Chapter 9 — The Drag Marks

Inside, the rescuers found the groceries. A torn paper bag had burst across the floor, scattering rice and crushed crackers under the dashboard.

The chicken had spoiled, but the cereal box was still wedged behind the seat, and Ella’s medication was still sealed inside the pharmacy bag. Andrew wasn’t in the truck.

For a moment the discovery made everything worse — if he had survived the crash, he might have tried to reach the road and been swept away as the ditch filled.

The teams spread out along the flooded roadside, calling his name, searching every patch of higher ground.

Then a rescuer spotted strange marks in the mud several yards from the vehicle. Not ordinary footprints — the trail of someone dragging one leg, pulling himself across the soaked grass.

The marks led toward a concrete drainage opening where fallen branches had formed a narrow shelter above the rushing water.