Falling in Love : I love you, Today and Forever

Maggie could not stop her tears from rolling down her cheeks. Her Deputy's state made her lose her mind completely. All the blood and the injuries on Valerie made her realize how fickle life was and that anything could happen at any moment. It had been just a few hours since she had met the Deputy at the Intelligence, well and kicking and now, she lay comatose as Ian tried with all his might to save her.

Maggie lifted her eyes and stared at the dark sky. This was the longest and most dreadful day of her life. Not only had Jared ruined her and her Deputy, but he also had even ruined a lot of people by releasing the virus into the air. In just one night, the entire country had been pushed to a state of total chaos and there was yet to come.

Maggie sighed when she recalled what her Deputy had told her once.

'Whatever happens, one must never lose themselves to the situation. We need to have control over ourselves and only then could we control the situation.'

As soon as Maggie remembered the words, she felt horrible. Control over herself was what she did not have at that moment. Yet, she could not break down either. While her Deputy was fighting for life, there were a lot more people waiting to be rescued and treated. She could not just stay still and watch her colleagues suffer.

With that thought in mind, she wiped her tears and forced herself to calm down. Glancing at the closed tent behind her again, she got to work immediately.

Meanwhile, back at the tent, Ian stared at the unconscious woman and the injuries on her head. As expected, she had injured her hind brain and the moment he saw the wounds on her body, his frown deepened. They were serious and he had to operate on her immediately. But the problem was he was all alone in the tent and even among the people he had brought with him, there was no one he could make use of to assist him in the surgery.

It was at this moment that Ian wished Aria to be present beside him for his help. She was the best surgeon, maybe even more than him and she was the best assistant he had ever had.

Gritting his teeth, Ian continued to clean Valerie's wounds, soaking the cotton swabs with her blood. He did not know where else she was injured and that did not matter right now. Considering how serious her injury to her head was, it was more important to save her first.

'Where the fuck is the medical assistance?' He seethed, the frustration in him getting the best of him. This was one of the many times when Ian could not help but lose his calm and in the midst, his hand trembled.

'Damn it.' He cursed in his mind and stopped whatever he was doing. He took deep breaths to calm himself down. He could not allow his lack of focus to hinder his work. Otherwise, he would lose Valerie forever.

Ian waited for a few seconds and when he was sure that he was in control, he continued cleaning her wounds again. Valerie was barely breathing. But she was still there and that was all the assurance he needed right now. Fortunately for him, she had stopped bleeding, making it easier for him to find out where exactly on her head had she been injured.

Ian made sure to be as careful as possible as he parted her hair and felt bad for the woman when he realized what would be happening to her hair in a few minutes. Wiping the sweat on his forehead, he blinked his eyes a few times to remove his dizziness before he continued what he was doing.

Valerie's entire face had been cleaned and he could now see her wounds through her blood-soaked hair. They looked ghastly and he did not waste any more time focusing on unimportant matters. He picked up the scissors and chopped her hair off around the wounded area.

"Please forgive me, Deputy. I have no other choice. My priority is to save you, I am just doing my job. Your hair will grow again. I am sorry." He mumbled his words of apology and continued until he could see the wound clearly. A gasp left his lips when he saw how severe it was. This was going to be a long and ardent surgery and he had to do it all alone.

"Please be alive. Please be safe. Please be alive. Please be safe." Ian chanted during the entire procedure, not once stopping even for a moment. He did not even care how profusely he was sweating nor did he care about the time that kept passing slowly. All he had in mind was to save the woman on his operating table.

Ian had no idea how much time had passed. By the time he was done stitching up Valerie's wounds, he was beyond exhausted and his entire body was screaming in pain. All he wanted was to rest and sleep for a long time. The moment he finished with the stitches, his legs gave away and he kneeled on the floor. His entire shirt was drenched with sweat and only then did Ian realize the ache in his legs. He had been standing for a long time. It was not a wonder that his legs were aching.

Ian had only managed to handle the deadly part. There were still a lot more wounds on her body and some of them could even be serious. With this thought in mind, he pushed himself up using all the remaining energy in him.

Valerie's entire shirt was stained with blood at the back. So, Ian did not hesitate and cut through her shirt right in the middle until her back was exposed to him. A horrendous cut ran across her back and Ian almost felt like crying on seeing such a fine woman being subjected to such misery. He felt his heart aching in pain on seeing the wounds on her back, especially when he thought of the scar it would leave once the woman recovered, that it if she passed this critical period safely.