Chapter 228 Small Traumatic Bleed

Chapter 228: Chapter 228 Small Traumatic Bleed

The moment they arrived at Vile Valley, Laurel headed straight for the medical sector. Stefan followed her through the entrance, and when a nurse approached to greet them, Laurel was already removing her coat.

"Prepare the emergency treatment room and have two beds ready," Laurel instructed, washing her hands at the station beside the corridor. "Bring the pediatric monitoring equipment, and ask one of the doctors to join me. Stefan, please find Alexander and tell him to come here." Her brows deepened with worry.

Stefan hesitated, his gaze drifting towards the adjoining ward. "I’ll find him, but I also want to check on Ida. I haven’t heard anything about her since she was brought here."

Laurel paused with her hands beneath the running water. "Check on her first, then. If her condition is serious, send someone for me immediately."

Stefan nodded and hurried away while Laurel entered the treatment room.

She knew the arrangement of every cabinet and examination station. She had supervised the medical sector’s construction and helped establish its treatment procedures, and the familiar surroundings brought a measure of reassurance after the uncertainty of the underground passage. The room was clean, the examination lamps were working, and the nurse had already begun preparing the beds.

Laurel brought the children out of her farming space.

Tina appeared on the nearer bed with her injured leg supported, while Jack remained on the firm support Laurel had arranged beneath him. His head and torso were still aligned, and Luo’s monitoring had detected no sudden changes during their return, but Laurel wanted a clearer picture of the injuries hidden beneath his bruises.

"Aunty Laurel?" Tina looked around the room, blinking weakly at the bright lights. "Can I stay near Jack?"

"Of course, sweetheart," Laurel answered, drawing the curtain back so Tina could see the neighboring bed. "I’ll be moving between the two of you, so you won’t be alone."

With the doctor’s assistance, Laurel transferred Jack onto the examination bed without twisting his neck or back. She attached the monitoring leads, checked his oxygen saturation and blood pressure, then studied the readings while the nurse prepared the imaging equipment.

Jack’s pulse was faster than normal, although his breathing remained steady. Laurel lifted one eyelid and directed a narrow beam of light across the pupil, watching it constrict before repeating the examination on the other side. He was responsive, but that did not explain why he remained unconscious.

"Let’s scan his head and cervical spine first," Laurel instructed the doctor beside her. "He was struck by falling debris, and I don’t want us moving him unnecessarily until we’ve excluded a significant spinal injury."

The doctor nodded. "Yes, commander." He quickly helped position the equipment. Laurel watched the images appear on the screen, examining them carefully before asking for additional views of his shoulder and upper back.

The head imaging revealed a small area of bleeding beneath the skull, with swelling around the injured tissue. Laurel leaned closer, studying its location and extent. The finding explained her concern about his prolonged unconsciousness, although she knew that the images would need to be compared with later examinations to determine whether the bleeding was stable.

She pointed towards the affected area. "There’s a small traumatic bleed here. I don’t see evidence of major displacement at present, but we can’t assume it will remain that way. He needs continuous observation and repeat imaging if his condition changes."

The doctor studied the screen and nodded. "Should we prepare him for surgery?"

"Not right now, especially not based on this finding alone," Laurel replied. "His circulation and breathing are stable, and I don’t see an immediate indication for an operation. And besides we need to take several tests, to know if he is ready for surgery. But if the bleeding expands or his neurological responses deteriorate, that decision could change quickly."

The doctor nodded and quickly prepared the equipment for the other test.

Laurel examined the remaining images. There was no obvious fracture of the cervical spine, although she remained cautious about possible soft-tissue injury. His shoulder showed considerable bruising and swelling, and one of the deeper wounds across his back required more than the temporary treatment she had given underground.

Laurel removed the old dressing and carefully inspected the exposed tissue beneath the examination lamp. Dried blood had collected around the torn edges, and small particles of dirt remained embedded in the wound. She irrigated the area thoroughly with sterile solution, using forceps to remove visible debris before examining the deeper tissue for damaged vessels and signs of contamination.

The nurse handed her fresh instruments while Laurel worked. She checked that no active bleeding remained, trimmed a small section of damaged tissue that could not be preserved, then closed the appropriate wound layers without trapping contamination beneath the skin. Once satisfied, she covered the area with a sterile dressing and instructed the nurse to record its condition for subsequent checks.

Only then did Laurel allow herself to relax a bit... but the bleeding in his skull poses more threat for now. "Is the other testing ready?" She asked one of the nurses.

The nurse shook her head. "We have taken his blood sample, but the result is not yet out."

Laurel sighed. Her heart pounding in her chest.

Jack had survived the collapse, but the injury inside his skull was not something she could repair with a few stitches. She could prevent further harm, and respond to changes in his condition.

’At least we know what we’re dealing with now,’ Laurel thought, looking at the images again.

She arranged for Jack to be transferred to a monitored bed within the medical sector, then turned her attention towards Tina.

The little girl had remained unusually quiet throughout the examination. Laurel noticed that she was watching Jack’s face rather than the equipment around him, and when Laurel approached, Tina immediately reached for her hand.

"Is Jack going to wake up?" Tina asked, her voice small.

Laurel sat beside her and gently enclosed the child’s fingers between her own. "We’ve found an injury inside his head, sweetheart. We’re treating him and watching him closely, but he needs time to recover. I can’t tell you exactly when he’ll wake."

Tina lowered her eyes, then nodded. Laurel could see that she wanted to ask more, but she was exhausted, and her injured knee had begun troubling her again.

"Let’s take care of your leg now," Laurel suggested, brushing Tina’s hair away from her forehead. "I want you to be comfortable while Jack rests."

She removed the temporary support she had applied underground and examined the swollen knee. The skin was warm, and bruising had begun to spread along one side of the joint. Laurel supported Tina’s heel with one hand while gently checking the area around the kneecap and the bones beneath it.

"Tell me where it hurts most," Laurel instructed, applying light pressure along the joint.

Tina winced when Laurel touched the inner side of her knee. "There, Aunty Laurel. It hurts there."