and it was steady. “Get Zeke back here. Tell him we need a neck collar and a backboard.” He picked the smaller pieces of debris off her. Eden laid on her stomach, one of her arms bent at an angle that could only mean it was broken, but there was no blood he could see so the bone hadn’t gone through the skin. He examined her as he pulled rubble off her and talked to her, letting her know he was there. She had numerous cuts and abrasions. A wicked lump on the side of her head had bled and clotted her blonde hair to her skull. Caked blood and dirt under her nose could be from being hit with something, or it could be from the blow to the head. Either way, he wasn’t taking any risks.
Zeke crested the top of the pile and sat Eden’s bag down. “We don’t have a backboard. Most of the clinic is somewhere in the next county. We’ll use a piece of plywood. I have a collar.” He moved down to where Jeremiah was. “Status?”
“Pulse is regular. The arm is broken, but no signs of an exposed fracture. I’m worried about the contusion to the head and the blood from the nose.”
“All right.” Zeke twisted and looked around. “Carson, we need that board.” Zeke pointed to a large piece of plywood. Carson and Phil made their way through the rubble and worked the board out. “Bring it over here. This side.” Zeke moved and put the board next to her. “Jeremiah, you have her head. Phil, over here. You’re going to help me roll her. Smooth, no sudden movements. Carson, that arm is going to drag when we roll her. I want you to keep it in line, don’t let it drag. Like this. Now, slip your hands under her elbow and wrist and move with her body. Everything is slow, got it?” Zeke looked at all of them as they took their positions. “All right, Jeremiah, on your count, we go at three.”
Jeremiah placed his hands in position and counted it down. “One, two, three, and slowly now…”
They rolled her over and he winced. She’d been torn up in the storm. Minor cuts and swelling contusions littered her body. He and Zeke put the spinal collar on her and the four of them carried her out of the tornado’s refuse.
Ace was there to help as they moved to uncluttered ground. “We have no more heat signatures in this mess.”
“We’re taking her to the garage. It still has a roof.” Zeke coordinated movements, which he was thankful for because his mind was on overload. He wanted to stay with Eden, yet they needed to find Cyrus.
When they moved through the small space between the cafe and the garage, Jeremiah got the full extent of the devastation. It looked as if the tornado had skipped several buildings and then wiped out three or four and jumped over the cafe and the garage on one side of the street. The clinic and Eden’s apartment were gone; only framing and the exam table remained.
They moved her inside. Phil handed his side off to a Guardian and rushed to grab two sawhorses for them to place the plywood that Eden was lying on.
Jeremiah kneeled beside her and stroked her cheek. “Wheeler, our objective is still out there.” At Ace’s statement, he closed his eyes and said a prayer for Eden.
He stood, still holding her hand. “Phil, do we have a count on the people still here?”
Phil nodded. “Yeah, we’re unburying my tractor and then pulling Gen’s truck off that door to get her out. We have ambulances coming for these three.” He nodded at Eden, Mark, and Kerry.
“I don’t need an ambulance,” Kerry grumbled, although he was still laying on the concrete floor.
“You took a crack to that brain of yours. Don’t damage it any more by declining treatment,” Phil grumped right back at him.
“Zeke?” Jeremiah glanced down at the doctor who was examining Eden.
“I’ve got this.” He looked up at Jeremiah. “You know I’ll take care of her.” The silent conversation between them said so much more. He nodded and placed her hand back down. “I’ll be back.” He leaned down and kissed her forehead.
As he straightened, he rolled his shoulders back. He had a fucking psychopath to catch.
They emerged from the garage and Ace took charge. “Hondo, you’re watching this position. If that fucker shows up here, take him out. Those people are your mission,