Page 34 of Stay with Me
“Okay, yeah. A little dramatic there. When I was, maybe twelve or thirteen, I was with my uncle Danny when he got called for an emergency. He’s been with the Emergency Management Operations for the North Carolina Department of Public Safety for more than two decades now. He retired from the military before I was born. Anyway, I got to see search and rescue teams at work. The partnership between the handlers and the dogs grabbed me.” Drew shrugged. “My parents kept going on about me following Tris to West Point. Becoming an officer. Itold them I wasn’t putting in for an appointment. I was letting someone that I can’t even remember their name take the slot.”
“So, you went to East Carolina as an escape?” Brody knew he would have gone wherever he’d gotten a scholarship but to have had the opportunity to go to West Point and turn it down? He couldn’t fathom that.
“It was actually my top choice. When I saw the concentration in public health protection for political science, I was done looking at other schools. I did ROTC to cover my inadequacies. I thought —”
“Wait a minute,” Brody interrupted. “You’ve hinted ?morethan hinted ? at not being good enough. Being the fuck-up. I havenoidea how you got that into your head. I’ve watched you with your family. I’ve listened when you talk to them on the phone. Read the group chats. Actually, I think that Nova added me to one, but that’s beside the point. Why do you think you’re those things? I know your family doesn’t think that. They are all so fucking proud of you.” There was no way that Brody was going to let this go this time. “And I damn well know the Army doesn’t think that.”
“Ummm, I’m just an MP lieutenant. My brother is already a major, soon-to-be-lieutenant colonel. Cam played in the major leagues. Cal and Maddy are both doctors. Julia’s a CPA. I’m nothing special,” Drew finished quietly.
“We will be revisiting this feeling of inadequacy that you have — which I think is closer to you not wanting to disappoint them than actually feeling like you are a screw-up. But I can tell that it’s ingrained in you and that just one talk with me isn’t going to make it go away. But hear me now and in the future, you are not a fuck-up. You are good enough. You aremorethan good enough. You are special. And if I need to tell you this every day tomake you believe it, I will.” Oh, Brody wasn’t going to not make Drew feel better about himself.
“Pot, kettle,” Drew said with an expectant look on his face. “Feelings of inadequacy? Hits a bit close to home for you?”
It was Brody’s turn to fidget with his pant leg. He thought about it for a minute before answering. “I’m not sure if I feel inadequate. I don’t think so. If I’m honest with you, and myself, I think I’ve got an overdeveloped fear of being abandoned.”
Drew leaned over and placed a soft kiss on Brody’s lips. Brody wanted to follow Drew as he sat back to deepen the kiss.Ahh, avoidance, you friend of mine. But Drew didn’t let him.
“You’re holding my heart. I’m not planning on going anywhere unless you tell me to leave.” Drew looked to the side then met Brody’s eyes.
Chapter Twenty-Four
One hour and twenty-six minutes left on shift. Brody could do this. Nights used to be his thing but after being home and sleeping next to Drew, he was rethinking his stance. Granted, Drew was working the night shift tonight, too. He’d done his time on nights; maybe it was time for him to see about a permanent day slot. Something to think about. Or maybe talk it over with Drew? They were going to be in a car together for at least sixteen hours, one way, driving Smokey to his furever home and then back.
“Brooke Medical, this is EMS ten, med four. Brooke Medical, EMS ten,” a voice came through the radio. Shit. Brody was really hoping for a… Q last hour and a half. Yup, he wasn’t even thinking the “Q” word. Maybe this call was someone who really wasn’t sick but thought they’d get a bed quicker coming by ambulance.
Brody stepped over to the radio station and hit the ‘incoming call’ button. “This is Brooke, go ahead EMS ten.” He grabbed the stool with his foot and plopped down, picking up a pen to take down the vitals on the log sheet.
“Inbound with a twenty-year-old male. Found unconscious behind the Exxon on West. Patient shows multiple wounds. Chest sounds are decreased and crackling. Latest BP eighty over fifty. Pulse forty-five. O-two sating at seventy-eight on four liters of oxygen. We’ve got a twenty-gauge established in the right forearm. We should be at your location in seven minutes. Any questions or orders?” the paramedic asked.
Fuck. Why they were bringing the patient this far with UT Medical closer, he wasn’t sure, but they were going to take thebest care of the patient they could. Brody looked at the patient’s stats. “What’s the pain scale? Did you get a blood glucose?”
“Glucose of one-fifteen. Patient hasn’t regained consciousness.” Double fuck.
“Okay, EMS ten. We await your arrival,” Brody said ending the call. He took a deep breath and then stood. Looking around he saw Talia in the corner on her phone. Yup, they had all been taking the lull. “Talia, find me Doctor Joyce and then meet me in trauma bay one. We’ve got at least a level two coming in, maybe even a one. EMS is about five minutes out. We’re going to need several sets of hands and Randy needs to be prepped.”
“Are you fucking kidding me?” Randy’s voice came from behind Brody. He turned and Captain Randy Joyce was standing there with a donut in one hand, coffee cup in the other. Guess Talia didn’t need to find the doctor for him.
“EMS ten is on the way in with a twenty-year-old male…” Brody rattled off the report from the radio as he led Randy into the trauma bay. He pulled out the crash cart and broke the seal. If they didn’t need more than half of the supplies, he’d eat his stethoscope. The look on Randy’s face when Brody glanced at the doctor made him pause. “Randy, are you going to be able to handle this? Do we need to see who’s on for surgery or neuro to help?” Please Lord Baby Jesus let Randy snap out of this. Brody knew that this was his first shift as attending but Randy had come from Walter Reed. Yeah, it wasn’t a Level One Trauma Center but he had to have seen enough.
As Brody watched, Randy pulled himself together. “Okay, let’s get prepped for the worst. Let’s get ready to have blood hung, we’ll probably need both surgery and neuro on stand-by. Get Talia…” Randy paused and Brody could tell he was trying to remember something or someone. “Devon and Paula gloved up. Have Paula take notes on everything.”
“Ambulance at the door. Ambulance at the door,” Dave’s voice came over the paging system.
“Let’s go,” Randy said, leading Brody this time, both of them snapping gloves in place. Brody tapped his thigh, checking for his trauma shears as he followed to the doors.
“Devon, Paula. Hands on deck. Paula, you’re on notation,” Brody called out as he broke into a jog to catch up to Randy.
“Status,” Randy commanded as he started his examination. Talia moved to the bottom of the gurney and guided the crew toward the trauma bay. Brody began his own exam. The patient was on the smaller side, jeans ripped at the knees, blood saturated at the hips. The shirt was a goner, torn to the point that Brody was sure the only reason it was still on him was it was stuck with fluids and blood to his body.
“Okay, team. On three.” Brody and Devon were on one side, Randy and Talia on the opposite. They each grabbed some sheet and prepared to lift. Randy did the countdown and smooth as silk, the patient was on the hospital bed. “Let’s get the standard labs drawn. Add a tox panel. Make sure that nothing we do will fight with anything in his system. Brody, start a second IV.” Randy looked to the EMS crew and asked, “It would’ve been faster to take the patient to UT Medical. Why did you drive him here?”
“He’s wearing a set of dog tags. Figured it would be better to bring him here than have him transferred later,” the paramedic said. Brody looked up from the tubing he’d been prepping. The patient’s face was a mass of blood and broken skin. His hair was matted to his head. Brody reached for the man’s neck and pulled out the chain from his shirt. Reading the tag, Brody thought his knees were giving away. MORAN JARED.
“Fuck! Someone call Cap! He’s coming on shift. He needs to be here ten minutes ago,” Brody commanded.
“Is there a problem, Lieutenant?” Randy asked, a steely tone coming through.
“It’s Jared,” Brody whispered; the room faded as he collapsed.
