Page 23 of Dark Angel
“I don’t care if it’s laced in gold and diamonds,” the doctor replied. “If you don’t cooperate, I’ll sedate you. Now, be quiet and let us do our jobs.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Gabriel replied.
Truth was, he liked a bossy woman. A confident woman who took charge, did her job like a badass. Dr. Joyce was attractive, in her forties.
“You married?” Gabriel asked.
“Very,” replied the doctor. “You?”
“No, but I’m always looking.”
The surgeon chuckled. “A patient with a sense of humor. Those are my favorite. You know, I’m always summoned here in the middle of the night, so being that it’s only eleven-fifteen meant I wasn’t woken from a sound sleep. And you’ve got a sense of humor.” She patted his shoulder. “I was only going to remove one of the slugs, but you made me laugh, so I’ll take them both out.”
The group laughed.
“We’ll be in the break room,” Greystone said. “Let us know if you need anything.”
“I’m Teddy, the good brother.” He started cutting.
“Why are you covered in so much blood?” asked the nurse.
Gabriel glanced at Teddy who shook his head.
Silence.
“The blood on your clothes and face look like blood spatter,” said Dr. Joyce.
“You told me to be quiet,” Gabriel said.
“This is a first,” Teddy mumbled.
“I’m going to scrub up,” the doctor said. “Teddy, if you can wait with Gabriel while Baker scrubs, that would be helpful.”
“Whatever you need.” He refocused his attention on slicing through Gabriel’s clothes.
“Thanks for staying,” Gabriel said. “Youarethe good brother.”
That made Teddy smile as he cut the high-end fabric.
Truth was, Gabriel didn’t care about the clothes.. He’d never had surgery, wasn’t thrilled about going under. Didn’t know the extent of his injuries. For once, Gabriel wasnotin control.
He hated that the most of all.
For the next few hours, he had to put his trust in total strangers, and he wouldn’t even be awake to manage the situation.
As the nurse peeled his shirt from the wound, pain shot through him, but he lay still. When Teddy tugged the material from his leg wound, he grunted through the discomfort.
“Whoa, that looks bad,” Teddy said.
“It clotted,” the nurse said as he examined Gabriel’s leg. “That’s good.”
Nurse Baker draped a sheet over him, then lay a blanket on top before starting him on an IV drip. “This has fluids, an antibiotic, and something to relax you.”
“Nice,” Gabriel murmured.
“I’ll be right back,” the nurse said before he shut the door behind him.
Alone with his baby brother.
