You’ll Be The Death Of Me Yet!
By
“Sure, Marco. I’d be happy to talk to your niece’s class. Is there any special area of the Indian culture they are studying?” Johnny was obviously excited.
“Yeah, Johnny. They are studying the natural history of the American Indian and his relationship with nature.” Marco was glad that Johnny was so willing to help out his niece, Rosita, since she had already told her class that she knew a ‘real Indian’ and that he would come to school with her. Marco hadn’t shared that bit of information with his friend.
“Well, I could talk about our family names and how they relate to the animals around us. Yeah, that’ll be good, that’ll be good.” Johnny was lost in thought.
“I think they’d like that, Johnny. What animals are in your family?” Marco was now as interested as he knew his niece’s class would be.
“Well, we have a couple animals and some birds. There’s bear, elk, and eagle. Running Bear, Whispering Elk, and Grey Eagle.”
“Hey, Gage, speaking of you and animals, how ‘bout you get your ASS up and set the table?” Chet was laughing at his own cleverness. And, he was laughing about something else.
“Chet, you are an ASS. Yeah, I think you must have Indian blood in you. In fact, I’m sure of it. Talking Ass. That’s you alright.” Johnny was not amused but he was pleased at finally being able to call Chet an ass as part of a normal conversation.
The rest of the men laughed.
Johnny opened the cabinet door and got hit with a bucket full of water. Chet was doubled over laughing. “Damn you, Chet. You’ll be the death of me yet!” As Johnny headed toward the lockers, his crewmates could hear him cussing under his breath. “Dumb Ass. Stupid Ass. Pain in the Ass. Ass. Ass. Ass.”
Chet was still laughing when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up into the eyes of Cap. In his hand, Cap held the dreaded toothbrush. “All yours, pal.”
“Aw, Cap. I was just having fun.” Chet had turned 3 shades of red.
“Good. Remember just how much fun it was during the next 4 shifts.” It was Cap’s turn to laugh.
“Four shifts?! Latrine duty for 4 shifts? That sucks!” Chet suddenly didn’t think he was so clever.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The men made it through lunch for a change. Just barely though. The tones sounded and the men jumped up from the table.
“Station 51, Engine 110, structure fire at 112 Longcove Street. 1-1-2 Longcove Street. Cross street Marina. Time out, 12:47.”
“Station 51. KMG-365.”
The engine and squad raced to the fire.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“What’ve we got, Gary?” Cap asked the captain of engine 110.
“Two story duplex with basements. Fire appears currently contained to the first floor. There is an elderly couple on the second floor of the unit to the left. Fire’s burning hot, Hank. We need to move quick.”
Cap turned toward his men. “John and Roy – there’s an elderly couple on the second floor – left side. Chet and Marco, go with them to help bring them out. Take a line with you. Mike, charge a line for 110 too.” Cap turned toward Captain Woods. “Can you get a couple of your guys on the left side too?”
“You got it, Hank.”
“Okay, men, let’s move. Be quick. We don’t have a lot of time.” Captain Hank Stanley said a silent prayer as he watched his men disappear into the structure.
Chet and Marco lead the way, wetting down the area around the stairway. The fire hadn’t reached the second floor yet but they stood ready to bat down any fire that appeared around them. Johnny and Roy began their search for the elderly couple.
“Got ‘em. They’re back here, Johnny.” Roy yelled through his mask.
“Hurry up, Roy. The fire’s moving up.” Chet was getting that restless feeling that gnawed at his soul.
Within seconds, Johnny and Roy came down the hall, carrying the couple over their shoulders. The old man was unconscious. The old woman was just barely keeping her eyes open.
“Wait. Chester. Chester is still back there. We were watching him today. You have to get him.” The elderly woman began to sob just before losing consciousness.
“What the hell?” Johnny was not happy. “Who’s Chester? Marco, take the man. You and Roy get these people out of here. Chet, come with me, we gotta find Chester.”
“Junior…”
“Roy, go. We’ll be out. See if you can find out from the neighbors who Chester is. Think it’s their grandchild?” Johnny anger suddenly turned to near panic. **Not a child.**
Chet and Johnny headed back to the area where the couple had been found.
“We have to move, Gage. This place is going up.” Chet was scared.
Johnny took his mask off in order to yell louder. “Chester. Chester. Can you hear me?” Johnny and Chet crawled along the floor.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Captain Stanley looked up to see 2 of his men exiting the building. That meant that there were still 2 inside. **Get the hell out, men. Get out!** Instinctively, Cap called for another squad.
Roy ran up carrying the old lady. He quickly removed his mask. “Cap, Johnny and Chet are looking for someone named Chester. Before this lady passed out, she said that they had been watching Chester today and that he was still in there.”
“Who the hell is Chester?” It was Cap’s turn to be unhappy.
Marco deposited the old man next to his wife. He put his air mask on the man before running to the squad to get the O2 from there.
A neighbor overheard Roy and began yelling. “A cat. Chester is their grandson’s cat. It’s just a damn cat!”
Cap immediately got on the handy-talkie. “HT 51, Engine 51. Get out. Chester is a cat. Repeat Chester is a cat. GET OUT!”
“Shit! A goddamn cat!” Johnny turned back toward Chet and pulled the HT from his jacket. Just as he hit the talk button, all hell broke loose.
They heard the noise first. Johnny’s and Chet’s eyes locked. Chet looked at Johnny through his mask. Johnny struggled to get his mask back in place. He failed. Chet saw Johnny start to slide away and reached out his hand. Johnny grasped Chet’s hand with a death grip. Their eyes never released their stares.
The floor beneath Johnny began falling away. Chet held on with all his might. He began to slide toward the hole. Fear was suddenly replaced with pain. Something stopped Chet from sliding just before he went headfirst into the hole. The sudden stop – and the weight on the end of his arm caused Chet’s arm to snap. He never uttered a word.
After regaining his senses, Chet realized he was still staring into Johnny’s eyes. Johnny was hanging from Chet’s arm. Both men held their death grip as Chet laid on his stomach, head and shoulders over the hole. Chet was paralyzed with fear and pain.
Finally, Johnny spoke. “Chet, let me go.” Johnny had heard and felt the sickening crunch of Chet’s arm breaking. He could see the shock in his friend’s eyes.
Chet continued silently staring at his friend.
“Chet, let me go” Johnny looked down. The movement caused Johnny’s wrist to break. The pain caused Johnny to jerk to the right. “AW SHIT!” Johnny hung form his friend’s hand – wrist broken, shoulder dislocated.
Chet remained silent. Never breaking his gaze.
Johnny begged between his teeth, “Chet, let me go. It’s only 2 stories. It probably won’t kill me. Let me fall. AWWWW!”
Chet’s eyes were locked with Johnny’s again. Johnny saw a haunted look overtake his friend’s face.
**You’ll be the death of me yet!** The thought played over and over in Chet’s mind.
“Chet, PLEASE!” Tears filled Johnny’s eyes. He saw Chet mouth something. “What?” Chet mouthed it again. “What? For God’s sake, Chet, let me go.”
“NO! NO! NO! I won’t
be the death of you. I won’t be the death of you. I won’t be the death of
you…”
“Chet! AAAAWWWWW!”
Chet stared into Johnny’s eyes as they rolled backward and Johnny lost consciousness. His voice was barely a crying whisper. “Don’t be dead, Johnny. I didn’t let go. I’m not the death of you. I’m not.” In his mind, all Chet could hear was Johnny’s voice. **Chester. Chester. Can you hear me? You’ll be the death of me yet.**
So deep in emotional pain, Chet was oblivious to his physical pain. Johnny’s dead weight still hung from Chet’s broken arm. Chet never stopped staring at his friend. So intense was his shock and fear that Chet never questioned what kept him from following his friend into the hole in the floor. So determined was he to not let his friend fall, Chet didn’t even feel the slicing of the spike through his leg, nor the pain when it lodged in his knee joint, bringing his forward slide to a halt.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“Looks like the building is stable, men, but I don’t know for how long. Make it quick.” Captain Stanley was rubbing his hands together. “Gary, send two of your men around the back and two up to the second floor…or what’s left of it. Roy, you and Marco head in the front. Brice, you go with the couple in the ambulance. Bellingham, stay here. Let’s move.”
The men headed toward what was left of the building. Cap turned toward Bellingham. “Hope you don’t mind me sending your partner to the hospital. I just don’t have a good feeling about this. I wanted you – not Brice – to be here for Roy.”
“Not a problem, Captain Stanley.” Bellingham smiled. “I can use the break.”
Cap smiled for the first time in what seemed like forever.
Inside the building, there were no smiles to be found. Although the collapsing of the building extinguished what was left of the fire, smoke and dust hung in the air.
“Madre de Dios.” Marco was stopped in his tracks.
“What is it, Marco?” Roy followed Marco’s eyes up toward the ceiling. “Holy shit. Hang on, Chet. Don’t let him fall.” Roy ripped the HT from his pocket. “Engine 51, HT 51.”
“Go ahead, Roy.” All around Cap fell silent.
“We’ve found ‘em. Cap, I don’t know what we’re going to do. Tell the guys up on the second floor to hold their positions. Tell ‘em to stay back from Chet so that the rest of the floor doesn’t give. Get some help in here. We gotta figure this out.”
Within seconds, Cap was staring at the scene before the men. A low whistle escaped through his teeth.
“Cap?”
“I don’t know, Roy.” Cap carefully approached the hole in front of him. The basement was full of debris from the collapse of the first and second floors. There was no way to get directly under Johnny without clearing massive amounts of wood, furniture, and drywall from the basement floor. Looking above, Cap questioned whether or not the floor was stable enough for someone to get close enough to Chet and Johnny to belt them. Rubbing his hands together, Cap looked down then up one more time. He was just about to say something when a sound from above caught his attention. “What was that Chet?”
Chet was oblivious to anyone other than Johnny. “C’mon, Johnny, wake up. I’ve got you. I won’t be the death of you. I won’t.”
Cap and Roy looked at each other. Marco shook his head and continued praying in Spanish.
A noise from the door caused the men to turn and look.
“You…won’t…believe…it.” Jackson was out of breath. Cap wasn’t sure if it was because the fireman had tired from fighting the fire or from fear of what he had seen while he was on the second floor. Bending over to catch his breath, Jackson was finally able to continue. “Daly is still up there. Chet. Man, he’s caught on a spike. It’s ripped into his knee. Couldn’t get close enough to see the damage. There’s blood everywhere. Looks like that spike is all that’s keeping both of them from going over.”
“Did Chet say anything?” Roy was now even more worried about his friends.
“No. He doesn’t even realize we’re there. He is totally zoned. I don’t know how he’s holding on to Johnny.”
Cap looked at his watch. He felt like he’d been observing the situation for hours yet only three minutes had passed. “Okay. Here’s what we’re going to do. Jackson, take a belt up to Daly. Have him shimmy over to Chet and belt him. Marco, go up with Jackson and secure a line for Jackson and Daly to use then get back down here. Roy, do you think we can come in from the roof, have you rappel down to Johnny and belt him?”
Cap and Roy glanced upward.
“Oh no. Hold on, Chet. Stay with us. Look, Cap. Chet’s going to go out. His head is bobbing. Damn it, Chet, hold on.” Roy was frantic.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
**The darkness. Can’t happen. Don’t let it happen. Can’t drop Johnny. Can’t be the death…** Chet’s world went black just as a shadow passed next to him.
Daly didn’t think. He just acted. He saw Chet’s head start to bob and knew that there wasn’t much time. He made it to Chet’s side just as Chet lost consciousness.
“I can’t hold him. I don’t have a good grip.” Daly was quickly weighing his options when Jackson approached.
In one swift motion – and knowing that he was tied off to a safety line – Jackson moved next to Daly and belted him. “You’re tied off, Daly, grab him. Hold onto him.”
No longer fearing a fall, Daly leaned farther over the hole, grabbing Johnny by the collar of his turnout coat. Then, in one sickening, ear-piercing moment – it happened.
“NO!” Daly yelled.
“Hold on!” Roy was sure he screamed in terror but wasn’t sure that anyone heard him as the floor above gave way.
Cap was the first one to speak. “Sweet Jesus.” The scene before him rattled him to his very core. The weight of Daly and Jackson caused the floor around Chet to buckle. **Thank God it bent back under rather than came crashing down through this floor! At least this gives us some options.** Daly’s safety rope caught, leaving Daly hanging from the hole, dangling in mid air. Holding onto one of Johnny’s arms and the collar of his coat, Daly held Johnny about 4 feet off the floor. Both men were swaying, the rope swinging back and forth from the sudden stopping motion of the ropes breaking any further fall. If Daly lost his grip and dropped Johnny, it was questionable whether Johnny would land on the edge of the first floor or go all the way to the basement. **Chet. Dear God. Chet.** The sight of Chet caused the man to shudder. The boards holding Chet hadn’t broken through all the way. He was laying at an angle, dangling really, but still supported somewhat by the floor – and the spike. Blood was running down the boards and falling into the hole below. **Too much blood.** Jackson had a grip on Chet but seemed to be having a hard time holding the man back.
Regaining his composure, Cap began directing the rescues. “Daly, Jackson – hang on, men! Marco, Bellingham – go to Johnny. Mike, Roy – you take Chet. Wait!! What about this floor? Is it going to go? Damnit! Marco, Bellingham – get Johnny. Mike, Roy – back off until Johnny is removed.”
Roy shot Cap a hateful look. Cap held his ground. Roy could read the mixed emotions in his superior’s eyes. “Cap…”
“I need some help, here. I’m – losing – my – grip…on Chet.” Jackson held the fireman by both ankles but the blood was making it hard to keep a solid grip.
It was then that the men below realized that there hadn’t been time to get a belt on Chet. The only thing keeping the man from a fall to the basement was Jackson’s loosening grip. And, a spike. A ceiling spike. But, the beam had broken. A bit more of an angle and even the spike wouldn’t hold Chet.
“We got Johnny.”
All eyes briefly turned toward the injured paramedic. Just as quickly, they turned up to the second floor.
“JOHNNY! OH GOD!! I WAS THE DEATH…”
“Chet, settle down.” Roy took a step forward before realizing that a few more steps would lead him to a quick trip to the basement. **Damn it, Chet. Why’d you have to come to NOW?!**
“Stop moving, Chet. I can’t hold you.” Jackson knew his grip was going to fail soon.
“Oh, God! Oh, God!” Chet was sure the blood that was dripping around him was from his friend. The friend he’d obviously dropped. **I was the death of him. Johnny was right. I didn’t mean to be. Really, I didn’t.**
“Chester B. Kelly! Settle down.” Cap wasn’t done yelling, but no one heard the rest.
Even though they all saw it happening, only Daly was in a position to do anything about it. It would have been easier if there’d been a floor to stand on, but nonetheless, dangling headfirst from a hole in the floor above still left him best positioned for what happened next.
The cracked wooden beam fully gave way, sending Chet headfirst towards the basement. The only thing that slowed the motion was the slight hesitation caused by the spike in the knee joint. The sudden jolt to that leg caused Jackson to lose his grip on that foot, leaving Chet connected to his lifeline by one ankle. Chet’s knee popped free of the spike as Chet tumbled downward. Jackson slid forward across the same spike that had held his fellow firefighter. If it hadn’t been for his turnout coat, Jackson would have shredded his chest before the beam with its spike fell out of the way.
Jackson held on to Chet with all his might. His belted line caught causing the men to swing to the left. It was just far enough for Daly to grab Chet’s arm.
“Holy shit!” Roy felt sick. “Chet’s arm shouldn’t be bending like that – how the hell did he hold onto Johnny?”
No one had time to answer.
“Son-of-a-bitch, I’m losing him. I can’t hold onto his ankle any longer. Dear God.” In an instant, Chet’s blood soaked boot slid through Jackson’s hands causing Daly to have the full weight of Chet dangling from his precarious grip.
Cap sprung into action not even considering his own safety. He bolted towards Chet and stopped just short of his own tumble into the gaping hole in the floor. Daly twisted on his rope in order to see Cap. That simple move gave Cap the opportunity he needed. He grabbed Chet’s lower leg and pulled him towards himself. “Let go, Daly!”
Daly dropped the full weight of Chet onto Captain Stanley, causing the man to stumble backward and fall to the floor.
Marco ran back into the area after helping take Johnny outside the falling building. “Squad 36 is on their way. What? Dios Mio!” Marco eyes shifted from the two firefighters still dangling from the ropes above to the pile just beyond the gaping hole. The pile of two men – two of his friends – that lay silent and unmoving.
Hearing the yells from within the building, the rest of the guys from 110 gingerly approached the collapsing room. Mike stopped them at the door. “Head up and get Daly and Jackson down.”
It was Roy’s turn to issue some orders. “Marco, go ask Captain Woods for some help with some stokes. We need two in here. Fast!” With Mike’s help, Roy carefully began to separate his friends.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Exiting the building, Roy paused to look at his partner. A glance toward Bellingham told him all he needed to know. His best friend was still alive but he wasn’t in good shape. There was a brief moment of relief when he heard 36’s sirens approaching.
Roy couldn’t help but listen to Bellingham’s transmission to Rampart as he assessed Chet. **Smoke inhalation? Damn him. He took his mask off again. How bad is the shoulder? Shit! Still unconscious. Probably a blessing given the arm. Hang on, Junior, hang on.**
Hearing Bellingham’s final receipt of instructions, Roy grabbed the bio-phone. “Rampart, Squad 51.”
“Go ahead, 51.” Brackett rubbed his temples.
“Rampart, male victim – Chet…Chet! Settle down. You have to settle down.”
“51, repeat.”
“Marco, help me out here. Settle down, Chet. Johnny is NOT dead. Damn it, settle down!”
“Roy?”
“Sorry, Rampart. Chet’s in and out. He’s out again now. He has lost a lot of blood from a laceration in his leg. Rampart, be advised that his leg is sliced open from just above the ankle to the knee. Severe damage to the knee joint is visible. Right arm broken in 3 places. Vitals to follow.”
Roy relayed Chet’s vitals while the guys from 36 worked on Captain Stanley. All of the paramedics looked up upon hearing the familiar thump on the back of an ambulance. All of them also offered a prayer as one of their own was taken to Rampart.
“Negative, Rampart. Captain Stanley has not regained consciousness.” Wilcox immediately looked over to Roy. The paramedic from 36 knew how he’d feel in this situation.
As Chet was being loaded moved to the ambulance, Roy made a quick trip to Cap’s side. “C’mon, Hank, hang in there. You gotta meet the guys at the hospital. They need you. We need you.” As Roy headed toward the ambulance, he could still be heard. “I need you.”
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Rampart was functioning in a state of organized chaos. The number of doctors walking in and out of the exam doors would have made the scene look like a humorous ‘Three Stooges’ movie if it wasn’t for the fact that they were all working fervently to help the men of Station 51. Orthopedics, neurology, vascular surgery, cardiac surgery, radiology…there didn’t seem to be a department that wasn’t represented.
Roy smiled as he saw Dr. Sooten from ob/gyn arrived on the scene. **That’s it – the last department. Wonder which one of the guys is having a baby?** A woman’s scream interrupted Roy’s thoughts. The silence was suddenly broken by the sound of a crying baby. Roy smiled again.
The wait was made three times longer by the fact that Mike, Marco, and Roy were waiting for news on three of their friends this time. Finally, Dr.’s Brackett and Early, lead by Dixie, entered the lounge where the men of 51 were waiting.
“They’re all okay. Johnny and Chet are out of surgery. Hank is already in a room. He’s going to have one heckuva headache from that concussion but he’s doing well. Those are some very lucky men.” Brackett was yet again amazed at the resilience of the men of 51.
“When will they be able to return to service?” Roy was afraid to hear the answer he was sure was coming.
“Well.” Brackett frowned and looked to Early and Dix. Turning back toward Roy, he continued. “Hank will be back in a week or two. Johnny will probably be back a few weeks after that. He’ll have to rehab that shoulder and his lungs. He’ll have to re-test too. Chet…”
“What about Chet?” Marco was trying to hide the panic from his voice.
“Chet’s injuries are a bit more severe. There is really a question as to whether he will be able to get his knee back to where he can pass the service re-entry test.”
‘Wha…”
“Now, Marco, you know we will do everything possible to help him out. You guys can make a huge difference by encouraging him, too." Dixie patted Chet’s best friend on the shoulder.
“There is another area that they guys will need some help in, too. Chet’s having a really hard time with this. He still feels he somehow failed Johnny.” Joe Early softly smiled. “He keeps saying that his practical joke days are over. He’s not going to risk being ‘the death’ of anyone ever again. And, Johnny, well, he keeps mumbling about a true hatred of cats.”
“Especially those named Chester!” Brackett’s laughter helped lighten the situation.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Cap was back at work and Johnny was going to return on the next shift. The jury was still out on Chet but he was making remarkable progress and things were looking good. The guys of Station 51 decided that there truly was reason to celebrate, so a family picnic on the beach was planned.
Chet, Johnny, Cap, Roy, Mike, and Marco were sitting on a blanket. Rosita had finally gotten her own personal lesson about Johnny’s family and their relationship to the animals and birds. She skipped away happily. She knew that she’d be the hit of the school as soon as Johnny made his long-delayed appearance in her class.
“Bullshit, Gage.”
“What, Chet? I thought you’d believe in these legends. I mean, you’ve got an animal relative.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Well, I guess I never actually met up with him, but a few months ago we sure caught hell looking for Chester Cat. He played a helluva joke on us, now, didn’t he? I figured he had to be related to you somehow! Who was named after who?”
“Ha ha, Gage. Very funny. That was a stupid coincidence. I’ve been waiting for you to bring it up. Of course, that is a way to divert the attention, isn’t it?”
“Huh?”
“You know, away from your stupid Indian name legends.”
Johnny was feigning a look of hurt. He knew his friend would never truly insult him and his family. They’d been down that road before and had reached an understanding. This was nothing more than a friendly game being played. “Now, Chet. Don’t go insulting my relatives. There’s no need to do that. You don’t want to get them angry, now.”
“Yeah, right. Hey! What the hell?! A-w-w, d-a-m-n i-t!”
The group looked toward the sky. Mike and Cap rolled over on their sides laughing.
“See there. That’ll teach you!” Johnny watched the flight of the two seagulls that had just ‘blessed’ Chet. “Thanks, cousins!” Johnny waved to the birds.
The men couldn’t swear to it, but upon receiving Johnny’s thanks, it sure sounded like the gulls’ cries turned to laughter. All of the men on the blanket joined in.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The End