Page 70 of Give Me a Reason

“It’s good you know what you’re doing.” She gestured to his jacket and the wad of cloth pressed against Bethany’s head. She gently lifted his hand to peek under the soaked cloth. “I don’t think she’s bleeding anymore. Can you check?”

Frederick nodded and guided her hand to aim the flashlight at the wound. It was hard to see through the thick, matted hair. He dragged over the emergency bag Anne had brought with her and took out fresh gauze to dab against the laceration.

“You’re right. The bleeding stopped.” He peered closely at Bethany’s injury with the help of Anne’s flashlight. “The gash must be superficial. Scalp wounds tend to bleed profusely even when they aren’t deep.”

“Oh, thank goodness.” Anne took off her cardigan and draped it over Bethany. “You hear that, sweetie? The cut on your head is shallow, and the bleeding already stopped, thanks to Frederick. Just hang on a few minutes longer.”

He blindly reached for Anne’s hand, and she squeezed his cold fingers. She didn’t say anything else, but she didn’t need to. Just having her by his side let him breathe easier and allowed warmth to seep back into his frozen limbs.

“Bethany!” Coraline ran toward them, kicking up dust on the narrow trail.

“Babe, I need you to slow down.” Joe followed right behind her with a flashlight lighting their way. “We can’t have you falling, too. Please try to calm down. You need to be strong for her.”

Coraline didn’t slow down until she reached Bethany. Then she fell to her knees and wrapped her arms around her unconscious little sister. After a quick squeeze, Anne released Frederick’s hand to rub soothing circles on Coraline’s back as sobs racked her body.

“She’s going to be okay,” Anne murmured. “We just need to get her to the hospital.”

“Sorry.” Joe raked his fingers through his hair. “I asked Coraline to stay at the villa, but she wouldn’t hear of it.”

“I don’t blame her,” Frederick said gruffly, squeezing the back of his neck. Guilt wrapped around his heart as he watched Coraline hiccup and sniffle, trying to stem the tide of tears. “Thanks for coming, guys. Did you bring something we could use as a gurney?”

“Yeah, we got that covered.” Pete walked up to them and pointed to the makeshift gurney lying on the ground a few feet away.

“Sorry I dropped my end, Pete,” Joe said, hovering next to his fiancée. “I had to make sure Coraline didn’t take a tumble.”

“You did the right thing. We were almost here anyway.” Pete leaned toward Frederick. “Hey, how are you doing?”

“Me? I’m fine.” Frederick stared down at his bloody hands. “I’m not the one who got hurt.”

“I know you won’t listen, but don’t blame yourself for this.It was an accident.” Pete clapped him on the back, then gently ushered Anne and Coraline away from Bethany. “Okay, ladies. Let us do our job.”

Frederick shook off his stupor and helped his friends lift Bethany onto the gurney. It looked as though they had snapped the heads off two broomsticks and then secured a bedsheet between them.

When the patient was safely loaded onto the gurney, he crouched to take hold of one end as Pete secured the other end. The makeshift gurney was a little short, with Bethany’s feet hanging off one end, but they weren’t far from the villa and their cars.

“Captain, I got that.” Joe rushed to his side. “You should catch your breath.”

“No, I’m fine.” Frederick nodded toward Coraline, who was still weeping in Anne’s arms. “Your fiancée needs you.”

Joe nodded and went to Coraline’s side. “I got her, Anne.”

Frederick glanced at Anne, where she stood off to the side with Joe and Coraline. Even in the faint moonlight, her soft smile gave him strength. He caught Pete’s eyes at the opposite end of the gurney and said, “On three.”

Relief weakened his knees when he saw the warm glow of the villa in the distance. Alone in the dark with Bethany lying unconscious, he’d felt as though they were miles away from civilization, but they hadn’t wandered far at all.

Katie, Tessa, and Aiden spotted them from outside the villa and ran across the driveway.

“Oh my God, Bethany.” Tessa clapped a hand over her mouth, and Katie patted her back.

“Don’t worry,” Aiden reassured Tessa. “I’ll take a look at her as soon as she’s settled in the car.”

Joe walked up to one long end of the gurney and motioned for Aiden to take the other end. The four of them carefully loaded Bethany into the back of Frederick’s SUV, then Aidenclambered in to examine her injury. Anne, Katie, Coraline, and Tessa watched from nearby, their faces tight with worry.

“She already stopped bleeding,” Frederick said, bringing Aiden up to speed. “And the gash is shallow. I’m just worried that she hasn’t regained consciousness.”

“You don’t need to worry about that yet. I know it feels like an eternity, but it hasn’t been that long. Okay, let’s see. The wound is shallow, like you said. And you did a good job staunching the blood.” Aiden peered into Bethany’s eyes, pushing her eyelids up with his thumb. “Her eyes don’t look dilated, which is promising. She might have a moderate concussion, but I think she’s going to be okay.”

Aiden hopped down from the car with sounds of relief coming from all directions. Pete took the wheel of the SUV, and Joe and Coraline sat on either side of Bethany in the back. Frederick got into the passenger seat and had buckled his seat belt when Aiden knocked on the window.

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