Before Rider could drop to the floor Jackie caught him. She could feel dry and warm blood on her left hand. Rider's father grabbed Rider's right arm and flung it over his shoulder while Jackie did the same with Rider's left arm. The two hauled Rider to the floor where Jake and Rider's mother had placed an old mattress and cleaning supplies.
"Jake, go get Hayley." Jackie ordered her brother before she ripped Rider's shirt to reveal the true extent of the wound.
Jake wasted no time he beckoned his snow leopard and the pair raced out of the house and headed towards Hayley's house. Rider's father handed Jackie a dagger so that she could rip Rider's shirt easier. By the looks of the extent of everything it was quite a while ago when Rider received the wound. His shirt front and back torn to shreds and pants barely holding, his arms and legs covered in smaller scratches while larger ones shredded the back of his shirt and made deep cuts.
"I'm going to need vinegar and an old rag." Jackie instructed as she finally saw the extent of the wounds.
"I'll go get the vinegar." Rider's mother nodded, while Rider's father went off to find an old rag.
Rider's wounds were deep and had already begun to get an infection. Around the wounds dirt, small rocks and other small items had been left. With the dagger she began to clean the wound the best she could, every now and again Rider would tense when she had to dig deeper to get the bigger rocks deeper down. Rider's mother had returned with the vinegar and not long after had Rider 's father returned with the rag.
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Jake hurried towards Hayley's house, he could feel his snow leopard's stride reach its peak and yet everything seemed be going slow. Around him house lights turned on and he was met with angry protest, shouts of why he was up this late and for him to slow down. Jake had no time to reply to their protests and soon Hayley's house lights flickered on.
"Jake! What on earth are you doing?" Hayley asked, clearly angry at him for being noisy and waking up half the tribe.
"Rider needs help." Jake said as he dismounted his snow leopard.
"Then why come to me?" Hayley asked, puzzled to why exactly Jake was here.
"Rider's been seriously injured and he is losing and has already lost quite a bit of blood." Jake informed her.
"Then why didn't you say that the first time?!" Hayley huffed as she raced inside and grabbed her supplies.
"Because I thought that you would understand when I said Rider needs help!" Jake protesters.
"Let's move." Hayley sighed as she mounted her big cat.
Jake lead the way with Hayley right in her heels, the angry shouts and protests soon stopped as they passed and the lights flickered out once more.
"What's the extent of the wounds?" Hayley asked as she fell in stride with Jake.
"I don't know, I left to get you before I could see. But he did pass out as soon as he got inside." Jake informed her.
"We better get a move on then." Hayley murmured to him before pushing her big cat to go faster.
The pair skidded to a halt just before the verandah, from where they were they could hear shrieks of pain and muffled cries.
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Jackie had instructed Rider's father to hold his legs down while Rider's mother held down his arms. Jackie soaked the rag in vinegar before murmuring to herself that it was going to hurt. Closing her eyes she placed the rag on the wounds and soon the house was filled with painful shrieks and cries, seeing her son in so much pain and caused Rider's mother to break down and now muffled sobs had also accompanied Rider's screams of protests. She heard the door slam open once more, looking up she noticed Hayley and Jake had finally come.
"I've cleaned the wounds the best I could." Jackie informed her as she stepped out of the way for Hayley to expect the wounds.
"You've done well." Hayley praised her. "I am going to need a bucket of water, quite a number of cloths I can use."
Jackie nodded before instructing Jake to get the bucket of water while she went to get the cloths. She fumbled around through almost every drawer, it seemed as though she had forgotten where everything was. More painful screams filled the house and now Jackie knew that Hayley was removing the dried blood so that she could clean the whole wound. Jackie raced back out with a handful of cloths and placed them down beside Hayley and the bucket of water.
"What can I do?" Jackie asked, she needed to help, as a matter of fact she wanted to help.
"I need you to take a deep breathe and just step back." Hayley said calmly as she dipped a cloth in the bucket.
Jackie nodded and stepped back from where Hayley was working, she heard muffled sobs coming from Rider.
"He's going to pass out." Hayley informed them. "We need to be careful. Jake I need you to time how long Rider is out for. Every 30 seconds let me now what the time is."
Jake nodded before starting count when Rider's muffled sobs fell silent and the room completely still. Jackie watched as Hayley washed away the dirt and dry blood from around the wounds. Once the wounds were cleaned up, they could finally see the true extent to the wounds. Two great big claw marks, one going from the top of the left shoulder and the other from the top of the right. The claw marks ran in a diagonal direction and criss-crossed halfway down Rider's back and they finished at about Rider's waist. Whatever had inflicted the wounds was wanting to leave its mark on Rider as though a warning.
"2 minutes." Jake informed Hayley.
"Crap." She scolded herself.
"What's wrong?" Jackie asked, panic stricken and alarmed.
"I need to seal the wound." Hayley said.
"Then why did you scold yourself?" Jake asked.
"Because Rider has been out to long. I'll have to put the stitches in and then I will have to stay here and monitor him for the night." Hayley informed them as she began stitching up the wound. "I would like you all to know that this wound will never properly heal, it will scar and always be permanent."
Jackie sighed before tracing over her own scar on her arm, "Do what you must, as long as Rider lives."
Hayley nodded before continuing stitching the wound.
"You don't get to call the shots here." Rider's mother murmured. "I don't want my boy scared for life."
"Everyone will have at least one permanent scar. It is part of the job." Jackie snarled back.
"Part of the job involves being framed for something that you didn't do!" Rider's mother had lost it.
"No! I never said that Rider had done it!" Jackie growled back trying to hold her own calm.
"You said that you would take the murderous bastard who had killed my daughter off the streets! Now that murderous bastard had tried to kill my son! And what are you doing about it? Nothing!" Rider's mother screamed at her.
"Yes, I did say that I would find the murderous bastard who did it and that they would be taken off the streets! But I cannot do that when the crime has been completely reported! We don't know what we are looking for!" Jackie countered.
"Um, sorry to interrupt." Hayley murmured. "But I found this lodged in the wound."
Hayley handed Jackie a bit of a claw, "A lion." Jackie murmured.
"There you go, that narrows it down." Rider's mother growled.
"Actually, there is one more thing." Hayley sighed as she cleaned everything up. "This was done by no rider, let alone a warrior. This was done by a wild beast."
"Thank you Hayley. Jake has pulled out a mattress for you to sleep on tonight." Jackie sighed.
"Aren't you going to go out and find that cold hearted beast?!" Rider's mother snapped.
"It is to dark. I will lead a team and try to track down the beast. For its sake it should hopefully move on before we find out." Jackie murmured to her.
Rider's mother took in a few deep breathes before going up to her room.
"I'm sorry for the way she reacted." Rider's father apologised.
"Please. I understand." Jackie stopped him before he could say anymore. "Keep an eye on her. Make sure she doesn't do anything that she'll regret."
Rider's father nodded politely before following his wife up to their room.
"Come on. You should get to bed to." Jake beckoned her.
"I'll sleep out here tonight." Jackie murmured to him as she looked down at Rider.
"Okay. I'll get you some extra blankets." Jake shrugged before heading upstairs.
"You know. You don't have to stay down here." Hayley looked at her as she set up her bed.
"I know." Jackie shrugged. "I just want to know that he's safe."
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YOU ARE READING
Caged - Unleash the Beast
FantasyThe sequel to Caged White Snow: Jackie has finally become chief and with Rider as captain they have now taken their rightful place. But being chief isn't all serious and checking up on trainees training. Her father had warned her that anything can h...
