Bottom Line – Alternate Ending 3

By

E51Writer@aol.com

“Put the gun down, Vince. Vince, put the gun down.”

The other men of Station 51 heard the panic in Johnny’s voice and went running toward their friend’s cry. They couldn’t believe what they saw when they rounded the back of the ambulance. Vince was screaming at the paramedic.

“You will not get away. Get in that ambulance. Get in there with your partner. NOW!!”

Roy stepped forward. “Okay, Vince, I’ll go too. Just put the gun down, please.”

Vince was confused. “What are you talking about? I don’t need a fireman to go with this crook and his injured buddy. I don’t have backup so I’ll ride to the hospital with the injured one. His partner there, well, I’ll take him along too. Call for some additional units to meet me at the hospital. They can take the cocky one then.” He motioned towards Johnny.

“Vince, I’m Johnny’s partner. You’ve been hurt, man. Let me look at you. Put the gun down.” Roy didn’t know how to get through to the injured cop.

“Quit your kidding. I’m not in the mood today. I have one helluva headache. Just call for my backups. Tell them to meet me at Rampart.” Vince started to get in the ambulance but Johnny was in the way. “Move back, asshole.” Vince gave Johnny a push sending him sprawling to the floor of the ambulance.

Johnny gave Roy a worried look just before Vince pulled the ambulance doors closed.

“Okay, men, let’s follow the ambulance. As long as they’re going to the hospital, we’ll be okay. I’ll call make the call to HQ and have them alert the police.” Captain Hank Stanley was patching in to LA dispatch when he had another thought. “Hey, Roy, give the ambulance driver a heads up, will ya, pal?”

Roy headed toward the driver’s door of the ambulance. The rest of the men gathered their gear and readied to follow the ambulance. No one guessed what was going on in the back of the ambulance.

“Okay. Listen to me, mister. I want one hand on the railing of this stretcher and give me the other one.”

Not wanting to annoy Vince any further, Johnny complied. To say he was surprised when Vince slapped a handcuff onto his outstretched wrist was an understatement.

“Vince! What the hell are you doing?”

“Shut up. Give me the other hand.”

“Vince, I need to keep one hand free to help this guy. If he gets into trouble, I have to be able to help.”

“Oh, yeah, sure. Maybe you haven’t noticed, but you are both in trouble already. The only difference is that only one of you is injured…right now anyway. Now give me your hand.”

Not knowing what else to do, Johnny removed his other hand from the railing and offered it to Vince. In one quick move, Vince slid the handcuff around the railing of the stretcher and locked up Johnny’s other wrist.

“Vince! Don’t cuff me to the stretcher, man. Now I can’t do anything.”

“Well, that WOULD be the goal! Just sit quietly, will you? My head is killing me. I don’t have the energy to deal with you any more right now.”

The ambulance left the scene with the engine and squad not far behind. Captain Stanley was still on the radio with dispatch. He was also talking with the police department. Together, the two departments were trying to figure out the best way to make sure this situation ended peacefully.

Within minutes, the car accident victim began to aspirate. “Vince, unlock the cuffs. He’s going to choke to death.”

“Shut up! Shut up!” Vince was rubbing his forehead.

“Vince. Snap out of it man. This man’s gonna die if you don’t free me.”

Vince had had enough. Without giving a second thought to the fact that he was inside an ambulance, Vince fired a warning shot intending to get the dark haired accomplice to shut up as he’d been ordered to do. The bullet ricocheted off the drug box, penetrated the window separating the driver from the back, and grazed the driver. The surprise of being shot caused the ambulance driver to swerve to the right. He hit the curb and the ambulance flipped.

“Oh, shit!” Mike’s one comment said it all.

The squad and the engine screeched to a halt. All the men jumped out of their units.

“What the hell? Johnny! Hang on!” Roy was running toward the ambulance.

“Roy! Stop right there, pal.” Captain Stanley’s thoughts were racing.

“What? I have to get to Johnny!” Roy turned and looked at his boss.

“Wait. All of you. We don’t know what went on in that ambulance. We don’t know if Vince is going to shoot the first person that opens the door. Chet and Marco, go to the front of the ambulance. Approach it with caution. Let us know what you see. Mike and Roy, gather the equipment and move to the top side of the ambulance. Be careful.” Hank turned at the sound of approaching sirens. He was relieved to see 2 police cars pulling up.

“Hank, what the hell happened?” Officer Lumm had been on his way to meet the ambulance at the hospital when the report of the accident crossed the radio.

“Don’t know, Dan. I’m afraid that someone’s been shot. Didn’t hear anything but all of a sudden, the ambulance swerved, hit the curb, and flipped. Got my men checking it out from the driver’s cab. I’d appreciate it if you’d head up there with them.”

“Will do, Hank. Steve, why don’t you go to the back doors and try to get in contact with Vince. You know the situation. Make sure he knows that other officers are here to take over the situation. Be careful. With his injury, who knows who he’ll shoot at.” The two officers ran toward the ambulance.

Captain Stanley made one more call before following the policemen. “LA, Engine 51.”

“Go ahead, 51.”

“Respond an additional squad and 2 additional ambulances to our location.”

“10-4, 51.” The tones sounded through the HT.

~*~*~

Inside the ambulance, there was nothing but silence.

~*~*~

‘Vince – it’s Steve. You okay?” Officer Sweeney was greeted by silence.

“Try again. I want to get this door open.” Roy was losing patience. **Damn the consequences** Roy thought. **I want in there and I want in there now!**

“Vince? We’re going to open the door in a minute, okay?” Thinking for a moment, Steve Sweeney added, “We’ve got you and your prisoners covered here. You can put your gun down. We’ll let you know just before we open the doors.”

Roy decided to make a quick check of the driver before demanding that the back doors be opened. He met Cap as he rounded the overturned ambulance.

“Whatcha got, Chet?” Cap’s voice almost seemed to be shaking.

“We’re almost in, Cap. Driver seems to be dazed but he’s awake.” Seconds later, the window popped and all 4 men were addressing the driver at the same time.

“You okay?”

“What happened?”

“Do you know what went on in the back?”

“Wait! We can’t all talk at the same time. Rank has privileges. Now, first, are you okay?” Cap asked.

“Yeah. Bullet grazed my shoulder.” The driver was cut off by a chorus of firemen and one policeman.

“WHAT?”

“Crazy cop – or someone back there – fired the damn gun. Just grazed me but scared the living shit out of me. Caused me to swerve.”

“Do you know if anyone back there is shot?” Cap was getting more nervous.

‘No, I don’t. I only heard one shot so I don’t think so. Haven’t heard a peep from anyone back there though.”

“Cap, we’re opening the doors!” Roy was already heading to the back of the ambulance.

“You okay if we leave you alone for a few minutes?” Cap asked the driver.

“Yeah. Be careful. That guy must be crazy.”

“Lay still. We’ll be right back.” Cap and the others ran to join Roy.

~*~*~

“Okay, men. Start talking Steve and Dan. We have to get in. Let’s be careful.” Cap dreaded what could happen next.

“Okay, Vince. We’re opening the doors.” Dan’s voice sounded reassuring.

“We got you covered. Lay your gun down so we don’t make any mistakes. Ready? On 3.” Steve hoped that Vince was aware enough to listen to his co-workers.

The men shared a glance and a silent prayer.

Steve counted. “1 – 2- 3.”

Roy and Marco opened the doors. The right door, which was now on top, wanted to fall back closed but the determined firemen got it locked in place. When they finally got a look inside, their hearts fell. The men lay unmoving.

“Where’s Johnny?” Roy couldn’t see his best friend.

“Let’s get Vince out of the way and see what we have with the other 2.” Cap was just as worried as his senior paramedic but he maintained his composure.

“Chet, neck brace. Marco, backboard. Mike help me get Vince secured.” Roy moved Vince quickly but safely. The other squad had just arrived much to everyone’s relief. “Bellingham, can you take Vince, here? We’ll work on getting the other guys out.”

“Sure, Roy. Brice, let’s get him out of the way.” The 2 paramedics cleared Vince from the area and set to finding out the extent of his injuries.

“I still don’t see Johnny.” Now it was Chet’s turn to be worried.

“I know he’s in there.” Roy was trying to assess the scene. “Damn. That’s his shoe sticking out from under the stretcher. He’s under the freakin’ stretcher! Johnny? Can you hear me?”

Roy’s cries were met with silence.

“Well, the guy on the stretcher was strapped in with a backboard. His position should be stable even though he’s overturned. Any injuries that he suffered in the rollover should only be to the front of his body.” Roy was trying to decide how to best handle this.

“Wonder if he was shot?” The words slipped out before Marco could stop them. He immediately regretted his question when he saw the worry they caused in his friends.

“Even if he has been shot, we should just be able to lift him off Johnny and…” there was pause as Roy realized what he had said. “…and slide him out. We’ll turn him when we get him out. We’ll hand him over to Brice and Bellingham and tend to Johnny. Let’s move.”

Roy and Chet crawled further forward in the ambulance. They had to move equipment and supplies in order to get in their position. Cap and Marco took positions at the lower end of the stretcher.

“Okay, lift on 3. Ready?” Roy checked to ensure that everyone was in position and ready. “1-2-3. Wait! Wait! What the hell?”

The men stopped at Roy’s frantic cries. “Get me the key. Get me the goddamn key! I don’t believe this!”

‘What are you seeing Roy? What key?” Cap was confused as were the other firemen.

Steve and Dan heard Roy’s yells and came running.

“Dammit! Johnny’s handcuffed to the freakin’ stretcher. I can’t believe I didn’t see the cuffs before we lifted it. Where the hell are the keys?”

“I’ve got them.” Steve held the keys up.

“Get in here and take hold of this stretcher. Give me the keys.” Roy was too pissed off to be scared at this point.

Steve wedged his way around Cap. He could see that the men were tiring from holding the stretcher up. He also knew they would remain in that position until they passed out if they had to. He laid the keys on the bottom of the stretcher and assumed Roy’s position. **Damn, this thing is heavy! No wonder the guys look like they’re straining.**

Roy grabbed the keys, unlocked the cuffs, and grabbed Johnny by the wrists. “Move! Move! Move!”

Steve, Cap, Marco, and Chet got the stretcher moved out of the way quickly. Brice and Bellingham met the men and flipped the stretcher. All of the men paused at the sound of Roy’s voice.

“No! God, Johnny, no!” Roy had tears in his eyes.

~*~*~

“Cap, get in here. Bring Bellingham. Damn – I need help. Johnny! Hold on, Junior. PLEASE!”

The men joined Roy in the ambulance. Captain Stanley had to turn his head for a minute to catch his breath.

“What the hell do we do, Bellingham?”

“I don’t know, Roy.”

Roy was still grasping Johnny’s wrists. Both of Johnny’s shoulders were dislocated. One of his wrists was obviously broken. The blood in the corner of his mouth lead to the belief that he probably had a lung injury. Certainly the stretcher landing on top of him had broken some ribs. There was a deep gash in his right leg. Add to that the two black eyes that were forming and all the blood around him and the sight of Johnny was enough to take the breath from even the most experienced of firemen or paramedics.

“Bellingham, get on the line to Rampart. I just don’t know how to position Johnny’s arms. I don’t want to risk pinching or cutting an artery by laying them down incorrectly. Can’t check him out until I can let go of these arms.” Roy shook his head as he looked at the worried faces looking in at him.

“Rampart, Squad 16.”

“Go ahead, 16.”

Dr. Brackett had already been given the reports on Vince, the ambulance driver, and the other accident victim. He knew this call was about Johnny. He looked around at the people standing by his side. He knew that the fear he saw in Joe’s and Dixie’s faces were reflections of his own.

“Rampart, we have a problem here. Johnny has multiple injuries. We don’t have any vitals yet. But we need some advice.”

“What’s the problem, Bellingham?” Brackett instantly knew Johnny was in serious trouble.

“Both of Johnny’s shoulders are dislocated. We are holding them in the position they went into as we lifted the stretcher off of him. We didn’t know about the damn handcuffs!”

Brackett’s eyes had never been wider. He bit his lip as he looked at Joe and Dix. “Handcuffs? What position are the arms in, Bellingham?”

“They are at about a 45 degree angle. Roy is keeping them in that position until you tell us how you want the arms positioned.”

“Is there a brachial pulse on both sides?”

“Let me check.” Bellingham returned a moment later. “Yes, Doc. It is strong on the right. A bit weaker but present on the left.

“Go ahead and lower the arms one at a time. Monitor the pulse the entire time. If you lose it, raise the arm again until you get it back.”

“Cap, can you hold Johnny’s left arm? Bellingham, I’ll lower the arm. Monitor the pulse.” They made it all the way down with the right arm maintaining the pulse. “Left arm, now. I’ll take it, Cap.”

“Stop. I’ve lost the pulse! Raise the arm. There. Got it back.” Bellingham was sweating.

“Dammit! Blankets. Ask Rampart if we can support it on blankets or something.” Roy continued to hold Johnny’s arm.

“Rampart…”

“We heard, 16. Do what you have to. Keep it at the angle it’s at right now.” Brackett was tapping his pencil on the countertop.

“Get the vitals, Bellingham. I’ll talk to Rampart.” Roy reached for the bio-phone.

“Rampart, 51 – or 16 – or something. Hell, it’s Roy.”

“Go ahead, Roy.” Despite the situation, Brackett smiled.

“Bellingham is getting the vitals. Johnny is in respiratory distress.”

“Roy, tell me how you found him, what happened, so I can better assess the information you’re about to give.”

“The ambulance rolled and the stretcher landed on top of Johnny. He was handcuffed to the railing but when we found him, he was completely under the stretcher. Except for one foot that is.”

The smile was gone from Kelly Brackett’s face. “Go ahead with the injuries, Roy.”

“Aside from the dislocated shoulders, both of his eyes are black and blue. Pupils are even and reactive. Left wrist fractured. Radial pulse is present. Bilateral fractures of several ribs suspected. Possible punctured lung. 13 inch gash in right leg. BP 95/62. Pulse 140. Respiration 32 and shallow. Johnny is unconscious but is responsive to pain stimuli.” Roy just wanted to get his friend to the hospital.

Before Brackett could respond, Joe Early was on the phone. “Yeah – prepare an OR. Have a neurosurgeon and orthopedic surgeon available. Trauma arrival estimated in 10 minutes.”

Brackett cast a thankful gaze toward Joe as he spoke to Roy. “Can you get a line in both arms, Roy?”

“Yeah. Yeah, I think we can.”

“Both arms then, full open, Ringers lactate. Stabilize wrist. Get a pressure bandage on the leg. Apply G-suit for shock. Let’s get the BP back up a bit. Sandbag head. Get him in here NOW!”

“10-4, Rampart.”

~*~*~

Brackett and Dixie met the ambulance. They began working on Johnny as soon as the stretcher hit the ground. Joe met them in the trauma room.

“We need to move, Kel. Let’s open the belly first and do a full exploratory. Then we’ll hand over to Dr. Roberts. Let him decide what order to put Johnny back together in. My guess is he’ll repair the leg first, then the shoulders. Don’t think he’ll need to do anything other than splint the wrist. It’s a simple fracture. I don’t see any signs of serious head injury. We’ll have Dr. Griffin examine him just to be sure. He’ll probably want to stay on standby until all of the surgery is complete anyway.” Joe was ready to move Johnny.

“Let’s go, Joe. Dix, update the guys in the doctor’s lounge, please. Tell them it’s gonna be a long evening.” Brackett helped Joe move their friend to the OR.

~*~*~

“So, why don’t you guys go back to the station? I’ll call you as soon as I know anything.” Dixie’s heart broke at the sight of all the pain in the room.

“Nah, Dix. If you don’t mind, we’d like to hang out here. We’re on stand down until we can be replaced. Chief thinks we’d be better off here right now.” Cap was grateful for the consideration his boss had shown his crew. Steve and Dan had made a call to the Police Chief. Their description of the situation prompted Chief Parsons to call McConnikee with his suggestion.

“Sure. Not a problem.”

“Hey, Dix, how are the others?” Chet was hoping for a good outcome for all involved.

“Vince is in surgery to relieve some swelling around the brain. Dr. Stippley says he’ll make a full recovery. He’s gonna have some issues to deal with though, isn’t he? He’ll be torn apart when he finds out what happened.” Dix looked at the floor.

“Wasn’t his fault though.” Those were the first words that Roy had spoken since they arrived at the hospital.

“No, no it wasn’t. I’m sure he’ll be happy to hear you say that to him, Roy. “ Dixie hoped Roy had picked up on her masked request.

“What about the driver, Dix?” Marco had helped Brice get him out of the driver’s seat and into the back of another ambulance.

“He’s fine. A few stitches closed the cut where the bullet grazed him. Other than the fact that he’s gonna be stiff in the morning, I’d say he was one lucky guy. He’s being released right now. The other guy has been admitted for observation. He’ll be fine too.”

“Now it’s just Johnny who’s in question.”

“He’s got the best of the best working on him, Roy. Keep the faith. I’ll let you know what’s going on.” Dixie walked over to Roy, patted him on the shoulder, looked around the room at the group of friends, and headed out to get an update.

~*~*~

It had been a long night. But, it was a night of good news. The first report came after Johnny’s belly was closed up. No organs were damaged. He’d be sorer than hell from the bruised ribs but the lung was not damaged. Seems the blood in Johnny’s mouth was from where he’d taken a good bite out of his cheek upon impact. That would be sore for a bit as well.

The second report came when the leg was closed up. There were several bone chips in the wound but nothing that wouldn’t heal. Extra care was being taken to ward off infection.

The third report was the one they were all sweating out. The shoulder dislocations were horrific. Both required surgery to reduce the dislocations. The surgery ensured though that the arteries remained intact and undamaged. Full recovery with no disability was expected. Johnny would be able to return to work – eventually.

The room had taken on the air of a party. The outcome of Johnny’s injuries was definitely a cause for celebration.

“I have never seen one guy dodge so many bullets!” Brackett couldn’t hide his amazement.

“Watch it there, Doc. Perhaps that’s not the best choice of words!” Cap broke into laughter. The rest of the room joined in.

~*~*~

The end