As prepared as she thought she was, the shock of hitting the icy cold water of the river shocked a strangled scream from Laura's throat.
Her mouth filled with water as they plunged beneath the surface, causing her to struggle frantically in Evan's grasp in an attempt to rise for air. Beneath the panic and need for oxygen, her mind was dimly aware of the agony in her shoulder created by her movements.
Evan, whose own thoughts had been temporarily frozen when they'd entered the water, was able to see Laura's dilemma and held on to her as he used a few strong kicks to push them up above the surface.
Once there, Laura's body was wracked with coughs as she expelled the water that had filled her lungs. A splash behind them alerted Lorne to Ronon's approach as he swam up to them.
"We need to move faster and stick to the edge," he cautioned as he looked behind them to see if their pursuer could spot them.
Lorne nodded, hooking his arm around Laura's middle and turning so he could pull her along behind him. Though it went against her independent nature, Laura's exhaustion won out and she allowed him to swim for the both of them.
She held onto his arm and leaned her aching head back against his shoulder as he used his other arm to swim. She felt him press a quick kiss to the top of her head and then they started moving. They swam closer to the side of the river just below the drop-off so that it would be more difficult for someone from above to look down and see them.
A minute later they caught up with Sheppard, who had been holding onto the branch of a fallen tree to wait for them. They continued swimming for another ten minutes before Sheppard decided they were far enough away to safely exit the river.
Evan dragged Laura up and helped her crawl a short distance onto dry land before she plopped down, clutching her left arm close to her chest. Sheppard and Evan crouched down in front of her as Ronon kept a wary eye on their surroundings.
John reached tentatively for her left arm.
"Cadman-" he began.
"I know, Sir," she cut him off, her words coming out between clenched teeth. "Just do it already."
He nodded, and both men took up their stances, John holding gripping Laura's arm and Evan gripping Laura. Swiftly and efficiently, her shoulder was jerked back into place.
Evan tightened his grip when her face turned an even paler shade of white and she swayed forward to rest her head against his chest. She gasped. Now that the pain in her shoulder was settling to a dull ache, a stabbing pain beneath her TAC vest where the bullet had hit was making itself known.
"Laura?" Evan questioned, his eyes shining with worry.
Still holding her left arm stiffly against her, she reached her right hand up to start jerking at the straps to her vest.
Understanding dawned on Evan's face, and he batted her hands away to do it himself. Sheppard helped him ease the vest off and they used it for a pillow as they lowered Laura down to the ground. Evan hesitated for a second, looking up at his CO before untucking Laura's shirt and pushing it up far enough to see the baseball-sized bruise that was developing where the bullet had impacted her TAC vest.
"Does it…look bad?" Laura shuddered.
"It ain't pretty," Sheppard answered with forced levity.
Evan cautiously probed the area, wincing when he felt a broken rib shift beneath his fingers, causing Laura to jerk and cry out.
"Sorry, Laur," he said, hurriedly snatching his hands back.
"Broken rib," he told John.
Sheppard cursed under his breath. "Crap."
"My…sentiments…exactly," Laura wheezed.