ARSON
Part 2
Chet Kelly had been quiet for most of the shift. He couldn’t believe it. The arsonist that killed Jake was still alive. Alive! Damn it! It wasn’t fair that Jake was dead and that…that son of a….damn it! Kelly was so mad, if the bastard had walked in the door, he would have been a dead man. Chet would have killed him. He figured that was only fair.
It had been a long time since Kelly had thought this much about Jake. It had taken him months to get over Jake’s death, to put it behind him. And now, all those feelings were back. The shame, the helplessness…the guilt. Mostly the guilt. It had caused Kelly a lot of sleepless nights. Had almost cost him his job. He thought about quitting, fearful he wouldn’t be able to go back into a burning building. But he had. It was who he was…who he is.
Johnny and Marco had both tried to talk to Chet, but he just brushed them off. Everyone was concerned for him, but didn’t want to push him. They knew he was going to have to deal with this in his own way. Johnny figured when Chet was ready, he would seek out one of them to talk to—he’d done it before.
And Johnny was right. Chet found him while he was in the dorm, sweeping up.
“Hey, Gage,” Kelly said as he sat down on one of the bunks.
Johnny stopped sweeping and gazed at his friend. He could tell that Chet was depressed, even a little confused. Gage set the broom aside and walked over to sit down across from Kelly.
“How you doing, Chet?” he asked, concerned.
“I’m okay,” Chet answered. Johnny didn’t respond, waiting for Kelly to continue. He watched as Kelly started to say something, then stopped.
Chet was staring at the floor, trying to voice the emotions he was feeling. Gage leaned forward, his elbows on his knees.
“What is it Chet? You’ve been quiet all day. Too quiet. The rest of us are starting to get a bit concerned.”
Kelly looked up at Johnny and smiled. “Sorry, didn’t mean to make you guys feel bad. It’s just that, the other day when we talked, the whole idea of that guy still being alive was kinda farfetched, ya know? It seemed like a bad dream. But you and Roy saw him, you identified him from the pictures in that book. It’s not a bad dream anymore, Gage. I’m wide awake, but the nightmare just won’t go away.”
“You’ve been thinking a lot about Jake, haven’t you?”
Chet just nodded, his eyes asking how Gage knew that.
“I’ve been thinking about Steve, too,” Johnny said, answering the unspoken question. “About how I felt when the man who killed him was only given Two years in jail. Two years for killing a man. He’s out of jail now, getting on with his life. And I’m sure he’s out driving his car again. But Steve is still dead and buried. I went to the guy’s trial, sat there almost every day with Steve’s sister and his folks. I kept watching the guy. I wanted to remember his face. These last few days, I’ve been thinking about what I’d do if I ever saw him again.”
“And what did you decide?” Kelly wanted to know.
“That I wouldn’t know until it actually happened,” Gage said with a shrug. “I don’t know what to tell you, Chet. The guy that killed Steve, he got drunk, and drove his car. He probably doesn’t even remember the accident, ya know. But this guy, this arsonist, he’s a whole different breed. He starts fires for the fun of it. He doesn’t care if anybody dies. And the sad part is, he wanted to be a fireman. He could have been working in this very station.”
“Yeah, I know. At least now we have the chance to do something about him. Johnny, you and Roy can put this guy away. When Marten finds him, you can testify that he was the one who started that fire the other night.”
“It won’t bring Jake back, Chet.”
“No, maybe not, but at least you can get the guy off the street. Keep him from killing somebody else. I only wish I’d been there with you. Maybe between the two of us, we could have caught him.”
“At least now we know who the guy is. And Marten wants this guy, Chet, almost as much as you do.”
They heard footsteps then, and in a moment Roy walked in. “There you are, Johnny, I figured you’d be done by now…” Roy then saw Chet sitting there, and realized he’d interrupted something. “Sorry, guys. Ah, Johnny, when you get through we need to make a run to the hospital to get some supplies.”
Chet jumped up from the bed, walking over to grab the broom Gage had earlier discarded.
“That’s okay, Roy, we were done. Johnny, I’ll finish up in here. You go ahead with Roy.”
“Okay, Chet, thanks,” Johnny said, amused, since Chet seldom volunteered to do anyone’s chores for them. But, he figured Chet was embarrassed that Roy had come in when they had been talking so seriously. Johnny started to follow Roy out to the squad. He stopped and turned back when Chet spoke again.
“Johnny….thanks. Again.” Chet looked away and began sweeping again. Johnny just nodded, turning back to see Roy watching him, curiously. Johnny just smiled and walked past Roy. DeSoto shook his head and followed his partner out of the room, still not quite sure what just happened.
*******
The next week, as the crew was seated around the table eating dinner, Jack Marten entered the station. They exchanged greetings as Marten poured himself a cup of coffee, then sat down at the table with them. He declined Marco’s offer of a bowl of chili.
He sipped at the coffee as Roy asked him how the investigation was going. Marten hesitated before answering him.
“Actually, that’s why I’m here. I don’t know if you’ve heard, but we had another arson fire night before last.”
“Anybody hurt?” asked Stanley.
“No, empty warehouse. But, there is a problem. A television reporter happened to be passing by when the units responded to this one. He overheard one of my investigators talking to the Chief. He’s been doing some digging and got Beckman’s name from arson reports from several years ago, including the one that killed Jacobs.”
“So, why is that a problem, Jack?” asked Roy.
Marten looked over at DeSoto, then shifted his gaze to John Gage. “This reporter has a friend who works for the judge who signed the arrest warrant for Beckman. This friend gave him the information about two firemen who witnessed the suspect leaving the scene of one of the fires. He plans on airing the story tonight. And, I’m sorry to say, he plans on naming the two of you as the witnesses.”
Roy and Johnny looked at each other, reading shock in each other’s expressions.
Everyone at the table had stopped eating, surprised by Marten’s pronouncement. Captain Stanley set his spoon down on the table, pushing the bowl away, having suddenly lost his appetite.
“So, what does this mean?” he asked Jack. “Is this going to put Johnny and Roy in danger?”
“I don’t know, Hank. I just don’t know. I’ve talked to the reporter. So has the Chief. We’ve even offered the guy an exclusive if he withholds their identities. All he would say is that he would ‘think about it’. His report is supposed to air at six o’clock.”
Everyone glanced at either the clock or their wristwatches. It was ten minutes until six. Stanley got up from his chair and walked over to turn on the television that sat on a table on the other side of the room. The others followed, gathering around the television.
As they waited for the news to begin, they talked to Marten about Beckman and the investigation. He gave them the rundown on what had been learned in the last week. They hadn’t been able to get an address on the suspect, yet. At least, not a current one. But, they had learned where he had been living until about six months earlier. They were working with the sheriff’s department and several state government agencies trying to locate any kind of lead that would tell them where he might be now. The best news was that the lab had been able to get a partial print from one of the buckets that they had found in the building where Johnny and Roy had confronted the arsonist. And the print matched Beckman. There was no longer any doubt that Matthew Beckman was still alive.
The news began, and the recent arson fires was the top story. The men anxiously watched the screen, waiting for the reporter to get to the part about witnesses. Everyone held their breath when the reporter mentioned that two firefighters had interrupted the arsonist at the scene of a fire, but had been unable to catch and detain him. He stated that the witnesses had gotten a good enough look at the suspect to be able to identify him as Beckman. He didn’t mention Roy and Johnny by name, however, which caused a collective sigh of relief. The reporter went on to give a rundown on Beckman’s background, even showing a picture of him.
“Well,” stated Marten, “it looks like I’m going to owe that guy an exclusive. Cap, if you don’t mind, I’d like to use your phone. I want to call the station and thank him.”
“Be my guest, Jack. And, ah, give him our thanks, too.” Marten smiled and nodded, then headed into the Captain’s office to make his call.
********
The klaxons started sounding and the lights blazed on, as effective an alarm clock as anyone could want. The crew jumped from their beds, pulling on their turnout gear, as the Captain acknowledged the call over the radio. They ran to their vehicles, and with lights flashing, sped down the road.
As they pulled into the parking lot, they realized it was the same building where Roy and Johnny had seen the arson suspect. Only this time, the building was completely on fire.
Stanley called in a third alarm, requesting more equipment, and telling dispatch to notify arson investigators. Two fires at this same building in less than a month was more than coincidence, especially considering the earlier news report.
The men got to work, grabbing air tanks, and pulling hose. It took four hours to knock the fire down. By that time, Marten and his people were on scene. It would be another hour or two before they could begin their search, however. They would need to wait until the debris cooled down before they started moving around inside. Marten figured they probably wouldn’t get much here anyway. The building was a total loss. There wasn’t much left. But in his line of work, he had learned that sometimes the smallest piece of evidence was what convicted someone. So they would search the debris, and sift through the ashes, looking for anything to link a suspect to the fire. To link Beckman to the fire.
Marten was convinced that Beckman was responsible. He had already tried to burn the building down once and had been thwarted. He had returned to finish the job. And finish it he did. Most of the roof had collapsed and the back wall was nearly gone. The ruins of the building would need to be demolished, of that there was no doubt.
The crew of Station 51 was making a final sweep of the building, to be sure no one had been caught inside, and also to be sure there were no ‘hot spots’. They wanted to be sure the fire wouldn’t re-ignite. Although, there wasn’t much left that could catch fire again. But they were watering down the debris anyway, just to be safe.
*******
As the squad backed into the station, followed by the engine, the sun was just starting to rise. Since the shift would be over in just a couple of hours, they decided to get cleaned up and gather in the kitchen for coffee and wait for their relief. They were exhausted.
Gage walked into the kitchen to put a fresh pot of coffee on before heading into the locker room to change and clean-up. As he headed back out of the kitchen, the phone rang.
“Station 51, Fireman Gage,” he said into the phone.
“Good morning, Fireman Gage,” the voice on the other end of the line said. “I would like to speak to one of the members of your crew who works on the rescue squad.”
“I work on the squad, sir. I’m a paramedic. How can I help you? Do you need medical assistance?”
“No, Fireman Gage. I don’t. But you may,” said the man on the phone.
“Excuse me?!” said Gage. “I don’t understand. What are talking about, sir?”
“I saw you at the fire tonight. You and your partner. Which one are you? Are you the one who tried to chase me, or the one who struggled with me inside? You couldn’t stop me this time, could you? And you couldn’t stop the building from burning to the ground.”
Johnny felt like he’d been kicked in the stomach. He almost dropped the phone.
“Who is this?” he asked quietly, as the others joined him in the kitchen. “What do you want?” Roy looked at Johnny, curious at to who would be calling at this hour. He froze when he saw the expression on Johnny’s face.
The voice was speaking again, ominous, cold. “You know who this is, don’t you? I can tell you do. I watched you guys at the fire. You were out-matched. I saw the tv report too. I figure it’s you guys who identified me, since you’re only ones who ever saw me. Am I right?”
“What do you want?” Johnny managed to get out, trying to keep his voice calm.
“I just wanted to let you know that I’ll be watching you. One of these days, the fire is going to get you. And when it does, remember that I started it. Remember that as the flames get too close, Fireman Gage.” And then the caller hung up. Johnny gripped the phone, and closed his eyes. Roy moved over next to him, afraid he might pass out. All the blood had drained from Johnny’s face and he looked like he’d had the scare of his life.
“Johnny, are you okay? Who the hell was that?” But Johnny didn’t answer.
Once Roy finally got the phone out of Johnny’s hand, he was able to lead Gage to a chair. The others had also gathered around, upset by the look on Johnny’s face.
“Johnny?” Roy prompted his partner. “Who was on the phone? What did they say to you? You look like you’ve seen a ghost!”
“I haven’t seen one Roy, but I just talked to one.”
“What are you talking about?”
Johnny looked up at his partner, then looked around the room. His gaze stopped on Chet Kelly. “Beckman. It was Beckman.” He saw Chet go pale and collapsed onto a chair.
The others exchanged glances, shocked by what Johnny had just told them. Captain Stanley recovered first, headed for the phone, and dialed Jack Marten’s number.
“Jack, this is Hank Stanley. It looks like your reporter friend made an impression with that story. Beckman just called the station!”
*****
By the time Marten got to the station, Roy had gotten Johnny to tell them what Beckman had said. Jack walked in as Johnny was repeating what Beckman had said about needing medical help.
“John, are you sure it was Beckman?” asked Marten.
“Yeah…no…. I don’t know,” Johnny stammered. “I mean, who else could it be? He made a remark about the first fire, and he said he was watching us tonight.”
“Watching you? So then he was close by after he set that fire?”
Stanley walked over and sat on the edge of the table. “Jack, he made threats against my men. We need to do something.”
Marten looked up at the Captain. “I’ll call the sheriff’s department, first off. I want a tap on this line, in case he calls back again. And I’ll see what I can do about getting you some protection here.”
Johnny grabbed hold of Marten’s arm as Jack got up to make his call. “Jack, he knows my name. When I answered the phone, I used my name….he knows who I am now. And it wouldn’t take that much for him to find out who Roy is.”
Marten sat back down, looking Johnny in the eye. “John, did he say for sure that he knew that you were the ones that tried to stop him that night at the warehouse?”
“Yeah. He asked if I was the one who chased him, or the one he’d fought with inside the building.”
“Okay, just take it easy. Let me give the Chief a call, and contact the Sheriff’s Department’s arson detective. We’ll work something out.”
He headed into Stanley’s office, passing Captain Hanson, who was in charge of B shift. Stanley pulled Hanson aside to let him know what had happened. All the firefighters who worked at the station would need to be told what was going on.
Thirty minutes later, the remainder of B shift was at the station, ready to make relief. They had all been advised of the threats against Roy and Johnny, and each had made it a point to say something to the pair, to let them know they understood.
As Johnny was leaving, Roy walked up to him. “Hey, Johnny. Are you gonna be okay?”
“Yeah, Roy, I’ll be fine. I guess it just spooked me, ya know. Coming back from a fire at the same building, then hearing him talk about the flames getting closer. The guy knows about fire, Roy. Marten told me they found out that Beckman was an explosives expert in the military. He knows a lot of different ways to start a fire. Jack figures he’ll probably change his tactics. He’s in it for revenge now. And he’s targeted Station 51. He wants to prove something. And he’s gonna try to use us to do it.”
“Look, Johnny, if you want to stay with me for a few days, I wouldn’t mind the company. Joanne and the kids are visiting her sister. It would give us a chance to talk, ya know?”
“Thanks, Roy, but I’m just gonna go on home. I have some stuff planned for the weekend, and I’m not about to let this guy screw up my days off.”
“Okay, Johnny, but the offer stands if you change your mind. I’ll see ya on Monday.”
“See ya, Roy. And Roy……thanks. I appreciate the offer.”
They waved goodbye and both got into their separate vehicles and headed home.
******
Two days later, Roy was on the phone with Joanne when the doorbell rang. He told his wife to hold on and went to find out who was at the door. Jack Marten was standing on the other side of the door.
“Jack, c’mon in, I’m on the phone. I’ll just be a minute.” He waved Marten into the kitchen, and picked up the phone again.
“Honey, yeah, it’s Jack Marten. You remember me telling you about him? (pause) Okay, I will. Give the kids a kiss for me. (pause) Okay, sweetheart. I’ll see ya next week. I love you.” He hung up the phone. “I was just getting ready to make me a sandwich for lunch. Care for something.” Marten nodded and made small talk with Roy as he got out the fixings for sandwiches and poured Marten a cup of coffee.
“So, what’s up, Jack?” Roy asked, as he prepared the sandwiches. “You didn’t drive all the way out here just for a cup of my coffee and food.”
“No, I didn’t. I’m worried Roy. About you and Gage. We’ve been able to learn more about Beckman’s movements the last few years. We ran that partial print through NCIC—the National Crime Information Computer. It seems our boy’s been busy. On the east coast. Only they know him as Matthew Barton. And he’s been putting his explosives expertise to use.”
“So, he’s been setting fires there, too?”
“Yeah. Setting fires and killing people. It seems he got into a scrape with the law because of some problem with a landlord. He assaulted the guy one night and his victim decided to press charges. When Beckman heard about it, he beat the guy up again. Knocked him unconscious, then started a fire in the apartment building. It killed the landlord. And two other people in the building.”
“My God! I take it they never caught up with him.”
“No. That was three years ago. He apparently left town after that. His movements for the next two years aren’t known. He showed back up in California last year, using the name Melvin Blevins. We’ve talked to the company he’s been working for the last year, showed his boss a photo. He verified that the man he knows as Blevins, is definitely Matthew Beckman.”
“So, now what?”
“I was able to get a more current picture of Beckman,” he said, opening the file he had brought with him. He pulled out a photo and handed it to Roy.
“Take a good look Roy. I want you and Gage to commit this face to memory. He told John that he was watching you at the fire the other night. He’ll probably continue to do that and I want you guys ready.”
Roy carried the food over to the kitchen table, where Marten joined him. As they ate lunch, they continued to talk about Beckman.
******
As Roy carried the dishes into the kitchen, the phone rang. Since Roy’s hand were full, he ask Marten to pick it up.
“DeSoto residence.”
“Roy? Is that you?”
“No, he’s busy at the moment. This is Jack Marten.”
“Jack! Just the person I need to talk to! This is John Gage. I heard from Beckman again!”
*******
Roy opened the door to a very agitated John Gage. After he called, Marten thought it would be a good idea for the three of them to get together and talk, so Gage had come to join them. As he rushed past Roy, he pulled an envelope from his pocket and set it down in front of Marten.
“The man knows where I live, Jack! I got this in the mail today!” Marten began to carefully open the envelope and pull out the single sheet inside, as Johnny turned to Roy.
“Did you get one of these too, Roy?”
“The mail hasn’t come yet today, Johnny.” Checking his watch, he said “Probably another hour or so.”
Marten was reading the simple note: REMEMBER, GAGE, I’M WATCHING YOU! AND YOUR BUDDY, DESOTO, TOO. I WILL WIN THIS GAME. THE FLAMES ARE GETTING CLOSER! DON’T GET BURNED, FIREMAN GAGE!
“John, how much did you handle this letter?” Jack asked.
“Just enough to take it out and read it, then put it back in the envelope. Once I figured out what it was, I was careful Jack. But, I didn’t know what it was until I opened it. You can see for yourself, there’s no return address.”
“Roy, do you have a large manila envelope I can put this in?” As Roy went to grabbed the requested item, Jack continued. “And Roy, if you don’t mind, I’d like to stick around until your mail comes, see if you get one of these as well.”
“Sure, Jack, that’s not a problem. You know, I remember Captain Stanley saying something about Beckman contacting you after that first fire. What was that about?”
“At the time, I didn’t know it was Beckman. I got a letter, addressed to the ‘arson investigator in charge of the warehouse fires’. Looking at this letter, I’d be willing to bet they’re both from the same guy. The lettering looks the same. Mine wasn’t as personal though, probably because he hadn’t been publicly identified yet. Or he didn’t know my name. We’ll run both of the letters through the lab for comparison.”
As they waited for the postman to bring Roy’s mail, they talked about Beckman and the fires--those they knew he set, and some they only suspected. Once the mail arrived, they sorted through the envelopes carefully, finding the one they were looking for. Marten handled it carefully, wanting to preserve any evidence that might be there. He open this letter, and slid the sheet out, reading it out loud to DeSoto and Gage.
FIREMAN DESOTO, I AM WATCHING YOU. YOU AND YOUR PARTNER, FIREMAN GAGE! YOU STOPPED ME ONCE, BUT YOU WON’T STOP ME AGAIN. OH, BY THE WAY, HOW’S THE FAMILY?
The last line scared the hell out of Roy. It was bad enough the guy was threatening him, but he was also threatening the family. Roy was thankful they were out of town, and he would make sure they stayed gone until Beckman was caught.
Johnny was equally shocked at the letter. Joanne and the kids were his second family and didn’t want something to happen to them because of this guy.
“Roy,” he asked, turning to his best friend, “when are Joanne and the kids coming home?”
“They’re supposed to be back next week, but I’ll call her and tell her to stay with her sister until this thing is finished.”
Marten watched the two paramedics as they discussed Roy’s family. He knew something needed to be done quickly, before Beckman hurt anyone else. Especially these two. Marten had spoken with several people about this latest rash of arsons. And every time the conversation got around to DeSoto and Gage, he heard the same thing. Good, solid firefighters. Two of the best paramedics in the county. Two men you could depend on. Marten wasn’t about to let anything happen to them or anyone else if he could help it.
*******
When the paramedics returned to work the next day, they found a Sheriff’s Deputy patrol car parked in the parking lot. As they walked into the kitchen, they saw Deputy Jerry Harrison sitting at the table, drinking a cup of coffee and talking to Stanley and Kelly.
“Hey Johnny, Roy,” said Harrison as he noticed the pair enter the room. They both said hello, and Harrison explained that he had been assigned to shadow the squad on its runs and generally just stay close by. There would be a deputy staying with the squad around the clock.
“Marten is taking the threats very seriously,” explained Stanley. “And I, for one, will feel more comfortable with the law close by.”
“Well, I talked to Joanne,” said Roy. “She and the kids are going to stay out of town until this thing is settled one way or another. I just hope it’s quick. I don’t like having them so far away.”
“Better out of state, then here where Beckman can hurt them though, Roy,” stated Gage.
“Yeah, Johnny, I know. I just miss them, ya know?”
“Understood, partner. How about some coffee?” DeSoto nodded and Johnny walked over to pour them both a cup. Then they sat down and spoke with Harrison about what to expect if Beckman was spotted. Jerry explained that all the officers in the area had been made aware of the situation at that morning’s roll call. And subsequent roll calls would get the same information. Beckman’s picture was posted and all the deputies who would be doing the duty with the squad would carry his photo with them as well.
The shift was relatively quiet. No contact came in from Beckman, and no warehouses burned. Everyone was quietly hoping that the presence of the deputy had discouraged Beckman from making a move against the paramedics.
But no one really expected that to be the case. Beckman had challenged them, and from everything Jack Marten had told them about the suspect, they didn’t expect him to just fade away. But they were grateful for the reprieve anyway, even if only temporary.
As Gage drove home the next morning following his shift, he thought about the man that had threatened them. He hoped that Beckman was caught soon. Maybe he would get too confident, and make a mistake. He’s already made one, by almost getting caught that night at the warehouse. Hopefully, they would be able to catch him next time. Johnny was so deep in thought, that he didn’t notice the smoke at first.
When he did finally see it, it took a moment for him to realize that the smoke was coming from his apartment building. As he got closer to the building, he saw the fire engine and ladder truck, and saw flames from the end of the building where his apartment was.
He stopped his Land Rover along the curb, and jumped out, heading for the building. Looking around, he noticed Captain Henderson, from Station 18, standing by the engine, directing the firefighters. As he headed that way, Henderson looked up and saw him walking toward him. Henderson said something to the engineer next to him, then headed over to meet Gage halfway.
“Gage, thank God!” he started, “We were afraid you were inside.”
“Cap, what happened? How’d it start?”
“Don’t know yet, John, but Jack Marten’s on the way.”
“Marten? Wait a minute, you think it was arson?!” Gage looked at the building again, only then realizing that the fire was in his own apartment! “Oh God! Beckman? Did Beckman do this?”
“We won’t know that until we get in there. Luckily, we arrived before it spread to any other part of the building. I’m not sure what the extent of the damage is to your apartment though, John.”
Thirty minutes later, the fire was extinguished and Henderson and Gage went to check out the apartment, following Jack Marten, who had arrived just a short time before. Marten wanted to check it out first, to preserve any evidence. Johnny had called Roy, to tell him what happened, and warn him to be careful. If Beckman had started this fire, there was no reason to think he wouldn’t target DeSoto as well.
Once Johnny was finally able to check out the damage to his place, he was glad to see that the it wasn’t too bad. It looked like the fire had started in the kitchen. As he, Marten and Henderson surveyed the damage, the phone rang. Hoping it would be Roy, Gage went into his bedroom to pick up the phone, having noticed that the phone in the kitchen had been destroyed by the fire.
The others were still searching the kitchen when they heard Gage’s voice, raised in anger.
“ …you bastard! You could have killed everybody in this building! If you want a piece of me and my partner, why not face us? Or are you too much of a coward?! Beckman? Beckman! Damn it!”
Marten ran into the bedroom, just as Gage threw the phone against the wall.
“I take it our friend made contact,” Jack said, quietly, hoping to force Johnny to calm down.
“That son-of-a-bitch! Jack, he could have hurt a lot of people here!”
“Yeah, we were lucky. But maybe Beckman just made his first big mistake, Johnny,” Marten said, a smile beginning to form on his face.
“What do mean?” Marten didn’t answer, just looked over at the phone, now laying on the floor. Gage followed his gaze, understanding now. “You have a trace on my phone, don’t you?”
Jack just nodded, still smiling and turning back out of the bedroom. As they walked back out into the living room, Roy DeSoto came running in.
“Johnny, are you alright?”
“Yeah, Roy, I’m fine,” Johnny assured him, looking around at his home. “But I won’t be staying here tonight.”
“You can stay with me,” Roy told him. “Grab some clothes. From the looks of this place, you won’t be back here for at least a week.”
As Johnny went to pack some things he would need, Marten and Roy talked about the chances that Beckman would come after him.
“Ya know, Jack,” Roy said, thoughtfully, “maybe this is for the best. With Johnny and I together, he may make his move against us. And at my house, nobody else will get hurt if something does happen.”
Marten agreed, but told Roy he was still going to make arrangements for police protection for them off-duty as well as at the station. Beckman was getting too close.
*********
For the next four days, nothing happened. Roy and John worked two of those days, but no fires occurred that fit the pattern that Beckman had started. It had been decided to have plainclothes police keep an eye on the pair. Maybe if Beckman didn’t see uniformed cops, he would think the protection had been pulled. If they could draw him out, they might be able to catch him.
As they ate dinner at the station that night, the others on the shift tried to keep the topic away from Beckman and the fires. They had noticed how jumpy both John and Roy were, and were trying to help relieve the tension. But it was on everyone’s mind and they knew no one would sleep very well until the arsonist was found.
Beckman had phoned Roy the day before, making threats that his house was next. Two of the arson investigators were watching the house while DeSoto and Gage were at work. The phone taps had been useless, since apparently Beckman had called them both from pay phones. Marten decided to keep them in place anyway, just for good measure. Roy was grateful his family was still away, but every time he talked to Joanne, she told him she wanted to come home. Roy hadn’t told her yet about the fire at Johnny’s place, knowing she would worry about him and insist on returning. She knew Johnny was staying with him, but he tried to convinced her it was just because of the investigation. He wasn’t sure if she believed him or not. He just wanted this over with so his family could come back home where they belonged.
Suddenly, an explosion was heard outside. They jumped up and ran out to the back parking lot, only to find Roy’s car on fire. As Kelly and Marco ran for a fire hose, the others looked around the building, hoping to see Beckman. As the fire was extinguished, the sheriff’s deputy drove up in his patrol car. He and several other officers had checked the area, but had seen no one fitting Beckman’s description.
Later, as Jack Marten looked over what remained of DeSoto’s car, Deputy Harrison joined the firefighters in the station, trying to figure out why he and his men hadn’t seen Beckman start the fire. Marten heard the tail end of the conversation as he came in from outside.
“….just can’t understand why none of us saw anything, Roy. We were covering every corner.”
“Don’t worry about it, Jerry. I know you guys are doing the best you can. Beckman’s smart. Nobody saw him at Johnny’s place either.”
“Roy is right, Deputy Harrison,” agreed Jack. “You didn’t see Beckman, because he wasn’t here. At least, not at the time of the fire.”
They all turned to look at Marten, waiting for an explanation.
“We found a device, looks like a remote controlled unit. He wasn’t in the parking lot when the explosion occurred. He probably planted it while you were out on a run, Roy.”
The ringing phone startled them all. Roy and Johnny exchanged glances, knowing it was Beckman, neither wanting to answer it. Since Marten was standing nearby, he stepped over and picked up the receiver, but didn’t immediately say anything.
“Hello?” said the voice. “Is anyone there? Or did you get too close to the fire?” The voice then started laughing, a high pitched cackling that the others could hear from several feet away. Then the phone went dead as the caller hung up.
*******
Later that night, Johnny walked into the kitchen, unable to sleep. He had noticed that Roy wasn’t in his bunk when he got up, and figured he’d find him watching some late night television. When he didn’t see him in the kitchen, he walked outside, thinking maybe he had stepped out to get some air. He spotted DeSoto over by his burned out car.
“Hey, Roy. I guess you couldn’t sleep either, huh?”
“Johnny, look at my car,” he said, sadly, shaking his head. “It’s totaled. I really liked this car. The son-of-a-bitch has gone too far, Gage.”
“Just be glad you and the family weren’t in it when he blew it up, Roy,” Johnny said. “I’ve been thinking about what Jack said, that Beckman probably rigged it while we were on a run. But, what if he didn’t? What if he rigged it last night, while it was parked in your driveway? He could have blown it while we drove to work. He could have rigged the house, too.”
“Jack and his team are checking the house out. If they find anything, they’ll let me know.”
“This guy scares me, Roy. It’s one thing to fight fires everyday, and make rescues. But this… waiting for some sicko to blow me up, man, I hate it.”
“Yeah, I know what you mean, junior. We’ve had a lot of close calls over the years, but this is totally different. How do we fight this? The guy is a maniac.”
“A maniac who knows about fires, Roy, remember that.”
“I’m not about to forget it, Johnny.”
“Hey, guys, do you mind some company?” asked Chet Kelly, as he joined the two paramedics.
“Naw, come on out Chet,” invited Gage. Kelly walked around DeSoto’s ruined car, shaking his head.
“Man, he really did a number on your wheels, man.”
“No kidding, Chet,” Roy laughed softly.
“How are you doing, Chet?” asked Johnny. “This can’t be easy for you.”
Chet hesitated, not sure how much to say. Then he thought, what the hell. It’s not like he hadn’t already talked to Johnny about it, and he figured Roy would understand.
“I keep having nightmares, Johnny. About Jake and the fire. I see him in the middle of the flames and can’t get to him. I’ve been re-living that night over and over again. And now this guy is after you and Roy. I’m scared it might happen again. I don’t want to lose another friend.” Chet looked down, slightly embarrassed when his voice cracked.
Roy reached over and placed a hand on Chet’s shoulder. “Is that why you’ve been so moody lately, Chet, worried that history will repeat itself? Listen, we know how good a firefighter you are, Kelly. And both Johnny and I know that if something like that happened to us, you would do everything you could to get to us. Just like we’d do for you, or any of the others. Just like you tried to do for Jake.”
Kelly looked at Roy, confused. He had never talked to Roy about the night Jake died. Glancing at Gage, he was a little upset that Johnny had told Roy what Kelly had confided in him. Johnny sensed what Chet was thinking and wanted to assure him that he hadn’t mentioned their conversations to his partner.
“Roy’s been there, Chet, in that same situation. Remember, I mentioned his friend that died? It was similar circumstances. Roy did everything he could to get to him. Just like you did. You can only do your best, Chet. Sometimes…sometimes that isn’t enough. Sometimes people die anyway. But, you still try. That’s all you can do.”
When Kelly didn’t respond, DeSoto quietly told the story of his friend. He related a story of trust and friendship. Of pain and anger. Of grief and guilt. All the feelings that Chet himself had experienced…. was again experiencing. In listening to Roy talk about his friend, Chet was reminded of Jake. Roy’s friend and Jake could have been one and the same. And as DeSoto described the man, Chet was struck with the thought that the description could just as easily fit Roy or Johnny. It sent a shiver through Kelly, a fear that one of them was next.
No, he thought, not this time….he wasn’t going to let it happen again. He didn’t say anything to either of them, but in his mind, he vowed that this time, he would be ready. He wasn’t going to lose any more of his friends. Not if he could help it.
*********
The call came in at three in the morning. Another warehouse was burning. The squad sped down the street, siren wailing and lights flashing, followed by the engine and two sheriff’s patrol cars. Deputy Harrison radioed ahead to have any other officers in the area set up a perimeter. They would close off the area in hopes of catching Beckman. If this was an arson fire set by the man, it figured he would stay close by to watch. Harrison wasn’t about to let him slip through the cracks. Jerry knew Marten would be notified, and he wanted to be able to hand over a suspect in handcuffs.
This fire was different than the others. It wasn’t an empty warehouse, this time. Instead it was a building filled with chemicals and solvents. Maybe that meant that Beckman wasn’t responsible. Or it could be that he was just changing tactics, something Marten had said might occur. Either way, the building was on fire, and it was their job to extinguish that fire.
Johnny and Roy geared up to enter the building and search for survivors, as the others began hauling hose from the engine. Additional fire equipment started arriving, and Stanley positioned them to battle the blaze most effectively.
The paramedics began their search, trying to be thorough, but knowing they didn’t have a whole lot of time. The fire had a good head start and the element of danger was high.
As they finished the last section of building, Roy heard Captain Stanley calling them over the portable radio. He pulled it from his pocket and acknowledged the call.
“Roy, you and Johnny need to get out of there. The roof is starting to cave in and the fire is getting way too close to the chemical storage area.”
“We copy, Cap, we’re almost through here. We’re just checking the east end. We just need another five minutes.”
“Roy, you don’t have another five minutes. Get out of there now!”
“On our way, Cap,” he said, calling to Johnny that they’d been ordered out of the building. Gage nodded at him and they started toward the closest exit out of the building—the east end of the building. As they neared the exit doors, the fire reached the first of the cans of chemicals stacked against the wall on the second floor above them.
The explosion knocked them both to the floor and brought the ceiling down on top of them.
“Roy? Johnny?” Stanley called, getting no answer. When DeSoto went down, he dropped the radio. It lay on the floor beside the two unconscious men, buried under the debris with them.
*******
Marco and Chet were spraying the fire, and heard their Captain calling Gage and DeSoto. Calling them repeatedly, and getting no answer. They had seen the ceiling come down, but hadn’t seen the two paramedics. As he stared at the fire, Chet got a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. Not again. No, not again. Please, God, let them be okay!
“Kelly, Lopez,” called Stanley, as he ran over to where they worked the hose. “Gage and DeSoto aren’t answering up. The may have been caught in that explosion. Last thing Roy said was that they were checking out the east end. Get in there and see if you can locate them. But be careful, there’s still a lot of chemical containers in the area.”
“Right, Cap,” Kelly agreed, glad the Captain had ordered him to do the search. “Let’s go Marco!”
The two men already had there air tanks strapped on, so they just had to put on the masks before they entered the building to look for their friends. The containers continued to explode as they made their way in the east doors. The smoke was thick and black, making it difficult to see more than a few feet in front of them.
As they carefully made their way through the rubble of the collapsed ceiling, they called out, hoping Roy and Johnny would hear them. Finally, Chet thought he heard something, faint against the explosions still going on upstairs. He stopped, Marco right behind him, looking around for the source of the noise.
Lopez pointed at something about ten feet away, a leg, clad in turnout gear, poking out from underneath the rubble. They rushed over and carefully but quickly began uncovering Roy DeSoto. He was groggy.
“Marco, get Roy out of here,” Chet insisted. “I’ll keep looking for Gage.”
With Chet’s help, Lopez lifted Roy onto his shoulder and carried him outside. Kelly focused his energy on locating Gage. “Johnny, where are you?” he yelled. “C’mon Gage, we gotta get out of here before the whole building goes up.” Kelly was concentrating on trying to see through the smoke and almost missed Gage, walking right past him. Something made him stop and look again at something to his left. Bingo!
Gage was out cold and his face mask had been knocked off his face. Kelly could see a cut over his left eye. He reached for Johnny, and started to lift him up when another series of explosions shook the building. Kelly fell on top of Gage, hoping to protect him from further injury, as more of the ceiling came down. A large chunk of brick slammed into Chet’s left shoulder, sending a sharp pain down his arm.
Kelly was scared, more scared than he’d been in a long time. They needed to get out of there. Gage still hadn’t moved and Kelly wasn’t sure he was even alive. Chet was silently praying, hoping he’d still be able to lift Johnny. His arm hurt like hell. He looked back toward the door, hoping Lopez would return to help. After a couple of seconds, though, he knew he didn’t have time to wait. Johnny’s life depended on him, and him alone.
A brief memory of Jake flashed in his vision. Not this time, he thought. This time Kelly was going to get his friend out. Ignoring the pain in his arm, Chet lifted Gage over his shoulder and staggered outside. Just as he cleared the door, several more explosions brought the roof crashing down on the area where Johnny had just lain.
Kelly carried him across the parking lot to where Squad 88 was already working on DeSoto. Roy was sitting up, with an oxygen mask on his face, held in place by Marco Lopez. When Marco saw Chet, he told Roy to take the mask, and stood up to help Kelly lower Gage to the ground.
Once Chet was sure that Gage was being taken care of, he and Marco turned back to return to the fire. They heard a shout and saw one of the deputies chasing a man down the street.
Beckman! It was Matthew Beckman! Not stopping to think, Chet ran at the man, closely followed by Lopez, who also recognized him.
Chet tackled Beckman, going down hard on the pavement, jarring his already sore shoulder. Beckman rolled and started to get back to his feet, only to be jumped on by Marco. As he struggled with Lopez, the deputy caught up with them, and they were quickly joined by three other cops, who were finally able to subdue the arsonist and get him handcuffed.
Marco walked over to Chet and helped him up, noticing the Kelly was holding his arm. As the deputies pulled Beckman to his feet, Kelly walked over to them. Harrison looked at him, and asked if he was okay.
“Yeah, Jerry, I’m fine,” he replied, rubbing his shoulder and staring daggers at the handcuffed man.
“Thanks for the assist, you two,” said a grateful Harrison. “Without your help, he might have gotten away.”
“No, not this time,” Kelly said, “not this time.” As he stared at Beckman, the suspect started to laugh. Chet’s eyes narrowed, angry at the audacity of the man. Roy and Johnny could have died, just like Jake. And this was the man responsible. This was the man who killed Jake. Before anyone could react, Chet threw a punch. It caught Beckman in the jaw and he dropped to the ground.
Chet leaned over him. “Laugh at that, you bastard!” he spit out. “You’re not gonna hurt anyone else! Never again!” Kelly spun around, almost colliding with Lopez, who was standing there in shock, surprised at what Chet had just done.
“Well, Lopez, what are we standing around here for? We still have a fire to put out.”
“Chet… your arm… you’re hurt,” Marco stammered. But Kelly just ignored him and ran back to the warehouse. Lopez just shook his head, muttered something about crazy Irishmen, and followed his friend.
********
Johnny and Roy were sharing a room at Rampart Hospital. Both had concussions and had breathed in a lot of smoke. In addition, Gage had received a couple of broken ribs and needed stitches for the cut over his eye. DeSoto had a separated shoulder and assorted cuts and bruises. Considering the alternative, though, they were lucky.
Roy was watching television, while Gage dozed. The door opened to reveal Lopez, Stoker and Kelly, peeking in to see if the injured men were awake. Dixie had told them that Roy and Johnny would be okay, but needed to stay in the hospital a couple of days for observation. Captain Stanley had already notified Joanne, and she and the kids were on their way back home. As the crew piled into the room Gage woke up, annoyed at the noise, until he saw who it was.
Kelly’s arm was in a sling, because of a badly bruised shoulder.
“Well, well, well,” chuckled Roy, “if it isn’t the heavyweight of Station 51.”
“Knock it off, Roy,” Chet said, blushing. “I was pissed at the guy. And anyway, he deserved it.”
DeSoto glanced over at Gage, who just smiled at Kelly’s discomfort. In an effort to change the subject, Chet asked them how they were feeling.
Still laughing, DeSoto told they were “…just fine, Chet. Thanks to you and Marco.”
“Firefighter, rescuer and law enforcement officer, all rolled into one. That’s our Chet!” remarked Gage. “Hey, Chet, did you really decked the guy? I mean, he was already cuffed, from what Marco said. Why punch him out?”
“It seemed like a good idea at the time,” Kelly mumbled. “Besides, he started laughing. It was like he was laughing at Jake. And at you guys. Laughing because Jake died. That wasn’t right. He should of died in that fire. It seemed like the least I could do.”
Roy and Johnny sobered, thinking about what Chet must have been feeling at the time.
“Well, Chet, I for one am glad you decked him,” said Johnny. “I just wish I’d been awake to see it.”
“Yeah, well, Jake saw it, that’s all that’s important,” Chet replied.
“Sounds like the nightmares are over, huh Chet?” asked Roy.
“Yeah, I slept great!” Chet assured him. “Oh, Johnny, by the way, I talked to your landlady today. She said you can move back into your apartment when you get out of the hospital. They finished re-painting it yesterday.”
“Good, because with Roy’s family coming home today, it was fixin’ to get real crowded at the DeSoto household.”
The men settled in to visit, Captain Stanley joining them after conferring with Dr Brackett on the condition of his men. Assured that they would all be fine, everyone was able to relax and talk about things other than fires, arsons, and dead friends.
As the others started exchanging jokes, Kelly leaned back in his chair, smiling, finally able to say good bye--again--to his old friend, Jake. Chet was able to put Jake’s memory back where it belonged, and looked forward to getting back to work with this group of friends. He realized what they all meant to him, and what he meant to them. And it felt good.
**********************************
"Arson" ©1999 Pat "Charli" Charleville. "Emergency!" and its characters © Mark VII Productions, Inc. All rights reserved. No infringement of any copyrights or trademarks is intended or should be inferred. This is a work of fiction, and any similarity to actual persons or events is purely coincidental.
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