My face flushed at the memories of my weekend.
Other kinks.
I wasn't a fan of running, but a slow, easy jog was a good way to stretch out my stiff muscles. I didn't go far, but I didn't need to. When I came around the block, I slowed to a walk and went back upstairs. A long, hot shower and a good meal went a long way to finishing out what I needed to relax.
I drove in rather than taking the bus as I sometimes did. When I worked late, it was usually a toss-up as to whether or not I preferred to drive tired, or ride when there might be some less than scrupulous people riding. Tonight, however, I wanted to drive because I was going a bit early.
One of my friends worked in the ER and wanted me to come by at the beginning of her shift to talk to me about a refrigerator my mom was selling. I hadn't had a chance to talk to Jensine since she'd come off maternity leave anyway, and I was looking forward to seeing pictures of the new baby.
As I was walking into the ER, however, all hell broke loose.
Six ambulances pulled up and started rolling in victims of a five car pile-up. Right behind them were three from a warehouse fire. When I heard that, I started to walk faster, trying to catch up to the last gurney. These three would be heading my way. Then I heard the paramedic giving the doctor the essentials, and my heart skipped a beat.
“Twenty-eight-year-old white male. Badly burned. Broken bones. Smoke inhalation. His vitals are thready. ID says he's Sergeant Xavier Hammond. Stationed at Fort Sam...”
My chest tightened as the rest of the words faded away.
Fuck.
The bloody and burned body on the gurney in front of me belonged to a soldier.
The memories hit me hard and fast, fragmented and sharp.
Sandy brown hair buzzed short.
Dark green eyes sparkling proudly.
The announcement that he'd enlisted in the army.
Pride and fear.
His arms around me as he told me goodbye.
The call that he was being shipped out.
The call that he was coming home.
All of it came at me in seconds, each image taking only a fraction of time. Then someone ran into my shoulder and my world snapped back into place. The gurney with the soldier was two steps ahead of me now. I tossed my purse toward the front desk and hoped that the clerk on duty recognized me. If not, I'd deal with it later. It was chaos in here and I could hear doctors and nurses shouting orders. There weren't enough of them, not with this sudden influx of patients.
I jogged after the gurney and followed it into the room. I'd done a rotation down here back when I'd first started and the layout looked the same. A quick look around told me that they were going to be short-handed in here. I immediately spotted the doctor and breathed a sigh of relief that it was one I knew.
“Dr. Furia,” I called as she walked in.
“Nori?”
“Can I help?” I didn't bother with explanations. There was no time.
I could see the hesitation and knew that it wasn't because Dr. Furia didn't trust me. Unless specifically scheduled or called for, nurses didn't work outside their designated units. Technically, the hospital could get in trouble if the soldier's family found out, but I was hoping that the combination of being short-staffed, and the fact that he was a burn patient would give some leeway.
She nodded. “Get an IV going. Looks like our boy has one good arm available. Let's get it in there.”
I immediately got to work. For a moment, I was afraid my hands would shake and I wouldn't be able to get the needle in, but that passed quickly and I found the young man's vein. I hung the bag and checked his vitals.
His pulse was erratic, blood pressure dangerously low. He was going into shock, and it was clear why. First, second- and third-degree burns over what looked like at least thirty percent of his body. It was hard to tell under all of the dirt, soot, and blood, but there might've even been some fourth degree. If that was the case, his chances of making it dropped significantly.
“Hang in there, soldier,” I whispered. “Don't die on me.”
“Nori, call Catlin,” Dr. Furia said from where she was trying to intubate him.
I nodded and headed for the phone. I dialed the extension and asked for Dr. Fellner. She was one of the best doctors we had and we worked well together. That was good because I fully intended to see this patient through.
I lost track of how long we worked on our soldier, or even when we moved from place to place. His wounds were extensive and varied, making me wonder exactly what'd happened.
His left arm was broken in three places and burned almost to the bone in a few spots. The underside of it was relatively undamaged, only a few first-degree burns that would hurt, but hadn't reached the blood vessels there. The top, however, was scorched from shoulder to wrist. Mercifully, his fingers and most of his hand had been spared.