“The stitches are loose?”
“It means you’re not taking it easy like you should be, so that it can close up.”
Angela motioned Marc forward, ignoring the accusing tone. “Very good. Observations.”
Marc gritted his teeth, still furious she would use herself this way. “It stinks.”
Impressed and stung, Angela grinned. “Which means?”
Marc wasn’t sure what she had told them. He’d been too angry to do more than show up that first day, but he didn’t need this class anyway and she knew it. “There might be an infection starting. You need antibiotics.”
“Excellent.” Angela waved Daniel forward before Brady could disrupt the flow.
“Observations?”
The amazingly good shooter was the quietest man on Neil’s team and his words were short. “You haven’t taken a pill today.”
Angela sharpened her tone, “Tell me how you know that and why it matters.”
The Level Five Eagle squared his shoulders automatically. “By your tension and the way you clenched your jaw when you took off the sweater. You’re in pain.”
Angela waited, not about to let them use her weaknesses.
Daniel’s voice hardened in recognition of her silent order. “It matters because you have to be careful about mixing medications.”
“Good. If the patient already has something in their system, you need to know, but they may not be willing or even able to tell you. Check for the signs.”
She chose Jax, one of the rookies on Marc’s team, next. “Observations?”
Angela went through them all, handling it like someone else’s medical problem to be tended, and they responded by paying attention and following her lead.
“Okay, so what do we know?”
“You might have an infection.”
“The top stitch is coming loose. Again.”
“There’s dirt you need to clean out.”
Angela moved to the stool and settled herself in it with only a slight tightening of her eyes. “We’ll start with cleaning and then we’ll retie that stitch or put in a new one.”
Knowing from the first class that none of them would volunteer, she gestured. “Alex will do the cleaning, and Neil, the stitch. Everyone else, come closer and take notes.”
Half an hour later, Angela couldn’t hide the pain as the Trooper tugged too hard, sending fire racing over her shoulder.
Neil paled even more. “Sorry.”
“Come on man, get it right!”
The other Eagles were getting upset that the cop couldn’t seem to make his big fingers do what he wanted them to. Angela tried to sound patient, shoulder throbbing. “You’re doing fine.”
Neil sent his hands back to the thin thread, trying to be gentle, but his large pads with almost no nails slipped again, this time hitting her directly.
Angela flinched back, smothering a curse.
“Sorry.”
“Don’t stop!” Her voice lashed out against his guilt. “If I were bleeding it would be a lot worse, but you have to keep moving. Get it done.”
Neil had flushed at her pain and the shouts from the Eagles behind them, but her words were exactly what he needed and he managed to get a hold of the stitch this time.
“Good. Now like a shoe lace without the bow.”
The top stitch had come completely untied and they’d all watched the Trooper cringe as he removed the loose thread. To see someone so admired, be reduced to butterfingers, was something of a surprise to his team. It had them all crowded around, smothering her with their hard male bodies.
Angela met Marc’s pissed glare over their shoulders. “You’re next. Settle them down.”
It wasn’t an order or a request, it was more of a plea in his head and he gave a short nod, but didn’t say anything. He wasn’t sure he could, yet, without it causing a fight. The anger was too thick.
“Very good. Now we’ll have Brady come up and slap some medicine and a bandage on it. John will give me the antibiotics when he checks it tonight.”
Marc moved through the suddenly clear path with stiffly set shoulders under his gun-fighters coat and crisscrossed gun belts. Tension crackled.
“Use the Bacitracin ointment. Put a light layer over everything, including the stitches.”
Her skin was hot under his chilly fingers and he frowned as he lightly smeared the white cream over her injury. “You knew this would hurt. Why didn’t you take a pill first?”
Angela braced for more anger. “Because most of the victims they’ll treat won’t have taken anything either. If they can handle my pain, what’s a stranger’s to them?”
“And if we hate the sight of it and want to give a painkiller?” Daniel asked quietly, distracting before the Wolfman could start a fight. They were in his corner now, but that could change if he kept interfering.
“It’s up to the patient, not you. Their wants and needs come second only to their life.”
It sounded so much like Adrian that the two teams of men began relaxing. She had settled them down on her own. She and Marc realized it at the same time. Angela didn’t meet his eye.
“Next, we’ll put on a tight bandage. Who can tell me why it’s not a loose one to let in air?”
“Because you’ll get it dirty if it’s not tight enough,” Marc stated, voice pointed.
“Exactly. Always judge the person a bit when doctoring. It matters. Grab that box of gauze and roll of tape and we’ll…”
“Oh, gross…”
Everyone turned to see Becky standing inside the flap.
“You’ll never be able to hide that.”
Offended, - what was it with the redheaded females in this camp? - Angela put a hand on her hip and tilted her head as she fired back. “Like, why would I hide it, when I can disgust sooo many people?”
The men laughed at her mocking tones, even Brady cracking a grin, and the teenager snapped her mouth shut. Angela’s voice went back normal.
“John sent you?”
“Yeah, he said to try to help you for a while.”
“He couldn’t take any more,” one of the rookies muttered lowly, causing more laughs.
Angela sighed. “Have a seat. We’ll let you know if we need something.”
Becky pranced to the empty chair next to Neil, making every member of his team tense. Angela noticed it and made a mental note not to have the girl here again while this set of Eagles were. None of the Trooper’s backup liked her.
“Cut or tear a strip of gauze and try to keep it sterile. Place it over… a bit higher so the tape won’t touch a stitch. Good, now use one hand to hold it in place and the other to get the tape.”
Marc struggled to pull the sticky strips free without placing weight on the wound and was glad when it was done. This felt so bad!
“Once the injury has been seen to, then you can take care of the patient’s comfort. Medication, clean clothes, warm blankets, whatever you can do for them.” Her voice sharpened again, “If they want that sort of care. Some people honestly don’t need it. You wouldn’t rush to coddle a fellow Eagle, would you?”
Someone behind Neil snorted loudly. “Yeah, that’s what they should have given Chris when he got trimmed in Cheyenne. Warm blankets.”
Grunts and grins filled the tent and Angela chuckled. “You see what I mean. Some people just want to be left alone. Pain means very little to them.”
“Well I’d want meds,” Becky offered, waving at Angela’s shoulder. “Bet that would really hurt right now if you hadn’t had a pill before the lesson.”
There was silence, long enough for the teenager to realize her mistake, and then Jeremy spoke up before she could apologize.
“You mean like Samantha.” He went on as if Becky hadn’t interrupted, but his words were a warning to the flushing girl. “She took a hell of a recoil slip and didn’t even go get the stitches she needed.”
Alex, also the best-natured of the Trooper’s team (which was good considering his skill with a f
irearm), backed his XO up. “You see how great she was with that gun yesterday? Never thought Adrian’s extra piece would ride that well against a sweater!"
There was another round of laughter, but it was harder, meant to drive in the differences between the two females. Like Neil couldn’t tell after the mud throwing, Angela thought, but didn’t say anything to stop it. She agreed with their assessment too much. Life as Becky’s mate would be full of chaos and distraction until she grew up, something none of these men wanted for their team leader, but also something the camp could ill afford with Neil being so high in the chain of command.
Unless the girl suddenly switched her affections to someone else though, it seemed like she was set on having Neil, which was unfortunate for him, because she was clueless as a nurse and more than a little annoying with her bad timing and unthinking reactions. Doctoring definitely wasn’t her thing.
Angela gestured at the very real looking severed arm lying on the table. “John and I put twenty stitches in that prop last night. You’ll each remove one now. Let’s get started.”
All of the men did okay, especially Neil, who was determined to make up for his earlier clumsiness, and Angela motioned Becky over reluctantly. The girl had clay hands, but she’d sat quietly for nearly an hour and deserved a reward.
“You take out the last two.”
Becky did all right until she tried to pull the final stitch free. It was lightly stuck in the fake blood Angela had been sending down the gory wound while they worked, testing their nerves and reactions.
Becky pulled too hard, yanking the prop as Angela hit the button, and the girl picked it up to reset it on the tray.
Fake blood squirted wildly and Angela sighed in resignation as fresh crimson dotted her face and clean bandage.
Becky swung the arm toward the ground, sending another shower over the Eagles.
“Damn it!” Marc’s shirt was streaked in slimy red. “Put it down!”
Becky let go, backing up. Her face was the color of the thick gel and she moved toward the flap. She couldn’t do anything right!
The girl fled and those who’d been snickering allowed themselves to explode, drawing in the others.
“Looks good on you, Brady!” Neil teased.
Marc let out a sigh, not thinking. “Better than what I got from the other teenager.”
The tent filled with hesitant smiles and warning looks. Marc realized his screw-up too late.
Their thoughts rushed over Angela, full of her drunken son. Marc hadn’t told her.
“How could you do that to me?”
The tent went silent at her disbelieving glare.
Before he could form a response, she was grabbing her sweater and heading for the flap. “Class dismissed!”
If she didn’t get away from him now, there was no telling how bad it might get. He’d kept something like this from her and then had the nerve to get an attitude over her open actions? Who the hell did he think he was?
Marc ignored the call from Neil to give her some time, hurrying to catch up. “Angie, wait.”
Angela drew attention that she ignored as she moved angrily toward the training tent. The fake blood made her seem like she’d been hurt again, but the sheep would have to get in line behind her rage.
The fury of betrayal was ugly, dangerous. Did he know how many beatings she’d taken for that boy? Had he bled, birthed Charlie? Was it Marc’s heart ripping apart as the bombs fell? She increased her speed, holding in the pain. She didn’t want to hurt him. How could she get rid of him until she cooled off?
The training tent came into sight and she broke into a run. She would use the Eagles to her advantage; let them give him a quick lesson on how she felt about shit like this.
Angela moved for the hayroom with a fast glance over her shoulder that told them whoever she was running from was still chasing her.
The men inside the tent took in her upset state, the fresh blood and running feet, and rushed to help. The next body to come through the flap was knocked down and dragged inside to be hit with blow after blow, before he was recognized.
The Eagles had expected Kenn and there was shock to find Brady on the bottom of the pile instead.
Marc let Seth help him up, tone rueful. “I shoulda been expecting that, I guess.”
He shook off the bells, wiping real blood from his nose and mouth. “It’s what I get for not tellin’ her.”
Understanding filled the men, realizing what had happened. She couldn’t hit Marc right now and even hope to do any damage. So she’d had them do it.
“Hell of a mind on that one,” Doug commented, pulling on his army jacket.
Marc tried to joke back through the throbbing and the heavy feeling of doom settling over him. “Not a bad temper at all.”
Doug snorted. “Adrian will settle her down. Maybe you should wait and talk to her afterwards.”
Marc’s face hardened. She hadn’t come here by chance.
“Good idea,” he muttered, turning toward the flap. She’d run to Adrian. What did that mean? His stomach clenched with fresh waves of anger. Damn this place!
It was colder again and the darker skies were a complement to his mood as he stepped outside. When she needed something now, it was clear who she would go to. She’d replaced him.
Marc’s gut was burning with injustice. Nothing was turning out like he’d hoped. Even Kenn was still here! Marc couldn’t believe they’d let that piece of shit back in. She’d been hurt, before and after coming here, and they were giving him a pass because he had taken advantage of a prime opportunity. It was so wrong! They’d almost been free of him!
Marc’s mind was full of the anger he’d been carrying for the last week, but now despair had begun to creep in. Unless he could get Angie away from here, he’d lost her.
Angela had leaned against the hayroom wall, arm tensed to greet Marc as soon as she heard his steps, and Doug’s words to him had her looking around. Adrian was in here?
Adrian stayed still, taking it all in. She’d set Brady up by leading him here and was now ready to give a vicious temple hit meant to disable. How had she planned to deliver enough force with a hurt shoulder? Her gun.
“I wasn’t going to kill him, you understand.” Angela’s tone was conversational, “Just get my point across.”
Adrian’s face was unreadable, but she could feel his pleasure. Even emotional, she reacted like one of his men.
“He doesn’t understand how much I want this.”
Adrian shook his head. “Yes, he does, and that’s the problem. On the trip, teaching you was fun. Here, it’s serious and he sees the danger you’re about to be in. It’s eating at him.”
That fell into place and she nodded, putting the .357 away. “Yeah, Brady doesn’t like feeling helpless.”
“None of us do,” Adrian stated. “How about a lesson?”
Angela agreed right away. Other than standing duty over the kids’ area and her first aid class, they hadn’t been letting her do much. “Yes.”
Adrian moved out of the shadows, but kept his distance despite the urge to see if any of those bloody streaks needed tending. “Why did you come here?”
“It was the best place to ambush him, get some space.”
Adrian raised a brow. “And you would have followed through?”
Her nod was fast, but her voice was heavy, “And probably hurt him if he hadn’t realized what I intended.”
“After the first greeting he received, you hoped he would back off or keep coming?”
“Both.”
Adrian gestured at the cracks, where eyes suddenly disappeared and Angela felt the anger grow deeper. She needed a workout that her shoulder couldn’t handle. Brady had lied to her!
Adrian handed her the knife he’d pulled from the target. “Practice and we’ll talk.”
Angela felt her anger flare higher. He should have come to her right away!
She threw the sharp blade with little thought and Adrian wasn’t surprised wh
en it stuck in the center.
“What should I talk about?”
“Versailles.”
Angela flinched, went to retrieve the blade. “You’re the boss.”
2
“New arrivals in the Qz.”
“Copy.”
No changes in plans were mentioned and Jeremy listened for the next call to come across the radio, along with everyone else who knew.
“Angela to the Qz.”
“Copy.”
At least she sounded calmer now, the Eagle thought, impressed with her reaction. Kyle’s full team was on guard at the Qz today, but Jeremy had little doubt a few other off-duty Eagles would quietly show up, too. None of the higher levels who took turns guarding her liked the idea of her being so close to strangers who might be sick or dangerous, especially with the huge bandage on her shoulder that the Eagles still felt bad about.
Jeremy took a quick check to verify their full team was now in their perimeter spots on the garden area, ending with Neil, who had just come through the tent area to join them. Jeremy saw the need and smiled in response to his leader’s silent question. “Do you have this covered?” Neil was another shadow who would be around the Qz anytime Angela was, and Jeremy was glad the tight-assed cop would be there. In a fight, the Trooper was the only one he wanted at his back. Neil was ruthless.
Jeremy scanned the stalk-covered area around the camp again, slower this time. They were still on doubled duty; no sign of the Slavers was making them all worry. Most of their team was on this side of the tape, scattered around the livestock and parking corner, and each of them gave Jeremy a motion of disappointment as the Trooper left. They’d volunteered to be here because of the new garden being put in, eager to observe their team leader as he watched over Samantha.
Jeremy made a motion with his hands. “He’ll be back.”
Jeremy turned toward the crew now emerging from the trees. Sam was in the lead, loaded down with gear and she appeared eager to start her first project for Adrian. He moved forward when she looked his way and was rewarded with a smile that he returned openly. She was cute. Neil had good taste in adult women.
Men behind him shifted uneasily as Jeremy said something that made Samantha laugh. Did he want her, too? It was something none of them had considered. A fight over the new woman would be as bad as Neil taking Little Becky for his legal mate come October.
Adrian's Eagles: Book Four (Life After War) Page 34
