The Let Down

Chapter Seven

by GCS



"As we grow up, we learn that even the one person that wasn't supposed to ever let us down, probably will." -unknown

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Dust floated in the tendril of light…ash, white from the intense heat that tore away all existence leaving only particles drifting in the smoky haze tickling his throat with every ragged breath and burning his eyes as he struggled to open them.

One moment he was making his way down the hall and the next…the next he lay half buried by the debris from the collapsed structure watching the dance of the ash in the small light that filtered through the cracks from a source somewhere that miraculously still burned.

His facemask had shattered and with every breath the particles dancing in the light seemed to move away and then pull back toward his face until they disappeared he coughed harshly sending sharp pain racing through his side…bruised ribs, he thought. He tried to move to a more comfortable position, but his legs wouldn't cooperate.

Turning his head this way and that he tried to see what was holding him hostage only to find out that the dust filled light didn't illuminate enough of the dark to allow him to see. He pulled his arm close to his body and gently…slowly felt down his side, across his hip and down his leg until he felt something strange. He pushed at it, but it didn't budge. Awkwardly, he tried again to push the object off his legs. Giving up he slid his hand back up to the buckle on his helmet. His other arm lay trapped beneath him and felt strangely numb. Unbuckling the helmet with one hand was a habit he had become expert at long ago, but his movements were sluggish making it take longer than normal. After twisting the strap this way and that, he finally got it loose and pulled the helmet off setting it to the side. Then he began working on the facemask. It wasn't any benefit broken, so he might as well get it out of the way; after that he could try to get the SCBA tank off. Then maybe he could get his legs free.

The efforts to get the SCBA off exhausted him. Getting his numb arm to cooperate had been difficult. Finally, he pushed the yellow can aside and stopped to rest.

The only sounds were his slow ragged breaths and the occasional rattling of shifting debris.

The lull in his attempts at freeing himself only gave him more time to feel the effects of the headache that had plagued him all morning. Now, along with it, he had more stiffness and even more aches. He had done a self assessment after his head had cleared and his arm had stopped having the stabbing sensations of millions of tiny prickles, and decided that he hadn't suffered any injury, or nothing more serious than a multitude of bruises. He hadn't blacked out…at least he didn't think he had. He wasn't trapped beneath the rubble. Well…he was trapped, but he didn't think any of the larger pieces had crashed down on top of him. He just had nowhere to go.

"You still with me, Johnny?" He could hear the muffled question and felt the nudge on his arm pulling him back from his mental debate.

It seemed confusing that Dwyer was there until he remembered it wasn't Roy who had gone in with him. "Um…yeah…still here…where else would I be?"

"Oh funny guy. Where else? I can tell you where else I would rather be."

"Yeah…me too." He said absently.

"Seriously, I've been trapped with you before. It's not like you not to try and find a way out as soon as the dust settles. Are you sure you're not hurt?" The truth was neither man had moved much since the collapse.

"Hasn't been that long." At least he didn't think it had. Maybe it had been longer than he thought.

"Been at least an hour."

"Yeah…I guess it has." An hour? He thought it had only been a few minutes. He just didn't have the energy to get up. He knew he needed to check on Dwyer, but he had said he was okay didn't he? And Dwyer was a paramedic, but he hadn't checked on him. Maybe everyone's worry about his ability as a paramedic after Roy's promotion was warranted. If he didn't think to check on his crew mates after a ceiling collapse, then maybe he wasn't as good as he had given himself credit for. He rubbed circular motions on his temple. Worry lines stretched across his forehead and a frown crossed his lips.

Smoke filtered into the darkness creating a gray haze that floated through the light and disappeared into the darkness like his beloved career dissipated in his mind.

He closed his eyes.

Roy pulled at boards and tugged at insulation and sheetrock until his arms ached; then he pulled away some more debris. There had been nothing from Johnny or Dwyer since the collapse. Either their HT was damaged or they were injured, or worse; that was not a thought he allowed to linger. They would find them. They had to.

"Hey Roy!" Chet hunkered near the floor with his face near a small opening. "I think I hear something…sounds like…yeah it…it's an alarm…it's an SCBA alarm! I think we're close, real close!" He pulled away another chunk making the opening slightly larger. "I think we can get through here."

Roy and Marco moved over next to Chet and listened intently. "I hear it too!" Roy began pulling at the debris around the opening. "We have to make this bigger. I need to get in there." The three men worked with renewed adrenalin.

"Johnny!" Chet called out. "Dwyer! Can you guys hear me?"

"In here!" Dwyer called back. "Hey Gage! The Calvary's here! Hurry up guys. We're out of air."

Johnny raised his head and opened his eyes squinting in the darkness towards where he thought Dwyer was. Then he lay his head back down. The continuous bleeping noise and yelling was not helping his headache.

When he opened his eyes in what he thought was just a few minutes he found himself looking into the eyes of his partner. "Roy?" He asked softly.

"Relax Johnny, we're gonna get you out of here in a few minutes. We just about have Dwyer freed." Roy looked over his shoulder at Chet and Marco's progress. "I don't know if his arm is broken or not, but other than that he's okay."

The lighting from flashlights was dim, but Johnny tried to see past Roy. "His arm?" he asked thinking Dwyer didn't tell him he was trapped, but then if he had gotten up and checked on him he would have known. The fact that his legs had been trapped was no excuse. He closed his eyes again. He had failed. He was exhausted.

"Stay with me Johnny. I need to know what's going on. Did you hit your head?"

Johnny sighed wearily. "No."

"Do you hurt anywhere?" Roy slid his hands down each of Johnny's arms and moved to his legs.

"No." Johnny swatted at Roy's hands. "I'm fine, Roy. Just need to get up." He pushed up trying to sit up. His legs were now free, but his body felt heavy and sore. His head felt like it was stuffed with cotton.

"Hey, where do you think you're goin'"

Roy's hands on his chest felt like lead weights. "I'm gettin' up." Johnny squinted at Roy. "What are you doin' here anyway? You left the station before the run…didn't you?" Johnny coughed. The air was thick with smoke, and the dust that had fascinated him earlier was now nothing but an aggravation.

"Yeah…I did." Roy pushed his own mask to Johnny who took a few long deep breaths. "But when you guys passed me on the road I followed. I thought you might need my help."

That statement shot through Johnny like a spear. He glared at his friend. Even Roy thought he couldn't do the job without his help. Johnny pushed the mask back at Roy and moved to get up. "I'll see you outside." Once he got to his feet he swayed slightly. His head spun. He squeezed his eyes shut and leaned a hand against the wall. Then hoping no one noticed he began a slow shuffle toward the hole that led to their escape.

"Johnny, wait!" Dwyer called to him. "We'll all go together." Johnny watched as they freed Dwyer's arm and he cradled it to his chest. "Let's go Roy. You can splint this outside."

"Is it broken?" Johnny asked him. "You never said you were trapped."

"You never said you were either." Dwyer moved past Johnny.

Johnny glared at Dwyer's back.

"You also never said you were sick." Dwyer said over his shoulder as Chet helped him duck through the exit.

"It's just a headache! Who wouldn't have a headache after half a building fell on 'em?" He waved his arm in the air causing his precarious balance to falter. He leaned more heavily on the wall and clenched his eyes.

"Hey Junior, let me help you." Roy said softly.

Johnny pulled away from Roy. "I can do it." He took a few steps. "Can't a guy have a headache? It's not like I didn't already have it before this run." Without thinking he had told them all he felt bad before the run.

"Come on John." Marco took his elbow. "Let's get out of here. I'm sure the fresh air will help your head."

Johnny nodded to Marco. He would accept his help, just not Roy's.

"I'll go first and then help you through." Marco slid through the opening and Johnny followed.

Johnny heard a slight shift behind him as he straightened. Marco pulled him forward just in time as the opening began filling in. "ROY!"

Chapter Eight

The four men froze.

The passage they had just come through crumbled in on itself.

The deafening rumble faded to an occasional clatter of shifting debris.

And then silence filled the air… a suffocating wall of nothing.

It seemed to last forever, but in fact… only seconds.

Then they sprang forward… all at once, grabbing for anything that might lead to the opening that was there just seconds earlier, pulling at anything that might lead them back to Roy.

"ROY!" Johnny called again, hoping for a response; then he was overcome by a strangling cough.

"Engine 51, we've had another collapse, man trapped, possible code I."

"HT 51, copy. Report status of original code I's?"

"Gage and Dwyer are coming out. Lopez and I will continue search… request assistance in debris removal.

"10-4, assistance on the way."

Chet knew Johnny was glaring at him. Even in the darkness he could sense the betrayal Johnny felt and knew he would have given him a piece of his mind had it not been for the smoke and dust that made him cough again, but they were all aware that he and Dwyer needed to get to fresh air. Whether Johnny admitted it or not, they both needed medical attention.

"Come on Johnny, we need to get out of here." Dwyer pulled Johnny away from the digging with little resistance. Deep down he knew they had to. Their air packs were empty, and they had left them behind.

"We'll find him." Marco assured them.

Chet just returned to digging, knowing how hard it was to leave when the fate of friends remained unknown. At times like this, words just rolled off like water… never really soaking in. He also realized that finding Roy alive would be a miracle. The space Johnny and Dwyer had been trapped in was already small. It wouldn't have taken much to fill it in. Roy had nowhere to go to get away from the onslaught that probably buried him before he even realized what was happening. With sadness in his heart, Chet pulled at another piece of the wall that refused to budge. He dropped his chin and waited as Johnny and Dwyer followed the hose line away from earshot, and then he turned to Marco.

"We will find him, Chet."

"Yeah… but in what condition?" Chet hung his head, took in several breaths and looked back to his best friend. "Could he be alive?"

Marco looked to the wall and back to Chet. "He has to be."

Then the two returned to their efforts knowing that if Roy didn't survive, Johnny might not either. Roy had been off shift, but had still come to his rescue… a rescue that might have taken his life… a rescue that might have taken him away from his family… a family that Johnny loved as much as if they were his own flesh and blood. Could anyone live with themselves after that?

They had been following the hose for a few minutes when Johnny felt his knees go weak. The buzzing in his ears that had started a few yards back now filled his hearing with white static, his peripheral vision had taken on a gray hue, and his chest ached with every breath. He sunk down to his knees and would have hit the floor had strong hands not caught him and pulled him back up. When he looked up he saw the concerned eyes of Captain Stanley. "Cap?" he managed to whisper croakily.

"You okay pal?"

He blinked several times trying to clear his vision. "Y..Yeah. I.. I think so. Tired."

"I know. Let's get you out of here." Hank wrapped Johnny's arm around his shoulder and his around Johnny's waist almost lifting him off the ground. Together they continued following the hose into the morning light.

It took every bit of concentration and effort Johnny could muster to make his feet keep moving. The paramedic in him knew it was a combination of the intense heat and the trauma of being trapped that had him so weak. He hadn't really been hurt in the collapse, just trapped, but right now every muscle in his body rebelled against his need to continue on.

Once they stepped outside into the fresh air and sunshine, Johnny felt another set of hands wrapping his other arm over strong shoulders. In his mind's fog he recognized Mike's reassuring voice edging him on toward the bright yellow blanket set up beside the squad.

"Squad 10 should be here any minute."

Mike nodded as he slipped the oxygen mask into place. "Just breathe easy Johnny."

Johnny squinted up at Mike. "Dwyer?"

"He's right over there."

Johnny turned his head until he saw Dwyer nearby with another fireman helping him down. Dwyer shot him a thumbs up as a mask was slipped over his head. Johnny turned back to Mike. "Roy?"

"Not yet."

He closed his eyes, laid his head back and breathed in the cool oxygen. Then he opened them again and reached out to grip Mike's arm. "Not leaving without Roy."

"Yeah… I know…" Mike patted his knee.

Chapter Nine

Roy had his hand on the debris wall; his head bent down to pass through the opening Johnny had just gone through when he felt it shift. He pulled his hand back as though he'd been burnt. In a matter of seconds he knew his fate. Even in the small beam of light from his flashlight, he could see the shifting. He scrambled backwards to the other side of the small space and slammed hard against the wall trying to get away. He knew he had nowhere to go. In the next few minutes he would be buried.

But when he pushed hard against the wall he didn't stop like he thought he would. He didn't stop until he hit hard on the tiled floor. His flashlight landed nearby and was quickly covered in sheetrock and lumber. The air in his lungs came out in a whoosh and pain radiated from his back where he landed on his air tank. He looked up to the ceiling. A glowing beam of light from somewhere cast eerie shadows across the ceiling. A crack began inching its way toward where he lay.

Instinctively, Roy rolled to the side and scrambled to his feet. If that crack moved faster than he could, he might still be buried. The lack of oxygen in his starved lungs left him weak and a bit disoriented. He ran his hand along the wall trying to steady himself as he rapidly progressed down the dark hallway. When the wall changed he knew he was at a door. He fumbled for the doorknob and found it unlocked. Pushing his way through the door he quickly slammed it shut and leaned against it trying to catch his breath. A loud rumble shook the door he leaned against. Roy knew the crack in the ceiling had caught up with him. He hoped the still standing wall that held the door separating him from the hallway would remain upright. The vibrations grew in strength as the ceiling crumbled down along the path of the crack until it slammed against the door.

He was trapped again.

The room was dark. There were no windows. If there were any other doors he couldn't tell. Putting his hands out and taking a few steps, Roy began investigating this new space. He stubbed his toe on a desk and nearly tripped over the chair. He somehow managed to cross the room until he fell onto a sofa against the far wall. That's when he heard a muffled cough to his left. He felt along the sofa until he reached the arm. "Hello, is someone there?"

"Yeah, can you get us out of here?" The voice in the dark asked. "My secretary can't stop coughing."

Roy got down on one knee, so he would be closer. He slipped off his helmet and face mask. "Here put this on." He reached out until he felt a small hand touch his. "Take a few breaths, and then let your boss have some. Is there another door?"

"Yeah, but it's locked. We couldn't get it open. It's locked from the inside. I…um…I must have locked it by accident when we heard the fire alarm."

"Where is it?" Roy asked as they handed him back his mask.

"Just here beside us."

"Are there any windows in that office?"

"Yes."

Roy moved over to the door and pried it open with his halligan. Light filtered in around the curtains that allowed Roy to see the two people huddled beside the sofa. "Come on." He held out his hand and helped the petite woman up from her crouched position. The three moved into the office and Roy closed the door. "Stay here." He told them. Then he moved over to the window, pulled back the curtain and looked for something to break the window with. He grabbed a chair and slammed it into the glass sending shards bursting out onto the parking lot. He took his helmet and cleared as much of the jagged edges away as he could. "Let's go."

Craig Brice grabbed the bio-phone and drug box and trotted over toward Johnny and Dwyer. Mike stepped away from the engine with intentions on stopping Craig from getting near Johnny, but Captain Stanley beat him to the punch. "Craig, you and Bob need to check on those people over there."

"But what about Gage and Dwyer?" Craig asked.

"Civilians first." Stanley pointed.

"Yes sir, of course." Craig turned toward the group of civilians. That's when he noticed another squad already assessing those people. "Um Captain Stanley, there seems to already be ample assistance over there. I think it would be advisable for Bob and myself to check on Gage and Dwyer."

"Brice, are you questioning my judgment?"

"Uh… no… no sir."

"Good, because Mike here has Gage and Dwyer's care under control. Neither of them is seriously injured."

"Right." Craig turned again to make his way over to where Bob had already begun working on getting vitals.

Captain Stanley raised the radio up speaking orders to the crews when he saw a fireman and two civilians come around the corner. The fireman was supporting the woman and had his facemask over her face. "Brice!" Hank pointed in the direction of the three. "Come with me."

Craig stopped in his tracks and turned. He sat the bio-phone and drug box down and trotted over to Roy. "What've you got Desoto?"

Roy coughed deeply before he could answer. "Smoke inhalation. No other seen injuries. No time to take vitals."

Craig took over supporting the woman and handed Roy back his facemask. "If you would come with me, I'll get you checked out and to the hospital if necessary." Roy started to follow Craig when he spotted Dwyer sitting over by the engine, and someone lying on a yellow blanket that he guessed was his partner. He shifted directions.

"You okay?" Mike asked him as he neared.

"Yeah, just a little smoke, and a few more gray hairs." Roy chuckled. "How's he doing?"

"Just a little smoke, and from what I can tell… one hell of a headache." Mike went back over to the engine and made an adjustment on the gauges.

"Hey Dwyer, you doing okay?"

"Sure… Just waiting on a ride." Dwyer held up his splinted arm.

Roy knelt down next to Johnny and reached for his wrist to get a pulse like he'd done so many times before.

Johnny squinted up at the shadow of someone trying to grab his arm. He jerked his arm away and pulled the blankets closer. He pulled the oxygen mask off. "Don't."

Roy smiled and pulled at the yellow blanket. "Come on, Junior. You know I'm going to do this."

Johnny looked more closely at the shadow.

Roy moved so that Johnny could see his face. "Now give me your wrist."

The corner of Johnny's mouth spread upward in a grin. "What took you so long?" He asked as he stretched his arm out giving Roy access.

"Ran into a few detours." Roy looked at his watch and counted. "Found the victims."

Johnny's eyebrow arched.

"They're okay. Brice is checking them out." He pulled the BP cuff off of Johnny's arm and rolled it up tucking it back into the drug box; then he tucked Johnny's arm back under the blanket and replaced the oxygen mask. "You'll live."

"Thanks." Johnny grinned.

"How's the headache?" Roy asked.

"Better."

"Okay, but you're on the next bus. Dwyer too."

Johnny pointed at Roy's chest. "Yeah… I'm coming."

"K, then I'll go." Johnny stated. He'd waited for Roy. They still had to work some things out, but for now he was just glad Roy was okay.