“You can ride in the back right next to him, Mrs.

Quill,” Dr.

Reed said, stepping aside so the paramedic could lift Benji onto the stretcher.

The paramedic bundled Benji in two thick foil-lined thermal blankets until all that showed was his pale face and his dinosaur’s green nose.

Benji didn’t cry as they lifted him into the back of the ambulance.

He just kept his eyes on my face.

Officer Vance came up to the side of the vehicle as the doors swung open.

“I’ll stay at the house to secure the broken hardware and take formal statements from everybody inside,” Vance told me.