"MAXIMILIAN!"
Catherine's scream tore through the construction site with such raw anguish that everyone froze for a fraction of a second.
Maximilian's knees gave way completely.
Catherine caught him.
Or rather, she tried to.
He was too heavy, his body already losing the strength that had held it upright only moments ago. They collapsed together onto the dirt, Catherine desperately trying to keep him in her arms as though sheer force of will could keep him with her.
"Maximilian! Talk to me! Look at me!"
She cupped his face between trembling hands.
Blood.
There was blood.
It was everywhere.
Blood trickled from his ears. More seeped from his nose. When he coughed, crimson stained his lips.
Catherine knew what that meant.
God, she knew.
She had spent years studying the human body. She had seen trauma patients. She had read countless papers and case studies. She recognized the signs immediately.
Brain swelling.
Internal injuries.
Severe trauma.
Her vision blurred.
