The little girl hugged her mother tight, then turned toward her friend and called over her shoulder, “See you tonight, Mommy!”
“Bye, Sweetie- I love you!” called Joanne after her little girl as she thought to herself ‘six years old, they grow so fast’. Then she turned and walked into the house making a mental note of all she had to do that day.
Just then the phone rang, she stubbed her toe as she walked toward it. “Hello,” she muttered. The greeting sounded more painful then cheerful.
“Jo? Is everything okay?” asked the voice on the phone.
“Hi, Roy. I just stubbed my toe on Chris’ erector set. How is your day?” she replied as she leaned over and examined her big toe.
“So far so good, it’s been very slow. We’re getting ready for a drill out back, I wanted to see if Jennie went with the Stokers or if you have to drag her on your errands,” her husband stated.
Joanne absently rubbed her toe as she told Roy that Jennifer was growing so fast and that she went with Beth and her daughter and didn’t show any signs of worry. Roy commented that he couldn’t believe that Jennifer finally went to spend time with friends, and that this was a good thing. Joanne was feeling a little lonely as she told Roy of all her plans for the day.
“Well, I have to get three of your uniforms to the dry cleaners and pick up one that is waiting, then off to sign the kids up for summer camp, then I’m going to meet up with Beth and the girls for lunch. After that it’s off to Tommy’s to pick up Chris who should be ready to come home. Then I suppose I’ll try to finish this laundry and make something for dinner, just in time for Jennie to return,” Joanne said as she ran some soapy water for the breakfast dishes.
“Hi, Joanne!” she heard Johnny saying in the background then heard him mutter, “Drill is starting.”
“Honey, I have to go. Give me a call tonight and let me know how Jennie’s day went,” he said before hanging up and walking out to the back of the station.
Joanne hung up the phone and sighed, she completely forgot that she had a meeting at the bank in 15 minutes. She quickly turned the water off, grabbed her purse and keys and ran out of the house.
* * *
Twenty minutes later the drill was coming to a close. Roy stood next to Mike Stoker and grinned, “Well..... Jennie finally did it. She’s going to the park with Beth and Carrie”
Mike laughed, “I wish Carrie had a bit of shyness to her, sometimes that child is TOO outgoing. Worries Beth and me at times."
“Boys? Do you think I can get your attention for a moment?” Captain Stanley asked?
“Sure, Cap,” Roy and Mike said at the same time.
“DADDY,” came a child’s voice from the front of the station. “DADDY PLEASE” screamed the child. Roy’s face went white as he realized that the voice sounded very much like Jennifer’s. He took off running along with the rest of the crew. He lost his breath when he saw his daughter standing, alone, in the bay. Tears running down her face, her arms and her shirt were wet with blood.
“Gage!!!!!! Get the med box, Lopez, call in a still alarm,” cried the Captain as he dropped to his knees beside the little girl.
“JENNIFER!!!!! Calm down, Jennifer!” yelled Roy as he checked the child over. He was relieved to find no apparent injury on her. He sat back on his knees and looked at her. “Honey, what happened? How did you get here?”
Johnny was taking the child’s vitals and trying to calm her. She was sobbing and trying to focus on her father’s questions.
Suddenly Roy remembered that Jennie was supposed to be with Beth and Carrie. He turned toward Mike who was leaning against the engine, white as a ghost. Mike looked as if his knees were going to buckle. Roy stood up and ran for Mike but Chet was right there and caught him before he fell.
Jennifer Desoto was in no shape to tell her father anything. Johnny was checking her over a second time and Roy ran to the front of the station looking to his left and right, at first he didn’t see anything. “What the h.............” just then he noticed a crowd forming on the corner about two hundred and fifty feet away.
“CAP,” he yelled, by then the Captain and Lopez were right next to him.
“I see it, Roy, take care of Jennifer and Mike” Capt. Stanley then yelled,"Gage! Lopez! Kelly! Come with me!”
Just then an ambulance pulled up. Roy was pacing between the engine and the squad, he was holding Jennifer and trying not to panic. Jennifer’s sobs were receding and Mike Stoker was trying to say something.
Roy turned and opened the door to the Squad and gently placed his child on the seat. “Honey, Daddy needs to talk to Mr. Mike, okay? I will be right here, you can see me, okay, Honey?” Jennifer could only nod at her father.
Roy turned toward Mike and dropped to his knee. “Mike?” Roy waited a moment then shook Mike’s arm “Mike, Buddy, are you with me?”
“Roy....... oh my god, Roy, what happened? Beth would never leave Jen alone, something must be terribly wrong Roy....” Mike had to get a hold of himself.
“MIKE! Listen to me – we don’t know what happened, okay? I need you, I need you to help me okay? Mike, are you with me?”
Mike seemed to be calming a bit as he stood up and walked to the front “Yes, Roy, I’m with you.” Then he turned and walked back, too afraid of what he might see. He picked up Jennifer. “Honey, are you, okay?”
“There was a crash, and a big big boom,” Jennifer sobbed. “The window is broken and I can’t wake Ms. Beth up, and Carrie is crying alot, she cut her arm. I didn’t know what to do, I got out and ran, and I saw Daddy’s work. Please help them!” She started to cry again.
Mike put the child down and looked at Roy. His fear disappeared as he ran out front again, he turned and looked at Roy, “COME WITH ME!” he yelled.
Roy didn’t know what to do. His flesh and blood was inches from him, scared and crying. “Mike I can’t leave her al........”
“Go, Roy, I’ve got her” Vince said as he walked into the bay. “Hi, Sweetie, I’m a friend of your daddy’s. Do you want to keep me company?”
Jennifer looked at her father. “It’s okay, Sweetie. Vince is a friend of mine and he’s a policeman!” Roy said.
Roy could see that Vince had control. He turned and followed Mike.
* * *
Johnny was in the passenger seat of the car. He was starting an IV on a young blonde woman as Chet was looking over a small child on the sidewalk.
Roy immediately went to Chet’s side and looked the child over. She was not crying and appeared to be in mild shock. Chet was holding a compress to her left arm and talking to her in soothing tones. At first Mike stood stock still. The Captain watched him closely then Mike snapped out of it and went to his daughter’s side.
“Carrie.... honey?” Mike said as he smoothed some hair from Carrie’s face. There was no response from Carrie, just small whimpering sounds. “Roy????” Mike asked.
“I don’t know, Mike, she’s a little shocky. We need to start her on an IV and get her to Rampart,” Roy said as he checked the rest of the child over.
Chet stood back and looked the scene over. There were no other cars involved. There was however three cinder blocks that went through the windshield of the car.
Screams suddenly pierced the air, Beth was coming around. Mike ran to her side. Johnny was trying desperately to calm her down. She didn’t seem to recognize John Gage or her husband. She slowed her screaming and was muttering Carrie’s name over and over.
“Beth..... Beth....... it’s me........ it’s Mike........ Beth?” Mike said. She slowly turned and looked at Mike
“She’s dead.... oh my god, she’s dead. The truck....... the bricks........” Beth turned and looked where Carrie was sitting. Johnny was there now. “Oh my god, my baby is dead!” Beth cried.
Before Mike could assure her that their only child was okay, Beth lost consciousness.
“Looks like she’s got a head injury, a broken nose, and at least one cracked rib,” Johnny told Mike. “It’s okay, Stoker. Go see if you can help Roy”
“I need a backboard and some assistance here,” yelled Johnny. Marco Lopez took Mike’s place at the driver’s door with a collar and a backboard. They set to work on securing Beth to the backboard.
* * *
“Rampart, stand by for the second victim’s vitals,” Chet said into the Biophone.
“10-4, 51. Standing by,” came the reply.
“BP is 120 over 50, pulse is 87 and respirations are 22,” Roy called out to Chet. “She is Diaphoretic and has a deep laceration on her left forearm and her right wrist appears to be fractured. She also has a large contusion covering the right of her chest.”
The paramedic was immobilizing the child’s arm as Chet called in the info to Rampart .
“51, start an IV with Ringers, 1 liter O2 and immobilize both those arms, then transport,” Dr. Brackett ordered.
Roy was loading the child into the ambulance along side her mother, he looked back at the station then toward the Captain.
“Desoto – you have to go. Chet will be right behind you with Jennifer,” he stated. Roy nodded then crawled into the back of the ambulance. Mike Stoker looked at the Captain. “Go with Chet. I’ll call a replacement in.”
Stoker nodded then walked toward the Squad with Chet. Vince was showing Jennifer Desoto the inside of his car when they walked up. “We can’t figure out what happened, Vince,” Chet said. “There are three cinder blocks in their car but we don’t know how they got there.”
Mike Stoker reached for Jennifer’s hand, “Come with me, Sweetie – we’re going to the hospital so you can see your dad.”
Jennifer looked up at Mike “My dad? Is he hurt too?” she asked.
“No. He’s taking care of my little girl for me, okay?” He replied as his hand took hers.
* * *
Roy stood at the nurses station, trying to sort out everything that happened .
“Roy?” Johnny asked as he put his hand on Roy’s shoulder.
“Yeah, Johnny,” Roy said.
“You okay? Have you called Joanne?” John asked.
“Oh my god! Joanne!” Roy said as he picked up the phone. He tapped his fingers on the counter top as he waited for the phone to pick up. He hung up and sighed, then looked at Johnny. “No answer.... where could she........ WAIT! She was going to the dry cleaners,” Roy said as he picked up the phone again, then looked at Johnny “What is the number to that dry cleaners we use to get our uniforms done?”
“How should I know, Roy?” Johnny asked, then quickly grabbed his wallet “Wait, I have a pick up ticket!”
Roy was waiting for the owner of the Dry Cleaners to ask his clerk if Joanne was there when Mike Stoker came around the corner carrying Jennifer, right behind him was Chet.
“Any word?” Mike asked
“Nothing yet but why don’t you sit right here, Mike,” Johnny asked as he reached for Jennifer. Jennifer looked at her father talking on the phone then went into Johnny’s arms, she immediately laid her head on his shoulder and took a deep breath, then closed her eyes.
“Damn!” Roy cried as he hung up the phone. “They haven’t seen her this morning and I know that she said that was the first thing she was going to do!” Roy walked over to Johnny and gently rubbed his child’s back.
“Daddy?” Jennifer said.
“I’m right here, Honey, you’re okay,” Roy said soothingly as Johnny put her up on the nurses station counter. Johnny then turned his attention to Stoker as Jennifer asked her father “Am I in trouble, Daddy?”
“Why on earth would you be in trouble, Jennie?” Roy asked.
“I crossed the street to get to your work. Daddy, I didn’t know what to do!” Roy looked at her as he tried to imagine what street she crossed, then he realized that she meant the short ally between the corner and the station. “No, Honey, you aren’t in trouble, Daddy is so happy you are safe,” he said as he hugged her then looked her over once more.
Dixie came around the corner smiling. “Hi Jennifer – you are growing so big! Look what I brought for you” Jennifer looked up and saw Dixie holding a shorts set. “Why don’t you come with me and we’ll get you all cleaned up, Honey?” Roy helped his daughter down and smiled his thanks to Dixie.
Just then Dr. Brackett walked out of Treatment room 2. Mike stood up so quickly that he felt dizzy. He leaned against Chet and listened to Dr. Brackett.
“They are both stabilized, Mike. Your daughter needs a few stitches in her left arm, her right wrist is fractured and will be set, and the bruise on her chest is just that, a bruise. There is no signs of internal bleeding, we ’re going to keep her overnight so she can rest.” Dr. Brackett smiled a bit.
Mike let out a sigh of relief then asked “Beth?”
“She is stable as well. She’s suffered a concussion and some lacerations, she’s broken her nose and has some bruised ribs but no fractures. She’ll be here a few days. We’re cleaning both your girls up now and will move them upstairs. You can see them then” Dr. Bracket said as he patted Mikes shoulder. “Are you going to be okay?”
Mike swayed a bit, Chet did his best to hold Mike up, then Johnny stepped up and held Mike’s arm for support. Suddenly everything hit Mike and he started to sob “I thought they were gone, I thought I lost them.”
Mike’s co-workers and friends gathered around him for support. He was grateful to have friends that felt like family. He slowly sank back into the chair and ran his hand through his hair.
“Come on, Stoker, let me buy you a coffee, those beautiful girls need you to be strong when you see them.” Johnny said. Mike nodded in agreement.
Just then Jennifer came around the corner and went straight to her father. He picked her up and kissed her forhead then hugged her tightly. She was cleaned up and a small smile played at the corner of her mouth. She was so happy to see her father again. “Daddy? What about my friends?” the small child asked.
“They are going to be just fine, Sweetie. Let’s go see if we can call your mother,” Roy said.
“Wait, Daddy, I want to tell Mr. Mike something.” Jennifer hopped down and went to Mike Stoker’s side, she put her small hand on top of his and said “Mr. Mike, I’m glad they are going to be okay. Carrie is my favorite friend and Ms. Beth is so nice to me, she was taking us to the park!”
Mike looked at Jennifer then smiled, “Carrie is lucky to have you as her friend Jennifer. You did the right thing by coming to get us. Thank you!”
Jennifer went back to her father’s side. Johnny leaned down and said “Honey, can you tell us what happened?”
“We were going to the park, the one with the tall sliding board, we were behind a big truck with lots of bricks on the back, the kind that are gray and have two big holes in them. I was sitting in the back seat. Carrie and me were singing our ABC’s and then we heard a big crash.” Jennifer started to tear up and Johnny patted her hand “That’s okay, Sweetie. Thank you! Why don’t we let daddy go call your mom, and you and I will go to the lunch room and get some juice, okay?” Jennifer nodded as she walked off with John.
Dixie hung up the phone and looked at the guys. “That was Captain Stanley. He would like Johnny and Chet to return to the station, Roy and Mike’s replacements have shown up. Roy, he would like you to call when things settle down. Mike he asked that you call only if you need something, otherwise they will be fine without you”
Johnny grabbed their equipment and looked at Roy. “Hang in there and let me know if you need anything.” Roy nodded his thanks. Johnny kissed Jennifer on the cheek – we’ll have to make it another time, Sweetie, okay? But next time – no juice – just ice cream and lots of it okay?”
Jennifer smiled at Johnny. He was one of her favorite people “Okay!” she said.
Chet thanked Dixie then looked at Mike and Roy, smiled a bit, then turned and headed out with Johnny.
* * *
Roy hung up the phone again and looked at his daughter. “Well Jenn, I don’t know where Mommy is. I know she had a lot to do today, what do you say you and I go visit Carrie?”
“Yes, let’s go see her!” Jennifer said as she stood up and grabbed her father’s hand, trying to pull him in the direction of the elevator. Roy laughed as he walked behind her.
“Jennifer! Roy!” they heard just as the elevator doors opened, Roy turned to see Joanne running toward them.
“We’re okay, Honey, calm down.” Then Roy closed the gap between them and held her for a moment, Jennifer held onto both of their legs. He then shuttled them into the elevator and explained what happened as the elevator took them to the third floor.
“I just can’t believe this happened, Roy. Is there anything we can do for them?” Joanne asked as she kept her daughter close to her side.
“I don’t know, Honey, but we’ll soon find out,” Roy said as he held the doors open for his wife and child to go through.
Mike was walking out of the room as they approached. Joanne went to him and hugged him. “Are you okay, Mike?” Mike returned the hug and then smiled. “I’m better. I realized today that I could never be a paramedic. Your husband really kept it together, even with his child crying and possibly injured.”
Roy looked at Mike for a moment then opened his mouth and then looked at Jennifer and decided it was best he didn't let her know just how afraid he was when he saw her standing there in front of the station.
Mike dropped down to Jennifer’s height and hugged her, then said, “Carrie is waiting to see you. She wants you to be the first to sign her cast – go on in!” Jennifer looked at her mother, Joanne took her hand and together they slipped into the room.
Mike turned to Roy. “Thank you so much for taking care of my family. I wouldn’t have made it if it weren’t you and Johnny working on them.”
Roy just stood there for a moment and then replied “Normally I would say ‘Just doing my job’ but this time I’ll just say ‘Your welcome’ and I know that you would have done the same for me! I was as scared as you were today, and I pray that we never have to go through anything like that again.”
Mike nodded and Roy put his hand on his shoulder. Roy couldn’t help but feel badly for Mike. He looked exhausted. “Let’s go see our girls,” Roy said.
Mike took a deep breath. “Yeah, let’s go see our girls.”
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