璇玑之心刃·冷血悍将-第128章

按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页，按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页，按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部！
————未阅读完？加入书签已便下次继续阅读！


‘Trouble　at　University？‘　the　resident　asked。
‘Bus　accident；‘　Marconi　reported；　arriving　at　his　side。
‘Better　off　here　anyway。　Jesus；　what　did　he　back　into？‘　The　doctor　bent　down　to　inspect　the　wound　as　they　moved。　‘Must　be　a　hundred　pellets　in　there！‘
‘Wait　till　you　see　the　neck；‘　Eaton　told　him。
‘Shit。。。‘　the　resident　breathed。
They　wheeled　him　into　the　capacious　emergency　room；　selecting　a　cubicle　in　the　corner。　The　five　men　moved　the　victim　from　the　gurney　to　a　treatment　table；　and　the　medical　team　went　to　work。　Another　physician　was　standing　by；　along　with　a　pair　of　nurses。
The　resident；　Cliff　Severn；　reached　around　delicately　to　remove　the　cervical　collar　after　making　sure　the　head　was　secured　by　sandbags。　It　took　only　one　look。
‘Possible　spine；‘　he　announced　at　once。　‘But　first　we　have　to　replace　blood　volume。‘　He　rattled　off　a　series　of　orders。　While　the　nurses　got　two　more　IVs　started；　Severn　took　the　patient‘s　shoes　off　and　ran　a　sharp　metal　instrument　across　the　sole　of　his　left　foot。　The　foot　moved。　Okay；　there　was　no　immediate　nerve　damage。　Good　news。　A　few　more　sticks　on　the　legs　also　got　reactions。　Remarkable。　While　that　was　happening；　a　nurse　took　blood　for　the　usual　battery　of　tests。　Severn　scarcely　had　to　look　as　his　well…trained　crew　did　their　separate　jobs。　What　appeared　to　be　a　flurry　of　activity　was　more　like　the　movement　of　a　football　backfield；　the　end　product　of　months　of　diligent　practice。
‘Where　the　hell‘s　neuro？‘　Severn　asked　the　ceiling。
‘Right　here！‘　a　voice　answered。
Severn　looked　up。　‘Oh　…　Professor　Rosen。‘
The　greeting　stopped　there。　Sam　Rosen　was　not　in　a　good　mood；　as　the　resident　saw　at　once。　It　had　been　a　twenty…hour　day　for　the　professor　already。　What　ought　to　have　been　a　six…hour　procedure　had　only　begun　a　marathon　effort　to　save　the　life　of　an　elderly　woman　who‘d　fallen　down　a　flight　of　stairs；　an　effort　that　had　ended　unsuccessfully　less　than　an　hour　before。　He　ought　to　have　saved　her；　Sam　was　telling　himself；　still　not　sure　what　had　gone　wrong。　He　was　grateful　rather　than　angry　about　this　extension　to　a　hellish　day。　Maybe　he　could　win　this　one。
‘Tell　me　what　we　have；‘　the　professor　ordered　curtly。
‘Shotgun　wound；　several　pellets　very　close　to　the　cord；　sir。‘
‘Okay。‘　Rosen　bent　down；　his　hands　behind　his　back。　‘What‘s　with　the　glass？‘
‘He　was　in　a　car；‘　Eaton　called　from　the　other　side　of　the　cubicle。
‘We　need　to　get　rid　of　that；　need　to　shave　the　head；　too；‘　Rosen　said；　surveying　the　damage。　‘What‘s　his　pressure？‘
‘BP　fifty　over　thirty；‘　a　nurse…practitioner　reported。　‘Pulse　is　one…forty　and　thready。‘
‘We‘re　going　to　be　busy；‘　Rosen　observed。　‘This　guy　is　very　shocky。　Hmm。‘　He　paused。　‘Overall　condition　of　the　patient　looks　good；　good　muscle　tone。　Let‘s　get　that　blood　volume　back　up。‘　Rosen　saw　two　units　being　started　even　as　he　spoke。　The　ER　nurses　were　especially　good　and　he　nodded　approval　at　them。
‘How‘s　your　son　doing；　Margaret？‘　he　asked　the　senior　one。
‘Starting　at　Carnegie　in　September；‘　she　answered；　adjusting　the　drip…rate　on　the　blood　bottle。
‘Let‘s　get　the　neck　cleaned　off　next；　Margaret。　I　need　to　take　a　look。‘
‘Yes；　doctor。‘
The　nurse　selected　a　pair　of　forceps；　grabbed　a　large　cotton　ball；　which　she　dipped　in　distilled　water；　then　wiped　across　the　patient‘s　neck　with　care；　clearing　away　the　blood　and　exposing　the　actual　wounds。　It　looked　worse　than　it　might　really　be；　she　saw　at　once。　While　she　swabbed　the　patient　off；　Rosen　looked　for　and　got　sterile　garb。　By　the　time　he　got　back　to　the　bedside；　Margaret　Wilson　had　a　sterile　kit　in　place　and　uncovered。　Eaton　and　Marconi　stayed　in　the　corner；　watching　it　all。
‘Nice　job；　Margaret；‘　Rosen　said；　putting　his　glasses　on。　‘What‘s　he　going　to　major　in？‘
‘Engineering。‘
"；That‘s　good。‘　Rosen　held　his　hand　up。　‘Tweezers。‘　Nurse　Wilson　set　a　pair　in　his　hand。　‘Always　room　for　a　bright　young　engineer。‘
Rosen　picked　a　small；　round　hole　on　the　patient‘s　shoulder；　well　away　from　anything　really　vital。　With　a　delicacy　that　his　large　hands　made　almost　ical　to　watch；　he　probed　for　and　retrieved　a　single　lead　ball　which　he　held　up　to　the　light。　‘Number　seven　shot；　I　believe。　Somebody　mistook　this　guy　for　a　pigeon。　That‘s　good　news；‘　he　told　the　paramedics。　Now　that　he　knew　the　shot　size　and　probable　peration；　he　bent　down　low　over　the　neck。　‘Hmm　。。。　what‘s　the　BP　now？‘
‘Checking；‘　another　nurse　said　from　the　far　side　of　the　table。　‘Fifty…five　over　forty。　ing　up。‘
‘Thank　you；‘　Rosen　said；　still　bent　over　the　patient。　‘Who　started　the　first　IV？‘
‘I　did；‘　Eaton　replied。
‘Good　work；　fireman。‘　Rosen　looked　up　and　winked。　‘Sometimes　I　think　you　people　save　more　lives　than　we　do。　You　saved　this　one；　that‘s　for　damned　sure。‘
‘Thank　you；　doctor。‘　Eaton　didn‘t　know　Rosen　well；　but　he　made　a　note　that　the　man‘s　reputation　was　deserved。　It　wasn‘t　every　day　that　a　fireman…paramedic　got　that　sort　of　praise　from　a　full　professor。　‘How‘s　he　going　to　…　I　mean；　the　neck　injury？‘
Rosen　was　down　again；　examining　it。　‘Responses；　doctor？‘　he　asked　the　senior　resident。
‘Positive。　Good　Babinsky。　No　gross　indications　of　peripheral　impairment；‘　Severn　replied。　This　was　like　an　exam；　which　always　made　the　young　resident　nervous。
‘This　may　not　be　as　bad　as　it　looks；　but　we‘re　going　to　have　to　clean　it　up　in　a　hurry　before　these　pellets　migrate。　Two　hours？‘　he　asked　Severn。　Rosen　knew　the　ER　resident　was　better　on　trauma　than　he　was。
‘Maybe　three。‘
‘I‘ll　get　a　nap　out　of　it　anyway；‘　Rosen　checked　his　watch。　‘I‘ll　take　him　at；　oh；　six。‘
‘Yon　want　to　handle　this　one　personally？‘
‘Why　not？　I‘m　here。　This　one　is　straightforward；　just　takes　a　little　touch。‘　Rosen　figured　he　was　entitled　to　an　easy　case；　maybe　once　a　month。　As　a　full　professor；　he　drew　a　lot　of　the　hard　ones。
‘Fine　with　me；　sir。‘
‘Do　we　have　an　ID　on　the　patient？‘
‘No；　sir；‘　Marconi　replied。　"；The　police　ought　to　be　here　in　a　few。‘
‘Good。‘　Rosen　stood　and　stretched。　‘You　know；　Margaret；　people　like　us　shouldn‘t　work　these　kind　of　hours。‘
‘I　need　the　shift…differential；‘　Nurse　Wilson　replied。　Besides　which；　she　was　the　nursing…team　leader　for　this　shift。　‘What‘s　this；　I　wonder？‘　she　said　after　a　moment。
‘Hmph？‘　Rosen　walked　around　to　her　side　of　the　table　while　the　rest　of　the　team　did　its　work。
‘A　tattoo　on　his　arm；‘　she　reported。　Nurse　Wilson　was　surprised　by　the　reaction　it　drew　from　Professor　Rosen。
The　transition　from　sleep　to　wakefulness　was　usually　easy　for　Kelly；　but　not　this　time。　His　first　coherent　thought　was　to　be　surprised；　but　he　didn‘t　know　why。　Next　came　pain；　but　not　so　much　pain　as　the　distant　warning　that　there　would　be　pain；　and　lots　of　it。　When　he　realized　that　he　could　open　his　eyes；　he　did；　only　to　find　himself　staring　at　a　gray　linoleum　floor。　A　few　scattered　drops　of　liquid　reflected　the　bright　overhead　fluorescents。　He　felt　needles　in　his　eyes；　and　only　then　did　he　realize　that　the　real　stabs　were　in　his　arms。
I‘m　alive。
Why　does　that　surprise　me？
He　could　hear　the　sound　of　people　moving　around；　muted　conversations；　distant　chimes。　The　sound　of　rushing　air　was　explained　by　air…conditioning　vents；　one　of　which　had　to　be　nearby；　since　he　could　feel　the　moving　chill　on　the　skin　of　his　back。　Something　told　him　that　he　ought　to　move；　that　being　still　made　him　vulnerable；　but　even　after　he　managed　a　mand　to　his　limbs　to　do　something；　nothing　happened。　That‘s　when　the　pain　announced　its　presence。　Like　the　ripple　on　a　pond　from　the　fall　of　an　insect；　it　started　somewhere　on　his　shoulder　and　expanded。　It　took　a　moment　to　classify。　The　nearest　approximation　was　a　bad　sunburn；　because　everything　from　the　left　side　of　his　neck　on　down　to　his　left　elbow　felt　scorched。　He　knew　he　was　forgetting　something；　probably　something　important。
Where　the　fuck　am　I？
Kelly　thought　he　felt　the　distant　vibration　of　…　what？　Ship‘s　engines？　No；　that　wasn‘t　right　somehow；　and　after　a　few　more　seconds　he　realized　it　was　the　faraway　sound　of　a　city　bus　pulling　away　from　a　stop。　Not　a　ship。　A　city。　Why　am　I　in　a　city？
A　shadow　crossed　his　face。　He　opened　his　eyes　to　see　the　bottom　half　of　a　figure　dressed　all　over　in　light…green　cotton。　The　hands　held　a　clipboard　of　some　sort。　Kelly　couldn‘t　even　focus　his　eyes　well　enough　to　tell　if　the　figure　was　male　or　female　before　it　went　away；　and　it　didn‘t　occur　to　him　to　say　anything　before　he　drifted　back　to　sleep。
‘The　shoulder　wound　was　extensive　but　superficial；‘　Rosen　told　the　neurosurgical　resident；　thirty　feet　away。
‘Bloody　enough。　Four　units‘；　she　noted。　‘Shotgun　wounds　are　like　that。　There　was　only　one　real　threat　to　the　spine。　Took　me　a　little　while　to　figure　how　to　remove　it　without　endangering　anything。‘
‘Two　hundred　thirty…seven　pellets；　but‘　…　she　held　the　X　ray　up　to　the　light—　‘looks　like　you　got　them　all。　This　fellow　just　got　a　nice　collection　of　freckles；　though。‘
‘Took　long　enough；‘　Sam　said　tiredly；　knowing　that　he　ought　to　have　let　someone　else　handle　it；　but　he‘d　volunteered；　after　all。
‘You　know　this　patient；　don‘t　you？‘　Sandy　O‘Toole　said；　arriving　from　the　recovery　room。
‘Yeah。‘
‘He‘s　ing　out；　but　it‘ll　be　a　while。‘　She