Page 4 of King from the Sky

Emily was momentarily distracted by how much blood this man was losing, but she managed to mumble the words “I’m fine” by some miracle.

“Good. You had me worried for a second,” the man replied.

He was really bleeding profusely. He needed a doctor.

“Oh, my God!” Emily said. “You are shot aren’t you?”

“Yeah, it’s not as bad as it looks. It just hurts a lot,” the man said.

“Are you nuts? We have to call an ambulance. You need serious help here.”

“No. I don’t want any hospitals or doctors. Can’t you just patch me up here?”

Emily swallowed as she realized that she probably could, but working on a human was very different to working on a dog. The anatomy was just a bit more complex and as much as she loved animals and occasionally did lose some of them she was not sure she would be able to handle losing a damn person.

“No. I’m a vet. It’s not the same thing. I don’t think I’ve ever pulled a bullet out of any living thing, let alone a person! I’m calling an ambulance.”

Emily pulled her cell phone out of her pocket and began to select 911 on speed dial. She had never really thought she would need to use that, but she was once again learning the value of preparation. Her dad had been so right.

“No! Please!” the man pleaded once again.

“This is not a negotiation,” Emily replied as she started to call 911 again.

“No ambulance. I’ll go to the hospital, but only if you drive me.”

Emily stood there staring at her phone for several seconds wondering what the hell she was supposed to do in this situation. On the one hand there was some guy who had been shot for a reason who seemed very upset about being transported by an ambulance. There was suspicion and possible criminal written all over the man.

But there was something else too. She could not explain what it was, but she trusted him somehow.

“Ok. I’ll take you myself, but you had better start talking and giving me some answers,” Emily said.

The man nodded.