Bill groaned as he moved, and Hudson pleaded with him. "Bill, I said don't move."
"I'm sorry," Bill whimpered, holding on to his leg. "It hurts so much."
"I know it does, but it's very important you remain still." Heaven knew what other internal injuries there might be. The girl in Hudson's arm clung to him for dear life. "We're going to get out of here very soon, darling." His phone went off, and Hudson thanked his lucky stars. He quickly answered. "Hello?"
Seb's rough voice came over the line. "Oh thank God. Where are you? Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. I'm down the lift shaft. I'm not sure which. Most likely whichever one was closest to the vault." There was silence. "Seb?"
"Baby, I'm coming to get you. Just stay safe."
"Seb, bring help. I have two civilians with injuries. Hold on." Hudson turned to smile at the young girl clinging to him. "Darling, what's your name?"
"M-Melissa Willis," she said through her tears.
"Well, Melissa, everything's going to be all right. Help is on the way." Hudson turned his attention back to Seb. "Seb, I have Bill, the head of security, down here with me, who has a leg injury I'm going to need a tourniquet for, and Melissa's also going to need medical attention."
"Can they be moved?"
Hudson stood and walked to the farthest end of the shaft so he could speak quietly away from the others. "Melissa can be moved, but Bill's leg was impaled by an exposed steel rod from a piece of concrete wall. I don't know that I'll be able to lift it on my own. There's also the problem of getting the rod out of his leg." A shriek of metal, and a pinging sound caught Hudson's ear, and his head shot up, his eyes going wide. "Seb, you need to hurry."
"What's wrong?"
Hudson didn't want to scare Bill or Melissa any further. "I'm texting you the details and pictures." He hung up and took some quick snapshots of the area around him, managing to get in a shot of Bill's leg without aiming his phone at Bill so as not to upset him. He snapped a picture of the lift hanging above their heads. As soon as he was done, he sent them off to Seb, explaining the state of Bill's leg, his possible injuries, as well as Melissa's injuries, and the noises the lift was making. This whole situation suddenly became so much worse. He returned his phone to his pocket, and looked around. They couldn't simply wait here and do nothing. He spotted a steel rod, but when he tried to move, Melissa cried out.
"Please, don't leave!"
Bill wasn't looking good, and Melissa was on the verge of panicking.
"My leg hurts so bad," Melissa cried.
"I know, sweetheart. Just don't move it. Help is on the way, I promise." Hudson grabbed the steel rod off the ground and moved to the doors. Another groan from the lift above them and Melissa shrieked.
"It's going to fall and crush us!"
"I need you to be a brave girl for me. Can you do that?"
Melissa nodded, and Hudson maneuvered the rod in his hand between the rubber of the lift's steel doors. It was no use. Its rounded tip was too thick to force between them. Hudson shot off a quick text to let Seb know the doors to the lift were wedged tight.
"Hudson?"
Hudson froze. "Dom?"
"They're bringing equipment to open this door," Dom shouted from the other side. Above them, a motor rumbled to life followed by hissing and shouting. The steel doors above them screeched as they were forced open. Seb poked his head in.
"Hudson?"
"Down here!" Hudson waved his arms. The fear and pain in Seb's eyes were unmistakable, even from this distance.
"We're sending a harness down. I'm tossing you the tourniquet." Seb flung the small sealed plastic pouch down. Hudson caught it and stuck it in his back pocket.
Hudson nodded. "I'm sending Melissa up first." The noise increased from the lift doors behind them, and Seb and their fellow agents worked swiftly above them to lower the harness. As soon as it reached Hudson, he helped Melissa strap into it. "It's going to hurt for a little bit as they pull you up, but the paramedics will be waiting for you. You're going to be fine, darling."
Melissa threw her arms around him, hugging him tight before pulling away. Hudson shouted for them to pull her up. The sound of snapping cables resonated around the narrow shaft. Melissa shrieked, and the agents scrambled, moving as fast as they could to pull her up. The lift dropped several feet, and Hudson's heart leaped into his throat. Thankfully, the lift jerked to a stop, but the creaking sound continued.
As they pulled Melissa through the doorway, Seb shouted at the agents around him before Hudson heard Seb growling at Dom. The lift was on the verge of falling, and Dom wasn't sure they'd get the basement doors open in time. The harness was flung down again, and Seb poked his head through the doors. His eyes were glassy, and his face a study in heartache.
"There's a chance we only have enough time to get one of you up here before the elevator falls. The last cable is frayed and about to give way."