Page 47

Nadia

“I need those bandages over there , Nicole!” I shout.

Nicole spins to me, her eyes wide – but honestly, I’m shocked she could hear me over the incredible roar in the tent.

Every bed is full of wounded soldiers – all wolves – some sobbing, some quiet and pale, but several shouting their goddamn heads off in pain. “Bed eighteen! Now!”

Nicole nods fervently to me as I slap a red flag on the side of my patient’s bed, scrawling notes on his chart that his femur is broken and his treatment plan needs to be verified by the doctor. I hastily clip the chart to the back of his bed and turn, looking for the next –

But he grabs my arm with a cry, pulling me back.

I gasp and spin to the patient. “Where are you going?” he shouts, his voice terrified, looking down at his leg, which lies at a sickening angle, twisted to the right halfway down his thigh.

“The doctor will be here shortly,” I say, clenching my jaw for a moment and forcing my eyes to his face.

“Help me!”

“I’m a nurse ,” I say, leaning closer, wanting him to actually hear me. “Your case is beyond me – the doctor will –“

He inhales to interrupt me, his expression livid - but then he suddenly goes still, his eyes flying wide. His hand suddenly releases my arm as his eyes flash to my wrist and then over me. “I’m sorry,” he whispers. “I – I didn’t know. Apologies.”

I stare at him, not understanding this sudden change, but the pause in his panic gives me time to study his clammy skin, the tears streaking down his cheeks. It’s terrible – this big Alpha wolf, a private in the Clythera military, in so much pain that it’s breaking him down.

“Please, it hurts so much – I can’t even think –“ he whispers, shaking his head.

I stutter, wordless, not knowing what to say. I mean, I know what he needs – fucking morphine and his leg strapped to a damn board before he can be shipped to a hospital – but I can’t just do that –

“Chief!” A frantic voice calls from the entrance. My head whips in that direction, my eyes flashing wide when I see a soldier stumbling in on a guard’s shoulder, blood gushing down his face and into his eyes. God damn it, a fucking head wound.

I stand straight. “Ten minutes,” I say, glancing down at the soldier, hoping desperately I can keep that promise. “I need to –“

“Amir!”

I turn and run towards the new patient, waving to a mat on the ground, knowing we need to get him down. “Nicole!” I shout, starting to run. “I need a clean kit over here! Now!”

“Okay!” she calls, her voice high and frantic.

I lean over the whimpering soldier as he lies back. “It’s okay,” I say, my heart pounding as I look for the source of his injury. “We’re going to get you cleaned up, all right?”

He just sobs, leaning back, in terrible pain.

Twenty minutes later, I’ve got the head case wrapped up – no broken skull, thank god, though a concussion is probable – but more patients are flooding in and none of my red flag beds have been seen to – and there’s nowhere for them to lie down -

“God damn it,” I snap, striding for the door. Where the hell is the doctor?

“Nadia!” A voice shouts behind me, desperate.

“Two minutes!” I shout, holding up two fingers behind me as I stride from the entrance.

The fucking camp is chaos – complete chaos – another truck pulling in to deliver more patients right now. I can’t even look at it, though I know Cole is the one guiding it in and pointing to where it should unload. I leave it to him, running to the other nursing tent, hurrying inside.

My eyes go wide at the continued chaos in here – the frantic shouts and snarls of angry, frightened wolves –

But my eyes snap immediately to Dr. Arbroth in the back as she injects something into a patient’s arm, making the patient moan and fall limp against his bed.

“Doctor!” I shout, running for her.

Arbroth removes the needle from the patient’s arm and turns to me, frowning. “Nadia, what the hell are you doing in here?”

“Doctor!” I say, panting, pointing back towards the tent entrance. “I’ve got like twenty red beds waiting for you -”

“Nadia, I don’t have time for that,” she snaps, turning to the next bed in this tent.

“Doctor, you have to! They’re -”

“Nadia!” she shouts, spinning back to me. But then she huffs a sigh and collects herself, taking me by the arm and pulling me a step away. She looks over my face, assessing me, her expression stern. “I put you in charge for a reason, Nadia. You have to deal with it - I can’t be everywhere –“

“But I –“ I sputter, my eyes going wide with shock. Me? Handle…it? Handle everything?

The doctor glares at me, frustrated. “Nadia, you’re being ridiculous –“

“I am not qualified to –“

“Do you know what they need?” she barks out. “Every single one of those red-flag beds, do you know what they need?”

My words fall away as I stare at her.

“Your father has informed me,” Arbroth continues, “that you’ve been checking medical texts out of the library since you were four , Nadia,” the doctor snaps, her patience at an end.

“You’re the cleverest girl in this camp and the hardest working.

If you weren’t so stubborn about flitting off to humanitarian projects – yes, your father told me about those as well - you’d likely be halfway through med school by now.

And I’ve watched you – I’m not sure that medical school will teach you anything about field medicine that you don’t already know!

So now go and help those patients – I deputized you!

Whatever treatments you pursue have my explicit permission! Go!”

I stare at her for a second and then take a step back.

Arbroth gives me a final sharp nod and drops my arm, turning away.

I turn too, my heart pounding, and sprint back to my tent.

“Morphine!” I shout the moment I dash through the door, pointing sharply at Arnav in our tiny pharmacy. “Bed six! And a leg splint! Now – get started without me, I’ll meet you there in five !”

Arnav nods to me, accepting my authority, springing to action as I move to the first flagged bed, calling for the equipment I need to remove a bullet from this man’s calf.

The sun has nearly reached its peak by the time I stumble out of the medical tent the next day, my hands pressed to my lower back. I close my eyes, turning my face up to the sky, enjoying the feeling of the dappled rays on my cheeks as I try to figure out how many hours it’s been since I slept.

I mean, we all took naps yesterday afternoon in prep for the long night, but I sent several of my nurses off at midnight and then another batch at dawn to get some rest.

But I…it’s been…

My head nods.

“Nadia!”

I stumble slightly to the side, but something stops me before I can fall. My eyes fly open, and I stare up into Cole’s face before glancing down at his arm curled around me.

“Did you…” he asks, frowning at me. “Did you just fall asleep? Standing there?”

“No,” I huff, straightening up and crossing my arms. “That’s impossible.”

He smirks at me.

“I didn’t!” I snarl, clenching my teeth.

I mean, I might have. I kind of did. But he doesn’t need to know that.

“Come on,” Cole says, moving to stand next to me, his arm slipping more securely around my waist. “You are the only one, except your dad and Arbroth, who hasn’t taken a break.”

I glare up at him. “What, like you slept?”

“No, but all I had to do was stand around and look tough all night,” Cole murmurs.

I shake my head at him. We both know he did more than that – I saw him, in glimpses, working for hours to organize patients as they entered and exited our camp, off to hospitals or to rest and heal up in the tents that the Counselors set up if they didn’t need immediate care.

Or…wait, when did I see him doing that? I was inside nearly the whole time.

But whatever. I know Cole did everything outside while we handled the patients inside. And we couldn’t have done it without him.

“Come on,” Cole murmurs, “let’s get you down before you collapse.”

I sigh and slump against him, deciding not to pick a fight and instead letting him support my weight. My eyes fall half shut as I walk, but whatever. Cole won’t let me trip.

I focus again when he starts to turn me, frowning when I see that we are not at all close to the nurse’s dormitory tent – that we’re at the little line of wolf guard tents. “Cole,” I sigh, looking up at him, “where –“

“In,” he says, pushing open the flap to the tent that he used to sleep in.

I frown at him, starting to get pissed. “But I want to –“

“ In , Nadia,” he orders, frowning at me. “Come on, you’re covered in blood –“

I start and then look down at myself, realizing that he’s right. I mean, actually – I knew that. When did I forget?

Something about that makes me give in. I am clearly too tired to be making decisions right now. I cede Cole control, stepping into the tent.

He follows me in, guiding me to the clean little bed that has nice, fresh sheets. I sit on it and start to lie down, but Cole grabs my hand, pulling me back up. I moan, desperately wanting to rest, but he shakes his head at me.

“Five minutes, Nadi,” he murmurs, kneeling and grabbing a surgical basin on the floor that has a rag and some soapy water in it. “Come on, we’re getting you cleaned up.”

I don’t say anything, sitting still as he lifts the rag, starting to wipe first at my hands and arms, cleaning me up with water that’s surprisingly warm.

I smirk at him, realizing that he planned this.

Cole smirks back and doesn’t say anything as he takes very steady, gentle care of me in the next few minutes, moving to my face finally, ensuring that I’m nice and clean.

I sigh when he pushes the basin away, feeling better but desperately wanting sleep.

“Here, give me those scrubs,” Cole murmurs, reaching for them.

I frown, crossing my arms over my chest.

Cole laughs, shaking his head at me and reaching for the hem of my shirt. “I’m not using this as an opportunity to get you naked, Nadia. There’s blood all over –“

“Oh fine,” I say, raising my arms. I’ve got a bra and a tanktop on underneath, anyway, so it’s not like it’s scandalous. But as he starts to lift the top, I squeak, pushing his hands away.

“What?” Cole asks, frowning at me.

“My little wolf,” I murmur, reaching into the breast pocket and taking it out, smiling at it. “My good luck charm. Nobody died on his watch.”

Cole smiles softly at me, nodding and then helping me take the shirt off, tossing it on top of an empty laundry bag.

My pants come off next, and I’m too exhausted to feel prude about it.

It’s not like my boy-short underwear are shocking in any way, and if Cole is feeling somehow turned on by this, then that’s his problem.

I sigh, finally lying myself down on the bed and curling up, my wolf carving clutched in my palm.

Cole moves around behind me, setting things in order.

“Are you staying?” I murmur.

He hums in confirmation.

“Okay, good,” I whisper, my eyes falling shut.

But then I hear something moving on the ground I sit up, glaring at Cole as he stretches out on the floor, a pathetic little flat pillow tucked under his head, not even a blanket beneath him.

He frowns at me. “What?”

“Are you sleeping down there? ”

“Yes! I’m tired too!”

“Oh, you idiot,” I mutter, turning my back to him and scooting across the bed to make room. “Come on.”

“Are you…sure?”

“You have ten seconds before I change my mind,” I grumble, shutting my eyes again, feeling very huffy and frustrated at him for being so stupid. Does he actually think I’m going to make him sleep on the floor when we’ve both spent the night saving people’s lives?

Cole laughs softly, and the bed creaks, dipping down towards him as he climbs in next to me.

“Night, Nadia,” he murmurs, settling in, his arm and shoulder brushing lightly against my back.

“Shh!” I grumble. “Sleep!”

He laughs again, but I barely hear it as I drift off.