A bullet struck her wrist dead-on, sending waves of pain radiating up her arm.
Sweat beaded across her forehead, but she forced a steady voice. "I'm fine," she insisted.
Niki's eyes brimmed with tears, her panic threatening to spill over.
Their teacher caught sight of Danielle's bleeding wrist and blanched. "This is far worse than what happened to Rafferty's new mom! Why didn't you say something sooner? You need to get to the hospital right away."
Blood streamed from Danielle's hand, stark and alarming—a sight impossible to ignore.
With her injury, she couldn't drive. Her only option was to call for a cab.
Niki, terrified, clung to her, crying and wringing her hands in worry. "Call an ambulance, Mom… does it hurt?"
"Danielle!"
Gian's voice echoed from the entrance.
After receiving Danielle's request for leave, Gian had grown uneasy and decided to follow her. He hadn't expected to walk into such a scene.
"What happened to your hand? This is serious." His brow furrowed in concern. "I'll drive you to the hospital. You don't want that getting infected."
He was relieved he'd come after her. Danielle was dedicated to a fault; she would never leave work early unless something was truly wrong. The urgency of her message had unsettled him, and now he understood why.
—
In the ER, a doctor hurriedly cleaned and dressed Danielle's wound. The pain was sharp and unrelenting, draining the color from her face.
Niki stood by her side, torn between fear of the blood and the desire to comfort her mother. "Don't be scared, Mom," she whispered.
Gian gently pulled Niki closer, shielding her from the sight. "Hey, kiddo, don't look."
Once the doctor finished, he offered a warning. "We should give you a tetanus shot—just to be safe. That cut came dangerously close to a major artery. Please be more careful when kids are playing; this could have ended terribly."
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