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It didn’t seem as though Hammer had noticed her swift change in mood. Instead, he walked on steadily. So, she took several deep breaths and then focused on her surroundings.
The ground beneath them was becoming darker and richer as they continued walking. That surely meant that there was an abundance of water close by.
Water and an undisturbed ecosystem also meant wild food.
Her suspicions were proven correct when she heard the water from a nearby stream. She pushed past Hammer impatiently and burst through the long grass.
The vegetation parted to reveal the most beautiful clearing that Charlie had seen. It was certainly more beautiful than anything she had seen in the States.
The clearing was entirely untouched by human hands, and natural resources grew in abundance.
Charlie turned again, and again, looking at the space around her. She was unable to hide her delight at finding wild bananas.
It was when she turned to Hammer to urge him to join her that she saw him wobble.
She darted to him immediately, just missing him as he fell. He collapsed at her feet, and Charlie froze.
Time slowed to a standstill as she looked down at him. He had fallen onto his stomach. The makeshift tourniquet that he had fashioned had torn. Now, blood gushed from the wound.
His breathing was shallow and barely audible.
Her world spun around her.
There is no fucking time to panic, my girl,Charlie told herself firmly. Sure, Hammer passing out at her feet was panic-worthy. Sure, they were in the middle of nowhere, in a country she was only partially familiar with. Sure, there were three vultures circling.
Charlie let herself stare at Hammer’s prone form for a minute. Then, when her heartbeat had settled, she jumped into action.
Charlie hadn’t left grad school with only her many degrees in hand.
She had spent an equal amount of time learning CPR, studying herbal medicines, and had even delved into paramedicine.
She had been a scout, after all. The maxim of always being prepared had never left her.
But she had never had to treat a dragon shifter. She had no knowledge of his physiology, as Hammer had pointed out earlier.
But right then, none of that mattered. All she could do was try and hope for the best.
She got to her knees and leaned down to listen to his breathing, it was shallow, and his breath was also slightly sweet. Charlie exhaled with relief when his eyes fluttered open.
“Hey, hey,” she whispered hurriedly. She placed a hand on his head, smoothing back his soft hair. “I’m here. You’re okay. I’m here.”
She whispered the words over and over until the words became a string of senseless noise.
The first thing she noticed was how hot his skin was. She touched the palm of her hand to his cheek. That was equally hot.
His skin was also bright red, and as hot as his skin was, she did not miss the way he shivered.
Hammer had developed a fever.
She softly removed the rest of the bandage and almost gagged at the wound. It had gone septic as she had thought it would.
The skin on his arm was mottled and gray. The blood had started congealing, but fresh blood still oozed from the wound.
Charlie had assumed it was simply a flesh wound. But looking closely at it, she could see that a bullet had penetrated into the muscle.
Her stomach tightened with nausea, and her throat closed with anger. She sat back on her haunches as she considered the situation.
She was pretty certain that Hammer had an infection. The skin around the wound was red and inflamed.
