Do not die!she told herself over and over again. Her heart raced as they worked on her. Their wide eyes and pursed lips told her that chances weren’t good. Another wave of pain hit her, and she fell unconscious for a moment.
“How far away are we from the hospital?” The nurse by her feet spoke now, her task of cutting away the clothing now complete and had placed a thin sheet to cover Darla’s now naked body.
“About thirty-two clicks.”
What does that even mean?Darla thought, as she fought off another wave of nausea.
“In English, Darren.”
“Twenty miles, sorry, Bri.”
Thank you, Bri, whoever you are. Twenty miles seems so far away. I need to stay awake. I need to stay alive. I need to make a switch soon.Her thoughts frantic as she looked at the medics crammed in the ambulance with her.
“Sarah, what do we do?” Bri, who was still nestled by Darla’s feet, watched carefully as Sarah considered all the options.
Sarah. I knew a Sarah. So long ago. Or was it yesterday. Oh, my head. Sarah was my granddaughter. Will I join you soon sweet girl? No! I can’t die like this. Not now, not like this. Wasn’t Sarah also my mom? Why is my brain so foggy? Stay awake!
“We stabilize her, check her vitals, and treat her when we get to the hospital. They already know we are coming. How are her feet?”
Darren and Sarah now waited as Bri bit her lip. “They are pretty banged up. The heat from the engine must have been close to a fire level because there are boils and burns up to her knees.”
Sarah nodded. “Okay, I am going to focus on her head and will change out the linens to keep her blood loss to a minimum.” She turned her face to the man.
“Darren, I want you to manage her fluids and prepare an oxygen mask. Watch her heart rate with me in tandem as we each work. We need to be prepared to administer CPR. If that happens, you move to her head, and I will perform CPR. Bri, you start working to clean up her legs. We need to have as much of the actual damage visible and ready for treatment when we arrive.”
The three worked in silence, watching Darla’s heart rate slow down with every passing minute. Darren and Sarah exchanged glances.
“How close are we to the hospital?” Sarah spoke this time to the driver.
“About a mile.” His calm voice remained steady, an odd composure for the chaos he was in.
“We need to be ready to take a back seat once we arrive, to let the doctors take charge. Just answer their questions efficiently and don’t offer any suggestions.”
Darren smiled. “I think she is talking about you, Bri.”
Bri scowled. “It was one time!”
“Regardless, a good reminder for all three of us.”
Darla lay still the whole ride, listening, desperate to stay awake. The fear that this was the end felt like an impossible weight on her chest. She was relieved that the pain had subsided in her legs. She felt nothing more than the occasional pressure from Bri cleaning the wounds carefully.
“Uhhhh.” Darla let a moan escape, and all three of them turned their attention back to her checking on her wounds. One of them wiped some sweat away from her face, but she couldn't see which one.
“Her head is still bleeding. Do you see that?” Bri nodded her head in the direction of the other two medics. Darla glanced up at Darren and Sarah as the three of them gave each other a knowing look, a look that their patient wasn’t going to survive.
There is something they aren’t telling me.She worried as her pulse quickened.What aren’t they saying? Am I going to die? If needed I will switch with one of them and then get a new body as soon as I can.
Kinley’s face popped into her head as she waited for them to arrive at the hospital. She needed a distraction. Something to draw her attention away from the grisly scene that has been seared into her memory.
The ambulance made the final turn and came to an abrupt stop. The doors flung open immediately, a new round of rapid-fire questions from the receiving medical team started as Darla was removed from the ambulance, her body jostled with every movement.
“Information?” A male doctor waiting for them at the entrance holding a clipboard began inspecting Darla’s eyes with a little flashlight. The pull to the darkness grew stronger, and it reminded her of her time as Jane, right before she switched with Abigail.
Just a little longer until I can find someone who isn’t a nurse or doctor. You can do this, Darla.
“Female. Fifty-six years old.” Bri stayed by Darla’s feet and helped keep them stable as the gurney was pushed into the hospital and to a waiting ER bay.
“Heart rate is dropping. We need to get her stabilized and into pre-op.”
