Page 12 of A Bridge Through Time
Okay…you can do this Ashley. You can do this.She had seen movies and television shows, where arrows had to be removed to save a person's life. Not that you could count on Hollywood to be your guide in a real life situation, but it was all she had to go on. She looked around, as if something might magically appear to make the job easier. She continued mumbling her mantra. "You can do this, Ashley. You can do this." It was something she always did when she found herself in difficult situations, a coping mechanism.
Cailin was watching her with those incredible silvery grey eyes. God, he was gorgeous. Ashley shook her head, mentally slapping herself. What was she thinking? There was no time for this right now.
Trying not to increase the pain Cailin was suffering, she carefully placed her hands around the arrow shaft, intendingto snap it off from the piece embedded in his shoulder, but it wouldn’t cooperate. Cailin was gritting his teeth to keep from crying out in pain. Ashley let go of the arrow shaft, glancing at the backpack again. It couldn't hurt to see what was inside it, besides copious amounts of food. Maybe there'd be something helpful.
She opened the flap and under her t-shirt, was surprised to see all sorts of useful equipment. Had they been in there all along? She hadn’t taken an inventory when she stuffed her t-shirt in earlier. God bless Mrs. Campbell! She had filled the backpack with a first aid kit, a utility knife – complete with a whole set of tools, and a large bottle of hand sanitizer.
Feeling more confident, Ashley washed her hands with the hand sanitizer. She used the utility knife to cut through the arrow shaft and then, helping Cailin to roll on his side, she gripped the arrow tip and pulled it out. The wound started to bleed in earnest and she pulled her spare t-shirt from the bag. Using the knife again, Ashley cut the material into strips, saving one large piece to wipe away the blood. She located a bottle of water in the pack and wet the cloth, carefully wiping the entry and exit wounds. Once that was done, she swabbed the whole area with hand sanitizer, packed the wound with gauze and then wrapped it with an ace bandage from the first aid kit. She managed to fashion a sling out of the t-shirt strips, and got Cailin's arm stabilized so it wouldn't put pressure on his wounded shoulder.
Satisfied with her first aid efforts, Ashley ran and grabbed the horses’ bridles, and retrieved Thomas' knife. "Cailin, can you ride?"
"Aye," he groaned.
"If you can't, I'll guide the horse and you can lean on me."
"Nae,” Cailin protested. “Yer a wee lass, I dinnae wish to hurt ye."
"Don't worry about that, we need to get out of here. Use that boulder to mount your horse.” She helped him up and put her arm around his waist to guide him to the large rock. Standing by his side, she watched him get on his horse and was satisfied he could hold himself upright.
"Can ye get up behind me, lass?"
"I'm going to ride our friend's horse. No point leaving it behind for him. We don't want him following us, now do we?" She offered him a dazzling smile. "And I've got his knife." Ashley was feeling quite pleased with herself. She wasn’t sure where this new braver, bolder Ashley had been hiding, but she was glad she’d shown up today.
Cailin was gazing at her with admiration. “Lass, yer a wonder. Ye’ve been through two battles today, saved my life and taken charge of our escape. Yer bonny, smart, and strong.”
The heat of a blush covered Ashley’s face. “We should get going.”
Cailin led the way and Ashley followed behind him, on Thomas’ big grey.
"Are ye well, Ashley?"
"Yes." She pulled her horse alongside his. "Don’t worry about me. I haven't ridden in ages, but I guess it's like riding a bike. Once you know how, you never forget."
He was wearing that same, puzzled expression again and Ashley cocked her head to one side. "You do know what a bike is, don't you?"
"I'm afraid not, lass."
"Hmmm… Is there a hospital nearby? We should really get you there." Ashley was worried. He’d hit his head pretty hard. Maybe he had a concussion. That could explain a lot.
"Dinnae look at me like I'm daft again, but I dinnae ken what a hospital is."
"Maybe you use another word for it. Where do you take people when they’re sick?"
"We dinnae take them anywhere. The healer comes to them."
"Is the healer nearby?"
"Nae. She's at Breaghacraig."
"How far is that from here?"
"We'll have to find a place to stay for the night and then it's a half day's ride tomorrow."
He definitely has a concussion;he’s not making any sense at all. There had to be some place nearby, but she certainly didn’t know her way around these parts, so she had to rely on Cailin. Besides, they needed to put distance between themselves and Thomas.
ELEVEN
Darkness was quickly approaching and Ashley was getting worried. Why hadn't she insisted they head back to Glendaloch? She’d just followed his lead, assuming they'd reach civilization quickly. Now after hours in the saddle, Cailin, who had struggled to stay upright, was looking very tired and his eyes were getting glassy.
