Page 53 of No Going Back
She forced her eyes open and smiled at Sean. “I’m fine. Just a little woozy.”
He didn’t appear to believe her.
Joe’s voice called through the noise, and she closed her eyes again. “Lia is over at Doc’s. It’s right beside the saloon. We can take the car.”
Sean’s voice was shaky. “That’s just down the street, isn’t it? It’ll be faster if I run. Show me.”
Branna leaned into him as they ran down the street. The motion brought back the dizziness she’d felt earlier. She kept her eyes closed and forced back the urge to vomit.
Sean skidded to a stop, and they were inside a warm building again. It was too much work to open her eyes, so she let out a happy sigh instead.
“Stay with me Branna. We’re at the doctor’s place. She’s going to help you. Stay with me.”
“Hi Branna, Sean. I’m Lia Moreno, and I’m happy to meet you. Put her down here, please. Branna, can you open your eyes for me?”
Sean’s voice was right next to her ear. “Please, Branna. Open your eyes.”
The world stopped spinning once he’d laid her down, so she took a deep breath and opened her eyes. The lighting was bright and harsh, and she wanted to close them immediately, but seeing her surroundings helped settle some of the dizziness.
Lia’s soft voice continued. “I’ll dim the lights for you after the exam. Did you bang your head, Branna?”
That triggered the memory. “Yes. When Prince was trying to shove me out through the window, I stretched out and hit my head on the frame.”
Soft fingers probed her skull. “And the bump on the side of your head? How’d you get that one?”
Oh, right. “When he whirled around, my head hit the side frame too.”
The pretty Latina woman smiled at her. “Sean, get me two ice packs from the little fridge beside the door.”
The icy cold felt fantastic against her head, and the whirling settled a little more. “That’s fantastic. Thanks.”
Lia’s fingers moved to the wound on her shoulder. “And how did this happen?”
Branna grimaced. “I think it happened at the beginning. The window smashed, Hawley flew into the room, and the shots happened at the same time. I don’t feel like I’ve been shot.”
Sean squeezed her hand. “There’s blood on your sweater, and it’s ripped.” His voice shook. “What if you hadn’t been wearing that vest from Marcus?”
“But I was. Something slammed into me, but I don’t know if it was glass or Prince or a bullet. Whatever it was sent me flying into the wall and nearly knocked me out.”
Sean growled, but Lia’s voice was calm. “Probably not glass then. You’re speaking clearly, and your memory is intact. Is the dizziness fading?”
“It’s much better now.”
“Good. You’ve probably got a mild concussion. We’ll do more tests soon, but I want to get a look at this shoulder first. I’m sorry about your sweater, but it’s already ripped and it’ll be easiest on you if we cut it off. Joe? Would you mind?”
Joe appeared in her vision with scissors. Branna hadn’t realized he was with them.
“Here we go.” Lia moved to the side, and Joe made quick work of slicing up the material so she didn’t have to move for Lia to see the wound.
With every passing second, the fear was dissipating, and she was feeling better. But the adrenaline was wearing off and she could feel the aches throughout her body.
She was alive to feel the aches. No one had been hurt. Had they? “Was anyone hurt? What about Manuel? Is he okay? Is everyone okay?”
Sean, Joe, and Lia all gently held her down. Sean lifted her hand to kiss it. “Everyone is fine. You’re the only one with an injury. The other men got taken into custody with no issues.”
Her eyes filled with tears of relief. “I’m so glad.”
Lia smiled at the protective vest she wore. “I approve of your wardrobe choices. I’m going to undo the vest, but we won’t worry about taking it off yet. And I’ll have Joe slice the shirt beneath it. My hand isn’t up to a lot of fine motor tasks, but it doesn’t affect my ability to be a doctor.”