Twisted Carnage MC #2: Snake

Chaos in the ER was a different kind of energy. One that was almost impossible to define unless you'd lived it.

It lived in the fluorescent hum of the emergency room, in the sharp scent of antiseptic and sweat, in the constant chorus of call lights, and raised voices. Tonight, the chaos was overwhelming because we were short staffed and over capacity.

All the beds were full and our overflow was filled with pending admits and holds. Restless bodies could be found in every corner and dark hiding place in the ER.

Every chair in the waiting room contained restless, nervous, or angry patients waiting to be seen and an endless stream of patients continued to walk through the door. Racing from one room to the next, I didn’t have time to eat, drink, or pee.

Linley was the nurse on shift with me tonight. She was a young, spunky redhead who made my life a whole lot easier. As she approached, she leaned against the counter. “Dr. Remmy, the discharge in three, he's good to go once I get his suppository, right?”

“Yes. And Mrs. Jones in curtain four, she’s free to discharge once she’s had one gram of Rocephin,” I said, pointing in her general direction.

Linley’s gaze followed where I gestured, and she nodded. “Okay, first three, then four.”

“Thanks, Linley.”

We both went our separate ways, continuing to move through each patient as quickly but safely as possible. Despite the recent move from LA, I'd expected the ER to be more small town energy. I hadn't imagined it would be this busy. It had been a welcomed change from the overtaxed Los Angeles emergency room, even in the face of chaos.

In the middle of the room, the nurse’s station was the hub of it all. Surrounding it were twenty four exam areas, most of them just curtained off with only a handful of legitimate rooms. With the OR just across the hall, our overflow area was in the pre-op or pacu area, depending on census.

Walking into the next room, I greeted the young man, in his thirties, who was laying in the hospital bed looking quite uncomfortable.

“Hello, I’m Dr. Remmy and I’ll be taking care of you tonight.” Logging into the computer, I pulled up his chart. “So, Mr. Jeffers, tell me what brings you in.”

“So, uh, um, it went, you know, in my… you know,” he sputtered, gesturing to his groin.

“Did something happen to your penis?” I asked, amazed at how many people couldn’t even say the proper terms for their anatomy.

“Yeah, uh, it – well – it went in there.” He slowly managed to get out, sweat beginning to line his brow.

I exhaled quietly, biting back my frustration and counted to three. “What went in where?”

Looking anywhere but at me, he said, “a snake.”

“There’s a snake in your urethra?” I clarified, snapping my mouth shut before I let my facial expressions show my shock.

He looked at the ground, refusing to look at me. “Yeah. It stopped moving a couple of hours ago.”

Well, no shit. It probably suffocated to death. Unfortunately, it is frowned upon to say those sorts of things out loud, so instead, I responded with, “Hmmm, okay, how did the snake get in there?”

“It just slithered,” he said, with a poor attempt at imitating a snake slithering with his hand.

“How did it gain access to your urethra? Did you put it up there?” I asked, still wondering if this was a joke. It had to be, right?”

“No, I was just sitting there and it slithered in,” he replied defensively.

“Okay. I’ll need to consult with Urology, they’ll most likely be down to see you. Now, I need to take a look. May I?” Indicating to the sheet covering him.

After pulling the sheet down, I examined him and didn't see anything abnormal. I sure hoped he was mistaken.

“Has anything like this happened to you before?” I asked, pulling off my gloves and discarding them in the trash.

He looked around for a few seconds, anywhere but at me, before responding. “Uh…yeah. I passed out one night and woke up with a straw up there.”

This night could only get better. “Did you need to have it surgically removed?”

Shaking his head, he wrung his hands in his lap. “No, it wasn’t in all the way so I pulled it out.”

“I’m going to consult Urology now. They’ll be by in a bit.” Pulling the curtain back, I left the room. As I walked up to the nurse’s station, I stopped in front of Linley. “Page Urology for curtain six and keep him NPO.”

Stepping into the dictation room, I quickly finished my note and placed the consult order. Engrossed in catching up on my work, I’d almost forgotten that I was waiting to give report. Walking out of the room, I headed to the nurse’s station when Linley turned around.

“Dr. Hanra from Urology is on line one.”

“Thanks,” I acknowledged her and then picked up the phone, “This is Dr. Remmy.”

“Chad Hanra with Urology, you have a consult for me?”

Shifting the phone to my other ear, I sighed, “Yes, and I just want to apologize in advance.”

His sharp laughter made me smile, “This is going to be good, isn’t it?”

“Thirty-six-year-old male came in tonight with complaints of a snake in his urethra. Denies putting it up there and insists it just slithered on in. Previous history of foreign objects in the urethra, admitted to a straw that he removed himself. This was done while he was passed out at a party.”

“Sure it was. Just like the snake slithered right in. NPO?”

“Yes, for…” I turned my wrist, looking at my watch. “the last eight hours.”

“Great, I’ll be down to see him and take him to the OR,” Dr. Hanra said with a heavy sigh.

“Thanks, I appreciate it.”

Shaking my head, I hung up the phone. Looking up, my heart stopped beating for a moment. The man walking through the emergency room area was stunning.

My heart started again but the way it started pending, I was afraid it would burst right through my chest. His dark hair was longer on top and when he tossed his head back, it all seemed to be in slow motion.

He turned his head, his gaze meeting mine, as his vibrant green eyes pierced right into me. Warm desire swept through me even as I wanted to run and hide from his daunting aura. Glancing away, I couldn’t hold his eyes any longer.

Leather and tattoos completed his intimidating aura. He was tall, muscular and wore the leather cut of Twisted Carnage MC. His right hand was cradled against him as the triage nurse led him into curtain one and I groaned.

Of course, he was in my area.

“Dr. Remmy,” Linley said for the third time before I heard her. Following my gaze, she turned back with a grin. “Is this your first sighting of the MC boys?”

Shaking my head, I found it difficult to form words. It wasn't my first sighting but the others had been no where near this mans level of hot sex appeal.

“They sure are some fine male specimens and from what I hear, they will knock your socks right off, if you know what I mean.” Linley bumped her shoulder into mine. “Looks like we’re the lucky ones tonight, I’ll get started.”

Linley wandered off, towards where the mystery man had disappeared and I couldn't tear my gaze away. She pulled back the curtain, and his gaze locked onto mine - instant and unblinking - like a hand closing around my throat.

Those green eyes didn’t just look at me; they claimed my attention, stripped me bare, and held me there heat curling low in my belly as if he’d reached inside me and flipped a switch I didn’t know existed.