AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Her patient.
“Sorry, Zeb, but have faith. Guardians never fail, and right now, that means I need to take care of my patient and get you back to fighting strength.” Doc Summers turns her attention to Mitzy. “I need you to either clear the room, or I need to move him out.”
“I’m staying.” No fucking way is she pulling me from the action. If I can’t be with my team, I want to be right beside Mitzy.
“You need rest if you’re going to rejoin your team when they go out again.”
“Excuse me?” I do a double take, wondering if I heard her correctly.
“You’re healing faster than I thought.” She sets to work, checking my vitals, and changing the bandages on my chest.
“What are you saying?”
“I’m saying, do as your doctor says. Get some rest and there’s a small chance you can go out with your team next time instead of watching from the sidelines.”
“But I thought you said weeks?”
“I said you should recover for two weeks, but if you did what I said—to the letter—I might let you out in a few days. Do you want to save your girl?”
“Hell yes.” There’s no hesitation in my voice.
“Well, then you’re lucky I’m the one who stitched you back together. That bullet didn’t do as much damage as it could have done. It nicked a blood vessel, which bled into your chest and caused your lung to collapse. We stitched up the blood vessel, drained the blood, and your lung’s reinflated. Your breath sounds are clear and equal. There’s no sign of fresh bleeding, which means the operation is a success. You’ll get winded easier than you might otherwise, but there’s no reason I can’t let you back out into the field.” She pauses, then adds. “It’s a good thing Guardians heal fast.”
“We’ll leave our gear here and continue back at HQ. That way he can get some rest.” Mitzy turns to me and lifts a finger. “I’m not giving up. We will find her.” With that, she claps her hands and gets the attention of her team.
In less than a minute, they clear the room, leaving me alone with Doc Summers.
“Here, this will help you sleep.” Doc Summers injects me with a painkiller and an antibacterial agent that will help speed up the healing process. Then she hands me the inspirometer. “Do the work. Rest. Work on your lung. I’ll check in on you through the night.”
Under her intense scrutiny, I dutifully lift the device to my mouth and inhale. For the first time, all three balls lift within their tubes and hang there for a few seconds before I can no longer hold them in place.
“Nice improvement.” She places an empty urinal beside the bed. As I’m tied to the wall by the tubing snaking from my chest, I’m effectively a prisoner and bed bound. “Now, get some sleep. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Yes, Doc.” I dutifully breathe in and lift the blue balls like a good little patient.
Skye rolls her eyes, then leaves me alone, flicking off the switch on her way out. That’s another thing I can’t reach with the way I’m tethered to the wall.
And to my chagrin, with the darkness and whatever she put in my IV, I go out like a light.
Throughout the night, my dreams fill with everything Kaye—her smiling face and gentle laughter fill my dreams. When morning comes, I feel ten times better. Nowhere near normal, but getting there.
As if waiting for me to wake, a soft rap on the door pulls my attention from the inspirometer to the door. Not only do I get all three balls to rise to the top, but my breath’s strong enough to keep them there for thirty seconds.
Definitely a win.
When I look up, CJ saunters into the room. Sam follows on his heels. I’m about to greet them with a grin and show off the amazing progress my body made healing overnight, but the expressions on their faces are grim.
Afraid for the worst, I can’t help the next words out of my mouth.
“What’s wrong?”
Sam pulls a stool over to the side of my bed and takes a seat.
“What?” I struggle to keep my voice from shaking.
CJ and Sam look at each other, then turn back to me. CJ takes a deep breath before he speaks.
“We found something,” he says. “It’s not good.”
