Levi's Secret

Chapter 34

"Um Miss," said the nurse patiently. "I think you are sitting on a stethoscope. Could you give that to me please?"

Vicky stopped crying when she realized there was something hard grazing her hip.

"Sorry, here you go." she croaked out, voice hoarse with all the crying. She handed the nurse the stethoscope and watched as she touched his chest with the metal portion. His chest was bleeding in places and there were angry red marks on his wrists where the tight rope had bound him. The nurse listened to Axky's seemingly still heart for what seemed like an eternity.

Then, pausing, she put an oxygen mask over Axky's mouth and nose before attending to his bruises.

The other nurse meanwhile had finished dressing Levi's wounds and was now putting on his oxygen mask.

It took Paula and Vicky over a minute to realize that everyone in the van was breathing.

Everyone in the van had a pulse.

Oh.

Oh my God.

They made it!

"Are they going to be okay?" asked Paula tentatively.

"They should be." said the nurse. "The older man has inhaled a lot of smoke, it is already hard for him to breathe, but as soon as we get to the hospital we can hook him up to a mechanical ventilator if needed. For the most part, he may just wake up in a couple of hours on his own after we give him a few bottles of saline. He's lost a little blood and a lot of water."

"The younger man got dizzy with all the smoke. Stuff like this happens when fires break out in homes. Thankfully he got out in time, I'm guessing he'll wake up any time now." said the other nurse wiping away at the blood on Axky's shoulder. "The doctors need to see them both to find out if something else is wrong. They're both breathing, so I that's good."

Vicky excitedly hugged her mother, fresh tears pouring out her eyes.

Still breathing was great. She could work with that---

"...puke..." whimpered a voice.

All four heads turned to Levi, who had ripped off the oxygen mask and was now trying to retch while still lying down.

The nurse quickly helped him into sitting position and handed him a paper bag.

"...fucking ash everywhere..." he cursed as he retched into the paper bag, chest heaving. "...chest hurts...old man...OLD MAN!"

He stopped puking to frantically look around. His eyes locked on Axky's sleeping form and he turned back to the nurse helping him sit up.

"... he dead?" he asked breathing through his mouth fighting the urge to throw up again.

"No he's alive, thanks to you." said the nurse placatingly. "If you need to vomit, please do, it's good if you can stay awake while we reach the hospital."

Levi nodded, returning to his paper bag.

It took him a good while before he exhausted his belly. He felt much better now that his dinner was out. It was only after he finished rinsing his mouth on the tiny basin and looked around for the towel that he caught sight of Vicky and Paula sitting behind him in the van.

"What the hell?" he spluttered trying very hard to believe that what he was seeing was true. He rubbed at his eyes. 

"Hi Levi." said Paula with a smile. "Thank you for rescuing my husband. I am so glad you are alright. I will let your mother know you are safe---"