“I don’t know,” she said weakly. “I can’t move. Hancock is on top of me and I’m pinned between him and the side of the helicopter. I can’t really feel anything. I know I’m in shock. I felt a little pain in my shoulder when I tried to move but nothing else.”
“Stay put,” Steele, said, worry seizing him. “Don’t move at all. We don’t want to risk you injuring yourself further. Hold on, Maren. Please, baby. For me.”
“What about you?” she asked slowly, each word seemingly difficult for her to get out. It worried him that she sounded so weak. But if he could keep her talking, then he could distract her from everything else. And he’d keep her with him. He didn’t want her slipping away. What if she had a head injury? What if she lost consciousness and never regained it?
“I think I’m good,” he said, not knowing if it was a lie, but no way in hell was he going to give her any reason to worry. He wanted her focused on herself. “Pinned like you, but I’m not in any pain. Just can’t move. We’ll be out soon.”
“I don’t know if Hancock is alive,” she choked out. “His blood is all over me. I can smell it. I can taste it. I can’t reach to feel for a pulse, but he covered me, trying to protect me when we went down.”
“Thank God,” Steele whispered. No matter the history KGI had with Hancock, despite his dislike of the man, he’d taken a bullet meant for Maren and now he’d shielded her with his own body. Twice he’d saved her life, risking his own in the process. It was a debt Steele could never hope to repay.
“Steele! Steele!”
Steele heard a shout close to the helicopter and relief flooded him. Sam was yelling at the top of his lungs, and if Sam was here, the rest of KGI was here too.
“I’m here,” Steele called. “Trapped. Can’t move. Maren is alive but she’s pinned between Hancock and the side of the helicopter. Hancock is in bad shape. He took a bullet for Maren and then he covered her with his body when we went down. I don’t even know if he’s still breathing. We need help immediately.”
“I’ve called in every fucking available resource,” Sam said. “We’ll get you out, man, just stay with me, okay? Don’t you dare fucking die on me.”
“That’s one order I’ll gladly follow,” Steele said dryly.
The helicopter shook and metal creaked.
“Be careful,” Steele barked. “Be very careful. I don’t want Maren more injured and we have no idea the extent of her injuries. I don’t want her hurt more by you trying to pull her out.”
“I can climb in the top,” Donovan called out. “If I can get to Hancock and Maren, I’ll put a C collar on Maren and I’ll see if Hancock is alive. If he’s not, then we’ll pull him out so we can get to Maren. For that matter, a neck injury is the least of Hancock’s worries if he took a bullet to the chest. There’s blood goddamn everywhere back here. We’ll get him out and then I’ll see to Maren.”
“Be careful with her, Donovan. I’m trusting you with my entire life,” Steele said, his voice aching with emotion.
“I know, man,” Donovan said. “I know. You know I’ll get it done.”
Steele closed his eyes, pain swamping him. Now that he knew Maren would be taken care of, he let go and pain splintered through his body until he wanted to scream. He was precariously close to losing control. Pain. Overwhelming fear for Maren. Helplessness. Never in his life had he been in a situation where he was absolutely at the mercy of others. He hated being trapped, unable to move. Unable to go to Maren and reassure her, touch her and let her know he was there and wouldn’t leave her.
“Hancock’s alive,” Donovan called out. “But he’s in bad shape. ETA on a med evac unit is ten minutes. He’s bleeding like a stuck pig. I can’t tell if the blood on Maren is his or hers or both.”
“What about Maren?” Steele ground out.
“I’m okay, Steele.”
Her soft voice slid like silk over his ears and he closed his eyes, inhaling deeply as sweet relief eased some of the pain racking his body.
“Okay, sweetheart, I’m going to put a C collar on you and then we’re going to try to pry the metal from around your legs so we can get you out of here. I need you to be extremely still for me and relax as much as you can. I know that’s asking a lot, but I need you to be calm and cooperate,” Donovan said in a gentle voice.
“I think it’s just my shoulder,” Maren replied. “It hurts. Can’t move it. But I’m worried about the baby, Donovan. Can you tell if I’m bleeding? Please, I have to know.”
Steele’s heart clenched and he squeezed his eyes shut as he whispered a fervent prayer. He’d never prayed for something so hard in his life as he prayed for his child to be okay.
“I’ll cut away your pants. Is that all right?” Donovan asked in a soothing tone. “It’s just me, Maren. No one else is looking. I’ll see if you have any vaginal bleeding and then I’ll cover you with a blanket and get you out of here, okay?”
“Okay,” she whispered back.
It seemed an eternity for Steele. It was too damn quiet. No sounds came from the back and each second was torture.
“I don’t see any bleeding, Maren. How are you feeling? Any cramping or pain in your abdomen?”
There was a long silence, almost as if she were weighing his words and doing a self-exam. Then finally, “No, I don’t think so. It’s just my shoulder. I can’t move my left shoulder. If I try, the pain is unbearable.”
“Okay, we’ll be careful. Hancock has been removed now, and now we’re going to focus on you. This might hurt, Maren. But we’ll be as quick and as gentle as possible.”
“What about Steele,” she said in a choppy voice. “I’m okay. Just my shoulder. You said I wasn’t bleeding. Most of the blood is from Hancock. You need to get Steele out first. I can wait.”
“No!” Steele bellowed. “Goddamn it, Maren. You need to get to a hospital so you and the baby can be checked out. I’m fine. Now cooperate with Donovan and let him get you the hell away from here.”
“Impossible, stubborn man,” Maren growled.
Donovan chuckled. “As much as I agree with your assessment, he’s right. You’re the priority here. They’re working on Hancock and doing what they can to save him. Med flight should be here any minute to take him away. But you’re next. Steele can wait. The bastard is too stubborn to die anyway, so you don’t need to worry about him. No way in hell he’s going to leave you and the baby.”