Page 2 of Mountain Shadow

The marks led around a small hill. There was an overhang near the back, almost completely hidden by the snow. And there, curled up against the dark rock, was the still form of a man.

Jens kneeled beside the man, raising his chin gently and placing his pointer and middle fingers on the side of the man’s neck. He held his breath for an instant until his fingers found a weak, thready pulse.

“Is he dead?” Kat asked.

“He’s alive,” Jens said urgently. “Get Damien and Drake to bring the stretcher, Kat, and get the helicopter ready for us. We need to get him out of here fast.”

With a jerk of her head, Kat ran back towards the aircraft.

The man’s pupils were unreactive, his skin pale and cold to the touch. Jens didn’t need his medical degree to know the man was severely hypothermic. From his backpack, he extracted a small plastic square. He draped the thin, silver emergency blanket over the man’s body, tucking it in around the sides.

The man’s eyes opened. His glassy, unfocused gaze fell on Jens. Jens placed a hand on the man’s shoulder, speaking in a practiced, measured tone.

“You’re going to be okay. We’re with the Peloton de Gendarmerie de Haute Montagne. We’re going to take you to the hospital.”

The man shook his head from side to side, mumbling something unintelligible.

“What’s your name, Sir?” Jens asked. It was usually a question that served to calm people down, but in this case, it only agitated the man further.

“Rocks … all those rocks,” he whimpered fearfully. “Not going to know…”

Jens looked around at the rocks the man was lying against. There didn’t seem to be anything there.

He’s hallucinating.

“Please remain calm, Sir,” Jens tried again. “We are here to help you.”

He looked back to see Damien and Drake running towards them in the snow, carrying the stretcher between them. By the time he looked down again, the man had fallen unconscious again.

“How is he?” Damien asked.

“Hypothermic. May have internal injuries as well. He spoke for a second, but wasn’t making much sense. We need to get him to a hospital as quickly as possible.”

Not knowing where the man was injured, Jens placed a brace around his neck before lifting him onto the stretcher with Damien and Drake’s help.

The victim was tall and broad, but Drake and Damien shouldered the back and the front of the stretcher with practiced ease. Jens walked beside them, monitoring the patient for any signs of discomfort or distress.

By the time they reached the helicopter, Kat already had the engine running and the rotors engaged. Jens jumped in first, reaching to help Damien and Drake lift the stretcher.

Damien was the last to jump inside.

“The storm’s getting worse,” he shouted, closing the door behind them.

“Ready for take-off?” Kat asked, speaking over the headset. Though calm, her voice conveyed the sense of urgency at the situation. The three men confirmed quickly, and Drake went up front to sit with Kat.

While Damien called the Colonel to inform him of this new development, Jens took the time to examine his patient. His first priority was to get the man warmer. Thankfully, hypothermia was a common enough occurrence for them that the helicopter was equipped with a small warming cabinet.

He pulled out a pouch of IV fluid, checking the temperature to make sure it was right, and quickly started the IV.

“He woke up for a moment when Jens found him, but he hasn’t regained consciousness since, Colonel,“ Damien was explaining. “No, we don’t know, Sir. Jens hasn’t had a chance to examine him yet.”

Jens sat with his back against the wall, his attention fully on his patient. Already, his color seemed to be improving slightly.

Who are you?

And what were you so frightened about?

* * *