Before Katie could fully step away toward the safety of the triage rooms, the elephant moved its massive head. It extended its powerful trunk once more, but this time, it didn’t offer a creature. Instead, it gently but firmly pressed the side of its trunk against Katie’s shoulder, physically nudging her toward the shattered glass exit doors. Katie stumbled back a step, startled by the immense pressure. She tried to turn around, but the giant shifted its massive weight, blocking the inner hospital corridors completely.
The hospital lobby was the only part of the facility with a two-story ceiling tall enough to accommodate a fully grown elephant; it literally couldn’t fit anywhere else in the building. Katie couldn’t escape into the back rooms or contain the animal. She had to handle the crisis right here. The elephant nudged her again, more insistently this time, pointing its trunk directly toward the dark shadows of the forest line just beyond the parking lot.