Protector - Laurel Dewey [93]
Jane slid into her car, slamming the door. “Fuck regulations! I’m going to Denver Health! Tell them I’m coming!” she yelled, peeling away from the scene. Jane tore down Franklin, ignoring every stop sign and hitting speeds well over fifty mph. She reached over and brushed the dripping blood out of Emily’s eyes. “Don’t you die on me, kid!”
Jane zoomed through red lights and crisscrossed around traffic, screeching her tires around the curves. She was within a mile of Denver Health Medical Center and continued driving like a maniac and screaming at Emily. “Come on, Emily! I know you can hear me! Come back!” Jane spun the Mustang into Denver Health, heading for the Emergency entrance. Skidding to a halt, she yanked out the keys and ran around to Emily’s side. She undid the seat belt and hoisted the kid into her arms. “Police!” she screamed, racing to the doors. Several nurses ran up to her.
“Are you Perry?” one nurse quickly asked.
“Yes!” Jane yelled back.
A stretcher appeared and the nurses carefully placed Emily on it. “What happened?” the nurse asked as they dashed through the automatic doors and down the hallway to a curtained treatment area.
“I don’t know,” Jane said, her voice shaking as she ran alongside the stretcher. “I think she was on the roof and there may have been a struggle—”
“How far did she fall?” the nurse asked.
“Maybe thirty feet!”
“You shouldn’t have moved her!” the nurse admonished.
“What the hell was I supposed to do? Watch her die?”
The nurse shot Jane an angry look as they swung the stretcher into the treatment area. A doctor made his way into the space and started checking Emily’s vital signs. The nurse relayed the information given to her from Jane. Their conversation blurred into the background noise as Jane stared transfixed by Emily’s tiny body on the stretcher. Her favorite pajamas with the star print were blotted with grass stains, dirt from the roof, leaves and splatters of blood.
The doctor fixed a bright overhead light above Emily’s head. He checked for any fixation in her eyes. Turning to Jane, he asked, “What’s her name?”
“Emily,” Jane responded.
“Emily?” the doctor said, his mouth inches away from the child’s bloody face. “Emily? My name is Dr. Brunler. You’re in the hospital. If you can hear me, honey, wake up.” He pried open Emily’s mouth, felt around her throat with his gloved finger and turned to one of the nurses. “I think there might be an obstruction in her airway. We may need to intubate.”
Jane reacted. She leaned down and whispered into Emily’s ear. “Emily! Wake up now or they’re going to stick a damn tube down your throat! Open your eyes!”
The doctor heard Jane and grabbed her by her shoulder. “Officer, I can’t have you talking to her like that. I need you to leave.”
A nurse tried to pull Jane away from Emily. “She listens to me!” Jane yelled.
“Nurse,” Dr. Brunler said, irritated, “please show her into the waiting room!”
“Get your hands off me!” Jane shouted at the nurse. But the nurse kept moving her backward, away from Emily. Jane turned to Emily and yelled. “Goddamnit, Emily! Wake up! Don’t let the bastard who did this to you win!”
“Officer, please!” the nurse implored Jane as she pulled her backward.
“Hey, hey!” the doctor said abruptly. “She’s coming around!”
The nurse immediately let go of Jane and returned to the table. “Stay back!” the nurse cautioned Jane.
Jane stood away from the action, but positioned herself in a spot nearby where she could see Emily’s face. Emily struggled to open her eyes.
The doctor pushed the light out of Emily’s eyes. “Emily? Talk to me!” Emily darted her eyes from side to side. “Emily, can you move your head?”
Emily stared at the surrounding hospital staff. “Jane?” she whimpered. “Where are you?” Emily caught sight of Jane through the hospital crew. Immediately, she reached out her arm and lifted her body off the table, trying to get to her. “Jane!” Jane moved forward, grabbing Emily’s hand. The doctor gently