‘I’m still with my motorcyclist.’ Nic ran across the motorway. ‘Ben took the woman with the head injury.’
‘Acknowledged.’
‘Whoever finishes first should move on to the passenger of that second car, though. They’re getting her out now, and I don’t like the way she’s progressing.’
‘Understood,’ Thea nodded, jogging to her driver and treating him as best she could before she bumped him to the top of the medevac list.
Ben appeared at her side without warning.
‘Take over my patient,’ he instructed, his voice oddly quiet.
‘Where are you going?’ Obediently Thea headed over to take his place, but Ben didn’t respond. Instead he raced towards the evacuated area where small fires still burned as the fire engines inched closer and closer through the backed-up traffic which was blocking even the hard shoulder with damaged vehicles hit by debris earlier on.
Where a car had been smouldering before, Thea could now see flames jumping and dancing and she realised it could blow at any time. What the hell was Ben thinking, running in there?
She ran forward to intercept him, thinking he mustn’t have realised, but he almost mowed her down as he sprinted past her and into the danger zone.
‘Ben!’ Thea shouted. ‘You can’t go in there.’
He ignored her, seemingly oblivious. It was useless. Ben either couldn’t—or wouldn’t—hear her. But the look on his face as he’d run past her had chilled Thea to her core. His expression had been one she didn’t recognise. A dangerous look, almost as if he hadn’t even seen her. Hadn’t necessarily even seen what she was seeing.
Dr Fields had said months ago that Ben’s PTSD was only mild, but was this an escalation? She saw the body bags with fresh eyes, through Ben’s eyes, wondering if they had triggered something for him.
Bang.
Thea screamed as a p
iece of flying debris landed a couple of metres behind Ben. He launched forward to protect her body, pushing her further away from the demarcation line and, mercifully bringing himself out of the danger area.
‘Stay out of here,’ he ordered, his voice oddly strangulated.
‘Ben, we don’t have time for this,’ she argued desperately. ‘You have your head injury casualty, and I have to get to my van driver.’
Boom.
One of the cars exploded and the sound was deafening. Thea barely had time to react before Ben threw her to the ground, his body covering hers. She heard the sound of metal slamming into the ground. Felt the Tarmac vibrate. But with Ben over her she had no idea how near or far the debris had fallen.
Then he was up, lifting her bodily into the air and throwing her well clear. The haunted look was more pronounced than ever. Then he was gone. Racing to the exploded car and dropping to the ground as he got closer to the intense heat. He began to move forward on his belly and elbows.
‘Ben!’
He crawled closer and closer to the flames. A loud bang came from the burning engine. There was going to be another explosion and there was absolutely nothing she could do to save Ben.
Nic ran to the edge of the zone, his hands cupped around his mouth as he bellowed Ben’s name.
‘What the hell is he thinking?’ Nic sounded frantic.
‘I think its PTSD,’ Thea whispered. This was why she’d needed to be there for Ben when he was discharged. Someone to talk to. But she hadn’t helped him. She hadn’t encouraged him to open up enough.
Why did the idea upset her so much? Because she’d thought they’d been getting on so well lately? Because she’d genuinely thought he was changing in the way he saw her, how much he trusted her?
And now he was in there, in the danger zone, risking his life. For what? She still didn’t understand him. It scared her.
‘I don’t know.’ Thea bit her lip. ‘He was working on that woman with the head injury one minute, then racing over there looking like death the next. A paramedic is still with her, and another is with my van driver, but we needs to get over there.’
Nic nodded grimly. ‘Right, I’ll go with you and check on them.’
Tearing her eyes from the last spot where she’d seen Ben, Thea ducked her head and raced after Nic. She didn’t have time for emotion, or these thoughts. She had patients—people who needed her and who wanted her help. Not like Ben. She needed to focus on them.