Page 24 of Doc
“Has Nova stopped by?”I asked the Prospect behind the bar, not bothering to hide the urgency in my voice.
He shrugged, gaze skittering away from mine.“Saw her heading toward the back a while ago.Looking for you, I think.”
My stomach dropped.Had she heard?Had she been outside the door during our debate?
Tempest caught my arm as I turned to head back down the hallway.“We ain’t done, Doc.You stepped over a line in there.”
I jerked free, adrenaline from the confrontation still running hot in my veins.“Get your hand off me unless you want it reattached surgically.”
His eyes narrowed, but Venom appeared between us before the situation could escalate further.“Save it for the real enemy.Both of you.”
I didn’t wait for Tempest’s response, pushing past them, my mind racing.The Prospect said Nova had come this way, which meant she might have ducked into one of these rooms, especially if she’d overheard the meeting.If she knew some of the brothers wanted her gone --
The first shots cracked through the air like thunder, followed immediately by the sound of shattering glass.Someone shouted from the front of the clubhouse.Then everything happened at once.
“Down!Everybody down!”Savior’s voice cut through the chaos, steady even in crisis.
I dropped instinctively, combat training kicking in as more shots peppered the building.Brothers dove for cover, overturning tables and reaching for weapons stashed in strategic locations throughout the clubhouse.Outside, engines roared -- motorcycles and at least one car, from the sound of it.
“Blood Pagans!”Saint shouted from near a window.“At least ten of them!”
The noise intensified -- more shots, breaking glass, the thud of bullets hitting wood.Then came the sound I’d been dreading: a pained cry as one of our own took a hit.
“Doc!”Savior called over the din.“We got wounded!”
I was already moving, keeping low as I made my way toward the back of the clubhouse.I needed to get to my medical room for supplies, and I needed to find Nova.The thought of her caught in this firefight made my blood run cold.
The hallway was empty, the medical room door closed.I burst through it, expecting -- hoping -- to find Nova safe inside.I found her crouched behind the metal cabinet where I kept surgical supplies, a small pistol clutched in her trembling hands.Her eyes were wide with fear.
“Nova,” I breathed, relief flooding through me at the sight of her unharmed.
“Doc,” she gasped, lowering the gun slightly.“What’s happening?”
“Blood Pagans,” I explained, already moving to gather medical supplies.“Stay down, stay here.”
“There are men hurt out there.”She watched as I filled my trauma bag with gauze, pressure bandages, and other supplies.“I heard the shouts.”
Another volley of gunfire punctuated her words, closer now.A scream of pain followed the sound of breaking glass from the main room.Not the time for discussion.
“Stay down!”I ordered, slinging the medical bag over my shoulder.“I mean it, Nova.Don’t move from this spot.”
I didn’t wait for her response, already racing back toward the sounds of fighting.The main room had transformed into a war zone in the minutes since the attack began.Tables lay overturned, glass crunched underfoot, and the air hung heavy with gun smoke and the metallic tang of blood.
Three brothers were down -- one clutching his thigh where blood pumped between his fingers, another with a shoulder wound, and a third lying too still near the overturned pool table.The rest of the club had taken defensive positions, returning fire through broken windows toward the parking lot.
I dropped to my knees beside the brother with the leg wound.“Pressure here,” I warned, pressing gauze against the wound, then I prepared a tourniquet while he held the gauze in place.The bullet had come incredibly close to his femoral artery.
The sound of more shattering glass barely registered as I worked, hands steady despite the surrounding chaos.I tightened the tourniquet above the wound, the brother’s face going pale as the pain intensified.
“Hold on,” I told him, already moving to check the next wounded man.“Keep pressure on it.”
I’d just reached the second brother when Tempest shouted a warning.“They’re rushing the door!”
Shots rang out, louder now as the fight moved indoors.I shielded my patient with my body, feeling bullets whiz past as brothers returned fire.The wounded man beneath me groaned, blood soaking through the bandage I’d hastily applied to his shoulder.
“Doc!”A small voice cut through the firefight, so close it made me jerk around.
Nova moved to my side, somehow crossing the battleground to reach the wounded.Before I could shout for her to get back, she pressed her hands to the bleeding shoulder and applied firm pressure exactly where it was needed.
