THEM (Season 1): Episode 2 by M.D. Massey

SWALLOW
    A s Gabby fell in the water, I immediately dropped all my gear and dived in after her. She hadn’t gone far, yet her body was limp and lifeless as I lifted her head out of the water. A few hard strokes got me back to where I could reach the dock, and thankfully Bernie was there to help me lift her out. I’d never thought about how small she was, but as he took her from my arms I noted that she was so light I probably could’ve easily pulled her out, even without his help.
    Once Bernie had her, I scrambled out of the lake and immediately started a battlefield trauma assessment, checking her from head to toe. Thankfully it didn’t look like she’d gotten too much water in her lungs, and she was still breathing, so I pulled back her shirt to see where all the blood was coming from. She’d been shot in the left side of her abdomen, with the entrance wound in the left upper quadrant just below the rib cage, possibly with a small-caliber rifle round. I couldn’t find an exit wound, so I assumed something had slowed down the round before it hit her, that maybe it was a ricochet instead of a direct hit. I hoped that was the case, because the less kinetic energy a round hit you with, the less internal damage it would cause.
    Bernie brought me a first-aid kit from the boat and opened the case for me. There was a bottle of rubbing alcohol in the case, as well as some disinfectant liquid. I was completely unprepared and unqualified to perform emergency surgery to remove a bullet, so all I could do was clean the wound, stop the external bleeding, and get Gabby on antibiotics until I could get her to someone who knew more about field surgery than I did. I doused my hands with alcohol, poured a bunch on and around the wound, and then began cleaning the area with antiseptic and a sterile gauze pad. Once I had the area good and sterile, I covered it with more gauze and taped it shut. Then, I applied a pressure bandage to the area. That was as much as I could do for the moment.
    After I had her wound dressed, Bernie helped me move her into the main building and onto one of the dining tables, suggesting to me that it would be the best place to care for her. He looked at me with regret, and I could tell he’d seen a person get gut shot before. “Don’t look good, Scratch—not without a doctor.”
    “I know. The problem is, I don’t know of a single qualified surgeon anywhere around here. The last one we had in the settlements got eaten by one of his patients, dumb son of a bitch that he was.” Gabby chose that moment to start to stir, so I looked over at Bernie and pointed by the door where I’d dropped my gear on the way in. “Bernie, can you hand me my bag?” Bernie brought me my backpack, and I rummaged around until I found what I was looking for, a waterproof hard case where I kept my most important, life-saving chems and drugs. I pulled out a packet of antibiotics, mixed the packet in some water, and had Bernie help me prop her up. She choked most of it down, grimacing in pain as she did so.
    “Ugh. That tastes like ass,” she muttered to us weakly.
    I had to smile at that. “You’ve been shot—that ‘ass water’ will help prevent your wound from getting infected until we can get the bullet out.” I paused and squeezed her hand. “This was my fault. I should’ve been looking after you better.”
    She shook her head, gently. “Naw, it was my fault. I shouldn’t have stood up. One of those assholes got a lucky shot, right after I pegged that guy who was climbing into the boat. I turned around to wave at you, and that’s when I got hit. I should know better—my tío would have my ass for this.” She grimaced. “Oh man, I might have to throw that back up.”
    “Try to avoid it if you can help it. Antibiotics are going to be critical for keeping you healthy until I can get you to a healer.”
    She shook her head, more vigorously than the last time. “No. No healers. Take me to La Araña . She’ll know