Time for a Meeting (Part 1)

Posted on Tue Jun 25th, 2024 @ 8:15pm by Hale Stratton [Major, United States Army] & Timothy Reynolds [Captain, US Army] & René Rouen & Vienna Quinn & Serena Reynolds DR & Civilian Thea Matthews & Edward Harrison Jr

2,054 words; about a 10 minute read

Mission: Winter is Coming
Location: Heading Back Toward the Dealership
Timeline: 6 September 2010 - 10:00 a.m.

The others were ahead of him and the dead-again were back behind him. He did a sweep of the area, to make sure that there weren't any stragglers waiting to follow him back, and then started making his own way back to the group. He didn't hurry. He walked because he had some thinking to do. Up till now, he'd been reacting more than anything and he was done with that. Tim was right. They didn't have a plan, some basic rules of engagement, and how new people entered the group -- if they entered the group at all.

[Up Ahead of Hale On the Road Back]

As Edward carried the unconscious teenager across his shoulders, he asked Vienna to check in him. "I don't want him turning into....those....things, while he's on my back."

“René wasn’t bitten! He’s not...one of them!” Vienna looked at René trying not to let her emotions show as she gently looked him over anyway. “No bites, just the bullet wound. Who in the hell shot him!? Why would anyone do that!!”

[Meanwhile A Short Distance away]

With a pregnant woman beside her in the blazer, Serena drove towards the location. But she pulled up a short distance away as she saw a man with another draped over him running towards them, another girl beside him. Serena looked at Thea. “Backseat, beside my son, clear the seat, lets get them in as best we can.”

René regained consciousness as Ed and Vienna reached the vehicle. He winced in pain from the minor jostling and patted Ed on the back. "Please. Put me down Monsieur."

"Glad to hear you're still with us, kid." Edward replied as he carefully shifted René from his shoulders, to the ground, then scooped back up in his arms. "Vienna, you go ahead and get in first. I'll put your boyfriend in the front seat. Be easier to get him out after." Ge then looked over at both women that were already in the truck. "Howdy, ladies, my name's Edward Harrison Junior. But you can call me Ed or Eddie. I just joined up with the Major before we went to save these kids from those creatures."

Serena stared at the youth's wound. "Put pressure on that wound, and get in. Where is the major?" She asked briskly. She was about to get someone else to drive but if they could keep the pressure on until they got somewhere safe, it would be best. Once there she could have a look at it.

René clamped a hand over the wound which caused him some pain, but not as much as he would have thought after being shot. He looked at Serena. "René Rouen, my friend is Vienna Quinn."

Serena nodded. “Serena Reynolds. The 10-month old with you there is Patrick.” The child blinked at the newcomers, but remained quiet as he had his pacifier in his mouth. He was not scared of new people, having been in day care since the age of 4 months.

[Short While Later]

Hale, who walked faster than some folks ran, caught up with the group and stopped short, surprised, to see Serena, the freakin' baby, and Thea had joined them. He sheathed the blood-soaked knife and holstered the now-empty pistol, not that P.J. would know the difference but there were some things ingrained into him by his parents that would not be denied, and walked up to the vehicle.

"What's going on," he asked.

Serena answered even as she put the Blazer into reverse. "We need to find a spot where i can help Rene" She said to him out of the window. "Is the dealership suitable?"

"No," Hale said with a shake of his head. "Killed something north of thirty in there. Well, re-killed, I guess. There's a pancake house a half mile down the road. How about there?"

Serena nodded. "We will meet you there." She put the Truck in gear and headed for the indicated restaurant.

As soon as Serena pulled away, Edward looked over at Hale, then turned suddenly turned and bent over, puking his guts out.

When he was done, he stood back up. He thought he was done, then he puked some more. Finally, he was finished. Wiping his mouth, he looked over at Hale. "Sorry about that..."

"It happens," Hale said. "No need to apologize."

[Bob's Pancake Palace]

Serena climbed out of the Blazer as she turned off the engine. She immediately began speaking, taking charge of the medical situation. “Okay, Girls, help Rene inside. Find a space and lay him down.” As she spoke she went to the back of the Blazer and opened the back door and then pulled out a towel. Then she went to the passenger side and pulled out her medical bag from the backseat. She saw Tim coming towards them. “Tim!” She called out. “We have wounded!.” She scooped their son in one arm and carrying the rest she turned into the restaurant, following the wounded inside.

Hearing his wife's words, Timothy increased his jog to a sprint, closing the distance between them in a few seconds. "Are you and PJ okay?!" He asked, quickly checking over his family.

His wife still irate with him snapped out. "We are fine. I have a patient"

When she came into the dining room, she handed Patrick to the nearest person, Thea, and then was opening up her medical bag as she knelt beside Rene on the ground. She slid the towel under Rene’s side. She lifted the shirt and her lips thinned. She reached into the bag and pulled out a few items. “This is going to hurt, badly.” She said to him. “I am all out of morphine, so you are going to feel all of this. I have disinfectant and that will burn as well.”

René took a deep breath and bit down onto the sleeve of his leather jacket. He closed his eyes and thought of the first time he'd kissed Vienna at the lodge in Millinocket.

"You may need to hold him down!" Serena said briskly to Vienna as she put on gloves. Then she opened the bottle she had brought from the bag and splashed the liquid onto a cotton ball and wiped it across the red bloody wound.

René jerked as Serena dabbed the disinfectant into his wound. He didn't thrash about after the initial jerk, but the pain did cause him to tremble.

"Hold him!" Serena snapped as Tim walked into the room.

Placing his rifle to the side, Tim moved over to kneel above René’s head, so he could press down on the kid's shoulders, to keep him from moving. "Get his legs," he said to the young girl who was covered in blood.

Vienna nodded, holding onto René’s legs as best as she could without leaning too hard on him. “I’m here René I’m not leaving you!”

Ignoring the cries of her patient, she began to probe with fingers to make sure there was no fragments in the wound. Then she deftly rolled René onto his side and nodding she began to sew up the hole at the back of his side.

René opened his eyes and focused on Vienna and the memories of the few kisses they had shared over the last couple of weeks. It was difficult, but his trembling subsided.

As Serena needed René moved, Tim did so, ensuring that he held the kid as still as possible in each position.

Thea stood watching events unfold, fortunately the sight of blood didn’t bother her that much. She was more concerned about René.

[Meanwhile, Back at the Dealership]

Hale found the four vehicles they'd be taking with them, and the keys, and pulled them all around to the front of the dealership. With most everyone at the pancake house, that left him, Alonzo and Reuben to bring vehicles over. One short but they could deal with that later. He gave them both keys and instructions on where to go, then drove the short distance to the restaurant because that would need checking out and securing as well. Long day already and it had only just started.

Seeing that they were short a driver, Edward offered the tow the fourth car with his work truck. After getting in position, he secured the other car to the back of his truck with a few chains. He then carefully towed it to the pancake house.

Hale backed into a parking spot, locked the vehicle and pocketed the keys, out of habit more than anything else, and then started a circuit of the building. One guy, with an apron wrapped around his waist, lay dead by the dumpster; to be safe, Hale put a knife through the soft spot in his skull, direct to the brain, and then tossed him, and not without effort, into the dumpster. He leaned against for a moment, eyes closed, and gathered himself for the next part.

Clearing the building.

[Bob's Pancake House]

Serena worked swiftly, focused and ignoring the others around her as she sealed up the hole in the youths back. Her stitching was always precise. But internally she grumbled about the lack of supplies and sterile field. She finished off the back wound then with Tim's assistance rolled René onto his back gently. Then she stitched the front wound.

After she finished stitching she grabbed a bandage from the bag and placed two sterile pads one on each of the wounds. She used the bandage to keep them in place by wrapping it around the youth's waist. she grabbed a small clip from the bag and secured the bandage. She pulled the shirt back down and said "Done"

It had been at least 20 minutes of concentration as she worked. She looked at René. "You are lucky" She said softly. "No major damage." she tugged off the gloves, and wrapped them around the cotton ball and sealed them with tape.

"We will need to watch it though, keep it dry for the next week or so. This is not a very sterile environment and infection is a possibility."

“I can help with that” Vienna sat at René’s side holding onto his hand, she wasn’t going to let him get ill, she wasn’t losing him too.

René gave Vienna's hand a gentle squeeze as he glanced at her lovingly. He turned back to Serena and nodded. "I think I am in good hands Doctor Reynolds."

Hale entered the pancake house, stepping around the group surrounding Rene, and made his check of the premises. Anywhere big enough for someone to hide or a body to be trapped. Walk-ins. Bathrooms. Storage Room. Once he was satisfied that the place was clear, he made sure the only open, unlocked means of entrance into the facility was the front door. "So," Hale said as he approached the group, "what happened? How were you hurt?"

“Isn’t it obvious?” Vienna looked up at Hale. “He was shot by someone! I was standing outside the pharmacy but I didn’t see who it was, or what direction it came from.”

“I was inside so I’m afraid I’m not going to be much help either” Thea shrugged her shoulders.

"It sounded like the shot came from the east, from one of the apartment buildings still standing," Timothy reported, shaking his head. "But, after searching the windows that I could see from the tower, I didn't see any movement." He paused, then thought out loud, "And as the wound wasn't immediately fatal....it's almost as if someone wanted him wounded..."he looked over at Hale, anger starting to cloud his features, "To draw the damn walkers in! The bastard, whoever it is, was trying with the kids!"

Edward stepped inside the pancake house as the man, he didn't know his name yet, was speaking. "But...why would someone do that?"

Serena finished packing up the medical bag and spoke as she did so "Some people are just crazy I guess." She handed the bag to Tim and pushed herself to her feet. Then she walked over to Thea and collected Patrick with a soft thanks.

 

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