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Chapter 15
"The…They had very visible head injuries," Made spoke with obvious pain, trying his best to keep his voice steady, to try and conceal the horror that he'd found waiting for him on that ledge, "E-especially Kim…The doctors will also be worried about spinal injuries, because both of the children fell a long way…"
Mrs. Patterson's keening became louder and Major Patterson put his arm round her, pulling her to him, before looking back to Made to continue.
Made had tears pouring down his face, by now, but didn't let his strong façade slip. The very least he could do for his sister and brother-in-law was to tell them the truth; they deserved that much.
"However, it is the possibility of head injuries that is most worrisome, right now. The doctors will be performing a CT scan, to assess the extent of any damage to the brain and perhaps surgery might be necessary, if there are signs of bad bleeding or swelling."
Harm collapsed into a chair, no longer able to hold his weight anymore. Mac took a seat beside him, taking his hand in hers, again.
"How on earth could this have happened? What were they doing there?"
Major and Mrs. Patterson looked to one-another, both thinking the same thing. Their son was known for his spirited behaviour, even though they all knew that he'd never intentionally put Kim in danger.
Harm saw this visual exchange and moved to censor himself.
"I'm sorry…I'm not thinking clearly…Kim and I had words, just this morning, a very bad argument…She was angry at me for some of the things I said and I suspect it was also her idea to skip school…"
"That is not important, just now," Major Patterson shook his head, "We need to focus on what's ahead of us and how we can best help our children. No matter whose idea it was to cut school and go to that disused quarry, our kids were best friends and would have followed each other anywhere…"
"They were holding hands, when the team managed to get to them," Made revealed, "Even when we were treating them, it took a great deal of persuasion to get them to let go. They weren't completely conscious, but they still tried to keep hold of each other's hand…"
Mrs. Patterson had to excuse herself, at this and her husband quickly excused himself to go after her. Made turned his gaze away, giving Harm privacy as he sought comfort in Mac's arms. They sat like this for a long time, long after Made left to go and write his incident report for the police investigation into the accident, long after Major and Mrs. Patterson returned quietly to the waiting room.
"Major and Mrs. Patterson?"
Everyone's attention snapped to the tall Marine surgeon, who had just appeared in the doorway.
"Yes, Colonel," Doug kept a tight grip on his wife's hand as they stood and moved forward.
"Your son's condition is stable, he's sustained some fairly serious injuries, but he has been extremely lucky to avoid any spinal injuries. He's just being set up in the high-dependency unit, but I expect that he'll be moved to his own private room as soon as tomorrow morning…He's going to be unconscious for a while, yet, but I'll take you to see him, now."
"Oh, thank you…" Yan's Mother wiped away tears of relief, as the surgeon guided them out of the waiting room.
Mac knew that there was probably nothing she could say right now, so she settled for hugging Harm to her, silently conveying strength to him, providing support to his weary body.
They sat in the quiet room for another hour, before a nurse appeared in front of them.
"Mr. and Mrs. Rabb?" the young ensign requested.
"Yes," Harm and Mac stood, ignoring her mistake.
"Kim's doctor, Colonel Redgrave will be with you, shortly. We're just getting your daughter settled in the Pediatric ICU…"
Harm and Mac barely had presence of mind to thank her, before she disappeared back through the doors and into the busy hallway outside.
"She'll be okay," Harm murmured to himself and Mac squeezed his hand, in agreement.
When Colonel Arthur Redgrave came to speak to them, however, it was clear straight away that all was not okay.
"I'm not going to lie to you, Commander, Major…Your daughter's condition is extremely serious."
Mac noted the incorrect assumption he'd made, but instantly brushed it aside as unimportant.
"Give it to me straight, Colonel," Harm nodded in appreciation of the man's straightforward manner. Skirting around things was the last thing he could deal with, just now.
"Kim's condition is extremely critical. At this stage, we're extremely glad that x-rays show that Kim has no spinal injuries, which is almost unheard of, in such instances of a fall from a great height. Kim does however have multiple and very serious head injuries, which have rendered her comatose. We do think that we will have to operate within the next few hours, in order to perform a ventriculostomy. This procedure will drain fluid from inside her head, around her brain, to help normalize the pressure inside of her skull, in case her brain swells to a dangerous level. CT scans have indicated bruising of the brain and some bleeding, both on the surface and between the brain and its protective lining. I thought you would want to spend some time with her, before we take her down to the OR."
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