She Should Have Died -- Chapter 1 Rewrite

PLEASE NOTE: Addresses are made up, and names are changed. This is based on the true story of my best friend who took her life eight months ago. Much of the dialogue is fiction, but the main story line is what really happened. It's in honor of her. Thanks for reading. Please feel free to give critique on it. ^.^

Gene brought his truck to a stop at the dump; he went around to the back of the truck and pulled out two trash bags.

Walking over to the nearest dumpster, he opened the lid.

It was dark inside, but darkness doesn’t mute sound, and he heard what he thought was a whimper for a second.

He stood still and listened closely.

Was that rasped breathing? Another whimper?

Yes, something...someone...a child.. was in there.

He reached inside and felt a small arm; pulling the child out, he half expected to see a healthy child who had just climbed in for fun and couldn’t get out.

But what met his eyes was something more like from a horror movie; something from a nightmare:

A ghastly thin baby girl covered in bruises, cuts and welts was in his arms.

A little girl who was barely breathing..barely alive.

She felt limp in his arms..cool to the touch.

“Oh my God!” He shouted, his hands shaking to get to the phone in his pocket.

“911, where is your emergency?”

His mind was going in circles as he tried to recall the address..

“Hello? Are you there?..”

“I’m at..600 Dunwood Ave...I found a baby … in a dumpster, she’s about to die..”

“Yes sir, we will send out emergency responders right away.”

He dropped the phone and sank to the ground, pressing the barely breathing baby to his chest.

“Oh, God..bring them here quickly.” His heart was pounding.

He looked at the child in his arms.

The face would be unrecognizable to anyone who knew her; it was puffy, bruised, and scarred.

How could anyone do this to a child??

Gene rocked the baby in his arms, and started singing a lullaby in a choked, trembling voice.

He felt rage burning inside him; hate..for whoever had done this. 

His mind wandered to his five year old granddaughter; he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt, that he would kill anyone who hurt her. 

He wished he could have given that same protection to this poor little child.

All of a sudden, an ambulance, paramedic truck and two police cars raced up and skidded to a stop.

Two paramedics jumped out of the vehicle and ran over to the man.

Taking the child from his arms, the paramedic suddenly blurted out as he began running to the ambulance,

“Oh my God! Get this baby to the hospital...oh my God!”

Gene watched the ambulance speed off, as he was left to tell the police officers what he knew; nothing.

********

In the ambulance, the paramedics performed light CPR and mouth to mouth resuscitation on the baby.

There was nothing else they could do, other than continue CPR, and clean her off as best as they could before they reached the hospital.

One paramedic bowed his head and began to pray to a God he had never believed in before; but now it seemed to him that there must be a God up there who would hear him, if only for the baby’s sake.

They arrived at the hospital, and rushed the baby into emergency surgery.

There couldn’t be any hope for her, though.

She had staked it out for a long time, but she wouldn’t make it.

She couldn’t.

********

Gene pulled into his driveway and took a deep breath.

Memories of his abusive childhood flooded his mind, bringing back things he thought he had left behind a long time ago.

After all, he was married to the love of his life; had two grown children, and a little granddaughter.

Life couldn’t be better.

But he couldn’t get his mind off of that little girl..her face..her weak, yet meaningful attempts at living.

Sighing, he turned off the ignition and headed to the front door.

Once inside, he plopped down on the sofa and immersed himself in a book he had been reading.

But even that couldn’t get his mind off of her.

His wife came in just as he put the book back down and let out another deep sigh.

“Honey?” She asked.

He patted the seat beside him, and motioned for her to come over.

She could tell that he was distressed, he’d been this way before.

Pale, and a distraught look in his eyes.

She stroked his hair and waited for him to speak.

A few minutes passed, and she was about to ask him if he wanted to talk about it, when,

“Fuck them!” He yelled out of the blue, “Fuck whoever did that..FUCK them!”

His wife gave a small startled gasp.

She proceeded to listen as he let out what had happened that day.