Title: Something Worthwhile
author: Cindy Ryan
notes and summary: See part one
Tim saw Lucy go under. He fired at the robber and as soon as the man hit the ground Tim holstered his weapon. He ran for the water his shoes slipping slightly on the rain soaked pavement. Lucy hadn't surfaced yet which caused fear to crawl up Tim's spine. The vest caught it. Tim kept repeating to himself in almost a mantra. The vest caught it. Tim dove into the water just as he did his mind registered blood.
Lucy fought to orientate herself. The dark water and the overcast day was making it difficult for her to tell which direction was up. That combined with the gunshot knocking the wind out of her Lucy was fighting off panic. As she thrashed in the water Lucy saw a flash of color and realized it was blood. She wished she could see more to know where she was hurt. Lucy knew the bullet had hit the vest. She had a vague memory of her right leg snagging something as she fell.
Lucy knew she couldn't worry about that now. She had to get air; she had to get to the surface. The confusion and disorientation was winning. The darkness was overwhelming Lucy and she couldn't breathe. Her eyes drifted closed and she found herself sinking into unconsciousness.
Tim missed her the first pass the water was so churned up. It was her right hand that had caught Tim's attention the second time; pale against the darkness. Shoving all emotion and thoughts deep down Tim swam fast. He wrapped his arms around Lucy and shot to the surface. Once there Tim took in a large gulp of air before he made his way to the dock. They were ten feet away. He saw Lopez and West anxiously waiting and heard sirens in the distance. Rain pelted his face but Tim didn't care.
Before he was even out of the water Tim felt for a pulse. Relief washed over him so hard it nearly toppled him back into the small waves. Lucy was alive.
"Got a pulse!'Tim shouted as he reached the dock.
"Ambulance is almost here."Lopez reported as she helped Tim place Lucy gently on the dock. "Less than a minute out."
Forcing himself to move calmly Tim examined Lucy searching for the source of the blood he'd seen. Despite himself Tim felt his pulse escalating and his already pumping adrenaline was soaring. He remembered seeing Isabel being loaded into the ambulance barely alive. Now here he was with Lucy but it's not the same. Tim told himself. Lucy was protected but where the hell was the blood coming from?
Lucy began coughing then as she regained consciousness. The sound was one of the best Tim had ever heard. They rolled her onto her side to allow any swallowed water to release. That was when Tim saw the tear in the uniform of Lucy's right leg.
"Damn it!"Tim swore violently as he yanked off his shirt and made a fast tourniquet. "Her femoral artery! We've got to get pressure on it."
Lucy groaned in pain as Tim tied off the tourniquet. /Sorry, babe./ Tim thought bleakly. The ambulance roared to a stop then with another close behind. Four more squads pulled up and Tim registered all that distantly. His entire focus was the woman before him. Lucy was unconscious once more, her face pale. It'd been raining when he'd gotten into that ambulance with Isabel too. Tim shook off the memory. /Stay with me./Tim pleaded silently.
"She was shot in the chest."Tim explained to the young brown haired medic that was squatting next to Lucy. "The vest caught it but she went in the water. She's got a cut on her leg damaging her femoral."
"We've got it from here."The medic said soothingly as they loaded Lucy onto a stretcher.
"I'm going with."Tim stated as he stood.
There was no time for argument and the medic knew it. Tim climbed into the ambulance and took a seat. The medic closed the doors and they drove away from the marina sirens blaring.