Page 60 of G8
“We’re about to find out.” Hefting his pistol, Biggs turned to make his way inside the farmhouse.
“You go with him,” P8 ordered, giving G8 a little shove. “I’m going around to check on the others.”
“Fuck that. I’m coming with you,” G8 argued. His immediate concern was for everyone’s safety. At least that’s what he told himself, when in his heart he knew he feared the worst for Ingrid, considering what had happened to the woman N8 loved and almost lost.
Together they hurried around to the rear of the building where they found a K8 standing over the first man who’d exited the van. She was breathing heavily, and her arm was bloodstained. Including the rock she held in her hand.
“Good going!” P8 praised.
G8 looked down at the unconscious man, then checked around for any sign of Ingrid. “Have you seen Ingrid?” he asked, wincing. His leg was starting to hurt like a son of a bitch. Worse, he was fighting a wooziness coming over him from blood loss. Before he was aware of it, he dropped to the ground, landing heavily on his butt. K8 gave a little squeak of surprise and ran over to him as P8 knelt beside him.
“Hold on, G8. We got you,” he whispered.
“Is Ingrid safe?” G8 demanded a little more forcibly. The next thing he was aware of was he was flat on his back, looking up at the cloudy sky.
Somewhere in the background he thought he heard Ingrid calling his name. He felt his hand being lifted, then her beautiful face hovered in his field of vision.
“You…okay?” His voice sounded gruff, almost angry. He hoped she didn’t think he was angry with her.
“You’re going to be all right, G8. Lie still and don’t move. EMS are on their way.”
“I was s-such a dope. I must’ve…busted open that w-wound…during the fighting. Guess I’m buh-bleeding a lot, huh?”
He felt her kiss his hand and press the back of his knuckles to her cheek. A warm wetness slid across his skin. Tears.
“Are the…”
“Shhh.”
Her refusal to let him speak only made him try to ask again. “The babies…”
“They’re okay. They’re fine. K8’s fine. I’m fine. Now hush and try not to move.”
Closing his eyes, G8 concentrated on the fact that she and the others were safe, especially the little boys. He managed a weak smile. “Thasss good.”
He must have drifted off for a bit, when he caught the sound of two strange voices appearing on either side of him. Prying open his eyelids, he saw the two men in their EMS shirts getting him ready to transport him to the local hospital.
“Boy, I must’ve…really busted th-that wound…open, huh?”
“How do you feel, Mr. Children?” the one tech inquired, ignoring his inquiry. He shined a penlight in G8’s eyes. “Are you feeling chilled? You’re definitely lethargic.”
“I’m…” His head swam, preventing him from saying more. He heard one tech speak to the other.
“His blood pressure’s crashing. He’s lost a lot of blood. We don’t have time to stabilize him. We gotta move him stat!”
“I’ll help!” It was P8’s voice.
“Geeze,” G8 tried to make light of it before they rolled him over onto a stretcher. Luckily, he didn’t feel anything from the waist down. “All this for a-a leg w-wound?”
The second tech covered G8’s nose and mouth with an oxygen mask, slipping the elastic over his head. Through the hiss of air, G8 heard the guy reply.
“We’re not treating you forthatwound, Mr. Children. We’re treating you for the bullet wound in your back. You’re one lucky son of a gun, you know that?”
If anything more was said, G8 lost it as a soft, fuzzy darkness settled over him.
28RESUSCIT8
“I don’t knowabout that, Andy. He seems pretty suspicious to me!”
