CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
“Liam.” Fear filled Piper’s voice. His deadweight had taken both of them to the concrete floor. He had to get up. Piper couldn’t carry him over her shoulder like one of his teammates could.
“Go,” he whispered. “Run.”
“I’m not leaving you.”
“Moe and Brandy won’t be out for long. Baby, please.” He slumped to the floor.
No, no, no. “Liam.” No response. Piper tapped his cheek. Nothing.
Oh, man. He needed medical attention. Where was his team?
Gunfire erupted outside the warehouse. Shouts of pain and anger permeated the walls. Bravo and Texas had to be out there.
There must be a bathroom with medical supplies close by. This was a warehouse, after all. Accidents happened. She wasn’t a medic like Matt or Jesse, but she could find something to slow the bleeding.
Scrambling to her feet, she noticed Moe was stirring. She grabbed the chair and bashed the guard on the back of the head. He stopped moving.
Piper didn’t know if she’d killed the man and right now, she didn’t care. All the mattered was saving Liam’s life. Concerned Brandy might wake up soon and pose a threat to Liam, Piper unlatched Brandy’s belt, rolled her to her stomach, and restrained her hands. That ought to hold her until help arrived.
She stumbled into the hall and opened door after door until she found a bathroom. A quick search turned up a first-aid kit. Thank God. She ran back to the room where Liam lay.
Dropping to her knees, Piper opened the kit with shaking fingers. Rudimentary, at best, but the medical supplies would have to do. She grabbed gauze and a roll of bandages.
She wrapped his leg wound first, then turned her attention to his shoulder. Before she’d finished wrapping the wound, the gauze pad was soaked with blood.
Piper paused when she heard footsteps in the hallway. Friend or foe? She glanced around for the knife she’d pulled from Liam’s boot. There, under Billy’s foot.
She eyed the guard who had taken such pleasure in hurting Liam and threatening her. He hadn’t moved. Was he dead? Didn’t matter. She needed a weapon to protect Liam.
Piper grabbed the knife and positioned herself in front of Liam. She turned slightly so the knife was out of sight. A surprise attack was her only hope. Another guard would outweigh her and have some training.
A large figure dressed in black appeared in the threshold. “Piper, it’s Matt.”
“Liam’s hurt. There’s a light switch to your right.”
A moment later, light flooded the room. Matt sucked in a breath when he saw Liam lying on the floor behind Piper. He touched the communication device as he hurried to Liam’s side. The medic dropped to his knees. “Trent, I found Liam and Piper. She looks a little beat up but Liam’s in bad shape. We need transport out of here, fast.”
“How can I help?” Piper knelt on the other side of Liam and set the knife to the side.
The medic opened his medical bag and handed her several white packets. “That’s QuikClot. We’ll pour the contents of the packets on his wounds. It will stop the bleeding until we can get him to the hospital.”
He ripped off the bandages she’d placed on Liam’s wounds. Blood flowed from each injury. He pivoted, the weapon in his hand aimed at the door when Jesse called out, “It’s Jesse. I’m coming in soft.” Matt didn’t lower his gun until the other medic entered the room.
“What do we have?”
“At least four knife wounds. He’ll bleed out if we don’t stop the blood flow in the next couple minutes.”
“They beat the crap out of him. He has to have internal injuries.”
“We have to move him. The knife wound I’m most worried about is on his back. I think they nicked his liver.”
Jesse growled. “Piper, open one of those packets. We’re going to move fast. Matt and I will shift Liam’s weight together to prevent additional injuries. Pour the contents of a packet on each wound.”
She nodded and ripped open the first packet as Matt widened the rip in the cargo pants and spread the material away from the wound on Liam’s thigh. Piper dumped the packet’s contents on the wound, amazed to see the bleeding slow dramatically.
Jesse wrapped the wound with fast, efficient movements. “Shoulder next.”
Matt tore Liam’s shirt open and shoved the remnants away from his body. Piper poured the contents of another packet on this wound.
They repeated the process until all four knife wounds were treated and covered.
Matt checked Liam’s pulse and growled. “Thready. He needs blood and an operating room.” He activated his mic again. “Trent, how long?” He listened a moment, then said, “We’ll need help getting him to the door, preferably someone with an O positive blood type.”
“How long?” Jesse asked.
“Too long. They’re still taking care of business out there. Barone sent reinforcements to protect his precious weapons stash.”
“I have the right type of blood,” Piper said. “Both of you might be needed to protect Liam. Let me donate blood.”
“Lie down,” Matt said. He reached into his bag for the equipment he needed. “If you’re squeamish about needles, don’t look.”
No problem. She hated needles. When Matt reached for her arm, Piper averted her gaze. A swipe and a needle prick later, the deed was done.
“Breathe, Piper,” Jesse murmured. He patted her shoulder. “You’re doing great. You can brag to Liam about how you saved a big, bad Marine’s life.”
Matt gripped her other hand. “Tell me what happened while we wait for the signal to move Liam.”
Piper summarized what happened from the time they walked into the garden until Matt had walked into the room.
He whistled. “Good grief, woman. You’re one tough lady. You were going to attack me with Liam’s boot knife, weren’t you?”
“I didn’t have anything else and he couldn’t defend himself. The knife was my only option.”
Another shoulder pat from Jesse. “He’s a lucky man to have you by his side.”
“Tell me the truth. Will he live?”
“Oh, yeah. A few scratches and bruises aren’t going to take this guy down. He’ll be fine once he has surgery.”
Matt straightened and tapped his mic again. “Copy.” He looked down at Piper. “Transport is parked at the side entrance. We’ll have to carry you to the SUV.”
Seconds later, Trent and Simon walked into the room. Both men scowled when they saw Liam’s condition. “How do we do this, Matt?” Trent asked.
“We need to carry Liam and Piper to the SUV. His blood pressure was dropping so we couldn’t wait for the hospital to give him a transfusion.”
In less than a minute, Trent and Simon were carrying Liam toward the SUV while Matt walked beside them, carrying Piper in his arms. Jesse hurried ahead of the entourage to run interference in case of trouble.
Once they were situated in the SUV, Trent climbed behind the wheel while Simon rode in back with Jesse. Matt, Liam, and Piper were in the middle.
Matt glanced at Bravo’s team leader. “Hurry, Trent.”
Piper reached over and linked her hand to Liam’s. “Hang on,” she whispered in his ear. “Hold on me for, Liam. Your teammates and your family need you.” She drew in a ragged breath. “I need you. Don’t leave me.”
He didn’t respond.