wrath of the Sea Queen (56 page)

"
Really,
Scott,
can you think of nothing better?
"

"
Honestly, Uncle, we do not share the same desires in life.  I enjoy the simple pleasures.  But
,
I will see to it that your wish is fulfilled.  It conveniently coincides with my own.  Now, if you will excuse me, I
wi
ll go take care of that loose end before it unravels.
"
  Scott left Dr. Jacobs' office, catching a glimpse of the television monitor as he went
by
.  He
watched
a helicopter being over
taken
by a
gigantic
wave
which, unbelievably, did not cause any problems for the boat
or
the people near the shore
.  Scott continued on, walking casually down the hall until he turned the corner out of sight.

  C
a
eli came ru
shing
onto the deck from below.  She crossed the distance in a
hurry
and knelt down beside Salma, offering her assistance.  Her hand slipped in the pool of blood, but C
a
eli quickly wiped it on the bottom of her shirt and
forgot about it as soon as the mild tingling in her hand went away.

"How can I help, Salma?  Can we take him inside?"  C
a
eli offered.

"
We can't move him.  He
i
s los
ing
a lot of blood,
"
Salma said fighting back tears as best as she could.  She attempt
ed
to maintain her pr
ofessional
detachment
;
but watching her husband's blood spread across the deck was making it very difficult.

"
Where was he hit? 
How many t
imes?
"
  C
a
eli asked.

"
Only o
nce,
Lass
.  Would you believe they went and shot me in the same place as that
wiry
old
weasel's
stab wou
n
d?
"
  Ben rasped.  He tried to laugh and then started coughing
as the chill of the wet deck crept into his body
.  Th
e cough
caused more
blood to seep out of the wound, enlarging the already substantial pool
beneath
him
.

"
I think t
he bullet is still in
side him
.  I can't do anything until we get him to a hospital. 
But, h
e won't make it to a hospital if I can't stop this bleeding.  The entry wound is on his
lower
back
.  I
f I turn him over, it will bleed more.
"
  Salma
could
barely contain her panic as she
detailed
the seriousness of Ben's injury
, trying to think of a solution
.  Meanwhile, C
a
eli could feel life within the blood flowing around her knees as she knelt beside Ben.  Something about it triggered a
n unexpected
reaction
. 
C
a
eli
dipped her fingers in the blood and the
tingling sensation
recurred
. 

"
Salma, how much of the body is made up of water?
"
  C
a
eli asked,
curiously and
suddenly calm.

"
About sixty percent.
"
  Salma
couldn't imagine why
C
a
eli
would ask such a question at a time like this
.

"
And how much of the blood is water?
"
  C
a
eli persisted.

"
About eighty percent
; w
hy do you want to know this now?
"
  Salma was a bit annoyed with the question.

C
a
eli was not deterred by Salma's abrasive response
, understanding that
Salma was scared for Ben. 

"
Salma, I can help.  You have to trust me. 
I can help! 
I need you to go inside and get two blankets.  When you come back, put one under Ben's head, and cover him completely with the other.  Then I need you to go down to the infirmary and get whatever antibiotic and bandages you can find.  Will you do that?
"
 

"
C
a
eli
, it's nice of you to offer, but leave the doctoring to me," Salma stated.

C
a
eli's sudden
desire to act like a medical professional
seemed
way
out of
line to Salma, who really wasn't listening to the confidence in C
a
eli's voice.

"Salma, trust me. 
Go
get the blankets and the bandages
.
"

"It
will take time. 
Ben
could bleed out by then.
  No, I need to stay with him.  I need to do something to help him,
"
Salma insisted.

"
Aunt Salma, please
!
 
Let me
help
him
. 
I can help
if you
wi
ll let me
. 
Ben
will be all right
.
"
  The firmness in C
a
eli's tone
finally
got through to Salma.

"
Ok, C
a
eli.  Perhaps I can get Dr. Jacobs or Scott...
"

"
No!  Don't do that.  And don't use my name or Vin's around
either of
them.
"
  At C
a
eli's vehement insistence, Vin turned to look curiously at her, but
still
did not question her. 
Now was not the time
to get into
detailed
explanation
s
. 
This reaction, along with the list of curious behaviors
C
a
eli
displayed today
,
would have to wait
.

"
Maybe I should go with Salma,
"
Vin offered.

"
That's a good idea.  Just don't let that redheaded guy see your face.
"

Salma first went to get the blankets and returned quickly
with the ones that
C
a
eli
had used earlier
.  Once Ben was covered,
s
he and Vin
went below deck to get the other supplies.  Ben and C
a
eli were
left
alone for a few minutes.

"
Ok, Uncle Ben, this is not going to be easy.  Will you
trust
me work on you?  I have to put my hand on your back where the bullet
entered
.
"

"
Of course
,
Lass
.
 
Do w
hatever you need to do.
  I'll let you work the magic this time around.
"

"
Good.  I've got to
see if I can
get you fixed up before Salma returns or she will be a basket case.  Then we
woul
d have
absolutely
no fun at all on this vacation.
"

As C
a
eli talked, she
slid her hand under Ben's back and
placed
it
over
his
wound
.  She was
careful to keep the blanket covering everything so that anyone who might happen to see them would think that she was
merely
keeping him company. 
C
a
eli
closed her eyes and concentrated on the flow of blood
.  She had no idea how her new gift
functioned
in this manner, but she had felt the
pull of her ability the
minute she touched
Ben's
blood
.
 
Recalling that h
er grandmother had been able to heal small things
,
C
a
eli
did not find it
unreasonable to believe that she
had inherited a bit of that
talent;
al
though she had never noticed
the ability
before.