“Get in.”
Alli collapsed onto the passenger seat while Rusty climbed into the back. The male punched the gas, taking off fast enough to almost cause whiplash but she wasn’t about to criticize him for his driving. It had to be a pretty grim situation, the injuries severe.
“Who is hurt?” She needed to know if it was Obsidian, obsessing on the worst.
“Destiny,” Rusty panted. “He was in a fight and he is having difficulty breathing.”
“He was punched in the throat,” Book filled in. “He might have a crushed windpipe.” His features were emotionless but his voice came out unusually gruff. “I think it was a training exercise gone wrong. Hang on.”
Alli barely had time to grab the handhold grips on the dashboard and above her by the roll bar before he took the turn really fast, nearly tossing her out of her seat. She clung, letting the details sink in. A training accident. Not Obsidian. Thank god!
Her mind shut down as she went into professional mode. Years of training came into play.
She glanced back at Rusty. “Open that backpack the second we reach him. You’re looking for the light blue bag. Rip it open and flatten it out to give me access. Got it?”
“Yes.”
“Hold on,” Book warned again, locking up the brakes.
Pure adrenaline gave her the strength avoid smacking hard into the dash as the Jeep came to a violent stop in front of the dorm. Her hands hurt when she released the handholds and twisted, almost falling from the vehicle. Rusty just stood and jumped out, landing gracefully in front of her.
Alli stayed hot on her ass as they ran, grabbing at one of the outside pockets of the backpack to snag a glove packet attached there.
Book stayed at their side. Someone from the building waited, the security doors held wide open to allow them faster entrance. The sight of Moon huddled over a male on the floor was the first and only thing she focused on.
She tore open the glove wrapper with her teeth as she assessed Destiny the second her knees hit the floor on the other side of Moon. His color was bad, stating his hypoxic condition, and pain hazed his eyes. Terror too. His pale, bluish lips were open, gasping in tiny amounts of oxygen, and she stared at his throat. A red mark identified where he’d been struck.
“Fuck.” She shifted, walked on her knees, to huddle over his head from a top position. It was unusually quiet, the way it got during a tragedy but Alli refused to allow this to become one. She stared deeply into her nurse’s eyes as she heard the sound of Rusty doing what she’d been told.
“I’m here. Just try to remain calm, okay? You’re not going to die. I’m going to put in a breathing tube and help you.”
It was automatic to put on gloves, something she’d done countless times, not even giving it a thought. It tore her up inside to look away from him when he stared at her with absolute trust.
He’d stopped struggling the second they’d made eye contact and the terrified look faded.
The kit was opened, laid out, and she went to work. “Gently tilt his head back,” she ordered Moon as she grabbed a Macintosh blade and moved up beside Destiny’s head. She inserted the large tool and pressed down on the tongue, keeping it flat. She started gently pulling back on the rigid instrument as she inserted it into his throat, opening his airway. If there was no crushing injury to halt its progress, it should do the job.
“Hold real still, Destiny. I know you’ll feel like gagging but fight it. You mustn’t vomit. It’s almost there.”
She found resistance, swelling in the area where he’d been hit, and prayed as she gently wiggled the instrument. The alternative was to perform a tracheotomy. Punching a hole in his throat wasn’t her first choice, especially with him conscious enough to feel even more pain and fear.
It would raise his risk of infection and complications.
The instrument slid past the affected area and she was in. She grabbed an endotracheal tube and inserted it quickly through the blade, being careful not to go too far. She didn’t want to collapse a lung. She glanced into his eyes. “Breathe.”
The sound was horrible but he got air. She removed the Macintosh blade, leaving the tube in place. Alli grabbed a stethoscope, placed it against his chest, and listened. Good sounds from both lungs. Seconds ticked by while his body arched as he fought his gag reflex but he breathed through the tube. His coloring returned to normal.
She glanced at Moon.
“We need to get him to Medical right now. I need a gurney brought here and once we reach Medical, I’ll get him sedated and hook him to a ventilator while I see if it’s just swelling or if he’s got more severe damage.” She glanced at Rusty.
“Good job. Find the light-green packet in there that contains an Ambu bag. We might have to use it if he has trouble breathing on his own. It’s bigger than most of the things in there so it should be easy to spot.”
“What is it?” Moon stared at her.
“It’s a device we can use to breathe for him if he needs assistance.”
“Move!” Trisha’s voice startled them all.
Alli was happy to see the woman, even if she did nearly shove Moon onto his side to take his place next to the patient. The other doctor quickly assessed the situation before lifting her gaze.
“Thank you, Allison. Great job. You saved his life.”
“He was getting some air.” Her denial was swift. “He could have made it until you got here.”
Trisha blinked before staring down at Destiny.
She smiled, using her best teasing voice to put him at ease and make light of the situation to keep him calm. “You couldn’t stay out of trouble while I enjoyed the park, huh? Just blink once for yes, two for no. Did you strike your head?”
Alli crawled backward to make room as more medical staff arrived. Trisha had the situation in hand. She removed the gloves, just shoved them into her pocket, not willing to hunt for a trash can.
Someone stepped next to her and she glanced up.
Obsidian had blood running down his cheek from a source at his hairline near his temple. She spun, facing him, alarmed. “What happened to you?”
He was so tall she had a difficult time reaching high enough to gently tip his chin down to give her a better view. The cut wasn’t deep but it was bloody. Head wounds always were. The clues slammed into her instantly, adding one injured patient with another to link them together.
“You were training with Destiny?” Anger came next. “Who let this happen?”
“I did,” a deep male voice stated from behind her.
She glanced back, staring at Darkness. He scared her a little since the day she’d met him. He wasn’t friendly at all and she knew he worked as an interrogator for New Species. His file wasn’t one she’d been given access to—a warning that something wasn’t right—but she’d heard other Species mention that he wasn’t exactly friendly.
“They don’t like each other.” Her voice trembled a little. “You shouldn’t have put them together.”
His expression remained masked, giving no indication whether he felt remorse or irritated over her lecturing him. “Destiny is correct. You are naïve.” He stared over her head at Obsidian. “I’m taking you to Medical. They’ll want to look at that cut.”
“Alli will tend to me.”
“She no longer works here. Moon will take her home to wait for you but you’re going with me.
We live by rules and that’s one of them. Your female doesn’t have access to all those machines they use over there and I have a feeling they’ll want to scan your head since you just recovered from a coma.”
She stared at Obsidian, willing to drop the subject of how it shouldn’t have happened. “He’s right. We need to go to Medical.”
“Him,” Darkness clarified. “You have limited access and unless you are hurt, you don’t have clearance to enter the building.”