Chapter 10 Encounter with Gunfire
Sloane's POV
I spoke calmly, after all, in a month I not only had to divorce Jared, but I'd also agreed to go abroad for core research.
Jared seemed surprised I would say this. He was quiet for a moment, then his voice turned colder. "Well, thank you for that, Mrs. Montclair. How very thoughtful of you."
He hung up without waiting for my answer.
I leaned back wearily on the bench, my chest feeling tight and painful.
My gaze fell heavily on the distance.
Suddenly, another call came in, jolting me out of my daze. It was Lila.
Her voice was extremely anxious, "Sloane, help! I've got another difficult patient on my hands. The situation is different from what you mentioned last time. Several experts are completely stumped."
She quickly rattled off a string of the patient's symptoms and test results. I immediately pulled myself together and listened carefully.
Based on her description, I quickly built a picture of the patient's condition in my mind.
"Don't panic." I gave her the adjusted medication plan and dosages in detail, and reminded her of a few important points.
"Got it!" Lila's voice was full of gratitude. "Sloane, you're my rock! Thank you so much!"
"Go take care of it. Contact me anytime."
After hanging up, the heaviness in my heart lifted a little.
Being able to help others with what I'd learned always brought me a moment of peace.
I got up to head back inside, thinking that since I had nothing going on tonight, I might as well go back to my own place.
There were some things I should start packing up anyway.
As the car drove on the road back to the city, the sky gradually darkened. It was rush hour and traffic was jammed. I stopped at an intersection waiting for the light when suddenly there was a loud "bang" from behind, and the car jolted violently.
I'd been rear-ended.
I frowned, unbuckled my seatbelt and got out to check.
The car behind was a black SUV with a dented front end. My rear bumper was also caved in.
I was about to take out my phone to photograph the damage when suddenly there was a sharp screech of tires from behind, followed by a massive "boom" - an explosion with flames shooting into the sky!
The blast wave sent a surge of heat that violently pushed me aside, throwing me to the ground.
The explosion and people's screams mixed together, and the entire street instantly fell into panic.
Before I could react, I saw several men in masks carrying rifles rush out from the exploded vehicle, firing wildly into the air.
The gunshots were deafening, bullets hitting car bodies and sending up terrifying sparks.
People scattered in all directions like headless flies, cries and screams rising one after another.
The world instantly turned into hell. My brain went blank, and my body's instinct drove me to crouch behind the car, trying to make myself as invisible as possible.
My palms were sweating. I didn't dare move, afraid that one wrong move would make me a target.
Before long, piercing sirens came from the distance, getting closer and closer.
The police were here!
My heart eased a bit, my tense nerves relaxing slightly.
But just as I lifted my head, one of the terrorists noticed me. While exchanging fire with the police, he quickly retreated in my direction.
My heart seized. It was too late to hide.
He grabbed my arm and yanked me up from the ground, pressing the cold gun barrel firmly against my temple.
"Don't move! Nobody come closer!" he screamed at the police, using me as a hostage.
He gripped me tightly, my body shaking uncontrollably, fear washing over me completely.
Looking at those armed police officers not far away, I felt death close to me for the first time.
If I died in this incident, would Jared be happy to finally be rid of me, this burden?
In the chaos, along with several other captured civilians, I was dragged by them into an abandoned building by the roadside.
The door slammed shut, cutting off the sirens outside.
The building was dimly lit, dust everywhere. A dozen of us were shoved together in the middle of the empty hall, looking in terror at these vicious thugs.
"Damn it, those cops got here too fast!" one of the terrorists spat. He was clutching his bleeding arm, his face twisted.
"The boss is shot!" someone shouted.
"Who here is a doctor?" The armed man scanned us, demanding harshly, "Who's a doctor? Step forward!"
The hostages were all terrified, everyone lowering their heads, afraid of being noticed. No one dared speak.
"No one?" Seeing this, the man impatiently pulled back the bolt, the dark gun barrel sweeping across us. "Since no one's volunteering, I'll just pick someone randomly to send on their way!"
His eyes flashed with cruelty as the gun barrel slowly moved, finally stopping in front of a young girl trembling with fear.
The girl instantly broke down, letting out a desperate wail.
My heart jumped to my throat. If no one stepped forward, this girl would really die.
"I..."
Before the gunshot rang out, I closed my eyes and raised my hand, trembling.
Almost instantly, all eyes focused on me.
The armed man immediately strode over and yanked me out from the crowd.
"Come with me!" He roughly dragged me toward another room. "If you can't save our boss, I'll blow your brains out first!"
I was roughly shoved inside. The room was dimly lit, with only a high window letting in a bit of light, barely enough to make out a tall man leaning weakly against the wall. His abdomen was soaked with blood, his face as pale as paper.
"Quick! Stop his bleeding!" The man who grabbed me pushed me in front of the wounded man, his tone vicious.
The heavy smell of blood filled my nostrils. I forced myself to calm down.
Years of medical knowledge became my only lifeline at this moment. I crouched down and carefully tore open the injured man's shirt around his abdomen.
The wound was deep. The bullet must have grazed past his abdomen, but it had torn an artery. Blood was still gushing out.
If this continued, he would die from blood loss.
"I need clean cloth, liquor, and fire." I tried to keep my voice steady, looking up at the armed man.
He stared at me suspiciously, but seeing his boss getting weaker, he still impatiently shouted something toward the door.
Soon, someone brought a bottle of whiskey and a few relatively clean cloths.
I poured the liquor on the cloth, did a quick disinfection, then tore off a piece of cloth and twisted it into a strip, handing it to a underling beside me whose face was white with fear. "Press hard here. Don't let go."
I directed him to apply pressure to the arterial bleeding point, then quickly used the cloth strips and torn clothing to bandage the leader's wound.
My movements were quick. I tried not to look at the dark gun barrel not far away, focusing only on the wound in front of me. After wrapping the last layer, the bleeding was finally temporarily stopped.
The man saw his boss's color improve a bit and his breathing stabilize, and the killing intent in his eyes toward me lessened somewhat.
Just then, the police's voice came through a megaphone from outside, "Listen up, people inside! You're surrounded! Release the hostages immediately. Surrender is your only way out!"