Ambulance! Dialing 911 with one hand, she entered the house and grabbed a thick towel with the other. She hurried back outside to press the towel against Cam’s wound as the dispatcher responded. She quickly hit the speaker button so she could use both hands to apply pressure to Cam’s wound. “What is the nature of your emergency?”
“Gunshots fired, I have one man severely wounded, and I need an ambulance stat!” She rattled off the address. The glimmer of approaching headlights caught her eye. Someone was driving up to the house. Rueger? Maybe. She added, “Please hurry,” before ending the call.
The oncoming headlights helped illuminate the yard. She squinted against the brightness, her stomach clenching as an unfamiliar man emerged from the vehicle. He had short blond hair and wasted no time in rushing toward her. He stopped abruptly when Bruno whirled away from Kyle, planting himself between the newcomer and Evie to protect her.
“Easy, boy.” The man she assumed was Doc held out the back of his hand. She thought she heard a hint of a southern drawl in his voice. “I’m one of the good guys.”
“Friend, Bruno. He’s a friend!” She couldn’t hide her relief. “Are you Doc? Please help, Cam’s been shot.”
Doc gave Bruno a wide berth to join her. He knelt on Cam’s other side. They moved so that the light from his vehicle bathed Cam’s body.
“Hold pressure,” she instructed. “I want to check his pulse again.”
With a curt nod, Doc waited until she moved her hands to apply pressure to Cam’s chest wound. He was bigger than she was, and she hoped adding his weight would help slow the blood loss. She found Cam’s pulse and sent up a silent prayer for God to continue watching over him.
“Only one bullet wound?” Doc asked.
“I think so.” She quickly ran her hands over Cam’s extremities. “He was upright and talking for a while before he collapsed.”
“That’s a good indication the bullet missed vital organs.”
She wasn’t so sure. Chest wounds could be tricky. Especially since she felt certain the left upper lobe of Cam’s lung was likely collapsed. “I don’t suppose you have IV fluids handy, huh?” She eyed Doc as she continued palpating his pulse. “The ambulance is on the way, but I’m concerned he hasn’t regained consciousness.”
“Could be from the blood loss or severe pain. Maybe a combination of both.” Doc held her gaze. “You’re a nurse?”
“Yes. I work in the OR.” She stared down at Cam, feeling helpless. “He left the house while I was sleeping to head into the woods. I’m not sure why. Bruno and I came out to look for him when Kyle arrived. He threatened to shoot Bruno if I didn’t get into his police cruiser.”
“Kyle’s the dead guy back there?” Doc asked.
“Yes. He’s a cop and a brutal killer.” She grimaced. “He fired several rounds at me, yet I managed to run over him with the SUV. A lot.”
Despite the grim situation, the corner of Doc’s mouth kicked up in a crooked smile. “Saw that. Good job.”
She winced, trying not to feel guilty for what she’d done. It wasn’t easy. At the time all she could think about was preventing Kyle from continuing to shoot at her and Cam. And Bruno. She hadn’t even been sure if running over him would be enough, so she’d backed up to do it again, hoping to keep him down.
If she were honest, her anger had clouded her judgment. She’d been so upset and angry that he’d killed Skye and Jasmine, along with who knew how many others, that she’d snapped. If she could have run him over ten times, she would have.
She could only hope God would forgive her.
“We need those fluids.” She swept her gaze toward the road. “Why is it taking the ambulance so long to get here?”
“I have a medical kit, but no fluids.” Doc regarded her steadily. “Cam’s strong. He’ll pull through.”
She bit her lip and nodded. Before she could say anything more, the faint wail of sirens could be heard in the distance. As if sensing her need for urgency, the shrill sound grew louder and louder as the authorities made good time.
The ambulance would be accompanied by a squad, per protocol. It occurred to her that Kyle’s death may have played a role in the delay. The dispatcher wouldn’t know there was one less police officer patrolling the city.
Would she be arrested? She glanced at Bruno, then at Doc. “If things don’t go well when the police arrive, I need you to watch over Bruno for me.”
Doc’s brow furrowed. “I don’t understand why you’re concerned, even a rookie cop could tell what happened here.”
“Yeah, well, I wouldn’t be so sure about that.” There wasn’t time to explain, not when the sirens were loud enough to shatter her ear drums.
A uniformed officer emerged from the squad first, staring in horror at Kyle’s body before swinging his gaze toward her. “What happened? Who did this?”
She felt Doc tense at the accusatory tone. She ignored his question. “My name is Evie Tobin. I’m a nurse from Grand Rapids. We have a GSW to the chest here. Where are the paramedics?”
On cue, the ambulance pulled up behind the police car. She took several steps forward, until the cop lifted his weapon. “Stay where you are! I want to know what happened to Officer Abernathy.”
