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I bark out a laugh. “You’re definitely reaching.”
He chuckles and turns us back the way we were going. We’re just passing the driveway to Trouble’s office when there’s a loud crash behind the building, followed closely by some pretty colorful curse words.
“What in the hell?” Judge mutters. He grips my hand, pulling me behind him as we jog down the driveway to the back of the building.
“Motherfuckin’ bastard,” Trouble grumbles as we come up on him sitting on the concrete several feet from his truck. The driver door is open and there’s a trash can on its side about five feet from him.
“What happened?” Judge asks, helping Trouble to his feet.
I look down and see something wet on the sleeve of his shirt on his forearm. Something rattles behind me, and I spin around, nearly jumping out of my skin at what I find.
“That’s what fuckin’ happened. Now where in the hell is the other one?”
At Trouble’s words, my eyes widen and I spin in place, frantically looking around for another rattlesnake. An arm wraps around my waist, and I’m hoisted up off the ground. My legs are tossed over the bed of the truck. As soon as I find my footing, I turn around, finding Trouble leaning against the back fender while Judge walks around, looking for the second snake. The first one has slithered off in the bushes.
“Found it,” Judge calls, lifting his head from looking underneath the truck. He walks around to the other side, and I follow him in the bed. The snake in question is slithering toward the alley.
Judge pulls his phone from his pocket, presses something, and puts it at his ear.
“We’ve got two rattlers behind Trouble’s office. Trouble was bit. We need someone to come get them.” He pauses as he listens. “Got it.” He pockets his phone and comes to the truck, holding his hands out to help me down.
“Sanchez is on his way with Williams.”
When I look at Trouble, his face is pale and sweaty, and he has his arm close to his lower stomach and angled down. He’s rolled up his shirt sleeve and the area around the two puncture marks is already starting to swell.
“We need to get him to a hospital,” I tell Judge, worry for Trouble making my voice come out shaky.
“I have antivenin in my office,” Trouble pants, his breathing labored.
I look to Judge, who has his back turned to us, looking toward the alley. “Well, shouldn’t we get him inside then?”
“We gotta wait until Sanchez and Williams get here to make sure no one else comes across them.”
I cross my arms over my chest, my body tense with worry. Thankfully, it only takes a couple of minutes before a truck pulls behind the building and two men get out. Judge points in the directions the snakes went, then immediately comes to Trouble’s side. His brows are pulled down, and I note his own worry for his brother.
Trouble tosses me his keys, telling me which one to use, and I quickly unlock the back door. Judge walks with Trouble down the hallway and into one of the rooms. Trouble holds out his hand to me, and I drop the keys into his palm. He finds the one he’s looking for and goes to a locked cabinet. His hands shake as he unlocks it and the bottles jostle together as he searches for the antivenin. He does this with only one hand because he keeps the other angled down. I remember seeing an article once that said you need to keep the bite below the heart to help keep the venom from traveling to the heart for as long as possible.
I glance around and find Judge gathering a few things and putting them on the tray by the bed. Feeling useless, all I can do is stand there and watch. I’ve never known anyone to have been bitten by a rattlesnake. All I know is that it can be deadly if not given the antivenin quickly enough.
“Do you want me to call Remi?” I ask Trouble as he carries a vial and hypodermic needle to the tray.
“Not yet,” he answers. “She’s going to freak out, so I want to take care of this first.”
I nod in understanding. Remi is going to freak out, and Trouble needs to concentrate on taking care of the bite first.
As soon as Trouble gets on the bed, he instructs Judge on how to give him an IV. I’m amazed at how well he does with the instructions, not once having to repeat himself. Trouble leans against the raised back of the bed, his eyes closing. His face is covered in sweat, and the swelling on his arm is getting worse and turning an angry red.
As soon as the IV is in, he has Judge inject the medicine into it. My cuticles are torn to shreds as I watch the pair work together.
“I know this is Texas and all, but is it common for rattlesnakes to be in town like that?”
My worry is for Maisy and all the other kids in town.
“It’s rare that we get them in the populated areas,” Judge answers, hanging a clear bag from the IV pole. “What I want to know is why there was two. They’ll share resting places sometimes, but they wouldn’t have found a resting place here in the center of town. Too much activity.”
Trouble pops his eyes open. “They were in my truck.”
“What?” Judge says loudly, his eyes shooting to Trouble.
