S parrow felt terrible for the hero. It was obvious he was dealing with a bad concussion, and the puking would just make him feel worse. And he’d looked totally horrified when he’d seen her hair. Was the helmet-head that bad? It was why she kept it so short on the sides and the long top pinned back .
Keri looked up from the other patient in their rig, a man with what looked to be a broken leg, when she stopped at the door. “Who’s empty?” she asked, steadying the guy over her shoulder. He was heavy and long, and her legs were beginning to quiver from holding him. Dude was definitely bigger than her brother, who she normally practiced on .
“I don’t think Jack has anyone in his .”
Sparrow didn’t even respond, just headed to the rig a little further back from their own. Jack’s truck had come from Fire Station 15 on Harrison, a little more on the eastern side of Denver than their own station 4, so it had taken them longer to get there .
Keri was right, it was empty. Jack spotted her headed in his direction and dismounted the gurney. By the time she arrived he was ready to help her roll the guy onto the mattress. Immediately he slapped an oxygen mask over the guy’s mouth, forcing in oxygen. Coming out of any kind of fire, it was a given that the patients would need to be oxygenated. Jack’s partner Oliver sidled in beside her and they started through their treatment checklist .
It gave Sparrow a moment to look at the guy. She knew she needed to get back to her own rig, but something held her there. The guy wasn’t very old, maybe late twenties, but he had heart. That much was obvious. He didn’t have to save that baby. He’d put himself into an incredible amount of danger to do it. Not many people would in these times. Christmas was a week away, and that family could have had a devastating tragedy on their hands if it hadn’t been for his actions .
The man had a beautiful mop of auburn curls and a light reddish beard. One side of his head was plastered with blood and she thought she could see a cut up around his hairline. That would probably need stitches. His face was lean and something looked strange about his right side. Oh, damn. A large chunk of his right upper ear was completely gone! And there was a patch of hair around the ear that seemed… more sparse than the rest of his scalp. It was an old injury, though .
Sparrow glanced down his body, feeling strangely connected to the man. At least six feet tall, his body had been long, but definitely didn’t seem bulky enough. Seemed like the dude didn’t eat much. Or maybe he was just one of those types that couldn’t add weight .
His eyes fluttered open suddenly and she jolted with awareness. Dark, liquid brown, sad, with thick red lashes, they pinned her to the spot. One of his hands reached out toward her, and she couldn’t leave him hanging. Removing her right glove she moved around Oliver to grab the man’s hand. Heat flowed through her and something fluttered in her belly, but she curled her fingers tight into his. “You’re going to be okay, buddy. The squad’s going to transport you to the hospital, okay? Looks like you have a concussion .”
Without saying anything, the man released her hand. But he didn’t set it back on the bed. He reached for the long angled wing of hair hanging down over the side of her face. Two fingers and a thumb felt the hair, rubbing it between the pads. “Purple. I see purple .”
Sparrow grinned. “Yes. Purple.” She shrugged. “I like to be different .”
The man grinned at her from beneath the oxygen mask and let his hand fall back to the gurney. “What’s your name ?”
“Sparrow.”
The man repeated the name, then his beautiful eyes drifted shut again .
“We’re going to transport him, Holmes .”
She waved a hand, backing away from the gurney. “Okay. See you there .”
When she returned to her own rig, Jack gave her a thumbs up. “We’re ready to transport .”
Sparrow didn’t even remember the drive to the hospital. The man’s liquid brown eyes were right at the front of her mind, as well as that terrible injury to his head. She cursed herself for not getting his name. But it shouldn’t be hard to find the guy. They were going to the same hospital .
Sparrow didn’t get a chance to track him down, though. They were dispatched almost immediately to a second crash. The light dusting of snow had turned the roads into a skating rink, and the people were paying for it .
S am opened his eyes and cringed. Damn it was bright. He shaded his eyes with his hand and looked around .
Hospital, obviously. He could smell the damn place before he could make out the objects in the room .
There was a nurse at the end of the bed and she looked up at him with a smile. She seemed nice enough, but she was bland like every other person he looked at. Two-dimensional and colorless .
Had he actually seen purple? Or was that a strange figment of his imagination? His throbbing head rang with pain, even more so when he pushed himself into a sitting position. The nurse lifted her brows and shook her head at him, but Sam wasn’t in any mood to listen to her. Swinging his legs to the side of the bed, he realized there was a draft. “Where are my clothes,” he demanded .
The woman circled the bed. “They’re in a bag underneath, but I don’t think the doctor is ready to release you .”
“Have I been seen ?”
The nurse scowled. “Yes, but …”
“You need to get the doctor in here to tell me if I’m dying or not. If I’m not dying, I’m walking out of here .”
Her jaw clamped shut and she disappeared through the hanging divider curtain .
Gingerly, he felt his head. It was wrapped in gauze and felt a little numb. Maybe that little cut had required stitches. Everything else seemed normal. Still a little out of balance from the deafness in his right ear, and achy through his back. There was a hard twinge in his right side. All normal. The head was the only thing new. And the color he’d seen when they’d been loading him up .
Had that fireman actually been a woman? He distinctly remembered her pulling off her black helmet, and the intense purple color of her hair. Had that been right ?
Maybe it was something to do with the concussion. Fuck, he had no idea. He did know he wanted to get out of here .
Sam clenched his jaw and slid off the bed. He worried that his legs wouldn’t hold him for a moment, but he clenched his jaw and stood firm. This wasn’t going to take him down again. He was a fucking Marine, as Gunny Palmer would say .
Blinking, he looked beneath the bed. There was a white plastic bag bulging with his clothes. Quickly he shucked the blanket that had been covering him and dumped the bag. They’d left his underwear on at least. The smell of smoke and fire and dirt turned his stomach, but he forced himself to drag them on, then his singed black coat. His cell phone was nowhere to be seen. Had he left it in the truck after he’d called 911? No, he’d been out when he called. It may have fallen into the crumpled car when he’d been on his back fighting to get the baby out .
A young man in a white lab coat entered the cubicle and frowned when he saw that Sam was about to walk out. “Hold on, sir. You can’t leave yet .”
“I have no broken bones and I’m not bleeding anymore. Why can’t I leave ?”
“Because you have a concussion. Severe enough that you lost consciousness .”
Sam shrugged, looking for his boots. “I’m solid enough now. If you don’t release me I’m walking out, so if you have aftercare you better get your ducks in a row quickly. I’m not staying here a second longer than I have to .”
The young doctor looked at the nurse, who shrugged .
“Fine,” he said eventually, “but you can’t drive. You need a ride .”
Sam snorted. “Obviously. My truck just burned up in that crash. Is that baby I pulled out okay ?”
The doctor scowled. “I can’t tell you that. My patients have a right to their privacy .”
Sam sighed. “Fine. I’m gone .”
He was tired of all the bullshit .
A woman waved him down as he stomped through the rest of the cubicles. Sam recognized her immediately. “Chandra. Is your baby doing okay ?”
She nodded, crying. “He only had a few scratches and he’s been released already. My mother-in-law took him home with her. I had been following my husband home, though. He was in the car in front of mine, and he’s in X-ray now. They think he has a broken leg. They think mine are too.” She gave him a sad smile .
“I’m sorry,” he started, but she shook her head .
“No, I’m so glad I saw you because I wanted to thank you for coming to our rescue. I wouldn’t have been able to get Austin out on my own, and the firemen hadn’t gotten there yet. I’m so thankful that we all made it out in one piece. It would have been a terrible Christmas if any of us hadn’t made it home .”
“Yes,” he agreed. “It would have been. I’m so glad you all are okay. A broken leg might sideline you and your hubby a bit, but it could be worse .”
She nodded her head, tears flowing from her eyes. If there was ever a woman in need of a hug right then, it was her. He leaned over the bed, squeezed her tight and released her .
“Hey,” he asked her conversationally. “did you see a woman with purple hair there? A fireman ?”
The distraught mother shook her head. “I don’t think so .”
“Okay. Thanks, Chandra. Have a Merry Christmas, okay? Give your Austin a hug from me .”
She nodded and waved as he walked away .
Well, at least that had turned out for the best .