Tintin and the Farmgirl

Chapter 3 : Emergency Visit.

My eyes widened as my jaw slacked. The people I had just saved from that plane crash were my personal heroes. I quickly snapped out of my awestruck daze as I started to untie the two. "How bad are your injuries?" I asked Captain Haddock as I quickly ripped off the tape from his mouth, making him yelp in pain. I glanced at the tape to find that I had accidentally ripped off some of his beard. I cringed and apologized frantically as I untied Tintin. "I can fix myself up just fine lass, it's him I'm worried about. Those Troglodytes did a number on him." The captain said. I looked over at Tintin to see that he was barely staying conscious and his breathing was ragged. I quickly but carefully lifted his shirt to see multiple deep gashes in his sides and abdomen. "We need to get to my cousin's house. Pronto. Get him into the truck." I said as crudely wrapped up his abdomen before running outside to start the truck back up. I hopped out of the truck and helped Haddock carry the young journalist to my truck. "Get in the back. I need you to keep pressure on the wounds and let me know how he's doing." I said helping Tintin into the back seat as Snowy followed behind his master. Haddock followed with multiple cloths and shut the door. Sylvia jumped into the passenger seat before I could stop her. We're in too much of a hurry for me to worry about her now. "Hold onto something. I'm going to be driving like a maniac." I said as I shifted into reverse and gassed it. Haddock clung onto the door with one arm and held Tintin with the other. "Thundering Typhoons! Slow down lass! You'll wreck us in this storm!" Haddock yelled while readjusting Tintin into a laying down position. "Look, would you prefer me to go slow and have your friend get closer to having tea with Death, or would you like to have me speed and we get to help sooner and your pal closer to recovery?" I asked as I shifted to drive glaring at the captain through the rear view mirror. He looked shocked at my outburst. "That's what I thought. So shut up and let me drive." I said slamming my foot in the gas, jerking us forward. I heard weak laughter followed by coughing. "And you Mr. Tintin, need to save your energy. Don't waste it on laughing at Haddock's oh so shocked face back there." I said with a smirk. Haddocks face turned defensive. "How do you know our names?" he growled lowly. "You two have been all over the news this morning. I wouldn't be surprised if everyone in town knew about you. And isn't this the sixteenth, seventeenth time you two have been kidnapped? Seriously, you guys need to watch your backs better. Heads up!" I said as I made a sharp turn to the left. "How do you know so much about us?" the old sea captain asked surprised at how much I knew about them. "Hello! His articles online and his blog! I read them all the time. Best place to get information about where to go and places to see. I hope to travel the world someday. We're here." I said driving into the driveway.

 I parked the truck and ran to the door. I burst through the door to see my older cousin watching TV with her two daughters. "Betty, It's an emergency." I said out of breath. She stood up from the couch. "Are you alright? What happened?" she asked standing up to look at me. "I'm fine, but he's not. Bad gashes to his abdomen and chest. I didn't have enough stuff to fix him up nor the experience to do it. I knew that if I called an ambulance, he would have bled out before they could get to my house due to the storm so I came to you." I explained to her as I lead her to the truck. Her eyes widened as she looked at Tintin. "Get him inside. Sam, prep the spare room. you know what to do." I nodded and went to the spare room. I got Betty's med kit and set it up on the side table next to the bed. I tore off the sheets and blankets and put a plastic covering over the mattress to prevent blood stains. I sterilized the medical tools and organized them in the side table. Just as I finished and put on a pair of rubber gloves Betty followed by Haddock who was carrying Tintin into the room. "Everything's prepped and ready." I said as I handed a pair of gloves to Betty. She quickly put them on and helped lay Tintin onto the bed.  "You'll have to wait outside for a bit. He's in good hands. Lila will take care of your injuries." She said shooing the captain out the door and shutting it. I looked down at Tintin in concern. His breathing becoming more labored by the minute, his face contorting in pain and silent tears falling from the corners of his eyes. The sight almost made me cry. I placed my hand gently on his head and softly stroked it. He looked up at me in pain, his stormy grey eyes showed the agony he felt. "Don't worry. Everything's going to be alright. Betty'll fix you up and you'll be back on your feet and exploring the world in no time." I reassured him in a soothing voice. I caught a glimpse of a smile from the corners of his mouth before grunting in pain. "Sam, give him a shot of the painkiller. Then we'll start." Betty said putting thread into the needle. I nodded as I got the syringe and carefully measured the right dosage. "This will pinch a little, but you won't feel a thing afterwords. Just relax." I said disinfecting a spot on his arm where a vein was before putting the needle in and injecting the medicine into his bloodstream. I gently pulled it out and watched as he relaxed and drifted into a deep slumber. "Alright. Let's get started."