at the other side, shouting the information we’d just received to the nurse in charge. She directed us to a trauma room, but I trusted Hunter to navigate us there while I paid attention to trying to stabilize the girl.
As I flashed a light across her eyes and scrutinized her face, my heart sank. I knew this girl.
Well, I knew who she was anyway. I recognized her from the pictures at the front desk. Unless I was very much mistaken, the girl’s name was Adi and her mother was our receptionist, April.
While I hadn’t said much more than hello to the fiery-haired receptionist, I knew she was proud of her daughter. I’d overheard her talking about the kid on more than one occasion when I’d walked past her desk.
A lump formed in my stomach. April was one of our own, which meant her daughter was, too.
Fuck.
For the next harrowing seven and a half minutes, I focused every ounce of my attention on the tiny human lying helplessly on the gurney.
“My head hurts,” she moaned, squinting her eyes against the harsh light hanging above us.
I squeezed her forearm and gave her what I hoped was a reassuring smile. “I know, sweetheart. We’re going to take good care of you, okay?”
She nodded but then winced and closed her eyes. Her breathing was coming in shallow pants and her skin was ghastly pale. Gently placing my stethoscope on her chest, I tried to locate the cause of her struggle.
“Everything sounds clear,” I said, looking up at Hunter. “It has to be a panic attack.”
“Not surprising. I’ll get the meds.” He spun around and headed to the cart while I murmured soothing phrases to our patient.
While coaxing her into trying to breathe deeply, I completed the rest of my examination. A dark bruise was forming on her forehead and disappeared beneath her hairline, which explained the headache.
“We’re going to need painkillers as well,” I said before gingerly lifting her arm. It wasn’t mangled, and it definitely wasn’t as bad as it could have been, but it wasn’t exactly good, either. There were a few scrapes and bruises, but that wasn’t what worried me.
The girl’s arm was lying in an unnatural position that didn’t look comfortable at all, but she hadn’t moved it so much as an inch. “She might need surgery. Did you see April out there?”
“April?” Hunter frowned as he handed over the syringe with the medicine we needed. “Who’s that?”
“The receptionist,” I said as I injected the girl as quickly but painlessly as possible. “I’m pretty sure this is her daughter. Now that we’ve stabilized her, we need consent if she has to go to surgery.”
He snapped his fingers. “Ah, her. I haven’t seen her, no. You’d better go look for her. I’ll stay with the little princess until you’re ready for her.”
“Thanks.” I peeled the gloves off and leaned over Adi, brushing a hand over her soft red hair. She was already breathing easier. Seeing it made my own chest expand without it feeling like I had a rhinoceros sitting on it. “I’ll be right back, okay, sweetheart? I need to speak to your mom.”
“She’s not here,” she groaned. “I was with my dad.”
Rage filled my vision with red spots for a moment. That makes more sense.
I’d had trouble understanding what Adi had been doing on a motorcycle since I realized who she was, but I’d figured I would get to the bottom of it eventually. Stabilizing her had to come first, but now that she was doing better, my hands were itching to punch something.
My fingers curled into my palms so hard that my short nails bit into my skin, but I kept my expression serene. “I’ll get someone to call your mother then. Don’t worry, honey. She’ll be here soon and Hunter will stay with you until she gets here.”
Her glassy brown eyes slid to his side of the bed. “Hi, Hunter.”
“Hey, little darlin’.” He managed a grin, but I could see it hadn’t come easily to him, either. “I’m right here. You just tell me if you need anything, okay?”
She nodded, but her lids were getting heavy. The sedative and painkillers were doing their job, but this girl shouldn’t have been in here needing them in the first place.
Everyone with ears in the hospital had heard the whispers about April’s ex and what he had done to her. I didn’t know the whole story since I wasn’t her friend or one of those people who spread gossip around