Chapter 235

Later that afternoon Kate sat at a wooden picnic table in a private area outside with the kids playing on a blanket. She could hear Tegan and Sara from the stage and glanced up at a monitor mounted in the gazebo. They looked great as always and Kate felt a wave of pride well up in her.

Kirsten the nanny watched her from afar. She was so gorgeous. Sara was such a lucky girl. She couldn't help still having a major crush on Kate. She felt like a teenager every time Kate spoke to her. Kate was quite obviously very happily married and in love though. Kate's back was against the table and her legs crossed and casually stretched out in front of her. Kirsten sat down next to Kate and handed her a soda.

"You can go watch the show if you want?" said Kate.

"I'm good thanks. I'll stay and watch the kids with you. I know all the words by heart by now and that's just from watching sound check"

"Not a fan?" laughed Kate.

"No it's not that, I love their music" said Kirsten and blushed.

"You still happy with this gig?" asked Kate. She had grown to really trust Kirsten and Nici the other nanny they appointed when they realised that three kids is just too much for one person.

"I'm loving it. I appreciate that Tegan and Sara gives me some freedom to explore when I'm not needed. It really is quite a cushy job" laughed Kirsten.

"Well I'm glad. By the way it may get less cushy when I go back to work. I think that…" Kate said before being cut off by a screaming Amelia.

"Am? Sweetie what's wrong?" said Kate and picked her little girl up. Amelia was crying like she's never heard her before.

"Where's the ouchie sweetie?" said Kate inspecting her wailing daughter. She didn't see anything wrong. Amelia kept screaming. Kirsten and Nici were tending to the twins.

A minute later she seemed to calm down a bit in Kate's arms. Kate looked at her face and felt her heart literally triple in her chest. Amelia's face was starting to swell and she was starting to wheeze. Kate immediately put two and two together.

She put her down on the blanket. "Oh shit… oh shit" she mumbled. "It's okay Amelia mommy's here" she said. "I need some medics… or my bag…. Somebody call 911" she yelled.

"Kate?" said Kirsten.

"Run Kirsten! Get my bag" Kate yelled.

The bus was quite a bit away and Kirsten took off in that direction.

"Medics please! I need an epi pen" she yelled again as she checked Amelia over.

"Oh god… where?" she said to herself. She picked up Amelia's foot and saw it. Three bee stingers were still stuck in there. Kate immediately scratched it out with her fingernail and opened Amelia's airway by tilting her head. Amelia was flushed, her face swelling by the second. She moaned softly through her wheezes.

"Its okay sweetie, Mommy will sort this out" she said. Her hands were shaking so badly she had trouble taking Amelia's pulse. Amelia's heart was racing.

"Where are those medics?" she yelled.

"Should we call for a doctor in the crowd?" somebody asked.

"I am a doctor… I need an epi pen, now! Does somebody have an epi pen please?" Kate yelled. Nobody answered.

"Did you call 911? She's going into anaphylaxis" said Kate but she kept her gaze on Amelia's face.

"Where's the medical tent, we can't wait" she said.

"On the other side of the audience. It's take forever to get there" said Beth.

"Dammit… get me an epi pen" Kate yelled again, tears now streaming down her face. Beth ran away to search for one.

"Breathe sweetie… breathe… please" said Kate softly. Hives were forming on Amelia's arms and legs and she was still moaning and wheezing. Tegan and Sara kept singing in the distance.

Kate felt helpless, she couldn't do anything without medication and equipment. She put her fingers back in Amelia's neck. Her pulse was very fast and weak. Amelia seemed to be in and out of consciousness.

"Amelia stay awake for Mommy, come on" she said shaking Amelia's shoulders slightly.

Kirsten came racing towards her carrying her medical bag. Kate ripped it open and started scratching around for an epi pen. She hoped to god she had one in there, she really couldn't remember. The next second an ATV with some medics pulled up next to her.

"I've got an epi pen. Move away Ma'am" said the guy.

"I'm a fucking paediatrician… give me that. Get some oxygen and bag her" said Kate.

She quickly set the dosage on the side of the pen and plunged it into Amelia's little thigh without a second thought.

"Do you have any Benadryl?" asked Kate.

"Only tablets… look we're not geared for this kind of… um" said the "medic" as he was putting an adult size oxygen mask over Amelia's face.

"Don't you have an ambubag or a smaller mask?" asked Kate annoyed.

"We weren't expecting babies" said the guy.

"Call 911, this is a serious emergency" Kate yelled as she grabbed her stethoscope and listened to Amelia's heart and lungs.

"We've called a while ago. They're sending a helicopter. There's just too much traffic here, it's going to take a while to get here and get out. They should be here soon" said somebody that looked like a festival employee.

Kate pulled out the medication pouch in her bag and flipped it open.

"Can you start a line?" Kate asked.

"Doctor, we only do minor emergencies" said the medic looking spooked. "The real medics are on the way from the other side of the crowd"

-o-

Tegan and Sara were mid song when they saw a med-e-vac chopper landing somewhere on the side of the VIP area.

"Sorry for the interruption guys. This must be serious. You guys be safe out there… stay hydrated please and stay out of trouble" said Tegan over the noise of the rotors.

A nervous feeing settled in the pit of Tegan's stomach but she brushed it off as empathy. They paced around on stage waiting for the noise to stop.

"Okay guys just be patient… we'll get going again soon" said Sara as the crowd became restless.

-o-

"Get a syringe out of that bag. I want the one with the pink cap. Then pull up 0.3mg of this" said Kate to the so called medic.

Kate struggled to find a vein to start an intravenous line. Amelia's veins were collapsing and Kate's shaking hands didn't make it any easier. She eventually got the cannula in. She checked what the medic did and plunged the medication into the port before hanging a bag of saline from her medical bag.

"Hold this" she barked and handed the guy the bag.

Kate pulled out the small peads BP cuff and put it around her daughter's arm and pressed the button. She looked at Amelia's swollen face and horror like she had never felt washed over her. Amelia was struggling more and more to breathe. Kate felt as if her heart stopped when she saw the results on the BP screen. 50 over 30, dangerously low. She pulled out a fingertip pulse ox and put it on her finger.

"Her sats are in the low 80's, I need to intubate or we'll lose the airway" said Kate, her voice shaking.

Amelia suddenly seemed as if she wasn't breathing.

"Get a size 2 ET tube out of that bag, and the laryngoscope" Kate said and closed her mouth over Amelia's to breathe for her.

"A what?" asked the guy.

"Make room please" Kate heard somebody shout. The real medics were here… thank god.

"I'll update you in a sec… I need an ambubag she's hardly moving any air" said Kate while she kept assisting Amelia's breathing.

"We've got this, let us treat her" said somebody that looked like the flight doctor.

"I'm a paediatric surgeon. I can help" Kate snapped.

The med-e-vac trauma team was jacked up. They pulled out equipment at lightning speed.

"I'll intubate her" said a female medic.

"I'll do it, hand me the tube and the scope" said Kate now lying on her stomach at the top of Amelia's head to get a better view into the child's throat.

"Get her on a monitor please and start another line" said Kate as she inserted the laryngoscope.

"She's really swollen, I can't see the cords at all. Dammit… I can't get in. I need a bougie" said Kate trying her best to remain calm.

"She's dropping her sats fast, let's go" said the guy that seemed to be in charge.

Kate inserted the thin wire and advanced it into her child's airway, praying that she would get it in successfully. She heard the heart monitor come to life. It was beeping exceptionally fast.

"She's tachycardic and I can't find a BP yet" said the female medic.

"I think I'm in, tube" said Kate with her hand out. She advanced the tube carefully over the thinner wire.

"Check lung sounds" she said as she attached an ambubag to the tube.

"Equal lung sounds on both sides but it's not sounding good" said the medic.

"She's really, really difficult to bag. Give her some salbuterol down the tube and bag her with 100% O2 to get her sats back" said Kate handing the ambubag to one of the medics to squeeze. She listened to Amelia's chest again.

"BP's coming back in slowly, pulse dropping a bit"

"Good… good" mumbled Kate. Amelia's eyes were swollen shut but she gently tried to pry them open to shine a penlight into them.

"Pupils are reactive" said Kate.

After a few more minutes of desperately trying to open Amelia's airways with medication Kate listened again.

"She's opening up a bit. We need to get her to a hospital now. I think she's stable enough to move. Let's get her out of here" said Kate.

The med team carefully put Amelia and the heart monitor on a stretcher and secured her with some straps.

"We're taking her to Portland General. We've got her, you don't need to come" said a medic.

"I'm her mother, I'm coming" snapped Kate.

"Sorry, I didn't realise" said the medic.

"Kirsten, stay with the twins. Take them back to the bus immediately and take my bag and its contents with you. I'm trusting you on this" said Kate.

"Should we get Sara off the stage?"

"No, their set should be almost over. Tell her to get to Portland General Hospital as soon as possible. Keep her calm" said Kate to Beth and Charles, the leads of the security team.

"We'll take care of them and get them there safe" said Beth and squeezed Kate's forearm. Kirsten was crying. "Is she going to be okay"

"I think we've got her in time… I need to go" said Kate and rushed towards the helicopter.

-0-

A few minutes later Kate was holding Amelia's swollen hand in the helicopter.

"I'm so sorry sweetie… It's okay, mommy's here" said Kate and pulled a blanket over her to prevent further shock.

"She's having a run of PVCs and I can barely get a pressure, she's in circulatory collapse. Systolic's 18" said the flight doc and ordered medication.

Kate studied the heart monitor on the stretcher above Amelia's head.

"Oh Jesus… no… please" Kate cried and shouted more drug orders.

"Come on sweetie… convert… please" Kate cried.

"That's it, she's back in sinus and we have a stronger pulse, pressure's up to 40" said the flight doc a couple of seconds later.

Kate collapsed into a heap on her knees. She was sobbing loudly, her body shaking.

-0-

"Thank you Portland, you were a great crowd. Enjoy the rest of the festival" said Tegan and the twins left the stage with a wave.

"Good show" said Sara and slapped Tegan's back.

"You too" said Tegan and downed a bottle of water.

"Hot out there" said Sara.

"Yeah, maybe somebody had heat stroke that's why the chopper was here"

"Sara" said Charles waiting downstairs as the twins left side stage.

"What's up Charlie. Somebody request Tegan's presence in the bathroom?" Sara laughed.

"Sara… Amelia's was stung by a bee and" said Charles before being cut off.

"Oh my poor munchkin. Is she okay?" said Sara, expecting a niggling child but not a major medical emergency.

"Sara… she had a severe anaphylactic reaction. Kate was with her and they immediately started first aid. It's serious Sara… the helicopter was here for her"

"Oh my god" said Sara and her knees buckled. Her heart thumped in her ears and she felt as if she suddenly couldn't breathe.

"I've got you… I've got you" said Tegan hanging on to her sister. She felt like feinting herself.

"Where have they taken her… I need to go… where is she… is she okay?" Sara rambled after straightening herself. She started running, she didn't even know where. Charles caught up to her in a second and took her shoulders.

"Sara… it looks serious but Kate's with her. I've got a car waiting to take you to the hospital immediately" said Charles pointing at a black Jeep.

"Let's go!" Sara yelled and ran to the car.

"I'm going with her… Ted, sort things out here with Lindsey and the kids please" said Tegan.

"You got it… call us with an update" said Ted looking spooked.

"Oh god… oh god" Sara muttered with her face in her hands in the back of the Jeep.

It was hard getting out through the crowd. Charles had the emergency blinkers on and was hooting but people in various stages of inebriation swerved in front of the car.

"I fucking hate festivals… never again" said Tegan.

"Please, please, please" Sara kept repeating. She pulled out her phone and tried to call Kate. The call connected.

"Kate! Is she okay?" Sara rambled.

"Sara, it's Kirsten, Kate left her phone here"

"Dammit, I can't even call her" Sara cried and disconnected.

"She's got to be okay… Tegan… My baby" Sara wailed.

"Kate's with her Sara. She'll take good care of her. She'll be okay" Tegan tried to soothe Sara but she was petrified herself.

A/N: I may post a few chapters today to spoil you. Let's hope Amelia is okay. Sara and Kate will never survive if she's not. Review PLEASE!