He’d been
injured protecting her.
“Medical. I need medical in shuttle bay two now.” She knelt
down next to him and took his hand in hers. “Why?”
“You told me to take whatever measures necessary. I was just
following orders.”
“To protect Lee. You had to know that.”
He smiled weakly. “You have your definition of necessary and
I have mine.”
His eyes closed and his pulse became thready under her
touch. “Medical. Where the hell is medical?”
It couldn’t end like this.
Chapter Nine
Parker swam through consciousness for the next few days. At
least he thought it was a few days. For all he knew it could’ve been weeks or
months. But when he did swim to the top—in those few moments when he was
aware—she was there with him. He felt the warm dampness of her tears. Smelled
the spicy aroma that followed in her wake. Heard her voice as she talked
consistently to him. He wished he could give her some sign that he was okay.
Hell, he wished he was certain everything was going to work out.
“Is he awake?” A male’s voice seemed sharper than usual.
“We’re pulling him out of the coma now. He should be waking
up momentarily.”
For the first time he felt a burning pain radiating from his
arm. And the chemically sanitized room stung his nose.
“Umhmer?” He’d tried to ask who they were. But he wasn’t
sure where he’d gone wrong. It was as though he couldn’t remember how to form
specific words anymore.
“Relax.”
Had he gotten tense? He didn’t remember.
“We’ll have you awake in just a few more minutes. You’ve
been in a medically induced coma for three hours.”
Three hours? It seemed so much longer than that.
“Can you hear me?”
He nodded. The simple move made pain explode in his head but
he felt a sense of accomplishment at having done it.
“Can you understand me?”
Seemed like a silly question. If he hadn’t understood him,
he wouldn’t have nodded at the previous question. Still, he nodded again in
answer.
“Good. Can you feel this?” A gentle pressure brushed against
his forearm.
“Yes.” The word sounded heavy and slurred but it was
recognizable.
“Good. Do you know where you are?”
“Medical?”
“Yes. Do you remember how you got here?”
“Vance shot me.”
“Excellent. It looks as if he’s coming out of the sedation
well.”
“Arm hurts.”
“That’s to be expected. Your genetic enhancement speeds the
healing process. Unfortunately faster means it hurts worse. Can you open your
eyes?”
He found it strange that he hadn’t thought of doing it
already. When he did open them, though, the bright lights made the pounding in
his head worse. “Too bright.”
It was quiet for a few minutes. “There. I’ve dimmed the
lights. Can you try again? We need to check your pupils.”
This time the light wasn’t overwhelming when he opened his
eyes. Sure enough, he was in an examination room. There were the usual beds,
tables, equipment and IV stands, not to mention the team of people in scrubs
and long jackets standing over him. “So how many doctors does it take to change
a light bulb?” He smiled at his own joke.
“Seems as though you’re feeling better already.” The doctor
shined a small penlight into his eyes. “Pupils are equal and reactive. No sign
of a concussion.”
He unwrapped the gauze that covered the wound next. “And the
laser burn appears to be healed.”
Parker looked down at his arm to find a small scar but
otherwise no laceration. “That never fails to amaze me.”
The doctor leaned over and whispered, “Us too. That’s why
there are so many doctors in the room.”
His head now felt remarkably clear and the throbbing pain
had receded to more of an annoying headache. “So I’m guessing the prognosis is
good.”
“Looks good to me.” The other doctors each took a turn
examining his scar before filing out of the room one by one. “If you feel up to
it, there’s someone who would like to have a word with
injured protecting her.
“Medical. I need medical in shuttle bay two now.” She knelt
down next to him and took his hand in hers. “Why?”
“You told me to take whatever measures necessary. I was just
following orders.”
“To protect Lee. You had to know that.”
He smiled weakly. “You have your definition of necessary and
I have mine.”
His eyes closed and his pulse became thready under her
touch. “Medical. Where the hell is medical?”
It couldn’t end like this.
Chapter Nine
Parker swam through consciousness for the next few days. At
least he thought it was a few days. For all he knew it could’ve been weeks or
months. But when he did swim to the top—in those few moments when he was
aware—she was there with him. He felt the warm dampness of her tears. Smelled
the spicy aroma that followed in her wake. Heard her voice as she talked
consistently to him. He wished he could give her some sign that he was okay.
Hell, he wished he was certain everything was going to work out.
“Is he awake?” A male’s voice seemed sharper than usual.
“We’re pulling him out of the coma now. He should be waking
up momentarily.”
For the first time he felt a burning pain radiating from his
arm. And the chemically sanitized room stung his nose.
“Umhmer?” He’d tried to ask who they were. But he wasn’t
sure where he’d gone wrong. It was as though he couldn’t remember how to form
specific words anymore.
“Relax.”
Had he gotten tense? He didn’t remember.
“We’ll have you awake in just a few more minutes. You’ve
been in a medically induced coma for three hours.”
Three hours? It seemed so much longer than that.
“Can you hear me?”
He nodded. The simple move made pain explode in his head but
he felt a sense of accomplishment at having done it.
“Can you understand me?”
Seemed like a silly question. If he hadn’t understood him,
he wouldn’t have nodded at the previous question. Still, he nodded again in
answer.
“Good. Can you feel this?” A gentle pressure brushed against
his forearm.
“Yes.” The word sounded heavy and slurred but it was
recognizable.
“Good. Do you know where you are?”
“Medical?”
“Yes. Do you remember how you got here?”
“Vance shot me.”
“Excellent. It looks as if he’s coming out of the sedation
well.”
“Arm hurts.”
“That’s to be expected. Your genetic enhancement speeds the
healing process. Unfortunately faster means it hurts worse. Can you open your
eyes?”
He found it strange that he hadn’t thought of doing it
already. When he did open them, though, the bright lights made the pounding in
his head worse. “Too bright.”
It was quiet for a few minutes. “There. I’ve dimmed the
lights. Can you try again? We need to check your pupils.”
This time the light wasn’t overwhelming when he opened his
eyes. Sure enough, he was in an examination room. There were the usual beds,
tables, equipment and IV stands, not to mention the team of people in scrubs
and long jackets standing over him. “So how many doctors does it take to change
a light bulb?” He smiled at his own joke.
“Seems as though you’re feeling better already.” The doctor
shined a small penlight into his eyes. “Pupils are equal and reactive. No sign
of a concussion.”
He unwrapped the gauze that covered the wound next. “And the
laser burn appears to be healed.”
Parker looked down at his arm to find a small scar but
otherwise no laceration. “That never fails to amaze me.”
The doctor leaned over and whispered, “Us too. That’s why
there are so many doctors in the room.”
His head now felt remarkably clear and the throbbing pain
had receded to more of an annoying headache. “So I’m guessing the prognosis is
good.”
“Looks good to me.” The other doctors each took a turn
examining his scar before filing out of the room one by one. “If you feel up to
it, there’s someone who would like to have a word with
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