“You will be all right,” she quietly mouths, as she follows Levi down the hall.
“Where are we going?” Mar asks, as we try to keep up with Rae.
“Our hospital,” she answers.
“What did you need to talk to us about?” I ask.
“No,” she says. “Not now.”
I can’t help to think she looks just a bit too sad when she says not now. I don’t know what is going on, but I have a sinking feeling that it isn’t good.
I wonder where the rest of our group is, or if they made it back. I choose not to ask at this moment, because there seems to be more pressing things now, and the pain is making talking difficult.
After a moment of walking, me helping Mar as much as I can, we arrive at Wonder Shield’s version of a hospital. I can say it is much more elaborate than that of the medical compound at The Force.
“We stay together,” Mar says, looking at me to see if that is okay.
“That’s right,” I say.
“Very well,” Rae says, “We will see if the larger room is available.”
“Thank you,” Mar says.
“Barb,” Rae calls out to a nurse at the far end of the large room.
The woman we now know to be Barb, walks over to us, eyes eagerly on our wounds.
“How can I help you, Rae?” Barb says, looking eager to get her hands on us.
“This is Barb,” Rae formally introduces the nurse to us. “She gets so excited when someone with more than a cold comes in.”
“Raymond Townsman shot himself in the foot last year, and I just about kissed him.” Barb smiles.
Her smile truly stretches from ear to ear with a childish glint in her eye. She is rather pretty, but when her lips part, you can tell that she is missing nearly all her front teeth. I want to ask her what happened, but I don’t want to offend the person who is about to help me get better.
“We have Liz with broken ribs and Mar with shrapnel for you, Barb.” Rae smiles. “Take care of my friends, will you?”
“It is my pleasure,” Barb bubbles.
“I will be back to get them in a little while.” Rae waves goodbye.
“Follow me, ladies.” Barb motions to us.
Mar and I hobble down a hallway with rooms on either side of us. We stop at a room halfway down the hall with the number 907 above it. The room has a large, tough-looking, middle-aged man sitting at a desk that is clearly three sizes too small for him.
“Don’t be afraid, he’s a teddy bear.” She looks at us and grins. “Your assistance, please, Rodge,” Barb calls to the large man.
“What room are you going to be in?” Rodge asks. “I’m almost done finishing these dockets for my lecture next week, then I will meet you there.”
“1090 at the end of the hall,” she answers.
“I will only be a minute, doll,” Rodge says. He finally realizes Mar’s bleeding leg and my exposed ribcage. “What do we have here?”
“These ladies have met The Elected,” Barb answers.
“My dockets can wait,” Rodge says with excitement in his own eyes. “I will go get my things and meet you in 1090.”
“Okay.” Barb smiles.
After leaving Rodge to get his things, Barb leads us to the end of the hall into room 1090. There are three elevated cots in the middle of the room with more medical supplies than I have ever seen.
“Neat ,isn’t it?” Barb says, proud of the display in front of us. “Every member that makes Wonder Shield their home brings all their belongings to Rae’s building where everything is divided out to what is needed in each home. Rae never denies what they need, and no one ever goes without food or a place to live. Each family is given some basic medical supplies, some go into the packs that will be handed out when we go to war, and the rest of it is stored and used in the hospital. We have the largest medical supply stock in all five corridors.” Her smile gets even bigger.
“Wow,” I say in disbelief.
“I know it.” She beams. “Ribs, you are on the first cot, and Shrapnel, you are on the middle one.”
“The name’s Liz,” I say as I hop up on the cot to the right.
“Yeah, and I’m Mar.”
Mar hops up on the cot next to me, we both wince at the pain of the impact. Rodge walks into the room, pulling a cart behind him full of medical tools, still with an excited glint in his eye.
“Shrapnel is first, right?” Rodge asks.
“She wants to be called by her real name,” Barb scoffs, “can we please call you Shrapnel and Ribs? We will remember you better that way.”
“Sure, whatever.” I smile. “Ribs it is.”
“Yay, I’m glad you see it our way,” Rodge grins.
Rodge pulls the cart over to Mar. I reach across and hold her hand. He picks up a needle with a tube hooked to it.
“Numbing meds,” Rodge says. “They might make you fall asleep. Hip please.”
“I beg your pardon?” Mar asks.
“I need to see your hip to give you the pain meds.”
“Oh.” She blushes. She then exposes her hip long enough for him to clean the surface and plunge the liquid from the tube into her body. “That burns.” She winces.
“Only for a minute,” Barb says, coming up behind us. She has been doing something at the counter to the back of the room.
“You next, sweetheart,” she says to me as she holds up
