His pager beeped and he frowned looking at it. With reflexes a quarterback would be proud of, he bolted from his office and ran down the hallway to the emergency room as the ambulance pulled in. Lizzie was already there, directing staff as the door burst open and Stevie rushed in, blood over his hands and on his shirt followed by the ambulance attendants pushing the stretcher.
"It's Rooney. Looks terrible but the ambo's say it’s superficial. They think she collapsed from shock."
Russ hurried to her side, letting the nurses do their job while taking her vitals and making sure for himself she wasn't in any danger. When he saw everything was under control, he grabbed Stevie and took him to one side. "What happened?"
Stevie shook his head, his hands on his hips. "We got a call from Rhian, screaming that Stubbs was at the surgery with a knife. Rooney had pushed her out the back door when they saw him approaching. He got her, Russ. When we arrived he was standing with the knife at her throat and taking his time slicing her bit by bit until we backed off, giving him a chance to escape. Christ, he could have killed her." He dropped his head, a look of defeat crossing over his eyes.
"Tell me the rest." Russ folded his arms and waited for Stevie to get himself together.
"I had no choice. I shot him when he dragged her out to make his getaway. He'd cut her twice by them and, shit, it's my own damned fault. He heard me creeping up behind him and cut her again."
"You couldn't have tasered him earlier? I thought that’s what you did these days."
"Are you accusing me of not following regulations, Russ?" Stevie lifted his head and glared.
"Not at all. I just don't understand why you went in with your gun if there was another way."
"There wasn't. He was holding her too close and in cases like this, it’s up to the officer’s discretion. Stubbs was ready to kill her, make no bones about that. I'll face a committee about this, without doubt but I have no qualms about killing the man who was going to kill my future wife."
"Sure of yourself, aren't you?" Russ walked over to the bed and glanced down at his sister, who was starting to come too.
She waved her hands in the air and screamed, a sound that ripped straight to his gut.
Stevie was beside her in seconds, wrapping his arms around her as she sobbed.
Russ pulled the curtain blocking out the staff and other patients. Lizzie stepped away and tried to walk out too. "I need your help, if you don't mind, Nurse Stanley."
She nodded her head and stood at the end of the bed waiting for direction. Russ gave them another couple of minutes before tapping Stevie on the shoulder. "We need to sort this out." He took his sister’s hand. "Honey, it's okay, you’re safe and not in any danger. I need to check out your throat. Okay?"
He watched the tears running down her cheeks and the way she gripped onto Stevie as she nodded. "He…he tried to…kill me…Russ." Her lips quivered as she tried to get the words out.
"I know, babe, but he can't hurt you anymore. Now, let's get you sorted out." Russ reached for the trolley and Lizzie pushed it forward. She tore open a sterilizing pack while he pulled on gloves and looked at the cuts on Rooney's throat. With gentle fingers he probed and inspected the knife wounds.
Russ asked for a suture kit while he cleaned blood from her throat exposing the slashes along one that ran from just below her ear to her collar bone.
Stevie looked up and questioned him with his eyes.
"It was pretty close but I think we can glue the two smaller ones together. Unfortunately I have to stitch the bigger one, Rooney. Can I have some local please, Nurse?"
Rooney watched his face while he cleaned the wounds, wincing when it got too painful for her. "Sorry, but you know better than most we need to do this first." He threw the swabs onto the trolley and waited for Lizzie to return with the local anaesthetic.
"Is that her?" She looked at Russ.
"Yes."
"She's very pretty but she looks sad."
The curtain opened and Lizzie walked back in with a small glass bottle and handed it to Russ. He checked it and took a syringe, filling it before turning back to Rooney. "Going to sting for a bit. Hold her hand, Stevie."
He leant over his sister and injected the anaesthetic along the biggest cut, apologising when she cursed at him. "Sorry. If you only needed one stitch I wouldn't bother but you need quite a few. If you don't want a scar, stitching is the best way."
"I know, just being silly. Take no notice of me." She wiped a tear from the corner of her eye before it fell.
"Rooney, I don't have to tell you about shock. You might want to think about staying in overnight."
"No, I have Tam to think about. She would be worried if I didn't come home." She glanced at Stevie. "I've never hidden anything from her and I don't want to start now. We don't have to tell her everything, not all the details."
"I can stay with Rooney if that will make you feel any easier, Russ." Stevie looked up at him, his look daring Russ to object.
"That would ease my mind. I might not be back til late tonight and it would be better if there was someone close to you for a while—just in case." He picked up the syringe again and poked at the area around the biggest cut. "Can
