A Halloween Tale

by Nancy F. Thysell (the NiFTy Lady)

As A-Shift arrived for work at LA County Fire Station Fifty-one, everyone appeared to be in a bad mood. So many things seemed to be conspiring against the crew. For starters, it was raining. As it rarely rained in sunny southern California, any precipitation would certainly guarantee an extraordinary number of traffic accidents. Add to the equation that it was a Friday, which would guarantee that too many idiots would go out celebrating after work, going to parties, or hitting the road for the weekend. And lastly, it was Halloween. As a general rule, Halloween would bring out some of the weirdest calls they ever responded to.

Chet Kelly moaned about oversleeping and hating this kind of weather. Marco Lopez was nursing an injured hand thanks to a burn from ironing his uniform. Mike Stoker, the engineer, had a splitting headache, which made him even quieter than usual. Roy DeSoto had a fight with his wife, JoAnne, and was feeling miserable. He was uncharacteristically complaining to anyone and everyone who would listen to him. John "Johnny" Gage had gotten dumped...again, so his demeanor was normal. Even Captain Hank Stanley wasn’t his usual cheerful self, muttering to himself something about his wife’s car.

Hank had barely begun roll call when the klaxons sounded and they headed off to their first MVA of the morning. There would be two more before they had a chance to even consider eating lunch.

Around noontime, as Fifty-one’s paramedics were returning to the station from Rampart Emergency Hospital, Johnny turned to his partner and voiced his opinion. "I tell you Roy, it just gets weirder and weirder every year. People all over the place are wearing costumes to work. Did you see that girl in the ER?"

"Oh yeah," Roy responded. She was a little hard to miss. She was dressed in surgical scrubs, her blonde hair had been teased into a "do" that Frankenstein’s bride would have been proud of with a nurse’s cap pinned on top, covered in "blood," wearing zombie makeup and sporting vampire fangs. What was even scarier was that she was actually one of Rampart’s nurses. It seemed half the staff was dressed in some kind of get-up.

Johnny shook his head. "I just don’t know! I mean what if we went around dressed up in some kind of costume?"

Roy stole a glance at Johnny. "You don’t think our turnout gear doesn’t look like a ‘costume’?"

"Well, yes. No,...uh...I mean...." He gave Roy a confused look.

Roy just chuckled. He loved it when he could fluster his partner. As he pulled up to back the squad into the truck bay, he noted that the engine was on a run. "I hope they left us some lunch, I’m starved!" Roy commented as he parked the squad.

"Me too!" Johnny enthusiastically agreed as he bounded from the passenger’s side of the vehicle and headed for the kitchen and day room, right behind Roy.

They walked through the kitchen door but found themselves in the dorm. Puzzled, Johnny swung around and exited into the truck bay. Roy looked bewildered as he followed him. Everything in the apparatus bay seemed to be in order.

"How the heck did Chet do that?" John was amazed. He was certain the "The Phantom" was up to some kind of a practical joke. Roy gave Johnny a worried look.

"I don’t know, and I don’t think I want to know."

They cautiously crossed the bay and opened the door to the locker room and peered in. The locker room appeared normal, much to their relief. Johnny went to the other side of the room and pushed the door open to the dorm and entered the Captain’s office. He spun around and looked at Roy in the locker room, confusion etched on his face. "Roy?"

"Don’t ask me!" Roy held his hands up in defeat as he poked his head through the door and looked around. "It’s the Cap’s office all right." It really was. EVERYTHING was exactly where it was supposed to be, except that it was where the dorm should be! Johnny stepped back into the locker room and let the door close behind him.

"Are we hallucinating?"

"I’m not sure. But it doesn’t stand to reason that we would BOTH be having the same one," Roy considered thoughtfully.

"This is too weird. Should we go check out Cap’s office? I mean, where his office should be?" Johnny suggested. Roy shrugged his shoulders.

"Might as well. This could be interesting."

They walked through the swinging door of the locker room to enter the vehicle bay but instead found themselves back in the kitchen! Henry sat up on the couch as they entered and barked at them.

"No way! No way this is happening! Roy! What the hell is going on?" Roy looked in his partner’s panicky eyes. He had no clue.

Johnny spun around and went back through the door again and found himself back in the truck bay beside the squad. He reached out and touched the compartments of the squad, just to convince himself that it was real. The cool metal greeted his fingertips with reassurance. He turned to say something to Roy, but Roy wasn’t there.

"Roy! Where are you?" He ran back into the kitchen. This time the room was completely empty. No table, no chairs, no sofa, no TV, no Henry and worst of all, no Roy! Suddenly lightning streaked across the sky and thunder rolled. Johnny felt every hair on the back of his neck stand on end. He slowly backed out the room. The squad was still where it was supposed to be. Everything here seemed to be in place.

"Roy! This isn’t funny! Answer me!" The echo of his voice in the bay was the only answer he heard. Fear gripped him and he ran to Cap’s office. Tentatively he opened the door and peered into the room. It appeared to be the Captain’s office -- everything was as it should be. He crossed to the desk and picked up the telephone. He wasn’t quite sure who he needed to call, but he definitely need to call someone. He lifted the receiver to his ear and began to dial Headquarters. He was barely through the first half of the numbers when he heard a distinctive click as the line went dead. Someone had to be playing some kind of a trick on him. Or was he sick?

Am I feverish? he wondered. He placed his palm on his forehead. No, I don’t feel warm. Baffled, he left the Cap’s office and walked back into the day room. The room now appeared normal. Everything was just as it should be -- except Roy was still missing. Henry rolled over and stared at him with woeful eyes. Johnny ran his hand nervously through his hair and shook his head, trying to make some sense of the bizarre events taking place. Suddenly, he felt ice cold as if he had stepped into a meat locker. Goose bumps raised on his bare arms, sending a chill down his spine.

"It’s like I’m in some damn Twilight Zone episode!" he muttered to himself. He decided he needed coffee -- something ordinary and familiar. He started a pot on the stove. He paced the length of the room several times while he waited for the coffee to brew. The quietness of the station was eerie – too eerie for Johnny. How am I going to explain to Cap what happened? What do I tell JoAnne and Roy’s kids? How can I face them?! This was turning into a nightmare -- only he wasn’t waking up!

He had a sudden thought. The TV! Yeah, that could be the answer. He rushed across the room and switched on the set. Nothing. No picture, no sound -- nothing. Why isn’t the TV working? He banged the top and sides of the set. Then he double-checked to see that it was plugged in. Maybe the power was out. He tried the light switch and the power refused to come on in the overhead fixtures

Oh, Man! This is spooky. He rubbed his face with his hand, trying to control the panic he was beginning to feel. He could hear the rain beating hard against the roof. He wandered through every inch of the station. There were no lights, no sound but everything was in its place -- everything except Johnny’s thoughts. Roy was still missing and he was in a quandary as to what to do. He returned to the kitchen and poured himself a cup of coffee. Henry rolled over again on the couch and watched him.

"What am I going to do, Henry?" he asked the mascot. In response, Henry yawned and closed his eyes. Suddenly another thought occurred to him. I can contact Rampart on the bio-phone! He rushed to the squad and tore open the compartment. Everything was just as it should be, EXCEPT the bio-phone was missing!

Johnny swore under his breath. Damn -- this can’t be happening! It’s got to be a dream. Why can’t I wake up? He slammed his fist in frustration against the squad. Ouch, that smarted! He shook out his hand. Wait a minute! I’ll use the squad’s radio to contact dispatch! It was working when we left Rampart. He wrenched the door open and reached for the mic. Yes! It was there. He picked it up and brought it to his mouth. "LA this is Squad 51."

He waited. "Come on, come on!" he urged, impatiently. Man, if this doesn’t work, I don’t know what I’m going to do. "LA this is Squad Fifty-one!" he shouted. Silence was the only response. He broke out in a cold sweat. He licked his dry lips. His eyes darted quickly around. There had to be some logical explanation, but for the life of him, he couldn’t fathom one. He laid his arm on the dashboard and leaned his head down and closed his eyes. When will this nightmare end?

*****

Johnny felt a sharp nudge in his ribs and he lifted his head suddenly. He was sitting at the table in the kitchen, next to Chet, who had obviously elbowed him. "Wake up, Gage," Chet hissed. He looked up and saw Captain Stanley writing something on the blackboard. His eyes felt bleary. He must have fallen asleep. That explained it -- it was all a bad dream. He wiped his eyes with hands just as Stanley turned around.

"Am I keeping you from your nap, John?" the Cap asked, unamused.

"Uh, no sir," he replied, sheepishly.

"Well, try and pay attention. I just want to remind you guys to be more aware when we go on any runs tonight. A lot of kids are going to be out there trick or treating and they aren’t going to be paying attention to traffic. Unfortunately, the rain has stopped -- that means there will be even more kids out tonight, not to mention the adults that are into costume parties. So, a word to the wise...be extra careful." He surveyed the faces of his men, trying to judge if they had comprehended the severity of his warning. They all nodded back at him. He relaxed his posture and rubbed his hands eagerly together. "So, gentlemen, I suggest that we eat some dinner and get ourselves ready for whatever the spirits have in mind for us tonight."

Roy pushed himself away from the table and went over to check on the casserole baking in the oven. Mike and Marco started setting the table. Johnny sluggishly pushed himself away from the table. Something still didn’t feel quite right to him. He couldn’t put his finger on it though. He went over and poured himself another cup of coffee. He sipped his coffee and watched as dinner was readied. Maybe the dream was affecting his perception.

"Soup’s on," Roy called and the men reassembled around the table and dug into the meal.

Johnny ate in silence. He watched his coworkers as they chatted about this and that. He felt uneasy. Something just isn’t right. If only....

The phone rang. Hank slid his chair back from the table and sauntered over to the ringing device. "LA County Fire Station Fifty-one, Captain Stanley speaking...Sure thing." He held up the phone and motioned to Roy. "It’s your wife, Roy."

"Thanks, Cap," Roy responded as he got up from the table and took the receiver. "Hi Honey. What’s up?"

Johnny watched a moment before swallowing. Hmmm -- Roy and JoAnne must have made up. When did I miss that? He turned to Mike who was sitting next to him.

"Did Roy and JoAnne make up?" he asked. Mike gave him a strange look.

"What do you mean?" Mike asked tersely.

"Didn’t they have a fight this morning?" Johnny felt confused. He was certain that Roy had groused about it that morning.

Mike’s eyes threw daggers at Johnny. "Why would Roy have a fight with MY wife?"

"What?..." Johnny almost choked. He stared back at Mike. Did he hear correctly? Before he got a chance to ask what Mike meant, the klaxon’s sounded.

"Station Fifty-one. House fire. 666 Santana Avenue. Cross street Battery. Six six six Santana Avenue. Time out 18:23."

"Bye honey -- we got a call," Roy said as he hung up the phone and followed the rest of the guys into the apparatus bay. Johnny slid around the squad and into the passenger side of the cab. He put on his helmet and adjusted the strap as Hank acknowledged the call and handed off the address before he jogged over to the engine. Johnny turned to take the slip of paper from Roy and was startled when Chet handed it to him. He stared as Chet adjusted his helmet strap and threw the vehicle into gear. Chet gave him a sideways glance.

"What? Did you want to drive again?" he asked irritably. Johnny shook his head.

"Where’s Roy?" he finally spit out.

Chet rolled his eyes. "Where do you think he is? He’s driving the engine!"

Johnny swung his head around and peered over at the engine as Chet made the right turn. Sure enough, Roy was at the wheel of the engine. Why was Roy driving the engine? Where was Mike? What was Chet doing in the squad? He felt dizzy.

"Are you okay man?" he asked with genuine concern. Johnny looked over at Chet. He wasn’t sure he wanted to answer that. Everything was too confusing.

"Where’s Mike? Why isn’t he driving the engine?"

Chet threw a worried look at Johnny. "Johnny? Why would Mike be driving the engine? You know, he still hasn’t passed the exam. I’m beginning to wonder if he ever will." Chet snickered a little. John’s jaw dropped.

"Chet, are you telling me that Roy’s an engineer and not a paramedic?"

Chet laughed out loud. "Roy? A paramedic! That’s rich! What’s with you Pally?"

Johnny winced at the familiarity of the nickname. But that was his nickname for Roy! He took a closer look at Chet and noticed his name badge: C Kelly Firefighter Paramedic. Johnny felt the color drain from his face.

"Chet," he asked uneasily. "You’re a paramedic?"

Chet threw his friend a concerned look before refocusing on the road ahead. "Johnny, did you hit your head or something today and not tell me?"

Johnny shook his head. "To be honest, Chet, I’m not sure what’s going on." He tried to process the information and his brain just wasn’t cooperating. This day had started strange and it was getting stranger.

Chet guided the squad into a residential area. Johnny could see numerous children, dressed in their holiday costumes as the strobes of the squad’s lights flashed across them as they hurried to the next house. Chet slowed down just as a small goblin darted across the street in front of them. He braked to a stop. The small head bobbed up and terror filled eyes peeked through the costume’s eye holes at the squad. A scared adult rushed into the squad’s high beams and scooped up the child and hurried to the curb. Johnny could see the woman scolding the child as they continued on their way.

Johnny saw the street sign for Battery. "Turn here, Chet," he directed. "Santana should be the next street."

They pulled up in front of the house -- white, steamy smoke billowed from the front door, The house appeared dark. Captain Stanley climbed down from the rig. "Mike you come with me. Marco stand by until I know what we’ve got," he ordered. Chet ran over to the Cap.

"What do you want me and Johnny to do?"

"Hold on for now. Let’s see what we have first." Stanley and Mike approached the house. They climbed the steps to the door. A fiendish looking Jack o’ Lantern smiled wickedly at them from the stoop. The Cap rapped on the door. "Fire department," he yelled into the open door, waving the smoke from his face. An eerie cry emanated from the interior of the house. From the curb, Johnny recognized it as something on a sound effects tape. He chuckled as a witch materialized in the doorway.

"May I help you?" the witch intoned.

"Ma’am," the Captain replied politely, "we received a call to a house fire at this address."

"What? No, no…there’s no fire here!" the woman’s voice became normal.

"Then where is all this smoke coming from?" Hank asked, waving more of the fumes from his face. It really didn’t smell like smoke.

"Oh, it’s just dry ice. We put it in the cauldron for atmosphere," the witch explained. Just then a rather obese man ran across the yard and up to the door.

"Thank goodness you’re here! Did you get the fire out?" he cried breathlessly.

"Mr. Baldwin," the witch asked incredulously. "Did you call the fire department about a fire?"

He took a step back at her angry tone. "Well, yes, I saw all the smoke. The house was dark. I thought you weren’t home!"

The witch groaned. "We were set up for the trick or treaters! We made our living room into a haunted house," she explained.

"Oh, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry! I didn’t know! I thought the house was on fire!"

"Well, folks, no harm done. I’m glad you called anyway sir. It’s better to be safe than sorry. Sorry to have bothered you, ma’am." Stanley turned and as he and Stoker made their way back to the engine, he used his handi-talkie to contact dispatch to make them available. A group of excited, costumed children passed the emergency vehicles on their way into the spooky house at 666 Santana.

"At least they have the perfect address for Halloween," Chet snorted. Johnny had to agree with him on that. He looked over at Roy, sitting behind the wheel of the big rig. He appeared to be comfortable, as if he really belonged there. But a nagging doubt rested in the back of Johnny’s mind. What happened – why am I so rattled? If Roy really is the engineer and Chet a paramedic, why didn’t I know? And why did I think JoAnne was Roy’s wife and not Mike’s? Am I losing my mind? He turned back to the squad and a wave of nausea flooded over him. He steadied himself with his hand against the side of the truck. Captain Stanley watched as his paramedic’s knees appeared to buckle. He jumped from the cab.

"Johnny!" he yelled as he ran over to the squad. Johnny collapsed into Stanley’s arms.

"Wha...?" His mouth felt parched. He was disoriented. He jerked his head to see who held him. He heard a commotion of people scrambling.

"Chet, call in a Code I!" Stanley ordered. "Roy, help me here!"

Roy? Johnny thought in his confusion. "Roy, help me..." he mumbled as the darkness overcame him.

*****

He gradually came back to awareness. He opened his eyes with a start. The room was dark. The bedding he lay on was soaked with his sweat. Every joint in his body screamed in protest to his slightest movement. His lips felt cracked and dry. He ran his tongue over them in an attempt to moisten them. He reached his hand out in an effort to orient himself to his surroundings.

"Roy?" he called out. He was unsure if he was even heard -- he barely heard himself. There, a sound. A blurred image entered his peripheral vision and he felt a cool palm on his forehead.

"Johnny!" A disembodied male voice came to him. "Are you okay? Can you hear me?"

He tried to focus, but he couldn’t make his eyes work. Nausea washed over him. He tried to roll to his side, but his body wasn’t cooperating. He felt someone grab his body and turn it for him. His body betrayed him as he vomited. The bitterness of the bile burned his throat and his mouth. A cool, damp cloth was wiped against his lips and he felt his body rolled onto his back again. He tried to talk but no sound came forth.

"Just lie still, Junior," Roy ordered. "Let me do all the work." Johnny turned unfocused eyes towards Roy’s voice. He felt Roy’s hand on his wrist. He’s taking my pulse, Johnny thought with alarm. I’m so hot. Why am I so hot? Roy? He tried to lift his head, but a firm and gentle hand pushed him back. He heard other voices but he couldn’t make out what was being said. He felt the sting as the needle of an IV was inserted. Damn, I must be really sick! He turned his head to the left and strained to hear what was happening. He wanted to ask someone what was going on. More noise, more movement -- he felt hands lifting him. They must be transporting me to Rampart. He groaned in discomfort.

"Easy, easy -- careful there. Let’s get him loaded up." He could feel the uneven vibration of the stretcher’s wheels on the floor. He had to close his eyes. The movement was making him dizzy. He felt a jerk as they dropped the gurney down and lifted it into the awaiting ambulance. He heard someone climb in beside him. Probably Roy.

He tried to smile. Roy will take care of me. His head rolled involuntarily as the ambulance took off. The sirens assaulted his ears and a moan escaped his lips. Hands again -- measuring his pulse, checking his respirations -- taking his blood pressure. Damn Roy, don’t mumble -- talk so I can understand you! He tried to raise his head off the gurney. A hand pressed gently on his shoulder until he gave up. Why was it getting so hard to breathe? He gasped for air. Roy! I can’t breathe! He panicked. He could feel his body writhe as he tried to gulp in air.

"Johnny! Stay with me!" he heard Roy’s panicked voice command has he drifted into the dark abyss.

*****

What time was it? He could hear the sounds of machinery. He recognized the sound now as hospital monitoring equipment. He opened his eyes and immediately could see the plastic tubing of the ventilator at the end of his nose. He gagged on the tube in his throat, setting off the alarm. He heard rustling beside him and a chair scraping against the tiled floor. Roy’s face came into view as the nurse opened the door to his room.

"Johnny?" he heard Roy ask hopefully. He blinked as he looked at his partner and friend. This damn tube! The nurse reset the machine and checked Johnny’s vitals.

"I’ll go tell Dr. Brackett that you’re awake," she smiled as he informed him. Then she was gone.

He searched Roy’s eyes for answers to his unvoiced questions.

"You’ve been really sick. Your temperature spiked up to 106 and you went into convulsions. You’ve been unconscious for almost 36 hours."

Johnny tried to digest the information Roy was giving him. 36 hours? Fever? Convulsions? No wonder I feel like crap.

Dr. Brackett swept into the room with a big smile on his face. "Johnny! Welcome back!" he greeted. He check Johnny’s vitals and made some notes on the chart. "I’m going to remove that tube for you."

Roy waited outside the room until the nurse informed him he could return to his partner’s bedside. Johnny looked much better now that the tube was gone. His skin still looked pasty. He stood next to the bed and smiled down at his friend. "So, how’s it going Junior?" He poked his hand tentatively at Johnny’s chest.

A small crooked smile formed on Johnny’s face. "I’ve been better," he said weakly.

"Well, you need to get back on your feet pretty quick. You can’t let Jen down."

Johnny’s eyes clouded with confusion. "What?"

"Don’t tell me you forgot?" He chuckled at Johnny’s bewildered look. "You promised Jennifer that you’d help her set up a spook house for Halloween."

"Halloween?"

"It’s this Friday, remember? You promised you’d come over after our shift and start setting up the spook house so it would be ready at dusk."

Johnny still felt confused. "How long did you say I’ve been out?"

"Thirty-six hours."

"And Halloween hasn’t come yet?"

"No, not yet. You feeling okay?"

Johnny shook his head, trying to clear out the cobwebs.

"I guess. I feel like I’ve already been through Halloween once this year. Are you sure?"

Roy chuckled. "I’m sure, Junior."

Johnny threw his left arm over his face and closed his eyes. "I don’t know if I can go through another one so soon."

"What do you mean, ‘so soon.’ What are you talking about Johnny?"

Johnny raised his arm slightly and peeked at his partner. "Maybe you don’t want to know."

"Hey, I’m not going anywhere." Roy pulled up the chair closer to the bed and sat down.

"Raise the bed a little so I can see you better," Johnny mumbled. He heard Roy reach over and lift the control to the bed and push the button. The head of the bed raised slowly. When it stopped, Johnny opened his eyes. "Much better."

"How’s that?" Roy wanted to know. Johnny smiled and nodded. He stretched his arms out and then interlaced his fingers and put his hands behind his head.

"Well, for starters, it was raining. All the guys were in a bad mood -- even you. You and JoAnne had a fight," Johnny began.

"When was this?"

"That’s what I’m trying to tell you. It was Halloween!"

Roy scratched his head and eased himself back to listen to Johnny’s Halloween tale. It could prove interesting.

**********

Author’s note: Hope you all enjoyed my E! tale for Halloween. I’ve always enjoyed this time of year. So Happy Halloween everyone!