Dead America - New York Tales - The Subway by Derek Slaton

Author:Derek Slaton [Slaton, Derek]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-07-13T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FIVE

Fran's urgency pierced the air as she demanded, "Let me see your arm! Let me see your arm!" Austin, seated nearby, clenched his arm tightly, blood seeping between his fingers as he emitted a pained grunt.

"It will be fine," Austin reassured, though Fran persisted, insisting, "Just let me see it." Reluctantly, Austin released his grip, allowing Fran to scrutinize the injury. Her expression contorted with distress upon witnessing the extent of the wound—a sizable portion of flesh torn from his forearm.

Despite his attempt to mask his discomfort with a brave facade, Austin avoided glancing at the injury. "How bad does it look?" he inquired, seeking Fran's assessment.

Fran deliberated briefly before responding, carefully selecting her words. "Well, I'm not a doctor, but I'm pretty confident in saying that whoever had to patch you up would definitely be telling this story to their coworkers on their lunch break."

Austin managed a strained chuckle, shaking his head in disbelief. Meanwhile, Fran turned her attention to Eden, seated nearby with her knees drawn up to her chin, visibly distressed by the morning's events.

"Eden, do you have anything I can bandage this up with?" Fran queried. Initially unresponsive, Eden was roused by Fran's insistence. She moved towards her purse, hanging on the door between the train cars, but hesitated as she approached, observing a cluster of creatures pressed against the window. Collecting herself, Eden retrieved a colorful scarf from her purse and presented it to Fran.

"Will this work, Fran?" she asked.

Fran accepted the scarf with gratitude, nodding in affirmation. She offered Eden a warm pat on the arm. "This will work great, Eden. Thank you."

Eden reciprocated the nod before retreating to her seat, determined to avoid slipping back into her catatonic state. Fran, preparing to tend to Austin's wound, cautioned, "This is going to sting a bit."

But before Fran could proceed, Austin interjected, his concern redirected. "Before you do that, hang on a minute. Where is my briefcase?" Fran scanned the area and located it on the ground, promptly retrieving it for him. Austin pulled out a flask from the briefcase, prompting Fran's playful accusation. "Have you been holding out on me, Austin?"

Austin chuckled, explaining, "I was saving it for the end of the day, but at the rate things are going, I might be getting close to it." He extended the flask towards Fran, inviting her to open it. However, Fran hesitated, declining his offer despite the circumstances. "I appreciate the offer, but even with what's going on, it's still a little too early in the morning for me."

"I was hoping that you would pour it on my wound. It's whiskey, so it should help clean it out a bit. I would do it myself, but I know it's going to burn like a son of a bitch, and we don't have time for me to be hesitating." Austin replied.

Fran accepted the flask, meeting Austin's gaze with determination. "OK, we're going to go on three. One..."

Fran poured the whiskey onto his wound as she gripped his arm firmly, ensuring he didn't recoil.

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