Keeper of the Stars
by Criminally Charmed
Dislaimer - I do not own the Thunderbirds and make no money from this effort. If I did, I would have been a lot of money this couple of money lately.
Chapter One – Man on a Mission
John Tracy was a man on a mission. And Dr. Emily Haas was the mission target.
Three days earlier, John's sister-in-law Kate had gone into labor while, due to a bizarre series of coincidences, alone on Tracy Island. With time running out, Kate had finally been able to reach Alan, the youngest Tracy son. Alan had not gone on the mission with the other Thunderbirds. While he probably would have gone, as it was Spring Break and he was home from school, currently Alan's left arm was broken. This was OK if he was flying a small jet to Auckland by himself for a doctor's appointment but was no good flying a Thunderbird.
By the time Kate had reached Alan, her labor had progressed far enough that just going to get her wouldn't be enough. Alan would need to find a doctor to deliver Kate and Scott's baby. Rushing to the hospital where he had been told Kate's obstetrician would be, Alan had been told that Dr. Henrichs was unavailable due to an emergency cesarean. But Dr. Emily Haas had been in the emergency room when Alan had run in. As soon Emily had realized who was in labor, she leaped to help.
Most people would be cynical and say it was because this was Jeff Tracy – the man who had been to the moon, the man who was richer that Bill Gates had ever been – was involved, that this was a Tracy grandchild, this was the reason Emily Haas had dropped everything to help. But in truth, Dr. Haas had known a cousin of Kate's back in Los Angeles. From what little either Kate or Emily had said, she had worked with Edward Eppes, a cardiac surgeon at Cedar Sinai. Not directly as Emily was an Emergency Medicine Specialist. John knew that people with that specialty were highly flexible, highly skilled and highly in demand. And his mission, as assigned by his father, was to get Emily to work for International Rescue.
John had flown Emily back to Auckland after the delivery. But in the time after the birth and for the flight back, the astronomer had talked to the young woman and been fascinated. Brilliant beyond measure, Dr. Haas had been a child prodigy. A licensed physician before she was 21, within a couple of years, she had been on a fast track to success in LA. But a year ago, she had suddenly quit her job at Cedar Sinai and taken the first job she could find out of the country.
Jeff had been a little puzzled by it all. Emily Haas could have gone to any hospital in the States if it was just she was breaking up with a boyfriend – Kate's cousin. But she had been adamant. She wanted to leave the country. The security check – slightly belated, as Emily already knew all about the Tracys and International Rescue due to when and how she arrived on the island – showed no red flags. Emily was the daughter of a prestigious attorney in New York, who was descended from one of the oldest families in Manhattan. Her mother ran numerous charities, many of which she had taken over from her mother and step father. Emily's late maternal grandfather, a man as wealthy as his ex-wife's second husband, had been content to be a small town doctor in New Hampshire. By the time he had passed three years ago, having survived his second wife, first wife and her second husband, his private fortune was considerable. Emily had inherited half of the money, nearly twenty million dollars. As far as Jeff had been able to tell, most of it sat in a bank, rarely touched. The other half had gone to found a charity that helped get medical care to remote areas of the "Granite State" – have to love state nicknames – in her Grandfather's memory. Reading about the work Emily had done had given Kate an idea.
Emily had refused any sort of re-imbursement from the Tracys for her time and troubles. But Kate had taken an active interest in the rebuilding of the New Zealand village of Akaroa, which had been devastated by a Tsunami. The Thunderbirds, with Kate, had aided in rescuing the village before the wave had struck, but one old man had refused to leave. His subsequent death had haunted Kate. One thing Kate was trying to do was establish a medical clinic that would not only serve the small village, but surrounding communities and even a small island chain. She had the building, some supplies, had brought two young people from the village back as a nurse practitioner and a medical assistant (employment and a chance to help their village – good combo) and the support of the village. But she had run into a stumbling block. The government of New Zealand was insisting on a licensed physician being on board.
Here was where Emily could help, and the Tracys could reward her. Emily had spoken of her desire to become a "small town doctor". The Tracys knew she often was the first to volunteer to go out into remote sites to help. What they would propose would fulfill her desires and would help more people in a way the Thunderbirds could never begin to.
Pulling up to Mercy General Hospital, John took a deep breath and steeled himself. He had his mission, he had his objective. Now John had to find Dr. Emily Haas and see if this solo mission could be completed successfully.
a/n - Slow start? Yep, but this is easy going John and this will be a story with a lot of interaction...