SquidgeWorld Archive

Cat's In the Cradle

By GCS

DISCLAIMER: "Emergency!" and its characters © Mark VII Productions, Inc. and Universal Studios . All rights reserved. No infringement of any copyrights or trademarks is intended or should be inferred. This is a work of fiction. This story is only written for entertainment. No financial gain is being realized from it. The story, itself, is the property of the author.

"Here we go with th e Top 40 hits of the nation this week on American Top 40, the best selling and most-played songs coming to you live from Hollywood. This is Casey Kasem and in the next three hours, we'll count down the 40 most popular songs in the United States according to Billboard magazine. Now on with the countdown!

At number 40 Cat's In the Cradle by Harry Chapin."

My child arrived just the other day
He came to the world in the usual way
But there were planes to catch and bills to pay
He learned to walk while I was away
And he was talkin' 'fore I knew it, and as he grew
He'd say "I'm gonna be like you dad
You know I'm gonna be like you"

And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon
Little boy blue and the man on the moon
When you comin' home dad?
I don't know when, but we'll get together then son
You know we'll have a good time then

The radio blared through the open window. Wind whipped through his thick sable hair. It was a beautiful day in sunny California, and he would rather be at the beach.

In another ten minutes he would officially be late for roll call. He was at least twenty from the station and even speeding he didn't have a chance.

"Roy where's your partner this morning?" Captain Stanley sounded like he'd lost all patience with his younger paramedic.

"He's had some trouble with one of his colts Cap. The vet told him what to do for him, but he hasn't been responding well. He probably had to fill his neighbor in on the progress before heading in. I'm sure..." Roy was cut off by the squeal of tires rounding the back of the station.

Captain Stanley leaned around the front of the engine where he could see Johnny running from his Rover toward the locker room. "Five minutes Gage!"

"Yes sir," Johnny said flatly and disappeared through the door.

The rest of the A-shift crew stood uncomfortably with a silent Captain; waiting.

A few minutes later Johnny joined the others in front of the engine still tucking in his shirt. "Sorry," he mumbled.

"Okay...Now that we're all here," Cap said tersely. "Duties will be Desoto - dorms, Kelly and Lopez - hoses, Stoker - kitchen and dayroom, Gage - latrines and bay. Also Gage and Desoto you have some inspections that you missed last shift that need to be completed today. Dismissed." He stood waiting for the group to disperse. "Gage, my office."

Johnny's gaze met Roy's, and instantly Roy saw something…sadness. Johnny lowered his eyes and followed Captain Stanley into the office.

"Sit down John."

"Um...I'd rather stand, Sir."

"Want to fill me in on why after I made it clear the last time you were late that it had better not happen again and now the very next shift you're late?"

Johnny shifted from one foot to the other and bit the inside of his lip, but didn't answer.

After a very long and uncomfortable silence Captain Stanley cleared his throat and pressed for an answer. "John?"

"My colt died this morning." Johnny responded in a barely audible voice.

Cap didn't know what to say. He knew how important Johnny's animals were to him. "I'm sorry to hear that John, but as you know I have a duty to running the station." He sighed. He hated this part of his job. As a friend he wanted to try to help Johnny deal with the loss of his colt, but as Captain he had to maintain his authority.

"Yes sir." He still didn't meet his Captain's eyes.

Hank noticed the poor posture and lack of eye contact. "See that you're on time from now on, and John, I am sorry about the colt. Now how 'bout you get started on the latrines." He watched as Johnny turned and slowly opened the door, and then disappeared from the office.

Roy had already finished the inventory and now stood beside the squad checking the bio-phone. "Everything alright?"

Johnny didn't even look up as he passed. "Not now Roy." He said softly and kept walking with his head down.

Captain Stanley came out of his office and watched Johnny push through the door on the other side of the bay. "Roy can I see you a minute?"

"Sure Cap." He replaced the bio-phone into the compartment and followed his boss into the office.

"John lost his colt this morning. Keep an eye one him. I know how much the horses mean to him. Let me know if there's a problem." He nervously tapped his pencil on the desk. He hoped Roy understood his position. He had to maintain a level of professionalism when they were on duty.

"He'll be okay Cap. I'll keep an eye on him, but he'll be okay." Roy turned to leave but hesitated. "Thanks for not being too hard on him."

"No problem Roy, just remember what I said. If there's a problem I need to know about it."

Roy nodded his understanding and went to find his partner. As he passed the kitchen door he smiled...Chet, Marco and Mike all huddled there obviously wanting to know what was wrong with Johnny. Their nosiness amused him.

"What's up with Gage?" Chet spoke for the group.

"His colt died this morning." Roy kept walking not waiting for any response. As he continued across the bay he heard the guys moving chairs around the table. They understood that Johnny needed some space and they would give it.

In the latrine Johnny had gathered the cleaning supplies and made the mop water, but he didn't have the energy to use it. He leaned his back wearily against the wall, stood there for a minute, and then slowly slid down the wall to the floor pulling his knees closely to his chest. He wrapped his arms around his legs and rested his head on his knees. He hadn't slept in two days. He had tried everything the vet had told him to do and even some things his father had taught him years ago. Nothing worked. The colt just grew weaker and weaker until this morning it died.

He'd borrowed his neighbor's backhoe and buried the animal at the back of his lot in a small clearing just before leaving for the station. That's what made him late. He couldn't leave before giving the colt a proper burial.

He could have called in sick, but then he would have had to stay at the ranch and face his failure to save the animal. No he needed to be at work. He needed to use his training, his life saving skills as a Paramedic, but he was just so tired.

Roy stood in the door watching Johnny. He noticed the dark hue beneath his eyes, the slight tremble in his hands, and the pallor of his skin. Johnny was physically and emotionally exhausted, but Roy knew he had to be here. He had to work this shift. He had to remember that he had the skills and ability to save lives. No one understood that better than Roy.

He walked over and slid down the wall next to Johnny bumping his shoulder. "Want to talk about it?"

Johnny glanced over at his friend and gave a half smile. "Not really."

They sat together for a few minutes not talking, just leaning against the tiled wall in companionable silence.

"Well that mop isn't going to push itself."

"Yeah."

Roy stood and held out his hand to Johnny who took it and allowed Roy to haul him to his feet. Before either could make another move the tones sounded calling the Squad to assist Engine 36 instead of Squad 36 with an MVA.

They pulled up behind the Engine and looked for the Captain to see where they were needed.

"What have we got Cap?" Roy asked.

"Two kids in the back seat of the Chrysler. Parents are okay, but the truck hit them from behind; looks like he was hit by that Caddy which caused him to push against the Chrysler again. The drivers of the truck and Caddy have refused treatment saying they aren't hurt."

"Okay, we'll check them out." He turned and joined Johnny in getting their equipment out of the Squad. The two Paramedics jogged over to the Chrysler. Roy moved to the passenger side and Johnny took the driver's side.

Johnny paused, with his hand on the handle, before opening the door. He looked in at the two brown haired children, and visions of his little brown colt flashed in his mind. He felt so inadequate. He'd tried so hard to keep it alive, but nothing he did seemed to make any difference.

Roy saw Johnny stop before opening the door. He noticed the way he looked in the window at the children. He sensed the insecurities Johnny was feeling. 'Come on Junior…you can do this.' He waited for a couple of seconds and then he spoke, "We need to check them out Johnny."

He looked up, his mouth open, ready to speak; ready to tell Roy he couldn't do it. Roy met his gaze and nodded, silently confirming his belief in him. A slight nod of acceptance and he opened the door. Each man bent down and started assessing the two children.

"Hi my name is Johnny and that guy over there is my partner Roy. Can you tell me where you hurt?"

The little girl looked up at Johnny. Her bottom lip trembled. "My mommy said not to talk to strangers."

"Oh, that's really smart but see, your mommy is right over there, and she said we could help you out. Besides I told you I'm Johnny and he's Roy. What's your name?"

"April."

"Now we know I'm Johnny and you're April. Who is this?" He pointed to her brother.

"That's Joey. He's three." She looked over at her unconscious brother and her lip trembled again; tears welled up in her eyes.

"Hey now, he's going to be just fine. Roy has a little boy too, and he knows what to do to make your brother all better. So can you tell me? Do you hurt anywhere?" He slid his hands down her arms and over the back of her head and neck.

"My neck hurts. I hit my head on the seat really hard."

"Okay sweetie, I'm going to put this soft collar around your neck to help support it until the doctor at the hospital checks it out. You just let me move you around. Try not to move your neck a lot. Okay?" He smiled as he talked to the scared little girl. "How old are you?"

"I'm six. I go to school, but today I didn't." She stayed very still like Johnny asked her to. "We went to the dentist. He said I do good brushing my teeth."

"He did. That's great." Johnny pumped the BP cuff around her arm.

"Johnny Dr. Brackett wants vitals." Roy had already taken readings on Joey and was waiting on April's. He watched Johnny working and thought he looked better. Other than the dark circles under his eyes no one would know how tired he really was.

After a short time and relaying the vitals to Dr. Brackett, IVs were established and both children were packaged for transport. Johnny climbed into the ambulance between the two patients. "Now April, we're going to ride in this ambulance to the hospital. When we get there I have a very special friend that will do her very best to make you all better. Her name is Dixie. I think you will really like her."

Roy closed the doors, tapped them twice and stepped away from the departing vehicle.

The rest of the morning progressed in much the same manner.

They finished a call at Rampart just in time to answer the next. Several hours later and several minor runs under their belts they finally backed into the station. It was well past lunch. Johnny had started the day tired. Now he was beyond tired. He almost fell out of the Squad, stumbled into the kitchen and fell into a chair. Roy wasn't far behind him and slid into the chair beside his partner.

"You guys look like you've been on your feet for a week." Marco said what Chet and Mike were thinking.

Captain Stanley had heard them return and also came into the kitchen. "You guys hungry? We saved you some lunch."

"Yeah, but I'm too tired to get up." Johnny spoke first. Roy moved to slide his chair back and get their plates.

"Relax Roy, I'll get it." Mike slid his own chair back and went to the oven to get the plates, sitting one in front of each of the Paramedics. "Milk, Water, Tea, or Coffee?"

"Tea," Roy said and looked over at Johnny. His eyes had a glazed look and his mouth was partly open. He looked like he was asleep with his eyes open. Roy nudged his shoulder.

"Huh?"

"What do you want to drink?"

Johnny looked at Roy confused. He glanced at the plate that had appeared in front of him and grabbed his fork picking up a forkful of mashed potatoes and putting it in his mouth.

"Johnny, what do you want to drink?" Roy asked again.

"M-w-k," he mumbled out his full mouth.

The group of men around the table laughed. "Gage you're gross," Chet remarked. Mike poured the milk and placed the glass on the table. Johnny grabbed it and tilted the glass to his mouth. He drank the entire glass and held it out toward Mike who out of practice stood waiting with the milk carton still in his grasp. He took the glass and refilled it before returning the carton to the fridge.

"Th-wa-ks Mwike."

"Chew Gage, swallow, then talk. Cap he's grossing me out." Chet whined.

"Then don't look Chet. He's hungry, and they could get called out at any minute." Captain Stanley quickly shut down Chet's whining.

"Aw Cap why'd you have'ta…" Johnny was cut off by the tones. He pushed one more mouthful of meatloaf into his already full mouth and chased it with some more milk before running to the Squad. This time the call went out for the entire station. It was a possible heart attack.

Feeling a little better after some sustenance Johnny hummed and tapped his finger on his knee as they traveled through the streets of Carson.

"What are you humming?" Roy had been trying to figure out what the song was.

"Just a song I heard on the radio this morning. You know that top 40 countdown. What's that guy's name that does it?"

"Casey Kasem."

"Yeah that's him. He was on this morning."

"Joanne loves that radio show. She thinks Casey Kasem does a wonderful job picking America's favorite songs. I keep telling her he doesn't pick them. She thinks he figures out which ones everyone likes himself. I can't get her to understand he is just the host."

"He's more than that Roy. He really can figure out what songs everybody is listening too." Johnny looked wide eyed at his partner. "He really can you know."

"Not you too Johnny."

"What?"

"Never mind, we're here." They both got out of the Squad and gathered the necessary equipment for a possible heart attack. Chet and Marco appeared beside them and helped carry the oxygen and bio-phone.

Captain Stanley was already at the front door knocking, "Fire Department. Hello, anyone home?" He waited for an answer. When he didn't get one he called for Mike to bring the crowbar from the Engine. "Chet, check around back." Chet ran round the house. Captain Stanley continued knocking.

Chet came jogging from around the house. "It's locked up tight Cap. I couldn't see in the windows. The shades are drawn."

"Okay Mike, get us in." Hank instructed.

Mike stepped forward and angled the crowbar between the door and the wall. With one swift jerk he made short work of prying open the door and stepped back to allow the Paramedics to enter first.

Johnny and Roy moved past him and into the home. "Hello, Fire Department," Johnny yelled into the room. There was no response. He continued across the room into the kitchen. Roy went toward the hall. "Roy he's in here."

The man lay sprawled on the kitchen floor still clutching the telephone receiver. Johnny dropped to his knees and pulled the phone from his hand. The cord pulled it across the floor clanking its way back to the base of the wall where the phone was mounted. He reached for the carotid to check for a pulse. "It's weak, but it's there." He looked up at Roy and without need for further discussion they went into full Paramedic mode.

Chet set up the bio-phone while Marco helped with the oxygen. Cap radioed for an ambulance.

After attaching the leads and preparing to send Rampart a strip they knew the man was in real trouble. "V-fib," Johnny yelled. He started chest compressions while Roy readied the defibrillator,put gel on the paddles and passed them to Johnny. "Clear." He waited. "No conversion. Again." They tried several times and then called Rampart for instructions. After administering the medications as instructed they hit the man again. This time they were successful in getting a heartbeat.

They hurriedly packaged the patient for transport. It was Johnny's turn to ride in with the patient. On the way he lost the victim's pulse again. By the time the ambulance backed in Dr. Brackett and Dr. Early stood waiting. Johnny jumped down from the ambulance and immediately onto the rail beneath the gurney continuing CPR as they moved through the double doors and down the hall to a treatment room.

In the room Dr. Early pushed the exam table aside making room for the gurney. There wasn't time to transfer the man. Dr. Brackett charged the defibrillator to try again to get his heart beating again.

"Okay Johnny let me take over," Dr. Morton stepped up and counted down to take over compressions. Johnny didn't stop. "John, let me take over." Morton's tone grew demanding.

Sweat dropped from Johnny's bangs. His face was red and he had a concentrated stare directed on his hands as they pressed against the man's chest. He was so intent on doing CPR he hadn't heard Dr. Morton.

"Now John." He pushed Johnny back.

Johnny stumbled as he stepped down from the rail and fell to the floor. Morton jumped on and started pressing on the man's chest.

"1-2-3- 400," Dr. Early pointed to his colleague to zap the patient. Dr. Brackett placed the paddles on the man's chest and as the electrical charged entered his body lifting him off the table.

Johnny still sat in the floor looking up at the life saving activities going on just above him. Roy popped his head in the door looking for his partner. He almost didn't see him in the floor. "Johnny? Are you alright?" Johnny didn't move or respond. Roy moved over to his partner and slid his hands under Johnny's arms and lifted him from the floor. "You okay?"

Johnny nodded. "Tripped."

Dr. Morton glanced at the Paramedic. He understood how intent Johnny could get on saving a patient. He was relieved that Johnny had no ill feelings about being pushed aside. He hadn't meant for him to fall.

"No conversion," Dr. Early spoke to the attending physicians.

"Call it," Dr. Brackett placed the paddles back on the cart.

"Time 3:36 pm," Dr. Morton marked it in the chart. "I'll call the morgue."

Johnny stared silently at the man's body. He turned and looked at Roy, and then ran from the room. He headed straight for the men's room. Roy was only a few steps behind him. In the men's room Johnny stopped in front of the sink and began splashing cold water on his face. He stood in front of the mirror with water dripping down on his blue shirt leaving dark splotches. Abruptly he turned and burst through the stall door falling to his knees and retching.

Roy got a few paper towels, wet them in the sink and waited until his friend was finished. When the retching stopped and dry heaves subsided he handed Johnny the cool damp cloths. Johnny took them and bathed his face. He leaned against the wall panting.

"Better?" Roy asked him. He didn't look better. If anything he looked worse than he had all day. His eyes drooped at the corners and his lips were nearly white.

"Meatloaf didn't sit right," Johnny made an excuse.

"Yeah." Roy reached to help him up again.'Losing that guy was the last thing you needed today.' Keeping one hand on Johnny's elbow he led him out of the stall. "Let's get back to the station. We still have chores to finish."He knew that was a lame excuse, but at the moment he couldn't think of anything else to say.

Johnny washed his face and hands again, and then they left the hospital to return to the station.

Roy backed the Squad into the bay. Reaching for the door latch to get out he paused, looked back at his partner and sighed. Johnny sat motionless staring at his hands folded in his lap. The paleness from this morning had returned and the dark hue beneath his eyes seemed darker. "You know we did everything we could. You did everything by the book Junior. You did everything right."

"It wasn't enough Roy. I didn't do enough." Johnny opened the door to get out. He sighed and then quietly said,"I need to finish my chores."

Captain Stanley had come from the office and stood quietly listening to the exchange between the Paramedics. "Why don't you take a break John? Chet took care of your chores earlier."

Johnny stopped and looked back at his Captain. "Chet?"

Cap chuckled, "Yes Chet, and Roy, Marco handled the dorm. You guys looked beat at lunch. We've had an easy day." He shrugged.

Roy turned toward the kitchen. "Want some coffee Johnny?"

"No, no thanks." He walked toward the open back bay door.

Captain Stanley followed Roy into the kitchen. "How'd it go at Rampart?"

"He didn't make it Cap. He coded in the ambulance. Johnny tried to get him back. He was just too far gone."

Marco had just come from the dorm when he saw Johnny walk past the engine and out the back bay door. He noticed how haggard Johnny looked with his shirttail half out of his pants and his hair stuck to his forehead. He walked like a much older man, a very tired older man.

Johnny climbed up on the hood of his Rover and leaned against the warm glass of the windshield. It felt good against his back. The warm afternoon sun felt good on his face. Trying to block the thoughts from his mind, he concentrated on the hum of traffic on the 405 and the playful chirping of the birds stopping for a rest on the power lines above. In a couple of minutes he was asleep.

A short time later the tones echoed through Station 51 calling them to a car over a cliff. Within minutes they were traveling along the stretch of road looking for the point where the car left the road. Johnny sat forward in his seat looking for any marks on the road or broken guard rails. Roy slowed the Squad on the turns trying not to miss anything. It was a winding road with many S curves.

When they came upon a very sharp curve Johnny saw it. "There!" He pointed to skid marks on the asphalt. Roy pulled the Squad forward to make room for the Engine. They would need to anchor their ropes to the engine to rappel down the face of the cliff to the car below.

Mike pulled the Engine close to the edge leaving enough room to set up the gear. Captain Stanley jumped down and met his Paramedics at the edge to survey the situation. Down below there was a car leaning from a small ledge the front bumper caught on a broken tree stump.

"I don't think we can get to the car unless we stabilize it first." Captain Stanley pointed at the unstable ground beneath the front of the car. "That stump isn't going to hold for long. Get your gear. Before you try to extract anyone…if they survived that fall…you'll have to tie off the rear bumper. We'll anchor it to the Engine."

Roy and Johnny went back to the Squad and strapped on their safety belts. "You okay to do this?" Roy asked.

"What? Oh yeah…I'm okay. That nap did wonders." Johnny pulled the drug box from the compartment.

Roy looked over his partner, his color was better. Whether that was from the nap or the sun he couldn't be sure, but at least Johnny had pinked up some.

They loaded the equipment into the stokes and sat it down in front of the Engine. Marco and Chet had secured three lines to the front of Big Red. Johnny stepped up first. He tugged on his rope checking to make sure it was secure, leaned back from the cliff and disappeared over the edge quickly lowering himself to the downed car.

Roy stepped up next and mimicked his partner's rope check. He descended the cliff face much slower than Johnny. While Roy made his way down the face of the cliff Johnny stepped closer to the unsteady car and looked inside for anyone alive.

Captain Stanley watched his youngest and ever impatient crew man moving toward the vehicle. "John! Wait to tie it off. Do not get too close to that car."

John raised a hand of understanding. He leaned closer without taking another step. He could see one person slumped over the steering wheel; blood trickled from the woman's forehead; she appeared to be breathing. He looked up to the Engine crew, cupped his hands to his mouth and yelled, "She's alive."

The woman moaned and tried to lift her head causing the car to rock. "Shhh don't move. We're going to get you out of there in a few minutes. Just don't move." She was either too out of it to understand or couldn't hear him, because she put her hand on the door and tried to push it open. The car rocked against the stump that held it on the ledge.

Johnny stepped closer to the car. He could feel the earth beneath his boots crumble. He reached out and touched her hand. "Okay. You need to stop moving. I'm right here. I won't let you fall. Just be still. Please be still."

"John wait!" Captain Stanley demanded from above.

They all heard the cracking sound the tree stump made as it broke away from the cliff. The car began sliding. Johnny leaned away from the ledge and put both hands on the window frame. His feet dug into the loose dirt as he tried to slow the car giving Roy time to tie it off. "Roy!"

Roy ran forward and quickly secured the rope around the rear bumper. Mike swiftly backed Big Red up taking up the slack and stopping the car's movement. When the rope was taut, Johnny immediately moved to open the rear door and slide in behind the woman. He gently leaned her back and checked for neck injuries.

Roy went to catch the stokes as Marco and Chet lowered it.

The earth beneath the car continued to loosen and crumble. They would have to work fast to get her out. "I need a collar and half board." Johnny called to Roy.

They very quickly had the collar applied and the woman strapped to the backboard, but when they tried to pull her from the car she wouldn't budge. "Her foot is hung on something." Roy leaned toward the car trying to see what she was stuck on. Before he had time to react Johnny had slid over the seat into the front of the car causing it to lean precariously over what remained of the ground beneath. "Johnny!"

"Get out John! Get out now!" Hank yelled down. "Roy get him out of there, now!"

The car moved closer to the drop off. The dust from the deteriorating earth beneath it drifted up and circled around Roy's boots. He braced himself as best he could on the loose soil.

"She's free Roy get her out of here." Johnny quickly moved back over the seat. The car rocked forward and then back again.

Roy pulled the victim free of the car and away from the crumbling edge.

Johnny set one foot out of the back door and stopped. His safety line was tangled on the headrest. He reached over and pulled it free only to catch his belt on the door latch. The car tilted up raising his foot off the ground. He jerked hard on the belt. The car began to slide over. He looked up at Roy. Panic filled his eyes. Roy started toward the car with fear in his eyes.

Suddenly Johnny was able to pull free of the car and landed hard on the unstable ground. His fingers grasped at the sliding soil, his feet pushing against earth that disappeared with each unsuccessful kick, his body slid over the edge.

Roy's scream echoed for miles, "JOHNNY!"

The crew above had put all hands on the rope holding the car trying to keep it from going over with Johnny still inside. The rear bumper pulled away leaving them stumbling back against Big Red.

"Get John's line!" Hank yelled.

Mike grabbed it first. He jerked back on the rope, but it had too much slack. He watched Johnny kicking at the crumbling ground. He clawed for anything to hold on to, but it seemed that everything around him continued to disintegrate into dust.

Chet and Marco quickly scrambled to their feet and up behind Mike. The three men began pulling in sync to tighten the slack line, but they couldn't get it taut in time to keep Johnny from slipping over the edge. He was falling.

Roy watched in shock as his best friend disappeared from sight.

The woman moaned pulling his attention back to his duty. Roy said a silent prayer that his shift mates would get Johnny's line in time to stop his fall. Then he heard the explosion. He felt the tremble of the ground beneath his knees. "Johnny," he whispered closing his eyes.

Captain Stanley yelled into his HT. "LA this is Engine 51, we need an additional Squad and ambulance. We have a Code I at this location. We have a Paramedic down."

The noises buzzed in Roy's ears as he worked on his patient. He could hear the guys yelling to Johnny. He couldn't see what was going on. He could only hope.

Wind whipped through his thick sable hair. It was a beautiful day in sunny California, and he would rather be at the beach.

Instead he was freefalling down the side of a cliff. The air rushing past his face made his eyes water and his skin sting. He was falling fast, but his mind moved in slow motion. His thoughts shifted to his drive this morning. Rushing to get to the station with the windows down and the radio playing…

My son turned ten just the other day
He said, "Thanks for the ball, Dad, come on let's play
Can you teach me to throw", I said "Not today
I got a lot to do", he said, "That's ok"
And he walked away but his smile never dimmed
And said, "I'm gonna be like him, yeah
You know I'm gonna be like him"

'Dad would have saved the colt.'

His body flipped.

Now he continued his fall facing up the side of the cliff. His eyes searched for his friends at the top. His shirt caught the air and puffed up against his neck. 'The cleaners put too much starch in myshirts this time.'

The rope that should stop his fall snaked upwards filling the gap between the security he had a moment ago and the space below where he would either stop his decent on the end of the line or against the rocks at the bottom.

How he'd managed to get his safety belt free from the sliding car was a mystery, but he'd done it just in time to see the car slide over the edge and fall. But then the ground beneath his feet had given way, and he slid off behind the car.

He watched the vehicle fall to the valley below. He watched as it bounced off an outcropping below and the back bumper snagged on a tree turning it down and sending the front headlights looking up at him. He thought they looked like the eyes of a victim falling to their death. The eyes penetrated him leaving him vulnerable. He'd lost his colt this morning and the heart attack patient this afternoon. Now he faced the accusing glare from the falling car.

He could feel the heat from the explosion. The thick smoke blanketed his body and filled his lungs as it rose up the cliff face.

The safety line trailed off the crumbling ground where he had stood a second ago.

His crew mates scrambled to get a hold on the line. He knew they would try to stop his fall, but braced his mind to face the possibility that he would not survive. He could hear their screams. "Hold on Johnny we've got ya!" Chester B always picking on him as his alter ego The Phantom, but always ready to help when it counted.

My child arrived just the other day
He came to the world in the usual way
But there were planes to catch and bills to pay

'Bills to pay…the feed bill's due, the gas bill; checkbooks on the table…won't matter now.'

Johnny saw the rope's looseness tighten. They had gotten it under control. As it grew straighter he felt himself turning again. He continued flailing his arms, but he didn't know why. That's just what people do when they're falling to their deaths. He's seen it a million times. In real life and in the videos the news media played over and over again on TV.

He felt his pants pressing against the skin of his scraped legs. The air was cold, but he could feel the warmth of the blood that seeped from the cuts and soaked into the material pressing against him.

And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon
Little boy blue and the man on the moon
When you comin' home son?
I don't know when, but we'll get together then dad
You know we'll have a good time then

His thoughts turned to his best friend. 'Roy's with the woman. He can't help me now.' But, Roy always helped him. Joanne always teased them saying that Johnny was their third child. He even teasingly called Roy "Dad".

He felt the tension on the rope as he watched the rocks rising up to meet him. The wind blasting against his face made his eyes water and his vision blur.

Then he felt the jerk.

The safety belt pulled hard against his middle pushing all air from his lungs. It felt like it was going to cut him in half.

The sudden halt to his fall caused his body to jerk back toward the cliff, and he slammed against the rocky face.

Pain spread through his body and darkness filled his brain.

Hank watched as the rope tightened. It seemed to take forever to stop his Paramedic's free fall. Then the line finally pulled straight. He watched as Johnny jerked from the sudden halt. His legs met his arms as he bent around the safety belt. Then Hank watched as Johnny swung uncontrollably toward the rock face.

Mike let out a gasp as he saw Johnny slam against the hard surface and then fall slack like a rag doll. "Jesus."

Chet pulled the line from Mike's hand and tied it off to the engine in order to prevent Johnny from falling any further. Marco was already securing another line to the Engine. "I'm going down." Chet ran around to retrieve his safety belt. I'll see what I can do to help Roy so he can get to Johnny." He paused in front of Captain Stanley. "Okay Cap?"

"Go," Hank raised the HT to his mouth, "Engine 51 to LA, what's the ETA on that additional Squad?"

"Stand by 51." Hank listened as dispatch called the responding Squad for an ETA. "Five minutes 51."

"10-4, Engine 51 out." He walked over to the edge, removed his helmet and ran his hand through his hair. "Marco get the stokes from the engine. We'll need it for John."

Marco turned and disappeared around the Engine. He paused with one hand on the stokes. He lowered his head, closed his eyes and said a quick prayer for Johnny as he pulled the stokes from its compartment. He returned to the front and immediately tied off the stokes and waited for further instructions from his superior.

"He hit real hard Roy. You should've seen it. He looked like one of my niece's Raggedy Ann dolls flopping around on the end of that rope. I know he's hurt. He's hurt real bad. You gotta get down there Roy. You gotta hurry." Chet talked non stop.

Finally Roy looked over and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'll help him Chet." He gripped Chet's shoulder. He wasn't sure who he was trying to comfort himself or Chet. He turned his face up to the men at the top, lifted his HT and radioed for them to pull her up. Chet manned the line keeping the stokes steady and away from the cliff face.

Roy began his trip down to Johnny.

Coming along side his friend the first thing Roy noticed was that he hung limply. "Johnny can you hear me?" He hooked his belt to Johnny's; then he reached carefully for Johnny's wrist and checked for a pulse. He found one. He pulled the HT from his pocket. "HT 51 to Engine 51. He's alive. I need a C-collar. We'll get him up to the ledge and then into the stokes there."

He didn't wait for Captain Stanley's response before moving on to his preliminary exam. "I'm gonna check you out. Try not to move." He talked to Johnny even though he was out cold. Somehow it helped Roy to stay calm.

He felt around Johnny's neck and back. They seemed okay, but he would use the collar to be safe. When he reached Johnny's right shoulder he was rewarded with a moan. 'Probably dislocated' he noted to himself. His hand traveled from the right shoulder down toward the ribs. As he crossed the collar bone he felt movement. 'Collar bone's broken too.'Continuing down Johnny's body he found several broken or bruised ribs. He knew there would be tenderness around the safety belt. There was blood on Johnny's pants. He ran his hands down his legs searching for the source.

Chet lowered the C-collar down to Roy. He tried to get close to the edge so he could watch Roy work on Johnny, but the ground was too unstable. He moved back to stand by the equipment. He bent down and called into Rampart. At least he could make sure they were still on standby.

Mike checked the line on the second stokes and lowered it down to Chet. "Coming down Chet," he yelled.

Marco and Captain Stanley had taken the woman over to the arriving Squad. They contacted Rampart and continued her care. Hank instructed Brice to proceed with her to the hospital. He, Marco and Bellingham rejoined Mike by the Engine.

Roy secured the C-collar around Johnny's neck which when he brushed against the collar bone raised another moan from him. "Shhh it's okay. I've got you. You're not gonna fall again."

"HT 51 to Engine 51, Okay Cap, bring us up real slow. Chet be ready to help me get him over the ledge." He immediately felt the ropes tighten and pull them upward.

Mike and Marco manned Roy's rope and Captain Stanley and Bob pulled Johnny's. They worked in tandem making sure they pulled them together, at the same time.

Finally they reached the spot where the car had originally landed. Captain Stanley and the others pulled them just above the drop off, and when they saw that Chet had a firm hold on Johnny they lowered them back down a bit. "Slack," Chet yelled. "We need slack." He eased Johnny's limp body down. Roy unhooked the two belts, lifted Johnny's legs and together he and Chet lowered Johnny into the stokes.

"Chet get me a BP." Chet grabbed the cuff and reached for Johnny's right arm. "Watch it. His shoulder may be dislocated and the collar bone is definitely broken. Do it on the left. Chet nodded his understanding and moved to the other side. Roy called in the other vitals to Rampart while Chet checked the BP.

Rampart ordered IV's in both arms. Roy deftly went about the task of starting the two IV's. He and Chet secured Johnny in the stokes.

Marco sent a rope down for the equipment and it was sent up first. Roy followed the equipment and Chet stayed below to man the guide rope. "Okay Johnny we're gonna get you up top now." Chet patted his good shoulder. Johnny's eyes fluttered, but didn't open.

Once they had the stokes up top Roy checked Johnny's vitals again.

Marco and Mike pulled Chet up, and they kept busy packing up all the equipment.

"How's he doin' Roy?" Captain Stanley squatted down next to the stokes. He noticed Johnny's eyes barely open and looking around.

"Broken collar bone, possible dislocated shoulder, several ribs broken or deeply bruised, possible internal bleeding from the belt, scrapes on his legs probably from when he tumbled out of the car and over the edge."

"It's not your fault Roy. You had to get the victim." Captain Stanley placed his hand on Roy's shoulder.

"Besides Roy you know he's like a cat with nine lives." Chet said from just behind him. Mike and Marco had walked up too.

"Na Cat, na cra-le." Johnny moaned barely loud enough to be heard. "S-stoke, na cra-le."

"Shh Johnny it's okay." Roy gripped Johnny's hand. He looked up to his Captain. "Chopper 10 is on the way. I told Brice to go ahead with the victim in the ambulance. Bellingham is following him in their Squad. Chet will bring ours in. We'll meet you at Rampart." He'd understood what Roy needed to know.

The music continued running through Johnny's brain. "R-o, urn off muzi."

"What Johnny?"

"No boz blue, no b-odies on moon." Johnny smiled weakly. The MS Roy had given him had eased his pain and had him a little loopy.

Mike started laughing.

"What's so funny Mike?" Marco looked at him with confusion.

"He's teasing us. That's a hit song

And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon
Little boy blue and the man on the moon
When you comin' home dad?
I don't know when, but we'll get together then son
You know we'll have a good time then "

Mike sang the chorus. "He's teasing us."

"He's been humming that all day," Roy laughed.

Marco and Chet laughed too.

It was just like Johnny to try to put everyone at ease even when he was hurting.

Captain Stanley patted Johnny's leg. "Okay ya Twit. Everything's gonna be okay."

The guys each grabbed a corner of the stokes, while Roy grabbed the drug box and bio-phone and together they took Johnny to meet Chopper 10.

Once his injuries had been assessed, his wounds cleaned and dressed, Johnny was settled into a room. Roy slipped quietly into the darkened room. Walking up beside the bed he noticed Johnny was awake. "I thought you would be sleeping." Roy noticed the sadness from this morning had returned to Johnny's eyes. The dark circles and paleness were understandably more pronounced. Johnny turned his head away. Roy pulled the plastic chair over and sat. "You ready to talk about it now?"

Johnny turned back toward him and sighed. "I'm just tired, sore."

"Sure Johnny. Come on, you and I both know you've been upset all day. What happened this morning?"

"I told you the colt died; I buried it." Johnny raised his arm over his eyes to cut off the conversation he needed to have with his friend but was avoiding.

"What did the Vet say was wrong with it?"

He raised his arm and glared at his best friend, "I don't want to talk about it Roy."

"Okay, so where did you bury it?"

"What?" Johnny laid his arm back across his chest and stared at his friend.

"Where did you bury it?"

"You just don't quit do you?"

Roy shrugged his shoulders and leaned back in the chair in an obvious move to stay put until Johnny opened up to him.

"In the clearing behind the pasture, in the trees, it's nice there, shady." He paused and took in a shaky breath. "I borrowed the backhoe. That's why I was late." He grimaced and shifted in the bed trying to find a comfortable position. "It was Summer Pneumonia, Rattles. The Vet said it's common among young horses around 2 to 6 months."

"Isn't Pneumonia curable. What happened?" Roy leaned forward again hoping it would give Johnny the unspoken support he needed to continue.

"He said some animals just can't fight it. I did everything he told me to do. The colt just wasn't strong enough."

"So even though you did everything he told you to do…" Roy waited for the words to sink in.

Johnny's eyes took on a brighter hue and he slowly looked at Roy. "Yeah."

"You know Johnny sometimes even our best doesn't get us the results we are hoping for." Roy put his hand on Johnny's arm and squeezed. He sat watching as understanding flashed across Johnny's face.

Johnny's body relaxed. The stiffness seemed to melt away with the realization that he hadn't failed the colt. He was just too weak. No one could have saved him. Not even the most well trained Veterinarian could have saved the animal. It just was not meant to be.

When he was sure Johnny understood he rose from the chair, "I have to get back to the station. Your replacement should be there by now. You gonna be alright?"

"Yeah, I'm alright now. Thanks Roy."

The End.