Chapter 714: Chapter 714: Bugs

Leo Denton led Evelyn Ford to the bonfire. Three young men were sitting on wooden stools, biting down on cloth gags with expressions of extreme pain. Several others were holding them down, preventing them from scratching the bug bites on their legs.

"Everyone else, disperse and go eat. Don’t crowd around here." After dismissing the crowd, Evelyn Ford knelt down to examine the three men’s wounds.

The bitten calves were already swollen as thick as an elephant’s leg. The wound itself was tiny, but the skin around it had turned a bruised, purplish-black, even showing signs of necrosis.

"Did the worms burrow into the flesh?"

"Yes. As soon as I found it, I tried to pull it off, but it burrowed in too quickly. After it got inside, my leg swelled up. It’s so itchy and painful, I can’t take it anymore! Captain, please, just cut my leg off! It hurts too much! I can’t stand it!"

"How big are the worms? I need a clear description before I can deal with them."

Another soldier spoke up, enduring the pain. "They’re very thin and red, a little thicker than a strand of hair, and about ten centimeters long."

’They’re so thin and small... extraction will be difficult.’ They had also said the worms disappeared quickly after burrowing into the flesh, which meant they were highly mobile.

"Captain Denton, find us a tent. Ronan Kendrick, go get some oil lamps and flashlights. We need a brighter place to extract the worms. Here are some painkillers. Take two tablets each for now."

With everything arranged, Evelyn Ford had the others leave. Ronan Kendrick stayed behind to be her assistant. Once the oil lamps and flashlights were set up, Evelyn had the men lie down. After taking the painkillers, the three of them stopped wailing.

Pulling on a pair of gloves, Evelyn Ford picked up a scalpel and made a small incision at the wound site.

Fortunately, the worms hadn’t burrowed into any blood vessels or other critical areas. They had latched on tightly to the flesh about three inches below the wound. Evelyn gently clasped them with a pair of forceps and pulled them out.

"They look a lot like blood flukes, but I can’t be sure that’s what they are."

The painkillers contained a sedative, so the three men had already fallen asleep. Evelyn Ford and Ronan Kendrick chatted quietly as they continued extracting the worms.

Two hours later, all the worms had been removed from the men’s calves. After suturing and bandaging the wounds, Evelyn Ford’s forehead was beaded with sweat.

The two of them emerged from the tent to find Leo Denton and Flynn Hansen waiting outside. The others had gone back to the swamp to dig for Water Celery. Leo Denton was extremely worried about his three teammates, so Evelyn quickly updated him on their condition.

"The worms are out. The three of them will need to rest for a few days until their wounds heal before they can work again. This is my first time encountering these things, so I don’t know if they’re venomous or if there will be any side effects. You must have someone watch them tonight and tomorrow. Call me immediately if anything changes. Oh, and the swamp must be full of these worms. Have everyone wear rain boots and plastic gloves tomorrow morning when they go to work."

"Are they out of danger?"

"They’re out of immediate danger, yes, but we still need to observe them overnight."

Leo Denton breathed a sigh of relief. "That’s good to hear. Evelyn, Mr. Kendrick, thank you."

"It was nothing. You two haven’t eaten yet, have you? Go on and eat. There’s no need to worry about the three of them for now, but you absolutely must have someone watching them through the night and tomorrow."

"Okay, I’ll make the arrangements."

Exhausted from the long day and having just performed a minor surgery, Evelyn Ford’s whole body ached, especially her wrists. It had been a long time since she had held a scalpel. ’Thankfully, my suturing technique was still as clean and efficient as ever.’

Gavin Gable and the others had reheated the leftovers. Evelyn Ford was so hungry she could have eaten a horse. After wolfing down her dinner, she went back to the tent to check on the three men again. Seeing they weren’t running a fever, she finally felt at ease.

Quincy and the others had already set up their tents right next to Evelyn Ford and Ronan Kendrick’s. Although it was lively outside, washing up was a hassle. Evelyn couldn’t understand why they’d want to come out here and suffer. Once inside her tent, she slipped into her space.

"Wendy, I have a job for you."

Wendy’s eyes lit up. "What kind of job?"

"Analyze these little worms. See if they’re pathogenic, or if they carry any germs or sources of infection."

Wendy was instantly re-energized. "Okay, I’ll get on it right now."

Evelyn Ford wasn’t in a hurry to leave. She took a shower in the bathroom. Ronan Kendrick had also returned, so while he was washing up, she chatted with Wyatt Vaughn and Joelle Finch in the living room and played a game of Gomoku with Zoe.

Because the three men’s condition was still unknown, she and Ronan would have to stay outside tonight. Wyatt Vaughn asked Evelyn to bring a jacket to Quincy, and Joelle Finch brought over a pair of shoes for her to take to Miles Vaughn.

Evelyn Ford was exasperated. ’It’s not like they’re going on a long trip. Why do they need so much stuff?’ "Poor Ethan Dawson and Peter Owens, and Liam Sterling and Ryan Rowe. No one’s thinking about them."

Taylor Vance suddenly sighed. "I wonder if they’ll ever find wives. Especially Ethan, he’s not young anymore. Sigh... when we get back to the base, I’ll have to find some candidates for him."

"I remember them saying they planned to be bachelors for life," said Wyatt Vaughn.

"But that’s too many bachelors in our family! These guys are capable, their character is solid, and they’re handsome. How come no one wants them?" Taylor Vance really couldn’t figure it out. Still, he was worried about them being cold outside, so he went to his room to pack some clothes for them.

Zoe looked up at Evelyn Ford. "Auntie, what’s a bachelor?"

"A bachelor is an old man nobody wants," Taylor Vance’s voice called out from the room. Everyone couldn’t help but laugh at that. Zoe tilted her head, thinking.

"Mr. Dawson and Uncle Peter Owens are so pitiful."

"Yeah, so pitiful," Annie, who was reading nearby, chimed in, nodding in agreement.

"Annie, you don’t have anyone either! You’re pitiful too!"

Annie was speechless. ’I’m still just a kid, okay?’

Taylor Vance came out with a huge bag packed with clothes and shoes for all of them. Seeing the giant bundle, Evelyn Ford was in utter disbelief.

"Mr. Vance, we don’t need to take this much, do we?"

"Take it. These guys are all slobs, and they can’t do laundry outside. Tell them to change their clothes more often. If they start to stink, they’ll really have no chance of finding anyone."

"HAHAHA..." Zoe grinned and burst out laughing. "My dad stinks too! His feet are the stinkiest!"

Taylor Vance wholeheartedly agreed. "Zoe, you have to make sure your dad washes his feet. Otherwise, you can smell them from a mile away."

"My mom says my dad is a stinky man. If he doesn’t wash his feet, she won’t let him sleep," Zoe blurted out unexpectedly. Everyone’s eyes shot to Wyatt Vaughn, whose face turned beet red. He scooped up Zoe and made a run for it.

"My dear daughter, why do you tell everyone everything?"

Zoe was puzzled. "Am I not supposed to say that?"

Wyatt Vaughn was speechless...

"HAHAHA..." Watching Wyatt Vaughn’s mortified retreat, Evelyn Ford and Joelle Finch both burst out laughing.

When Ronan Kendrick came out from washing up, the two of them grabbed the various bags for the "stinky men" outside and slipped out of the space.

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