She hadn’t expected a response. Falling from the second floor onto concrete was a recipe for a severe head injury and spinal trauma, if not instant death. Carefully, she tilted his chin just far enough to ensure his airway was open and then she bent, her cheek close to his mouth to feel for a puff of breath, her fingers on his neck to feel for a pulse and her eyes watching for any chest movement.
The woman was beside her now, sobbing uncontrollably as she dropped to her knees.
‘Don’t touch him,’ Ellie warned. ‘We don’t want to move him in case he’s got spinal injuries.’
‘He’s dead,’ the woman sobbed. ‘I killed him. Oh…God…’
‘He’s not dead. He’s breathing quite well and he’s got a good pulse.’ She looked up at the gathering crowd. ‘Can someone find a blanket, please? And maybe some towels? And check that an ambulance is on the way.’
‘It’s coming.’ The motel manager appeared again. ‘They’ll be here as soon as they can.’
‘Good. Can you put your hands on his head, like this…?’ Ellie showed him how to support the man’s neck. ‘Keep him as still as you can. When we get a towel I’ll make a padding to help. I’m going to check for any bleeding.’
Someone ran towards them with a pile of towels and some plastic shopping bags.
‘I couldn’t find any gloves,’ the middle-aged woman said breathlessly, ‘but I did a first-aid course and they said bags were good.’
‘Thanks.’ The word was heartfelt. Ellie hadn’t thought enough about her own safety. She put bags over her hands and a heartbeat later one was covered in blood. The man was bleeding heavily from a wound on the underside of his arm. Ellie turned the limb and a spurt of blood from a large laceration made it obvious an artery was involved. She covered the wound with her hand and pressed down hard. The rest of her survey would have to be visual. She couldn’t see any more blood but there was an obvious, open fracture to his ankle. She needed something to cover it to help prevent infection. The man needed covering as well. If he was going into shock he needed to be kept warm.
‘How did it happen?’ someone was asking in a horrified tone.
‘I saw him having another fight with his missus,’ another voice answered. ‘She went at him with something and he kind of rolled over the balcony railing.’
‘Probably a knife, by the look of that arm. Has someone called the cops?’
‘They’re on the way.’ The motel manager sounded grim.
‘They’ve got kids, haven’t they? Maybe someone better check on the poor little blighters.’
The woman had buried her face in her hands and was rocking back and forth, crying hysterically.
‘Mummy?’ A frightened voice came from overhead. ‘What are you doing? Darren’s crying. He’s scared…’
Ellie glanced up to see the terrified face of a small girl who was crouched down and peering through the railings. It was a stark reminder that there were children involved here. She couldn’t afford to forget about her own child either. Mouse was due to wake up any time now and the thought of her being alone in the unit and crying for her mother was unbearable. But she couldn’t leave. She had pressure on an arterial bleed and she couldn’t let go.
The voices of the people surrounding her began to blur into a muttering that merged with the wailing of the distraught woman and the cries of the children upstairs. Ellie’s fingers in the plastic bag slipped for an instant and a fresh well of blood appeared. It made her feel faint. Dizzy.
And then she felt a firm touch on her shoulder. She knew it was Max well before she heard his voice. She could feel his presence. Solid and commanding. The dizziness faded.
‘Hang on for a tick,’ he said, close to her ear. His voice rumbled into her body and she could feel the awful tension retreating. ‘You’re doing great. I’ve got gloves here in my pocket.’ He was pulling them on as he spoke. ‘OK. I’ve got this.’
He crouched right beside her, close enough for his thigh to be pressed against her hip. A solid rock of a man. His hand pushed hers aside as he slipped it into position to apply pressure to the wound.
‘Arterial bleed?’
‘Yes.’
‘Head injury?’
‘Presumably. He’s been unresponsive since he fell.’
‘Fell?’ Max flicked a gaze upwards. ‘Good grief…anything else you’ve noticed?’
‘Compound fracture of his tib/fib. I haven’t moved him to check his chest or abdomen because I was worried about his C-spine. Breathing was OK. I’ve been kind of stuck with this bleed…’
The sound of an approaching siren was abruptly cut off. Flashing blue and red lights appeared over the heads of the crowd of bystanders as the ambulance backed in past the motel office.
‘Make some room,’ someone yelled. ‘The paramedics are here.’
Max caught Ellie’s gaze. ‘You OK?’
Ellie wasn’t at all sure about her emotional state but he was probably asking about her physical shape. She nodded.
‘And Mouse?’
He must have seen the flash of panic in her eyes. ‘Go inside,’ he directed, turning his gaze to the paramedics who were climbing out through the open back doors of the ambulance. One carried a large, soft backpack of gear. The other held an oxygen cylinder in one hand and a lifepack in the other. ‘We’ll take over now. Hey…’ He obviously recognised the crew. ‘Good to see you guys. This chap apparently took a tumble from the balcony up there. GCS of three and I’m sitting on an arterial bleed here.’
Ellie edged back as the paramedics moved in.
‘Grab a collar,’ one told the other. ‘And a scoop stretcher.’
She slipped through her door, not pausing until she stood beside the bassinette. The light had faded fast while she’d been outside and she had to blink for a moment to readjust. Because it was quiet in here, she had assumed Mouse was still asleep but her heart skipped a beat when she realised that the baby was awake. Not crying but staring up at her mother. She could imagine she saw recognition in that intense gaze. Trust. She hadn’t been afraid because she knew that the person who loved her the most was coming back.
Ellie swallowed hard. She found a smile. ‘Everything’s going to be OK,’ she whispered. ‘Max is here. Let me just give my hands a quick wash and then I’m going to pick you up and I’m not going to let you go, I promise.’
With Mouse in her arms a short time later, Ellie went to stand in her doorway to watch the ambulance crew working under the direction of the emergency department consultant. They had a collar in place and an oxygen mask covering the man’s face. IV lines were in and the motel manager was holding a bag of fluid aloft. A pressure bandage was in place on the lacerated arm and a splint was being applied to the broken ankle.
The police were here as well. A female officer went upstairs to the children and another two officers were taking charge of the woman, who had stopped crying and now looked so stunned she was making no protest at being led away.
The scoop stretcher was made ready to use. The paramedics then adjusted the man’s position slightly so that he was completely on his back with his spine correctly aligned. It wasn’t quite dark out there yet so there was more than enough light to see what had been hidden on one side of the man’s lower chest.
A knife handle was protruding. Had he been stabbed before he’d fallen or had he been holding the knife and fallen onto it? Either way it was shocking.
The paramedics went into action smoothly and swiftly. They made a doughnut-shaped padding to go around the impaled object and stabilise it.