Brothers in Arms
Chapter 1
The last few days had been crazy...but things were starting to get back to normal.
Jesse Severide was glad for that as he went through the cafeteria line at St. Pasqual's Elementary School. His twin brother Andy was just ahead of him and had his tray piled with double portions of Swedish meatballs and noodles. And of course two desserts.
The two boys charged their lunches to the family account...and in his mind Jesse could hear Dad complaining about the amount. Having almost thirteen year old twin boys was eating him out of house and home. Especially when one of those boys was Andy.
"Where you wanna sit?" Andy asked.
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Jesse scanned the cafeteria, first checking to see where his little sister Maggie was at and if she was okay.
This was the first day the kindergartener was back in school.
That was the crazy part. Monday had been a normal day. The kids went to school...Dad went to work. Mom went to the store in the morning and was home making cookies in the afternoon. Maggie went to Uncle Joey and Aunt EmmaLynn's after school to play with Ainsley...and that's when the crazy happened.
Some guy came screeching up in a black SUV, jumped out, pushed Ainsley to the ground and snatched Maggie. He threw her in the car, jumped in and went screeching down the block.
Jesse didn't understand...who would do that? This was a nice safe neighborhood...with almost half its residents working for the police or the fire department. But as the facts began to unravel, it was a personal thing. Somebody had been watching their whole family...for months.
The more of the story that came out, the scarier it became. Mom and Dad tried to keep the details away from the kids...especially the little ones. But with the whole family coming and going the way they had...Andy and Jesse couldn't help but over hear things.
The guy who grabbed Maggie called himself Jax, but his real name was John Rawlings Carter. He was from a rich family out in the suburbs...like where Uncle Jimmy used to live before he got divorced and bought the house right next door. He was smart...scary smart...but he just didn't think the rules applied to him. If taking a five year old wasn't proof enough.
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But Jax wasn't alone.
There was somebody else too. There was a developmentally delayed woman/girl named Dorrie, and she thought she was in love with his dad. Jax took advantage of her...but she was pretty scary all by herself. Once she got fixated on something, she couldn't let it go...even if whatever it was proved to be a lie.
Jesse shuddered.
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"Hey Jess..." Andy said. "Don't just stand there. Let's go sit down."
Andy was already heading for their usual table, where their cousin Connor was sitting with a bunch of guys for the seventh and eighth grade basketball teams. And Jesse started to follow his brother when someone else caught his eye.
Sitting all by himself at the end of a table right beside the door was a new kid. His name was Jake Sayer...and he just started at St. Pasqual's on Monday.
He was in Jesse's English and US History classes...and because their names were close, Mr. Morrissey assigned Jake to a seat near where Jesse sat.
Jake looked really down in the dumps. It must suck to have to go to a new school in the seventh grade...especially in a Catholic school...where everyone had been together since kindergarten. And to just drop in six weeks into the school year...had to be really tough.
"I'm gonna sit over there." Jesse said, and he changed directions to see if the new kid wanted company.
Andy didn't seem to hear...he was prob'ly already thinking about playing basketball as soon as he got done shoveling his food in.
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"Hey...mind if I sit with you?" Jesse asked as he approached the table.
Jake looked up from his sandwich...to see the kid who sat kiddie-corner to him in English class standing there.
He shrugged, and Jesse took that as an invitation.
"My name's Jesse Severide." he said.
The new kid nodded.
"Jake Sayer."
There was an awkward silence as the two kind of checked each other out.
"So where'd you move here from?" Jesse asked.
"Saint Louis."
"Do you like it here?"
Jake shrugged.
"It's okay I guess."
"What was your old school like?"
"Nothing like this. I went to public school. I never even been to church before."
"What about stuff like Communion and Reconciliation?"
The new kid shook his head.
"Then how'd you end up here?"
There were public schools in the neighborhood. Mom and Dad just didn't think they were as good as St. Pasqual's. Besides, Declan and Aiden were already going here...so his parents figured it was best to keep all the cousins together.
"My cousins go here...an' my aunt just put me here too."
"You live with your aunt?"
New Kid nodded.
"Yeah...my dad...he's goin' through a rough time...an'"
"Hey, I get it." Jesse said.
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They ate in silence.
"You wanna...maybe hang out after school?" Jesse asked.
"Like...today?"
"Sure." Jesse replied. "C'mon over to my house. We got a pool table in the basement...pinball machine...really cool TV set up. You can watch four different shows at the same time."
"No way."
"Yeah...my dad says it's a guy's dream on game day. All the guys come over an' just hang out."
Then he grinned.
"An' my mom's a really awesome cook."
"Okay." Jake said. "Sure."
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Kelly shifted uncomfortably on the couch.
It had only been a couple days since he and Jax had gone crashing to the floor in the crumbling old house that animal was calling home. Now in addition to his more obvious injuries, everything was stiff and sore. His back, both shoulders, both legs...he just felt like one giant bruise.
Alyssa came from the kitchen with a couple of ice packs. She could see how bad her husband felt...and he tried to downplay things even more than usual...so as not to upset the kids, Maggie in particular. He was so worried about how their daughter was doing after the whole ordeal. He just wanted to keep her close to him.
It had been a huge deal for the little girl to go back to school today. But Alyssa insisted that getting back to their normal routine was the only way for their family to heal.
After all, how many times had he said those very words to her?
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Kelly looked up as his wife crossed through the dining room and approached the huge, leather sectional sofa that took up the majority of the living room. He gave her a half-hearted smile that turned into a grimace as she gently arranged one of the ice packs on his right ankle.
"Careful..." he hissed as he caught his breath.
Lyssa came to sit beside him and as she drew him into her arms she eased the other cold pack against his shoulder.
Kelly let out a sigh and leaned into her. He was glad for the quiet time...the alone time...even if it was only for a few minutes.
"How're you doin', Honey?" Lyssa whispered.
"Better now." he whispered back.
Having his wife beside him always helped him to relax, to calm his fears. But usually he was dealing with questions like 'when would his body heal?' and 'when could he get back to work?'. This time, he wasn't really hurt all that bad...at least not as badly as he'd been a couple times before. But this time there was something different. Maybe it was he was getting older, and a lot of the old things were creeping back up on him.
Too many heavy thoughts...
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"Hey...lemme show you what I found." he said.
He reached out with his good arm, indicating to Alyssa to grab the tablet from the coffee table.
She picked it up and brought it to him...and Kelly reached out to take it from her. It took some maneuvering, and he growled in pain as he moved his right arm to tap the screen.
"Kelly..." Alyssa said as she reached to take it back. "I can hold it."
"Just...let me." he told her. "I can't do this thing left handed anyway."
He tapped the screen again, pulling up the pages he'd bookmarked in his last search.
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"I've got it all planned out..." Kelly said, turning the screen so she could see. "We can stay at this place here...I think this suite would work for us...we spend two days at Disneyland...maybe one day at this California Adventure park. Then we'll rent a car anyway...so we can go over here to this park.
He pulled up the website for Knotts Berry Farm.
"This place looks really cool...I think we'll need two days there to hit everything. And we can go to Universal Studios...it's not the same as the one we went to in Florida...and we'll prob'ly wanna see the Chinese theatre and the stars on the sidewalk thing..."
"Kelly..."
"Wait, I'm not done." he said. "Then we can drive down to San Diego...and do like two days at Sea World...and they've got a water park too. We can spend a day there...and then we can go to the zoo. I figure one day there's enough. And then maybe we just hang out at the beach for a day or so...we can charter a boat, do a little fishing..."
"Kelly...what are you talking about? Do you have any idea what a trip like this'll cost?"
"I know it's a prob'ly a lot..."
"Yeah...like ten...maybe twelve grand...when you're looking at air fare, car, hotel...that first place was over $600 a day! And then all the tickets...food...gas...what are you thinking?"
"Well, Maggie wants to go to Disneyland...she keeps askin' if we're gonna go..."
"Dorrie was the one who promised her that...not you. You don't have to make good on the promise of a lunatic."
"I know...but she's been saying she wants to go for a while...and I figure we can go right when school lets out."
"Just because Maggie says she wants something doesn't mean it has to happen." Alyssa said. "I mean...I want to go to Paris...and Venice...and Tuscany...that doesn't mean I get to."
"You never know what your husband's got up his sleeve..." Kelly told her in a teasing voice.
He was trying to lighten the mood. He knew what he was suggesting was extravagant...but some good family time with tons of memorable activities...after everything that had happened not just this past week, but the past few months...hell, the past year...it sounded like just what the doctor ordered.
"No...but I know what he's got in the bank." Alyssa said.
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Jesse and his new friend Jake came out the front door of the school, laughing about some joke...
"Jess!"
At the sound of his name, Jesse looked up.
"Hey Uncle Mouch..." he said.
Normally Kelly walked over to St. Pasqual's to pick up Maggie...or on the days he was on shift she just walked home with her brothers and the rest of the kids. But today...
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"Your dad asked me to walk your sister home." Mouch said. "You wanna wait?"
Jesse shook his head.
"No...we're just gonna head out." he said.
Then he remembered his manners.
"Oh...I'm sorry. Uncle Mouch...this is Jake Sayer. He just moved here from St. Louis."
"Nice to meet you, Jake." Mouch replied.
The new kid nodded.
"We're just gonna go..." Jesse said.
"Okay...you got your phone handy?" the firefighter asked.
"Yes, sir." Jesse answered, taking it out of the pocket of his hoodie.
"Keep it handy." Mouch told him. "I'll see you later."
"Okay...bye."
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The two boys started walking while Mouch waited for Maggie and Ainsley.
"That's your uncle?" Jake asked as they turned right on Melvina.
"He's not really my uncle..." Jesse said. "He and my dad worked together for a long time. Like...twenty years..."
The two boys crossed the street.
"Usually my dad comes to get my sister...or Andy and I just walk her home...but it's been a weird week."
Then suddenly, Jake put the pieces together.
On Monday...his first day at St. Pasqual's...a little girl got kidnapped in the neighborhood. She was playing outside...and somebody just grabbed her.
"Was that your sister? On Monday?"
Jesse nodded.
"Yeah...and my dad probably woulda probably sat outside the school all day...but he got hurt at work...and my mom's gotta stay with him. So that's why he sent Uncle Mouch."
"That's a weird name..."
"Oh, his real name's Randy." Jesse explained. "Mouch is just what the guys called him at work. Half man...half couch."
Jesse chuckled.
A lot of his dad's co-workers had nick names. There was Bulldog...Sparky...Tiny...
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The boys crossed Melvina to Byron, and walked the three short blocks to the Severide's.
They went around the back.
"This is where my sisters play..." Jesse said as they skirted around the doll houses, the play kitchen...and the pink firehouse.
It looked like a toy store threw up on the back porch.
"Jeez..." Jake breathed.
"I know..." Jesse replied. "But we've got a huge family. Birthdays and Christmas are kinda wild around here."
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They went through the kitchen...into the dining room and headed for the living room.
Mom and Dad were on the couch.
"Hey...Mom...Dad..."
Kelly and Alyssa looked up.
"Hey Jess." Kelly said.
Jesse came into the room, with a new boy behind him.
"How're you feelin' Dad?" he asked.
"Better..." Kelly answered. "I'll be okay before you know it."
Alyssa gently rubbed her hand up and down his left arm.
"What'd the doctor say?" Jesse wanted to know.
Lyssa had taken Kelly to the doctor that morning...
"Nothin' I didn't already know." Kelly replied. "Shoulder's broken...ankle's sprained...and from my knee up to my hip's one giant bruise."
"You know how long you're gonna be out?"
"We'll see."
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He looked over to the new kid.
"Why don't you introduce us to your friend?" he suggested.
"Oh...sorry..."Jesse apologized. "Mom...Dad...this is Jake Sayer. He just moved here from St. Louis. Jake...this is my mom and dad."
"Nice to meet you." Jake said.
"Same here." Kelly told him. "Welcome to the Windy City."
"Can we hang out downstairs?" Jesse asked.
They still needed permission to go into the "man cave". That was Kelly's sacred domain, where the guys from 51 hung out to watch a ball game, play poker...shoot a game of pool...have a drink. They still frequented Mollie's...but for a quieter night out, the Severide's was the place to be. That and Lyssa's cooking beat the hell out of pretzels and peanuts.
"Sure..." Kelly said.
"Thanks." Jesse said. "C'mon..."
He led his friend downstairs to the basement.
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Lyssa had "given" Kelly the man cave when they first bought the house. She conspired with Casey...and he set her up with another contractor whose work he trusted implicitly. And when Black Watch was on shift, the work got done.
The full basement had been partitioned off into three rooms...one was for storage, another housed the tread-climber machine Lyssa used to work out...and Kelly used for a quick cardio workout when he couldn't get to the gym. But the majority of the space was a rec room. The walls were painted a deep red with dark wooden base boards. There were deep, brown leather sofas and two massive recliner chairs.
The far wall had not one, not two...but four 38" flat screens mounted, allowing the guys to watch four games at once. There was a vintage pinball machine...a massive pool table...and a hexagonal poker table to match. But the focal point of the room was the bar. Made of English walnut...with a sink and two refrigeration units, it was stocked with every kind of spirit imaginable.
And all the decor was firefighter-related. The shelves behind the bar held models of vintage fire trucks and collectable beer steins with firefighting themes. The walls held different signs...some were a little raunchy, with 1940's style pin up girls and little one-liners like "Be safe...sleep with a firefighter". Others said things like "Real heroes don't wear capes". There were framed posters depicting the evolution of the firefighters gear...and ones with inspirational and motivational quotes about brotherhood and courage.
Kelly couldn't believe it when she carefully led him down the darkened steps to the to the big reveal. He had had no idea all this was going on while he was at work.
All his life he'd lived in two bedroom, one bathroom apartments. Most of the time the dedicated space he could call his own was no more than a glorified closet. Now...his wife...it had still felt weird saying that...had given him this...this...room that was beyond anything he'd ever dreamed of having.
He'd taken Lyssa in his arms...and that was no easy feat back then with the twins in between fighting and kicking for every inch of space inside her tummy. But he did it anyway.
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Jesse turned on the lights and Jake stopped in his tracks.
All this stuff...he couldn't help but stop and stare.
At first Jesse took his new friend's expression to be one of awe. That was most people's reaction to the four TV's, the massive bar...the pool table...the pinball machine. But then a funny expression crossed the other boy's face.
"What's wrong?" Jesse asked.
"I gotta go..." Jake said abruptly. "I'm sorry...I..."
Then he turned and ran up the stairs.
He ran through the kitchen, stopping long enough to grab his backpack by the door, and high-tailed it through the four seasons room and out the back door.
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"Hey!" Kelly called from the living room, wondering what was going on.
Jesse came tearing up the stairs a moment later...just in time to hear the back door slam.
Not thinking twice, he followed the new kid.