"I'm just going to check things out. If they don't actually need me, I'm not going to get in anyone's way."
That was what Claire told herself. But when she showed up at the scene, carrying her medical kit, she immediately realized how bad things were.
The man on the ground had lost a frightening amount of blood. If they couldn't get it under control soon, this wouldn't just end with an amputation.
Everyone around was on edge. She could hear it in the way the police talked on the phone. Whoever this man was, he must have been someone important.
While Claire was still processing all of this, her phone buzzed. It was the old military doctor she'd worked with before.
"Claire, when you did surgery for Van and stopped the bleeding with acupuncture, what technique did you use? Can other doctors pull it off?"
He didn't even bother with small talk. He jumped right in the moment Claire answered.
Claire was caught off guard by the timing. "Are you asking about the guy from the highway accident? The one with the busted femoral artery?"
It was such a wild coincidence, even she was shocked.
"You know about that?" Now the old doctor sounded surprised too.
"Yeah, I'm literally right here. I was starting my graduation road trip, and this happened right in front of me."
It had been a terrible crash. And if it was big enough to get the old military doctor involved, clearly the man with the shredded artery was someone with real connections.
"To be honest, that's my wife's nephew," he told her.
Claire could tell how much this mattered to him. "It's lucky you're on the scene," he pleaded. "Please, I'm begging you. Do what you can to stop the bleeding. If you can't save his leg, at least save his life."
He sounded desperate. He and his
wife had no children, and this nephew was like a son to them. When his wife heard the news, she fainted on the spot, and there was nothing the old doctor could do from far away. He had only called Claire because it was worth a shot.
so
He never thought she'd actually be
there.
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"I can try, but honestly, I'm pretty young. I doubt the police or paramedics will believe
I know what I'm doing," Claire said. The doctor's words made it impossible to say
no.
He let out a breath of relief. "Don't worry, I'll handle it. I'll talk to them."
The old military doctor clearly had some serious connections. As one of the officers started to tell Claire to stop getting involved, another got a call from up the chain. "Are you Claire?"
A different officer hurried over and gave her a once-over.
He'd heard that a girl had gotten out of the crash unharmed, but he had
no idea she was a traditional medicine practitioner. Actually, was even more than that. Whoever was on the phone described her as a prodigy who learned traditional medicine from childhood, the direct successor to a top doctor She was the one who'd assisted the same military surgeon on another high-stakes operation. The person on the phone made it sound like Claire was a miracle worker.
Even so, looking at Claire, the officer had a hard time believing it. She was just a teenager, still looking more like a student than a doctor. Even if
her family background was
impressive, it was har
to imagine
her having the kind of skills that
would have experts raving.
Claire caught the doubt in his eyes, but she didn't waste time explaining. There wasn't any point in talking herself up. She just nodded.
"Look, this is serious. My boss says you know how to stop the bleeding. Do you actually have a way?"
"Whether I can do it or not, we have to try. Is there anyone else here with a better shot?"
Her confidence took the officer by surprise. For the first time, he looked at her differently.
"It's good that you're confident, but if you're not absolutely sure..."