ChapterThirty-Nine
They debated heading down the hillside versus staying put, but in the end, Xavier passed out, making the decision for them. Audrey sat with her back to a log and Xavier’s head in her lap, as Jae attempted to reassure her that Xavier would be okay.
His face was ashen and his skin chilled. She guessed he was running a fever, which was a bad sign with a concussion.
The whir of helicopter blades cut through the air, and her heart leapt as it became clear rescue was at hand.
Audrey’s signal panel—the waterproof sheet with a forest-camouflage pattern that they’d used twice when taking shelter in tree roots—was put into use again, but this time, it was flipped over, revealing a neon-orange side. Jae secured it with rocks at the corners, laying it in a small clearing well away from the unstable mudslide perimeter. The clearing wasn’t large enough for the helicopter to land, but Luke assured her the Navy would be ready with a stretcher to be lowered down on a cable.
He proved correct, and she watched anxiously as two paramedics rapidly descended down a line that swayed in the wind.
The roar of the whirling rotors made only the barest of communication possible. In minutes, the paramedics had Xavier loaded on the stretcher and pulled up inside the aircraft.
Next, Audrey donned a harness so she could be hauled up into the bird. Ordinarily, being rigged to a hovering helicopter and winched upward while wind whipped at her skin might terrify her, but she’d lost the capacity for that type of fear at this point, and she watched the ground with Luke and Jae retreat without so much as a flutter in her belly.
Jae was lifted next, followed by Luke, who was a pro at this sort of thing from his SEAL days.
Her seat location made it impossible for her to hold Xavier’s hand, so she gazed out the window as they banked and rose. First the lake came into view, then the lodge. She spotted another helicopter on the front lawn, between the lodge and the exploded dock.
The injured SEALs were being airlifted out, but she knew Lieutenant Flyte and the others intended to stay with reinforcements to find their missing teammates, assuming they hadn’t been found already.
They would have all the firepower they needed, and as ONP archaeologist, they had her full permission—and for the record, George’s blessing too—to let loose as needed, even if archaeological sites and historic lodges would be destroyed.
It was less than a forty-five minute flight to the Naval hospital in Bremerton. She knew that if Xavier’s condition were dire, they’d have gone to Port Angeles, but he was in stable condition, so he went to the larger, better-equipped Naval facility.
At the hospital, she, Jae, and Luke were quickly routed from the general emergency room to the waiting area for patients undergoing a full CT scan, as the staff was ready and waiting for Xavier and Collins. Paul Cohen had flown in with Collins, but he was in a different treatment area.
Even on the fast track, it was a long wait. Audrey was grateful Xavier had only lost consciousness for a few moments after they’d walked several feet. While blacking out was a bad sign with a concussion, a short incident could indicate it wasn’t severe.
She paced the waiting room while Jae and Luke made phone calls, Jae to the park superintendent, and Luke to the Navy. Audrey had people she should be making calls to herself, but she could barely think, let alone try to explain to anyone what she’d just been through.
After they had word on Xavier, she’d call her parents.
And Xavier’s parents, if he was unable to make the call himself.
At last, a doctor entered the waiting room. Xavier had given his permission for the doctor to share his medical information with Audrey, Jae, and Luke, so the doctor wasted no time and got right to the good news: “There’s no sign of a brain bleed. While concussions should always be taken seriously and have long-term effects, it’s possible he’ll heal quickly without lingering issues. Quite a feat considering what he’s been through.”
Audrey burst into tears, and Jae put an arm around her. She noticed he was wiping his eyes too.
“What about the rest of him?” Luke asked.
“Again, considering what he went through, it’s astonishing he’s not in worse condition. Four cracked ribs. Contusions all over. His left shoulder is worrisome—he’s likely to need another round of surgery to repair the new damage to the joint. His left clavicle is fractured. Like the ribs, there’s not much we can do for it beyond pain management. We’re going to wrap his ribs and immobilize his arm for two, three days max. Surgery—if he ends up needing it—can wait until he’s in better shape and the concussion is no longer an issue.”
“Can I see him?” Audrey asked.
The doctor nodded. “We’re keeping him overnight for observation. He’s being moved to his room now. He’s taken a pain medication that will help him sleep, so it may be a while before he’s up for talking, but you can make yourselves comfortable in his room.” His gaze scanned the three of them and he gave a faint smile. “I can tell the nurses it’s okay to bend the rules about only patients using the shower in the rooms.”
They all looked a wreck, but Luke might take the prize with mud caked in his hair, streaking his face, and down his arms. The former SEAL laughed. “Thank you, Doctor.”
After the doctor left the room, Audrey collapsed onto a chair and buried her face in her hands, letting out the full-body sob she hadn’t permitted herself when she saw him caught in the slide.
The only difference between then and now was these were tears of joy.
The last time Xavier had been hospitalized after a failed op, he’d woken to find his girlfriend had visited and left while he was sleeping, asking Chris to let him know that she’d been by to see him and wouldn’t be back. Now here he was again, and his shoulder—and pretty much every other part of his body—was on fire with pain. So much pain, he hadn’t even noticed the broken clavicle, but it did explain the extra misery on his left side.
His best escape from the agony was sleep, so he’d grudgingly agreed to the medication that would knock him out.
His mind swam with thoughts of yet another surgery. More rehab and recovery. But none of that worried him. Not when he’d survived the impossible.