Page 19 of Stilettos and Outlaws

“Yes, sir.” The paramedics pushed their patients down the hallway.

I grimaced. “You think their buddies will make another attempt to take Chuck?”

“We do,” Sergeant Durham answered. “Keep your eyes open.”

“Yes, sir,” we said in unison.

Durham’s phone rang. He glanced down at it and swiped right. “What can I do for you Chief?” He walked off.

I rubbed my aching forehead. What a clusterfuck. “Got any Tylenol, Doc?”

“I do but let me check you over first.” Doc Halliday tilted my head up and gently probed my face. “I don’t think anything is broken but Jenny, our x-ray tech, is going to take some pictures of your face and skull.”

Jenny, a fortyish woman wearing way too much makeup, smiled at me. “It won’t hurt a bit, and you even get a lollipop.”

“A lollipop?” What? Was I six?

Jenny added, “It’s chocolate.”

“Okay, I could use some chocolate.”

Doc Halliday queried, “You hurt anywhere else, Gemma?”

“Just some bruises on my back where Julie landed on me.”

The Doc poked around on my back. “Nothing serious. She’s all yours Jenny.”

“Great!” Jenny grabbed a wheelchair. “In you go.”

I got in the wheelchair.

“I’m going to hit the cafeteria,” Mom said.

My stomach rumbled hungrily. “Get me a breakfast sandwich and some tea, please.”

“Will do.” Mom gave me a package of wet wipes. “You need to clean the blood off your face. You’re scaring people.”

I looked around. Sure enough. Everyone was staring at me in horror. I carefully wiped the blood off.

“You missed a spot.” Jenny grabbed a wet wipe and rubbed it over my throbbing nose.

I flinched. “Uh, thanks.”

“Hold on,” Jenny said and off we zoomed.

People jumped out of the way. A few nurses even gave Jenny the one-fingered salute. We rushed toward a set of double doors. “Door! Door!” I warned. At the last second, the doors to X-ray opened and we whizzed inside. “Let me guess, you drive race cars.”

“Demolition derby,” Jenny corrected. “It’s a great stress reliever.”

“I bet it is, but my stomach is a little iffy right now. Can we slow down a bit?”

“Of course, Deputy.” Jenny wheeled me over to the X-ray machine.

The X-rays took about twenty minutes, and Jenny rolled me back to the emergency room at a snail’s pace. “Out.”

“Thanks.” I got out of the wheelchair.

Jenny popped a lollipop in her mouth and sauntered off.

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