“Where’s Norman?” April asked, frantic.

“Who’s Norman?” asked the officer.

“He was right behind me,” April said. She turned to the crowd. “Did anyone help him?”

No one seemed to have an answer.

“I think I saw him fall under the train,” one man said, stepping forward.

April’s face went white. “No! He was right behind me.” She started pacing, peering under the train. “Can you stop this train from leaving?” she asked the officer.

“Stop it? You don’t think that—”

“Can you do it?”

The doors on the train started to close. April jumped in the way of the doors, and they reopened. A young man on the train yelled at her to get off. The loudspeaker blared a warning for all passengers to step away from the doors.

“Stop the train,” April begged.

“Lady, you got to get out of the doorway.”

“What if he’s trapped under there, alive ?”

“For all I know, you just escaped the insane asylum and are looking for something fun to do, ” the officer said. He walked over and put his arm around her, pulling her away from the train. “Time to come with me before you cause any more trouble.”

A few more people joined April, blocking the train doors from shutting.

A person stepped out from the crowd. “You have to check,” he said. “What if she’s right?”

The security guard was clearly agitated. “Get out of the way, people!”

They didn’t move. “I saw him myself!” someone shouted.

A woman wearing a Metro Transit uniform came running to the scene. “Wait, wait,” she said, out of breath. “I saw the whole thing. It was terrible. Two guys got hit. Then this old guy fell under the train.” She pointed at April. “She was the only one who made it.”

“Hold on,” he said, taking out his walkie-talkie. He turned and spoke a few words into the receiver. He turned back to April after he was done. “Don’t go anywhere. You understand?”

April nodded.

“I see him!” someone said a few cars down. “I see the guy!”

April rushed toward a group of people pointing between two of the railcars. She spotted Norman right away, lying flat on his back. “I can’t believe you’re alive!” she said.

“I am?” He coughed. “My wife’s going to be disappointed. She has a good life insurance policy on me.”

“Well, she’ll have to wait a few more years to claim it,” April said, crying and laughing at the same time.

Norman extended his arm between the railcars. “Take this,” he said.

April leaned out as far as she could and took Dr. Winter’s severed hand. “I can’t leave you,” she said.

“I’ll be fine,” he said. “You’ve got more things to worry about than an old man stuck under a train.”