Her airbag deployed, smacking her in the face and releasing a choking cloud of powder, which filled the car's interior. Instinctively she held her breath to avoid breathing it. The seat belt caught her hard across her chest.
In a distant part of her mind, the violence of the impact amazed her. This had been a relatively mild collision, but it left her stunned. She took a mental inventory of body parts and determined that she wasn't in pain anywhere, only shaken. But the person she'd hit . . . "My God!"
Batting the deflated airbag out of the way, she released her seat belt and shoved open the door. As she scrambled out, she lost her footing and pitched forward. The heels of her hands struck the icy pavement hard, as did her right knee. It hurt like hell.
