Page 7 of Thor
He meant it.I’d watched the Riptide bikers for some time now, ever since my BFF, Sophia, had fallen for Deuce, the treasurer of Riptide MC.These guys, these scary looking biker dudes, meant everything to each other.They supported and protected one another more than most blood families I’d known.They’d accepted Sophia into their midst, and by association, me.I felt safe with them.Safe and cared for.Unlike my biological family, I was sure they’d never use me to further their own agendas.
A wayward thought sent a chill down my spine.Had my family had something to do with this?Had they found out about me and Thor and decided to handle the situation?I locked that scary question away in a sealed compartment of my brain to be taken out and examined later.Once Thor was safe.Once I was calm enough to reason it out.
It felt like forever before the paramedics transferred Thor to the stretcher and loaded him in the ambulance.In reality, it was mere minutes.These guys were good, they knew exactly what needed to be done and how to do it.I wanted to pull rank and ride with Thor in the ambulance, but I knew better.There wasn’t a lot of room in there, and it was best for Thor if I found my own way to the hospital.
I stepped forward and touched the paramedic on the arm to get his attention.“Which hospital are you taking him to?”
“Yours.It’s closest and there’s a trauma doc on site right now.”He paused, sympathy written all over his face.“He’s young and healthy.He’s got a good chance.”
Coming from a seasoned paramedic who had been on the site of countless medical emergencies, that was comforting.“Thanks.We’ll meet you there.”
He nodded curtly and turned back to his job.As the door to the ambulance closed, blocking Thor from my sight.I took an involuntary step forward.
The ambulance took off, lights and sirens shattering the quiet night and I bit back a sob.
Would I ever see Thor alive again?
As if by magic, a car appeared at the entrance to the alley and one of the Riptide prospects stepped out.
“Come on.”Joker took my hand and pulled me toward the waiting vehicle.
When had he had the time to summon a car?I slid into the passenger seat and fastened the seatbelt.Joker drove like the car was an extension of him.He didn’t slow down, even for corners, maneuvering the vehicle with incredible skill.Despite the lack of traffic-clearing sirens and lights, he pulled up to the emergency entrance of the hospital just as the medics rushed Thor inside.
“Go.I’ll park and be there right behind you.”Joker gave me an encouraging grin.“Thor’s as tough as his Viking namesake.He’ll pull through and you can keep on pretending you don’t care.”
I was too worried about Thor to respond to that jibe.I jumped out of the car and raced into the emergency room, skidding to a halt in the lobby.I must have caught Sarah right before shift change.She was nowhere in sight.
My attention zeroed in on the receptionist now on duty, a kid who’d just started last week.Her eyes were as wide as saucers.She stared at me like I’d grown a second head.In hindsight, I probably looked like an escapee from the lockdown ward on the third floor, and I was lucky she didn’t immediately summon security.
I looked around wildly.“Where is he?”
“They, uh, you mean, um, the blond guy from the ambulance?”she stuttered.
I glared at her.“Yes, I mean the blond guy from the ambulance.Where is he?”
She flinched and gestured behind her.“Last cubicle on the right.”
I shouldered my way behind her and headed past the cubicles filled with emergency patients.Some were alone, and others had a loved one hovering over them.Monitors and machines beeped quietly, keeping the nursing station informed of their conditions.Weekends were always busy, and the nurses were the front line of defense.
Thor’s lips twitched upward in a weak smile when I slid behind the curtain sectioning his cubicle off from the rest of the chaos.His face was pale, and an IV line trailed from a bag of plasma into his arm.The blood had stopped dripping, which I took to be a good sign.A nurse was busy hooking up a monitor up to track his vital signs.
“Bet you didn’t think the night was going to end up with you back at work quite this soon.”He reached out a hand toward me, and I winced at the raw flesh on his knuckles.
I plastered a smile on my face and gently placed my hand in his.“Nope.If you wanted a tour of the place, you could have asked.”
He grasped my hand.“More fun this way, don’t you think?”
Joker poked his head behind the curtain.“I’m going to wait up front and direct Daryl when he gets here.I notified Ace and the guys, so once you’re finished grandstanding for Janet, they might want to see you.”
Thor narrowed his eyes.“Asshole.”
Joker laughed.“Feeling better already, I see.”The look he threw my way, though, showed how concerned he was.He’d been a medic in the SEALs and the fact that he was worried ramped up my fear.
I shied away from wondering just how bad this was.
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Thor
