Saturday, October 19th Pt. 4
“You’re still…”
He seems to get cut off as my body flinches from the echo his voice produces.
“I need you to come close.” Demetri nearly whispers.
“What’s going on?” Deven asks just as quietly, allowing me to relax.
“I haven’t worked with a fully trained empath so please pardon me if I tell you what you already feel. He’s in bad shape mentally and physically. This is one of the worst panic attacks I’ve seen him in. The panic induced asthma attack that alerted me to his dire condition his first morning on my land wasn’t this bad.”
There’s a pause before the cold of a stethoscope can be felt on my back. Despite my sight not returning to normal just yet I am instinctively aware of how close to Demetri I am. I hold my breath as the cold metal touching me causes a painful burning that I can’t pull myself away from.
“Breathe Cole. I can hear you wheezing and I need to hear how constricted your lungs are.”
Deven instructs but I can’t and shake my head against Demetri’s shoulder in an effort to communicate that.
“Dev, as gentle as I’m certain you’re being that simple thing is causing him pain.”
His patience is impeccable as the stethoscope is removed. I whimper as I breathe rapidly trying to make up for holding my breath.
“He’s never been this sensitive to it before.” Deven comments.
“He’s never been paralyzed before. At least not with me.” Demetri explains quietly.
“What do you mean he’s paralyzed?” Deven asks slowly, the shock of the situation can easily be heard.
“Have you seen his back?”
“Yes. We spoke a little about that last night. The first time he was here Cassius said Aaron wanted to do a vertical sensory test, a very basic means of testing for nerve damage.”
I can feel Demetri nod his head as I slowly calm myself.
“Did you allow Aaron to do this test?”
“I ended up leaving before Cole was finished but Cassius refused to allow it. He wanted me to witness the test and Cole was cooperative enough that Cassius did it after they returned from the hospital. The big difference is he did it horizontally. If I remember correctly, he only made it down the top third of his back before Cole couldn’t handle the change in sensation and couldn’t handle being touched anywhere else.”
“Which means you’re aware that permanent damage is highly likely.”
I’m surprised to hear the conclusion that Demetri seems to understand and I don’t.
“I wanted to test him again but he left before I could introduce the idea to him.” He states slowly.
My whimpers increase as they come to a pause in their conversation.
“Cole, what’s wrong?” Demetri asks.
“My back.” Is all I can say before I start to fight, instinctively I know I need to stretch out but the spasms are breathtaking as I attempt to pull myself out of the tub.
“Cole, I need your cooperation.”
Deven speaks with gentle authority as he wraps his arms around my chest pulling me away from the edge back into Demetri’s lap.
“I can’t. It hurts.” I whine when I really want to scream.
“I’m going to roll you into Demetri’s arm. I can feel your back is in muscle spasms. This is going to be rough but I’m going to put pressure on your back. I need you to be vocal, not physical in your fight.”
“No! Please don’t!”
I partially yell as he turns me gently so my head is on Demetri’s left shoulder. I use my hands to push away but Demetri’s hand has already made its way to the back of my neck. I whine hard as I lose track of his touch.
“I’m sorry. I know I’m moving too fast for your comfort but considering the severity of your panic attack and the pain you’re already in, doing this quickly is to your benefit. This is just like your arm. I’m so very sorry, Cole. I need you to be vocal. Do not hold your breath.”
“Noooo!”
Is all I manage before feeling the burn in my lower back intensify.
“Noooooo!” I scream out again before it’s too intense to hold back. I yelp and scream, switching between the two several times before ultimately blacking out.
“Cole? Cole, are you with us buddy?”
I slowly recognize that my name is being called but I’m struggling to open my eyes, let alone move the rest of my body.
“What are you doing to him?”
A familiar voice reaches my ears. I can’t tell if the voice is angry or defensive but I want to cringe with either.
“I need you calm, Cassius.”
A third voice joins the mix.
“No, what did you do to cause him that much pain?”
I whimper as he raises his voice.
“It’s okay, Cole. I promise. Cassius is just worried about you. It may not feel like it due to you entering a neurological shock but you handled that very well.”
I’m starting to feel gentle pets on my upper arm but it’s impossible for me to tell who it’s coming from.
“Cass, I need you to use your phone to call Evelyn. Put it on speaker. Just because he can’t make his own decisions at this moment doesn’t mean we don’t inform him of what’s going to happen.”
“What is going on?” He insists.
“Please, call Evelyn.”
He sighs hard but I can hear a phone ringing in the background shortly after.
“Good morning.” A cheerful, feminine voice responds. “How may I help you, Alpha Cassius?”
“Dr. Leroux needs to speak with you.”
“Yes sir.” I hear the shuffling of feet before he speaks.
“Evelyn, I need you above everyone else. You are the best at IV’s.”
“Yes sir, you told me about that when you made me lead.” She comments meekly.
“Have you met Cole?”
“Yes sir. We haven’t interacted much due to his fears but I am familiar.”
“Well, the suspected nerve damage is no longer suspected. It’s rare to have intermittent paralysis but that seems to be what he’s dealing with.”
“What happened?”
It seems her attention is completely on me now.
“I don’t know. I just know what I see. Alpha Demetri is in the tub with him providing him comfort. His back went into intense muscle spasms while I was talking with Demetri. I’m using pressure to stop the spasms but it sent him into shock. He’s conscious but incapable of getting out of the tub on his own.”
“What do you need? I’ve got a book and pen ready.”
“Get a team together for transportation. You need an ambulance gurney, a pack of absorbent pads, a heated blanket and a tank of oxygen with nasal cannula.”
“Yes sir, got it. What else?”
“I need an IV kit with the standard saline bag, five milliliters of flexeril and two milliliters of Vicodin 325/10.”
“Are you certain you want him to receive 20 milligrams of codeine on top of the flexeril?” She questions.
“I’ve taken on half his pain and he’s still experiencing a significant amount. Considering he experiences pain at a higher level than most wolves my goal is to knock him out before moving him.”
“Okay, anything else?”
“I need a blood test done.”
The man I’m laying on comments.
“What do you need tested?”
She speaks directly to him.
“I’m sorry Cole. I know you won’t understand but I need you to trust me. This needs to be done.”
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