moment, Craig was gone, and all of April’s problems—and a fair share of my own—were gone with him.
“We need a crash cart in here,” I shouted before turning to rip the privacy curtain open.
April and Adi stood against the wall at the other side of the hallway, their gazes riveted to me. My mouth tightened when I met April’s eyes, but the cart I’d called for was already being barreled toward me.
“Paddles,” I snapped at the nurse who’d run the cart in.
She handed them over in the blink of an eye and told me when they were charged. For the next grueling minutes, there was no telling what would happen.
“They’re waiting for him in surgery,” Rhonda yelled as she hung up the phone at the nurses’ station and came racing back to us.
“We’ll send him up as soon as we can.” I kept working him over, uncertain whether those few seconds that had passed before I acted would change the outcome of the effort I was putting in now.
“Clear,” I ordered, watching as both Hunter and Rhonda stepped back. Pressing the paddles onto his chest, I kept my eyes on the monitor as they administered the potentially life-saving shock he needed.
A few more seconds passed before, just as suddenly as it’d stopped, his pulse came back. Sweat dripped from my brow, and regret already swirled around in my stomach, but I knew I’d done the right thing. I had made an oath to do no harm, and I had kept that oath today, as difficult as it had been.
“Let’s get him up to surgery,” I said to Rhonda, accepting a paper towel from Hunter as I unplugged the monitor from the socket above the gurney. “It’s going to need to be done fast. We might lose him again on the way. There’s a lot of damage.”
She nodded just as one of the surgical interns came running around the corner. There was panic in his eyes, but his voice and general demeanor were confident. “Doc sent me down here to get him. Is he ready?”
“Ready,” I confirmed before giving him a quick rundown about what we knew on the way to the elevator. They wheeled the gurney in with assurances to keep me updated throughout his surgery. Then the doors slid closed in my face and Craig was out of my hands for now.
For better or worse, I’d saved his life. I had done the right thing.
Now I had to face the consequences of that decision.
Chapter 32
APRIL
Katie arrived at the hospital confused. The parking lot in front of the emergency room was packed, but thankfully, the security guard knew her car and let her idle in a loading zone.
Adi and I ran up to her, and she cocked her head as she looked at me through her open window. “I thought you weren’t on shift today.”
“I’m not,” I said. “Could Adi spend the afternoon with you? I need to get back in there. I’ll explain everything later.”
She gave me a long look before she nodded and twisted around in her seat to smile at Adi. “Come on, sweetheart. I have some cover photos to go over this afternoon. I think you’re going to love them. You can help me choose one.”
Adi smiled but shot me a wary glance. “Are you sure everything is okay?”
“It’ll all be fine, sweetheart.” I bent over to kiss the top of her head. “I just need to finish some stuff at work.”
She chewed the inside of her cheek, but when I opened the door for her, she climbed in. “Will we see you later?”
“Absolutely. It’s not going to be a late one.” At least, I hoped it wouldn’t be. I brought my gaze back to my sister’s after shutting Adi’s door. “I’ll bring dinner. Thanks for this.”
“Any time.” She frowned and glanced in the direction of the ER. “Are you sure everything’s okay?”
“It’s fine. I just need to get back inside.” Straightening up, I waved goodbye and waited until the wheels were rolling before letting out a heavy breath.
When I’d gotten that bad feeling up in the therapy room, I hadn’t for one second expected to find Craig lying on that gurney. Especially not in the condition he was in.
I might not be a medically trained professional, but I wasn’t fucking stupid either. Anyone would’ve been able to tell that he was severely injured.
The worst thing was that, for a beat that lasted longer than I was proud of, I’d been relieved. If he died, I