Max and the others ran to him. Liam couldn’t speak. The pain was too much. The knife had slashed his intestines, and Max didn’t know what to do about it. If he took the knife out, the bleeding would worsen, but if they left it in, Liam could suffer for hours until he finally died. He looked back at Zoe and Rebecca. All they could do was cry. Zoe was losing the first boy she ever cared about, and Max imagined that Rebecca felt guilty. Liam was giving his life to try to save hers. Nothing about the situation was easy. As the inmates left the yard, Robert stepped beside them.
“I’ll help you get out of here, but we’ve got to put him out of his misery first,” he said.
“No. You’re not going to touch him. We’re going to patch him up. He’ll be fine,” Zoe said.
“I’m afraid that’s not possible. We don’t have the supplies to help him.”
“I’m sure there was a sick bay around here somewhere. Can we not try?” Rebecca asked.
“We can try, but no one here is a surgeon, and that’s what we need right now.”
“I’ll do it. In college, I had to cut open a lot of animals. I know anatomy, and while we’ll probably just be prolonging his suffering, I’ve got to try for her sake,” Max whispered to Robert and looked back at Zoe.
“Fine. The sick bay is on the other side of the prison. You carry him. If we hurry, maybe no one will even know where we are.”
Max nodded and picked him up as gently as he could. Liam cried out in agony as Max followed Robert. In their hearts, they knew Liam was as good as dead, but they had to give him a shot. Max might not have any idea what he was doing, but he was willing to try, and miracles still existed, didn’t they? Rebecca and Zoe had to hope so because it was all about to be on the line for a boy they had grown to think of as one of them.
Chapter 17
Surgery
After they got Liam to the medical bay and put him on a table, Robert pulled Max to the side. They had to talk about things. This wasn’t going to end well, and Max needed to accept that.
“We don’t have a chance here. Are you sure you want to do this? We might just be prolonging his suffering,” Robert said.
“I know this probably won’t end well, but I have to try. The kid is only fourteen. He deserves a chance at life, no matter how small it is.”
“All right, what are you going to need?”
“That’s a good question. I’m not quite sure.”
“Well, take a second and tell me. We’re only getting one shot at this.”
“I need a scalpel, sutures, plenty of bandages, alcohol, and if you can find some restraints, that would be great.”
“I’m on it. Just get prepared.”
Max walked over to the table by the others. They looked like they had given up already. He couldn’t blame them. They were trying to perform surgery when the best he had ever done was cut open a few dead animals in labs. They were going into this thing blind, and even if the problem were obvious, he probably wouldn’t be able to recognize it. Max felt powerless. He wanted with everything he had to be able to save this boy, and he needed everyone to believe that he could, but in his heart, Max had a lot of doubts. This was more than a shot in the dark. It was a lottery ticket, and he just had to hope Liam was that one in a million.
“All right, I’ve got everything. Once we pull the knife out, he’s probably going to start bleeding badly, so if there’s anything you guys need to say to him, now’s the time,” Robert said.
“You’re going to be fine, Liam. Max and I are going to take care of you. We’ll find a way to make this right,” Rebecca said.
Zoe couldn’t bring herself to say anything. Just looking at him was enough to make her tear up. Thankfully, he managed to do the talking for her.
“Thank you so much,” Liam said weakly while taking her hand.
“For what? I can’t do anything to help you right now.”
“That’s okay. I got to learn that someone so amazing could care about me before I died. I’ve lived, thanks to you,” he said and leaned his head back.
“Don’t talk like this is the end. I’m going to fix you. It’s as simple as that,” Max said as he put him in restraints.
“I found some gloves and clamps, too. They might come in handy,” Robert said.
“Good. Rebecca, I need you to make sure the wound stays open with the clamps after I pull the knife out. From there, we’ll be racing against the clock. I’m going to need everyone to stay out of the light because I’ve got to see what’s wrong internally and fix it quickly. I’ll close him up as best I can, and he’ll be fine.”
“What do I do?” Robert asked.
“You help me figure out what we need to do as we go.”
“Can I do anything?” Zoe asked.
“Hold his hand and try to keep him as calm as possible. We don’t have pain medication, so this is going to hurt. He’ll need you more than any of us.”
Zoe nodded, and Max turned his attention to Liam. This was going to be terrible for him. He wondered what he would want to be done if he were in Liam’s position. He would probably just want them to kill him.
“Are you ready?” Robert asked, snapping him back to reality.
“Yeah. Get ready, Rebecca,” Max said and grabbed the handle of the knife.
He ripped it out in one quick and straight motion. Blood began to seep out of the wound. It was all happening so quickly, and Max knew he didn’t have much time, so he got to work immediately. Once Rebecca had the wound open, he peered inside. It was hard to tell anything through all the blood, and he felt lost. Just when he was about to lose it, a voice snapped him back to reality.
“I don’t think there’s supposed to be a hole there. What about you?” Robert asked as he pointed to a small hole in Liam’s intestines.
“You’re right. I need the sutures. Let’s get that closed and stop this bleeding.”
While Max was stitching him up, Liam was screaming. Zoe was trying to keep him calm, but it wasn’t working. No one blamed him, though. Anyone in that position would be screaming in agony. Max did a quick stitching job that he didn’t think would hold up long term, but it was the best he could do. As he disinfected everything, Liam closed his eyes and stopped screaming.
“Oh, my God! We need to do CPR. I can . . .” Zoe managed to say before Max cut her off.
“First, see if he has a pulse.”
“He does have one. I guess he just passed out.”
“It’s from the pain. Stay calm. He’s going to be okay. I’ve just got to get him closed up.”
Max and Robert did a rough stitching job and closed the wound. He was going to have a nasty scar. Max wasn’t convinced that the hole in his intestines wouldn’t open back up in a day or two and kill him anyway, but for now, they had bought Liam time. Against all odds, he was still breathing.
“I think he’s going to be okay,” Max said as he stepped back and sat on the floor.
He took his gloves off and let out a sigh of relief. He thought he was going to kill the kid, but somehow he saved him. Max should have felt like a hero, but all he felt was exhaustion. He stood and walked over to Rebecca. She was holding the knife that had nearly killed Liam. He took it from her and hugged her tightly.
“We’re so grateful that we found you. I don’t know how you did that, but thank you,” she whispered to him.
“We all had a part in saving him, and he’s not out of the woods yet. I don’t even know if I closed everything up right. All I know is that he’s in better shape than he was a few minutes ago,” Max said before he heard the door behind them open.
Justin stepped inside with his gun drawn. Without even the slightest bit of thought, he aimed at Robert and fired. A bullet ripped through his skull. Robert was dead before he even hit the floor.
“How did you know we were here?” Max asked as he stepped in front of the others.
“My boys reported hearing screaming coming from this direction, and I figured someone had grown a conscience. That boy was my ki
ll, and no one has the right to take my prey from me. Robert knew that, so he had to die. The boy still has to die, too, you know.”
“You’re not going to hurt him. I won’t let you,” Zoe said as she stepped toward him.
“Is that so? Maybe I’ll just have to put a bullet in your pretty little brain before I kill him,” Justin said and aimed the gun at her.
“You look at me. Your problem is with me, not her. I’m the one who saved him. If a bullet is meant for someone, it’s me,” Max said while readying himself.
He had a plan, and if Justin took the bait, he was going to take a risk. They might still get out of this yet.
“You’re right. You do deserve to die, and it might be better to let this girl just become a pretty plaything for my men,” Justin said and started turning toward Max.
In that instant, Max threw the knife with all he had. Just as it buried into the center of Justin’s chest, he fired. The bullet went straight through Max’s shoulder, and he hit the floor.
“Are you all right?” Zoe asked as she ran to him.
“There’s no time to be concerned. We’ve got to get out of here. Everyone listen to me. Zoe, you lock the door. The inmates heard those shots, and they’ll be coming to investigate soon. Rebecca, I need you to find everything I’ll need to get myself patched up once we’re out of here. I’ll get Liam,” Max said.
“Where are we even going?” Rebecca asked as she gathered supplies.
“This is the medical ward. There’s a bay for deliveries, and that means there’s an exit.”
“Good thinking. Are you sure you can carry Liam in the state you’re in, though?”
“I don’t have a choice,” Max said and scooped up Liam.
“I’ve got everything we need. Let’s get out of here.”
As soon as she said that, they heard pounding on the door. Max quickly led them out to a bay door, and they exited it to find exactly what he hoped they would. A supply van set not too far from it. Max checked it to find that the keys were predictably missing. He had seen one of his prison mates hotwire a car before, and he thought he remembered how to do it, so he gave it a shot. It took a little time, but Max was able to get it started. As he heard the roar of the engine, a dizzy feeling overtook him. Rebecca noticed it and helped him up and into the back of the van. Once she got him inside, she instructed Zoe to drive.
“What? Are you joking? I don’t think I should drive in this situation,” Zoe said.
“I’ve got to get Max’s wound closed, and Liam can’t do it. You’re all we have. Just do your best. I know you’ve got this,” Rebecca said.
Zoe nodded and got into the driver’s seat. She took off just as the inmates were running outside. Getting away seemed easy for a moment, but the gate was locked. That was going to be an issue.
“Umm, guys, we might have a problem,” Zoe said while motioning to the gate.
“Drive through it,” Max said.
“You can’t be serious.”
“We don’t have any other choice. Just do it. We’ll make it.”
Zoe put the pedal to the floor and ran straight into the gate. It was chain-link, so the car was able to take it down, but it still did a number on their vehicle. As they hit the road, Zoe had to wonder how long the van would actually last. The half tank of gas that they had left was an even bigger issue. Would they be able to make the rest of the trip in this vehicle, and if they couldn’t, what did that mean? The last thing they needed was more unexpected stops. It seemed like every time they stopped moving, something horrible happened.
As she drove, Rebecca patched Max up. The bullet went straight through, and it didn’t hit anything major, so it was fairly easy to get him back into decent shape. Liam, on the other hand, wasn’t feeling very good. He had woken up and was in a lot of pain. Rebecca tried to comfort him, but he had just gotten through surgery with no pain medication. Time would be Liam’s only friend. The pain would subside soon, but for now, all they could do was listen to his groans and pray that God would grant him relief through this process.
“I’ll take it from here,” Max said as he moved up front.
“You just got shot. You lost a lot of blood. Are you sure you can drive?” Zoe asked.
“I’ll be fine. Besides, do you even know where you’re going?”
“Good point, but you could just tell me. I’m sure you would rather rest than drive. You’ve already done so much today. You deserve some time to relax.”
“All right. Take a right up here and get on the interstate. We should be able to make it there by tonight. No matter what, we’re not stopping again.”
“I agree. Let me ask you something. Is he going to be all right?”
“I’m not sure. I want to say yes, but you don’t deserve to be lied to. The truth is I have no idea. It was a small hole. Only the tip of the knife had pierced his intestines, but I don’t know what had leaked out before we got there. He could develop an infection. I could barely see from all the blood, and I don’t even know if I closed him up properly. There are a lot of what ifs going through my mind right now, and only one of them is good.”
“Which one is that?”
“What if I did everything right? Wouldn’t it be incredible to know we saved that kid’s life? I can’t believe we’ve even gotten this far. I tried to be encouraging because I knew everyone needed that, but I thought he was going to die on the table. My experience with surgery involves lab rats, and the only thing I’ve ever sown up is a shirt. I don’t know how I didn’t completely freeze up back there.”
“That’s just who you are. Thank you, Max. I don’t think any of us would be alive without you. Most of all, I really needed Liam right now. Friends are in short supply, and romantic interests are almost unheard of. If we had lost him, I think my hope might have died with him, too.”
“I’m glad you have someone, but do yourself a favor, and don’t make your happiness all about one person. Like I said, a lot of bad things could still happen. The main thing I did was buy him time.”
“Either way, I’m grateful we met.”
“I didn’t just save your lives. You guys have had my back from the start, too. You know that, right?”
“Yeah, but I never could’ve done what you did back there. I was in a panic, and I think I made things worse by freaking out when he passed out. I’m sorry.”
“There’s nothing to be sorry about. I was as freaked out as you. Sometimes you just have to act, though, because what else are you going to do? We only had three choices. We could’ve let him suffer, put him out of his misery, or tried to save him. Even if it was a long shot and my hands were shaking the whole time, I knew what we were going to do. I couldn’t let him die when he means something to you. Besides, he kind of saved my life the other night, so I owed him.”
“I guess that’s true. It might be strange considering everything that’s happened, but I think life is about as good as it could be right now. The only bad thing is that I lost my birthday presents back there.”
“We’ll get you another computer. Don’t worry about it.”
“No, it’s fine. You gave me an even better present,” she said and glanced back at Liam.
He had finally fallen asleep. His relief wouldn’t last long, but for a short moment, he was at peace. Throughout the day, he woke up many times in pain, but it slowly got better. As they were entering the town where Jerome’s brother lived, something became apparent that changed everything, however.
“He’s burning up. I think he’s got an infection. I don’t know what to do. We don’t have any medicine, and he’s not going to last much longer,” Rebecca whispered to Max.
“It’ll be fine. We’ve just got to find Jerome’s brother.”
“Do you know where he lives?”
“I don’t have an exact address. All I know is that he’s on the south side of town in a gigantic house that should still be lit up.”
“How do you know he’ll help us or that he’ll have medicine for Liam
?”
“I don’t, but he’s our best shot right now. I think we’ve found our destination, too,” Max said and pointed to a white house in the distance that was lit up.
There were several vehicles in the driveway. Max found that odd. Just how many people lived there? Was Troy helping others, and if he was, did that mean they would have his help, too? Zoe parked on the street, and then Max started to get out. When Zoe opened her door, he shook his head no.
“Why not? You don’t need to go in there by yourself. You might have known this guy’s brother, but that doesn’t guarantee he’ll be friendly. You’ll need backup if things go badly,” Zoe said.
“I appreciate that, but things won’t go wrong this time. I can feel it. Let me handle it, so we can get some food and Liam the care he needs.”
Zoe nodded hesitantly, and Max got out. When he knocked on the door, a rather large man came to it.
“What’s your business here?” he asked.
“I’m here to see Troy Leland,” Max said.
“You and everyone else in this town. Get out of here. We’re not accepting new people right now,” he said and started to close the door. Max grabbed it, however.
“Wait a minute. I knew his brother, Jerome. Can’t you just let me speak to him? I . . .”
“You knew my brother? Does that mean he’s not around anymore?” Troy asked as he stepped behind his guard.
“I’ll tell you everything that’s happened, if you just let the people I’m with come inside. We have one who’s really sick, and he could use medicine, if you have it.”
“That sounds fair. Your people will have a place to stay for the night, and in return, I want to know what’s happened to my brother. Come in Mr. . . .”
“I’m Max Green, but you can just call me Max. I was Jerome’s cellmate.”
“Are you actually going to trust a criminal?” the guard asked.
“Shut up, Ronald. Come in, Max. My people will get the ones you’re with what they need while we discuss everything that’s happened since this world went to hell.”
The Divide: Origins Page 16