever were in the situation he was in. Now I know this is fiction, I have never been through what I wrote in the last couple of chapters. All I can hope for if I ever do go through what I wrote, I hope I would react like the character that is playing me in this story did.

He put himself in harm's way when even the police, the by-standers and a couple firemen wouldn't. Jacob truly cares a lot for his friends, or should I say family. That is what they are after all, his extended family. He will do anything to make sure no harm comes to them. In this instant he put his life on the line to save Tom and Thomas.

In chapter fifty one of `Beneath the Mask' I let you guys into a little bit on how this accident was going to turn out. There we found out how Thomas got out, but not Tom. In this chapter we found out that it took a lot more to get Tom out of the truck.

The fire department finally showed up and went in to help Jacob and the others to get Tom out of the truck. However when things started going wrong, they went running for the hills to save their own butts, leaving Jacob and Tom alone in the truck with explosions and everything starting a fire around them. These guys deep down inside had to be scared as hell.

Jacob thought quickly and did what he needed to do in order to save himself and Tom. He actually walked through fire to get his friend out alive. I know some say they would do that for another, but here Jacob actually did. Tom was unconscious when he got pulled out of the wreckage, but he was alive and going to the hospital.

It was good to see familiar doctors when they got to the hospital. I agree with Dr. Whitmore when he told Jacob that he should invest into a hospital since it seems to be his second home. Enough with the jokes here, let's get back to the summation. Drs. Whitmore and Mitchell took care of not only Jacob when he came in, but Tom and Thomas as well.

We got a little good news when we heard about Thomas injuries, but when it came time to hear about Tom's, it was bad news. Tom's world has changed and I wonder how he is going to react to that change. Will he crawl into himself and give up? Or, will he fight back and maybe walk again someday. You guys know me and how I never stay in the direction you might think I am going to go with a plot.

It was good to hear from Al. He is worried about Jacob and wanted to come down, but I like it when Jacob told him to stay where he is. The Governor needs him more now than ever to get the bills passed through the state houses and get Rich confirmed. By him rushing back to El Paso whenever something goes wrong, he will never stay more than a couple of weeks in Austin.

Finally the ending of the chapter! It wasn't a huge cliffhanger since there are a few cliffhangers out there. Many of you are now trying to think if you ever met Tom's family and I can say no. So be ready in the next chapter to meet them and find out how Tom ended up living with Jacob instead of at home with them.

Before I let you go, I need to let you guys know a couple of things. I am a numbers guy and because of that I look at the amount of people that read my chapters. The last `Beneath' and `Regrets' numbers are very low. I am really thinking about ending those stories now. Let me know what you all think I should do there. Is there a way to keep them and just spice them up, or have they run their course already?

One last thing I would like to talk about and that is Fridays posting. It is going to be another chapter of `Shadow of My Father'. It is going to be really exciting on all fronts. One of which I am anxious to write about is the Governor going to the Bible Belt selling his gay rights bill. He is going to invite his son Josh to join him and Josh is going to sing a song that sums it all up. I have been working on the video this last week and I think you guys are going to love it.

As always I can go on and on about the open plots in the story! If I do that, I can actually write several more chapters. So many plots can take a turn at any time. You might think it is going to go one way, but is lands up going another. Don't miss anything, or you will be kicking yourself for it.

There is a so much to answer in the chapters to come. Stick around and keep reading the future chapters, and enjoy! Please email me and let me know how I am doing at jacob@jacobmillertex.com, Thanks!}

EDITOR'S CORNER:

What a chapter and once more Jacob made me cry, but he also made me angry. Angry at the way police and the fire authorities for the way they handled the whole incident. If the police had gone in to help Jacob right from the start Tom would I am sure be walking out of that hospital.

This accident and Tom's injuries are going to be a true test of David's feelings for his boyfriend. Plus what about Tom's parents? Are they going to blame David for not looking out for him like he promised. Jacob deserves a medal for what he did to save his friends or as Jacob put it `his family'. I have nothing but praise for Dewayne and the way he told the police what he thought of them. If they had put handcuffs on him they would have regretted it because of the backlash they would have gotten.

The new police chief has a lot of work to do to sort out that bunch of misfits who should never have been given a badge or uniform. I can see a lot of heads rolling and maybe some big lawsuits as well.

Jacob for what appears to be the first time really stood up to his grandfather, just about ordering Al to stay where he was and do his job. Maybe Jacob should have a hospital wing named after him after all he is one of their best customers.

Getting off the subject for a minute this Wednesday I will be posting the final chapter of "Michael and Robert". The number of readers of this story has been dropping and like Jacob with a couple of his stories, I think it is time for a change.

Replacing "Michael and Robert" will be a brand new story. This new story is the story of a young 14 year old gay youth living in the wilds of Saskatchewan, Canada, in a small community surrounded by rednecks. We'll hear about the problems of keeping his sexuality secret and many other problems he has solve during his teenage years and beyond. I hope you will enjoy it and please let me know one way or the other.

All of us connected with JPG love hearing from you so please keep those comments and e-mails coming.

Hugs Trevor

trevor@jacobmillertex.com

"DADDY" RICK'S SOAPBOX:

I realize that this will be read after the fact, but I want to wish all of you a very Happy Thanksgiving. I hope that you had a lot to be thankful for and that you all got "stuffed" one way or the other! <wink> One of the things I am very thankful for is the warm and caring friendships I have made being a part of the JPG Sagas.

This chapter was sure loaded with drama! I totally understand and can relate to Jacob and the rest that took action when the emergency arose. Over the years I have had a couple situations where I had to act without taking a moment to think. Looking back, I react similarly to Jacob. I see what needs to happen and I just jump in and do it. Once the emergency is past I then allow myself to crash emotionally. Now, I've never had to brave a diesel fueled fire to rescue a family member or friend, but I have had situations where I had to act immediately so things wouldn't get worse. I can say that in one instance, I believe I saved a life.

I agree with Dewayne's take on the "first responders" as we call them today. In general, when they arrived they stood around with thumbs up their butts. Now there were fire fighters in there with Jacob, but they didn't stick with it when things got `hot'. It was a diesel fire. That's not nearly as volatile as a gasoline fueled fire. There should have been no problem keeping the fire away from the trapped victims. The police are another matter. I sense that there's going to be plenty of fireworks for them in the foreseeable future.

Al's reaction to the news was just as any of us would expect. Family is the absolute center of his life and he fully recognizes his role as the patriarch. Jacob did show his brass set when he strongly reacted to Al's plan to get back to El Paso. From what I was able to gather, Al didn't get the full scope of the severity of injuries and I don't think he realized that Jacob was injured and needing to "go under" to get fixed up, or did I miss something?

I am most interested in meeting Tom's family. I wonder if meeting them will give us insight into Tom's life and define him some. Tom's injuries will leave him paralyzed. I can't tell you how my heart sank as I read that. Tom has always been the stronger of the two in his and David's relationship. The shoe is now on the other foot. I wonder if David will have the strength of character to be there and support Tom. I think we can all figure that Tom is going to need all the love and support he can get.

Jacob, as he said, is a `numbers guy' and he gets his `compensation' for all his hard work by seeing how many readers read each chapter. If there's a story that's not making it, let him (us) know what needs to be fixed. We do read each and every e-mail from the readers. I sure don't want him getting discouraged and abandoning his work!

Until Next Time,

"Daddy" Rick