At Long Last (OC x Natasha Romanoff)

Chapter 11

Nat's POV

I had been following up on the lead of the pack of dead wolves for about an hour. So far, I found nothing other than what Tony had told me. I was able to find an article about the pack and the more I read into it the less it made sense. An entire pack wiped out, ruins of what looked like homes charred and burnt to the ground. Some of the bodies even seemed to have been set on fire, while others had multiple bullet holes in them. There was no way this was a hunting party or even poachers. This had a much sinister feel to it.

"Ms. Romanoff. Mr. Stark has asked that you come to the lab. The veterinarians are here."

"Thanks J.A.R.V.I.S. let Stark know I'm on my way." I saved what I had found and headed up to the lab.

"Ahh perfect timing. Natasha, this is Dr. Wayne and Dr. Hunter, they are veterinarians that specialize in wolf and wolf dogs." I shook their hands and introduced myself.

"So, Mr. Stark, you said you captured an injured wolf. What can you tell us about it?" Dr. Hunter asked.

"Well, I didn't take much of a look at it compared to Natasha. She would have a better idea of what you're looking at?"

All the men turned to me. "She is a rather large wolf, about five feet tall I would guess. I felt several broken ribs and she has two arrows that need to be removed. I believe I also saw scarring on her sides."

"Did you find it with the arrows in it already?" Dr. Wayne asked. I turned to Clint and shot him a glare.

"Barton, Care to share?" I asked.

"Haha. You see, I thought it was going to attack Natasha because it kept getting closer to her, and I kind of freaked out and shot it..." He said nervously.

"So, you shot it in self-defense?" Dr. Wayne asked. Clint just nodded his head as he slowly moved away from me. "How long ago did you shoot the wolf and was it treated at all?"

"We are not familiar enough to treat it ourselves. I am not trained in canine anatomy and physiology and thought I would do more harm than good. It has also been roughly 4 hours since the wolf was shot." Bruce responded.

"If it has been that long we need to get started right away. Can we see the wolf please?" Dr. Hunter asked.

"We will set up the lab with anything you may need. Anything that is not already set up I can help you with. I would like to assist and learn from you if that's ok with you." Bruce said.

"That's fine. It sounds like we could use all the help we can get." Dr. Wayne said.

"If you follow me, I'll take you to where we are keeping the wolf. Clint, can you grab a table to help transport her. Tony, we will need your help too." I led the veterinarians and Tony down to the cell we kept the wolf in. When we arrived, all you saw was blood. There was a massive pool under the wolf. Its breathing was now slower than it was before.

"We need to work quickly. It may be too late as it is." Dr. Hunter said. Clint rolled the transport bed right next to the wolf. We each grabbed part of the wolf to help lift it on the table, then sprinted back to the lab. When we got there the 5 of us slid the wolf onto the operating table. Bruce was already scrubbed in. Tony and Clint left the room while I just took a few steps back and stared at the wolf in horror. How could we not have noticed this? Why did I leave her? Why didn't we act sooner to get the arrows out? Why the hell didn't we at least try to put something on it to slow down the bleeding?

"NAT! NAT" Bruce yelled. My head shot up to where Bruce was yelling for me. "Nat you need to leave."

"No, I'm not leaving her." I walked over to the wolf's head, being mindful of all the wires that were now attached to its body. I carefully started petting it. Hoping to give it some kind of comfort. I looked at the three doctors and gave them a look that screamed 'try to remove me from the room'.

"Fine, but we need you to stay at the head and don't touch anything that is draped." Dr. Hunter said. I nodded my head and pulled up a stool so I could sit by the wolf's head. I gently started petting its head again. "It's ok to pet its head, but please don't try to pet anything else. We need to keep everything as sterile as possible."

After about an hour and a half, one arrow was removed and stitched up. We had taken a few x-rays to get a better image of where the arrows are and if they hit anything. The two veterinarians declared that this arrow would be much harder to remove since it was close to the heart and may have also gotten the lung. "Do you keep any O negative blood on hand?"

"We keep a few bags in case, why?" Bruce asked.

"There is a high chance we are going to need to do a blood transfusion if we want to save its life." Dr. Hunter responded. "Bruce, we need you to take a blood sample and run it to get a blood type. Natasha, I need you to grab two bags of O negative." Both me and Bruce rushed to complete the task that was assigned.

"I'm taking a couple extra vials of blood just in case." Bruce said.

"Don't take too much. She doesn't have much blood to spare. Starting the second extraction. Dr. Wayne, get ready with the O neg." I took my place back at the wolf's head. I started petting it again in hope that no matter what, it gives her comfort. I tuned out the commotion of my surroundings and focused on petting the wolf. The guilt of how we treated an injured animal was eating me alive. "Shit, Shit, Shit. Bruce, apply pressure where my hand is. Don't stop and don't move until I tell you. Hang more blood!" Tony barged into the room.

"I got the results back. She's A positive. We don't have any A positive blood on hand." Tony said. My head perked up when he said that.

"We need to find some. We are losing her and without blood she won't survive. How much O neg do we have left?"

"We only have 1 liter left."

"Take my blood." I pleaded. I'm A positive. Take my blood." Dr. Wayne nodded his head.

"Natasha, go with Mr. Stark. We need to scream your blood quickly. If everything goes ok, then we can get you hooked up right away." I nodded my head at the doctor and followed Tony out of the room. After taking my blood I went back to the lab and sat back in my seat. Five minutes later Tony came back in and declared everything checked out. Dr. Wayne set everything up for a direct blood transfusion. Tony had brought a small cart filled with juice and small snacks. I was instructed to keep eating and drinking since we were not sure how much blood would be needed.

After 45 minutes, the two veterinarians let out a deep breath. For the first time in 30 minutes, I looked up at the group of doctors. Dr. Wayne was holding the arrow while Bruce held pressure on the open wound. "Okay Natasha, everything is looking good now, just need a little more blood as we stitch up the wound. Then we should be done. How are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling okay. The snacks are helping." Within another 30 minutes they started wrapping the wolf in gauze and medical tape. They wrapped an extra Ace bandage around her ribs. "There, all done." Bruce took the needle out of my arm and bandaged me up too. I stayed sitting and just kept petting the wolf's head. It calmed me down a lot.

"J.A.R.V.I.S have Tony and Clint meet us by the wolf's cell. Tell them to bring extra pillows and blankets."

"Yes, Dr. Banner."

"When should she wake up?" I asked the two vets as they slid the wolf on the transport bed.

"Hopefully within the next 6 hours, but she lost a lot of blood. We are going to need to keep a close eye on her. If it takes longer than 10 hours, then we will need to reevaluate her. For now, let's just get her comfortable.   

A/N

I know this chapter was all Nat's POV. We will be getting back to Alex and Artemis soon, but this chapter is meant to set up Natasha's and Alex's relationship. The book is not going to be a slow burn, but it's not going to be them jumping right into a relationship right away either. Again, please let me know if you have any suggestions. If you like how this book is going so far, please vote.