After midnight, Tuesday, September 1977

 

“Why not stay here and make sure the Russian is finished?”

“Terry’s been hit and needs our help. He’s more important than our Russian.”

“My God! Let’s go! What can you tell me?”

“Not now, we have to focus to get out of here. There are still shooters out there just waiting for us to make a mistake. Fire your magazine and follow me close.”

The smoke from two more burning RVs helped cover their withdrawal. It was a quick climb out of the valley. The surrounding cliff was not as steep on the eastern end of the valley. Once on top they made good time and in 15 minutes found Terry.

Bernadette cut off the clothing surrounding the two bullet wounds. A glance at the groin wound and she knew it was the most serious. “Peter stop the chest wound from bleeding. I don’t think that wound is critical. Stand by to help me with the gunshot in the lower right abdomen. That one is the problem.”

Bernadette had learned years ago that if you don’t have what you need in a crisis, it is too late to get it. Her first aid kit was lightweight but extensive, including forceps and two pints of plasma. A syringe of morphine helped Terry to stop thrashing around. A plasma drip was next. With Peter holding the light, she probed for and found the bullet in the abdomen and was able to clamp off two of the major bleeders. Next she extracted the bullet in the high chest wound. She left a cut off plastic tube in the lower wound, and then she stitched up both wounds and gave Terry a big dose of antibiotics.

“My God! Bernadette, that was wonderful. Where did you learn all that?”

“Some because I had to, but I did have some real training from an IRA doctor with a lot of battlefield experience. If you can keep focused and cool, have the right stuff, a lot of luck, and a strong patient, they sometimes recover from worse wounds than Terry has.”

“What about moving him?”

“No way tomorrow. Maybe a short distance the next day. He has to be kept warm, dry, and hydrated. I know people will be swarming all over this valley before he is ready to move.”

“That’s what worries me. I’m sure some bad guys are still alive down there. I’m going to push the two Terry killed over the cliff. Better they are found on the valley floor than up here. It’s very likely that the fire, small explosion, and our firefight will have been heard and reported by someone. If so, the authorities will be here tomorrow.

“The light from our flashlights and fire to keep Terry warm can be seen from the valley or the surrounding ridges. We’ll have to be alert tonight. I’ll take the first watch. You try and get some sleep. Tomorrow will be a hard day.”