She let the walkie drop and prayed he made it in time.
Chapter Twelve
Ty’s walkie squawked for the first time that night, the sound surprising him. For a couple of minutes he’d forgotten he was working. It was easy because this particular party felt an awful lot like a town party, although with lots of people walking around with platters of fancy food.
Jax chewed on a stuffed pepper as Ty pulled his walkie out.
“These are delicious,” River said with a grin, offering her husband another.
They should get a room.
Of course that thought reminded him that he had a room and all he had to do was maneuver Lucy up to it and he could get into her pretty panties.
He still had hours to go before he could do that. With a sigh he pushed the button to talk. “This is Tyler.”
He hoped it was minor. He wasn’t sure he could handle a major injury that would require him to drive through a snowstorm all the way to the nearest hospital. The slopes were closed but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t have to deal with a broken bone.
“Ty? Ty, I need you. I’m in 210. I think he’s dying. Please hurry.”
His whole body went cold because that was Lucy, and she sounded terrified.
“Everything okay?” River’s eyes were wide.
“I need to find Caleb.” She’d said someone was dying. He could do CPR, but Caleb could do far more if he needed to. He glanced around the ballroom, looking for the doc.
Jax pointed toward the dance floor. “He’s right there. You need backup?”
He wasn’t sure what was going on, but he should figure it out before he brought in a crowd. “No, but you could go and tell the bartender that Lucy might be gone for a while. He’ll let her staff know.”
He made a beeline for Caleb, waving a hand to get his attention. The doc took one look at his face and broke away from the group he’d been awkwardly dancing with.
“What’s up?” Caleb asked.
“We’ve got a medical emergency in 210.” Ty started to run for the door.
Caleb jogged beside him. “Do we know what we’re going into?”
“No idea.” He passed through the ballroom doors and then saw the staff elevator was open and made a sprint before it could close again. He turned as he held the door open for Caleb and saw Michael was following them.
“What’s going on?” Michael wasn’t out of breath despite the fact that he’d sprinted to catch up to them. He stood beside Caleb as Ty hit the button for the second floor.
The doors closed and started to ascend. A sense of relief washed over Ty. Michael was a reassuring presence. “Lucy said someone’s dying in 210. Probably a heart attack or stroke. She sounded shook.”
Michael nodded before turning to Caleb. “How much have you had to drink?”
If Caleb took offense, it didn’t show. He merely nodded as though he’d expected the question. “Absolutely nothing. I drove my daughter up here, and I have to drive her home if the storm allows us to leave.”
“And I’ve been working. I would never drink on the job,” Ty added.
Michael turned his way. “I wasn’t worried about you at all, but the doc isn’t on the clock, and that’s a big party going on down there. I only wanted to make sure everything is good.”
The doors opened and Ty led the way, jogging down the hall. The door to 210 was slightly ajar, allowing Ty to open it easily.
And then he stopped because Lucy was on the floor beside a body. Her face was pale; her hair had come out of its neat bun. The man on the floor had one of the lodge’s thick robes wrapped around his body, the front covered in what looked like a combination of blood and puss. She looked up. “I didn’t know what to do. He started…there was blood and white stuff, and I don’t think he could breathe.”
Fuck. He was almost one hundred percent certain there was nothing he could do and worse, he shouldn’t touch that body. This wasn’t a case of some guy vomiting from food poisoning.
This was poisoning of another kind.
“Don’t touch the body,” Ty said, pulling a pair of gloves out of his pack and putting them on. “Did he convulse before he passed out? Michael, help her up but be careful. Consider this a crime scene. We’re going to need Nate out here.”
“Crime scene?” Michael moved around the body and held a hand out to Lucy.
“Yeah, Nate, you’re going to need to come up to the lodge. I know the weather is bad, but we can’t wait.” Caleb had his cell pressed to his ear. “Call Cam and Gemma in, too. You’re going to need forensics on this one.” Caleb winced. “Yeah. I’m pretty sure. Ty’s looking him over and he’s taking precautions. See you soon.”