“The Attack” – Part 2

by Jo and Stacey

Kate let out a yelp as Sid slid her into his Bugatti and closed the door. Her hand had swollen twice its size and was still bleeding from where the kitten had bitten her. It throbbed terribly, as did her head and her back. She clutched her belly, praying her baby was still safe. She hadn't felt him move in some time, but that could just be because he was sleeping, at least, that's what she hoped. She'd heard Sid mention he was taking her to Coffs. The hospital? she wondered. She closed her eyes, floating in and out of consciousness during the long drive to Coffs, which Sid made in record time, even for him.

"Well, that was strange," Joimus commented, watching the dust from Sid's rapid leaving still settle on her roses.

"That was Sid," Maximus half-snorted.

"Um," Cort said hesitantly, "you know this guy from before?"

"We do," Joimus sighed, "but wish we didn't."

Cort was curious and wanted to ask more, but the look on Maximus' face deterred him. "I'll go get the dog. Take him to the vet's to check him out for rabies."

"Thank you," was all Maximus said, his eyes still on the front window. 

When he'd gone, Joimus came up behind Maximus, sliding her arms around his waist. "You did a good thing," she murmured, pressing her face into his broad back.

"Mmphm," he muttered.

"I wonder where such an animal came from. I haven't heard of a killer dog in this area."

"I am glad the thing is dead," Maximus said, turning in her arms.  "It was on our property and might have come up near the house."

"I love you."  Now she buried her face in his chest.

"I know," he smiled, kissing the top of her head.

Sid drove like a maniac, his eyes going every few seconds to Katherine's face.  She had her eyes closed and he was afraid the dog might have injured her more than anyone knew.  "Katherine, you be strong," he urged. "You hear your Sid? I want you to be strong."  Damn, he needed her to be strong. He didn't like needing anybody else to be anything, but he needed that from her right now.  She was merely human and, therefore, delicate and frail, not like he himself was.  Once again he wondered how they even managed to survive at all. And then there was SJ.  He would be completely human, too.  There was something wrong about that.  Perhaps there was something he could do to alter that. 

"We're here," he announced, getting out and going around to her side of the car, reaching in to gather her up.

"Wh..where? Where are we, Sid?" Kate asked, feeling herself being lifted then carried swiftly into a building of some sort. The pain in her back and hand was nearly unbearable and she cried out again as she was jarred around in Sid's arms.

"Who's the best here?" Sid called loudly as he walked across the tiled floor of the ER entrance.

"What's wrong with her?"  A male nurse asked.

"She was attacked by a mad dog...and she's pregnant."

"Get her on that gurney!"  an older man with waving silver hair snapped.

"Who are you?"  Sid glared at the man.

"I'm the best there is...so get her on that gurney."

Sid lay Katherine down and was forced to move away by the doctor and two nurses. He didn't like that. There was a lot today he didn't like.

"How far along?" the doctor asked.

"Seven months," Sid supplied. "Do you think...?"

"Give me a few minutes, sir, and I'll let you know what I think."

"Are you the husband?" a nurse asked.

"I am not 'the' husband. I am HER husband!" Sid huffed.

Katherine moaned and Sid blasted, "She's in pain, dammit! Give her something."

Kate felt herself being laid down on a bed of some sort. She heard Sid's voice, the anger and panic in it, and began to shake. "Sid?" she called out, her voice weak. "Sid, what's happening? Where am I?" There were people all around her, their hands poking and prodding at her and she tried to struggle free. She heard a female voice tell her to lay still, then felt the sharp prick of a needle in her arm. She opened her eyes trying to see what was going on around her but gave up and closed them tightly again as the bright hospital lights blurred her vision.

Kate felt herself become calmer and soon after the pain in her hand and back lessened. She felt as though she were drifting off to sleep again and tried her best to fight it, but the urge was too great and finally she succumbed to it.

Sid's eyes widened as he observed Katherine's head loll to the side. "She didn't die?" he gasped.

"She's merely asleep," the nurse replied.  "The medicine will help with her tension so maybe she won't go into labor."

"Maybe?" Sid roared. "What do you mean MAYBE?!?"

"Now, now, Mr., um, Mr.....?"

"Harbor. Sidney Harbor."

At that every nearby eye, including the doctor's, turned on him with a 'you've got to be kidding' look.  When no one responded in what Sid considered to be an appropriate amount of time, he repeated, "What do you mean?"

"Mr, um, Harbor," the doctor said, "would you happen to know if your wife has an obstetrician and, if so, what his name might be?"

"Of course she has an obstetrician! Dr. Larkin, that's her name. Dr. Larkin."

"Ah, good doctor," the male doctor, whose name tag read Douglas McDuff, nodded. "Nurse, contact Dr. Larkin and advise her of what we've got here."

"What you've got here is my WIFE!" Sid spluttered.

Dr. McDuff ignored that. "You say she was attacked by a wild dog?  Do you know if it was rabid?"

"How in hell would I....?" Sid stopped. Damn, that had to be found out, didn't it.  "Just a moment."  He walked away, calling the Meridius house.

"Well," he said without preamble, "was it rabid?"

"Hello to you, too, Sidney," Joimus replied smoothly.  "We don't know yet. Cort went to get the body and take it to the vet for testing.
Where are you and how is Katherine?"

"ER, Coffs. Let me know as soon as you find out."  He hung up without another word.

Dr. Larkin was just leaving her office when she received the call from one of the attending nurses at the hospital about Kate's condition. Within minutes she was in the ER and checking in on Kate. They still didn't know whether or not the wild dog that had attacked her had been carrying the rabies virus or not, and it could be another hour or two before they had that information.

Once she was satisfied that Kate and her unborn child were both in stable condition, she decided she better address any concerns Mr. Harbor was having. The attending physician had informed her that he'd been most worried about his wife. She found him pacing back and fourth in the hallway of the ER.

"Mr. Harbor?" she said, as she approached him. "Hi, I'm Dr. Larkin, we met before at your wife's last office visit." She extended her hand for him to shake.

"Keep them alive," he said. "Keep them both alive."  He said it, though, with the most intense look possible in his eyes.  He hadn't taken her hand.

There was something in his eyes that suddenly sent a chill through Dr. Larkin and she dropped her hand and took a step back from the man standing in front of her. She cleared her throat and quickly recovered herself, assuming the man was just showing his love and concern for his wife and unborn child.

"Mr. Harbor," Dr. Larkin said, still trying to regain her composure, " I assure you, Kate and your child are in good hands here and we are doing everything in our power to assure both will pull through just fine. In fact, I've just examine her myself and she and the baby are both in stable condition. She suffered some scratches and bruising on her back which the attending physician cleaned and bandaged, as well as a rather deep bite on her hand from what we can tell was a smaller feline. I was told the dog that had attacked her was killed and is now being tested for rabies, but what about the feline? Is it a pet of yours? If so, has it been vaccinated?"

"Feline? You mean my wife was attacked by two animals? I know of no cat. We have no pets."

"Perhaps it was a stray? From the condition of the bite it would appear to be quite fresh and most likely occurred at the same time or shortly before the attack. Either way, the animal should be located and confined as a precaution. In the meantime, I've ordered a room for your wife to be moved to. As soon as she's been settled you may go in and see her."

The Glen...ha! Sid thought. Murders, kidnappings, shootings, floods, fires. And now his wife had been attacked in the space of a few short minutes by not less than TWO wild animals.  Well, she wouldn't be going out alone like that, not any more. Not her nor his little boy either. But what about the feline? It needed to be found, too, evidently.  How many cats lived in or around the Glen?  Could he get rid of them all?

TBC...