Chapter 4 - The Medical Miracle
A deafening blast echoed through the narrow alley as a spray of deadly buckshot shattered the back window of the SUV.
I screamed loudly as sharp glass rained down completely over my trembling, freezing body.
The skilled driver slammed his foot heavily on the gas pedal, tearing out of the residential neighborhood at an incredible, reckless speed.
Judge Vance shielded my face with his own thick coat, ensuring I was not blinded by the flying debris.
"Administer the chemical counteragent right now before her heart stops!" Vance yelled to the paramedic sitting beside me.
The medic quickly tied a rubber tourniquet around my good arm and injected a clear, burning liquid directly into my vein.
A sudden, sharp rush of massive adrenaline flooded my entire system, violently fighting back the heavy sedative my mother had given me.
My vision slowly cleared, but the agonizing pain in my broken right hand returned with a brutal, unforgiving vengeance.
"You have exactly two hours until the scholarship performance officially begins," Vance told me with a grim, serious expression.
I looked down at my swollen, severely purple fingers and let out a hopeless, defeated sob that shook my chest.
"I cannot play a single musical note with this ruined hand, the fragile bones are completely shattered," I cried softly.
The medic carefully examined my injury and pulled a highly advanced, mechanical carbon-fiber brace from a sterile metal case.
He explained it was a highly experimental medical splint designed specifically for severe combat trauma patients.
"It will forcefully align your broken bones and chemically numb the damaged nerve endings for exactly thirty minutes," the medic stated.
He warned me that using it to passionately play the piano would cause excruciating, blinding pain once the numbing agents completely wore off.
"It might even cause permanent, irreversible damage to your joints if you push yourself too hard," the medic added very seriously.
I thought about the six agonizing years of endless practice and the loving memory of Grandma Louise who always believed in me.
"Put the brace on my hand right now," I commanded the medic without a single second of hesitation.
The medic nodded respectfully and began tightening the rigid carbon-fiber straps securely across my swollen knuckles.
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Suddenly, Judge Vance's secure phone buzzed with an incredibly urgent message from the conservatory's private security team.
"We have a massive problem, Emily, because your violent family just arrived at the concert hall before us."
