A/N: Character's thoughts are in italics. Again, characters you recognize belong to Janet, the plot is mine. Again, thanks to Susan for proofing this. Lastly, thank you each and every person that took the time to read, review, and/or follow this. I accidentally posted the wrong chapter here initially but quickly fixed it - thank you Lynn021 for pointing that out to me.
Chapter 3
Ranger continued to climb towards Stephanie, carefully placing one foot on a branch and testing if it would support his weight before shifting completely onto it. The rain continued to pelt both of them and the wind continued to bluster around them. He gingerly maneuvered himself onto a branch right above the one that was digging into Stephanie's leg and straddled it. Wiping the rain out of his eyes, he leaned forward slightly to figure out the best way to pull her up. "Can you reach up to me? I think if I hang on to the tree trunk I can get your hand."
Steph looked up at Ranger's outstretched hands. "Okay, but hold on to something, Ranger. I don't want to make you fall." She attempted to curl herself up with outstretched arms, using a sit-up motion, but missed Ranger's hands by a couple of inches. "GAH!" Steph swung to and fro from the movement. "Of all the times to regret not doing those crunches at the gym!" She huffed and then looked up at the smiling man sitting above her, then sighed. God, even soaking wet with dripping hair, he was beautiful, inside and out. "Okay, okay, let's try this again. I want to go home before next week and I want a donut." With that said, she gave a little swing to get some force in her movements and reached for all she was worth.
Ranger's big strong hand grasped Steph's small one with a solid firm hold. He carefully pulled her toward him. Thank God and all the Saints in heaven. I've got her and its going to be okay, he thought with relief.
That thought was short-lived. Continuing to pull Stephanie up to him, Ranger was momentarily distracted by the slamming of a car door somewhere in the warehouse parking lot. He lost the smooth momentum he was using to pull Steph upright, jerking her up harder than he had intended. This caused the branch that was stuck in Steph's cargoes to spear through her outer thigh, causing her to scream out in pain. Stephanie's sudden scream startled Ranger, causing him to grab onto both of her arms and yank her up to him, snapping off the impaled branch from the tree trunk. They were being bounced around by the rain and wind of the thunderstorm but the moment she was in his arms and cradled against his chest, he breathed in again. He could hear Tank and Lester by the outbuilding and called them over. Steph continued to whimper in pain with her face buried in Ranger's shoulder as he tried to adjust her weight over to one arm so that he could start the trek down the tree.
Putting one foot on the branch below him, he felt the hair on the back of his neck begin to stand up. He carefully lowered all his weight on it while scoping out the surroundings for whatever had his hyperawareness on alert. Unexpectedly, a blinding ball of electricity surrounded them and a white hot sizzle hit both Ranger and Stephanie in the chest area where they were pressed together. He kept his arms tight around his babe as the branch that supported them snapped off from the lightning strike and sent them free falling to the ground. This is gonna fucking hurt was his last conscious thought.
Tank and Lester watched in horror as their boss and the woman he loved fell to the ground in a crumbled heap. Lester was already calling 911 while Tank ran over to the unconscious couple to assess the situation. "Shit, this don't look good Santos! Get the ambulance here 10 minutes ago!"
The scene in front of him was a grim one. Laying in the midst of chunks of charred and smoking tree branch was Ranger, with Stephanie still locked tightly in his arms. He could make out multiple scrapes and abrasions on both of their faces and arms, but what had him concerned was the piece of a tree branch that had impaled both Stephanie and Ranger's upper leg, effectively skewering them together. There was a lot of what looked like blood pooling under them, and Tank couldn't tell who it was coming from. Both Ranger and Steph's clothing were shredded; Tank took note that both were missing their shoes. Without moving them, he could make out a blistered burn pattern on both Ranger's and Steph's fronts, disappearing where their chests touched. He kneeled down by them and carefully checked to make sure both still had pulses and both were still breathing. Finding both, he yelled back over his shoulder "Santos, tell them to be prepared for trauma and lightning strike – looks like both were hit! Both got a pulse and are breathing, but they're both weak and someone's losing a shit-ton of blood! Get them here now!"
Even though it felt like 4 hours, the ambulance and emergency responders made it to the scene in 4 minutes. Effectively cutting the branch in two that impaled both Ranger and Steph, the EMS team separated them so that they could work on the unconscious couple more effectively. Both were stabilized, then loaded into the ambulances that were waiting to take them to St. Francis Hospital.
-tbc-
