Page 62 of Beachcomber Danger

Chapter 19

Dane heard a scream at the same time he felt the unmistakable searing pain of a knife cutting through his flesh.

Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit. He didn’t know if he’d said words aloud. In his head, with the loud buzzing, his thoughts screamed his worry over Shana. He tried to look for her, tried to see her, but the buzzing turned his head fuzzy and light flashed, then faded like the pop of an old-fashioned camera bulb. He couldn’t see. He couldn’t stand, couldn’t tell his legs to move, couldn’t tell his hands to twist Emeline Chambers’ neck to end her miserable destructive life.

*****

Shana screamed as she watched Dane fall to the floor, his blood spurting. She would not panic, she would not let go of her control. She leapt over Emeline’s body. Still holding her gun, she threw Preston aside, aware of the melee in the room around her, shouts and rushing people. Someone else would take care of Preston.

She went for Dane. Collapsing to her knees next to him, she tore and wadded a piece of her dress and covered the wound on his neck. There was a lot of blood. Some of it had to be from Emeline, please God. She shut her eyes for a beat and forced herself to check the wound, to see if an artery had been severed. The way he went down, almost instantly, looked like she could have severed some nerves. No, don’t think like that.

She looked up and around and shouted, “I need an ambulance, a doctor. Now.”

It seemed like forever, but later she realized it had only been a minute, less than two, before EMTs rushed to her side and lifted Dane into the stretcher. He remained unconscious and still, not even a flicker of his eyelids. Shana ran with the gurney out the front door to the lawn as they pulled it into the ambulance. When she tried climbing in, she was pulled back by someone.

She screamed and lashed out, kicked and clawed at the restraining arms. When the door was shut and the ambulance careened off with its sirens blasting, she collapsed. Cap had held her back.

“Why didn’t you let me go?” She turned to him and realized then that she’d been sobbing. He held her.

“Because there was nothing you could do and they needed to work on him.” She felt his unspoken words as if they were lead anvils weighing on her chest. She felt his arms around her and became aware of all the other people, the federal agents, the party guests. The governor stood a few feet away from her, watching her with a serious expression, the kind eyes telling her he wanted to cry too.

She stopped crying and swiped the tears from her face as best as she could. She realized she didn’t have her bag, or her gun.

“My gun—”

“Andrews picked it up. We need to go to State Police—”

In a calm and steady voice, Shana said, “No way in hell am I going anywhere except to the hospital right now.”

Cap paused a beat then nodded. “I’ll take you. Andrews can cool his heels.”

A voice sounded from behind them.

“I’ll join you at the hospital at some point.” It was Andrews. The Governor stood with him.

She had no smile for Peter though she wanted to. If she were better, more under control, she would smile, but as it was, she felt like her heart was disintegrating in her chest and she hoped to be able to walk to the car with Cap without collapsing.

“Let’s go.” Her voice was raspy, as if her voice box had lost its power, like an electric guitar with no electricity.

Cap moved her forward. She wanted to go, felt an urgent need to be with Dane right now. But she dreaded going to the hospital. Dreaded what she would find.

*****

They went in through the emergency room doors amid chaos. The first thing Shana noticed was the trail of blood on the floor. She covered her mouth with her hands. With an arm around her, Cap kept her steady and marched them through to the nurses’ station where they found someone to talk to.

Cap asked the question for her, showing his badge. She realized that because she wasn’t Dane’s wife yet, she had no standing to insist on seeing him. None except sheer will and her let them try and stop me attitude.

“Dane Blaise is being prepped for surgery now. Neck wound. Serious blood loss though the major artery wasn’t sliced.”

Gritting her teeth against wincing or vomiting, Shana stiffened every muscle in her body with her effort to stay calm.

“Does he need blood? I have blood.” She sounded like an idiot, but anxiety bubbled as high as it could go without spilling over.

“We have the blood supply under control. They’re giving him blood now.” The doctor’s kind eyes lingered on her and she remembered what she looked like.

“Do you need treatment?” The doctor reached out and touched her fat lip and tilted her head to look at her temple where she knew there was a cut and a lump.

“Let’s get you looked at. While you’re waiting. It’ll be at least an hour before they’re finished. I can treat you in this room right here.” The doctor pointed to a door ten feet away off the short corridor leading to the swinging surgery doors. He was quiet and gentle, his words soothing and calming.