by Barb Shuler
“Not now. we’re heading to the hospital. They’re getting Kris loaded up now. One baby is here, but the other one isn’t ready to come out yet. Lana is going with her and the baby to the hospital. She may have a concussion and she’s still having some breathing issues. The EMTs will be out with Mrs. Landry in a minute.”
“Okay, I can go with that. I’m sorry to be doing this, but we have a boy that has been shot and two women that were the only ones out here at the time.” He said what I already knew, but I wasn’t about to put Lana through that right now.
“Ca-cameras.”
I looked down at Lana and raised a brow. “Cameras.” She spoke the word so softly and pointed up to the cameras around the building. Ah, well, fuck. I forgot about that. What the fuck is wrong with me?
“Cameras. Fuck, I forgot. I’ll get Derek or Carter to pull the camera tapes for you. That will show everything.” I said.
“Deputy McKenna, let’s roll. Meg, you drive, I’ll ride in the back with the patients,” Riley said.
They came out of the building. Her and Meg moved quickly to get Kris down the stairs, across the yard and into the ambulance. I moved to follow them and sat Lana on the small bench beside Kris. Thor followed her into the ambulance.
“Jacks and I will be right ahead of you.”
“Papa and I will be right behind you,” Shelby called out.
My attention was back to Riley now. “Get them there and don’t worry about the roads. We’ll clear your way.”
I shut the door and ran around to my patrol car.
After handing the baby off to Kristol in the ambulance, Jacks jumped in beside me. It only took the girls a minute to get the ambulance started and pull out into the street. We drove down the road, and the whole time I was praying we didn’t get bad news about Dad or Gabe when we got there. I rubbed my neck and sighed.
“They’ll be okay. I know it. Both of them are too fucking stubborn not to be,” Jacks said. His voice didn’t sound like he believed what he was saying. I shook my head and truly hoped so. I wasn’t ready to lose my dad.
When Jacks and I got to the hospital we parked and headed inside. The ER waiting room was, as always, packed.
“Deputy Landry’s wife was just brought in by ambulance. My sister, Alana McKenna was brought in as well.”
“Go on back. Wait at the double doors and they’ll let you back.”
“Charlie!” I heard the voice and turned to see Derek running our way. He looked panicked. Fuck, what happened?
“What’s wrong?” I asked. He stopped and shook his head.
“No word yet. Doc called Dad and said Lana and Kris were coming in. What- what happened?”
Jacks and I shared a look. I grabbed Derek’s arm and pulled him through the door as the nurse buzzed us back. The hall leading down to the ER bays was quiet, so I told him the truth.
“They were attacked outside of the center. Connor-”
“Son of a bitch! I’ll kill him!” Derek growled out. I shoved him back against the wall and made him look me in the eye.
“You will calm your ass down. She’s hurt, but she’s not bad. She shot him, he got what was coming to him.”
“Is he dead?” he asked. I heard the panic and worry in his voice.
“No, but he might wish he was soon,” Jacks said, a grimace pulling his brows down.
“Can- I need to see her. Please!” Derek said. I nodded.
“We’re headed that way now.” We walked to the double glass doors and a nurse waved us through.
“McKenna and Landry? They called from upfront.”
“Yes. Where is my Lana?” Derek called out. The nurses chose that moment to roll Connor Jacobs by us. I didn’t move fast enough. Derek literally jumped and pulled the gurney over. He was on top of Connor before I could grab him.
“You son of a bitch! I will kill you!” Jacks tackled Derek, wrapping an arm around his neck and pulling his arm behind him, all while on the ground.
“Enough. He won’t hurt anyone again. I promise you that.”
“Get him out of here!” A Doctor snarled while the nurses and an orderly got Connor back up on the gurney. They hurried out of the ER wing with him.
Derek fought to get free of Jacks’ grip, but that wasn’t happening. I could see the rage and tears in his eyes. Derek and I shared the same feelings of disgust and the need to kill that fucker. I was sure Jacks felt the same way. The look on his face said he did, anyway. Those shared feelings were probably why he grabbed his nephew before I could. If Jacks had been free to swing at Conner - he would have.
“Derek!” I heard Lana’s voice only a moment before I saw her. She had her arm wrapped around herself as she moved from the ER bay she was in. Thor was still at her side.
“Let me up. I’m okay. I’m okay. I need to get to her.” His voice held a slight quiver to it.
Jacks released him and they both got to their feet. Lana was in Derek’s arms before he took more than three steps.
“Deputy Landry?” A nurse asked. Jacks turned to her. She smiled up at him. “Your wife has been taken to labor and delivery. The baby is ready.”
“We’ll come find you once Lana is checked out.” I said this to his back, he was gone in a flash, following after the nurse.
I turned to look back at Lana and Derek. “Peanut, back in that bed. We need to get you looked after, then we’ll go up and check on Dad... and Gabe.” I scrubbed my hands over my face.
Dad was upstairs in surgery; and Lana was laying in a hospital bed, her head now bleeding again from where the nurse scrubbed the cut area around the small goose egg Connor had given her. The sound of her crying again had me on edge. Derek - who had never left her side - was ten shades of red, looking like a pissed off rattlesnake. All of this had me pacing the hall outside of her little room. My head was pounding and I wanted nothing more than to start this week over. I would have stopped our dads from going off to play in the woods. I’d have done more to catch these bastards before anyone got hurt and… I’d take a much needed vacation. A very long, quiet vacation. One that lasted a month. Maybe three. A vacation that was nowhere near the state of Texas.
I could only hope that this was the last bad shit we had to deal with. My phone buzzed. It was a text from Anna. “Get upstairs.” Well, that was helpful. I moved into Lana’s room and spoke softly.
“I’m going upstairs to check on things. I’ll be back in a few, okay?”
“Okay,” she sighed, her face looking pale still. They’d had a CT scan done of her head before they started cleaning the wound, so they’d had to give her something for the anxiety. She been given one breathing treatment already, so the kid was a little high and out of it. She was scheduled to have another treatment in about ten minutes. Hopefully that would help her.
I exchanged a look with Derek, then took off up the hall and to the stairwell. I moved up the two flights of stairs quickly and out into the hallway. I made my way down to the surgical waiting area where everyone had been when Jacks and I tore out of here earlier.
“What happened?” I asked, slightly winded now. I met Anna’s tear streaked face. She moved over to me and took my hand.
“Where’s Lana?” She asked panicked. I cursed and let out a long breath. “Listen, she’s relatively okay.”
“What does that mean?” she asked. I shared a look with Trevor and he moved to wrap an arm around her waist. I ran a hand through my hair.
“It means she had to shoot someone today in order to save her life, and Kristol and the baby. She’s had a panic attack, an asthma attack, has a bruised up face, and arm-”
“Oh my God... I- I need to go to her-” Anna went to pull from Trevor, but he held on to her.
“No, Sissy, she’s okay now. Derek is with her. If she sees you upset she’ll just freak out again. I- I can’t handle that again. She scared me. She fucking turned blue. If Shelby-” my voice cracked.
The emotions of the day had finally gotten to me. Anna slammed into me and hugged me t
ight. I wrapped my arms around her and we both cried. There was nothing we could do about today except to try and grasp what the fuck had happened and hope like hell that everyone we loved made it out of this place.
Wayne had already been admitted to a room, being looked at for what they considered minor injuries. He had a few cracked ribs, a broken hand, and a few cuts that had needed stitches before we left earlier.
So now, for the sake of every person in this room, I hoped that was the case. Both Dad and Gabe would make it out of surgery and be well soon.
12
This is bad
Shelby
We’d followed Charlie and them to the hospital. I needed to be there, to be with my family. My plans were delayed when I received a call from the OB department. One I had hope to never get… but the cards read something different for today.
“Doctor McKenna?”
“Yes, how can I help you?”
“This is Kelly, a nurse in the OB Department. Doctor Harmon wanted me to let you know that your patient that was brought in, Kristol Landry, is being rushed to the OR. She started hemorrhaging while trying to deliver her second child.”
“Son of a bitch!” I said as I slapped my hand on the dashboard. “Tell Catie- Doctor Harmon that I am two minutes from the hospital now. I’ll meet her in the scrub room.”
“Yes, thank you, Doctor McKenna.”
I’d looked at Papa, who had undoubtedly heard the conversation and sighed. His face was drawn tight with a mixture of anger and worry.
“You can’t go in the OR. You need to take it easy. You just had a baby yourself, Sweet Pea.” He looked concerned. I reached over and took his hand.
“I have to. I’ll be fine. I can rest later. If I remember stories of the old days, women popped babies out and were working on the farm or in the fields a few days later. I can handle this. I have to be there for Kris. She needs me, Papa.”
“Alright, I’ll go into the waiting room with the others then. You come and tell us something as soon as you know it.
“Of course, Papa.”
Papa dropped me off at the front door before he went to find a parking space. I made my way through the hospital - speed walking like a crazy person - and made it up to the Labor and Delivery Wing in three minutes flat. Damn elevators are slow, but there was no way I could make it up three flights of stairs. Not yet anyway.
When I got to the sliding doors and scanned my badge - which luckily I always kept in my bag - I was panting like I’d run a marathon, but I was here. I moved straight down the hall to the operating room door. I had two nurses - Ella and Portia - who met me at the door.
“Doctor Harmon said you may require a little help,” Ella said, a cheeky smile playing at her lips.
“Yes, please. How is Kristol? Give it to me straight, ladies.”
“She’s stable. They’re doing the emergency Caesarian now. The Anesthesiologist and his Nurse Anesthetist are both in there. They had to put her under. The OB, his First Assistant, Scrub Nurse, and Circulatory Nurse are here. Also, the Surgical Technicians, Unit Secretary, and the Surgical Orderly are in there as well. Her breathing is a little raspy, and her heart rate dropped, but as I said, she’s stable.”
“Okay, let’s get me in there.” I moved into the scrub room and grab a scrub kit above the sink.
“How’s the new baby, Doctor McKenna?” Portia asked. I smiled, turning slightly to where she stood.
“He’s adorable, and already spoiled.”
“We’d love to see him, and the twins sometime.”
“I’ll make it happen.”
I finished washing up and moved into the surgical suite. By the time they finished helping me get my cap, gown, face shield and gloves on, Catie, Dr. Harmon, was almost done with the cesarean. Her hands were inside of Kris, bringing the baby out.
“Catie, how’s she doing?” I asked, my gaze shooting up to Kris’s face. The oxygen mask she wore made her look so much worse.
“She had a bleeder. I clamped it so I could get the baby out. You sure you should you be here? On your feet like this?” She has the nerve to use her ‘Doctor’ tone on me. I huffed. She had called me hadn’t she?
“I’m fine. What happened here?” I asked as I moved to the other side of the table, swapping places with the first assistant.
“Long story short. We took the other baby to be checked over. We were gearing up for her to push when the bleeding started. She has Placenta Accreta. With the previous damage already sustained to her uterus-”
“She need a hysterectomy?” I asked, already knowing the answer.
“Yes. Her husband has already signed the papers. He’s in the waiting room with the others.”
“I’ll take care of the baby while you and your team do what you need to for Kris.”
“Thank you. I expect you to go take it easy after that. I mean it, Shelby.”
I gave her a look she couldn’t see through the mask. Ugh!
“Yeah, yeah. I’m going up to wait with my family.” I took the baby when Catie had her out. I moved to the table with the nurse and we hurried to get her nose and mouth cleaned out. Her first cry had tears in my eyes. She was beautiful. A little small, but for a surprise baby, that was a great sign. She was breathing normally, her coloring was good and she weighed exactly five pounds. Her brother was a little heavier, but I knew that already. He had been almost seven pounds and was nineteen inches long. This little cutie was only fifteen inches long.
I got her swaddled up, laid her in the plastic bassinet, and with the nurse behind me, we moved out of the surgery suite. After briefly taking the baby down to the NICU to get her properly checked, the nurse and I wheeled her down to the waiting area.
There was a crowd of people at the end of the hall. I took a deep breath when Jacks came rushing my way. I rested my free hand on his chest.
“Is she-”
“She’s doing great. They got the baby out, there were no more issues. Dr Harmon is performing the hysterectomy now. She’ll be out as soon as it’s done to talk to you. Now, Jackson, meet your daughter. She’s perfect.”
I picked the baby up and placed her in his arms, but had to take her right back when he collapsed. Charlie came out of nowhere and moved him to a bench along the wall. I’d never seen Jacks emotional. Never.
It shocked the shit out of me. He was always the level-headed, calm, cool as a fucking cucumber to the point of wanting to slap him, kind of man, but now he was an emotional mess. I moved to where they sat and knelt down, his daughter tucked into my arm.
“Jacks, hey, come on. Your girl is a fighter. She’ll be back to her happy go lucky self in a few days.”
“What if-“
“Don’t go there, man. Shelby’s right. She’s going to be back on her feet in no time.”
“You know she’s strong. She’s been through so much and has come out on top. You have two beautiful, new babies. Let’s focus on the joy of their birth, okay, not the bad shit.”
I shifted and laid his daughter in his arms and the man visibly relaxed. He ran a finger over his daughter’s cheek.
“She’s beautiful. Where’s her brother?” He asked, his gaze meeting mine.
“He’s down in the nursery. Come on, why don’t we go check on him?”
“Can I come too?” We looked up to see Derek wheeling Lana closer. She was dressed in her street clothes, but she was still a little pale. I stood, slowly, I was starting to hurt like a mofo. I tried to not show I was in pain while moving to Lana. I bent at the waist and hugged her.
“How are you feeling?” I gave her the once over. I thought I was being slick by taking her hand and holding it to me, but she figured me out.
“My pulse is fine. I’m fine, just-”
“A little high,” Derek finished for her, chuckling. I raised a brow and laughed with him.
Lana had a hand on Thor’s neck, the pup keeping her calmer than any of us could.
“She was released to me. We borrowed a chair so we cou
ld come up here. She wanted to know if Kris was okay, and to check on her dad. Where’s Ma?” His face scanned the people standing around. Walker, his men, Anna, Trevor, the Chief of Police and a few others were all here. I scanned the rest of the room looking for her.
“Where are they?” I turned to Charlie. “Where’s Papa?” I asked. He and Jacks stood.
“Drew’s with Dani Lynn. She was hurt out in the woods. They’re still down in the ER,” Jacks said. His voice strained.
“Uh, no, they aren’t,” Stella said as she walked our way. She was dirty, her hair up in a messy bun that looked a month old. I moved to give her a big hug. Her face was red, her eyes bloodshot and she looked ready to collapse.
“How’s your dad?” A few people asked. I took her hand and watched as she took a deep breath and let it out.
“He’s going to be fine. Seven broken ribs, a broken hand that they’ve casted. He’s going to be sore for a while. Doc gave him orders to take it easy. He will be up here in a few. The boys are getting him dressed. He’s as pissed off as a rattlesnake cause he needs help. ”
“Where is Ma?” Derek asked her. She looked at him and sighed.
“She was talking to Doc Crandall. We had to call her in. She had a break down after getting news from the OR, I won’t lie kid, it was bad. They gave her some meds to calm her down. Drew went to get her something from the cafeteria and then they’ll be up here. She’s gonna need you to keep her going. She’s really worried about Gabe.”
“What news?” he asked. Stella looked away. I gave her hand a squeeze. When she looked back around she had tears in her eyes.
“His heart stopped, but they got him back. He’s stable now, but it was touch and go for a while there.”
Derek’s face paled and he moved to slide down the wall. He gripped his head and I swear my heart was breaking. Papa moved to sit beside him on the floor and hugged him against his chest. I know from experience that those hugs could heal all kinds of worries.
I let out a shaky breath.
