But I shove past him. I need to see them. Firefighters surround the wreckage using the Jaws of Life to pry the car open to no avail.

All I hear are screams—piercing, terrified wails. I hear Ari sobbing for me and her mom, but Syd’s little screams are weaker, more pained.

Ari’s tiny body is twisted in the backseat, her leg crushed under debris. I can’t do anything as she reaches out to me with her arms, screaming, “Daddy! Mommy!”

Syd’s arm is pinned beneath jagged metal. Her face is pale, her body shaking. Her lips are dry, and her voice is hoarse from screaming.

And then I hear Tiara’s weak, struggling, but angelic voice. “Well, it’s ‘bout time, Chef Grimes.”

“Tee!” My focus darts back and forth between the three loves of my life.

“Look at me, Vic. Don’t look at them. Just look at me.” I turn, my entire soul shattering as I see her trapped, her body crushed inside the mangled car.

Tiara’s crushed in the passenger’s seat, pinned, her body trapped in mangled steel with blood dripping from her temple. Yet, her lips are curved into a small, exhausted smirk. I ache to touch her. To hold her, to press my forehead to hers, to kiss her but I can’t.

I press my forehead against the cold metal, the closest I can get to her.

“I’m here, baby,” I whisper, choking on sobs. “I’m here, Tee.”

Her fingers twitch, barely reaching. “I love you, Vic. I’m so sorry. This is all —” She whispers, her breath shaky, fragile.

“Stop talking like that. We can talk later over a glass of wine because you’re gonna be okay.”

Then, suddenly, I turn, watching as firefighters finally pry Syd free. She screams in agony.

Ari is next. I sob in relief.

“They’re okay?” She asks, barely above a whisper. “Are our babies okay?”

I turned back to her, my heart shattering all over again.

I nod quickly, swallowing down the terror in my throat. “They’re okay, baby. And you’re next. As soon as you’re out, I’m gonna take you home,” I promise, my voice breaking apart. “I’ll wait on you hand and foot. I swear, I’ll never leave your side. I’ll be with you every second of every day until you beg me to go back to work.”

Tiara’s lips barely move, but she still manages a ghost of a smile. “Good,” she strains. “Because the girls will need you. Be present for them, Vic.”

I grip the edge of the wreckage, my entire body trembling. “I’ll be present for all of you. I love you with everything, Tee. You’re my everything.”

Her lashes flutter, her breath hitching. And with a faint, strained smile. she whispers her last words. “That’s all I ever wanted to hear.”