Page 109 of Shadow Sabotage
A look of distress crossed Robin’s face. “I was trying to make my way down the ravine. I lost my balance and fell. Only about halfway. But my leg… I knew I couldn’t make it back up to the top. I called for help, but nobody came. My phone wouldn’t get a signal. I didn’t know what to do. The skin wasn’t broken yet…” She looked helplessly at her leg. “But I couldn’t stand on it.”
“What happened after that?”
“When I realized no one was coming, I knew I needed to get somewhere safer to spend the night. Plus, I needed water. I knew there was a creek down here, so I worked to slide myself down. I tried to keep my leg protected, but… I got in a hurry and slid too hard there at the end. That’s when the bone broke through. I didn’t make it to get water after all.”
Claire winced. “That had to have hurt. I can offer you some ibuprofen or acetaminophen. It’s not much for that kind of pain, but it will help.”
Robin nodded her head gratefully. “Please.”
Claire fished the meds out of her bag and handed them to Robin along with a fresh bottle of water. “Just a sip, okay? Don’t overdo it. Do you have pain anywhere else?”
Robin swallowed the pills and handed the water back to Claire. “No. Just my leg. I mean, some bumps and bruiseselsewhere.” She held up her arm. “I hit my elbow pretty hard on a rock. But nothing else feels serious.”
“Did you ever hit your head or lose consciousness?”
“No. IwishI would have lost consciousness.” She made a pathetic attempt at a smile.
“I bet.” Claire gave her a look of sympathy, then reached for more supplies from her bag and slipped on a pair of latex gloves. “I need to check your leg, okay? First, can you wiggle your toes?”
Robin winced. “A little.”
“Great. That’s a good sign. I’m going to take your shoe off so I can check for blood flow to your foot. I’ll try not to jar your leg.” She gingerly removed the hiking boot and peeled down Robin’s sock. Then she lightly ran her fingers across Robin’s toes. “Can you feel this?”
Robin made a half-hearted nod.
Claire gave me the same worried look from before. “I’m going to clean and dress this wound to help prevent infection, okay? I can’t set the fracture, but I’m going to splint your leg to keep it from moving.” She caught my eye, directing her words to me as much as to Robin. “We’re going to need a helicopter to transport you out. It could take a couple of hours to get one here. I can pretty much guarantee they’re going to want to do surgery on that leg, so I’ll have to limit you to sips of water. But we’ll keep you as comfortable as we can.”
“Thank you. I’m just so grateful that I’m not going to die.”
“Hopefully you still feel that way after this,” Claire said, chuckling. “I’m going to pour some antiseptic on this wound. It will burn, but we’ve got to do it. Hold Vance’s hand,” she said, nodding my way. “Squeeze as hard as you want. He’s strong. He can take it.” She winked at me.
I offered Robin my hand. She gripped it tightly and let out a moan when Claire poured the antiseptic over the wound. It bubbled up, turning light red as fresh blood mixed with it andoozed out, dripping down onto the rocks below. Claire gently wiped away the excess, then covered the wound with sterile gauze from her pack and carefully wrapped the leg.
Robin let go of my hand as the pain eased, sighing in relief. A bit of color came back to her face.
“Worst part is over,” Claire said cheerfully.
Toocheerfully. The tension in her jaw revealed the truth.
But Robin bought it and smiled gratefully.
“The signal down here is bad,” Claire said. “We’re going to walk up just a ways to call for that helicopter.”
“Please don’t leave me,” Robin said, trying to scoot herself up.
“Try not to move,” Claire said, putting a hand on her shoulder. “Keep that leg stationary. I promise we won’t even be out of sight.” She pointed to the trail we’d come in on. “We’ll be right there. You can watch us the whole time. But the faster we make this call, the faster we get them here—and the faster you can get some pain meds that are a hell of a lot better than anything I can give you.”
Robin let out a breath and nodded.
Claire gave her another sip of water, then stood and grabbed my arm, heading back up our trail.
“Normally, I’d leave someone with her,” she said, keeping her voice low. “But you’re new to this and I want to loop you in on the plan. I’m going to tell the rest of the team to hang back. There’s no sense in any of them risking this descent when it’s going to take a chopper to get her out of here.”
“Agreed. I saw the worry in your eyes. Tell me what you really think about her condition.”
“She’s strong. Responsive, which is good. But that’s a serious injury, she’s lost a lot of blood, and she spent the night in the cold with nothing more than a torn coat to keep her warm. She’s not getting full blood flow to that foot, either.” Claire shook herhead. “Honestly, I’m surprised she’s doing as well as she is. She’s got some signs of shock—blue lips, weak pulse. But she’s talking, and she’s in good spirits. That’s a good sign.”
“How long is it really going to take to get help down here?”
