And Then There Were Three

Chapter 1

* DISCLAIMER: I have no rights to or claim to the characters of the television show Emergency! I just like to take them out and play with them from time to time. All other characters appearing in my story are figments of my own imagination. I am not an emergency responder and I do not work in the medical field or fire service and as such I don't guarantee the scenes will be realistically or accurately portrayed in terms of technicalities. While in most instances I try to be true to the spirit of the original television show, I reserve the right to take liberties as to character development, "known history" of the characters etc., because I write my stories for my own entertainment. I hope you, as readers will enjoy reading it too.

Johnny opened his eyes reluctantly as he heard the familiar sound of the little girl crying. He groaned at the thought of having to climb out of the warm covers and go to her room to get her. Sharon woke to the sound of his groan and, hearing her daughter's cries, she sat up.

"I'll get her. Go back to sleep," she said to her husband.

"No, I have to get up anyway. Nature calls."

Until three months ago, Becca had lived full time with her great aunt while her mother went to school and worked. The plan was for her mother to take her as soon as she was financially able to care for her. Although Becca saw her mother regularly, the roles of mother and aunt had been reversed for all practical purposes. Getting used to the switch in roles of these two important people in her life had been somewhat challenging for Becca and for everyone else involved

Johnny got up and quickly answered nature's call. He washed his hands and hurried to the crying toddler's room. Reaching into her crib, which she was getting much too big for, he picked her up.

"Awright, awright. I'm here. You're okay now," he comforted as he held her to his shoulder and gently rubbed her back while he walked with her back to his room. She had not quieted much by the time he laid her in the bed next to her mother. Sharon put her arm around her little girl and pulled her close as Johnny climbed back in bed and pulled the covers up around them. He rolled to his side and put his arm around his wife and the crying child. The comforting from her mother and the warmth of the three of them cuddling soon put Becca back to sleep, snoring softly.

Sharon looked over at Johnny. He looked so tired. His last shift had been one of constant runs. He had missed both his lunch and dinner due to calls and the best he and his partner had done was grab a cookie here and a donut there along with their coffee during visits to Rampart to drop off patients. His energy had been drained to a major low and then to make matters worse, they spent the entire night fighting a 4-alarm warehouse fire. They didn't return to the barn until three hours into the next shift. When he had arrived home after work he had showered and gone straight to bed. Exhaustion and dehydration had taken their toll and he hadn't fully recovered yet. Sharon looked at the clock. It was three a.m. It had been nearly fifteen hours since Johnny had gone to bed. She reached over to Johnny and touched his arm. He opened one eye.

"You know, all the sleep in the world isn't going to make you feel better if you don't drink enough fluids. You need to re-hydrate."

"Okay doc," he said.

Sharon gave his arm a little squeeze as she smiled at him. Then she let go of his arm and slowly pulled her body away from her sleeping little girl. When she was able to get out of bed she stood up then bent over to pick up the sleeping child. Carefully and gently she carried her back to her own bed and tucked her in. Then she went to the kitchen and found the pouch of electrolyte drink mix on the counter and made a glassful for Johnny. Before she brought it to him, she make him a cheese sandwich. He hadn't eaten in hours either and she knew he must be starving. She took a straw out of the drawer in the kitchen and brought him the drink and the sandwich. As she set it on his nightstand she touched his shoulder.

"Johnny, sit up."

Johnny opened one eye again. "I d'wanna," he mumbled.

"Sit up. You need to drink and I'm not going to let you sleep until you drink this down."

Johnny reluctantly sat up, rubbing his forehead with the palms of his hands. His head was pounding and his body hurt. He knew she was right. They were classic symptoms of dehydration. He took the glass she offered, put the straw to his lips and took a sip of the cool liquid. It felt good. The sensation of it going down his throat made him aware that he was intensely thirsty and he stopped to remove the straw then gulped it greedily down. Looking at his wife with appreciation he asked her for more as his stomach let out a loud growl, protesting the long period without sustenance. Though she was tired herself, Sharon gladly headed back to the kitchen to make more for him and brought it back just as Johnny swallowed the last bite of his sandwich. Johnny drank half of the second glass before setting it down while Sharon climbed back in bed.

"Thank you." He said, reaching over to pull her close. Sharon snuggled into his arms.

"You're welcome. I want you to feel better."

"How 'bout if I feel you better?" he suggested as he let his hands start to wander. Sharon giggled.

"Later! You need to get your strength up first."

Johnny didn't give up so easily. He kept fondling and caressing his wife even as she pushed his hands away. He didn't care how he felt. He still wanted her. And if he waited, Becca would be awake and it would be too late. Finally he just used his strong arms to pull her on top of him and when she felt how serious he was, she quit resisting.

"Johnny, you aren't going to take no for an answer, are you?" she asked.

"Hm mm." He said as he began to kiss her passionately. Sharon returned his passion and for the next forty-five minutes the rest of the world didn't exist.

At 6:08 a.m. Johnny awoke with Sharon snuggled in his arms. The fluids she had forced him to drink had definitely made a difference in the way he felt, but now he again had an urgent need to get up. As carefully and gently as he could he extricated himself from the bed leaving his wife with her arms curled around his pillow. He hurried off to take care of urgent matters and then headed to the kitchen. Sunlight was pouring in the window making the room almost seem to glow and Johnny shielded his eyes with his hand until they adjusted to the brightness. He put some fresh coffee on and sauntered back into the bedroom. He was considering waking Sharon for round two when he heard a small voice calling.

"Daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy…" Becca was saying it over and over. There was no urgency to her voice; she was just saying it. For the last three months Johnny and Sharon had tried to get her to say it but Becca would only point when she wanted him. Johnny's heart was filled with warmth at the sound of the word coming from his princess. She was talking about him. He made an about face and walked to her room. As he stepped into the room Becca was standing at the side of her crib watching him and she reached her arms out to be picked up.

"Good mornin' Princess," Johnny said. Becca may not have been born of his blood but she was definitely his little girl. She was in his heart even as he waited on the adoption process to make her legally so. Becca smiled as Johnny reached into her crib, picked her up and hugged her. She wrapped her little arms tightly around his neck. Johnny carried her into the bathroom and helped her get situated on the seat. At 21 months, she was almost completely potty trained. She hadn't had an accident for two weeks now in the daytime and he was very proud of her. At nighttime she woke up dry about half the time. When Becca had finished at the potty Johnny helped her wash her hands as he praised her. Then they headed to the kitchen.

"Are you hungry sweetheart?" he asked her.

"Yessss," she answered dragging out the "s."

"Would you like some applesauce while Daddy makes pancakes?" he asked her.

"Yessss."

Johnny spooned the applesauce into a small dish and set in front of her at her high chair. He gave her a small spoon and let her feed herself as he started mixing the pancake mix.

"Miwk pease," Becca requested. She still wasn't always good at 'L's" and "R's."

Johnny took a sippy cup out of the cupboard, filled it half way with milk and handed it to Becca.

"Thank you," she said as clearly as could be.

Johnny had not known the girl more than a few months but he was impressed with the manners she had been taught at such a young age. She had better manners than most of the adults he knew. Tania did a great job with her, he thought.

"Mama!" Becca said excitedly. Johnny looked up to see Sharon standing in the kitchen doorway.

"Becca, good morning," she said with a smile as she waved at Becca. She went to Johnny and hugged him. Johnny responded with a kiss for her.

"Daddy makes pamcake."

Sharon looked at Becca wide eyed. "What did you say, Sweetie?"

"Daddy makes pamcake." Becca repeated herself. Sharon squealed with delight.

"She did it! She called you Daddy!"

"I know!" said Johnny grinning widely. "When she woke up she was saying it over and over in her crib."

Sharon bent down to eye level with Becca. Smiling she asked her, "Is that your daddy? Is he making breakfast for you?"

"Yessss. Daddy makes pamcakes."

"He sure does, Baby. Just for you, because he loves you!" Sharon hugged her being careful to avoid getting applesauce on herself in the process. When she stood up Johnny handed her a cup of coffee, which she gladly accepted.

Sharon sat down at the table and turned to face Johnny as he stood over the "pamcakes" at the stove.

"I think it is time to stop taking her back and forth. It's time for us to be our own family." Johnny's words expressed the same thoughts that were on Sharon's mind.

"I agree. But I don't quite know how to explain it to Aunt Tania."

"We'll just tell her. We can make arrangements for them to see Becca the way you used to go see her when she lived with them. They're still important in Becca's life. She loves them and they love her. But I think this bouncing around is hard on her. I think that's why she wakes up crying every night," said Johnny.

"Maybe. But who will watch her when we both have to work?"

"I've been giving that some thought," Johnny replied. "What do you think of this?"

Sharon leaned forward, intent on what Johnny had to say.

"Hold on," he said and took the pancakes off the stove. He had enough finished for breakfast. He took one that had cooled a bit and put a small amount of butter and some syrup on it, cut it up and then gave it to Becca. "There you go, Princess. Do you want some more milk?"

"Yessss." Becca answered.

"Yes please," corrected Sharon as Johnny took the sippy cup and refilled it.

"Yesss pease."

"That's my girl. Here you go." Johnny set the cup back on the table in front of the high chair. If Becca hadn't had a mouthful of pancake, she probably would have said thank you.

Johnny sat down at the table next to Sharon. "What do you think of this?" he asked again. "Roy and I were talking the other day and he said Joanne just seems worn out. She's trying to take care of two kids, a husband, keep up the house and she's pregnant. Roy said he was thinking of hiring someone to help her out, at least part time, but he was worried about the cost."

"Go on," said Sharon.

"Well, I'm kinda worried about hiring someone for Becca, or taking her to a daycare where she doesn't know anyone."

"Keep going, I'm not sure I'm following you yet," Sharon said.

"Well, Becca knows Joanne. And we can afford to hire someone."

"Johnny, if Joanne's tired now, adding a toddler to the mix isn't going to make things any better for her," Sharon said.

"No, but a toddler AND a caregiver to help out with ALL the kids might help," replied Johnny.

"Honey, you're a genius! Roy and Jo would never take our help financially, but this way they're doing us a favor by taking Becca and we'd just return the favor by hiring the help! Do you think they'll go for it?"

"I think if Roy agrees, Jo will."

"Well, I think it's a great plan," Sharon said.

Sam was scrubbing the kitchen floor when she heard a loud "THUD" followed by the sound of Miss Millie, crying out in pain. She dropped the mop and ran for the living room where she had last seen the elderly woman knitting away on a sweater. When she ran through the doorway she found Miss Millie sprawled out on the floor, crying.

"Miss Millie!" Sam exclaimed, sizing up the scene as she spoke. "Where does it hurt?" Looking around the room she saw large ball of yarn on the floor by Miss Millie's feet and yarn was wrapped around her right ankle. Miss Millie was in too much pain to be able to speak coherently. Sam couldn't understand her response.

"Don't try to move. I'm going to take good care of you," Sam said. She took the yarn from around Miss Millie's ankle and threw it into the chair where the other end of the yarn was attached to the sweater that Miss Millie had been working on. Gently Sam started feeling and looking for injuries starting with the elderly woman's head and working her way down to her toes. "Did you hit your head?" she asked as she felt for bumps. She got a nod in response at about the same time that she found a lump that had already begun to form above the woman's right ear. There was no sign of bleeding at that point of injury.

Sam continued her triage. The woman was lying on her right side, making it difficult for Sam to fully check her out, but the obvious extreme pain she was in made Sam reluctant to roll her to her back without help. She worked her way down to the neck and shoulders, then both arms. She checked for injuries along her chest, ribs, and abdomen finding nothing remarkable, but when she got to Miss Millie's hips the woman nearly screamed in pain as Sam palpated the right one.

"I'm sorry. I know it hurts. I'm going to get you some help." Sam stepped away from her dear friend and picked up the phone off of the lamp table. She carried it the three feet back to Miss Millie, pulling on the cord and stretching it as far as it would go. She knelt back down beside her and dialed the number to the fire department dispatch center. When a voice on the other end answered Sam explained the situation, gave the address and requested a squad and an ambulance. Then she resumed her triage of Miss Millie but found nothing else remarkable. Respirations were a bit shallow and rapid and her pulse was 90. Sam wished she had a bp cuff and stethoscope but she did not so she could do nothing more for her until help arrived. She spoke soothingly to the woman and held her hand as she waited.

*Thanks for reading this chapter. I hope you like my sequel to "When Times are Tough" and "Everything Changes". As always I would love and appreciate your constructive feedback. Merry Christmas everyone! -Hotflash