“Any news on King?” Gabe asked anxiously.
Matt shook his head. “Not yet.”
Gabe tipped his chin to Matt’s hands. “That his?”
He glanced down at his palms once more. “Yeah. I held pressure until the paramedics took over. I tried to stop the bleeding, but…I’m not sure it was enough.”
“It was.”
All four men turned to see a weary doctor had entered the room. Matt pushed his way through the others. “You Zade’s doctor? How is he? Is he okay?”
Removing the thin, paper cap from the top of his head, the older man looked down at Matt’s hands . “I assume you’re Matthew Turner?”
“Yes.”
“Thought so. Mr. King said you’d kept pressure on his wound. He’s been asking for you.”
“So, he’s okay?”
The doctor’s mouth turned up slightly. “Not sure I’d use that particular term to describe your friend’s condition, but yes. Rather, he will be.”
There was a collective sigh amongst the group. Matt’s legs shook with relief as the doctor eyed them carefully. “You Mr. King’s…family?”
“As close as.” Jake stepped forward. After making a quick introduction and explanation as to how they knew Zade, the doctor nodded. “Thought you all looked military.”
“Used to be,” Derek drawled.
“Tell us what you know about Zade,” Matt ordered gruffly.
“Well,” the exhausted doctor exhaled loudly. “The bullet missed all major organs, but it nicked one of his arteries.” His knowing eyes filled with empathy. “That’s why you had such a hard time getting the bleeding to stop. Anyway, as you can probably guess, repairing it was a delicate procedure. The bullet also hit his right clavicle. That damage to the bone was fairly extensive, but we managed to piece it back together. He’s in a brace to keep the bone immobile, which he’ll need to wear for six to eight weeks. In addition, he’ll need physical therapy to help regain the strength in that shoulder and his surrounding muscles before resuming normal activity.”
Matt thought of Zade’s job as one of the team’s snipers. The guy was going to go stir-crazy waiting to get back in the game, but at least he was alive to play it.
“Can we see him?”
The doctor looked at his watch. “He should be in his room shortly.” He gave them the number. “I do warn against staying too long. Mr. King has been given some pretty strong pain medications and needs his rest in order for his body to begin healing.”
“Understood.” Jake shook the doctor’s hand. “Thank you.”
Matt nodded to the man, too. “Thanks.”
With a tired nod, the man went about his business while Matt and the others made their way up to the floor where Zade had been admitted.
After a quick stop at the restroom to wash his hands, the four men entered their friend’s room.
“Man, King.” Derek shook his head at Zade before smirking. “You look like ass.”
With a drowsy smile, Zade lifted his left hand and flipped Derek the bird. “Fuck you…too,” he slurred weakly. His eyes turned to Matt’s.
“Kat?”
“We, uh…” Matt swallowed hard, hating that he’d let both his teammate and Kat down. “We don’t know yet. Jake and the guys just got here when the doctor came to tell us you’re going to be okay. We came straight up here.”
“I called Homeland as soon as Matt told me what happened,” Jake informed Zade. “Ryker’s working on pulling shit together for us as we speak.”
“Walker.” Zade’s voice sounded dry and scratchy as he said the bastard’s name.
“We know.” Gabe stepped a little closer to the bed. “We’re on it, Z. Don’t worry. We’re gonna catch the bastard this time. The only thing you need to focus on is getting better.”
