He sent a text back almost immediately.
Luca
On my way.
She slipped the phone into the pocket of her lab coat and headed back to the nurses’ station.
Barbara handed over the tablet. “I still need to take care of the kid in seven. The guy with the broken leg is back from X-ray. The orthopedic surgeon on call took a look, and he’s on his way down for the consult.”
“Thanks.” Kira pushed out a breath.
“There’s another ambulance incoming. They called in.” Barbara’s features tensed. “Their patient is coding.”
The doors opened at the end of the hall, and two paramedics wheeled in the gurney. A younger medic was over the patient, performing CPR in that steady but rapid rhythm. Destiny Rousseau rushed in the doors after them, tears streaming down her face.
Kira turned to Barbara. “Call Izabella out of two.”
“Yes, Doctor.” She raced off to fetch the other nurse.
“Bay five!” She rushed to hold the curtain back, and the EMTs pushed the gurney into the room.
“Do I get off?” The young EMT in training didn’t stop chest compressions.
Kira said, “Keep doing what you’re doing. Tell me if you need to switch out.”
One of the two EMTs who’d been pushing the bed moved to the head and held the Ambu bag over the patient’s mouth.
It was Ralph Rousseau, back even though he’d been discharged just days ago. The EMT ran down the patient’s information and what they’d done for him to try and restart his heart.
She hooked him up as she listened and scanned the monitor. The flat line stared back at her, a cruel reminder that life could end in a moment and there might be nothing she could do about it. “No pulse,” she murmured, glancing at the nurse beside her. “Grab the paddles.”
“Right here, Doctor.”
“Hook up an IV. Give me one milligram of epinephrine.”
“Yes, Doctor.”
Kira patted the arm of the EMT doing chest compressions. “Hop down. Everyone clear.”
She could almost hear the clock ticking, counting down the seconds they had left. The nurse moved quickly, attaching the defibrillator pads to the patient’s chest.
“Ready when you are.” The nurse moved into position beside Kira.
“Clear!” Kira shouted.
The EMTs stepped back. The jolt from the machine was powerful, a surge of hope that came when Ralph’s chest lifted off the bed and dropped back down. Kira watched the monitor, waiting for a sign of life. Come on.
In the corner of the bay, Destiny cried quiet tears. The EMT closest to her put an arm around her shoulders.
The line remained flat.
“Again,” Kira said, her voice unwavering. “One more time.”
The nurse nodded, quickly resetting the machine. “Clear!”
Another shock coursed through the man’s body, and Kira felt a flicker of desperation. She took up compressions, counting in sync with the nurse, pushing harder. Willing life back into his chest.
“Come on,” she whispered, her breath quickening. “You can do this.”