The Fire
Talks
Chapter Seven
by GCS and Hotshow
Johnny and Roy stopped by the market on the way back to the station to pick up the things Mike needed to complete their meal. They also decided, or rather Johnny decided, that they needed some vanilla ice cream and chocolate syrup for desert. Arriving back at the station the two friends entered the day room with their grocery bags. Just as Johnny sat the bags on the table he could hear a quiet meow coming from the area by the couch. Looking over he saw Chet grinning like a Cheshire cat.
"Seen any kittens Gage?" Chet bowled over with laughter. Johnny shot an angry look at him. "What's a matter Gage cat got your tongue?" Giggles could be heard around the room.
"Go play on the freeway Chet." Johnny spun on his heel and left the room. His arm was beginning to hurt from the long deep cat scratch. It hadn't needed stitches according to Roy, but it sure hurt. Johnny would never let on to his friends that a little cat scratch was making him feel bad, so he went to his locker in search of some aspirin. As he crossed the vehicle bay the tones went off. He redirected his walk and slid up next to the squad passenger door. Smiling over the top of the squad at his partner as they both climbed into the vehicle.
"Heart attack," Roy told him as he handed him the call slip.
"Yeah," Johnny met eyes with Roy. This call could go either way. It could be a false alarm like heart burn, or it could be a full blown attack. "Take a left." Roy was accustomed to following Johnny's directions without question. The engine followed behind. If he had been giving directions Roy would have turned right, but Johnny obviously knew a short cut that would get them there faster. Mike also knew that Johnny would shave as much time off of the drive as he could. He too followed Johnny's lead without question. The two emergency vehicles were on the scene in a matter of minutes. Roy smiled over at Mike as they both realized if they had taken the normal route they would have been at least another five minutes before arriving. Five minutes to a heart attack victim could mean life or death. Grabbing the gear from the squad the group of firemen approached the home.
"Help he's in here," a woman yelled from the front door. "He's not breathing."
Johnny and Roy sprinted to the house and ducked quickly inside. Johnny checked for a pulse and when he didn't get one dropped to his knees and began CPR. Roy quickly set up the bio-phone to get permission for an airway and medication. Mike set up the oxygen to be ready to hook it to the airway. Marco was bagging the man as Johnny did chest compressions. Captain Stanley radioed dispatch to get the ETA on the ambulance. Chet was setting up the drug box. Roy looked over at Chet. "Can you relay for me?"
"Sure," Chet said as he reached for the bio-phone receiver. These men worked well together. They had handled enough heart attack calls to know exactly what was needed. "Rampart stand by for vital signs. Mike had finished getting the oxygen ready and was working on getting a blood pressure reading. Johnny and Roy had taught their crewmates a lot about basic rescue work over the time they had been together at Station 51. The engine crew made excellent assistants to the paramedics.
Johnny was sweating by the time Roy had the airway in and IVs started. His arms were hurting especially the one with the cat scratch. Looking down at the bandage Roy had put on it earlier Johnny could see that it had begun oozing blood. He could see the red through the gauze. Captain Stanley also saw Johnny's arm, but at the moment it could not be helped. Roy got permission to shock the patient after administering the necessary medication through the IV port. "1,2,3 400 watts seconds, Clear!" He shocked the man. Nothing. "Again," Roy pressed the recharge button. "1,2,3 Clear!" The man's body jerked off the floor and a bleep could be seen on the screen. "We have him back."
Johnny wanted nothing more than to sit back and rest a minute, but in a rescue like this there was not time for that. Both paramedics knew that the renewed heart beat could disappear at any time. They had to move fast to get their patient to Rampart. Loading him on the gurney the crew got the patient and all the gear loaded in the ambulance and squad. Johnny climbed in with the patient. Roy would follow in the squad.
Half way to the hospital the patient crashed again. "Pull over!" Johnny yelled to the driver. "We need to shock him again." Johnny worked frantically doing chest compressions again as Roy climbed into the ambulance to assist. After another few minutes and two more shocks the patient once again had a pulse. It was weak, but it was there.
Johnny's arms ached and his head hurt from the exertion, but they had successfully gotten their patient back and for that the tiredness he felt was more than worth it. They delivered the man to Rampart and slowly made their way back to the squad. "I think he'll be all right."
"Yeah I think he will. That was close." Roy said patting Johnny's back. Just then Roy noticed Johnny's arm had been bleeding again. "We better let one of the Doc's clean up your arm."
Johnny smiled at his friend. "I'll do it while you drive us back to the barn partner." Johnny opened the compartment door and got out some gauze and antibiotic cream to redress the cat scratch.
Roy had already seen the extent of the injury and wasn't too worried about it at the time.
Just as the squad turned to back into the station the tones once again sounded, this time to a pile up on the 405. All together there were two cars and a pick-up truck. "I'll get the truck," Johnny told Roy.
"Okay Johnny I'll take the first car and have Cap check the other one."
Johnny was already beside the truck by the time Roy had asked Captain Stanley to check the third vehicle as he ran over to the other one. Reaching into the driver's side window Johnny felt for a pulse. He smiled as he found one. "Hey can you hear me?" He asked the young man in the driver's seat.
"Unnn, wha….what happened?" The man asked.
"You're going to be okay. You were in an accident. I'm going to get you out of here. Don't try to do anything. Let me do all the work okay?" Johnny talked to the man as he felt his arms, legs, neck and back for injuries. "Cap I need the jaws over here. He's stuck under the dash."
"Kelly, Lopez help John," Captain Stanley instructed. His car had a female occupant that had no serious injury. Captain Stanley was helping her over to sit on the bumper to the squad. Mike was helping him.
Chet grabbed the jaws and together he and Marco helped Johnny extract the man. Captain Stanley went over to help Roy. Fortunately Roy's victim only had minor injuries as well. Roy came over to see if Johnny needed any assistance. The man in the truck had a laceration on his forehead where he had impacted the steering wheel and a broken ankle. Johnny's bandaged arm was now covered in the victim's blood as was his shirt, but he had managed to get the bleeding stopped. Roy splinted the ankle. The paramedics were again on their way to Rampart with victims. Roy was in one ambulance with the two patients from the other vehicles while Johnny rode with the truck driver. Marco followed in the squad. By now it was late evening and the crew from 51's A-shift had not had dinner. They were tired and hungry.
In about an hour Mike put dinner on the table. He called to Chet and Captain Stanley just as the squad backed into the bay and Roy and Marco joined them at the table. Johnny went for a quick shower to clean up after the last run. He peeled the gauze from his arm and stepped into the shower. His arm hurt. Looking at it Johnny could see that it was red and puffy. "Great. All I need is for this cat scratch to get infected." He said to himself in the shower. He quickly dressed and towel dried his hair. He grabbed some fresh gauze and rewrapped his arm before Chet could see how red it had gotten. Johnny was tired from the last two runs. He didn't want to hear Chet's comments about 'cat scratch fever' that Johnny knew he would make. That disease affected children and Johnny knew that , but he also knew that Chet would taunt him with that comment for hours if he knew the scratch was bothering Johnny. He came into the kitchen just as Roy finished fixing him a plate.
"I thought you might be hungry," Roy smiled at him.
"Thanks Pally."
After a hearty dinner of fried chicken and vanilla sundaes for dessert the crew settled around the dayroom to relax. Johnny excused himself and went to lie down on his bunk. Roy glanced over the top of his copy of "The Fire Talks" and looked at his partner with a look of concern. Deciding that Johnny was probably just tired he went back to reading. A couple of hours went by and the rest of the crew joined Johnny in the dorm. Roy checked on his partner before getting into his own bunk. Johnny had his arm over his eyes and appeared to be in a deep restful sleep. The guys didn't get much sleep that night. At around four am they were called to a four alarm fire at an all night bowling alley. Johnny and Roy were in and out of the structure several times with victims. No one suffered anything more than smoke inhalation, but each of the two paramedics had carried out several victims. The paramedics made several trips to Rampart as did two other guys from Station 16. The fire was finally out and clean up completed just in time for shift change. The engine crew had already returned to the station and everyone except Captain Stanley had left when Roy backed the squad into the bay.
Roy looked over at Johnny asleep in the passenger seat and laid his head on his arms draped across the steering wheel. "Come on Junior. Let's get out of here." Johnny didn't make a move. "Hey," Roy reached over and gently shook his partner. "Wake up Johnny."
"Huh?"
"We're back at the station. It's time to go home."
"Okay Roy, I'll get up in a minute." Johnny never opened his eyes and his head never moved from against the passenger side window.
"No Johnny we have to give the squad to the next shift. You have to get out now." Roy nudged him again. Johnny turned his head toward Roy and cracked one eye open. He slowly came to awareness and nodded his head. The two men slowly got out of the squad. Captain Stanley came out of the office with a cup of coffee.
"You guys okay?"
"Yeah Cap, just a little tired." Roy said as he passed his commander. Johnny waved.
Suddenly as he approached the rear of the squad Johnny slid down and planted himself on the bumper, "Oh man."
"What's wrong Johnny?" Roy asked as he moved quickly up beside his partner.
Captain Stanley came around the back of the vehicle. "Roy, John?"
"I don't have any water at my place," Johnny lowered his head into his hands.
Relief spread across Roy and Hank's faces, "Well Johnny you can come to my place this morning. Joanne will fix us breakfast and…"
"No Roy too tired." Johnny said shaking his head still planted in his hands. "I'll shower here, now." He slowly got up and walked toward the locker room.
"Don't worry about him Roy. I'll see that he gets home," Captain Stanley patted his senior paramedic on the back and pushed him toward the locker room. "Go on home and get some rest."
"Okay Cap."
Johnny was finished in the shower in no time and came out to find Hank waiting for him on the bench with a cup of fresh coffee. "Come on son I'll drive you home. You can come back for the Rover later. I'll come get you or you can call Roy after you've had some sleep."
"I'm okay Cap. I can drive." Johnny stumbled a little as he went to his locker.
"No John you're not. You're exhausted and I'm driving you home."
"O…Okay Cap." Johnny quickly put on his street clothes and the two friends went out to Hank's waiting car.
Arriving at Johnny's apartment Hank had to wake the sleeping man. "Come on John let's get you upstairs." Johnny climbed slowly out of the car and had to hold onto the side to stand up. Hank took him by the arm and helped him up to his apartment. Johnny pulled his keys from his pocket and handed them to his Captain. Hank made short work of opening the door and steering Johnny inside. Johnny immediately laid down on the sofa pulling the blanket from the back haphazardly over his long legs in a wad. Hank smiled at the young man and grabbed the blanket shaking it out and covering the already asleep man with it. He glanced around the room. The apartment was sparsely decorated. In the corner there was a cardboard box. On top of the box was a copy of "The Fire Talks", the novel everyone had been reading. On the coffee table there was a newspaper that was open to the story that had been in the paper the morning before their last shift had started about the novel rising to the top of the best seller list. Hank smiled and shook his head. "You're more interested in that novel than you led us to believe John." Hank turned to leave the apartment. He stopped to take Johnny's sneakers off placing them on the floor beside the couch and left making sure the apartment door was securely locked.
"Seen any kittens Gage?" Chet bowled over with laughter. Johnny shot an angry look at him. "What's a matter Gage cat got your tongue?" Giggles could be heard around the room.
"Go play on the freeway Chet." Johnny spun on his heel and left the room. His arm was beginning to hurt from the long deep cat scratch. It hadn't needed stitches according to Roy, but it sure hurt. Johnny would never let on to his friends that a little cat scratch was making him feel bad, so he went to his locker in search of some aspirin. As he crossed the vehicle bay the tones went off. He redirected his walk and slid up next to the squad passenger door. Smiling over the top of the squad at his partner as they both climbed into the vehicle.
"Heart attack," Roy told him as he handed him the call slip.
"Yeah," Johnny met eyes with Roy. This call could go either way. It could be a false alarm like heart burn, or it could be a full blown attack. "Take a left." Roy was accustomed to following Johnny's directions without question. The engine followed behind. If he had been giving directions Roy would have turned right, but Johnny obviously knew a short cut that would get them there faster. Mike also knew that Johnny would shave as much time off of the drive as he could. He too followed Johnny's lead without question. The two emergency vehicles were on the scene in a matter of minutes. Roy smiled over at Mike as they both realized if they had taken the normal route they would have been at least another five minutes before arriving. Five minutes to a heart attack victim could mean life or death. Grabbing the gear from the squad the group of firemen approached the home.
"Help he's in here," a woman yelled from the front door. "He's not breathing."
Johnny and Roy sprinted to the house and ducked quickly inside. Johnny checked for a pulse and when he didn't get one dropped to his knees and began CPR. Roy quickly set up the bio-phone to get permission for an airway and medication. Mike set up the oxygen to be ready to hook it to the airway. Marco was bagging the man as Johnny did chest compressions. Captain Stanley radioed dispatch to get the ETA on the ambulance. Chet was setting up the drug box. Roy looked over at Chet. "Can you relay for me?"
"Sure," Chet said as he reached for the bio-phone receiver. These men worked well together. They had handled enough heart attack calls to know exactly what was needed. "Rampart stand by for vital signs. Mike had finished getting the oxygen ready and was working on getting a blood pressure reading. Johnny and Roy had taught their crewmates a lot about basic rescue work over the time they had been together at Station 51. The engine crew made excellent assistants to the paramedics.
Johnny was sweating by the time Roy had the airway in and IVs started. His arms were hurting especially the one with the cat scratch. Looking down at the bandage Roy had put on it earlier Johnny could see that it had begun oozing blood. He could see the red through the gauze. Captain Stanley also saw Johnny's arm, but at the moment it could not be helped. Roy got permission to shock the patient after administering the necessary medication through the IV port. "1,2,3 400 watts seconds, Clear!" He shocked the man. Nothing. "Again," Roy pressed the recharge button. "1,2,3 Clear!" The man's body jerked off the floor and a bleep could be seen on the screen. "We have him back."
Johnny wanted nothing more than to sit back and rest a minute, but in a rescue like this there was not time for that. Both paramedics knew that the renewed heart beat could disappear at any time. They had to move fast to get their patient to Rampart. Loading him on the gurney the crew got the patient and all the gear loaded in the ambulance and squad. Johnny climbed in with the patient. Roy would follow in the squad.
Half way to the hospital the patient crashed again. "Pull over!" Johnny yelled to the driver. "We need to shock him again." Johnny worked frantically doing chest compressions again as Roy climbed into the ambulance to assist. After another few minutes and two more shocks the patient once again had a pulse. It was weak, but it was there.
Johnny's arms ached and his head hurt from the exertion, but they had successfully gotten their patient back and for that the tiredness he felt was more than worth it. They delivered the man to Rampart and slowly made their way back to the squad. "I think he'll be all right."
"Yeah I think he will. That was close." Roy said patting Johnny's back. Just then Roy noticed Johnny's arm had been bleeding again. "We better let one of the Doc's clean up your arm."
Johnny smiled at his friend. "I'll do it while you drive us back to the barn partner." Johnny opened the compartment door and got out some gauze and antibiotic cream to redress the cat scratch.
Roy had already seen the extent of the injury and wasn't too worried about it at the time.
Just as the squad turned to back into the station the tones once again sounded, this time to a pile up on the 405. All together there were two cars and a pick-up truck. "I'll get the truck," Johnny told Roy.
"Okay Johnny I'll take the first car and have Cap check the other one."
Johnny was already beside the truck by the time Roy had asked Captain Stanley to check the third vehicle as he ran over to the other one. Reaching into the driver's side window Johnny felt for a pulse. He smiled as he found one. "Hey can you hear me?" He asked the young man in the driver's seat.
"Unnn, wha….what happened?" The man asked.
"You're going to be okay. You were in an accident. I'm going to get you out of here. Don't try to do anything. Let me do all the work okay?" Johnny talked to the man as he felt his arms, legs, neck and back for injuries. "Cap I need the jaws over here. He's stuck under the dash."
"Kelly, Lopez help John," Captain Stanley instructed. His car had a female occupant that had no serious injury. Captain Stanley was helping her over to sit on the bumper to the squad. Mike was helping him.
Chet grabbed the jaws and together he and Marco helped Johnny extract the man. Captain Stanley went over to help Roy. Fortunately Roy's victim only had minor injuries as well. Roy came over to see if Johnny needed any assistance. The man in the truck had a laceration on his forehead where he had impacted the steering wheel and a broken ankle. Johnny's bandaged arm was now covered in the victim's blood as was his shirt, but he had managed to get the bleeding stopped. Roy splinted the ankle. The paramedics were again on their way to Rampart with victims. Roy was in one ambulance with the two patients from the other vehicles while Johnny rode with the truck driver. Marco followed in the squad. By now it was late evening and the crew from 51's A-shift had not had dinner. They were tired and hungry.
In about an hour Mike put dinner on the table. He called to Chet and Captain Stanley just as the squad backed into the bay and Roy and Marco joined them at the table. Johnny went for a quick shower to clean up after the last run. He peeled the gauze from his arm and stepped into the shower. His arm hurt. Looking at it Johnny could see that it was red and puffy. "Great. All I need is for this cat scratch to get infected." He said to himself in the shower. He quickly dressed and towel dried his hair. He grabbed some fresh gauze and rewrapped his arm before Chet could see how red it had gotten. Johnny was tired from the last two runs. He didn't want to hear Chet's comments about 'cat scratch fever' that Johnny knew he would make. That disease affected children and Johnny knew that , but he also knew that Chet would taunt him with that comment for hours if he knew the scratch was bothering Johnny. He came into the kitchen just as Roy finished fixing him a plate.
"I thought you might be hungry," Roy smiled at him.
"Thanks Pally."
After a hearty dinner of fried chicken and vanilla sundaes for dessert the crew settled around the dayroom to relax. Johnny excused himself and went to lie down on his bunk. Roy glanced over the top of his copy of "The Fire Talks" and looked at his partner with a look of concern. Deciding that Johnny was probably just tired he went back to reading. A couple of hours went by and the rest of the crew joined Johnny in the dorm. Roy checked on his partner before getting into his own bunk. Johnny had his arm over his eyes and appeared to be in a deep restful sleep. The guys didn't get much sleep that night. At around four am they were called to a four alarm fire at an all night bowling alley. Johnny and Roy were in and out of the structure several times with victims. No one suffered anything more than smoke inhalation, but each of the two paramedics had carried out several victims. The paramedics made several trips to Rampart as did two other guys from Station 16. The fire was finally out and clean up completed just in time for shift change. The engine crew had already returned to the station and everyone except Captain Stanley had left when Roy backed the squad into the bay.
Roy looked over at Johnny asleep in the passenger seat and laid his head on his arms draped across the steering wheel. "Come on Junior. Let's get out of here." Johnny didn't make a move. "Hey," Roy reached over and gently shook his partner. "Wake up Johnny."
"Huh?"
"We're back at the station. It's time to go home."
"Okay Roy, I'll get up in a minute." Johnny never opened his eyes and his head never moved from against the passenger side window.
"No Johnny we have to give the squad to the next shift. You have to get out now." Roy nudged him again. Johnny turned his head toward Roy and cracked one eye open. He slowly came to awareness and nodded his head. The two men slowly got out of the squad. Captain Stanley came out of the office with a cup of coffee.
"You guys okay?"
"Yeah Cap, just a little tired." Roy said as he passed his commander. Johnny waved.
Suddenly as he approached the rear of the squad Johnny slid down and planted himself on the bumper, "Oh man."
"What's wrong Johnny?" Roy asked as he moved quickly up beside his partner.
Captain Stanley came around the back of the vehicle. "Roy, John?"
"I don't have any water at my place," Johnny lowered his head into his hands.
Relief spread across Roy and Hank's faces, "Well Johnny you can come to my place this morning. Joanne will fix us breakfast and…"
"No Roy too tired." Johnny said shaking his head still planted in his hands. "I'll shower here, now." He slowly got up and walked toward the locker room.
"Don't worry about him Roy. I'll see that he gets home," Captain Stanley patted his senior paramedic on the back and pushed him toward the locker room. "Go on home and get some rest."
"Okay Cap."
Johnny was finished in the shower in no time and came out to find Hank waiting for him on the bench with a cup of fresh coffee. "Come on son I'll drive you home. You can come back for the Rover later. I'll come get you or you can call Roy after you've had some sleep."
"I'm okay Cap. I can drive." Johnny stumbled a little as he went to his locker.
"No John you're not. You're exhausted and I'm driving you home."
"O…Okay Cap." Johnny quickly put on his street clothes and the two friends went out to Hank's waiting car.
Arriving at Johnny's apartment Hank had to wake the sleeping man. "Come on John let's get you upstairs." Johnny climbed slowly out of the car and had to hold onto the side to stand up. Hank took him by the arm and helped him up to his apartment. Johnny pulled his keys from his pocket and handed them to his Captain. Hank made short work of opening the door and steering Johnny inside. Johnny immediately laid down on the sofa pulling the blanket from the back haphazardly over his long legs in a wad. Hank smiled at the young man and grabbed the blanket shaking it out and covering the already asleep man with it. He glanced around the room. The apartment was sparsely decorated. In the corner there was a cardboard box. On top of the box was a copy of "The Fire Talks", the novel everyone had been reading. On the coffee table there was a newspaper that was open to the story that had been in the paper the morning before their last shift had started about the novel rising to the top of the best seller list. Hank smiled and shook his head. "You're more interested in that novel than you led us to believe John." Hank turned to leave the apartment. He stopped to take Johnny's sneakers off placing them on the floor beside the couch and left making sure the apartment door was securely locked.
Chapter Eight
When Johnny finally awoke it was nearly 6 pm. He felt stiff and achy. Thinking it was from sleeping too long and on the sofa he ignored his discomfort. He slowly sat up on the sofa rubbing his eyes. Then he heard the offending noise that had woke him up in the first place. Someone was banging on his apartment door. "Come on Gage we know you're in there," Chet Kelly yelled through the closed door. Johnny got up from his seat, rolling his head from side to side trying to work out the kink in his neck as he slowly made his way to the door. He opened the door while gripped in a giant yawn to find Chet and Marco in the hall. Chet and Marco took in their friend's haggard appearance and pushed their way into the room. "Geesh Gage you look awful," Chet teased the groggy man.
"Johnny are you all right?" Marco asked in concern for his friend's well being.
"Yeah, I just woke up. What time is it?" Johnny asked rubbing his hands on his face trying to shake off the sleepy feeling that still tried to claim him.
"Its 5:45 Gage. Cap asked us to bring your car over. He said he's been trying to call you for a couple of hours, but you didn't answer," Chet handed Johnny his keys as he spoke.
"Oh, um, Thanks guys. Can I get you anything to drink? I uh I could make some coffee. I think I could use some myself," he said yawning again.
"No amigo, we are on our way to meet the twins," Marco smiled broadly and Johnny knew that Marco was looking forward to their date with the twins they had been seeing for the past few weeks.
"Okay well thanks again for bringing me the Rover. I guess I'll see you guys next shift."
Chet and Marco made a speedy exit. Obviously they were both looking forward to their evening. Johnny was gripped by another big yawn and decided to grab a bite to eat and relax. He really felt stiff and tired. Then he remembered that the water was supposed to be off at his apartment that day and he might not be able to make coffee after all. Hoping that the water might be back on he went to the kitchen to find out. Five minutes later he was slipping on his sneakers preparing to go out to the diner down the street for some coffee and dinner. The water was still not working.
Arriving at the diner Johnny took a booth in the back corner of the restaurant. He was not really up to talking to anyone and hoped that no one would see him. A pretty waitress came over as soon as he slid into the booth and asked him what he would like to drink. He ordered coffee, a cheese burger and fries. He also asked for milk with the food. The pretty waitress smiled at him and told him she would be back in a jiffy with the coffee. Johnny didn't even notice how pretty she was which to anyone that knew him would have been a tell tale sign as to how poorly he felt. Johnny laid his head down on his arms which were folded on the table top to wait for his coffee. He heard feet coming over to his table and looked up expecting to see the waitress with the much needed coffee only to see Officer Vince Howard towering over him. "John?"
Johnny smiled up at Vince and extended his hand to his friend. "Hey Vince, would you like to join me?"
Vince slid into the booth. "You look a little rough there John. Everything okay?"
"Sure Vince. We had a rough shift last night. I fell asleep on my sofa this morning and actually just woke up. The water is off at my apartment, and I haven't had any coffee yet." Johnny smiled and chuckled at the thought. "I could really use some." Just as he made that comment the waitress appeared with two cups of coffee.
"Thanks," Vince raised his cup in salute to the waitress for knowing he would like a cup as well. "Can I get a club sandwich and chips?" She smiled at Vince and turned to place his order with the cook.
"You come here often Vince? She seems to know you."
"It's one of the places I usually have dinner when I'm on patrol. The food is good and the owner is nice enough to take good care of the guys in uniform."
"Yeah, he's good to us firemen too." Johnny chuckled as he drained his first cup of coffee. The attentive waitress immediately came over and refilled it for him. "So have you been up to anything fun lately?"
"Nothing too exciting, but I have been reading that new book "The Fire Talks". Have you read it yet? It's really good."
"I've read some of it. Actually I've been too busy to get through much of it. I think every man in the department is reading it."
"Well I think most of the guys down at headquarters have a copy too. I think everyone here in LA can relate to it since most of the fires in it are based on actual events right here at home. Do you know who the author is?" Just as Vince asked that question the waitress showed up and began putting plates on the table.
"Man this looks great. I haven't eaten since last night. I'm starved." Johnny immediately took a huge bite out of his cheeseburger and followed it with a couple of French fries. His eyes were gleaming with appreciation of the food in front of him. Vince laughed at his friend and took a bite out of his own sandwich. After chewing for a minute Johnny smiled at Vince with a partially filled mouth, "This is great!"
The two friends ate together enjoying their food in total silence. Vince knew Johnny was starved and remembered that he had a tendency to talk with food in his mouth, so he decided not to continue their conversation until after they finished eating. They finished their sandwiches and ordered apple pie and more coffee. "Man Vince I sure am glad you joined me today. I hate to eat alone." Vince smiled at Johnny as he wiped apple pie crumbs from his mouth.
"Glad to do it Johnny. I enjoyed your company too. Well I guess I had better get back out there on the streets. I guess I'll see you out there in the field." He rose from his seat and reached for his wallet.
The waitress came up beside him, "No sir Vince, you know Mel won't take your money and neither will I." She patted him on the arm. "That goes for you too Fireman Gage and Mel said to give you this." She handed Johnny a large brown bag. He raised his eyebrow and looked up at her questioningly. "It's another piece of apple pie and coffee. Mel said he heard your water was still off across the street, and he knew you would be hungry later." She smiled and turned on her heels to attend to her other customers. Johnny chuckled to himself and waved at the burly cook peeking out from the kitchen window.
Vince patted Johnny on the back and laughed, "People do know you well Johnny."
Johnny smiled at Vince and shook his head, "Yeah I guess they do."
"Johnny are you all right?" Marco asked in concern for his friend's well being.
"Yeah, I just woke up. What time is it?" Johnny asked rubbing his hands on his face trying to shake off the sleepy feeling that still tried to claim him.
"Its 5:45 Gage. Cap asked us to bring your car over. He said he's been trying to call you for a couple of hours, but you didn't answer," Chet handed Johnny his keys as he spoke.
"Oh, um, Thanks guys. Can I get you anything to drink? I uh I could make some coffee. I think I could use some myself," he said yawning again.
"No amigo, we are on our way to meet the twins," Marco smiled broadly and Johnny knew that Marco was looking forward to their date with the twins they had been seeing for the past few weeks.
"Okay well thanks again for bringing me the Rover. I guess I'll see you guys next shift."
Chet and Marco made a speedy exit. Obviously they were both looking forward to their evening. Johnny was gripped by another big yawn and decided to grab a bite to eat and relax. He really felt stiff and tired. Then he remembered that the water was supposed to be off at his apartment that day and he might not be able to make coffee after all. Hoping that the water might be back on he went to the kitchen to find out. Five minutes later he was slipping on his sneakers preparing to go out to the diner down the street for some coffee and dinner. The water was still not working.
Arriving at the diner Johnny took a booth in the back corner of the restaurant. He was not really up to talking to anyone and hoped that no one would see him. A pretty waitress came over as soon as he slid into the booth and asked him what he would like to drink. He ordered coffee, a cheese burger and fries. He also asked for milk with the food. The pretty waitress smiled at him and told him she would be back in a jiffy with the coffee. Johnny didn't even notice how pretty she was which to anyone that knew him would have been a tell tale sign as to how poorly he felt. Johnny laid his head down on his arms which were folded on the table top to wait for his coffee. He heard feet coming over to his table and looked up expecting to see the waitress with the much needed coffee only to see Officer Vince Howard towering over him. "John?"
Johnny smiled up at Vince and extended his hand to his friend. "Hey Vince, would you like to join me?"
Vince slid into the booth. "You look a little rough there John. Everything okay?"
"Sure Vince. We had a rough shift last night. I fell asleep on my sofa this morning and actually just woke up. The water is off at my apartment, and I haven't had any coffee yet." Johnny smiled and chuckled at the thought. "I could really use some." Just as he made that comment the waitress appeared with two cups of coffee.
"Thanks," Vince raised his cup in salute to the waitress for knowing he would like a cup as well. "Can I get a club sandwich and chips?" She smiled at Vince and turned to place his order with the cook.
"You come here often Vince? She seems to know you."
"It's one of the places I usually have dinner when I'm on patrol. The food is good and the owner is nice enough to take good care of the guys in uniform."
"Yeah, he's good to us firemen too." Johnny chuckled as he drained his first cup of coffee. The attentive waitress immediately came over and refilled it for him. "So have you been up to anything fun lately?"
"Nothing too exciting, but I have been reading that new book "The Fire Talks". Have you read it yet? It's really good."
"I've read some of it. Actually I've been too busy to get through much of it. I think every man in the department is reading it."
"Well I think most of the guys down at headquarters have a copy too. I think everyone here in LA can relate to it since most of the fires in it are based on actual events right here at home. Do you know who the author is?" Just as Vince asked that question the waitress showed up and began putting plates on the table.
"Man this looks great. I haven't eaten since last night. I'm starved." Johnny immediately took a huge bite out of his cheeseburger and followed it with a couple of French fries. His eyes were gleaming with appreciation of the food in front of him. Vince laughed at his friend and took a bite out of his own sandwich. After chewing for a minute Johnny smiled at Vince with a partially filled mouth, "This is great!"
The two friends ate together enjoying their food in total silence. Vince knew Johnny was starved and remembered that he had a tendency to talk with food in his mouth, so he decided not to continue their conversation until after they finished eating. They finished their sandwiches and ordered apple pie and more coffee. "Man Vince I sure am glad you joined me today. I hate to eat alone." Vince smiled at Johnny as he wiped apple pie crumbs from his mouth.
"Glad to do it Johnny. I enjoyed your company too. Well I guess I had better get back out there on the streets. I guess I'll see you out there in the field." He rose from his seat and reached for his wallet.
The waitress came up beside him, "No sir Vince, you know Mel won't take your money and neither will I." She patted him on the arm. "That goes for you too Fireman Gage and Mel said to give you this." She handed Johnny a large brown bag. He raised his eyebrow and looked up at her questioningly. "It's another piece of apple pie and coffee. Mel said he heard your water was still off across the street, and he knew you would be hungry later." She smiled and turned on her heels to attend to her other customers. Johnny chuckled to himself and waved at the burly cook peeking out from the kitchen window.
Vince patted Johnny on the back and laughed, "People do know you well Johnny."
Johnny smiled at Vince and shook his head, "Yeah I guess they do."
Chapter Nine
Johnny headed back to his apartment with his goodie bag from the diner. He felt better after a good meal and coffee. Hopefully the water would be back on before tomorrow morning. The A-shift was back on shift, and he wanted to shower before going to work. As he approached his apartment he could hear the phone ringing inside. Fumbling for his door key and not managing to get the door open in time the ringing stopped. As he stepped inside Johnny could hear Roy leaving a message on his machine. Johnny thought it was just like his best friend to check on him on their day off. He took his snack into the kitchen and grabbed the phone on the wall to call Roy back. "Hey Pally I just got your message. I was on my way in and didn't get to the phone in time."
"Hey Johnny I was just going to make sure you had your water back on, and if not invite you to dinner."
"Oh thanks, but I just ate with Vince at the diner. The water's still off, but I'm doin' okay. I even got coffee and apple pie for later." Johnny smiled as he thought about his snack.
"Apple pie sounds good. Well the kids will be disappointed. Listen if you need anything or they don't get the water back on you know you are welcome to stay here tonight."
"Thanks Roy, but I'll be fine. See you at the station in the morning Pally."
"Do you need a ride?"
"No thanks, Chet and Marco brought the Rover over earlier today. I'm good. Goodnight Roy."
"Goodnight Junior."
After hanging up the phone Johnny realized he was still feeling a little stiff. Thinking he might just lounge around the apartment for the evening he turned on the TV to find something to watch and made himself comfortable in his recliner. In a few minutes he was sound asleep.
In the wee hours of the morning Johnny woke up to static on the TV. Glancing at his watch by holding it at an angle towards the snowy TV screen he could see that it was around 4 o'clock. He couldn't believe that he had fallen asleep and slept that long. Since he had to be up in a couple of hours Johnny decided to shower and get ready. Stopping by the kitchen to make coffee he was disappointed to find that the water was still not working. He remembered the coffee and pie from the diner and decided he would heat that up and head to the station early enough to shower there, but he would have to wait until after the current shift wake up tones had sounded. That gave him at least an hour to wait. It was cool outside, but Johnny decided to gather his things and take an early morning run at the nearby school track. He loved the way running made him feel and it helped to keep him in shape for his job.
Arriving at the station just after he knew the tones would have sounded Johnny stopped by the kitchen hoping they had coffee. "Morning, morning, morning."
"Wow Gage aren't you just a little early?" Charlie Dwyer looked up from his own coffee cup.
"Yeah Charlie, I was running at the track this morning and decided to just come here to shower."
"Running? Kind of early for you isn't it?" Charlie teased.
"Well I woke up at 4." Johnny didn't give any other explanation. He looked at the men sitting around the table and noticed that there were several copies of "The Fire Talks" in front of the men. "You guys reading that book too? What do you think about it?"
"I think everyone in the department is reading it John. It's really well written. The action scenes are vivid; the mystery of the arsonist is slowly unfolding, and really keeps you wanting to read more. Whoever wrote this definitely has a talent for writing. Has anyone figured out who the author is yet?" Captain Smith asked.
Johnny shrugged his shoulders as he sipped his coffee. "I ran into Vince yesterday, and he said most of the police department is reading it too." He turned to refill his coffee cup.
"You look a little rough Johnny? Are you feeling all right?" Charlie's paramedic eye kicked in.
"Yeah, I think I might be getting a cold or something."
"What's wrong with your arm?" Charlie asked seeing the gauze wrapped around Johnny's arm from the cat.
"Just a bad scratch from last shift, it's no big deal. You guys have a good day off. I'm going to get that shower." Johnny turned and left the kitchen with coffee in hand.
The rest of the A-shift had arrived while Johnny took a long hot shower. By the time he came out of the shower Roy had gotten him some more coffee and sat waiting on the bench beside their lockers. "Guess your water is still off."
"Yeah. I went for a run this morning. Showering here was easier anyway." Johnny toweled his hair while walking over to the bench. He reached for the coffee allowing Roy to see the reddened scratch on his arm.
"That cat scratch looks like it may be a little infected Johnny. You better let me put some antibiotic cream on it for you. It might be a good idea to let one of the doc's look at it when we're at Rampart."
"Aw Roy it's just a scratch. It's probably just red from the hot water. I don't need a doctor to look at it." He moved his arm out of Roy's concerned view. "I'll wrap it."
Roy got up from the bench and went out into the bay to get the things he would need to treat Johnny's arm. A few minutes later he was back and stood beside Johnny waiting to do just that. Johnny's shoulders slumped and he outstretched his arm to Roy. "It's getting infected Johnny. You know that."
"Okay Roy just put the cream on it. I'm sure it will be fine. You know cat scratches and bites usually always have a lot of bacteria in them."
"I know Johnny, but I also know you can get really sick from them if you are not careful. Have you had any other symptoms?" Johnny didn't want Roy to worry about him, but he hated lies. He decided to tell Roy about not feeling that good.
"I have been extra tired, but that could just be from the last shift. I was exhausted when Cap took me home. I haven't had water for two days. That can wear on a guy you know. I slept on the couch most of yesterday and then fell asleep in my recliner last night. I woke up at 4 am a little stiff. I'm not sick Roy. I'm just a little sore. Running helped loosen me up though." He looked up at his best friend hoping his explanation would suffice. Before he could get any response from Roy the tones sounded.
Shift change had not officially taken place, but they would volunteer to take the run so the other shift could head home. They ran to the bay to take the run. It would be an easy run, just an elderly woman who had slipped on the curb and twisted her ankle. She refused treatment and agreed to see her personal physician. It was an easy start to the shift, but being called out before roll call was always a sign of a busy day.
"Hey Johnny I was just going to make sure you had your water back on, and if not invite you to dinner."
"Oh thanks, but I just ate with Vince at the diner. The water's still off, but I'm doin' okay. I even got coffee and apple pie for later." Johnny smiled as he thought about his snack.
"Apple pie sounds good. Well the kids will be disappointed. Listen if you need anything or they don't get the water back on you know you are welcome to stay here tonight."
"Thanks Roy, but I'll be fine. See you at the station in the morning Pally."
"Do you need a ride?"
"No thanks, Chet and Marco brought the Rover over earlier today. I'm good. Goodnight Roy."
"Goodnight Junior."
After hanging up the phone Johnny realized he was still feeling a little stiff. Thinking he might just lounge around the apartment for the evening he turned on the TV to find something to watch and made himself comfortable in his recliner. In a few minutes he was sound asleep.
In the wee hours of the morning Johnny woke up to static on the TV. Glancing at his watch by holding it at an angle towards the snowy TV screen he could see that it was around 4 o'clock. He couldn't believe that he had fallen asleep and slept that long. Since he had to be up in a couple of hours Johnny decided to shower and get ready. Stopping by the kitchen to make coffee he was disappointed to find that the water was still not working. He remembered the coffee and pie from the diner and decided he would heat that up and head to the station early enough to shower there, but he would have to wait until after the current shift wake up tones had sounded. That gave him at least an hour to wait. It was cool outside, but Johnny decided to gather his things and take an early morning run at the nearby school track. He loved the way running made him feel and it helped to keep him in shape for his job.
Arriving at the station just after he knew the tones would have sounded Johnny stopped by the kitchen hoping they had coffee. "Morning, morning, morning."
"Wow Gage aren't you just a little early?" Charlie Dwyer looked up from his own coffee cup.
"Yeah Charlie, I was running at the track this morning and decided to just come here to shower."
"Running? Kind of early for you isn't it?" Charlie teased.
"Well I woke up at 4." Johnny didn't give any other explanation. He looked at the men sitting around the table and noticed that there were several copies of "The Fire Talks" in front of the men. "You guys reading that book too? What do you think about it?"
"I think everyone in the department is reading it John. It's really well written. The action scenes are vivid; the mystery of the arsonist is slowly unfolding, and really keeps you wanting to read more. Whoever wrote this definitely has a talent for writing. Has anyone figured out who the author is yet?" Captain Smith asked.
Johnny shrugged his shoulders as he sipped his coffee. "I ran into Vince yesterday, and he said most of the police department is reading it too." He turned to refill his coffee cup.
"You look a little rough Johnny? Are you feeling all right?" Charlie's paramedic eye kicked in.
"Yeah, I think I might be getting a cold or something."
"What's wrong with your arm?" Charlie asked seeing the gauze wrapped around Johnny's arm from the cat.
"Just a bad scratch from last shift, it's no big deal. You guys have a good day off. I'm going to get that shower." Johnny turned and left the kitchen with coffee in hand.
The rest of the A-shift had arrived while Johnny took a long hot shower. By the time he came out of the shower Roy had gotten him some more coffee and sat waiting on the bench beside their lockers. "Guess your water is still off."
"Yeah. I went for a run this morning. Showering here was easier anyway." Johnny toweled his hair while walking over to the bench. He reached for the coffee allowing Roy to see the reddened scratch on his arm.
"That cat scratch looks like it may be a little infected Johnny. You better let me put some antibiotic cream on it for you. It might be a good idea to let one of the doc's look at it when we're at Rampart."
"Aw Roy it's just a scratch. It's probably just red from the hot water. I don't need a doctor to look at it." He moved his arm out of Roy's concerned view. "I'll wrap it."
Roy got up from the bench and went out into the bay to get the things he would need to treat Johnny's arm. A few minutes later he was back and stood beside Johnny waiting to do just that. Johnny's shoulders slumped and he outstretched his arm to Roy. "It's getting infected Johnny. You know that."
"Okay Roy just put the cream on it. I'm sure it will be fine. You know cat scratches and bites usually always have a lot of bacteria in them."
"I know Johnny, but I also know you can get really sick from them if you are not careful. Have you had any other symptoms?" Johnny didn't want Roy to worry about him, but he hated lies. He decided to tell Roy about not feeling that good.
"I have been extra tired, but that could just be from the last shift. I was exhausted when Cap took me home. I haven't had water for two days. That can wear on a guy you know. I slept on the couch most of yesterday and then fell asleep in my recliner last night. I woke up at 4 am a little stiff. I'm not sick Roy. I'm just a little sore. Running helped loosen me up though." He looked up at his best friend hoping his explanation would suffice. Before he could get any response from Roy the tones sounded.
Shift change had not officially taken place, but they would volunteer to take the run so the other shift could head home. They ran to the bay to take the run. It would be an easy run, just an elderly woman who had slipped on the curb and twisted her ankle. She refused treatment and agreed to see her personal physician. It was an easy start to the shift, but being called out before roll call was always a sign of a busy day.
