“We couldn’t find a vein to get an IV into him,” the medic said.
Not surprising considering the extent of the burns.
“I’ll take care of it.” Pulling out the necessary equipment, he injected some local anesthetic over an unburned portion of the man’s sternum and then got busy plugging an interosseous IV into it.
Once he had the line in, he taped it down so it wouldn’t move when they transported him, and immediately hooked up the fluid.
The medic hovered over his shoulder, watching.
“Jesus, I didn’t know you guys had that kind of training.”
“Yep,” he replied, starting the drip.
“We know a lot of neat tricks.
They come in real handy at a time like this.”
Cam slipped his fingers beneath the unburned edge of his jaw to check his pulse, counting the beats along with the second hand on his watch.
“Here comes some more morphine,” he told him, pushing it into the line.
“We’re going to get you guys out of here real soon.” His burns needed fresh bandaging, but for now he’d have to wait until they got to a more secure location where they could set up a casualty collection point.
Packing up his supplies, Cam cast a look at Jackson.
“Need any help?”
“No, I’m good.” He finished hooking up a bag of blood into the second patient, and handed it to the waiting sergeant.
“I’m going to check the walking wounded and get back to Devon.”
“Okay.” The young sergeant had a deep gash on his forehead, closed off with a butterfly bandage.
And he was breathing through his teeth.
“Want me to put a few stitches in for you?” Cam asked.
“Nah, it’ll be fine until we get the hell out of here.
It’s my lower back that hurts like a bitch.”
“Fractured?”
“Dunno.
I’ve still got movement and sensation in my legs—” He stopped and sucked in a sharp breath, tensing in pain.
Cam checked him over.
“Would be best if we carried you out.”
“No.” His face was dotted with sweat when he exhaled and spoke again.
“We hit pretty goddamn hard, but I can still walk out of here.”
“Sure about that?”
He closed his eyes and nodded.
“I can still shoot too.”
“Good enough for me.”
Cam glanced at the other soldier with him, a middle-aged man with piercing eyes.
“What about you?” He had a good sized knot over one eye and multiple lesions on his face, but nothing that required suturing.
“I’m good to go.”
Cam studied his pupils.
They were evenly dilated and he seemed alert enough.
“No blurred vision or nausea?”
“Not since I knew we were going to crash,” he said with a grim smile.
Cam grinned.
“That’s good.”
“I’m McCall.”
“Cam Munro,” he answered, shaking his hand.
“You a crew chief?”
“Medic.”
He looked familiar.
“Have I seen you around?”
“Maybe.
I’m with the 160
th
.”
That explained it.
“We’re going to need your help carrying the wounded out.”
“You got it.”
Satisfied everyone was as stable as they were going to be for the moment, he went back to Devon.
She had her M4 cradled in her lap while she kept watch over her wounded co-pilot.
When she saw him coming over, she smiled.
He shrugged off his heavy med ruck and set it down at her feet.
“How you doing, honey?”
“Okay.” She shook her head.
“I’ve never been so glad to see anyone in my whole life as when you came around that corner.”
“I know the feeling.” He knelt at her feet and reached for her left leg.
She flinched before he even touched her, and he was careful when he rolled up the leg of her flight suit.
Her leg was covered in bruises.
“How’s your back and neck?”
“Fine.
Just a bit stiff.
It’s my knee that hurts.
I think something popped inside when we landed.”
Landed.
They hadn’t
landed
.
Jesus, he hated even imagining the crash.
He’d have nightmares about it the next time he slept.
“Might have done it on impact, or maybe you hit the forward instrument panel.”
When he uncovered her knee, she quickly glanced away.
“Can’t look at it,” she admitted.
“Makes me feel queasy.”
“No problem.
I’m just going to feel around for a second, okay?” At her tacit nod he gently prodded the joint line.
From the amount of swelling and obvious discoloration she’d definitely ruptured something inside, or broken a bone.
“Can you bend it?”
She tried, but sucked back a sharp breath and turned pasty white.
“Nope,” she gasped, eyes closed.
“Sorry.”
“That’s okay.” He closed one hand around the back of her calf directly below the knee and placed the other on her thigh.
“Let your leg go limp.
I’ve got it.” She did, and with gentle pressure, he applied an anterior shear force.
The joint gave way without any resistance, confirming his suspicion.
But near the end range she went rigid and hissed through her teeth.
He looked up at her face and tested the anterior joint line with a thumb.
She reflexively grabbed his wrist.
“Shit that hurts.” She set her jaw.
“Did I break something?”
“Might have.
I think you’ve got a ruptured ACL, and maybe an avulsion fracture at the attachment site on the tibial plateau.
Won’t be able to tell for sure without x-rays, but you’re not going to be able to walk on this for a long time.” That made one dead and five unable to walk.
Six people to carry out of here, and only thirteen of them to do it.
Not good odds.
That would leave only one shooter free to defend them all when they humped it out to the exfil site.
Better than none, he supposed, but they had to haul ass to someplace a Chinook could get in close enough to extract them.
Bracing her leg, he rummaged through his pack for a couple of tensor bandages and a chemical cold pack.
“So I’m going to need surgery?”
“I’d say that’s a safe bet.
But a good brace at least.” He placed the cold pack against the front of her knee and wound the bandage around the joint tight enough to help keep the swelling down but careful not to cut off circulation.
When he looked up at her face she was still pale, but her eyes were clear.
“Want something for the pain before we go?”
She shook her head.
“I can handle it, and I want to make sure I’m still sharp if anything else happens.” She patted her rifle.
He didn’t want her even thinking about having to fire her weapon to defend herself after what she’d already been through.
“It’s going to be fine.
I won’t let anything happen to you.”
Her slender hand landed on his forearm and tightened.
“I don’t like that tone in your voice.
Don’t you be putting yourself in harm’s way for me.”
“You ready to head out?”
“Cam, I’m serious.
Promise me you—”
“Get your gear.” He climbed to his feet and hefted his ruck.
“We’ll be moving fast.”
“Cam!” she called when he turned away, but he didn’t look back at her.
He couldn’t promise her that.
Because he’d do whatever it took to get her back to base safely.
Staring after him, Devon’s heart dropped.
She’d never seen this side of Cam.
The hardened warrior part.
It scared her.
No, that
look
in his eyes had scared her.
He was in full operational mode and she knew he would defend her and the others with his last breath.
No time to dwell on that though.
It was time to move again.
Grabbing her rifle, she struggled up onto her good knee.
“Shit,” she gasped.
The shock of pain in her injured leg stole her breath and radiated through her body until she wanted to throw up.
“Let’s move out, people,” the SEAL leader called out.
He and two of his men took up a position out front and maintained security.
All the other men lifted the wounded onto stretchers or over their shoulders.
Cam and the crew chief took one of the wounded Marines.
Ryan and Jackson came back to lift Will.
She struggled into a standing position and leaned her weight on her rifle, panting as another wave of pain washed through her.
It was worse now that the initial shock and adrenaline had worn off and ten times as bad when the blood rushed into it.
Jesus, how was she going to be able to walk out of here like this?
“Need some help?”
She looked up into McCall’s bruised face.
“I don’t want to slow you down.”
“You’ll slow us down more without help.”
He was right.
She didn’t protest when he encircled her waist with a sturdy arm.
Slinging her weapon across her back, she stretched her arm up over his far shoulder.
“I’m going to have to hop.”
“That’s okay.
If we can’t keep up this way, I’ll put you over my shoulder.”
He was very fit and she wasn’t all that big, but moving with her extra weight across this terrain at this increased altitude would wear on him fast.
“If something happens, I don’t want to put you in jeopardy.
Just put me down and—”
“Don’t even finish that sentence,” he warned, and tightened his grip.
She took her first hobbling step, and her hip bumped awkwardly against his.
“I’m just saying—”
“Don’t bother.
None of us would ever leave you undefended, so don’t waste your breath.
Let’s get going.” They were last in line behind Ryan and Jackson carrying Will.
Two SEALs brought up the rear to provide protection.
The sun was up well over the horizon now, making her squint to block the rays reflecting off the snow.
She hopped alongside McCall, and they’d barely made it to the base of the far cliff before her leg was screaming with fatigue.
Her heart raced like it might explode, and she was gasping for breath.
Oh God, she wasn’t going to be able to do this.
Her body was already exhausted and they hadn’t even begun the real trek.
Fear tightened her muscles.
She was already slowing the others down.
Ryan and Jackson were already drawing away from them, and the SEALs behind were barely moving.
They had to be frustrated by how slow she was.
Obviously they couldn’t spare another man to help carry a litter or they would have put her on one.
Near the front of the group, Cam looked back at her.
“You okay?” he called.
She couldn’t spare the breath to answer, so she nodded.
You’re not a quitter.
You will not quit.
Just keep going.
Don’t think about how much it hurts.
You have to keep going no matter what.
She held that directive at the front of her mind and struggled on.
Gritting her teeth, she pushed farther ahead, doing her best to ignore the way her leg muscles screamed and knotted with each step.
The heavy E and E vest and rifle made her feel like she weighed an extra hundred pounds.
Shit, she couldn’t go much farther.
McCall was practically carrying her anyway.
As if guessing her thoughts, he shifted his grip and came around in front of her.
“Come on, I’ll carry you for a bit to let your leg rest.” Without so much as a grunt he bent and put her over his shoulder before straightening and falling into line.
She grabbed onto the back of his fatigues to balance her weight and locked her right ankle under her left to stabilize her ruined knee.
It didn’t help much.
He started jogging, and every bounce made her knee feel like it would explode.
She swallowed a cry of agony and the edges of her vision went hazy.
Don’t say anything.
Come on Dev, hang in there
.
Her stomach squirmed and twisted.
She pulled in a deep breath to push back the nausea and buried her face in his back when a growl came out of her throat.
“Can we get some pain meds back here?” he called.
She lifted her head and shook it.
“No,” she gasped out.
“Don’t make them stop.”
But McCall was already setting her down.
“We’ve got a lot of ground to cover.” He was breathing hard as he wiped his sleeve over his sweating, blood-smeared forehead.
“If it’ll make it easier on you, then take it.”
The whole group had stopped.
Her face flushed with embarrassment.
The stretcher bearers set their loads down, and then Cam jogged back to her.
“Hanging in there?”
“Yes.”
“She’s hurting pretty bad,” McCall put in.
Cam scrutinized her.
“I can give you some T3s at least if you don’t want morphine.”
“Fine,” she snapped, hating that everyone was waiting for her.
The enemy was on the move.
They couldn’t afford to stop.
She thrust out her palm.
“Just hurry.”
He was already fishing them out of his pack.
Handing them to her, he turned around.
“Take some water from my CamelBak.”
She did, and forced the pills down.
She hoped they’d stay down.
“Thanks, I’m good now.
Let’s go.”
Cam faced her and squeezed the back of her neck with a gloved hand.
“We’ll go in stages, okay?
Take it one leg at a time.”
Nodding, she reached for McCall but one of the SEALs in the rear came up and took his place.
“I’ll take her for the next bit.” He hoisted her up almost effortlessly and started out.
She couldn’t believe how strong these men were.
The muscles beneath her were like warm steel.
They walked for a long time, picking their way through the jumbled rocks and boulders.
Twice someone switched off with the man carrying her.
The drugs finally kicked in a little, making her dozy.
The pain was still bad, but at least the sharp edge was gone.
Overhead the sun beat down on them, making it feel warmer than it was.
They’d made it partway up the next rise when the SEAL carrying her suddenly stopped.
The muscles beneath her hands and cheek went rigid.
She raised her head and tried to see over his shoulder.
The point man was frozen in position with his weapon up, and the man behind him was giving rapid hand signals.
The SEAL slid her off his shoulder.
“Stay down,” he whispered, moving away to take up a defensive position.
She scrambled onto her belly and dragged her rifle around.
Any sleepiness from the codeine was long gone.
Casting a sidelong glance up at Cam, her heart stuttered to see him knelt in front of his patient ready to fire.
The enemy had to be damn close.
Cursing under her breath, she braced her left ankle on her right and belly crawled over to Will on his stretcher.
McCall came over in a crouched run and dropped in front of her.
“What’s happening?”
“We’ve been spotted,” McCall answered.
A shiver of foreboding ran down her spine.
With the cliff rising at their backs, the only way out was forward or back the way they’d come.
The force tracking them would have almost certainly blocked off that escape route.
That left forward.
She hoped there was nobody waiting to ambush them on the other side of that slope.
Movement in her peripheral vision made her whip her head to the left.
One of the SEALs was moving forward, toward the brow of the hill.
He was on his belly, and stopped at the exact place that marked the downward transition.
He was so still it looked like he wasn’t even breathing.
With almost imperceptible movements he eventually cleared the top and moved out of her line of vision.
Every muscle in her body coiled in anticipation.
She expected to hear shots any second.
Yet the silence held.
And held.
Until the muscles in her clenched jaw began to tremble.
Nobody moved or made a sound.
She flexed her chilled fingers inside her flight gloves.
Minutes later the SEAL squad leader made more hand signals, and she understood enough to know he was ordering them to keep moving.
Her slamming heart slowed down fractionally as she dragged herself up onto her right knee.
McCall helped her stand.
Cam looked back at her once, and she nodded to let him know she was hanging in there.
The snow glistened in the sun, melting slowly now that the temperature had climbed above freezing.
Inside her layered clothing, she began to sweat more.
She dreaded the thought of being stuck out here when night fell if a rescue bird couldn’t get to them.
If she didn’t dry out in time she’d be at risk for hypothermia and slow the team down even more.
Concentrate on moving forward.
That’s all.
Nothing else right now.
She couldn’t make the crawling sensation on the back of her neck go away.
The enemy was close and had seen them.
The crew chief came back to spell off McCall, and put her over his broad shoulder again.
“Almost there,” he said quietly.
“Where?” Was a bird coming in?
“Better defensive position.”
That wasn’t the answer she’d been hoping for.
“Can a Chinook get in there for us?”
“Don’t know.”
She shut up and held on while they moved down the rocky hillside.
Between the patches of snow, the dust was a monotonous light tan and fine as baby powder.
Like the surface of the moon.
The whole line maneuvered down the trail to another ridge, but this time with some shelter from the sun and better visibility to scan for the enemy.
The crew chief left her sitting next to Will and hurried over to help the wounded.
Weapon at the ready, Devon watched the SEALs form a protective half circle around them.
One of them was speaking into his radio, and she caught enough of his words to know he’d requested pick up.
About damn time.
Cam checked his patients.
He moved between them methodically changing bandages or adding fluid to their IVs.
Her heart swelled as she watched him work, capable and sure even in this stressful environment.
He looked up once and met her gaze.
After handing one of the others a bag of fluid to hold, he came over.
She couldn’t help but notice the way his eyes never stayed still and the rock steady grip he maintained on his weapon.
He hunkered down beside her.
“How you feeling?”
“Looking forward to getting back to base.”
“I’ll bet.” He unwound the tensor bandages and took out the cold pack.
“This isn’t doing you any good now.” As he reapplied the bandage, he avoided her eyes.
“Whatever happens, you stay low and out of sight until one of us says to come out.”
Her stomach plummeted like she’d just jumped off the edge of a skyscraper.
“How close are they?”
His brow furrowed as he scanned the surrounding hills.
“Pretty close.
It’ll be a race to see who gets here first, them or the chopper.”
Oh my God.
“But Ryan’s called in air support, right?”
“Yeah, but they can’t engage until we’re fired upon.”
Feeling sick, she couldn’t think of a single thing to say.
She watched as he stepped away from her to check on Will.
His skilled hands moved over her co-pilot’s dressings, adjusting the pressure and monitoring his pulse.
Will’s eyes opened.
“Thirsty.” Cam gave him some water.
“We going home?”
“Soon.
How’s your pain level?”
“Okay.” He didn’t look okay.
His face was ashen and shiny with perspiration again.
“Where—”