Chapter Sixty-Two

Ernie, realizing something was wrong with Trapper, struggled to crawl from under him, but just as soon as she was out, she was swiftly brought to her feet and rushed to the elevator. In another minute, two more Guardsmen came into the elevator, carrying an unconscious Trapper between them, carefully laying him on the floor. Another Guardsman came in carrying Leah in his arms. Blood covered her blouse. “What floor?” asked one of them.

“Push one. Emergency is always on the first floor.”

By this time, Ernie had shaken off the shock of the moment and knelt next to Trapper, looking for a wound. The front of his shirt was bloody, and she soon found the bullet hole. Then she moved him to his side and found his back soaked with blood. The bullet had gone through from the back to the front. The minute the door opened onto the emergency department, she was yelling out the door, “Stanley, Trapper’s been shot!”

Dr. Riverside and Dr. Gates had been standing at the nurse’s station when the elevator door opened and heard Ernie’s voice come out in what sounded like a tempered shriek. Both men ran into the elevator, kneeling at Trapper first, but looking back up at Leah, still limp in the Guardsman’s arms.

Calmly, Stanley told the nurse who had followed them to get two gurneys and call for an OR. The Guardsmen lifted Trapper onto one, laid Leah on the other, and without anyone realizing, disappeared, their job done.

Gonzo cut Trapper’s pullover shirt up the middle of the front and examined the wound. He felt Trapper’s back, looking for the entry wound. “I’ll need some middle thorax x-rays.”

“What are you looking for,” asked Ernie. “The bullet went clean through.”

“Ernie, based on where it went through, we’ll be very lucky if it didn’t hit anything major on the way. You go with him. Get him cleaned up, and put some pressure on those wounds. After you get the pictures, go ahead and take him to the OR and get him prepped. I want to take a look at Leah. She’s pretty bloody herself.”

“It’s probably Trapper’s,” said Ernie, pulling up the side rails of the gurney.

“Ernie,” said Gonzo, looking into her eyes. “The bullet went through Trapper. It had to go somewhere, and it looks like Leah was in front of him.” Taking Ernie’s hands, he realized she was shaking. He called Gloria over and sent her to x-ray with Trapper. “You’re staying here for a minute,” he said to Ernie, walking around her, checking her whites. “I don’t see any blood.”

“I wasn’t hit.”

“Are you sure?”

“Dr. Gates, I was a nurse in a MASH unit. It’s…just been awhile since I’ve had to hit the dirt. I’m fine.”

“Good,” said Gonzo, smiling. “You can help me with Leah until they get those x-rays of Trapper. If she caught the bullet, we need to get it out.” They rolled Leah into an exam room. Ernie waited while Stanley and Gonzo search for a wound.

“What are you looking for?” asked Leah, barely whispering.

Moving her hair away from her forehead, Gonzo leaned over her. “Hi, gorgeous. Do you remember what happened?”

As she concentrated, her eyes flew open wide, and she struggled to sit up. “Trapper! Where’s Trapper?”

“Whoa there,” said Gonzo as he and Stanley pushed her back down. “He’s being taken care of. Right now, we’re taking care of you. We have to find out where all this blood came from.”

“It’s not mine. It’s Trapper’s,” she answered, looking down at her chest and hands. “Please, Gonzo, I think Trapper was shot. He grabbed me when they told us to get on the ground, but then he just fell on top of me.”

Taking her face in his hands, Gonzo leaned over her again, face to face. “Listen to me. I know you’re concerned about Trapper. He’s in x-ray, and then he’s going into surgery. The bullet went through him, and you were standing in front of him. Some of this blood might actually be yours. Now think. Do you hurt anywhere?” Her eyes darted back and forth as she thought about pain, and in a split second, she was looking at her arm. “Your arm?” asked Gonzo.

“Why didn’t I feel that until now? That…ow…don’t touch it!”

Stanley pulled a hole in her sleeve apart. “Yep, that’s where it went,” he said as he cut the sleeve off. “Looks like it didn’t have much momentum left. It went into the bicep and stopped at the bone. Gates, I can take care of this. Why don’t you and Ernie go take care of Trapper?”

Nodding, Gonzo turned to leave, but Leah caught his arm. “Gonzo?”

He smiled down at her and covered her hand with his. “I’ll let you know what we’ve got before we go into surgery.”

***

Leah paced in the surgical waiting room. Gonzo had sent word that some repair work would be needed, but he hadn’t been specific. He only said not to worry. She knew both he and Trapper frequently said that to the families of their surgery patients when they simply didn’t know what to tell them. It had been two hours, her arm was throbbing, her foot hurt, her thoughts were scattered, and the one thing she kept coming back to was he has to be alright.

Agent Allen stopped to check on Trapper’s condition. Leah was surprised as it appeared Allen was genuinely concerned. But there was also something else there in his eyes…a sense of failure maybe. He informed her that with Ms. Frank now recuperating at an Army hospital, his job was done, but that he wanted to inform her of their findings in the breach in the basement.

“Ms. Haverty, I wanted you to know that your basement is secure. They didn’t find another way in physically. They jumped one of the men under my command and replaced him with one of their own. I had never worked with most of those men before, so I nor anyone else recognized the switch. Anyway, this guy let the others in through a side door that had been secured. The alarm on the door had been disabled.”

“What happened to your man?”

Allen let out a defeated breath. “They killed him. We found him in a shipping crate over by the dock.”

Covering her mouth with her hand, Leah studied him. His rough exterior had taken quite a beating. “I’m sorry, Agent Allen. It does seem very senseless, doesn’t it? But knowing how they got in might help me better explain to Hector and Mike’s families how two interns got involved in this. Do we know yet just what information we’ve been protecting in defending Ms. Frank?”

“We do, but I…ah…well, it’s classified. I will tell you that Dr. McIntyre was right to call in the Guard. This is much bigger than any of us first imagined.” He smiled as he turned to leave. “Listen carefully to the news. If they don’t break the story, I’m sure you’ll figure it out. You were already on the right track. And I wouldn’t worry too much about your doctor friend in there. His kind doesn’t go down easily.”

Leah snorted as she watched him go, recognizing the backhanded compliment. The sound of the doors to the surgical suite opening behind her made her turn around. Gonzo was walking toward her removing his surgical cap. She didn’t say a word with her mouth, but Gonzo read her question in her eyes.

“He’s going to be fine. We had to repair a major artery the bullet nicked, but it looks like that was all the damage. It went in just below his heart…missed by only an eighth of an inch, nicked the artery, and then was deflected by a rib which explains how it went a little sideways and hit your arm.

“Can I see him?” she asked anxiously.

“He’s being moved to recovery. I’ll take you in a few minutes, but Leah, he won’t be conscious for a little while. He’s still under the affects of the anesthesia.” Looking down at her clothes, he said, “Why don’t I ask Ernie to take you to the nurse’s locker room and find you some greens? You might be scaring the hospital visitors,” he said, pointing to her blood-covered blouse.

Looking down at her blouse, she brought her hands up to the sides of her head. “I suppose so,” she replied in a shaky voice.

Taking her hands, Gonzo bent to see her eyes. “Hey, he’s made it. He’ll have to take it easy for a little while, but he’s out of danger.”

***

While Ernie found a set of greens in Leah’s size, Leah stepped into the shower to wash away the blood that had dried on her chest and stomach. Washing was difficult because she had to keep her cast and her arm dry. Tears began to flow down her cheeks even as she asked herself why she was crying. Finally, she leaned back against the shower wall, wrapped her arms around herself and stopped fighting the tears, wondering all the while why she couldn’t maintain control.

By the time Ernie returned with clean greens, Leah had stepped out of the shower and was drying off. As she dressed, Ernie watched her face; every now and then Leah’s brow would crease, she’d freeze for a moment, and then continue. “Are you alright?” asked Ernie.

Leah swallowed hard. “Yes, Ernie. I’m fine. I’m just…” Her eyebrows wrinkled again. “It’s just been a long day.”

“You know, it’s okay to feel that way.”

“What way?”

“Upset that you might have lost him.”

Standing straight, Leah covered her mouth as salty drops began to rain down her cheeks again. Ernie hugged her. “I’ve already had my turn. Take your time.”