wrath of the Sea Queen (60 page)

"
I'm sorry, but I can't.  I cannot sense anything
at all from you
right now.  That's
very
odd.
"

"
Do you think it has anything to do with my new development?
"

"
Do you refer to
your gift or
the
possib
ility that you're pregnant
? 
Either way,
I
honestly
don't know.  It would be a safe bet that something about you is interfering with my ability.  But, don't worry
.
I still know how to practice medicine the old fashioned way.
"

"Salma
, is she all right?  What's wrong with her
?"  Vin asked after waiting what he deemed was long enough.

"I can't be sure
,
Vin.
  It could be the flu or the effects of prolonged exposure.  I will examine her more thoroughly when we get to the hotel," Salma answered.

"T
hanks.  C
a
eli
,
can I do anything
to make you more comfortable
?"
  Vin asked, hoping to provide some means of easing her pain.

"Not unless you happen to have a bottle of water. 
I
'
m thirsty.
"

"I'm sorry.  We'll find something for you the first chance we get.
"

C
a
eli nodded slightly in response, and Vin continued his conversation with the driver, frequently checking on
her
.  He introduced Ben and Salma, and then explained a little bit of the situation
in which
they found themselves.  The driver, Private Nathan Burks, seemed to take it all in stride, assuring Vin that he would get them
safely
to their hotel as quickly as he could.

There was only one other
vehicle
on the road
;
about
half a mile behind them
as they
rode
along without incident
for fifteen minutes.  Vin
chatted with
Nathan
, who checked in once with his commanding officer during that time.  The young rookie mentioned the
truck
behind them during his report, but indicated that there were no problems.

C
a
eli
sat
quiet
ly
.  In fact, she
had
n
o
t said a word since the
first time Vin checked on her.
  She
was
now
leaning over
with her head against the door.  Whatever illness
she
was
fighting
was getting worse.  Her head was pounding and her stomach was turning cartwheels. 
Her fever could probably start a small forest fire. 
If
this
was the flu, it was certainly the worst one she
ha
d ever
contracted
.  When she could no longer contain the building nausea, C
a
eli reached
forward
and placed her hand on
Vin's
shoulder
to get his attention
.  When he turned to look at her, Vin immediately knew that she was
going to be
sick.

"
Please stop the car,
"
she said in a voice barely more than a whisper.

"
I'm sorry ma'am.  I'm not allowed to do that
.  This is supposed to be a nonstop…,
"
Private Burks
'
reply was cut short by an unexpected jolt.
 

A second later, the van
slid to the side of the road and
came to a sudden stop as if
a giant hand reached out and pushed the vehicle out of its lane
and
into
a brick wall
.  Vin reached over, threw the gearshift into park, and turned the key off.  He
hopped
out of the door and open
ed
the side door for C
a
eli in the next instant, his dark hair blowing in the wind.  Surprisingly, neither Ben nor Salma were disturbed by the sudden shifting.  It was almost as if they
were
held in place by an unseen hand.

"
Come on,
Honey
.  Give me your hand.
"
  Vin helped her over to the side of the road and walked her into the trees where she could have a little bit of privacy.  With her arm across her midsection again, the contents of her stomach, which were not much to speak of, heaved their way out.  Vin held her long hair back and helped her stand as she suddenly became very weak
and unsteady on her feet
.  He used his shirt to dry the sweat from her forehead as she rested against his chest when the bout
had passed
.  A soft breeze blew through the surrounding trees and offered comfort to her overheated body.

"
You
are running a strong
fever. 
Th
e
pain in your side
has been almost constant
and now this. 
Do you know what
's wrong
with you
?
"
  Vin's concern was growing.  He could not remember ever seeing
C
a
eli
quite this sick before.

"
I
'
m not certain.  Salma is going to look at my cut and run some tests.
 
Then I'll know for sure.  Until then, w
e should get back.  The others are waiting on us.
"

"
C
a
eli, please
Honey
. 
What tests?  What cut?  Tell me w
hat's wrong
.
"

"
Honestly, I don't know.  I had a cut on my stomach from the crash, and I haven't been feeling well for a while.  It feels l
ike a
really
bad flu. 
Salma is going to run some blood work to find out for sure. 
You can hear the results as soon as I do, and then we can talk about whatever might turn up."

"Fair enough; but what if it
'
s not the flu?"

"
Then we'll deal with whatever it is.  But,
y
ou know it's
just
my luck to get sick during vacation.  Then
again
, maybe it
i
s the toll of
using my new gift
.
  I
truly
don't know
much about it yet
. 
Plus, I
a
m so very tired
that I really can't even think straight
. 
I'm sure I will
feel better after I get some sleep.  I just want to
lie
down and close my eyes. 
I
trust
Salma
to
fix me up, although
,
t
he sooner we get to the hotel, the better
.
 
Don't worry
, Vin
. 
I'll be all right.
"
 

Reluctantly, Vin accepted her explanation.  He
would
ensure that
Salma
examined
her. 
Of
one thing he was certain
;
C
a
eli
was not all right. 
They began to walk back to the van, but C
a
eli
's shoe
slipped on the wet leaves.  Her
feet
slid
out from under her as if she stepped on a patch of ice. 
Before Vin could catch her, s
he
tumbled
into a large puddle and then slid
a few feet down
a
rocky incline
.  It
took
several moments
before she could stop her descent and Vin could reach her.

"
Wow. 
Today
really
is not your day
.
 
Are you ok?
"
  Vin helped her up.

She nodded, but
Vin
discovered
a
rip
in the sweatshirt material
when he wrapped
his arm
around her back to support her.  He glanced around
to see how bad it was
and saw
blood dripping down her lower back.  Taking a closer look, he noted a circular
gash
where she must have struck the edge of a sharp rock as she fell.  The
pool of
blood
on
her sweatshirt
was
spreading
fast
.