"Vengeance Of The Freeway Phantom"

By

Razzy

Ponch had arrived at their usual meeting place on the freeway a lot earlier than usual. He had already been sitting there fifteen minutes, waiting for his partner to show up. He checked his watch for the umpteenth time and shook his head. His patience was wearing a little thin. He knew Jon was never late, but this particular morning he willed him to get there even earlier.

Sergeant Getraer had informed all the officers that they were getting in a new officer on their shift that day. The new officer that was being added to the personnel roster, was a replacement for the empty spot left by a recent retirement. Of course, normally, that wasn't any big deal, because officers came and went all the time. But, the bomb Getraer had dropped was that this replacement was a 'female' officer.

Ponch wanted to be there, ready to meet and greet the new arrival--in his usual gentlemanly way, of course. This time spent waiting on his partner though, was beginning to make him edgy, and he started to drum his fingers on his bike's gas tank. His mind began drifting toward how he was going to handle this...situation. His thoughts were so distant he didn't hear the motorcycle approaching him, or the shifting of gears, as his partner slowed down, when he got closer to him.

Suddenly though, he came back to reality and turned his attention in the direction of the sound. He gave his friend his infamous toothy grin and, as Jon backed his bike right beside his, he told him, "'Bout time, partner!"

"What do yah mean? I'm right on time--as usual. Umm, what you doing here so early? You've never gotten here before me! What's up?"

"Jon, have you forgotten already? We're getting that new officer in today! That 'female' officer?! You know darn well I told you I wanted to get there early today."
His partner gave him an 'oh brother' look. "Ponch, she's just another officer." He knew that was a ridiculous statement when it came to his partner. Jon just thought he'd rattle his chains a little before they headed to work. "Ponch, go easy just this once! Simply welcome her like you would any other officer."

Ponch looked at him like he was insane, "Jon, we're getting fresh blood here. We're…" he stopped as his partner just shook his head. "What?!"

"We're gonna be late if we don't get a move on," Jon told him, as he started up his motor and got it moving on the freeway.

Ponch followed and then rode right up beside him. "You know what, Baker?!" he spoke up, to be heard over the two motorcycle engines.

Jon wasn't so sure he wanted to proceed with this, but he knew he was trapped, "What?!"

"With an attitude like that, you'll never get married!" With that retort, Ponch sped up his motor, knowing full well his partner would be right beside him, momentarily.

#########################

They arrived at Central and, of course, with Ponch in the lead, they quickly entered the building. Ponch took a look see around the hall, as they walked down it, but all the faces he saw were of the people he knew. He stepped up to Grossie and asked, "Hey, you see the new officer yet?"

Grossie just looked at him and smiled, "Nope. Getraer will probably have her make her appearance right at briefing."

"Yeah, you're probably right," Ponch replied, sounding a little disgruntled. 'Briefing,' he thought, 'the Briefing room, sure that's probably where she's hiding.' He left his partner standing next to Grossie, and then headed in that direction.

Baker and Grossman stood there, shaking their heads.

Ponch poked his head into the briefing room, but there was nobody there yet. He shook his head and decided to go to the break room and visit the vending machine. He needed his daily dose of Ding-Dongs.

Getraer was in there, getting a cup of coffee before briefing. He had just learned a piece of very disturbing news, as to what had been happening out on the freeways--news that he had to relate to his people that morning, and he was quite upset about it. He turned to see Frank heading toward the food machines. Joe could tell he was totally oblivious to the fact that he was even there--so intent was he on getting his daily rations. Getraer shook his head and commented to the young officer, as he got his treat, "Frank, you keep eating those things, you're gonna turn into a Ding-Dong."

Ponch turned and, as usual, wore that toothy grin, "Ah, Sarge, these get me through the day. Besides, they're cheaper here then they are in any store."

The Sergeant just gave his head another shake, "Uh, briefing's in five minutes, Poncherello." He left the room, still shaking his head.

Ponch stepped back up to the machine and got a couple more packages. He wasn't about to let his sergeant's 'hurry up' message cause him to forget his reason for coming in there. Once he got what he needed, he headed back out and almost collided with Bear. "Hey!"

"Easy, Ponch! Good grief, you aren't gonna eat all those today are you?" Bear teased, knowing full well the forthcoming answer.

"Sure, why not?"

"You'll be on such a sugar high. It'll take you till next month to come down off'n it," he chuckled at his own comment. Ponch simply gave him a look that made him take a step or two backwards and then quickly stepped out of the way. Bear turned to watch Frank stomp his way down the hall. Then, he went into the break room. He glanced up at the clock and groaned, as he saw that briefing was only a minute away. There'd be no time for coffee at the moment. So, with a grunt of sincere displeasure, he turned and headed for the Briefing room--just making it, with thirty seconds to spare.

All the officers were now in their seats, including the new one. Getraer came walking in, carrying his notebook filled with the usual urgent notes that needed to be passed on to all the officers.

"All right, people, settle down!" the Sergeant said, in this best commanding voice.

The room got quiet very quickly, especially after they saw the look of concern on their leader's face.

"Okay, first order of business...I'd like to introduce everyone to our new officer, Stephanie Wilkes. Stephanie?"

The woman stood up a second and greeted everyone there with a smile.

Getraer then briefly filled everyone in as to where she came from. He also encouraged everyone to make her feel at home. Then, he got down to some very serious business. "Okay, people, we've got a guy driving a green sports car, who seems to enjoy creating some very serious mayhem out on the freeway. Last night, a motor officer was nearly killed when the suspect caused a ten-car pile up on the San Bernardino freeway. The officer is…" he paused a moment to look at Stephanie, and then reluctantly continued, "the officer is listed in critical condition, with some broken bones, lacerations, and a lot of bruises. Doctors think he'll pull through, but his injuries will require a lot of healing time. Unfortunately, we didn't get a license number." He continued to give them additional information regarding the incident. Then he passed on a few more items for them to keep their eyes open for. He finally ended the briefing with, "Okay, people, keep your heads up and your eyes open out there today." He closed his book, which told the officers he was done. He began to leave, but then suddenly thought of something else. "Ah, Jon? Frank? My office in five minutes," he requested and then turned to his new female officer, "Stephanie, you want to come to my office for a moment?"

The woman started to walk towards him, "Sure, Sergeant."

They walked down the hall and into his office. The Sergeant sat behind his desk and motioned for the woman to sit in the chair in front of him. "Stephanie, welcome to Central."

Thanks, Sergeant."

"Stephanie, I'd like to team you up with one of my best officers, Jon Baker. He's a good man." He stopped speaking and rubbed his chin. Then he stood up, walked around to the side of his desk, and sat down on the corner of it. "Stephanie, I've read through your jacket. From where I sit, you're one very good officer. But I understand that your move here was because of a personal situation that happened back in Sacramento. I need to know that you've come to grips with it and can handle any given situation that may happen out there."

"Sergeant, I'm okay. I'm still dealing with it, but in my own way. I still have my bad moments, but I try to keep it out of mind while on duty." Well, she did her best anyway.

"Okay, good girl. I'll have to hold you to that." He was about to continue when he heard footsteps in his office doorway.

"Oh, s'cuse us. Sarge, you wanted to see us?" Jon respectfully asked of his superior.

"Yeah," Getraer said and turned back to Stephanie, "Stephanie, this is Jon Baker and Frank Poncherello."

Stephanie stood up and shook hands with the two men, "Hello, Jon…Frank."

"Umm, call me Ponch. All my friends do," Frank told her, with that winning smile.

The female officer flashed him back her prettiest smile, "Okay, Ponch it is."

Getraer shook his head and then proceeded, "Frank," he cleared his throat and smiled, "Frank...Jon, I'm gonna split you two up for a while. Jon, I'd like you to team up with Stephanie." He stopped when he saw Ponch was about to make a retort, er, reply to that. "Frank, I thought you'd be happy about this. You'll be all by your lonesome out there for a change." He gave his young officer a wink and a mischievous grin, then turned back to Jon, "I need you to get her acclimated to the area around here."

Wow! Was his Sergeant ever mistaken! Ponch was not pleased to be going solo, and he figured Getraer knew it, too. Ponch wanted to comment that Jon should be the one out there by himself. Ponch wanted to be the one to take Stephanie under his wing. But their commander had spoken, and the look Getraer had given him, had caused him to swallow back his reply.

"Okay, Jon, Stephanie, head on out will yah," he cleared his throat. "Umm, I need to talk to Frank here a minute."

Baker, and his new female partner, filed out of the room.

As soon as they were gone, Ponch asked , "What gives, Sarge?"

"Frank, I…take the seat there, will yah?" Getraer urged and went to sit back behind his desk. "I need to tell you to simply…ah, nuts, Frank, I need you to stay away from Stephanie." That wasn't the way he'd wanted to put it.

Ponch was mortified, "What do yah mean?"

"I mean, I don't care if you talk about every day trivial matters, just don't go expecting anything else... okay?" Getraer studied the young man who was sitting right there in front of him. He could tell, by the look on Frank's face, that he was clueless as to what his Sergeant was trying to get at. "Look, Frank, don't ask her out on a date. Don't try to romance her. Just treat her like you would any other officer, okay?"

"Ah-ah, Sarge. Hey, didn't you see those gorgeous brown eyes...and that smile?! Nah, of course not. You're married. But man, asking me not to…"

Getraer put up a hand to stop him, "Down, Romeo, down! Look, Stephanie transferred here because she had to change her surroundings, okay? I don't want to go into details with you about this, because I feel that's up to her--if she wants to divulge them to anybody. Right now, just keep it on a 'friends only' basis." He paused momentarily and looked directly at him, "Got it?!"

"Sure, Sarge, sure."

"Okay, head out and be careful out there."

Ponch left the room with his mind naturally reeling about what Getraer had just told him--er, ordered him not to do. Of course, with his line of reasoning, somehow or another, he'd come up with a way of, well, getting around the 'order'. But at the moment, he figured he'd better just move along and get his motor on the road.

####################################

Jon and Stephanie were already out of the parking lot. Their morning patrol had started out by assisting an out-of-town motorist having mechanical problems. First order of business was to make sure wrecker personnel were notified to come and pick up the car. Then, while waiting for the wrecker to arrive, they had to make sure the family remained safe. Once that was accomplished, they continued on their way.

As they traveled on, Jon decided he'd try to learn a little more about his new partner. "Mind if I ask a few questions? Just to get to know you a little better!" He grinned, as he figured he'd better qualify the reason for asking.

"Sure why not!"

"How long have you been with the CHP?"

"Almost five years now," she answered, after a brief pause.

Of course then the usual cop-to-cop questions followed. What made her decide to make law enforcement her career? With the added comment of 'Especially when there were a lot of safer jobs out there.' Then, after she answered those trivial questions, he asked another very innocent question. Well, it was innocent to him. "What brings you to Central?"

Stephanie's mood suddenly shifted to one of extreme sadness.

It seemed at first to Jon, that she may not have heard the question over the roar of the motors, but then she finally answered.

"Change, Jon. I needed a change!" She suddenly sped up her bike and moved ahead a ways, trying to hide the moistness in her eyes and catch the tears that slowly came down her cheek. She quickly stuck her gloved finger under her glasses to rub the stubborn tears away.

Jon was beside her almost instantly and saw the movement, "You okay?"

"Yeah, just got something in my eyes is all," she told him, somewhat truthfully.

"Wanna pull over?"

"No, I'm okay," his pretty partner assured him. So they continued on patrol.

##########################################

Ponch was cruising along on his beat. It sure was different out there, under that blue, California sky, riding the highway--solo. His attention to his surroundings though, was just as acute as ever.

He had been traveling behind this one particular car now, for quite some time. It had been moving well below the posted speed limit. He was just about to pull it over to see what was wrong, when it started to weave in the lane--instantly placing him on alert. He also held back a little and slowed down even more. He put on his flashers, signaling the driver to pull over. But, apparently, the driver didn't see them, or was ignoring them. So he flipped the siren switch--to get the driver's attention. That didn't work, either. He did it once more, but there still wasn't any reaction from the motorist. So he checked traffic behind him, and then changed lanes--to come up beside the driver's window. He motioned over to the side of the road and the car's operator finally complied.

Ponch moved over to the shoulder and stopped behind the vehicle. The driver appeared to be a little old lady. He wondered what he'd find out, as to what her problem was. He stood there, by the driver's window, watching the woman. She was attempting, albeit, rather unsuccessfully, to quiet her little dog down. He grinned when he saw that the animal wasn't any bigger than a large rat. He couldn't believe how something that small could have such a loud, obnoxious bark. Through all the noise, he tried to get the woman's attention, "Ma'am?!" It seemed as though she was ignoring him, as she continued to try to get the noisy mutt under control. He tried a second time, "Ma'am?!" Still nothing.

Finally, she admitted to defeat and turned in his direction.

"Ma'am, were you having some sort of problem on the highway?" he quickly inquired, " You need help or something?"

She came back with, "Hello, Officer. Why did you stop me? I wasn't speeding."

He smiled at her. "No, Ma'am, you weren't speeding. But you were traveling too slowly for freeway traffic. That can be just as dangerous. I just wanted to check if something was wrong, before it became a hazard."

Her little mongrel was still yapping during this whole time. Still not answering him, she turned her attention back to the little mutt, "Now, Sweetie, you must be quiet, mommy's trying to talk to this nice young man." Then, to Ponch she said, "Sorry, Officer, Sweetie doesn't like it when people come so close to the car." That was all she said.

Ponch suddenly had the feeling that he was talking to the wind. He hadn't received a single answer to anything he had asked her. Either she simply couldn't hear, or maybe her hearing aid, if she had one, wasn't working. Finally, he decided he might just as well give up. So, speaking a little louder, he told her, "Ma'am, I'm not going to cite you for anything, but you really should try to drive closer to the speed limit, okay?" he urged and stepped away from her car.

"You have a good day too, Officer!" she wished, and then, ever so slowly, she maneuvered her car back onto the highway.

Ponch stood there, watching the car, as it crawled off down the road. It continued on so extremely slow, that he figured it would probably be tomorrow before it finally disappeared from view. With a shake of his head he went back to his bike and moved on down the highway himself. It wasn't very long before he got tied up on something else.

#############################################

Jon and Stephanie had just completed a traffic stop, when they heard Grossman's traffic.

"LA, 7 Mary 5 in pursuit of a tan sports car.." Grossie then gave his location, and the direction he was heading in, to LA dispatch--and all officers that were listening. He needed back up and fast. The driver of the vehicle could be the guy they were looking for. He remembered Getraer had said the guy's car was green. But, he wasn't about to take any chances.

Without a word, both Jon and Stephanie sped up their bikes and headed in Grossman's direction. There wasn't an officer within a fifty-mile radius that didn't want to catch the suspect. Even Bear soon came up behind them to give assistance.

All three caught up to Grossie and joined in the pursuit. Jon checked his speedometer and frowned. They were now traveling almost ninety miles an hour. 'If this is the suspect...and anything happens at this speed...' he wouldn't allow himself to complete the thought. Just as he looked up again, he and Stephanie heard Bear's panic-stricken traffic.

"Grossman, abort the pursuit! Grossie! Pull back! Now!" For some reason, what Bear had suddenly seen the guy do, was the cause of his sheer panic. The driver of the sports car had got between two other cars, and Bear had a sinking suspicion of what the guy was going to do.

Sure enough, the suspect got up ahead of both cars and then quickly swung his car to the right-- just close enough to one of the cars to clip the driver's side front bumper, throwing the clipped vehicle completely out of control. As the clipped car spun around, it hit another car and created a domino effect. The driver of the tan sports car simply, merrily, continued on his way down the freeway, knowing full well the mayhem he had left behind.

Grossie managed to slow his bike down enough to where he could do some fancy maneuvering to keep from becoming the second officer to be injured in such a fashion. He pulled his bike off onto the shoulder of the highway and watched as cars continued to collide with one another. Finally, the mayhem came to a halt.

Stephanie and Jon pulled up behind Grossman and stopped.

Bear had taken on the task of stopping traffic, by running interference--moving his patrol car back and forth in the lanes, as a signal to the cars behind him, that they were to come to a complete stop.

There was a lot of work that needed to be done now, and the first order of business was to get medical help out there.

That's what Jon took care of. "LA, 7 Mary 3...We need fire and paramedic assistance at our location. We have a multiple MVA (motor vehicle accident)." As soon as he was through with this traffic, he quickly went up to Stephanie and Grossman. "Hey, Grossie, you okay?"

Grossman had already assured Stephanie that he was, but it beared repeating, "Y-yeah, I'm fine. Man, that was too close. That definitely had to be our guy."

"You're right. You came mighty close to biting the dirt on that one," Stephanie told him, as she shook her head in disgust.

"Yeah, remind me to thank Bear for saving my hide."

"Hang tight here till you quit shaking. Stephanie and I'll get to work," Jon announced. He could almost see his fellow officer's body vibrate from the sheer terror of how close he came to being seriously injured...or killed.

They quickly left his side and went to check on the other people who weren't so fortunate to stay out of harms way. They went from car to car, till Jon found a seriously injured man who had a badly bleeding laceration, which he had to hold pressure on till the paramedics arrived. "Stephanie, you find anybody else with serious injuries?" he asked, as she came back from double-checking a few of the victims.

Before she could answer, the paramedics arrived. So, she directed one of them to a couple of 'seriously' injured people who needed medical assistance--immediately.

The other paramedic ran over to her partner, who had motioned that he needed help--in a hurry.

Baker continued to assist, as much as he could. After bandages and a C-collar were applied, Jon helped get the victim out of the car and down onto the pavement, where he could be assessed for any further injuries. The ambulances still hadn't shown up. But additional medical assistance had arrived on the scene, to assist the two paramedics already there.

Once Jon and Stephanie were freed up in helping the medics, they got busy, helping Bear with traffic control.

Finally, the last of the victims were taken care of, and wreckers came to haul the crumpled vehicles away. Jon groaned inwardly, as he thought of all the paperwork that would be involved--and all in triplicate.

After the lanes were clear of all the cars and debris, the traffic was allowed to flow once again. Bear chatted momentarily with the three motor offices, before continuing on his way. Jon patted Grossie on the back, "Hey, why don't you go back to Central and take a well-deserved break. Heaven knows, after what you just went through, you deserve one."

"Yeah and have Getraer catch me sloughing off? Don't think so, Jon," Grossman told him, with a shake of his head.

Jon grinned, "Umm, I think when you tell him what happened, he'll give you at least five minutes to have a coffee break. Don't you?"

"Yeah, maybe you're right. 'Course, knowing Getraer, he'll demand to know why I didn't nail the guy!"

Both Stephanie and Jon were forced to chuckle on that one.

"Hey, actually, all three of us deserve a break," Baker determined, "C'mon, let's go!"

################################################

The trio arrived at Central, took their 'deserved' break, and then headed back out on the highways. The rest of the day was filled with the usual, eventful patrol--which ended with the predicted endless paperwork.

##################################################

The next day at briefing, Getraer once again had some very bad news for his officers. He walked up to the podium and slammed his book down, which naturally caught everyone's attention. "All right, people, listen up. Okay, yesterday, Grossman almost became the second officer taken out by our 'Freeway Phantom'. Fortunately, he's with us here, today. Samuelson, from B-shift, wasn't so lucky." The sergeant couldn't miss the very disturbed expressions on everyone's faces, as they waited to hear what had happened. "Samuelson was knocked off his motor, much in the same way the first officer was--and Grossman almost was. He's in the hospital right now, listed in critical condition. People, I don't need to remind you that this guy has got to be stopped. So far, we've been lucky, but two injured officers is still way too many. The unfortunate thing about this whole business is that it seems this guy doesn't use the same car more than once. Each time it's been done, a different color, make and model vehicle has been used, but the way these accidents have been so similar in nature, we're thinking it's gotta be the same guy. Somehow, he's got the knack of stealing a car, using it to cause an accident, and then dumping it--long before the owner even knows it's missing. The only thing we know about this guy, is that in all three strikes he's used a souped up sports car of some sort. That's not much to go on people." Joe continued with additional items the officers were to look out for while out on their beats. The sergeant just couldn't shake the bad feeling that things were only going to get even worse before they finally nailed this guy. "Okay, people, get out there and make yourselves visible. Only stay out of harms way, okay?" he finished and left the room, heading for his office.

As everyone filed out of the room, the topic of conversation was the 'Freeway Phantom'--the guy that simply showed up on the highway, created his havoc and then left the scene, completely unscathed. All the uniformed officers left the room, wearing frowns...and shaking their heads.

"Hey," Ponch began, as he met up with Jon and Stephanie, "I didn't get to tell you last night about the elderly lady I stopped yesterday."

Jon eyed him suspiciously, "What's so different about stopping an elderly lady from anybody else, Ponch?"

"This woman couldn't hear worth a hoot! I mean, I'd ask her a question. She'd come back with something totally off the wall from what I asked. I tried to get her attention--twice. She acted like she never even heard me. Oh, and she had this little dog that wouldn't stop yapping. She paid more attention to it than she did me!" He shook his head and started off once again, "Man, I don't see how people who can't hear worth a…" he stopped when he felt a tap on his shoulder.

"Ah, Frank..." It was Getraer. He had momentarily stepped back out of his office, only to find a few of his officer's 'loitering' out in the hall. "You going on your beat--sometime this morning?"

"Ah, yeah, Sarge, I was just…" Ponch stopped again, when his sergeant pointed him toward the door.

"Okay, okay, I'm going, I'm going!" He knew better than to argue the point…even though he did think about doing so…for a second or two.

Sergeant Getraer simply looked at Jon and Stephanie, waiting for one of them to make a retort, er, reply, but they just grinned and followed Ponch out the door, leaving Joe smiling and shaking his head.

##################################################

This day's patrol proved no different from any other day's. Each officer managed to keep pretty busy handling one thing after another.

After traveling a number of miles, handling the typical highway problems, along with keeping an eye out for the Freeway Phantom, Ponch managed to stop a vehicle along a very busy portion of the freeway. "LA, 7 Mary 4." He had already retrieved the driver's paperwork and, from all the signs the guy had given him, he couldn't help but wonder if he had something to hide. For some reason, he put himself on alert.

"Go ahead, 7 Mary 4!"

Ponch gave dispatch the information needed to check the man's file and driving record.

It wasn't long before the dispatcher came back, "7 Mary 4, LA. Can you copy felony warrant traffic?"

"Go ahead, LA!" Ponch wasn't surprised at that bit of news and he never took his eyes off the driver, during the whole time.

"7 Mary 4...Your subject has a felony warrant out of San Diego County. It's a statewide pick up. The warrant is for possession, sale of controlled substance and also weapons charges."

"Okay, I'm clear, LA."

Just then, a patrol car pulled up behind him. It was Turner. "Thought you may need help on this one, Ponch," the officer offered.

"Yeah, thanks. C'mon, before he rabbits on us."

Both officers walked up to the car, with Ponch taking the lead. They were ever so watchful, cautiously alert to anything, especially, movement in the car.

Ponch stepped back up to the driver's window, with Turner taking the guard position. "Sir, would you please step out of the car," he stated more than asked.

The guy decided it would be in his best interests to comply. One cop he felt he could handle with no problem, but with two? Well, he knew better.

Ponch explained to him about the warrants. Then, after moving onto the shoulder behind his car, the handcuffs were placed on their prisoner's wrists. Ponch took care of the cuffs, whileTurner read the guy his rights. That way, Ponch could concentrate on any wrong movements the man just may try to make while he was being handcuffed. Fortunately, for everyone involved, no violent activity took place. The man was placed in the back of Turner's car.

#########################################

Jon and Stephanie had just finished taking care of a minor two-car accident and were now back on the road.

It wasn't very long till they got busy again as dispatch came over the radio, "Any units on the 405, BOL (be on the lookout) for a possible DUI. Car's described as an older model Oldsmobile, brown in color." Then the location and the direction of travel were also given.

The two motor officers traveled on until they came up to an emergency exit, which they took so they could head in the opposite direction. As they did this, Jon notified LA that they would attempt to locate the vehicle.

A few moments later, LA came back, "7 Mary 3 & 6, received another call on the DUI suspect. He's about…" dispatch continued filling them in as to exactly where the subject was.

Jon did some quick mental calculating, "That puts him about five to six miles ahead!"

Both officers stepped up their speed as both wanted this impaired driver off the road before he managed to hurt someone--or worse.

Even though they did their level best in trying to catch up with the car, it just wasn't good enough.

"7 Mary 3 & 6, roll over with injuries. Paramedics have already been dispatched," came the unwelcome traffic.

It had happened just two miles away from where they were at that very moment.

Both officers picked up the speed and got to the location in no time. Sure enough, the driver had been thrown from the car and now his legs were pinned under it.

The accident occurred in a rather brushy area and the last thing needed was even the smallest spark from the damaged vehicle to start a fire. So as soon as they arrived on scene, Jon notified dispatch to notify the fire department as well.

Stephanie quickly went over to the victim.

The guy was alert, thus aware of his predicament. Even the effects of the alcohol didn't fully mask the pain he was feeling at that moment. "Ahh, help me!" he managed to plead through clenched teeth.

"Hold on! Help's on the way," she told him. She realized in the condition he was in that that was little comfort. The victim wanted, er, needed medical attention--now!

In no time, a fire engine and a squad of two paramedics were on the scene. They began treating the victim. The engine crew worked to get the car off of the guy, so the paramedics could get him out from under it. That was the only way they'd be able to assess his leg injuries. A couple firemen were stationed in position to combat any spark that may ignite at any time. They all worked quickly and efficiently. In no time, they had freed the victim. Now, with the ambulance on scene, they loaded the guy onto a gurney and into the back of the rig.

After completing their work there, Jon and Stephanie headed to the hospital as well, to continue their investigation.

#############################################################

In the meantime, Ponch and Turner were still dealing with the man who was under arrest on the open warrants. Both officers knew they had 'probable cause' to search the suspect's vehicle and they certainly intended on doing just that.

Ponch started in the front seat area and Turner took the back. Sure enough, it wasn't long before both found what they were looking for. Because of that they decided to go even further with the search. Ponch went to the front of the car to check under the hood, while Turner went to look in the trunk.

Ponch raised the hood, then checked the sides and he couldn't help but shake his head when he saw all the blocks of dope there were duct-taped to the insides of the car. He could only imagine the street value of the stuff.

Turner had raised the trunk lid, then the blanket that was covering whatever the man was carrying. Under the blanket, there were opened boxes with blocks of dope. As he moved a box or two aside, he quickly noticed a wooden crate. Not wanting to leave anything unchecked, he quickly went back to his car and got a tool so he could open it. Once he broke it open and saw what was inside, he arched a brow, shook his head and yelled, "Ponch!"

"Yeah?!"

"Ah, wanna come here a minute? I think you'll want to see this!" He stepped aside as Ponch came around to the back of the car.

"What'd you find?!"

Turner simply pointed to the inside of the trunk.

When Ponch saw what Turner wanted him to see, it was enough to make him whistle and shake his head. "Man, there's enough artillery here to supply a small army! We're gonna have to get another unit here to unload all this stuff." So he returned to his motor, "LA, 7 Mary 4. I need an additional unit at my location." As the dispatcher handled his request, he went back to join his backup. He couldn't help but voice how happy he was that they had made this bust, "Man, Turner, can you imagine what a gang could do with this stuff. I'm sure glad we got to it before he could distribute it around the entire state."

Turner couldn't agree with his statement more.

It wasn't long before Bear arrived on scene. Ponch motioned for him to pull in front of the car. After he exited and met up with both officers, he inquired, "Hey, Ponch...what yah got?"

Ponch directed him to the engine compartment. "An' that's not all! C'mon!" All three stepped back to the trunk where Ponch motioned for Turner to look down at the trunk bed.

Bear's eyes became the size of grapefruits. "Umm, you honestly think my car is big enough to hold all this?!"

"If we pack it real tight," Ponch told him with a toothy grin and chuckle.

So the three officers began moving the dope into Bear's cruiser. There was so much of it--and the crate was so big--that they had to put some on the back seat. They really didn't want to do that, but using the blanket to cover it would safely keep it from any prying eyes.

The wrecker had been dispatched in such a timely manner that it arrived on scene shortly before they completed the task.

In the end, the car was enroute to impound, the suspect was headed for jail and the dope was transferred to headquarters, to be stored in a safe place. The whole matter had taken so long that all officers involved headed back to Central to begin their reports.

################################################

Ponch finally made it home to his apartment and changed into his 'street clothes'. He sat on his couch and closed his eyes for a moment, to reflect on the day's events. To say the least, he was bushed. He thought about Stephanie. He couldn't help but wonder why Getraer had told him what he did about her. What was the big deal about him asking her out on a date? If she were married, he'd've mentioned it. Then an idea floated through his tired brain. An idea he thought was an excellent one, if he should say so himself. An idea he felt had to also include Jon and oh yes, Jon's girlfriend. Now, that would be an excellent added touch. Getraer didn't have to know about him inviting friends over for a simple dinner. Actually, Ponch felt that what he did after his shift was over was, well, none of anybody's business. He consciously felt that that even included Getraer... well, to a certain extent anyway. Admittedly, though, Ponch knew he'd still have to be careful. He really didn't want to cross the line that his sergeant had drawn. He smiled, as his plan fell into place.

'Jon's gotta be home by now,' he thought, and grabbed the phone. He dialed his friend's number and waited.

"Hello?"

"Jon! It's Ponch!"

"Hey, Ponch. What's up?!

"You busy Friday night?"

"Well, Melissa and I were going to dinner and a movie. Why?"

"Umm, could you possibly do a rain check on that? I'd like both of you to come over to my place for dinner."

Baker could tell by his voice that his friend was more than likely up to something. "All right, Ponch. Why don't you just spill it..."

Ponch never could pull a fast one on Jon. "Huh? Do I always have to have something up my sleeve, just because I ask you over for dinner."

"C'mon, Ponch. Spit it out. I know you're dying to tell me."

"All right, here it is. I'm also going to ask Stephanie to come."

Jon had been warned by his sergeant to watch out for something like this. "Ah, Ponch, remember what Getraer said?"

Ponch was shocked that Jon apparently knew about what he was told 'not to do'. But then again, he should have known Getraer would cover all the bases. "Ah-ah, Jon," he paused to clear his throat, "this isn't a date! It's just a little get together with a friend, er, friends."

Baker was forced to chuckle on that one. "Now that's a first! Ponch, there's never been a time when you've been with a young lady that it's just been a 'little get together with a friend'."

Ponch was getting a little upset with this conversation. "Look Jon, if Stephanie does come, would you and your girlfriend come too?"

"Yeah, okay. I'll cover this with Melissa. I'm sure we'll be there. But, I sure hope Getraer doesn't find out."

"Humph! So what if he does! Okay, I'll check with Stephanie tomorrow morning and let you know. Don't you say anything to her before I do, okay?"

"Sure, Ponch, my lips are sealed," Baker promised and chuckled once again.

"All right, see you tomorrow."

###################################################

The next morning, when everyone was finally seated in the Briefing room, Getraer again came in with a very unhappy look. "All right, people, simmer down, simmer down. The 'Freeway Phantom' struck again last night." He had to pause and hold up a hand to quiet down the stir that bit of news created. "Unfortunately, we have another motor officer down. Krieger is listed in serious condition with multiple injuries. I can't begin to tell you how much the Captain wants this guy. The sooner we take him off the road the safer all of us will be." After dispensing this sordid news, he went on with additional information and then he ended the briefing. "Okay, people, hit your beats," he urged and left the room.

The sound of chairs scraping the floor could be heard, as everyone stood to start filing out. Of course, the 'Freeway Phantom' was the main conversation among everybody...well, everybody but Ponch. Sure the officer was just as disgusted and on the alert as everyone else was, but Ponch also had his plans for Friday night that he had to get taken care of. However, he decided to wait until he could catch his prime target outside. He thought it would be safer that way.

Ponch followed his fellow officers, as they filed out of the building and began heading for their respective units. Ponch spotted Stephanie, standing by her motor. He stepped quickly up to her, but, before he dared to speak, he took a cautious look around. "Ah, Steph, could I ask you something?"

"Sure, Ponch. What is it?"

"You free Friday night? I'd like to have you come over for dinner. Jon and his…his friend, Melissa are coming over. Maybe it'll help you to get to know Jon and I better--being off duty."

The woman looked thoughtful for a moment. "Sure! Why not. Beats rattling around in my apartment. It'll break up the evening a little bit too. I'd like that, Ponch. Thanks."

Ponch flashed her his biggest grin, "Terrific! Around seven. Would that be okay?"

"Sure. That'll be great. Thanks again!"

"You bet!" Ponch exclaimed. Then, as Jon was also sitting there on his bike, Ponch added, "You two be careful out there today. We never know when or where that creep is gonna strike next."

"You too, Ponch!" Baker urged, as his friend turned to leave, " You, too!"

With that, they started their motors, signaling that the conversation was over. It was time for Jon and Stephanie to get going.

Ponch knew he'd better clear out before Getraer saw him still there, too. So he quickly got on his bike and hit the road.

########################################################

All officers whether on motorcycles or in cruisers kept their eyes open. Everyone was on the continual lookout for any vehicles that looked sporty or racy enough to suit their suspect.

It took until practically midmorning before anyone even thought they had a visual, and it was Bonnie--in her patrol car--who decided to check out the sporty vehicle that was just ahead of her. She flipped on the overheads, signaling the driver to pull over. Not knowing how the person behind the wheel would react, and just in case this could be the suspect, she checked the distance between her cruiser and the car she wanted to stop. She didn't intend to unwittingly put herself in a trap--even though it was motorcycle officers the 'Phantom' seemed to be picking on. Apparently, the driver didn't see her lights, so she flipped on her siren for a moment, which naturally got the desired reaction. She saw the driver check out the rearview mirror, then flick on the turn signal to show that the car was heading for the shoulder, with Bonnie following suit. As the officer cautiously stepped up to the driver's window, she found a young lady at the wheel. Bonnie silently breathed a sigh of relief, but she still didn't let down her guard.

"Officer, I wasn't speeding. Is something wrong?" the girl asked.

Bonnie couldn't help but smile. "No, Miss. You weren't speeding. We've had a lot of hit and run accidents on the freeways lately involving cars similar to yours, is all. Could I see your license, registration and insurance, please?"

"Umm, sure," she handed over the requested paperwork.

"I'll be right back." Bonnie returned to her car to radio dispatch. "LA 15 7 Charles. I need a check on a California reg. along with file and driver's record." She gave the information to the dispatcher so she could get the young lady checked out. LA came back that she was clean and the car was definitely hers. That was what Bonnie really wanted to find out.

"Here's your papers back," the officer announced, upon her return. After speaking briefly with the girl, Bonnie sent her on her way and went back to her own car. All the other officers were feeling a little jumpy about this situation, and she felt the same way.

With the suspect never using his own car, but always managing to steal one for each 'accident', the officers realized that they had to catch this guy in the act, somehow--preferably before anyone else was injured. The question that remained was how?

##############################################################.

Stephanie and Jon were kept pretty busy themselves that day. It seemed as though people knew it was their beat and drivers just wanted to see how long it would take before they got caught speeding or for a mechanical violation of some kind. Well, that's what the two motorcyle officers were beginning to think anyway.

Then LA came over the radio, "All units in the vicinity of 405, robbery suspect driving silver Oldsmobile, partial California reg. of 7 Baker Sam, left scene two minutes ago heading eastbound." The dispatcher then gave what description they had of the suspect, which unfortunately wasn't much.

Jon and Stephanie stayed on the road they were on knowing the suspect was heading their way. They kept their eyes on the eastbound traffic, hoping they'd catch a visual of him. Also, hoping that another officer would be even closer.

It was only minutes when they heard Baricza's traffic, "LA, 15 7 Adam in pursuit of possible robbery suspect."

"Ah, good ol' Bear, right place, right time," Jon gratefully told his partner.

It wasn't long before they picked up on the sound of Bear's siren. They continued on till they found an emergency exit and then sat there till both cars were in sight. Then they joined in the pursuit with lights and siren.

Their robbery suspect was driving like a lunatic. All pursuits are dangerous, not only for the officers involved, but also for any innocent civilian bystanders who just simply happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time--and when those being pursued cut in and out of traffic or do some other dumb fool thing that endangers everyone around them, split decisions have to be made.

Bear was still in the lead when he thought about doing the maneuver that could once and for all end this pursuit. The driver had just managed to exit the freeway and was now entering an even more dangerous area, as the pavement changed to two-lane traffic. On top of all that, the posted traffic speeds were much slower. "LA, 15 7 Adam, requesting permission to end pursuit by attempting the pit maneuver on the pursuit vehicle."

"Stand by 7 Adam..." The dispatcher wanted to check with her sergeant on this one. She quickly filled him in on what was going on up to this point. Then she came back, "7 Adam, LA, attempt to end the pursuit using your discretion."

Bear felt that now was the time--while there were fewer cars on the road, and before the suspect managed to get back on the freeway. It was now or never. It was a tricky maneuver and even though he had done it before, every circumstance was different. He spotted an area he felt the maneuver would work and brought his car up to the backside of the suspect's vehicle, on the driver's side. Bear then bumped it hard--so hard that it spun around, hit the curb and flipped over. The chase had ended without causing any harm to other innocent drivers. The officer quickly stopped his car and exited when the suspect--who had managed to climb out of his flipped vehicle--tried to run away.

Jon and Stephanie followed their fellow officer.

Bear chased the robbery suspect down and tackled him to the ground. Of course, the fugitive fought him with all his might.

That is until Jon and Stephanie joined in and successfully pinned him down so the handcuffs could be placed on his wrists.

Bear picked their prisoner up off the ground. "Mister, you're going to jail for a lo-ong time." The man just snarled at him, not saying a word. As the officer walked back to put his captive in the back seat of his patrol car, he told the two, "Thanks, guys...for the assist."

"Glad we could help. Just remember, you owe us one," Stephanie teased. Suddenly, a more serious look came over her face and she continued, "At least no one got hurt." Their job of assisting Bear done, she returned to her motor--where she patiently waited for her partner.

The two male officers watched the woman walk away.

"Man, I wish she'd let someone in on what's troubling her," Jon commented. " It wouldn't be like we're trying to pry. Maybe we could help her get through it..."

"Yeah, but maybe she just wants to handle it herself for now."

"Yeah, you're probably right," Baker agreed and went back to his motor and his partner.

######################################################

Ponch had a pretty decent shift going for him. Other than the usual traffic stops and motorists assists, nothing really hair-raising had occurred. Well, as the saying goes, 'all good things must come to an end'.

At the moment, Ponch was traveling down a two-lane road. He had been off the freeway now for a number of miles--when LA came over the radio.

"Any units in the vicinity…" the dispatcher began.

But even before LA got to the point of her traffic, what Ponch saw up ahead made him shake his head. Traffic had stopped dead in its tracks. Ahead of him, was a semi-tractor trailer that had somehow jack-knifed and was crosswise in the road. As it turned out, he was 'in the vicinity' of LA's traffic. The officer quickly grabbed his radio's mic', "LA, 7 Mary 4. I'm on the scene. I'll need additional traffic assistance at my location." He placed his motor in a strategic position and quickly got the stopped vehicles turned around and headed back in the direction they came from. (Not really the best way for an officer to make friends.) Before any more cars came along, he ran up to the rig. "Hey, you all right?!" he asked the driver.

"Yeah. I guess I didn't realize this wasn't be the best place to make a U-turn."

Ponch's jaw dropped, then he looked down the length of the trailer, 'This thing has got to be over 50 feet long.' "U-turn, sir?"

"Yeah," was all the guy said.

Ponch turned around in time to see more cars lining up. To his relief, Bonnie also came rolling up, and it wasn't long before she had the traffic turned back around.

"I'll be right back," he told the semi's driver and went over to talk with her. "Hey, thanks for the assist."

"No problem. What exactly went wrong here? Anyone hurt?"

"No one's hurt," he assured her. "As for what went wrong...the driver of the rig figured out he was heading in the wrong direction, so he decided to make a U-turn."

Bonnie looked at him like he should be committed. "You are joking!" she stated more than asked, and motioned for the next driver to move up and turn back in the other direction.

"Nope. It'll take some time, but we'll get 'im straightened out…somehow."

"Well, let's get a move on! I've got a date tonight!" After that statement, Bonnie winked and then continued working on the traffic.

Ponch simply smiled, shook his head and went back to the rig. "Okay, you think you can get this thing turned around or we going to have to call in the artillery?"

"Well, it'll take some expert driving and some help from you to keep me from backing up too far and dropping into that ditch back there. I'm carrying a 40,000 pound payload back there and if I end up down in that ditch even a little…"

Ponch stopped him, "We'll need more than the artillery to get you out."

"Yeah. Now, Officer, just stay in my mirrors, okay, so I know exactly where you're at, at all times."

The guy didn't have to say that more than once. Being smucked by a semi-trailer wasn't on Ponch's list of fun things to do.

With Ponch's expert guidance and some dandy maneuvering, the driver managed to get his truck and trailer facing in the direction he wanted to go. It took quite some doing--and traffic was held up the entire time, but when it was finally over, both CHP officers and the semi's driver breathed sighs of relief.

Now that the truck was no longer blocking the highway, Ponch relaxed a little. He went over to his bike to get his 'pinch' book out of the saddlebag. Granted, no one was injured, no other cars were involved, but it was the whole 'reckless endangerment' part of it. He wrote out the citation as he spoke to the driver. After the ticket was signed and the guy was sent on his way, Ponch and Bonnie returned to Central. It was time to do their reports.

######################################################

After all that needed to be done was accomplished, the day shift headed home, and gladly left the highways to the afternoon shift.

#######################################################

Wednesday's briefing at Central started out all too similar to the last two days. Only this particular morning Getraer didn't have to warn his people to 'pipe down'. As the sergeant walked into the room, it quickly fell 'dead silent' as every last officer's strict attention was focused on him. No one was fooled. They all could tell by the expression on his face that another officer was down.

"People, this is getting really old. A third officer was taken out by the suspect late yesterday afternoon. This time Stevenson may not be so lucky. He's…" his voice cracked a little, "he's been unconscious since the…since the accident. Again the car was a different color, but was a fast sporty type. Now the Captain is, ah, how should I put it, a little livid over the whole situation. So far, only Grossman has managed to avoid getting caught in the snare. Right now, people, should you see a car that even hints at being the type of car our guy uses, it's fair game to at least be checked out. Now for the good news." He turned his attention to Ponch. "I wanna congratulate Frank on a tremendous drug and weapons bust." He stopped and raised a hand as all in the room apparently wanted to congratulate him too with whistles and clapping. When the room finally quieted down, he continued, "And Frank, getting those weapons before they hit the streets, will save lives, some of those lives could be any police officer out there." He stopped, cleared his throat and then continued, "We have enough trouble out there, people." After that note he continued on with the briefing. Once he was through, Getraer dismissed everyone so he could retreat to his office. Joe was really distraught about what was happening out there on the highways. It really bugged him to think that someone out there had such a deep hatred for someone, namely police officers, that they'd actually do something like this, not once, but four times. The one thing that really raised his concern was that the suspect had been successful--three out of those four times--at seriously injuring his victims, which meant this Phantom was extremely dangerous. Being successful and not getting caught, would only make the guy braver and braver. Every single officer out there was in a perilous situation. It wasn't that the sergeant wasn't concerned about the number of innocent civilians. No, Joe hadn't forgotten about them. It was just that he had his officers up at the forefront of his thoughts.

The Phantom's first victim was doing a little better now. True, the officer was terribly bruised from hitting the pavement and his dislocated shoulder would keep him out of commission for a while, but at least he was alive--very sore, but alive. Although the suspect seemed to be taking out officers of other shifts Joe knew his team of officers were not immune. The Phantom could pick on them at any time. Grossman was the prime example of that fact. Grossie sure must have had a guardian angel in his back pocket that day. Reflecting on all of this 'Phantom' business made Getraer grimace. He finally decided he'd better get to work. Unfortunately, even under the present circumstances, the world didn't stop turning, nor did the paperwork stop piling up on his desk.

#######################################################

The day started out really warm, and showed all the signs of getting even hotter, which meant any traffic snarls would also heat up the tempers of some motorists out there. True to form, that's exactly what happened.

And, Jon and Stephanie were right in the thick of it. As they rode on between the lanes of fairly slow moving traffic, suddenly it was no longer moving. They kept going till they came upon a number of people that had actually gotten out of their vehicles and were beginning a pushing and shoving match right in the traffic lanes. The officers left their motors, and quickly went up to the fracas to separate the parties involved.

"Hey! Break it up! Break it up right now!" Jon commanded the two that he stepped between.

Stephanie also managed to get between her two. She noted that one of the people opened his mouth to make a retort. However, she quickly squelched that idea.

"Officer, he--"

"Break it up, now!" Stephanie shouted, stopping him in mid-speech.

Traffic was gnarled. There wasn't any apparent accident, so after a quick question and answer session it was noted as a simple, but bad case of road rage, which the CHP officers managed to interrupt--before it escalated into something potentially serious. The matter was taken care of and, with both officers' assistance, traffic slowly, but progressively returned to normal.

They cleared up the last of this latest traffic snafu and, as they were getting back on their motors, Stephanie commented, "We sure timed that one perfectly."

"Yeah, another five minutes and I think we would have added four more to the county jail," Jon replied, as he fixed his helmet strap.

"Or one of us to the hospital," she added.

They started their motors and got back on the highway.

As Jon rode beside Stephanie, he so badly wanted to know what was troubling her. However, he had only known the officer for a few days now and he just wasn't sure if it wouldn't still be prying. But there definitely was something bothering this young woman. Baker thought about the 'little get together between friends' that Ponch had planned for Friday night. Maybe it was a good idea after all. It just might help her to get to know them better--under more informal circumstances--and it just may be what she needed. He began to feel much more at ease with the whole idea. 'Leave it to Ponch.'

########################################################

As the afternoon was drawing to a close, many of the day-shift officers decided to head for the beach when their shift ended. They all felt a real need to relax and cool down. Once everyone finally arrived at the agreed upon location, a picnic area was quickly set up. It turned out that Joe Getraer, his wife Betty and their children also came. They were quickly voted in as the barbecue chefs while everyone else left them behind for a nice, cool, relaxing swim.

Betty, of course, kept a watchful eye on her children. She knew she had nothing to worry about because it seemed there was always someone looking out for them. No matter how many times she'd been involved in some kind of get together with her husband's fellow officers, she couldn't help but think of how wonderful they all were. Joe was their boss and all of them seemed to look up to him. They respected him for his position, but mostly considered him as a trusted friend. She was really grateful for that.

Once the food was cooked, eaten, scraps taken care of and the area cleaned up, it was time for fun and games. A little volleyball, 'touch' football and tag (just so the kids could get involved). In the end, everyone had a wonderful time. Then reality set in and it was time to head home. Tomorrow was a whole new day.

#############################################################

The following morning, while all the officers were waiting for briefing to begin, many were caught up in the laughter at some of the poor victims who were suffering from the effects of the California sunshine from last night's picnic. Grossman's face mirrored a tomato, but there were a number of others that came pretty close to matching his description.

Getraer finally walked into the room, which immediately quieted down. His face once again spoke volumes. "Okay, people, we lost Stevenson earlier this morning. He…he never came out of the coma. Stevenson's been with the department for fifteen years," he paused, briefly to collect himself. There was more he wanted to say, but at the moment all he could think of was getting that crazed lunatic off the highway. "People, the Captain wants this guy--and he wants him now! But no one wants him more than I do!" he pointed at himself in an angry manner, showing just how frustrated he was. Then he continued, "The charge is now vehicular homicide and we don't even know who we're dealing with. The Phantom is only targeting the CHP, and we don't even know why! He's picking us off one at a time, people. He's using different highways, different times of day and stolen vehicles. And, that's about all we have to go on. I can't emphasize it enough, if somehow you manage to catch on in time and smell a trap, back off!" Getraer then got into the more somber details of the morning. "Stevenson's wife, Kathy and little boy will be staying at her parent's home till the funeral. I'll announce the arrangements as soon as I get them." He continued the briefing on other notes. After he was done, he dismissed everybody but two, "Jon, Frank, in my office."

"Okay, Sarge," they answered almost in unison.

#########################################################

Ponch and Jon went straight from the Briefing Room to Getraer's office . But when they stepped up to the doorway they both stopped.

Their sergeant was standing at the window, totally unaware of their presence. Joe stood there, sadly shaking his head. Then, suddenly, he slammed his fist down on the cabinet that was beside him. Getraer couldn't help but think of the senselessness of this whole situation. Why couldn't they nail this guy? How many more officers were going to be injured, or...?

"Joe, you wanted to see us?" Jon asked. Apparently, Getraer was so deep in thought he hadn't heard him. "Ah, Joe…"

Getraer finally turned, cleared his throat and waved them on into the room. "Jon, Frank, come in and sit down."

Whenever they were offered a seat it generally was because they were in some sort of trouble or Joe really needed them to do something important. With the news they had learned at the briefing, both of them had a feeling it was the latter.

"Jon, Frank, I need both of you to take part in the honor guard part of the funeral. As I mentioned in briefing, we don't know when it is, but the Captain asked that I request two of my best motor officers to represent our shift," Getraer paused and pointed at them, "that means you two."

"Sure, Joe, no problem," Jon replied as both he and Ponch looked at each other, nodding their heads in complete agreement.

"Okay, good. I'll let you and everyone else know the details as soon as I'm told."

"Okay, Sarge," Ponch replied.

Then Jon spoke up, "Joe, we are going to get this guy."

Getraer looked up at both officers, "Yeah, and let's do that before he gets a chance to injure or kill another officer. Now go hit your beats."

Both young men simply nodded once again in agreement and then silently left the room.

Joe stared at them as they left. He found himself wondering who was going to be the Phantom's next victim? He shuddered at the very thought.

####################################################

They met up with Stephanie out in the hallway. Both could tell, by the expression on her face, that the woman was still reeling from the effects of hearing about the death of a fellow officer. She looked as if she were in a daze.

"Hey, you okay?" her partner asked, in a worried tone. He didn't get any reaction. "Stephanie?" he gently shook her shoulder.

"Huh? Oh…sorry, Jon. Did you say something?"

"Yeah, are you okay?" Jon repeated. Both he and Ponch were extremely worried about how distracted she still seemed to look.

"Yeah…ah, no, I'm feeling a little off my feet, I guess. Ah, Jon, I've gotta go talk to Getraer. I've gotta see if I can take the day off. I don't really think I'd be any good out there today," the woman announced, and then quickly turned to head to Getraer's office, leaving the two friends standing there in a state of confusion. Stephanie just couldn't contain her emotions anymore. If she hadn't turned her back to them as quickly as she did, she would have lost it right then and there.

The woman approached the open doorway to Getraer's office and saw him looking down at his paperwork. It appeared to her that the man really wasn't seeing what he was looking at. 'He's in a daze, too...' she thought and realized that her sergeant had also been blind-sided by this crazy Phantom guy. She cleared her throat, "Uh, Sergeant Getraer?" That didn't get his attention. "Sergeant?!" she spoke a little louder, and this time, he looked up to see her standing there.

"Oh, Stephanie, come in." He took a really good look at her face. "Is something wrong?" he wondered, and then thought, 'Dumb question.'

"Sarge, I…I think I need the day off. I…I just don't think I'd be any good out there today. I just can't deal--"

"Listen, Stephanie, I understand this Phantom character, along with the death of Stevenson, isn't helping you in dealing with your own loss. But, I'd really hate to lose you today. However, if your judgment tells you to back off, I think I can deal with it. Just try to get yourself pulled together, okay? I need you back here tomorrow."

"Okay, Sarge, I'll…I'll try," she vowed and then walked out of his office, hoping she wouldn't meet up with either Jon or Ponch. Stephanie snuck out the back door and started her return trip home.

Getraer watched the woman go. He didn't like having one of his officers leave like that, but he knew in Stephanie's case, it really wouldn't be a good idea to have her out on the highways. As distracted as the woman obviously was, she could very easily have become the Phantom's next victim.

The sergeant stepped out of his office, hoping to find a certain couple of officers. With any luck, they were still in the building, more than likely waiting for Stephanie's return.

##############################################################

Before too long, Joe spotted them, "Jon, Frank, I need you two to double up today."

Both men looked at each other, but it was Jon who spoke up, "Us two? What about Stephanie?"

"She went home."

"Home? Well, she did say she wasn't feeling so good," Jon admitted.

"Okay, so go on, hit the bricks will yah!" Getraer didn't want to give them a chance to question further as to the reason why Stephanie had gone home.

"Okay, okay, we're goin'!" Ponch retorted, as both he and Jon headed for the exit.

Both officers left the building in a state of confusion. Stephanie was, er, well, she seemed to be fine before briefing. They got on their motors and headed out of the parking lot.

#########################################################

For awhile, both Jon and Ponch were lost in their own thoughts. Neither of them was blind to the fact that something was definitely troubling their fellow officer--and newfound friend. Both men wanted to help the woman, but couldn't because they were clueless as to what was wrong.

Ponch was the first to break the silence, "What do yah say we head over to Stephanie's sometime today? You know, just to check to make sure she's okay and make sure we're still on for tomorrow night."

Jon couldn't help but smile, "Ponch, the lady isn't feeling well. It may not be such a good idea to intrude."

"Intrude?! We're not intruding! Okay, we'll call it a 'welfare check'. We're just checking on her well being, okay? Nothing wrong with that!"

Jon quickly realized his partner wasn't going to change his mind on this one. Well, as usual, when Ponch latched onto an idea, he was like a pit bull and wouldn't let go, no matter how hard Jon tried to get him to drop the idea. So Baker simply resigned himself to that very fact, "All right, Ponch, you win." He turned to see his partner's toothy grin.

"I always do, partner."

###############################################################

The two CHP officers continued their patrol. Suddenly, they spotted a Camaro coming up from behind them, but two lanes over. The car quickly got their attention. The vehicle was going quite a distance over the speed limit so, as it passed them, they pulled in behind it and turned on their lights, signaling the driver to stop.

When the driver finally spotted the flashing lights behind him, he had to forcibly hold himself in check. The man steered his car over to the shoulder and waited for the inevitable.

This time, Ponch took the driver's side. He carefully studied the sporty looking vehicle. "Morning, sir," he said, as he stepped up to the driver's open window.

"Officer," was all the driver said, as he bit his lip.

"Sir, we stopped you because you were traveling well over the speed limit. May I see your license, registration and insurance, please?"

"Sure." The speeder gathered and then handed over the requested paperwork. As he did, he made a mental note of the officer's nameplate. Well, at least he tried.

"Thanks. I'll be back in a minute," Ponch promised and went back to his motor to call it in to dispatch.

While the man's driving record was being checked out, he sat in his car--fuming! His hatred for cops and everything they stood for just moved up an extra notch…or two. The man had just found his next victim. Yes, unknowingly, both Ponch and Jon had stumbled quite innocently upon the 'Freeway Phantom'. As the psycho sat there, he burned the CHP officer's name into his memory, well, part of it , anyway. Ponch--something or other. Fortunately, he'd gotten a very good look at the officer's face as well.

Ponch finally came back to the driver's window and handed him the ticket book for his signature. Ponch gave the guy his own personal copy of the citation, along with his papers, and then turned him loose.

As the Phantom drove away, he crumpled up the paper and threw it on the floor. "That pig is mine!" he yelled. He was glad that he had been driving his own vehicle. Though, if he had been driving a stolen one, he would have simply led those two Chippies on a merry chase. A chase that would have ended like all the others--with one or perhaps both kissing the pavement. Now, the Phantom had some very serious thinking to do. He had to start formulating a plot of revenge. He headed for home to calm himself down, clear his head and get busy planning. The Phantom figured this would be a challenge, a welcomed challenge.

###############################################################

As Ponch and Jon walked back to their motors, the decision was made to go check on Stephanie. So they went roaring off down the highway towards their new destination.

The two motorcycle officer's arrived at their colleague's home and knocked at the door. As they stood there waiting, both noticed how quiet the house was.

Stephanie finally met them at the door and greeted them with a somewhat shaky voice. "…Hey, guys. What's up?" she asked, hoping they couldn't see past her fake smile.

"Stephanie, sorry to bother you, we just wanted to make sure you were all right," Jon told her, as diplomatically as he could.

"Oh, I'm doing a little better, thanks," she somewhat fibbed. She bit her lip, as she knew she had to get a hold of herself. The world continued on and she had to learn to move on with it. It was just that it was a lot harder than she thought it ever would be.

Then it was Ponch's turn, a little less diplomatically, of course, "Then we're still on for tomorrow night?"

She couldn't help but smile at his boyish, toothy, pleading look, "Ponch, actually, I think it's something I really do need right now."

"Good, tomorrow night it is," he quickly confirmed.

"All right, Stephanie, if you're certain everything's okay. We just wanted to make sure," Jon was more concerned with her feelings than he was about Ponch's dinner date tomorrow night.

"Sure, I'm doing okay, and again thanks for checking. I'll see you guys tomorrow."

The door closed, and, as they walked back to their motors, Ponch couldn't help but comment, "Jon, I'm glad she didn't change her mind about tomorrow night."

"So am I. I sure wish she'd level with us, er, somebody anyhow. Whatever she's got bottled up inside can't be good for her," Baker added, and then both men started their motors and headed back out on the highway.

"Well, maybe after tomorrow night she'll feel more comfortable around us. Even if it's something we can't really help her with, we at least could listen and let her get it off her chest!"

"Yeah, but it'll have to be up to her and her alone."

########################################################

When the Freeway Phantom arrived at his apartment, he just couldn't get that cop off his mind. As he walked over to the couch, he kept clenching and unclenching his fists. He wanted him bad, so bad he decided he didn't care if he 'took him out' on or off duty. Seeing as how that was the way he felt, he knew he'd have to change his strategy. When he started this, it was any cop that got in his way while out on the freeways. This one, this one was a special project. He'd take some special work. He knew he just had to be patient as with this cop he had to learn a little more about him. If he didn't deal with him while on duty he'd have to learn where he lived along with the car he drove and maybe a few other things. So he went about his business that evening thinking that a plan would start to form at any time. This was one time he hoped his imagination wouldn't fail him.

########################################################

Back at Central all the officers were glad their day had passed without any mishaps, er, any problems as far as the Phantom was concerned. But there still were the afternoon and midnight shifts and those seemed to be the Phantom's favorite targets at the moment. Right now, everyone was just concerned about finishing up their reports so they could head for home. As usual, there was the continual humorous banter between Grossman and the others. Well, that is until Sergeant Getraer walked in.

"Jon, Frank, come to my office before you leave, okay?" Joe requested.

"Sure," they replied almost in unison.

No one in the room had missed the look on their senior officer's face. Whatever their sergeant wanted to talk to Ponch and Jon about, seemed to be something on a sad note.

The two summoned men quickly finished their paperwork, then headed to Getraer's office.

"Joe, you wanted to see us?" Jon asked.

Both young men saw the look on Getraer's face hadn't changed and he was now drumming the end of his pen on the desk while appearing miles away. "Huh, oh yeah. Ah, Jon, Frank, I've been requested to have you two in full-dress uniform for Stevenson's funeral on Sunday."

"Sure, Sarge," they both stated firmly.

"The ceremony is at 11 am. But you'd both better be there an hour or so early. Oh, you may want to join the others at Patterson's Funeral Home Saturday to go over the details."

"Ah, Joe, how's Kathy doing?" Ponch asked, with a very concerned look on his face.

"About as well as can be expected, I guess, under the circumstances. Betty's been trying to help as much as she can. She doesn't think it's really hit her yet. She's afraid reality will hit at the funeral." Joe paused a moment, "All I can say is we'd better get this guy soon…really soon."

"We'll, be there early Sunday," Jon told him, then both men left his office to begin their trek home for the evening.

######################################################

Ponch already had ideas in mind for what he was going to have for dinner Friday night. He just had to go shopping tonight to pick everything up and then get it ready so that he could just put it in the oven. So after he had arrived home after work he quickly changed into his street clothes and then climbed into his Firebird for the drive to the grocery store.

Driving his sporty looking car got him to thinking about the past few days, the injured officers along with the death and upcoming funeral of Jim Stevenson. Why? Why was this guy doing this to them? Sure a lot of people disliked cops for one reason or other. That was a given. Yes, there were those that even 'hated' cops and what they stood for. All of them knew this. But for somebody to carry out something like this was hard to comprehend. The person or persons had to have a vendetta against the Highway Patrol. That was the only logical explanation. Well, the only one Ponch could come up with at the moment. The whole thing was very unnerving.

His train of thought was broken when he heard the short blip of a siren coming from behind. Well, he knew he wasn't speeding, exactly. Well, maybe a couple miles over, but not enough to warrant being pulled over. It had to be something else. He pulled the car onto the shoulder and brought it to a complete stop. As he watched the officer cautiously walk up to his car he placed both hands on the wheel. He knew that that was the safest place for them to be for himself, as well as serving as a non-threatening position for the officer.

The officer was now at his window and he greeted the motorist, "Afternoon, sir." As the driver turned toward him, the patrolman suddenly recognized him. "Ponch! Ah, sorry to pull you over like this, man. How you doin'?"

"Terrific!" Ponch answered, with a broad grin. Then it suddenly dawned on him as to why the officer pulled him over. "Ah, it's the car, isn't it?"

The officer couldn't help but grin himself, "Yeah, that Phantom has us all jumpy."

"No kidding!"

"Hey, I won't hold you up any longer, Ponch. Have a good evening."

"Yeah, you too...and be careful." The officer stepped out of the way and Ponch moved his car back on the road, leaving the patrolman to walk back to his own vehicle.

######################################################

Upon arriving at the market, Ponch quickly found and paid for the ingredients he needed. He didn't want to take too long because he wanted to get home so he could start working on preparing his dinner items.

As soon as Ponch arrived back at his apartment, he put on the TV and then got busy in the kitchen. It wouldn't be long before the local news came on.

The program began, and the first piece of news naturally started out with the death of Officer Jim Stevenson.

Ponch dropped what he was doing so he could listen intently.

The report began, "The California Highway Patrolman, Officer Jim Stevenson died early this morning from injuries he received when he was involved in a hit and run. Officer Stevenson was the third officer involved in the recent apparent highway attacks on CHP officers. From what we've learned, the unknown suspect seems to steal a car and use it to create a highway accident involving numerous vehicles and a motorcycle CHP officer. If anyone sees anything suspicious regarding a sporty, revved up looking vehicle, please contact the CHP Central Division." The newscaster ended this portion of the news with, "Officer Stevenson leaves behind his wife of five years and his one-year-old son."

The last bit of the report made Ponch's eyes water, and his jaw tighten. The captain and Getraer weren't the only ones that wanted this guy. He forced himself to go back to the kitchen to try to finish up what he had started. He had to remind himself of the reason for his doing this. The dinner party was being held because Stephanie was troubled about something and, as a fellow officer and friend, she had to learn that he and Jon wanted to help her…if they could...if she'd even let them. After today, with her leaving work, Ponch figured that what was bothering her had to be something pretty big, or it wouldn't have effected her work.

################################################

Friday morning found the Freeway Phantom hidden in some very tall, thick bushes a safe distance away from the Cental Division parking lot. He knew he could very easily see the Chippies comings and goings without anyone being the wiser. A number of uniformed officers had already arrived that morning to cover their shift, but his pigeon hadn't yet made his appearance. After taking a quick check of the time, the Phantom wondered if 'Ponch' wasn't working today or if he was just running a little late. He'd barely finished that thought when another motor officer came in, parked and then headed for the building. As the officer removed his helmet, he was quickly recognized as the Phantom's next target. Now all the lurker had to do was sit tight and wait for 'Ponch' to return to his motor, then he'd trail him a little and see what highway he'd be covering. The Phantom knew this was only the beginning.

#################################################

As Ponch entered the building, he hoped to find Jon and Stephanie around…somewhere. He was a little earlier than usual, which surprised a few of the officers that were there. They always enjoyed the usual growling, er, chewing out Ponch got from Getraer when he'd attempt--but always fail miserably---to sneak into briefing on those 'late for work' days.

Even Getraer, who was in his office standing at one of his filing cabinets spotted him and wondered, "Hey Frank, what's up?!"

Ponch had just stepped past his sergeant's doorway when he heard his name, "Nothing's up, Sarge. What do yah mean?" he asked, looking somewhat confused.

"You're here earlier than usual, Frank. Does this mean I can expect to see you on time at briefing this morning?"

Frank quickly decided that now was not the time to be flippant, "Sure, Sarge," he vowed and then quickly moved on. The first room he checked was the break room and that's where he found his friends. "Hey, Stephanie, Jon! Great morning, isn't it. Feeling better, Stephanie?"

Stephanie just couldn't help but smile at the dashing young officer's warm greeting. She found Ponch's smile rather contagious. "I'm doing better, Ponch, thanks." She finished her coffee, and commented further, "I'll see both of you at briefing."

"Sure," both men agreed.

"Ponch, Melissa wanted me to ask if you'd like us to come a little early tonight, ah, just on the off chance you needed help in the kitchen." Baker grinned when Ponch's face lit up with acceptance of the idea.

"That would be great, Jon!" Then he took a quick look at his watch and added, "Ah, c'mon, we're gonna be late!"

####################################################

The two of them made it into the Briefing room with only seconds to spare.

Which, of course, didn't go unnoticed by Getraer, as he entered the room. "Frank, you got here ahead of schedule and you still managed to almost be late for briefing?" He quickly put up a hand to silence any excuses. The sergeant just wasn't in the mood to hear them. "Never mind, Frank, never mind." Getraer got rolling on the briefing. He wanted his people out on their beats, hoping at least that one of them would somehow stumble onto the Phantom--without injury, of course. The freeway felon was the number one item of the morning. "Okay, the Phantom must've laid low last night. So, keep your heads up and both eyes open. He just may dog our shift today. Remember, if you smell a trap back off. I don't want to hear any 'officer down' traffic." He continued on with another item or two then dismissed his officers.

Everyone began filing from the room, enroute to their units.

Before Ponch could make it to the door, Grossie tapped him on the shoulder and commented, "Looks like you're on Getraer's list again, Ponch."

"Grossie, I've been on his list for the last five years," Ponch told him with a wide grin. His comment made those around him laugh heartily, then they continued on outside to their respective units.

As the officers exited the building, the Phantom watched closely from his vantage point to make sure he could pick out his pigeon. It turned out that 'Ponch' was one of the last few to come outside. His target was with a tall blonde guy and a brunette woman. The latter two parted company from the mark to go to their own motors. 'Ponch' was all set to leave the parking lot, and he quickly headed out, as well.

The Phantom swiftly jogged to his own vehicle and was ready to get behind the man on the motorcycle. The first part of the plan was simply to learn a little bit about this officer. How he handled his motorcycle under the various situations he may find himself in. Would 'Ponch' be as easy to take down as the others seemed to have been? Would this particular officer take just any bait offered him and fall into his trap? He' never bothered to ask himself these questions before. But the other times he simply took the officer out that happened to be there at the time. This time, things would be different.

The Phantom kept a respectable distance and followed Ponch for some time. Suddenly, his victim sped up and took the next exit. He figured something must have been happening somewhere down on another highway. The Phantom also took the off ramp, yet still kept far enough behind so as to not be noticed.

As soon as Ponch got on the next freeway, he picked up even more speed. The Phantom quickly realized he had to back off as the officer he had intended on following quickly disappeared. He didn't dare try to follow, not at the speed his target was going. He wasn't too upset though, he figured he'd be able to pick him up again later. If not today, there was always tomorrow. Besides, he knew he could wait for Ponch to finish his shift and then follow him home. That would be the next step. Life--and his plan would go on. Besides, there were other things he could do today.

######################################################

Ponch had been dispatched to assist Baricza, who was involved in assisting traffic around some boxes that were creating a traffic hazard. The objects were blocking the freeway's second and third lanes. The boxes had basically been thrown in the back of a large dump truck, but had not been secured enough to keep them inside. The driver had apparently been clueless as to his spilled load and had simply kept right on going. Baricza already had dispatch get in touch with Caltrans for cleanup detail. In the meantime, he and Ponch dealt with the traffic 'detail'. When Caltrans personnel finally arrived on the scene, traffic was stopped for a while so the men could work free of worrying about being hit by any motorists. Once all the debris was removed, both officers got traffic moving again.

As traffic was no longer tied up, both Baricza and Ponch breathed a sigh of relief.

Bear was first to speak up, "Man, we're lucky we didn't have a horrible MVA on this one."

"Yeah! What I can't figure out is why the driver didn't stop. He had to have seen the boxes falling."

"Would you have stopped?" Bear asked him with a grin. He didn't get an answer as Ponch just grinned and returned to his motor.

Ponch notified LA that he was clear the traffic hazard, then Baricza followed suit.

###############################################

Jon and Stephanie were covering their territory, when dispatch came over the radio, "LA to any units on I5, identify. We have a two car TC, (traffic crash) just south of Broadway. Cars are blocking lane one."

"7 Mary 3 and 6 responding, we're two away," Jon acknowledged.

Then both officers put on the emergency flashers and picked up speed.

###################################################

The accident turned out to be minor as far as injuries were concerned. However, both cars were somewhat disabled. The way they had collided had caused the front fender of one vehicle to buckle in such a way that it hampered one of the front wheels from turning. The other vehicle had a leaking radiator. So, along with a couple tow trucks being called in, the fire department was also called in to hose down the fluid. Once that was all taken care of, Jon and Stephanie continued on their way down the highway.

#################################################################

True to his word, the Phantom had returned to his hiding place. He arrived just in time to see his target return. Then, he simply waited for Ponch to completely finish up with whatever it was that he had to do. He intended to follow this pigeon to his nest, er, his home.

##################################################################

As Ponch headed for the break room to do his reports, Grossman spotted him, "Hey, Ponch, got anything planned for tonight? If not, wanna go to the gym…"

"Can't Grossie, got some 'friends' coming over tonight," Ponch told him with a grin.

Grossie totally misunderstood his reply, "Ohhh, you're having some of the guy's over for poker and I'm not invited. I get it." His nose was a little out of joint.

Ponch smiled and shook his head, "No, Grossie!" Then he lowered his voice considerably, "Jon, his girlfriend and Stephanie are coming over, that's all."

"Oh, okay," Grossman paused a moment, then continued as he looked around, "Why you whispering?"

Ponch just looked at him, then took a step or two toward the room, then turned back, "Grossie? Ah, never mind." Ponch didn't think he had to go into detail on this with Grossman, not right now. Ponch just wanted to finish up his reports and then head home to get things started for this evening's dinner. He was glad for the help Melissa offered. He wanted everything to be perfect. After parting company with Grossman, he went straight into the room to get started. It wasn't long before Jon and Stephanie came in, both looking a little haggard. Which Ponch immediately noticed, as soon as they walked in. "Uh, oh, something tells me it got kind of rough out there today," Ponch stated more than asked.

"You might say that," was all Stephanie offered.

Jon grabbed the necessary numbered report sheets before taking his seat across from her. "Yeah, between kids on skateboards, one and two car minor accidents one right after the other, traffic hazards and all sorts of other crazy things that could have, er, did happen, you might say it was a rough day," Baker summed up with a sigh.

"Well, you guy's will get a chance to relax for a while at my place tonight. A great meal, soft music…"

"Ah, huh, and pretty ladies knocking on your door for a cup of sugar," Jon just couldn't help but chuckle and shake his head.

Ponch gave him a dirty look, "Jon…just do your reports."

That comment only made his blonde friend chuckle even harder.

As soon as he was finished, Ponch stood up, "I'll see you guys later, okay?"

"Sure, Ponch," both Stephanie and Jon answered.

The officer left as quickly as he could so he could put the paperwork on Getraer's desk. Ponch then beat a hasty retreat out of the building to begin his ride home, totally unaware that he was being watched and would soon be tailed as he got out on the highway.

The Phantom entered the highway a safe distance behind him. Although he didn't want to lose his target in traffic, he didn't want to put him on alert either. He just calmly stayed in the lane he was in and kept a wary eye on the motorcycle up ahead.

The pigeon finally took an off-ramp and the Phantom's black Camaro turned off as well. It was only a few more miles then Ponch turned into his apartment complex parking lot and drove into the tenant's parking area. As for the Phantom, he parked his car a short distance past the entrance Ponch went into and watched as he disappeared inside the building. He waited there about ten minutes then he made a U-turn, pulled into the parking lot and parked the car in such a way that if circumstances called for it, he could make a hasty get away. He kept the car running as he entered the building. He found the mailbox area, so he made a fast search for Ponch's apartment number, which also showed that he was right on the first floor, so he quickly left the building for his car and home. He had some more thinking to do. His sole purpose for doing this was just in case he had to do some taunting of his pigeon.

###################################################################

Ponch quickly changed into a navy blue pair of dress slacks and a soft blue shirt, then headed for the kitchen. There was still time before he had to put the meat in the oven. First, he had some little stuff to take care of. He was just starting to work on the second 'little' item when the phone rang. 'Ah, man, why now?' He knew he had to answer it, "Hello?"

"Ponch, it's Jon. Melissa wanted me to call to see if you needed anything."

Ponch's quick thinking mind never failed him, "Yeah, help!"

"I take it you want us to come right now?"

"Yeah, could you? Please?"

Jon couldn't help but chuckle, "Okay, we'll be there in about twenty minutes."

"Thanks!" The conversation ended and they hung up.

####################################################################

Jon and Melissa were right on time.

Ponch finished putting the pan in the oven and quickly went to answer their knock on his door.

Melissa was holding what would soon be serving as a centerpiece for the table.

"Hi guys! Hey, Melissa, that's beautiful!"

"Thanks. Thought we'd spruce up the table a little."

"Ah, that's terrific!"

When Jon saw how much Ponch already had done, he just shook his head, "So you needed help, huh, Ponch." It was more of a statement than a question.

Ponch grinned as he parted the two candles he already had in the center of the table to make room for the colorful centerpiece. "Stephanie, should really like it too."

Melissa followed him into the kitchen, while Jon checked out some of his choice of music. Baker found something he thought would be soft and relaxing. It was.

Around 6:30 there was another knock on the door, which Ponch went to answer.

Naturally, it was Stephanie.

"Hey, c'mon in!"

"Thanks, Ponch, hope I'm not too early."

"You kidding? C'mon, you can meet and get to know Jon's girlfriend, Melissa. He led her to the living room where Jon and Melissa were sitting on the couch. "Stephanie, this is Melissa Talbot, Melissa, Stephanie Wilkes."

"Hi, Melissa, nice to meet you."

"Same here, Stephanie."

All four were now sitting down with the two woman chatting with each other like they'd known one another for a long time.

The time flew by fast and Ponch suddenly jumped up, "Sorry, I think it's time to get everything on the table. Excuse me."

Both women also got up to assist, so everything was made ready and on the table in no time.

The food was great, the conversation light. Ponch enjoyed hearing Stephanie laugh. Her laughter was a good sign that she really appreciated this 'night out'.

For Stephanie, this time away from work and home was exactly what she felt she needed. Being able to get to know the real Jon and Ponch out of uniform and in a much more relaxed atmosphere was nice. She got to see that Ponch truly was a great guy. He seemed like such a kind and gentle man, both on and off duty. In some ways he reminded her of her late husband. Of course, Jim was a little more on the quieter side, but he certainly did have a sense of humor. Stephanie had been so deep in thought at the moment that she hadn't heard Ponch's first attempt at getting her attention.

So he tried a second time, "Stephanie! Hey, you okay?"

"Huh, oh, yes, I'm sorry. Caught me in la la land, I guess," she apologized with a smile.

He smiled right back at her, "I hope the food's not too spicy."

"Ah, no, everything's delicious, Ponch," she told him truthfully, then went back to her meal. She quietly reprimanded herself for being caught in her reverie.

The conversation continued through dinner on a pleasant note. Both women offered to do the dishes, but ended up simply helping to clean up the table, leaving everything in or by the sink. Ponch wanted everyone in the living room, where they could just sit and relax. Melissa really liked Stephanie a lot. She found her very friendly and easy to get to know. She didn't even seem to mind answering her questions.  Well, she had to admit both of them seemed curious about each other. But as the saying goes, 'all good things must come to an end'.

Jon was the first one to realize how late it was getting. "Melissa, I think it's time I take you home. I've gotta work tomorrow."

"Oh, sure," she agreed.

So Ponch walked them to the door, "Thanks for coming, guys."

"Hey, it was great, Ponch," Jon told him.

Then after a brief, quiet interchange, Jon and Melissa left.

Ponch went back to the living room, but Stephanie was gone. Then he heard the sound of dishes clanking and water running, "Stephanie, you don't need…"

"I'm not leaving here till these are done, Ponch," she told him in a no nonsense tone, albeit, with a smile. She felt it was the least she could do in return for the nice evening she had had.

He returned her smile, "Okay, you wash, I'll dry."

Without skipping a beat, she tried to keep her smile in place. She just couldn't help remembering, 'How many times did Jim say that very phrase?' She shook her head.

Ponch caught her distant look, "Hey, you okay?"

"Huh, oh yeah, I'm fine."

They were just about done with all the dishes, when the phone rang.

Ponch left her to go answer it, "Hello?"

"Ponch, it's Jon, you have the TV on?" Baker had assumed his friend was alone by now.

"No, why?"

"Turn it on to channel seven. See yah tomorrow."

Ponch hung up and turned on the TV.

Stephanie walked in the living room, "What's up?"

"Don't know. Jon just called to tell me to turn on the TV."

At the moment, there was a commercial, but it ended quickly. Then the newscaster came back on the screen, "Another multiple car accident occurred on the 405 earlier this evening. A total of six cars and a motorcycle CHP officer were involved. According to what witnesses told police, they have no doubt that this accident was caused, once again, by the suspect police have nicknamed the Freeway Phantom."

Ponch was so tuned in to the news that he was totally unaware that Stephanie had turned away and was trying very hard to quiet her sobbing. He wanted to find out about the officer, who it was and if he was injured.

The newscaster continued, "Five people were injured including Officer Michael Ortega who is listed in critical condition at Rampart Hospital. The accident is still under investigation." The reporter then continued on with the rest of the news.

When Ponch heard the officer's name, his jaw dropped and he shook his head. Although Michael was on a different shift, they were still pretty good friends. Ponch was about to say something to Stephanie to that effect when he realized she was no longer standing beside him. Then he saw her, standing a little ways off to his left with her back to him. He could tell by her shaking shoulders that she had to be crying. He stepped up behind her, put his arm around her and quietly asked, "Hey, what's wrong?"

"I'm sorry, Ponch, I…I just can't take it anymore. I just better go home," she turned to leave, but he stopped her.

He had changed his position so fast he was standing in front of her now. "Uh uh, not like this." He figured it was time for her to talk it out. Whatever was tearing her apart needed to be let out. Still, he knew he had to be careful. He guided her over to the couch, "Stephanie, I know whatever is troubling you is none of my business. But as a friend, it hurts me to see you like this." Ponch had been told about a potentially bad situation that Jon and Stephanie had been involved in and how it was defused because of her quick thinking. It showed him that she could not only take care of herself but her partner as well. So he began with, "Stephanie, you're a good cop, but if you keep whatever it is that's troubling you bottled up inside…" he stopped when he noticed her lower her head and bite her bottom lip. He reached up to her chin, lifted her head and then wiped the tear from her cheek, "Take your time, I'm here to simply listen."

How right he was! She had kept this inside for so long, but she was afraid if she started to tell him about it, the tears would burst forth and she wouldn't be able to stop them. She decided though that she'd have to give it a try. "Ponch, I…I was married to a wonderful man for two short years. He was with the Sacramento PD. He was…he was killed two months ago…when the pursuit he was involved in went bad. He was…running Code 3, but a drunk driver ran a red light. He was hit broadside…he was pronounced dead at the hospital."

Ponch was shocked. He knew from the way she had been acting and reacting to things that had been happening that week that it had to be something bad, but he was rather unprepared for this. "Ah, Stephanie, I am so sorry to hear of your loss," he told her as he pulled her to him to hug her and let her cry on his shoulder. Turned out even he shed a few tears. As he held her, he suddenly realized something. No wonder she took the death of Jim Stevenson so hard. On top of everything else he even had her husband's first name. What a way to keep a festering wound open.

When she finally felt she had pulled herself together enough, she drew away and rubbed her cheeks, "I'm sorry, Ponch, I really shouldn't've bothered you with my problems."

"Nonsense, that's what friends are for. You needed this, Stephanie, you needed to air out your feelings. There's nothing wrong with crying. It's a good way to release the sadness over a situation. All of us grieve in one way or another. We shouldn't ever hold it in."

They talked quietly for a long while, then she suddenly noted the time. "Oh, Ponch, it's almost three in the morning!" she almost shrieked. "We've gotta go to work tomorrow, er, today," she added, finally finding a smile.

"Okay, I'm gonna walk you to your car, c'mon."

"That's not--"

"Yes, it is," he told her with a smile, and a no nonsense tone in his voice.

They left his apartment and headed to the parking area. She got into her car.

"Be careful going home, all right. I want to see you at Central tomorrow in one piece. Okay?" Ponch told her with a determined look, then he flashed her another smile.

'Yup, that smile of his sure is contagious.' she thought and smiled right back. "Sure, I'll be careful. Thanks for the great evening. See you tomorrow." She started the car, waved and then was on her way home.

Ponch waved back and then watched as she entered the highway and gradually disappeared from view.

Ponch went back to his apartment and went straight to his bedroom. He sat on the bed and thought he probably wouldn't sleep anyway, especially with the information he'd learned from Stephanie tonight. Her husband killed by a drunk driver, plus the recent death of the fellow CHP officer, plus the still on the loose Freeway Phantom? So because of all this, he decided to simply lay back down on the bed with the clothes he had on. He felt he might as well. It was going to be a long night, well, what was left of it anyway.

#########################################################

Suddenly, Ponch's alarm was going off--with its irritating beeping. As tired as he was, it took a bit for that noise to register as to what it actually was. When it finally did register, he slapped the snooze button, rolled back over and moaned. He only had nine more minutes before…"Beep…beep…beep" his alarm sounded again. He had instantly fallen back to sleep. "Ah, man!" he groaned. Ponch slowly sat up. He knew full well that if he didn't, he'd fall right back to sleep. His tired mind went back once again to last night. The tired feeling he was fighting at the moment was well worth it. Maybe now, Stephanie would better be able to handle her grief now that she wasn't holding it in. He realistically knew though, that it still would take some time for her to deal with it. Speaking of time, he figured he'd better get a move on, because at the speed he was going he'd never get to work on time.

#####################################################################

Once everyone was seated in the Briefing room, Getraer came in making the announcement that Ponch, Jon, Stephanie and anyone else who listened to the late evening news already knew, that one more officer had been injured. Officer Ortega was still listed in critical condition as of that morning, but was expected to pull through. His injuries were serious, but with a lengthy hospital stay, therapy and more than a couple months of medical leave, in time he should be back to work.

While Getraer filled everyone in, Ponch tried to watch Stephanie for any reaction. Even though she already was aware of the accident, he wanted to see if the reminder would effect her. Outwardly, she gave no sign that he could read. She simply looked straight ahead. He wasn't sure if that was a good sign or not.

After briefing, all the officers began leaving the room and exiting the building.

Ponch tried to catch up to Jon and Stephanie, "Hey, guys, wait up!" They did, and Ponch continued "Ah, Stephanie, can I talk to you a minute?"

"Sure, Ponch."

"I'll wait for you by our motors," her partner told her, looking at Ponch and arching a brow. Baker was wondering what his friend had up his sleeve this time.

"Okay," Stephanie acknowledged and turned her attention back to Ponch.

"Are you going to be all right out there today?" Ponch asked, honestly concerned and interested in her welfare.

"Sure, Ponch, I'm fine, thanks, really, I'm okay," she told him with a smile.

"All right, I--"

"Hey, Stephanie, we've gotta roll!" Jon yelled, suddenly, "We've got a MVA on our beat!"

"Sorry, Ponch, gotta run!" the officer turned and ran toward Baker and her motor.

Ponch watched them pull away. Then, he went over to his motor to head toward the highway he was covering that day.

###########################################################

It was midmorning when Ponch and Jon met at Patterson's funeral home. All the officers involved in the proceedings were there. Each one was given their assignment along with their position in the procession from the funeral home to the cemetery. Both Ponch and Jon noticed one officer in particular who seemed to be in pretty rough shape. Apparently, this man must have been very, very close to Officer Stevenson. It appeared that this situation he found himself in was going to be very difficult for him to deal with, and they could tell he was having a hard fight with his emotions.

The meeting itself didn't take very long and as soon as it was over the grieving officer quickly turned to leave.

Ponch was about to go over to talk with him, but Jon put a hand on his shoulder to stop him. He turned to Baker and gave him a confused look.

Jon pointed out that a sergeant who was there hadn't missed the emotionally distraught man, either. He was already standing beside Stevenson's buddy, guiding him away from the others.

"Rick, you okay?" the sergeant anxiously inquired. From the way the young man looked, he realized that was probably a dumb question, but he still needed to ask. Rick still seemed miles away, so the sergeant rephrased his question a bit and repeated it, "Rick, are you gonna be okay?"

Rick finally looked at the man who was standing in front of him with his hand on his shoulder, "Huh? Oh sorry, Sarge, did you say something?"

"Yeah, look are you gonna be okay with this? You and Jim were mighty close. If you don't--"

"No, Sarge, I'll…I'll be okay. I have to do this, for me…for him."

Before saying anything further, the sergeant took a really good look at him. Then, "Okay, if you're sure." He knew all the officers, whether involved in the funeral or not, were in some sort of state of shock. Those who had known Jim Stevenson as a friend and fellow officer were especially having a difficult time.

Rick left the premises, still trying to pull himself together.

Now that everything that needed to be taken care of was completed and everyone knew their place, they all filed out of the building.

When they got back to their motors, Ponch just sat there lost in thought.

Which prompted Jon to ask, "You okay?" He received no reply. So he repeated the question along with giving him a gentle nudge, "Hey, Ponch, you okay?!"

"Huh? Oh yeah, I'm fine. Just can't help but think of what a stupid way for a guy to lose a friend...or for a wife to lose her husband. This Phantom's gotta screw up somewhere. His luck's gotta run out sometime."

"I know what you mean. C'mon, let's head back to Central." With that, Baker started his bike and pulled out of the lot .

Ponch was right behind him, albeit, still somewhat deep in thought.

Unknowingly, both officers were being trailed by the elusive Phantom. He had parked and waited for them while they were in the funeral home. He was really itching to take out his pigeon, but he knew now wouldn't be the time. He also knew he had become really good at knocking a cop off his bike, but he wasn't willing to risk doing it two at a time, not just yet.

########################################################

Once back at Central, Jon met up with Stephanie, as planned. After whatever needed to be taken care of there, Jon and Stephanie returned to the highways.

It wasn't long after that, that Ponch was 'out and about' as well. Again he was unaware that he was being followed.

Meanwhile, the Phantom had decided he had waited, as well as researched this cop, long enough. He was ready to take his next victim out. Ah, sweet revenge! So once he knew Ponch was heading back to Central, he quickly went off to look for a car he could use…free of charge, of course.

It took a little while, but he managed to find the right sporty type vehicle. He had to keep up his image. Anyway, when he got back to the CHP building, he parked in his usual hiding place and then checked out the area where the motorcycles were parked. From what he could tell his pigeon's motorcycle was still there. Turned out that he had arrived back just in time, because it was only a matter of a few minutes when Ponch came out and headed back to the highways…with the Phantom following a safe distance behind.

###########################################################

For some reason, things didn't work out as the Phantom had planned. The afternoon passed with Ponch never getting into a position where the felon felt he could 'take him out'. There were times when cars had surrounded the biker. The Phantom just couldn't seem to get himself into the proper position. He was really bummed that things didn't work out. However, he knew it was better to be safe than sorry. Besides, the time would come. He just needed to be patient.

####################################################################

The morning of the funeral came all too fast--for the entire group of CHP officers. Because there were so many people, family, friends and fellow officers in attendance, the procession stretched from the funeral home to the cemetery where the actual memorial service would take place. There were many solemn looking officers not only in the procession but also those involved in traffic detail.

Officer Stevenson's widow, Kathy, was trying very hard to keep her emotions in check, albeit, rather unsuccessfully. The sympathetic overtones of those who wanted her to know how sorry they were for her loss didn't help her in her fight to keep the tears at bay. No matter how hard she tried to stem them, they kept coming. Even her parents who stood beside her were of no help, no matter how much they tried to console her. They were really hurting for their daughter. They knew how much she loved her husband.

################################################################

Once the funeral was over, again a few officers came up to Kathy, just as she and her parents were preparing to leave. But although the three of them were very distraught, they quickly realized that these officers had been in the procession and thus had been too busy to come over earlier.

As Jon and Ponch finally got their chance to speak with their colleague's widow, they gave their condolences trying very hard themselves to keep their own emotions in check. Both knew that they had to do it for her sake.

Although both Jon and Ponch had known Jim, Ponch had been the closest of the two. He was the first to speak after they hugged, "Kathy, if there's anything you need, please let me know okay? I just want you to know I'm here to help when you need it, okay?"

"Thank you, Ponch, I really do appreciate it," she told him, with a weak smile.

As Jon took his turn, Ponch was already thinking that his plan had to be that he wouldn't wait for her to take that first step. He wouldn't, er, couldn't do that to a friend. Expecting someone in her position to 'ask' for help just wasn't right. He'd give her some space for a while, time to grieve and then he'd take the initiative. That way she wouldn't ever feel obligated or beholden to him for whatever help he may give her.

Jon was forced to break through his thoughts just then as it was time for them to go, he nudged his shoulder, "Hey, Ponch, time we got back to Central."

"Oh…y-yeah, sure," Ponch stammered.

####################################################

When Baker and Poncherello returned to Central, Bonnie met them in the hallway.

"Hi, guys!" she greeted and then added, "Uh, Joe would like to see both of you in his office. Right now, if you could."

"Okay, Bonnie. Thanks," Jon told her.

########################################################

Sergeant Getraer had also been at the funeral. He'd watched the faces of his younger officers. He knew how this whole Phantom thing was wreaking havoc with everyone. But with the death of Stevenson, emotions were quite high. Joe knew it was hard enough just to attend the funeral along with having to keep those emotions in check, but to actually be in the procession, an actual part of the funeral more than likely really brought home the finality of it all. He felt a real need--and the captain had felt the same way--that he should talk to both Jon and Frank. Maybe see if they felt a need for talking to a grief counselor. Everyone was affected by the situation in one way or another, since the Phantom raised his ugly head.

As the two summoned officers entered Getraer's office, Ponch asked, "Joe, Bonnie said you wanted to see us?"

"Oh, yeah, c'mon in. Frank...Jon, are you two dealing with the Stevenson situation all right? Or do you think you may want to talk to someone about it?" 'That's right, Joe, cut right to the chase.'

"No. I'm fine," Jon softly answered.

Ponch came out a little more direct, "I'll deal with it after we get the creep that's doing this to us."

Joe didn't miss the anger in his voice or the fire in his dark eyes. "Frank, I know you and Jim were pretty good friends, and we all know the way he died really stinks, but we have to keep our heads together on this, okay? If we can't keep our judgment clear, or our emotions in check at all times, we're no good to anyone out there. Look, if either of you, or both of you think you need to talk to someone, do it, okay?"

Jon stood there, quietly thinking over what his sergeant had just said. As he turned to leave he again softly spoke, "Talking won't bring Jim back." And, with that, he and Ponch left Getraer's office.

Joe had known right from the start that it would be a real battle to get these two to agree to the grief counseling aspect. He could have made it an order, but this wasn't something anyone should be forced into. If their work were affected, then it would be a whole different story. They'd have no choice in the matter. But thus far, there didn't appear to be any problems. After thinking it through, Getraer went back to the paperwork on his desk.

#################################################

Since the funeral, and all that went with it, ate up most of the afternoon portion of the shift, what little paperwork anyone had from earlier that day was quickly taken care of. Those that were scheduled to cover the highways had quite a bit to deal with.

Ponch, Jon and Stephanie were now scheduled for the next two days off. Ponch had plans of leaving the city behind to go camping and hiking with a few friends. Jon, however, had other plans.

As they left the building for their motors, Ponch asked him, "Hey, Jon, how 'bout coming with me tomorrow. It'd be a great stress reliever doing a bit of hiking."

"Can't, I'm taking Bear's spot tomorrow."

"Oh, lucky you. Be careful out there, man, don't be the Phantom's next victim."

"Yeah, I'll be careful. You too."

Neither of them saw the distant look on Stephanie's face. Although she felt she was a little more on the mend since she and Ponch had had their little talk, the funeral tended to bring back those painful memories.

So now the three of them headed for their homes.

####################################################

The following morning, Ponch was ready to go. He had gotten his gear all set and packed in the car the evening before. So, this morning, all he had to do was grab a jacket and head on out the door.

The Phantom was all set to carry out his delayed plan. Today was going to be the day he was finally going to 'take out' his pigeon. Once Ponch was disposed of, he'd move on to even greener pastures...California's highways were full of Chippies! Much earlier that morning, he had spotted and 'borrowed' his latest car. He was always grateful to the people that made it so easy to 'take' their vehicles. Now he was waiting for his next victim to come out of his apartment complex and start heading to work. When Ponch did leave his building, he was dressed in blue jeans, a red and black shirt and was carrying a jacket. That led the Phantom to correctly surmise that the CHP officer had the day off. It made no difference. Today was going to be the day.

Ponch drove out of the parking area and was soon on the highway. Just knowing he was leaving the city behind for a little while, made him smile. Then he thought about Jon, who was working for Baricza today. He honestly didn't know how Baker could do it. After the funeral yesterday, Ponch felt he needed a break. He really needed to get away and clear his head. He got to thinking that maybe since the friends he was meeting weren't cops, maybe that would help in distancing himself even more.

The Phantom wasn't all that far behind the off-duty officer. The psycho wasn't really all that concerned about his pigeon being in his car instead of on his motorcycle. The felon just needed to adjust his tactics a little. Adjustments presented no problem. He would just have to be patient and, hopefully, the conditions would be right and other drivers would cooperate.

#################################################

They'd driven quite a ways on the 405, when--suddenly--the Phantom not only saw his chance, but also realized the terrain they were coming up to could make for one dandy 'accident'. If he played his cards right, off-duty CHP Officer Poncher--something, er, other would definitely be put out of commission. The car that was to his victim's right pulled slightly ahead, opening up the space for the Phantom. "About time!" he spoke out loud. So he swung into the vacated lane and moved up enough to be just slightly ahead of Ponch's vehicle. Now he had to make sure the cars up ahead stayed far enough ahead to give him plenty of room to get out of the way once the action really started happening.

Ponch took a quick look at the sporty-looking vehicle that was just to his right in the other lane. He smiled as he realized paranoia must be setting in. His grin broadened when he realized he was in his personal car and not on his motor. But his grin quickly faded when all of a sudden that very car made a hard left, which connected with his fender. It happened so fast he had no time to react.

The hit caused the desired affect, as far as the Phantom was concerned. Ponch's car spun around with the driver's side facing oncoming traffic. The first car behind him hit him nearly broadside even though its driver desperately tried to avoid the out of control car in front of him. That first impact jolted Ponch away from--and then slammed him back against--his car door. His head struck the car's window hard enough to render him unconscious.

Meanwhile, a second vehicle failed--miserably--to avoid being involved. Its driver swerved to miss the car that had piled into Ponch's, and ended up slamming into Ponch's brown Firebird, as well--just moments after the initial impact. Following the second hit, Ponch's careening car flipped over and slid towards the highway's shoulder. The vehicle then rolled down the embankment, coming to rest on its driver's side. As Ponch's car disappeared, others were still colliding into the two that had struck his. When the accident was finally over, about seven cars--not including Ponch's Firebird--had become involved.

A motorist, who had a car phone, called in to 911 requesting ambulances, police and firefighters. Actually, the emergency dispatcher received numerous calls--reporting the same accident.

One driver, who had managed to witness the carnage from a safe distance, had seen a brown car go tumbling down the embankment. The motorist pulled over onto the shoulder and ran over to the spot where he'd seen the vehicle disappear. Carefully, the concerned man made his way down to check on the tipped-over car's driver.

#######################################################

What about the Phantom? Well, this time, he barely escaped being involved in the mess. Because, when Ponch's Firebird had spun around, it had clipped the back of his own car. However, he'd seen his victim's vehicle coming towards his tail, and had punched the accelerator--just in the nick of time. He looked back in his rearview mirror and watched his pigeon’s crumpled car disappear over the embankment. He felt assured that his mission had been accomplished. It would be sometime, if ever, before that cop would be bothering him or anyone else on the highways again. The Freeway Phantom wiped the sweat from his brow and then fled the scene of the 'accident'.

###########################################################

Speaking of the accident...back at the scene, the motorist, who had gone down the embankment to check on the Firebird's driver, soon realized that there wasn't anyway that he could reach the car's unconscious occupant. The man had somehow managed to get on top of the vehicle but he couldn't budge the front passenger's side door. When he got back down on the ground he could hear the sirens of various emergency vehicles. One of the sirens stopped wailing, so he began yelling--at the top of his voice, "Down here! Down here! I need help!" Seconds later, a CHP officer appeared and looked down the embankment. The good samaritan motioned for the officer to join him, "C'mon, this man needs help!"

Before Jon Baker started making his way down to help the shouting motorist, he took a second to see if any firemen or paramedics were available to assist him. At the moment, the few units that were there were already tied up. So the officer went solo and descended the hill as quickly as he could. Suddenly, Baker stopped dead in his tracks, "Ponch!" Upon closer inspection, Jon had recognized the battered car. He knew from the back bumper sticker that the Firebird belonged to his buddy. Baker felt his stomach turn. His face turned pale. He forced himself to move and noticed that his feet felt as though they were made of lead.

The motorist heard the officer call out a name and then watched the color drain from his face, "Officer, you okay?"

The question startled Jon. He'd forgotten that the guy was there. "Yeah! Go topside! Get some paramedics and firemen down here!"

The motorist left, as ordered.

Jon got up on Ponch's car and pulled, yanked and twisted till somehow he managed to pull open the stubborn front passenger's door. He was about to ease himself down into the car when help arrived.

"Hold it, Officer! Let us do that!!" the captain of one of the many fire departments on the scene advised...Station 51, according to the number on his helmet.

Baker was about to tell him, 'Forget it!', but before he could, another fireman began guiding him safely back down onto the ground. Jon wasn't happy about being relieved--at all, but he knew Ponch needed the experience that these guys had in dealing with this kind of situation.

One of the paramedics eased himself down into the car as carefully as he could, so as not to further injure the victim. He started assessing the patient's medical situation.

While he did that, his partner contacted the hospital, "Rampart, this is Squad 51, how do you read?"

"We read you loud and clear, 51."

"Rampart, we have a victim of an automobile accident. The vehicle rolled down an embankment. Patient is trapped in the car, we're working on extricating him at this time."

"We'll be standing by, 51."

"Heads up, Johnny!" another firefighter, with KELLY emblazoned across the back of his turnout coat, yelled, and dropped a blanket down to the dark-haired paramedic inside the car. Johnny covered the patient, as well as himself, to shield them both from any flying glass. His colleagues intended to smash the windshield, as that would be the safest way to get the victim out. While they were covered, the paramedic continued checking over his patient. He didn't like the vital signs he was getting. "Guys, you're gonna have to hurry or we're gonna lose him!"

"We're working as fast as we can, pal," was the captain's reply.

When Jon heard what the paramedic said, his heart almost stopped. He felt like his feet were glued to the spot as he watched the firemen begin to feverishly work at tearing away the metal that held his friend prisoner.

"Easy, Marco!" Johnny yelled, as the steering wheel and crumpled metal popped and twisted itself away from the victim. The paramedic had to put pressure on a deep laceration just above Ponch's left eye. Although the fire crew had to be careful, he knew they also had to hurry.

"Okay, Johnny," Marco finally spoke up, " that should do it."

With the obstruction cleared, Johnny removed the blanket. That's when he noticed another very serious injury. As the jaws of life were shut down, the paramedic yelled to his partner, "Roy, we've got a compound fracture of the left femur. I'm gonna need a tourniquet--before we move him." They'd have to put on a traction splint as soon as they had their victim on the ground. Johnny got the requested equipment, and quickly applied the tourniquet. He did whatever else he could to minimize any further injury while the patient was being extricated. Now that it was quiet, the paramedic didn't like the sound of his patient's breathing. Under the circumstances, there was just so much of a medical assessment he could make. But from all the signs, it seemed the victim had to have a collapsed lung...and that on top of countless other injuries that were not yet assessed.

Finally, Ponch was out of the car and both paramedics got busy.

Johnny continued the assessment, giving Roy what he found. It surely wasn't good.

Roy quickly got back on the biophone to the hospital, "Rampart, Squad 51, patient's been extricated from the vehicle. Patient has broken ribs on both sides, possible collapsed lung on the left as there are no breath sounds, and a compound fracture of the left femur. We've applied a tourniquet and traction splint. Patient also has a laceration above the left eye and major bruising, apparently from hitting the side window."

While Roy filled in the doctor, Johnny was putting the heart monitor patches on Ponch's chest. He hooked everything up and suddenly interrupted his partner's traffic, "Roy, V-fib!!"

Roy threw down the receiver to assist his partner.

The captain was closest to the radio so he continued with the hospital, "Rampart, Squad 51, patient has gone into cardiac arrest. CPR has been started."

"Is he patched in, 51?"

"Affirmative, Rampart."

"Lead two, Cap!" Roy told him.

"Lead two, Rampart," the captain repeated.

Seconds later, "Defibrillate victim, 51!"

Roy and Johnny quickly readied the machine and the paddles. When it reached the desired charge, the paddles were placed in position. Johnny yelled, "Clear!" then pushed the buttons. Ponch's body jerked, as the shock hit him. Both paramedics checked the monitor, which was still flat line. Again the machine was readied and charged, paddles were in position and again the warning was given to, "Clear!" Again Ponch's body jerked, but this time to everyone's relief, Johnny declared, "Sinus rhythm!"

"Yeah, but for how long?" Roy wondered and retrieved quickly the handset for the biophone, "Rampart this is Squad 51, patient is in sinus rhythm. We're ready to move him to the ambulance." Then he told his partner, "C'mon, let's get him packaged and up the hill. The quicker we get him to Rampart the better chance he's gonna have."

They set their victim in the stokes and then loaded the equipment around him. After everything was ready, the necessary number of men needed to carry the stokes gathered and took their places to start the trek back up the hill.

Kelly--who was going to be carrying up some of the equipment used in the rescue--noticed Jon standing there, looking absolutely dazed. "Officer, you okay?" he wondered and walked over to him just to be sure. "Ah, Officer Baker, you okay?" he repeated, as he noted the nameplate on Jon's shirt. But he still failed to get any reaction.

"Huh?...Uhhh...yeah," Jon finally acknowledged. He turned to see the rescue crew carrying his friend up the hill. "Better get going, hey?"

So both men started hiking up the hill.

Along the way, all Jon could think about was the multiple injuries his friend had. The majority were of a very serious nature--plus the cardiac arrest didn't help in the least either. Yes, Baker was really frightened for his friend. But the one question that was nagging him was, 'How in the world did this accident happen?' Jon and Chet topped the hill.

Baker saw Ponch being loaded into the ambulance and quickened his pace, "What hospital?"

"Rampart General!" the paramedic named Roy replied, as he closed the rear doors and slapped them twice, signaling the driver he was cleared to go. Apparently Roy could tell, by the look on his face, that Baker's concern was more than just that of a police officer dealing with a really bad accident, because he, too, felt compelled to stop and ask, "Officer, do you know this patient?"

"Yeah…he's my friend and partner," Jon quietly confessed.

"They'll do everything they can for him."

"Yeah, sure."

Roy turned and headed for Squad 51. He had to go meet up with his partner at the hospital.

Jon turned too, and ran for his motor.

Bonnie saw her colleague leaving and called out, "Hey, Jon, where you going?!" She was busy working her lane of traffic and thought it was very strange that Baker would disappear when she and Baricza could use all the help they could get.

"Hospital! Ponch is hurt really bad," was all Jon took the time to tell her, before racing off.

"Ponch!? Here!?" she spoke to no one in particular.

As Jon drove off, he decided he'd better do one more thing, "LA, 7 Mary 3, contact S4 for me!"

Seconds later, his sergeant came back, "Baker, this is Getraer. What's up?"

"Sarge, I need you to meet me at Rampart General's ER! Ponch has been involved in a MVA!"

"Okay, Baker, I'll be there as soon as I can!"

#############################################################

Jon entered the hospital and spotted Roy at the nurses' station.

The paramedic spoke up first, "Hi, ah, your friend's in treatment room 3."

"Thanks. I just want to make sure I can talk to the doctor. My sergeant's also due here any minute."

He barely got that out when he felt a reassuring hand on his shoulder. He turned around and found Getraer standing there.

"No word yet, huh?" Joe solemnly determined.

"No, too soon. Oh, Sergeant Getraer, Roy--" he paused to read the fireman's nameplate, "DeSoto, one of the paramedics that took care of Ponch."

"Thanks, Roy," Getraer gratefully told him, as they shook hands.

"Well, we did what we could. Dr. Brackett and Dr. Early are two of LA County's best ER doctors," Roy announced, hoping it would help reassure them.

"C'mon, you can wait for the doctor in the lounge," Nurse Dixie McCall told them. She had been standing there noticing how distraught both officers were. She guided them to the doctor's lounge, knowing the officers would feel a lot more comfortable waiting there, then out in the busy hallway.

Jon was extremely nervous because 'not knowing' Ponch's medical condition scared him half to death. Baker didn't even realize it, but, as soon as Dixie left the room, he had started pacing back and forth--until Joe finally got his attention, well, the umpteenth time around anyway.

"Jon!"

"Huh?"

Getraer didn't say a word, he simply motioned for him to come over by him. His sergeant then pointed to a vacant chair.

Jon simply shrugged his shoulders and sat down beside his superior. "Sorry, Joe," he sadly said.

Getraer was sad too, but he knew he had to sound positive, "Look, Jon, he's gonna be okay. He's young he's--"

"Joe, you weren't there! You didn't see them rip his car apart to get to him... see the blood...or hear the paramedics describing his injuries. He just may not--"

"Jon, we can't think--" he stopped as the door opened. Both men stood up as a doctor walked into the room.

Baker spoke up first, "Doc, how's Ponch, er, Frank doing?" He definitely didn't like the frown showing on the doctor's face.

Getraer added, "Doc, I'm Sergeant Joe Getraer, this is Officer Jon Baker. Frank...is he going to be okay?"

The doctor shook both their hands, "I'm Doctor Brackett. Well, your friend has multiple injuries. We're getting X-rays right now. We've got him stabilized at the moment. He's got a compound fracture of the left femur, broken ribs on both sides, left lung collapsed, which we tried to re-inflate. It didn't hold. We'll have to repair that surgically. He's also got--" he suddenly stopped when he heard he was being paged.

"Doctor Brackett, treatment room 3! Doctor Brackett, treatment room 3!"

Doctor Brackett barely got out, "Excuse me!" Then the door to the doctor's lounge closed, leaving the two very worried CHP officers alone again.

Jon quickly went to reopen the door to go out to the hallway, but Getraer pulled him back in. Baker was frantic, "Joe, that's Ponch's room!"

Getraer was worried too, but reminded Baker, "Jon there's nothing we can do but wait till someone comes back to tell us what's going on. C'mon, grab a seat." Both men stood there a moment in silence.

Then, Jon reluctantly turned back to the room and let the door close behind him.

The two officers retook their seats.

###########################################################

Back in treatment room 3, just as the X-ray tech was finishing up, the heart monitor Ponch was hooked up to suddenly started beeping wildly, alerting the guy to the fact that the patient's condition had suddenly gone down hill. Sure enough, the monitor showed flat line. The X-ray tech quickly hollered for help.

Nurse McCall came running and paged Doctor Brackett.

Seconds later, Brackett came into the room and started barking orders. CPR had already been started. The defibrillator was used to try to jump start the patient's heart. The first two times, there was no conversion. So medicine was put directly into Ponch's stalled heart. They were forced to shock his heart a third time.

"C'mon, c'mon!" Brackett pleaded. Then finally, the patient's heartbeat returned--to everyone's relief. "Okay, prep him for surgery--now! The quicker we get him in and out, the better his chances will be. Have me paged when he's ready."

"Right, Kel!" Nurse McCall confirmed, and then quickly got started.

#####################################################

Doctor Brackett was aware that he didn't get a chance to completely fill in the patient's friends, regarding all of the officer's injuries. Then again, maybe what he had already told 'em was more than enough for them to handle. Though, they did have the right to know that their friend had a real fight ahead of him. It was Brackett's job to keep the patient alive so he had a chance to put up that fight.

Kel paused a moment at the lounge door. He knew this wasn't going to be easy. He forced himself to push through the door. He raised a hand as Jon quickly stood up. "He's back with us. We're getting him prepped for surgery right now. He's also got some internal bleeding going on that we've gotta stop. Look, he's gonna be in surgery for some time. Why don't you go back to your station, and we'll call you when he's in recovery."

Getraer simply said, "Thanks, Doc." He knew the man now had a job to do.

Brackett was paged to the OR. The doctor apologized for the interruption and left the lounge.

The two CHP officers sat there mute for some time.

Jon's stomach was in knots. He kept asking himself, 'How many times did that make it for his heart to stop? How many times can his heart and body take the beating it takes to get it started again? How many more times before his heart simply calls it quits?'

Getraer was thinking about both young men. Although Frank had the knack of adding a few additional gray hairs to his head now and again, still he knew his abilities as a cop were unquestionable. As for Jon, he knew he was the one who placed--and kept Frank in place--on the straight and narrow. Both had helped each other through some very rough times. Now was when Jon would need all the guys from Central to help him deal with this. He also realized, 'What am I thinking? All the guys in the entire Central Division are going to need each other.'

Suddenly the door opened, and a nurse ushered in Bonnie, Baricza and Grossman. All three started asking questions at once.

Until Getraer held a hand up to stop them. "Hold it! Hold it! Frank is in surgery and yes, he's in critical condition."

Bear spoke up, "Well, looks like the Phantom got another one of us."

"Wha-at?!!" both Getraer and Jon exclaimed, in sheer disbelief.

"What'd yah mean, the Phantom?! There wasn't a cop in sight!" Jon exclaimed, visibly upset. He was about to add something else, but stopped when he took a good look at the three faces looking back at him.

"From what more than a couple witnesses stated, there was all the classic signs. A brown Pontiac clipped Ponch's fender hard enough to create a domino effect and there was no reason for the driver to have to move so quickly in his space…" Baricza stopped as Jon finished his thought for him.

"...Other than it was on purpose," Jon flatly added. "It still doesn't make any sense! Ponch wasn't even in uniform--and he was in his own car!"

"Well, if it is true and he's starting to attack us when off duty, then we've got ourselves an even bigger problem here," Getraer admitted, with a very worried look on his face. "Okay, I've gotta get back to Central. Jon, you're officially done for the day and if you need it, take tomorrow off too," then he turned to the other three.

But before their sergeant could say anything, Grossman beat him to it, "Yeah, we know, we know, get back to work."

Even Getraer felt like a monster at times like this. He really hated to have to have his people go back out on the freeways after something like this, but they still had a job to do. Yeah, even when one of their own was lying in the hospital, critically injured--and who knew if he'd even make it. Before the three left, he turned to them and spoke rather sympathetically, "Look, you guys, I know this isn't going to be easy for you, or for any of us covering the highways, but it's something that's gotta be done. So go out there, and by all means, watch yourselves! Okay?!"

The three officers quietly acknowledged his statement and headed out the door.

After they left, Joe turned back to Jon, "Call in when you hear something, okay?"

"Yeah, sure," Baker softly answered.

Getraer kept his eyes on the younger man a moment or two, then, just before he opened the door to leave; he again tried to reassure him, "Jon, Frank is going to be okay."

All Jon did was nod his head.

Getraer sighed and took his leave.

After everyone had gone, Jon was left to his own morbid thoughts. 'Why would the Phantom suddenly change his tactics? How did he even know what Ponch's vehicle looked like?' With those and other questions plaguing him, Baker began to pace--again.

As time went on, he kept checking his watch. It had been a good three hours since the doctor had left to operate on Ponch. It was well into the afternoon now. How much longer would it be before he learned how his friend was doing? He realized the procedures were complicated and that it could be quite some time before he heard anything. He just didn't know if Ponch would make it. Jon was so scared. All the worrying was making him sick. He knew he had to get a hold of himself, calm down and think positive, like Getraer said. So he decided he'd better sit down before he fell down. The door suddenly opened. Thinking it was the doctor, Jon quickly jumped to his feet. A bit too quickly, for the way he was feeling.

As Johnny and Roy entered the Doctor's Lounge, they saw what was happening and quickly went into paramedic mode.

"Hey, easy! Take it easy!" Johnny warned the woozy officer, as he quickly stepped up to him.

Jon put one hand to his forehead and momentarily closed his eyes till the spell passed. "Sorry, just got up too fast I guess. I thought you were the doctor."

"No word yet on your friend?" Roy asked.

"He's been in surgery for over three hours now."

Suddenly the HT that Roy was holding squawked, "Squad 51, what's your status?"

"Squad 51 available at Rampart, LA," he replied.

"Squad 51, stand by..."

"Look, we've gotta run! We'll check back with you later if we can," Johnny vowed. Both paramedics headed out the door as their dispatcher relayed their next assignment.

###################################################################

Forty-five minutes or so later, Doctor Bracket finally walked back into the room. "Well, he made it through surgery. He's up in ICU now."

"He's gonna be all right then?" Jon asked, hopefully.

"Well, the next twenty-four to thirty-six hours will be critical. We took care of the internal bleeding and repaired his lung. The Orthopedic doctor worked on his leg, which should be fine. Although, he'll have to have some therapy on it. He's on a respirator and will be for at least the next few days. Barring any complications."

"Complications?"

"We have to watch out for pneumonia. I don't think he can afford another cardiac arrest, either. He's just too weak to fight either one of those right now. We're just going to have to watch his condition and hope it doesn't deteriorate. Look, I've gotta go back up and check on him right now."

"Thanks, Doc. Umm, I know he's in ICU, but can I see him?"

Bracket hesitated momentarily. The young man standing before him had paled considerably as he told him the medical condition of his friend. "He won't even know you're there."

Jon wasn't about to let that deter him. "Maybe not, but I'll know I was there," he spoke softly.

"C'mon, you can see him. But only for a moment." Both men left the room and started heading for the elevator and the floor which had the ICU ward.

As they rode the elevator up, Bracket warned him, "Now he's hooked up to a lot of equipment, respirator, heart monitor, such as that. I just don't want you to be surprised when you walk in the room and see all he's connected to."

###############################################################

But even with the warning, Jon still wasn't prepared for what he saw as he stood beside his friend's hospital bed. It wasn't just the equipment Ponch was connected to, it also was the bandage around his head, around his chest, and the leg cast. Of course, Ponch's very pale complexion didn't go unnoticed either, as Jon was too used to seeing his normally darker skin tone.

The nurse who was standing on the other side of the bed stepped away momentarily so Doctor Bracket could personally check over his patient. After the physician finished, he placed specific instructions with the nurse and then left the room.

"C'mon Ponch!" Baker urged his heavily bandaged buddy, "You can beat this! Don't let the Phantom win. Fight it, Ponch! Fight it with all the strength you've got! We're too good a team to be split up like this! Don't become another statistic, Ponch! We need cops like you out there..." he softly told his partner. Then he silently thought of something else, 'What am I saying? I need you out there, Ponch!'

Just then the nurse spoke up, interrupting his thoughts, "Officer, your time's up. I'm sorry. You'll have to leave."

"Oh yeah, sure, right!" Jon acknowledged. Then he turned and reluctantly left the room.

#######################################################

As he exited the elevator on the ground level, Baker checked the time. He noticed there was only a half-hour left of the day shift. He decided he'd head back to Central and fill Getraer in--and anyone else that may be there--regarding Ponch's condition. Then, he'd go home. He especially wanted to talk to Getraer first. That way anyone that didn't hear about Ponch this time around, would hear about it at each shift change briefing from their sergeant.

######################################################

After Jon talked to Getraer, and a few other officers, he headed home, hoping his friend would win the battle that was now ahead of him.

#######################################################

Ponch's first day in ICU kept the nursing staff pretty busy...watching the monitors, following doctor's orders as far as taking his vitals and jotting them down about every fifteen to twenty minutes. Doctor Bracket, as well as the ICU doctor, wanted to make sure that their relatively stable patient remained that way. Or, at least, if the officer's condition did start to deteriorate, maybe, just maybe they could be fortunate enough to catch it and take immediate steps to take care of it before it went too far.

Because the patient was so weak, the nurses were prepared for anything to happen. As the evening wore on, Ponch seemed to be holding his own. A nurse came in to go through the routine and at that particular time the numbers she got were nothing really to panic about---not considering the officer's condition any ways.

#########################################################

But only ten minutes later, which was sometime after midnight, everything suddenly went down hill. At the nurses station, the alarms suddenly sounded, which created a fast paced buzz of activity as everybody ran into the ICU ward.

Ponch's heart monitor showed flat line. CPR was immediately started, but from all the signs, a stronger method would have to be used.

So the defibrillator was prepared, the paddles were gelled, and the doctor gave the order, "Stop CPR!" Then as the physician stepped forward, he yelled, "Clear!" Everyone backed away from the bed and watched. The doctor placed the paddles in position and pressed the buttons. Ponch's body jerked as the shock hit. But the patient's stubborn heart rejected the treatment, so it was done all over again.

To everyone's dismay the monitor still showed flat line. This time, Ponch's doctor injected medicine straight into his heart and then repeated the process of defibrillating--a third time. Just about everybody in the room held their breath. The medical team knew that they just might be losing this patient. But to everyone's relief, the monitor slowly showed their patient's heart finally beating on it's own. The blips had started out slow, but then they had strengthened. Once it was determined that the officer was stabilized, the crash cart team gathered their equipment and left the room. The doctor and one of the ICU nurses stayed behind to monitor the patient for a few minutes.

"That was close, Doctor," the woman commented.

"Yeah, it sure was. I'm gonna have to talk with Doctor Brackett, make sure he's aware of what happened. I'm wondering if we didn't do more damage to his ribs. We may have to take additional X-rays."

The medical personnel completed what they had to do. The nurse even fixed the officer's blankets. Not that the patient would ever know, but at least his bed looked tidy. Then, satisfied that Officer Poncherello's condition had finally stabilized, the two left the room.

################################################

Following a consultation with Doctor Brackett, it was decided additional X-rays were needed. Both of Ponch's physicians were concerned as to whether any additional damage had been done by the CPR or the repeated defibrillations. After the X-rays were read and no further damage was found, the ICU team, as well as Doctor Brackett, breathed sighs of relief. Miraculously, this young officer had survived further injuries.

##################################################

The next twenty-four hours were relatively uneventful as far as any further cardiac problems. However, the patient did develop a fever. Additional antibiotics were added and tests were run to determine the cause. Doctor Brackett was kept informed of the officers condition and he then notified Sergeant Getraer.

###################################################

It had been four days since his arrival in ICU and Ponch was finally starting to very slowly make progress through the horrendous fog that seemed to envelop him. As time went on, Ponch gradually became aware of sounds, but they still seemed so distant--as though they were coming from a tunnel. He was still so weak that he didn't even have the energy to lift his eyelids. He passed the morning drifting in and out of consciousness.

###################################################

Ponch spent the afternoon battling that stubborn fog bank, as well. Though the sounds seemed a tad bit closer, now. However, his eyes remained just as heavy and he found himself drifting off to sleep again.

#####################################################

That drifting in and out of sleep continued on through the rest of that day. The officer managed to get even more badly needed rest, making it peacefully through the night--with a little help from the medical staff and pain medication. His caretakers were well aware that their patient was now semi-conscious--from all the signs he was giving them.

At the ICU nurses' station, the conversation centered on "That 'handsome' CHP Officer" and how long it would take before he finally won the battle to open his eyes. Though, with the severity of his injuries, it was a blessing for the young man to simply remain semiconscious. It wouldn't be long before the patient would be coming face-to-face with the pain. He'd be suffering, from the results of the accident he was in, soon enough.

##########################################

Midmorning of the following day, Ponch tried to force his eyes open. But before he could accomplish that task, reality struck. The intubated patient became cognizant of the fact that something was rammed down his throat. It was the most uncomfortable feeling Ponch had ever felt. He panicked and began to struggle.

"Relax!" a woman's voice gently urged, "Okay? C'mon'! Don't fight the machine. It's helping you breathe. Easy now, breathe nice and easy. That's it. That's better."

'Better for who?' was Ponch's first foggy thought. He finally managed to ever so slowly open his eyes. It took a moment of blinking his eyes to have the person's face that was looking down at him to even come close to becoming into focus.

"Mr. Poncherello, you're hooked up to a respirator to help you breathe," the nurse started to explain, "You had a collapsed lung. It was surgically repaired. The machine is assisting your breathing, so don't fight it. Okay? You have to relax and let the machine do all the work." She smiled as she could tell that the officer was trying hard to cooperate. Struggling would trigger his gag reflexes and also start the bells and whistles going off. "You just rest there and be reassured that you're doing just fine. " The nurse could see the pain in the officer's dreamy, dark eyes. "I'll be right back. Remember, don't fight the machine, okay?" she smiled, tapped him on the arm and then, once she was assured that the patient completely understood, she stepped away from his bedside.

The next thing Ponch wanted to know was, 'If I can't talk, how am I supposed to tell them when I'm hurting?' And he was hurting. Ponch was now feeling the affects of his injuries. Apparently, he didn't have anything to worry about, because the nurse returned a few minutes later with a hypo. She'd left to prepare the medication and intended to put him out of his painful misery. Once the injection was taken care of, it wasn't long at all before Ponch was pain free...and fast asleep again.

################################################

Ponch's stay in ICU lasted over a week. During the times when he was conscious, the nurses would explain what he needed to do, he needed to learn how to relax and not fight the machine. For each time that he kind of forgot and did fight it, the bells and whistles would sound and the nurses would come running. Actually, during his stay in ICU, because of the severity of his injuries, they'd kept him more asleep than awake. Ponch just wasn't strong enough yet to deal with the pain totally on his own. It took some doing, but in time he finally managed to work with the respirator instead of against it. During the time in Intensive Care the first few days it was even questionable as to whether his body could handle all the trauma that had been inflicted on it. They not only had to watch for any onset of pneumonia, but they also had to watch for any infection that may start up. As it was, he had picked up a slight fever, but with additional antibiotics that were added to his IV, in time, they were able to battle that back to normal.

Ponch was kept on the respirator until the day before he was transferred to a regular room. The doctors had to be sure he was strong enough to breathe on his own. There was no way he could convince his doctors, to relieve him of the device any sooner. Ponch had been too sick for his doctors to trust his healing lung with that responsibility. When the time finally came that Doctor Brackett thought the officer was strong enough to where he could be relieved of the respirator, it was removed--much to his young patient's relief. Well, Ponch really was forced to breathe in and out without the machine's assistance for the first few minutes, but then he finally got the hang of it and just relaxed. Whenever he tried to answer any questions regarding how he was feeling, his sore throat caused him to croak like a frog. Ponch would simply clear his throat and reply as best he could.

The officer slept through most of that first respirator-free day, and the nursing personnel noticed his vital signs were finally beginning to stabilize.

######################################################

The following morning, Doctor Brackett commented during his rounds, that he was very pleased with Ponch's progress, and gave him the good news that he would be moved to a regular room shortly. So, before heading back down to the ER, Brackett made arrangements to have Ponch taken from ICU to a regular room.

The doctor then went to his office to make a phone call. The kind of call a doctor loves to make. Brackett's call was transferred to Getraer's office.

####################################################

"Sergeant Getraer," Joe answered.

"Sergeant, this is Doctor Brackett."

"Doctor," he acknowledged, sounding a little apprehensive as to what he may learn.

Brackett quickly picked up on it, "No, Sergeant, I have good news to tell you. Frank Poncherello is doing just fine and will be moved to a regular room today. We removed the respirator yesterday and he's continuing to do okay on his own. He's still not strong enough yet to totally manage the pain by himself, but the important thing is he's off the critical list."

"Thanks, Doctor," the Sergeant told him, "This news is going to make a lot of people happy around here. Thanks again!"

"You're welcome!!" the physician assured him.

Joe exhaled a sigh of relief and hung up. Since it was well past briefing and all officers were already out on their beats, Getraer got on the radio, "7 Mary 3, S4."

"Go ahead, S4..." Jon quickly came back.

"Baker...I just got a call from the doctor at Rampart. Officer Poncherello is going to be moved out of ICU and into a regular room sometime today."

Jon's heart began to pound, he had been hoping for some good news for over a week, now. "Thanks, Sarge, that's terrific news. I'm gonna run by there as soon as I can!"

"Okay, Baker, I figured you'd want to do that."

#######################################################

As it turned out, Officer Baker was kept busy for the next few hours, handling a couple of tricky traffic situations. It kind of was a good thing because it kept Jon's mind busy. The officer had wanted to race to the hospital. He might have arrived only to find out that Ponch hadn't been placed in a regular room yet, and still couldn't have visitors. Because of the situations he was involved in, Baker wouldn't make it to the hospital until some time after noon .

##########################################################

When Jon finally arrived at the hospital, he didn't waste any time. He got Ponch's new room number and headed towards his destination. He was so anxious to see how his friend was doing. Baker especially wondered how Ponch was dealing with his injuries. Jon reached the room and stepped into the doorway. Ponch's eyes were closed and, even though his medical condition had been up-graded, he still looked mighty pale.

Ponch saw his friend turn to leave, and stopped him, "Hey…where you…you going?" he croaked softly, then cleared his raspy throat.

Baker swung back around. "Thought you were asleep...I didn't want to wake you," he informed Ponch, as he stepped up to his hospital bed.

"That's all…I've been …doing…is sleeping," Ponch rasped again.

"You know, partner, you gave us a real scare this time."

"I think…I even scared…myself…this time," Ponch admitted softly. Then he changed the subject, "Where's Stephanie?" he wondered, sounding quite concerned.

"Oh, she's got court this morning. She doesn't even know you're in a regular room yet."

Ponch looked very relieved,"How's she…been doing?"

"Okay. Well, she's been a little rough around the edges since your 'accident', but she's doing okay."

"Speaking…of my…accident," Ponch paused to clear his throat, "I think…it was…the Phantom."

Jon arched a brow on that little revelation. He wasn't sure if Ponch had been aware of that fact. "Yeah, from what witnesses told Bear and Bonnie that's the conclusion we've reached, too. It's quite out of character for the Freeway Phantom to go after an off-duty officer, but the end result…" he stopped, as he couldn't finish his thought.

"Doesn't make…sense," Ponch agreed. "Out of uniform…not on my motor…in my…own car." He stopped momentarily as he tried to move a little to find a comfortable position, but ended up groaning as the pain he inflicted on himself was almost too much for him to bear.

"Easy, Ponch. Take it easy," Jon warned as he saw his friend wincing in pain. "I'll go get the nurse."

"No…" Ponch gasped, "Not yet." He tried to get his wits about him, then reluctantly pondered, "Jon…my car?"

Baker hadn't quite planned on dropping that little bomb just yet. Jon knew how much Ponch loved his car. But, he couldn't lie. "Sorry, Ponch...scrap metal." Baker winced when he saw his friend's look of sadness. His heart really went out to him. "You're mighty lucky to be alive, partner," Baker reminded him. Jon could see that the pain was really getting intolerable for Ponch. "Ponch, call the nurse, you can't keep fighting the pain by yourself." Baker began to wonder how long his hurting friend had been battling it. He sure had one stubborn partner for a friend.

"No, the quicker I can…handle it by myself…the quicker I can…" he stopped abruptly as Jon raised his hand to stop him.

"Ponch, if you don't call her, I will!"

Ponch saw the determined look on his friend's face and knew instantly he'd lost the battle. He found the call button and pressed it. Ponch frowned when he saw Jon's grin of satisfaction. When the nurse came in, Ponch explained what he needed, er, what Jon wanted him to have. She left only to return moments later.

"I'll see you later, Ponch," Baker promised, "Oh...and sweet dreams." Jon couldn't help but grin when he heard Ponch's raspy growl, as the nurse turned her attention--and her needle--back to him.

As Baker left the room, he breathed a sigh of relief. His friend and partner was finally out of danger. He saw another nurse walking towards Ponch's room with a very nice--and rather large flower arrangement. He was really curious to find out who had sent it, but tomorrow would be another day. Stephanie's morning in court would definately be over, by now, and she would be back at Central, waiting for him.

############################################################

When Jon got back to Central, he met up with his partner. He found her in the break room, having coffee. "Hey, Stephanie. How'd court go?"

"Huh! That guy's lawyer tried everything in the book to get his client off! But the jury saw right through him," Stephanie told him with a grin. "Oh, did you see Ponch?" she asked, trying hard to remain nonchalant. Getraer had told her when she came in about Ponch being moved to a regular room.

"Yeah," Baker glumly acknowledged. "Poor guy. He's doing okay, but he's in an awful lot of pain."

She shook her head in disgust, "I sure hope he's the last one to have to suffer the consequences of that creep!"

"I think all of us will second the motion on that one. Have lunch yet?"

"Unh uh. Just this coffee," she scrunched up her pretty face as she crumpled up her paper cup and threw it in the trash.

Jon smiled and flashed her his boyish grin, "C'mon," he invited, " let's go get something. I'm starved."

########################################################

Later that afternoon, Getraer went to the hospital to see for himself how Ponch was doing. For fear of waking him, should he be asleep, he quietly stepped up to the doorway and peeked in. The TV was on, but the room's occupant was showing no interest in it. Not only was the patient not interested in his television, but he looked--for all the world--like he was about to jump right out of his skin.

Ponch had fallen into a deep, painless drugged sleep after Jon had left. He slept over two hours and now felt ready to do battle with the pain once more. But with his leg immobilized with the heavy cast, his sore shoulder, chest and ribs, there just wasn't any comfortable position Ponch could find to lie in. Which was just as well, because Ponch would've paid a painfully high price trying to find such a position, and he knew it too. So he had decided to try watching TV for a while, thinking that would help keep his mind busy. It worked for a while, but then Ponch had started to wish that he was anywhere but where he was now.

Getraer was still standing in the doorway watching him--closely. Joe also took in the many flower arrangements scattered about the room. ' The kid could start his own flower shop by the looks of it,' he thought with a smile. The sergeant sighed and finally stepped into the room.

That's when Ponch finally spotted him. "Sarge!" he croaked out his happy greeting.

"Hey, Frank. How you doing?" Getraer wanted to sound upbeat for the young man, as he could see the pain in his dark eyes.

The patient tried to pull himself up a little with his good arm, but ended up clenching his teeth and closing his watering eyes.

"Easy, Frank, easy!" his superior warned him as he stepped up to the bed.

"I'd be doin'…a whole lot…better…if I…just wouldn't keep doin' that…" Frank confessed, with grimace.

Joe watched him a moment, and wondered if he shouldn't find a nurse. "You gonna be okay? Or you want me to get a nurse?"

Ponch's eyes changed from pained-filled to panicked, "No…no…every time I see a nurse…she's carrying a needle…with my name…on it!" The patient paid for that remark. As Getraer began to chuckle, Ponch couldn't help himself either, "Oooo-oooh...that smarts."

"Sorry, Frank," Joe commented, and tried hard to keep from grinning. He decided it was time to change the subject. "Got some pretty flowers there, Frank. Who sent that one?" he asked, pointing to the largest, most spectacular, most colorful arrangement.

"Don't know. It was here…when I woke up. I've been dying here…wanting to find out."

"You mind?" Getraer asked, as he pointed to the card. He figured Frank could have had one of the nurses come in and hand him the card, but then he remembered his dislike for what they usually carried in with them and couldn't help but smile to himself.

"No, please...go ahead."

Joe stepped forward, plucked the card from the flowers and handed it over to Frank--who anxiously took it and opened it.

"They're from Stephanie," Frank said as he read the name before the little note, and thought, 'Hmm, maybe our little talk worked a little more than I thought?' Frank couldn't help but smile to himself.

Getraer smiled, too, as he couldn't help but think, 'Another notch for Frank. Hmm, maybe he really is what the woman needs to help her through her troubles.' The sergeant noticed that Frank was rubbing his shoulder and looking very uncomfortable. "Hey, when was the last time you took some pain medication?"

"Around noon. Why?" Frank had a feeling he knew the direction this was going in.

Joe looked at his watch. Around noon meant almost 4 hours ago. "Frank, it's not worth fighting the pain. You just got out of ICU. Give yourself time to heal and give your throat some time off for good behavior."

"Ahhhh, Sarge, I'm okay," Frank assured him, but he never was any good at telling untruths.

"Frank, don't make me make it an order," his sergeant threatened and looked at the young man before him with a raised brow.

Ponch knew that look very well. He'd been on the receiving end of it many other times. He also knew Getraer would make it an order. So he surrendered to the inevitable, "Something tells me…you and Jon are…in cahoots. All you guys…want me…to do...is sleep," he grumbled, but obediently pressed his call button.

"Whatever do you mean by that, Frank?" Getraer asked, trying to sound as serious as he could. The look Frank gave him almost made him laugh right out loud.

All Frank committed to was, "Nothing." The nurse came in he reluctantly asked for some pain medication.

Once the nurse left and Getraer was assured his young friend would be getting some much needed sleep he told him, "Okay, Frank. Take it easy. I've gotta head back to Central. I'll stop by again to check on you."

"Sure, Sarge. Thanks."

As Getraer left the room, he smiled. To keep Frank from telling the nurse that he had changed his mind about wanting something for the pain, the sergeant came up with a plan. He would stand there, just outside Ponch's room and wait for the nurse to return. As the woman came down the hall, towards the room, Joe went to talk to her. "Hi, I'm Sergeant Getraer. Frank Poncherello is one of my officers. If he tells you he doesn't need or want that," he pointed to the syringe in her hand and smiled, "tell him it's an order from Getraer. Okay?"

She smiled at him in return, "Sure Sergeant, no problem."

Joe couldn't help but smile. He sure wished that he could see the look on Poncherello's face when the nurse told him that. 'Cahoots with Jon?' That remark made the sergeant's smile broaden. He left the hospital and returned to Central.

###################################################

Back in his hospital room, Ponch was watching the nurse as she prepared to give him his hypo. He flashed her his most disarming smile and cleared his throat, "I…I changed my mind," he told her, "I don't really need that…I'm doing okay."

"Well, Mr. Poncherello, Sergeant Getraer told me to tell you, 'It's an order'." The nurse couldn't help but smile as her patient's suddenly faded--in defeat.

"An order?" he croaked. He quickly thought of something else in his own defense, "Could we…simply not do it, but say we…did?"

The nurse silently chuckled to herself at her patient's temperament. She knew he was harmless, handsome as all get out, but harmless. She also knew he'd be in a much better mood in a few minutes--out cold--and pain free. So she simply shook her head no and proceeded to do her job. And, sure enough, in a few minutes, the patient drifted off into a deep, peaceful, pain-free sleep.

###################################################

Stephanie finished her shift and headed home. She couldn't help but smile as she rode along, because she was thinking of how she was off for the next two days. She knew where she'd be going once she'd changed and gotten a few essential things done at home. The woman wanted to see for herself how Ponch was doing. Jon had described Ponch's condition, but she simply wanted to see how he was managing for herself. She needed that reassurance that he really was going to be all right.

######################################################

Stephanie finally arrived at the hospital. She was just about to enter Ponch's room, when a passing nurse informed her that Officer Poncherello was asleep--and probably would be for a while yet. Stephanie wouldn't mind waiting. She thanked the nurse and quietly entered the room. Ponch's visitor took a chair that was by the wall and placed it beside his hospital bed. Stephanie shook her head as she took note of all the bandages and the cast that immobilized her dozing friend's leg. 'How fortunate you are to be alive, Ponch, how very fortunate,' she thought and sat down.

As the minutes slowly ticked away, she found herself--once again--lost in thought. The book she had brought with her--for just such circumstances as these--was forgotten. Instead, the woman reflected on how all the officers had been so very kind to her since her arrival at Central, especially Jon and Ponch. Ponch had a certain something about him. Was it because at times he reminded her of Jim? Or was it simply that he went out of his way to show a genuine concern for her? Or probably a little of both? Whatever the reason was or wasn't, the woman was confused. Was she really developing feelings for Ponch? If she was, could she trust her wild emotions? By thinking of Ponch as more than just another friend, was she being unfair to Jim? After all, her husband had only been gone for such a short time? With that last question still fresh in her mind, she turned to look at Ponch only to see him staring back at her.

"You…" he began, stopping briefly to clear his throat, "come up with…a solution?"

His question took her completely by surprise. It was as though he had been reading her mind. All she managed to spit out was a, "Huh?"

"The gears were…turning pretty fast there," he croaked. Ponch was pretty steamed that his voice was still raspy from the respirator.

"Sorry," the woman apologized, looking rather sheepish. She was really grateful that he couldn't read her mind.

"Don't be…it's okay...to think," he told her with a grin.

From that point, the conversation remained on the light side. The two of them discovered that they really enjoyed each other's company.

But then Grossman came in, carrying a gift-- which he passed on to Ponch. Grossie's present was inside one of those special gift bags with the cord handles.

Frank reached into the fancy sack and pulled out a teddy bear dressed in a CHP uniform. "Hey, Grossie…thanks!" he told him with a big smile.

"It's darling, Grossie," Stephanie announced as Ponch handed the bear to her so she could get a better look.

"How you doing, Ponch?" Grossman asked, looking quite concerned.

"I'm doing great…if I could just keep people from needling me all the time," he quipped. Grossie looked at him with a questioning look. "Needle, Grossie? Get it?" he asked, looking somewhat amazed that his friend hadn't gotten the joke.

"Oh. Oh, yeah. Got it," Grossie finally said, and grinned.

"I really am doing all right, Grossie…although I'm not quite ready to…run a marathon yet. But I'm doing okay." However, Grossman looked like he needed a little more assurance than what he'd just been given.

Grossman visited for a while. He was glad to be able to talk with Ponch again. Finally, Grossman realized that maybe he'd stayed a little too long. He could tell his friend was trying to hide the pain being inflicted on him because of laughing at his jokes. So, Grossie decided it was time for him to vacate the premises. He bid the patient adieu and left.

Ponch barely had a chance to catch his breath when Bear and Bonnie came in. With three of his friends there now, Ponch didn't have a chance. No matter how hard they tried not to, they still managed to make him laugh. So, Bear and Bonnie decided they'd better leave, too.

Ponch lay there in his hospital bed, holding his ribs and clenching his teeth. His eyes were tightly shut--in pain.

Stephanie sat there, watching him closely. Because of the laughter brought on by his visitors, Ponch was now hurting. The woman suddenly realized that maybe she should leave also. "Hey, I think I'd better clear out, too..." she announced when Ponch finally re-opened his eyes, "so you can get some rest. You--"

"No…don't go!" Ponch pleaded and reached out to stop her, "I'm okay…really. Look Stephanie, I enjoy your company," he smiled his handsomest smile.

Seeing that irresistible smile practically glued the woman to her seat. She quickly came up with a thought though, "On one condition."

He eyed her cautiously, "Which is?" His first thought was, 'Oh no, not her, too.' He could envision a nurse with a needle coming his way.

"You close those eyes again and get some sleep."

Ponch's smile returned. He could handle that. "Deal," he simply said and obediently closed his eyes. He definitely did not want her to leave.

'Hmm, that was way too easy,' Stephanie thought to herself. She looked down at her book, opened it to the page she was on and read a sentence or two. Suddenly she had that feeling she was being watched. She glanced back up and sure enough--she was.

Ponch had waited a moment or two and then slowly re-opened one eye. Stephanie was sitting there, right beside him, reading a book. He had simply wanted to make sure she was still there, but she had glanced up and caught him looking at her.

"Close 'em!" she ordered sternly.

Ponch quickly obeyed, not wanting to give his pretty company a reason to leave.

'I could really get used to this,' Stephanie quietly told herself. She watched him momentarily, to make sure he didn't try it again. When she felt assured that he wouldn't, she went back to her book.

Ponch was really hurting. He didn't figure he'd be able to fall asleep--not without some help. But he wasn't about call the nurse and end up being poked again. No, he would just simply lay there...quietly... with his eyes closed. That would keep Stephanie happy and she'd stay right there where she was. He'd barely finished his thoughts when he finally did, indeed, doze off.

Stephanie soon realized that she had been reading and rereading the words, but nothing was sinking in. Instead her mind drifted back and forth between Jim and Ponch. That same nagging question had returned to haunt her. Had she allowed herself enough time to mourn her late husband? Something else suddenly occurred to her, as well. Ponch may not even like her in 'that' way. (That thought alone proved that she didn't know Ponch at all.)

Ponch woke a few hours later, feeling somewhat better.

Stephanie knew she really should take her leave, but she waited a few minutes before telling him that. "Ponch, look, I really should go okay," she finally told him, "I'm glad you had a chance to rest. I'm off tomorrow. I'd like to come and visit with you again."

Ponch's eyes lit up, "Stephanie, I'd be upset if you didn't come." Suddenly, he remembered something else, something he didn't have a chance to tell her before, but should have. "Steph', thanks for the beautiful flowers."

"You're welcome, Ponch. I'll see you tomorrow then." Stephanie waved and walked out of the room. The woman was very happy that she had changed her mind when it came to not saying anything to Ponch about being off tomorrow. When she saw his reaction, she realized that maybe, just maybe there was hope there. Yes, perhaps Ponch did feel more than mere 'friendship' towards her.

################################################################

The following morning, Ponch got a roommate.

The orderlies brought the patient into the room, carefully placed him in his bed and then left.

A nurse quickly came in to check on the new arrival. "Johnny, do you need anything?" she wondered, sounding more than a little concerned.

The dark-haired young man smiled, "Yeah, Dix, a new leg and a set of intact ribs, so I can get outta here."

"Now, now, Johnny, you know very well that you'll be here for at least a couple days--if not longer," she told him with a smile. Before leaving the room, the woman stopped by Ponch's bed, "How you doing, young man?"

"Better thanks."

"Good! That's what we like to hear," she told him and then left the room.

The door had barely closed behind her, when it opened again and a tall, blonde young man came in dressed in a paramedic's uniform.

The P.M. started towards his new roomy's bed, but then stepped up to Ponch's, instead. "Hi! How you doin'? I'm Roy DeSoto. Uh, you were in that bad accident last week on the 405, weren't you."

"Yeah, I was," Ponch confessed to the fireman, who had apparently recognized him. "The Freeway Phantom caught me off guard--and here I am."

"Freeway Phantom?" Roy repeated, "Yeah, I heard about him. He mainly targets the Highway Patrol, doesn't he?"

"Huh! Yeah, and now it appears he's going after us even while we're off duty."

"That can't be good. Well, you keep mending there and they'll ship you outta here in no time."

"Thanks. I can only hope."

Roy then walked over to his roommate. "Hey, Johnny. Must say, you were lucky this time. You could have been hurt a lot worse than just a broken leg and a few busted ribs."

Ponch could tell by DeSoto's banter that these two men were obviously partners.

"Yeah..." Johnny glumly concurred, "Tell me about it. Being buried by a bunch of heavy boulders ain't my idea of a 'fun' time."

"Cap's already called for a replacement, so I'll be back in business in no time. I just hope it's not Brice again. I don't think I could take the guy for 'six to eight weeks'."

"What do you mean? I don't think anybody could take Brice for that long." Both firemen laughed heartily. Well Roy did, anyway. Johnny grimaced, held his ribs and tried to stop laughing. Roy also tried to hold his amusement in check, as he saw that his partner had just inflicted pain on himself.

Ponch lay there, listening attentively. He was anxious to find out what happened to cause his roommate to be 'buried by a bunch of heavy boulders'.

"Well, Johnny, I guess I'll head out. I'll probably see you again, sometime later today--if we get any runs." Before heading for the door, DeSoto turned back to the CHP officer, "Take care. Okay? Oh, and don't let Johnny keep you up with all his stories," he teased. Roy flashed his talkative friend a wry grin. Then, on that light note, the on-duty paramedic left the room.

Johnny wasn't smiling. He had even managed a slight snarl as his partner had departed. "Well, I guess since I'm stuck here, might as well introduce myself. Hi, Johnny Gage."

"Frank Poncherello, but everyone calls me Ponch."

"You sure look a whole lot better than you did that day of the accident."

"Yeah. The Freeway Phantom's fifth victim is still alive."

Johnny shook his head, "A madman...mowing down motorcycle cops...Man, what is this world coming to?"

"Hey, enough about me," Ponch determined, "What happened to you?"

Johnny smiled, "Rescue gone bad, as they say. Some kids were playing in a cave in Cougar Canyon. Course, they had to pick the most unstable cave in the whole area. We got called to rescue them, because, of course, there'd been a cave-in. After what seemed like forever, we finally got through to them. Roy and I went in and took care of the medical problems the best we could. Then, as soon as we were ready to get them--and us--out of there, there was another cave-in. So the engine crew ended up digging us all out. When the rocks came down, both Roy and myself covered the kids with our bodies and, unfortunately, I ended up being beaten up by--what felt like--a ton of rocks...and here I am."

"Ouch! Man, what people like you and I don't get ourselves into just to save other people's necks."

"Well, I--" Gage began, but then stopped and raised an eyebrow, as a pretty young woman came strolling into the room.

Ponch followed Gage's gaze. A broad grin formed when he saw that it was Stephanie that had captured the fireman's attention, "Hey! Good morning!"

"Good morning!" Stephanie returned, "How you doing today?"

"Doing a whole lot better--now that you're here!" Ponch told her with that broad grin of his.

The woman noted Ponch's comment and thought, 'Hmm, maybe things are, indeed, looking up.' She also noticed the no longer vacant bed. "I see you've got a roommate."

"Oh, yeah, Stephanie, this is Johnny Gage. Johnny this is my good friend, Stephanie Wilkes. She's also a CHP officer. Stephanie, Johnny's one of the paramedics that worked on me at the accident scene. Unfortunately, right now, he's also been injured." Introductions over, Ponch turned his full attention towards his 'good friend' as she sat down beside his bed.

"Well, Ponch, you are looking better today. I take it you got some sleep last night. Sounds like your voice is finally coming around too."

"Huh? Oh yeah," the well-rested officer grinned. "I tried to manage the pain myself, but ended up getting poked again anyway. I think those nurses love giving shots," he told her with a grimace.

Stephanie smiled and thought, 'That would all depend on who the patient was.' Then cleared her throat and stared rather sheepishly over at her handsome young friend. Ponch was looking back at her, wearing a puzzled expression. Stephanie just kept smiling at him, not daring to divulge her thoughts. The woman was now doubly glad that he couldn't read her mind.

###################################################

The two 'friends' visited right through the remainder of the morning--till the kitchen crew delivered lunch. Stephanie announced that she was going to head home so Ponch could eat in peace.

But Ponch had other plans. "Steph, don't go all the way home. Just go down to the hospital cafeteria for lunch. That way you can come back."

Stephanie sighed, as Ponch flashed her that handsome smile that made her heart melt. "Okay. Sure. I'll see you after lunch," she promised and headed straight for the cafeteria.

After the woman had left, Johnny couldn't help but comment, "Umm, are all the CHP female officers that pretty?"

Ponch grinned, as he remembered Getraer's remark to him. Then he turned to his roomy, "Hey! Down Romeo!" he warned, "I'm hoping Steph' and I will become a number one of these days." Then his grin broadened and he finally answered his roommate's question, "Well, yeah. They are. But I've already dated most of 'em." Ponch saw Johnny's forlorn look and chuckled--only this time, he remembered to hold his ribs as he did so. "Hey," the officer added, "Maybe, when we're both outta here, I'll set you up with one of 'em. Okay?"

And it was Johnny's turn to grin. "Deal!"

Then they both turned their attention to the little trays that contained their plates of ...hospital food.

###################################################

That day was a typically busy day for all on-duty Highway Patrol Officers. Between fender benders, traffic hazards, and looking for stolen vehicles--amid numerous other problems that came up--everyone was kept occupied. Even Baricza…sort of.

Bear was back in his patrol car. The officer had just finished a traffic stop, a few miles back. The college student that he had stopped had apparently come from a wealthy home. The kid had thought that he was too good to be pulled over by a common cop. But, he had soon learned that he was not smart enough--nor rich enough--to talk himself out of being written up. Bear couldn't help but chuckle as he remembered the look on that spoiled brat's face when he was handed the officer's ticket book and asked for his signature.

Baricza's grin vanished as something suddenly caught his attention--a shiny, red car. Not just any old car, the thing was a sporty-looking, newer-model, fancy-red Ford Mustang. The officer watched as the vehicle pulled up ahead of him and into the lane--just to his left. The hairs stood up on the back of Bear's neck. The officer checked his mirrors for any other traffic in the immediate vicinity. No other vehicles were beside--or behind him. Bear continued to observe the driver of the Mustang. The guy kept checking his rearview mirror, and the officer realized that he was being watched, as well. Bear didn't know if it was just paranoia setting in, but it almost seemed like the driver was waiting to catch him off guard. 'Better to be paranoid--and stay alive, than to be caught unaware--and be killed' the officer silently reminded himself. If there was any chance at all that this car was being driven by the Freeway Phantom, Bear wasn't going to give the guy an opportunity to take him out.

The officer checked for other traffic again. If he was being set up, at least there still weren't any cars behind him in his lane. The vehicles traveling along beside him kept slowing down a little and speeding back up--typical freeway traffic. Suddenly, Bear saw the driver of the Mustang swing his steering wheel. The car lurched quickly to the right. But, the officer had been prepared and had slammed on his brakes. If Bear hadn't been so alert, the Mustang would have smashed into the left front fender of his car. Traffic continued moving forward. Realizing that he had failed in his attempt to wreak havoc, the Mustang's driver floored his gas pedal. Baricza hit his lights and siren, and the chase was on! The officer thumbed his radio mic', "LA, 15 7 Adam, in pursuit of possible Freeway Phantom suspect. California reg. David, Victor, X-ray 395...on the 405 just south of Broadway. The suspect's vehicle is a newer-model, red Ford Mustang..."

"Roger, 15 7 Adam, " LA came back. "All units in the vicinity of the 405, 7 Adam in pursuit of person suspected of being the Freeway Phantom. Suspect is driving a newer-model, red Ford Mustang...Location: south of Broadway."

############################################

"7 Mary 5, I'm three away!" Grossman acknowledged. He wanted a piece of this guy too.

###############################################

"15 7 Charles, two away. Break, Bear I'll be coming up from behind," Bonnie acknowledged.

#############################################

"15 7 David, two away, I'll set up a road block," Turner announced.

"Turner be ready with the stop-sticks," Bear warned him.

"Okay, clear!" the officer acknowledged, and sped up his patrol car.

############################################

By now, Bear's adrenaline was really pumping. He looked down at the speedometer and found they were already traveling in access of over 100 miles an hour!

Other motorists kept pulling onto the shoulder, giving the officer--and suspect he was pursuing--plenty of room to race on. All breathed sighs of relief as the two cars sped past--without incident.

Soon, Bear spotted Turner's flashing overheads. He hoped Turner would get the stop-sticks set up in time--because the Mustang was fast approaching. Baricza couldn't keep his eyes on Turner, he was too busy watching the road. Turner's timing had to be just perfect. The sticks had to be immediately retracted after the Mustang went over them, or they'd take out Bear's tires, too.

The Mustang hit the stop-sticks, which are designed to puncture the suspect's tires and slowly release the air. Then, Turner quickly retracted them. So, by the time Bear got there, the way was clear for him to pass by unscathed. Baricza pulled up behind the suspect's gradually slowing red car.

The phantom cursed, seeing that traffic up ahead was grinding to a halt and all the lanes of escape were completely blocked. He realized his 'borrowed' was of no further value to him, and baled out--while it was still rolling.

Baricza braked, shoved his patrol car into 'Park' and continued to pursue the suspect--on foot--with Bonnie hot on his heels. Bear's adrenaline was now pumping so hard that it felt like his feet weren't even touching the ground. With sheer determination, the officer closed the distance between himself and the suspect. Then Bear threw himself forward, tackling the guy to the ground. The man fought the two officers 'tooth and nail', but to no avail. Between them, Bear and Bonnie quickly had their struggling suspect subdued.

Bear was breathing so hard he could barely speak, "Thanks…Bonnie," he gasped, and slapped the handcuffs in place.

"Don't mention it. It was my pleasure," she replied, and helped her colleague pull the prisoner to his feet.

"Read…him…his rights…okay," Bear asked her, as he tried to catch his breath.

"You pigs really think your something, don't yah," the young suspect taunted.

"I wouldn't say anything till after I've read you your rights," Bonnie warned and flashed the fugitive an angry glare. It was a real struggle for her to remain calm and professional--when what she really wanted to do was deck the guy--right then and there!

"Don't bother, I know my rights," the suspect snarled.

"Oh...It's no bother at all," Bonnie assured him, and began shoving him towards Baricza's patrol car. "You have the right to remain silent…" she began. By the time they got to the car she had finished. The prisoner was placed in the back seat. "Good bust, Bear," Bonnie acknowledged.

"Hey, we all…had a hand in it...It wasn't... just me," Baricza humbly replied, still having a little problem catching his breath.

"Sorry, but I don't see it that way," Bonnie said, before heading back to her patrol car.

Bear smiled as he slid back behind the wheel of his police cruiser. He was certain this guy was the Freeway Phantom. The officer glanced into his rearview mirror. His gaze was met with the hate-filled eyes of the suspect. Yes, sir! This guy had to be the Phantom! Bear smiled again and then, while his colleagues got the stalled traffic underway again, he transported the suspect to Central--for questioning.

#####################################################

Bonnie, Grossie, and Turner returned to Central, as well. It was their hope that they'd get a chance to find out if the suspect was--indeed--the dreaded Freeway Phantom.

Bear left his prisoner in Turner's custody for awhile, so he could go talk with Getraer. Baricza figured his commander would want to be informed of the latest events. "Sarge, can I talk to you a minute?" he inquired as he walked into Joe's office.

"Sure, what's up?"

Bear proceeded to give the sergeant a complete report. He explained that he had immediately suspected that the Mustang's driver might be the guy they'd been looking for. He went on relate how the suspect had tried to 'take him out'. Bear ended with a brief account of the capture and arrest.

Getraer thanked Bear for his report and headed for the holding area. The sergeant had a few questions of his own for this particular prisoner.

######################################################

Once they'd all had a chance to question the man, it became very clear that the subject Bear had nabbed most definitely was the Freeway Phantom. It also became crystal clear as to why he hated cops---and why he'd carried this vendetta of his on--for so long. In the end, the Freeway Phantom was charged with one count of vehicular homicide, numerous counts of assault with a deadly weapon, fleeing and alluding, and resisting arrest.

Getraer called and filled in the captain regarding the arrest of the Freeway Phantom. To say the least, Joe's superior was very happy to hear the news. Perhaps now, his officers could relax a bit and quit having to keep looking over their shoulders.

########################################################

After lunch, Stephanie had returned to Ponch's room--only to find him playing with his food. "What's the matter, no appetite?" she asked him, rather concerned that something was wrong.

"Huh?! Oh...sorry, Steph'…didn't hear you come in."

The woman realized that she must have startled Ponch, because he was holding his ribs--and his handsome face was scrunched up a might--in pain. "Ponch, you're not going to gain your strength back that way. Your food's stone cold by now," she meant it as a reprimand, but her voice softened upon seeing his pain-filled face.

Ponch pushed the tray aside and admitted, "Guess I'm just not hungry."

Stephanie stood there, quietly, a moment. She saw the distant look in her friend's dark eyes and couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking about. She knew it wasn't any of her business, but, still she was worried. Ponch appeared to be upset about something. Without thinking, she slid the little table that contained his food tray out of the way and said, "Ponch, I think I should head on out so--"

"No!...No! Don't go!…Please?" Ponch pleaded, his eyes filled with panic.

Since she didn't really want to leave, and since Ponch most definitely wanted her to stay...Well, it wouldn't take a college graduate to figure out which way she'd go. In the end, those pleading eyes of his won out. "Okay, Ponch. If you want me to stay, I will," she promised and then added, "Maybe you're just tired? Why don't you rest a bit?"

"No…no. I'm not tired," Ponch assured her. Then he turned rather serious, "Stephanie, can we talk a minute."

"Ah, sure," she said, sounding somewhat uncertain. For the life of her, Stephanie couldn't fathom what Ponch had meant by that. After all, they'd already been 'talking' most of the morning.

"I don't mean to intrude on your privacy," Ponch continued, carefully choosing his words. The last thing he wanted to do was upset her in anyway.

###################################################

Meanwhile, Jon--who also had the day off--had arrived at the hospital to visit Ponch. He was anxious to see his recuperating partner--especially after the phone call he'd just received from Bonnie. Baker had promised Bonnie that he wouldn't say a word to Ponch. Now, Jon just hoped he could keep that promise.

When he reached the doorway of Ponch's room, Jon stopped. The conversation he almost interrupted seemed a little emotional and--with Ponch as one of the party's involved--Baker wasn't surprised that the person his partner was conversing with was a woman. Only, in this case, the woman was Stephanie.

"You see, Ponch," Stephanie was saying, "the past few months have been a real struggle for me. First--my husband's death. Then--moving here and having to deal with this Phantom creep. And, finally--you…you almost getting--"

"Hey," Ponch interrupted, "For starters--you've been trying to deal with your husband's loss all by yourself. I know you had a lot of friends, especially fellow officers, that could have helped you through this."

"But, I--"

"Unh uh, Steph'," Ponch interrupted again, "You've got 'friends' here now, too. And we won't--I won't let you handle this alone...Not anymore. You've got to let me help you, Steph'! Please don't shut me out. Okay?" Ponch paused for effect before continuing on to another issue. He wanted to allow her some time for that to sink in. "As for the Freeway Phantom...You know we're gonna get the guy. It just may--"

"Just may what, Ponch?" Stephanie wondered, interrupting him, for a change. "Take more time? How much time? How many more officers are going to be injured…or worse...before we--" she stopped herself, this time and stared sadly down at him, "Look at you…you were nearly--"

"Hey! I'm okay," Ponch assured her, but then added, "Well, I will be. Look Steph', maybe we should change the subject. The topic of this conversation isn't helping you at all."

"Ponch, seeing you in this hospital bed just reminds me of how very close you came to being another statistic. I already lost my husband…I just…I just don't think I could have handled losing a very good, very close friend, too..." Stephanie confessed, a tear rolling down her cheek. Ponch slowly reached out and took her trembling hand in his.

Jon decided he had been standing out in the hallway long enough. He knew the woman was on the verge of tears, because he had distinctly heard her voice crack. "Hey, Stephanie. Hey, Ponch, old buddy. How yah doing?" Baker declared, as nonchalantly as he could. He wanted to give the impression that he'd just got there. Stephanie quickly turned away--to brush 'something' from her cheek, before turning back to face him, and Jon pretended not to notice.

"Hi Jon!" Ponch greeted, sounding genuinely delighted to see his partner again.

Stephanie cleared her throat, smiled weakly and replied, "Hello, Jon."

Baker suddenly recognized the other patient in Ponch's room. The guy was one of the paramedics who had treated Ponch at the accident site. "Hi. You're a paramedic, aren't you?" Jon said and strolled over to stand at the fireman's bedside.

"Yeah. Hi. John Gage..." Johnny introduced and extended a hand, "We met briefly--downstairs in the doctor's lounge--about a week ago."

"Right," Baker shook Gage's hand, "Jon Baker. I remembered you from the accident scene. You helped save my partner's life..."

"Yeah. Then I had an accident of my own. And now, we're roommates," Johnny told him with a grin.

Jon smiled, "I don't know which of you I should feel more sorry for. I'm sure Ponch been enlightening you--"

"Um, Jon?! Get over here man!" Ponch requested. Ponch knew exactly where his friend was headed with that --and he didn't want to give him the chance to go there.

Baker gave Gage a smile and a shrug and then strolled back over to Ponch and Stephanie.

The three friends talked for some time, about various things. Naturally, the number one topic was how Ponch was doing. Baker intended to keep the conversation light and--most definitely--as far away from the Freeway Phantom as possible. Well, that was Jon's intention anyway.

Unfortunately, it wasn't Ponch's. "Any more action by the Phantom?"

Baker panicked. What was he going to say? He didn't want to lie. Yet he had promised Bonnie that he wouldn't say a word about the Phantom's arrest.

Ponch took Jon's hesitation wrong and anxiously exclaimed, "Don't tell me another officer's down!"

"No, Ponch! No! Um, actually he's been pretty quiet since your accident. Must be tied up on something else." Yeah, that was good, that should suffice.

"I just hope he doesn't crawl back under a rock some place. If he goes into hiding, we may never get the chance to take 'im down."

"Don't wor--" Jon caught himself--just before he blurted out the good news. Baker wiped the smile from his mouth and then shut it. He hoped neither Ponch nor Stephanie would question him further.

Ponch and Stephanie had caught the slight smile that had crossed Baker's face, but they just took it as a sign that Jon was just glad to find his friend's condition improving.

As time went on, Jon kept wishing that someone from Central would step into the room, so that some of the 'heat' could be taken off him. Baker didn't want to take away Baricza's right to give Ponch the great news, and he knew Bonnie, Grossman and Turner would make sure Bear got there. He just wished they'd hurry it up.

"Hey, it's shift change time," Ponch finally spoke up, breaking through his partner's thoughts, "I sure hope some of the other guys will stop in. It's great seeing all of you."

"Oh, I'm sure you'll get some visitors today, " Jon reassured him, "We just have to take turns. We don't want to tire you out too much."

"Ahh, it's not like I have anything else to do," Ponch replied with a smile. Then, realizing that Stephanie had been quiet for some time, he gave the hand he was still holding a gentle squeeze and asked, "You okay, Steph'?"

She started a little, "Huh? Oh, I'm sorry, Ponch. Did you say something?"

Ponch smiled, "Yeah. Are you okay?"

"Um, yeah. Sure. I guess I was just day-dreaming a little," she confessed with a shy smile.

Ponch wanted to ask what was on her mind that was troubling her, but thought twice about it--since Jon was still there. Also, he hesitated to ask because he still wasn't sure it was any of his business.

Jon hadn't missed the far away look in the woman's eyes, either. Baker also couldn't help but notice that there seemed to be some sort of chemistry going on between Ponch and Stephanie. Jon knew that Ponch was trying to establish a relationship with the woman. But Stephanie still seemed so unsure about what she should do. He figured Ponch would be careful not to press her. Baker just hoped that neither of his friends would end up getting hurt.

Stephanie was grateful that Ponch had taken her hand into his. It was most comforting. How could she tell him that she was willing to start anew--but couldn't forget the past. The love she felt for her husband was still there in her heart--and would always remain there. That didn't mean she couldn't make room for someone else. Yes, she was willing to become involved in a new relationship...but, was she ready? Stephanie didn't know where--or when--to begin to live--and love--again. That's what had been on her mind when Ponch had disturbed her disturbing thoughts.

Everyone in the room turned towards the door as Bonnie and Grossie came in, escorting Baricza. "Hey, guys!" Ponch declared with a grin, "It's really good to see you!"

"How yah doin' Ponch?" Bear wondered, as he was shoved up to Ponch's bedside.

"Not bad, Bear...Not bad. Hey! I want to introduce you guys to my roommate. Barry Baricza this is Johnny Gage. He's one of the paramedics that treated me at the scene."

The newcomers exchanged greetings with Ponch's roommate.

"C'mon, Barry," Bonnie urged, "Spill it!"

Bear turned his full attention back to Ponch, "Speaking of your accident, Ponch. The Phantom is now in jail! I nailed him earlier today--with a little help from Bonnie, Grossman and Turner..." he humbly tacked on.

"You what?!" Stephanie exclaimed.

Ponch just lay there. He was--almost--too stunned to speak. "What…how…when did this all happen?" the Phantom's last victim finally stammered.

Bear explained everything. He told Ponch all about the Ford Mustang...his state of paranoia...his accurate judgment and quick reaction and how it saved him from being the Phantom's next victim. Baricza finished with a detailed account of how the Freeway Phantom was finally taken down.

Hearing the good news--firsthand from Bear--even made Jon shake his head in amazement.

Stephanie was so tremendously relieved. She could finally breathe freely again, knowing that their arch nemesis was finally behind bars.

Naturally, Ponch needed to know more, "So, why was he doing this? Other than out of a hatred for cops? I mean, what could possibly make a person hate so much that he'd do something like this?"

"From what I managed to get out of him," Bear continued, "the guy said, 'Because you guys killed my brother.' Yeah, Ponch, I gave him that same look," Baricza admitted, after seeing the confused look on his bedridden friend's face. "He said that his older brother was being pursued by a CHP motor officer. This kid was also in the car at the time. They were traveling at a high rate of speed when his older brother lost control of his car. His brother was killed and he was severely injured in the accident. The guy spent quite some time in the hospital."

"Apparently long enough to come up with the idea of injuring or killing a cop or two as pay back," Jon added.

"Apparently so," Ponch replied disgustedly.

"Well, at least he's behind bars now--and no more officers are in danger...well, at least not from him," Stephanie commented. Her fellow officers smiled and nodded in agreement.

Ponch's friends could tell that he was tired. They said their goodbyes and left.

All except for Stephanie, that is. "Hey, you've had a long day. Why don't you rest a while, now. It's almost dinner time. "

Ponch was suddenly feeling the affects of all his visitors. He was too exhausted to argue, so he just told her, "Yeah. Okay. I think I do need some rest, now. But Steph'? You stay here, okay?" he requested with a tired smile. He still wanted to have that little talk he'd been wanting to have with her. He was very happy at the news he learned tonight, and he was also tired. He wasn't sure he'd have the strength to be as convincing as he felt he would have to be. He just needed to find the courage to speak to her.

Stephanie looked into those dark, pleading eyes of his and smiled back, "Sure, Ponch. If you'd really like me too..."

Ponch answered her by reaching up for her hand. He took Stephanie's hand in his and then closed his tired eyes.

The End

######################################################

EPILOGUE

A couple days after the good news regarding the Phantom was learned, Ponch's roommate, Johnny Gage, was given his ticket out of the hospital.

But before leaving, the fireman managed to remind Ponch of something. "Hey, you are going to keep your promise about getting me a date with Officer Clark? Right?"

Ponch smiled, "Yeah, sure. I haven't forgotten. But I think it should wait till you're out of that cast, don't you?" Both men smiled and agreed to that sensible line of reasoning.

Johnny's partner and friend, Roy DeSoto managed to get the day off so he could take Johnny home and get him situated. As far as Gage was concerned, his cast couldn't come off fast enough.

##################################################

Ponch was kept in the hospital for almost two whole weeks. Ponch still hadn't found the courage to have that 'little talk' with Stephanie. Seemed every time he felt he was finally ready, one of his other friends would come along to visit. Plus, Stephanie had to return to work, which lessened his time with her--considerably.

Now came the day of Ponch's release from the hospital. He had made arrangements with Sergeant Getraer to allow Baricza and Jon to assist in transporting him home. While the medical personnel fixed up the release paperwork, one of the nurses helped Ponch get dressed. If it wasn't for his broken leg and still aching shoulder, Ponch would have been able to manage the task himself.

Anyway, once Ponch was fully dressed. The nurse sat her patient in a wheelchair and positioned the uncomfortable contraption by the window , so he could look outside--which was something he hadn't been able to do in the past two weeks. Ponch had already placed the call to Central and knew that it could take a while before his two friends were actually available to come and take him home. 'Home', that's where the officer knew he'd really get the healing time. There were those occasions, such as this one, when he was all alone, that his thoughts always came to how close he had come to becoming just another statistic. It hadn't just all been a bad dream. This Freeway Phantom character truly did pin all the blame on every CHP officer and then allowed himself to develop such a hatred for cops for the death of his brother. The creep really had, willfully, carried out his vendetta. Many CHP officers really had been seriously injured. And then there was the tragic death of Officer Jim Stevenson. Ponch couldn't forget that! What a waste. And now--?

Baker and Baricza stepped into the room just then. They'd had been talking back and forth as they entered, but their fellow officer--who was still sitting by the window--had apparently never heard them. They silently looked at each other, wondering if something was bothering their pensive friend.

"Ponch, you okay?" Jon softly spoke as he walked up to him, "Ready to head home?"

"Huh?" was all Ponch muttered as he was startled from his reveries.

Baker smiled, "I said, you ready to go home?"

Ponch grinned broadly, "Yeah! I sure am!"

But neither Jon nor Bear was fooled.

This time, Baricza asked, "Ponch, you sure you're okay? Want me to get a nurse?"

That put Ponch into a panic! "No! No! I'm okay. Really. I was just thinking, is all. C'mon! I've got all the papers signed--and I just want to go home..."

So, Jon began wheeling him out of the room. Bear grabbed Ponch's bag and the trio headed off down the hallway towards the elevators.

While they were waiting for the elevator doors to open, Ponch suddenly thought of something. "Stephanie, couldn't get away?" he asked, sounding a bit disappointed. He didn't see the look both men behind him gave each other. The seconds of silence got Ponch a little nervous, "Ah, guys, she's okay, ain't she?"

"Sure, Ponch," Jon assured him, "Stephanie's fine. She just got a little busy on the San Bernardino Freeway. Minor MVA, is all. But, she'll stop by your place as soon as she can," Baker sighed--er, lied. He never was good at even a little fib. Jon just hoped Ponch hadn't caught on. The elevator doors finally opened and he eased his friend's wheelchair inside. Ponch didn't ask anymore questions regarding Stephanie. Both Baker and Baricza breathed quiet sighs of relief, as Stephanie had requested that her conspicuous absence be considered a guarded issue.

"Oh, good. I was hoping she would," was all Ponch finally said.

##############################################

As Jon wheeled Ponch over to their squad car, he determined that he should be placed in the back, where he could prop his busted leg up on the seat.

It wasn't the most comfortable position Ponch had ever been in, but he knew the trip would be short, so he didn't complain.

################################################

Before long, Ponch was at his apartment. Jon wheeled him into his living room and his eyes widened when he saw all of the changes that had been made there. "What? Who? This is great!! You guys?" Ponch stammered, seeing that his living room had been turned into a temporary bedroom for him. Everything he would more than likely need, was right there for him…well, almost everything.

The sound of approaching voices grew louder and louder. At last, Stephanie, Bonnie and Officer Jed Turner appeared from one of the apartment's back rooms. All three had smiles on their faces when they saw how happy Ponch was with their new arrangements.

Ponch noticed right away that Stephanie was not in uniform. He turned to Jon and Bear, looking puzzled. The two co-conspirators simply shrugged their shoulders and tried their best to look totally innocent. Ponch grinned. He'd save any further questions for later, when--hopefully--he and Stephanie would be alone. Ponch crossed his fingers on that one.

Once everyone felt Ponch was settled in and comfortable, they realized they’d better go make themselves visible on the highways again. The on-duty officers didn't want to push the kindness of their sergeant too far.

Stephanie and Ponch soon found themselves…alone.

"I'm glad you liked what we did here," Stephanie said as she sat down beside the sofa bed, "It'll make it a lot easier for you when you get visitors," she added with a smile.

"Thanks. I really appreciate everything you and the others have done for me," Ponch replied, and flashed his thoughtful friend a warm smile of his own. Then he bit his lower lip and reached a decision. He wasn't going to delay matters any longer. "Steph', could we talk a moment?"

"Yeah, sure, what's on your mind?"

"Us."

"Us?" the woman repeated, looking and sounding confused.

"Yeah! Us. Steph', I don't want you to think that I'm rushing you into anything. But I just want you to know that…that I really…I really would like to get to know you better. I'd like us to--" he stopped there, remembering how tortured she'd been since coming to LA. "Steph', I would never ask you to forget your late husband. You've got too many good memories with him," Ponch paused a moment, giving the woman a chance to reply. But, Stephanie remained silent. Ponch didn't know if that was good or bad. "Steph', I'd like to spend as much time as I can with you." He had never found it so hard to talk to a woman before. Even though he'd rehearsed what he was going to say, he just couldn't seem to get the right words to come out. Ponch knew that he was faltering. How was he ever going to get her to realize that he was genuinely concerned about how she felt? 'Actions speak louder than words...' he reminded himself.

Stephanie watched, silently as Ponch took her hand in his. She continued to sit there, quietly as he flashed her that trademark smile of his. The woman was busy mulling over the things she knew he was trying to get across to her. At last, she spoke, "Ponch, I…You're right. I could never forget Jim. In time, maybe the memories might fade a little, or even stop hurting so much, but I'd never be able to forget him. I…I do need someone to hold on to now and then, though. But, with the both of us being cops...Well, I don't know if I--"

Ponch stopped her right there and the gentle hold on her hand tightened just a little, "Steph', even if I wasn't a cop, it wouldn't matter. Nobody's life is risk-free! We all take chances. We can't let the fear of dying rule our lives--or hold us back from the things we want or need." Ponch paused a moment again wondering if she'd say anything in reply.

Stephanie realized that Ponch was trying to be as gentle, kind and considerate of her feelings as he possibly could. And she really did love him for that. Her feelings had been a little mixed up lately. Maybe, just maybe, Ponch would be the one to help her get her life back on track again. "Ponch," she finally replied, "I'd like to get to know you better, too. Just make sure you stay as far away from those Phantom-types as you can possibly get. You really scared the heck out of me!"

Ponch grinned from ear to ear. It was so good to finally be home...and to have Stephanie there with him. Ponch knew that, from now on, his own life wouldn't be so 'lonesome'.

#############################################

Time passed and Ponch finally got the medical release to return to work, although it was light duty. Light duty meaning desk duty. Something Ponch never liked to do. Ponch would rather be out and about on his motor, facing the public and handling all different kinds of situations. But, until his doctor felt he was healed up enough, Ponch realized he had no choice in the matter. 'Course, all his friends were there trying to make his time on desk-duty a little easier to take. Well, as long as Sergeant Getraer wouldn't find them there, that is.

As for Ponch and Stephanie? Their relationship blossomed as well. Ponch was able to help Stephanie sort out her feelings and cope with her tragic loss. The two of them managed to help each other through all the difficult times cops face in their daily lives. They came to share each others innermost feelings--confident in the fact that they'd be understood.