Turning Tables Part 3
With special thanks to Chris Umscheid
Johnny followed Dixie up to the intensive care unit. He opened the door and waited for her to enter.
"This is as far as I go. Besides, Roy doesn't want to see me. He wants to see his partner." Dixie gave him a reassuring smile.
"Will he still want to see me after he knows what really happened?" Johnny leaned against the open door.
"Don't you think that's up to him to decide?" Dixie patted him on the shoulder and walked away. She hesitated just a moment at the elevator to see Johnny knock on the door to Roy's room.
#####
"Hey, pal. How ya doing?" Johnny gave Roy his best smile.
"Better." Roy smiled; he was pleasantly surprised at his visitor.
"Looks like they're finally feeding you." Johnny stood next to the bed and glanced at the half-eaten dinner tray.
"They started me on a liquid diet today." He pushed the bedside table aside with a look of disgust. "Now I truly understand Chet's disdain for chicken broth."
"Wet dog?" Johnny wrinkled his nose at the memory of the smell in Chet's kitchen.
"Wet dog is right!" Roy laughed. "I'm just glad I don't have to eat that shit for more than a couple of days. Speaking of Chet...why WAS he driving the engine?"
Johnny took a deep breath; he had been dreading this moment.
"I caught Chet up in the engine, pretending to drive. He was real excited about passing the engineer's exam." Johnny ran his hand through his hair. "I started hassling him. Just giving him the usual ration of shit. To prove me wrong, he started up the rig and was going to realign her in the bay. I yelled at him, that he was too close to the wall. I guess he cranked the wheel too hard. The next thing I knew he had hit the doorframe. I went around to check the damage and you were pinned between the doorframe and the rear side fender. I guess the tailboard must've caught you, that or the ladder hit you and knocked you down..." Johnny looked up into Roy's eyes. He was ready to hear whatever Roy had to tell him.
"Oh." Roy said in a deadpan sort of voice. "How's Chet doing?"
"I don't know. Nobody has seen him since the accident." He should have figured. It was just like Roy to think of everyone else first.
"Hasn't he been to work?" Roy shifted in the bed. The freshly scrubbed abrasions on his back were starting to ache.
"Chief had to suspend him." Johnny was shocked that Roy didn't know. "Listen, Roy. I.. um..Ah.. Shit. It wasn't Chet's fault; it was mine. If I had just left him alone. Man, I don't know what to say. Sorry just doesn't seem to cover it. I practically killed you, ruined the life of your wife and kids. I wanted to be there for you, I just couldn't. I mean, hell Roy, seeing you all busted up, knowing that I was to blame. I just had to fuck with Chet, couldn't leave him be. Because of that I almost..." Johnny couldn't continue, he was shaking and tears were threatening to spill from his eyes.
"Hey, Junior." Roy put his hand on Johnny's. "I know better than to get in the blind spot of a moving engine. If anyone is really to blame here, it's me."
"I can't believe that, Roy. You have every right to hate me." Johnny just wouldn't see Roy's side of things.
"I'm not too thrilled with this either." Roy shifted himself in the bed again. "But what good will beating ourselves up over it do. Johnny, you're not just my partner; you're my best friend. I'm going to need you now more than ever."
"I'll do anything it takes to help make this right." Johnny wiped away a tear.
"Damn straight." Roy laughed. "You can do all of the things on JoAnne's honey-do list for me."
"Honey do-list?" Johnny looked suspiciously at Roy; maybe they were giving him too much pain medication.
"Yeah, honey-do this, honey-do that." Roy rolled his eyes. "I know that the lawn is going to need mowed and the gutters need to be cleaned out."
"Gutters!" Johnny staggered back in mock horror.
"Yeah, gutters. I would really appreciate it if you would help her out around the house." Roy was serious now; he wanted to take some of the burden off his wife. "Even after I am outta here, I'll be laid up for a while."
"You don't even have to ask." Johnny would gladly do all that he could.
"Thanks." Roy smiled. "Don't worry too much about this, I needed a vacation anyway," he said with a wink.
"Hell of a way to get time off." Johnny gestured across the bed.
"Well, at least you're the one getting the new partner this time." Roy laughed; he always hated getting stuck with replacements. "Looks like I'm on the other side of the table, uh...bed, this time."
"Speaking of partners. They gave me a kid fresh out of training." Johnny was relaxing now that everything was out in the open. "He even called me 'sir' today."
"Has he been on any runs yet?" Roy knew the frustration; he'd had his share of new partners.
"Cardiac. Did a real good job, too." Johnny was pretty impressed, so far. "He just jumped right in and..." The conversation stopped when Johnny's HT came to life.
"Squad 51, stand by for response."
"I'll see ya later." Johnny jumped up and headed back to the ER to find Phil. "Squad 51, 10-4."
#####
Phil had heard the radio traffic at the nurse's station and was waiting for Gage.
"Squad 51, child trapped. 218 Kline Road, 2-1-8 Kline Road, cross-street Cooper. Time out 1320."
"Squad 51, 10-4." Phil answered as the squad pulled away from Rampart.
They rode in silence, only Becker spoke to let Gage know that traffic was clear. Maybe it was all of the stories he had heard in training. Maybe it was the fact the Johnny was so much older and had so much more experience. Phil wasn't quite sure, but his new partner made him very nervous. They were only a minute away when the radio came to life again.
"Squad 51, cancel."
"Squad 51, 10-4. Returning to quarters." Phil hung the mic back in its place."
"I'm going to swing by Chet's on the way back to the station." Johnny stated.
Johnny pulled up behind Chet's car and walked up to the door. He knocked several times, but got no answer. Even after walking around and looking in the windows, he could see no sign of Kelly. "Where in the hell would he be without his car?" Johnny wondered. When a thorough search revealed nothing, Johnny really started getting worried.
#####
"Hey, Cap. Can I see you in your office?" Johnny needed to let the Captain know what he had found.
"Sure, pal. What's up?" Hank led Johnny into the office.
"I went by Chet's. His car is there, but he's not." Johnny could see the worry in Hank's eyes.
"Are you sure he wasn't just sleeping?" Hank questioned.
"I looked in all of the windows. There's no sign of him." Johnny sighed.
"I know he was really upset when he left the other day." Hank stood up and began to pace. He always thought better when he paced. "Where would he have gone?"
"I've been racking my brain with the same question." Johnny had run several scenarios through his brain on the way back to the station. "Especially without his car."
"I don't have a clue." He rubbed his brow in frustration. "Maybe one of the guys..."
The conversation was interrupted by the tones and klaxon.
"Squad 51, man unconscious. Jonesy's Tavern 7618 Axelrod, 7-6-1-8 Axelrod, cross street Hunter. Time out 1412."
"Squad 51, 10-4. KMG-365." Hank handed the paper to Johnny, who remembered this time that he was supposed to drive.
#####
Johnny and Phil pulled up in front a decrepit building. One of the windows had been covered with plywood. No doubt the result of a bar fight. Johnny eyed the establishment with disgust. "We're probably gonna need tetanus shots when we leave this sty," he thought.
"Nice shit hole, hey Phil?" Johnny said sarcastically.
Once inside the paramedics were greeted with the stench of stale beer and urine. A stocky man in a dirty shirt and even dirtier apron greeted them.
"What's the problem, sir?" Phil asked.
"When we closed up last night, we missed one. My waitress, Donna, found him under the pool table this morning. I couldn't wake him up so I called you." He growled around the cigar he was gnawing. "He owes me money too. Helped himself to a couple of bottles from behind the bar."
The man led them to the pool table and pointed. "Get him outta here. I run a respectable establishment, ya know. Fucking drunk."
Johnny crawled underneath the table to assess the patient. On the way he had to push aside two bottles of Old Crow and a bottle of Jack. He stopped short, however, when he realized who his patient was.
"Chet!" Johnny called. Since there was no response he tried a sternal rub. He was rewarded with nothing more than a small groan. "Phil, help me get him outta here."
Johnny began assessing Chet while Phil set up the Biophone. Aside from Chet's unresponsiveness, it was pretty obvious to Johnny that he had tried to drink himself to death. Johnny grabbed the drug box and began preparing two IV's.
"Hand me the phone." Johnny held out his hand. It's not that he didn't trust the kid, but this was his friend. "Rampart this is Squad 51."
"Go ahead, 51" Dix replied motioning for Dr. Early to come to the base station.
"Rampart we have a male, age 25. He has ingested large amounts of ETOH. He's responsive only to pain. Pupils are reactive, but sluggish. BP is 120/86, pulse is 66, respiration's are 12. There are no other signs of injury." Johnny knew how dangerous alcohol toxicity could be and he was wasting no time.
"51. Start two IV's of LR running them wide open. Is there any evidence that the patient has vomited?" Dr. Early asked.
"Negative, Rampart. There are two empty pints and one empty fifth around the victim." Johnny had no idea how much Chet had consumed, but he knew it was too much.
"10-4, 51. Start IV's and four liters of O2 by nasal cannula. Make sure that you keep him warm, we don't want hypothermia to set in. Transport as soon as possible." Dr. Early turned to one of the nurses. "Set up in three. We may need to do a gastric lavage."
Phil started one of the IV's while Johnny started the other. The ambulance arrived and they rushed Chet into the back. Phil jumped in behind him. Johnny hated the fact that he was going to have to drive. He wanted to be with Chet.
"You radio me in the squad if you have any problems." Johnny said handing Phil the HT.
"I will. Don't worry, I'll take good care of him." Phil gave Johnny a nod. Johnny slammed the doors and hit them to let the driver know they were ready. Johnny ran to the squad and loaded up the equipment. He didn't want to be more than a couple of seconds behind.
It was a fast trip to the hospital. Johnny moved so fast that he almost beat the attendant to the rear doors of the ambulance. He took over from Phil and they rushed in the doors.
"Dix." He called. "It's Chet. What room?"
"We're set up in three." Dixie didn't know that the patient was the missing firefighter.
Johnny and the attendants hurried Chet into the waiting treatment room. Dr. Brackett was there waiting for them.
"Were you able to get a better estimate on how much he drank?" Dr. Brackett questioned the paramedics while beginning his assessment.
"Well, based on the empty bottles around him and the one he was cradling in his arm, I'd say two pints and a fifth." Johnny stated.
Dr. Brackett turned to the waiting nurse and began to request the syringes full of medication that had been drawn in preparation of Chet's arrival.
"Naloxone." Dr. Bracket began slowly pushing medications into the IV. "Give me the Thiamine. Now the D50." The drugs slowly began having the desired effect and Chet began to moan.
"Chet, Chet. Can you hear me?" Johnny moved in close to Chet.
"Johnny" Chet's voice was so weak he could barely understand him. "Johnny? Where the fuck am I?"
"Rampart. You were under a pool table in the bar." Johnny sighed with relief.
"Roy..." Chet began to sob. "I killed Roy. My fault."
"Roy's fine. He's here in the hospital." Johnny put his hand on Chet's shoulder trying to bring him out of his drunken haze.
"Johnny." Chet said it so quietly that Johnny leaned over to try to hear what he was saying. All of a sudden Chet's stomach took over. Before Johnny had a chance to react, Chet had vomited all over him.
"OH MAN!" Johnny yelled as he jumped back.
"Suction." Dr. Brackett called to the waiting nurse. "We need to make sure he doesn't aspirate it."
"LA, this is Squad 51. We are 10-7 at Rampart for cleanup." Phil said into the HT as he took in the scene around him. He was trying not to laugh. Even as a rookie he knew better than to get to close to someone who had too much to drink.
"I need to go get cleaned up." Johnny looked at his uniform in disgust. "Is Chet going to be okay?"
"He'll have one helluva hangover in about an hour, but there shouldn't be any permanent damage." Dr. Brackett knew how close the boy's on A shift were. "He may be with us for a day or two. More importantly, he needs to talk to someone about the accident."
"Thanks, doc." Johnny slipped out of the room to get a shower and wash his uniform.
#####
Johnny had finished taking his shower and was waiting for his uniform to dry. He had called the station to let Captain Stanley know that they had found Chet. Although still terribly worried, the Capt. was relieved to know that Chet was safe. Johnny was nursing his second cup of coffee over a newspaper when Dr. Brackett came in.
"Hey, doc. How's Chet?"
"He's going to be fine. We are admitting him to the detox unit for a couple of days." Kel said as he sat down with his cup of coffee. "His blood alcohol level was 2.9. And, as you know, he's blaming himself for Roy's injuries. Once he sobers up we are going to have the psychiatrist, Dr. McNamara, talk to him.
"I hope it does some good. Man, Chet's in some pretty deep shit with the department." Johnny shook his head. "I should have stopped him. This is as much my fault as it is his."
"Have you been up to see Roy today?"
"Yeah, thanks to Dixie. That's some partner I have. You know he says the accident was his fault because he walked up to a moving engine. I'm just glad that I still have him."
"We are going to be moving him out of ICU tomorrow, if his lungs continue to remain clear." Dr. Brackett gave Johnny a reassuring smile.
Just then Dix walked into the lounge with Johnny's freshly laundered uniform. He thanked her and hurried off so they could get beck to work, now that he no longer smelled like the bottom of a whiskey bottle.
#####
Johnny and Phil returned to the station. For the first time in four days Johnny felt that things were beginning to look up. Roy was well on his way to a full recovery and Chet, although in the hospital, was at least found. Johnny's new partner was going to work out just fine, he figured. Tomorrow he thought he'd take Chris and Jennifer to the park, and mow Roy's lawn. Then he decided he'd spend some time with Roy at the hospital. He glanced at the kid sitting next to him. He knew that he was older than he looked, but he really did look like a little boy, playing fireman.
"I guess we're going to be working together for a while." Johnny realized he hadn't spoken more than a few words to him since he had come on as Roy's replacement.
"Guess so." Phil smile, momentarily surprised by the unsolicited conversation.
"Where did you say you were from." Johnny thought he remembered Phil saying something about the south. Of course, with the obvious drawl the kid had, it wasn't too hard to guess.
"Inman, South Carolina." Phil willing joined in the conversation.
"Sorry, never heard of it." Johnny shook his head.
"That doesn't surprise me, it's just an itty-bitty town really. It's in Union County, that's not far from Greenville. My daddy, he works construction and mama, she works at the textile mill. It's not a big mill, they make undergarments. My sister works there too. Only my oldest sister though. My baby sister Te-Te is still in high school. Her real names not Te-Te of course, its Theresa. We just call her Te-Te. I was on the volunteer fire department, along with my daddy. He didn't want me to spend the rest of my life poundin' nails so I decided to become a firefighter. One day I just packed all my stuff up and headed out here to LA." Phil was inspired by Johnny's interest and had talked about his family back in South Carolina all the way to the station.
Johnny was thrilled to finally pull the squad into her parking spot. He learned more about Inman than he ever wanted to. By the time he turned off the engine, he was ready to pound his head repeatedly against the steering wheel. He had never met anybody who could talk for so long about one subject but never really say anything.
#####
Johnny hurried to catch the elevator up to the ICU floor. It had been a very quiet night and he had slept well. He was looking forward to the next two days off to help JoAnne and spend some time with Roy.
"Hey, Pally. Ya up for some company?" Johnny smiled as he opened the door.
"Sure am. I can't wait to get out of this place. I'm going to go crazy." Roy pointed to the chair beside the bed. "They won't even let the kids come to see me until I'm out of ICU."
"I can't stay long. I've got plans. I'm supposed to pick up Chris and Jen at noon for a trip to the park and ice cream." Johnny looked forward to spending time with Roy's little ones.
"Back to the last time you were here. Tell me about this new partner of yours." Roy was curious, it didn't seem quite fair that Johnny should get somebody easier than Brice. Roy was always getting stuck with Brice.
"I have never heard one person who could get stuck on one subject for so long without ever saying anything." Johnny started laughing. "He's a nice kid and a good medic, but he never shuts up. I'll be so glad when you get back to work. Maybe we can have some peace and quiet."
"Peace and quiet huh?" Roy said with a giggle. "He just gets on a subject and talks till it's past the point of exhaustion."
"What do ya mean by that?" Johnny cast Roy a look filled with mock hurt. "I don't do that. He just plain rambles. I don't ramble, what I have to say makes sense."
"I seem to remember a partner I had that rambled for two shifts about card games and getting stuck with the dishes." Roy was laughing now. "Then there was the time that you..."
"All right already." Johnny said raising his hands in surrender. "I give up. I have been known to ramble. It just feels so weird being the older, more experienced member on the team."
"Don't get too used to that spot, Junior." Roy gave Johnny a little punch to the shoulder. "I plan on getting back to work as soon as possible. All of this laying around is making me crazy."
"I sure hope so." Johnny laughed. It was so good to see Roy getting better. He had been so worried.
"I think there's a game on channel six." Roy said reaching for the remote. "Do you have time to..."
Roy never finished his sentence. He grabbed his chest as the pain tore through his left lung, taking his breath away. He looked at Johnny who was watching the television. Roy couldn't gather enough breath to ask for help. It was only a moment, but to Roy, it felt like a lifetime.
"Hey, you gonna turn on the..." Johnny looked at Roy who had become pale in just a matter of seconds. "Roy, ROY!!"
Johnny reached over and pushed the call button. He pulled Roy gently into a sitting position and pulled the oxygen mask off the wall and turned it on to 15 liters. Despite Johnny's interventions, Roy continued to struggle to breathe.
It seemed like forever before the nurse came in. When she saw the ashen color and the difficulties that Roy was having breathing, she called to the desk for extra help.
"Roy, what's wrong." The nurse moved to Roy's side and began taking his pulse.
"Can't....breath...." Roy gasped out. "Chest....hurts."
"I know. We've paged Dr. Burgwyn." The ICU nurse, Becky, replied. "Just try to relax and breathe."
Dr. Burgwyn arrived in no time and assessed Roy's condition. He called Johnny out into the hallway.
"It's an embolism, isn't it?" Johnny asked as soon as the door closed behind him.
"Looks like it. We have X-ray on the way up to be sure." Dr. Burgwyn confirmed.
"Are you going to have to operate?"
"We'll try heparin first. Becky is getting that now as well as morphine for the pain. Once we reduce the pain it will be easier for him to breathe." The doctor and Johnny stepped aside to let the portable X-ray machine into the room.
"I need to go call JoAnne." Johnny said as he headed for the family waiting room to use the phone.
Johnny dialed the number and waited for JoAnne to pick up. He didn't want to frighten her; Roy had been doing so well. He was deep in thought, deciding what to say when she answered the phone.
"Hello."
"JoAnne, its Johnny."
"Johnny, hi. What time are you picking up the kids? They can't wait to get to the park."
"JoAnne. Roy's had some problems. Can your dad bring you into the hospital?"
"Oh God. Johnny what is it?" The news had rocked JoAnne. She was beginning to think this nightmare would never be over.
"Dr. Burgwyn is with him now. He's going to be okay."
"What is it?!" JoAnne demanded.
"They're not sure yet, the test results aren't in."
"Johnny Gage! Don't you dare keep anything from me. You know more than you're telling. Please, what do they think it is?" JoAnne knew that Johnny was just trying to protect her, still she couldn't help but get angry.
"It may be a blood clot, in his lung." Johnny didn't want to scare her, but he couldn't lie to her either.
"I'll be there in just a few minutes." JoAnne hung up the phone without saying anything more.
Johnny hung up the phone and went back to Roy's room. He met the ICU staff rolling Roy's bed out of his room. Dr. Burgwyn stopped to explain things to Johnny.
"It's an embolism. Trouble is it's larger than we thought. I'm not going to be able to use heparin. We are taking him into surgery now. Did you get a hold of his wife?"
"She's on her way. We'll wait for you in the surgical waiting room."
"I'll send someone in just as soon as I know what is happening." Dr. Burgwyn said over his shoulder as he hurried down the hall. There was no time to waste. If the clot broke loose it could go deeper into his lungs, or worse, his heart or his brain.
Johnny went downstairs to meet JoAnne so they could wait together. Again, Johnny felt a wave of regret as he remembered the immaturity that had caused this accident. "You have to be there for Roy." He mentally chastised himself. "You have to take care of JoAnne and the kids. You promised Roy."
To Be Continued...
Author's Notes: I would like to take this opportunity to thank Chris "Lucky" Umscheid for all of the inspiration and perspiration he put into this story. I couldn't have done it without you. "Wet dog" chicken broth is used with permission of Chris Umscheid (see "Big Red's Demise" on Jane's page.) I would also like to thank Tangee for all of her valuable input. I hope that you all enjoy this and stick around for the conclusion.
"Turning Tables" ©1999 Barbara Black. "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.
NOTICE: The layout and HTML formatting on this page are the property of Two Chickies Fan Fiction. They may NOT be used on any other fan fiction site and any such use constitutes HTML theft. Additionally, this page may not be linked directly from any other site without the express written permission of the owners of Two Chickies Fan Fiction, and any such link must be acknowledged on the referring page. We urge you not to support any site that engages in such tactics, and to report any such usage to Marcia or Tangee.