A Rock and a Hard Place

by DreamWvr73

The City and the LAFD are negotiation for a new contract and there is nothing but problems for Min, Johnny and 51. This is an Emergency/MacGyver Crossover story.

Min was sitting on her office; she was chewing on her fingernails as she watched the small television she kept in the office. She was giving her son a bottle watching the coverage of the talks between the City of Los Angeles and the Fire Department. For the past month and a half the city and the Fire Department had been trying to negotiate a new contract. The firemen and the paramedics were due for raises but the City was being very tight with their purse. The scene in the City Council office was not a pretty one, the representatives of the Firefighters/Paramedics unions were all arguing with the members of the city council, the scene was very ugly and it was on TV for everyone to see.

Bo came into his sister's office; he could hear the arguing on her television all the way into his office.

"Sis what in the world are you watching?" He was wearing his white SKIDZ t-shirt and jeans shorts, he saw his sister feeding her son.

Min sighed and shook her head. "The negotiations between the city and the LAFD."

Bo sat down on the edge of her desk and looked at the screen. "Doesn't look like they are going too well."

She watched as her son finished his bottle, she put him on her shoulder and started patting his back. "You can say that again, things aren't going well at all."

Evan burped loudly and Min laughed, she touched her forehead to his and kissed his nose. "Nice one Ev, you sound like your father."

Bo shook his head. "He sounds like me when I've had too many beers." He stuck his hands out. "Can I hold him?"

"Sure." Min handed the little baby to her brother, the little boy was dressed a white bodysuit with puppy dogs on it.

"You're getting big Evan, how old is he now Sis?"

Min reached out and stroked his dark hair. "3 months."

"3 months? Already? You need to stop growing!" Bo lifted the little boy high above his head and the baby smiled and laughed.

"Now don't you drop my child! I can guarantee that neither his father nor I will be happy if you do."

Bo scoffed. "Relax Sis I'm not going to drop him."

Min was watching the coverage, the arguing was getting worse. "I wish they would settle this mess and soon."

Min wasn't the only one watching, Station 51 was too. It had been a slow day so they had all taken their lunch on paper plates into the living room, they had the television on.

Johnny shook his head and wiped his mouth with a napkin, he was sitting beside his partner. "Man I'm glad I'm not there, talk about a tense room."

Roy nodded. "Yeah tempers are really flying."

Chet was sitting on the floor near the TV, he shushed them and got on his knees and turned it up. "They got our raises in the palms of their hands."

"What raises Chet? The only thing they got in their hands is anger and frustration." Johnny had another bite of his sandwich.

Captain Stanley had his hands folded in his lap. "Yeah that's the problem everyone is so busy being angry they aren't seeing each other's point of view."

"Think it's going to get resolved Cap?"

Hank turned towards one of his paramedics. "I don't know Johnny, but something has got to give."

Roy shook his head. "Why do I get the feeling it's going to be us?" He looked towards his partner who gave him a puzzled look.

"What do you mean?"

"If they don't settle this thing we are the ones going to be left out in the cold."

Johnny wiped his mouth. "Think the Unions will call for a strike?"

"I don't know Johnny. Before all this started I would have said no way but now, it looks like it could happen."

Chet heard what Roy said and he scoffed. "No way Roy, there is no way the city will let the Unions leave Los Angeles unprotected without firemen or paramedics."

"That's what I thought too Chet but listen to them, cooler heads aren't prevailing here. They just might do something like that to try and get the city to see things their way."

Chet turned his attention back to the TV. "I'd have to see it to believe it."

The alarm went off and Captain Stanley turned off the television. "Well we can't worry about that now Gentlemen. We have a job to do, let's go."

The 6 men all got up and ran into the garage.

Evan was asleep in his playpen; he was in his mother's office that now also served as a nursery. Bo had done a great job; he had put down carpeting in his sister's office and had put in a big toy chest, and a high chair that would come in handy whenever Evan was old enough to start eating solid foods. He had taken down all of his sister's posters on the walls and had an artist come in and paint nursery rhyme characters on all 4 walls. Min's desk and her couch were still there but everything else had been changed to accommodate her son. Min and Bo were in his office eating lunch, the baby monitor was turned on. Min was listening to her son sleep while she sat on the other side of her brother's desk and nibbled on her pizza slice.

Bo had a sip of his soda; he could see how tense his sister was. "You're worried about those negotiations aren't you?"

Min lifted her head and looked at her brother. "Yeah I am, as much as I think Johnny and the rest of the firemen deserve a raise, it sure is causing a mess." She shook out her head and picked up her slice and took a bite. "I think we should change the subject. So how are things with the anesthesiologist?"

Bo gave his sister a wide grin and he sighed. "Jenna is great Min, she really is."

"How long has she been a doctor?"

"She's still doing residency, she's a few years older then me, she's 30."

Min shrugged. "So what, I'm 27 and Johnny is almost 30."

"Oh I'm not saying that's a problem, you know me. I love older women; they can teach you a lot."

"Charming Bo, very charming."

Bo grinned. "Yeah I know." He ate more of his pizza. "Hey did you know she was the anesthesiologist on duty the night your friend had his appendix out?"

Min sipped her soda. "No, I didn't know she was there for MacGyver's surgery."

"She was, how is he doing?"

"Fine, we just had dinner with him and Gillian at their house earlier this week."

Min sighed, she felt better, her brother always had a way to cheer her up. "You've been seeing her since Evan was born right?"

Bo nodded. "Yeah, things are getting pretty hot and heavy."

"Have you introduced her to Luke?"

"You should have seen his face; he was greener than a frog with envy."

Min shook her head. "You two, this isn't Hazzard you know. There are plenty of women to go around, the two of you don't have to compete anymore."

"We aren't competing. Luke doesn't even have a girlfriend; he puts all of his time in that shop of his."

"And you put a lot of your time in the club, have you shown it to her?"

Bo scoffed. "Of course I have, I took her here on the first date we had."

"What did she think of it?"

"She loves it."

Min reached out and touched her brother on the shoulder. "Bo, I want you to level with me."

The blond man nodded. "Okay, I'll tell you the truth."

She gave his shoulder a squeeze. "Do you love Jenna?"

Bo dropped his head for a second and ran his fingers through his blond hair. "I don't know Sis. I mean I really don't."

Min touched her brother on the chin and lifted it. "You said you were going to be honest with me."

"I am, I honestly don't know. I've never really loved anyone Min, how do I know what it feels like?"

Min gave her brother a big smile. "Well, that is a tough question, but let me say this. Whenever Johnny comes home and I see him, my heart starts pounding so hard it feels like it's going to burst, if Jenna does the same thing to you then I think you have a problem."

It was half past 6 and Min was stretched out on the bed she shared with her husband. Evan was taking his late afternoon nap, he had played hard at the club and the little boy had worn himself out. Min too was tired; she was dozing waiting for Johnny to come home. She heard the sound of the front door closing and she sat up immediately. The thumping of her husband's work boots on the hard wood floor got louder as he made his way down the hall. The bedroom door opened and she smiled when she saw her husband.

"Hi."

The dark haired man left the door open and walked over to the bed; he sat down on the edge and sighed. "Hi."

Min moved close to the edge and touched her husband's dark hair. "Tough day Honey?"

He was leaning forward, his elbows resting on his knees. "No more than usual." He turned towards her and hugged her. Min put her arms around her husband and held him. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah I'm sure, and those negotiations have everyone pretty tense."

"Including you?"

"Yeah including me." He sighed and buried his head against her shoulder. "Everyone seems to think we are going to strike."

Min stroked her husband's hair. "I hope not Johnny, then things will really be a mess." She pulled back and touched his face. "What can I do to make you feel better?"

The paramedic sighed. "How about a massage?"

Min leaned forward and gave her husband a kiss. "If that's what will make you feel better, I'll do it."

Johnny let go of his wife and stood up, he was standing in front of her and he began unbuttoning his uniform shirt. He opened it all the way and let it slide down his shoulders. He had on a light grey t-shirt that read JUST LIE BACK AND DO WHAT THE NICE PARAMEDIC TELLS YOU.   He was looking at his wife with a tiny hint of wickedness swimming in his dark eyes. She was watching him very closely, enjoying every second of the wonderful view.

"I feel as though I should have a wad of dollar bills in my hand."

Johnny laughed as he crossed his arms and grabbed the ends of his shirt; he lifted it over his head and dropped it on the floor. He climbed back on the bed and slid forward on his stomach, he put his arms in front of him and rested his head on them.

"Okay, I'm all yours."

"Maybe, depends on how well this massage goes."

She got off the bed and went into the bathroom; she put a tiny bit of baby oil in the palm of her hand and went back into the bedroom. She sat down on his behind and rubbed her hands together, and leaned forward. She put her hands on his shoulder and started squeezing the muscles, they were very tight.

"It's like trying to rub a brick."

"I know, I told you I was tense." Johnny closed his eyes and let his wife workout all the stress he was feeling.

Min was working on his neck; it was just as stiff and tight as his shoulders. "Johnny are you one big ball of tension."

"Sorry."

"You don't have to be sorry; I'm just amazed you can move your head."

She finally worked out the tightness in his neck and shoulders and started working on his back. "When will you guys know about the negotiations?"

"Tonight, we have to go to a meeting at the Union headquarters at 8." Johnny could feel the oil his wife was using, her hands were sliding down his backbone, it felt really good.

"Is Roy going?"

"Yeah I have to pick him up."

Min was now working on his lower back, it wasn't tense at all and she was glad. "I'm done Johnny; let me get a washcloth so I can wipe off the oil."

"Okay."

She came back from the bathroom with two washcloths, one wet, one dry. She used them to wipe off the baby oil off of her husband's back and then dry it. Johnny sighed, this felt as good as the massage did.

"Okay you're done."

She got off of his behind and he rolled over, she started to get up but he grabbed her by the right wrist. "Where are you going?"

"To put these washcloths in the hamper."

Johnny smiled at her and shook his head. "No, they can wait."

Min raised an eyebrow and simply put the washcloths on the nightstand. Johnny pulled her on top of him. "Thanks for the rub down but I don't think you're done."

"No?"

The paramedic shook his head. "No, I still feel a little stressed."

Min smiled. "Oh I see." She put both hands on his face and leaned down, she brushed her lips against his gently; she felt his mouth move against hers as the kiss deepened. She opened her eyes and sighed.
"Do we have time?"

Johnny turned his head towards the clock on the nightstand, it read 6 45. "Yeah, we have time."

Min nodded her head as she kissed her husband again; she moved her fingers up his face and into his dark hair.

The Union hall of Firefighters/Paramedics local 13 looked like a library. The building was grey, it had two giant concrete lions in the front of it and steep looking stairs that went all the way to the door. Johnny parked his Land Rover around the side of the building, the place was packed.

"Looks like everyone is here." He had worn his grey t-shirt and a pair of grey shorts.

"Yeah, well they said that all the unions were going to be meeting here." Roy had blue jeans and a red t-shirt, he and his partner climbed the steps to the door. They were met there by the rest of the 51, everyone was dressed casual.

"Well that takes care of 51, shall we go in?" Chet had his hands on his hips.

"Yeah let's go in before all the seats are taken." Roy led the way and everyone followed him inside the building.

A middle aged brown haired man with graying sides was standing up on the stage; the place was wall to wall angry and frustrated firemen and paramedics. The murmurs throughout the hall were not happy ones and the men of 51 all looked at each other; the 6 of them were probably the only men that were calm and collected. The man's name was Robert Bishop; he put his arms up and tried to quiet everyone down.

"All right, let's have it quiet."

The angry murmurs finally stopped and all eyes turned to him. "Now you all know why we are here tonight, I'm sure you all have been watching the coverage. I don't have to lie to you and tell you that things are going well, you all have seen that they aren't."

There were 5 other men behind him, all of them were scowling.

"My counterparts and I have been talking and we have decided that if the city does not agree to our temporary contract we have no choice but to go on strike."

Roy shook his head and stood up. "When will you be presenting this new contract to them?"

Bishop looked at him. "And you are?"

"DeSoto, 51."

"Ah, you are one of the ones that is both a FM and a PM. To answer your question, tomorrow morning."

Roy sat back down and leaned towards his partner. "Great, tomorrow morning."

Johnny looked at him. "If this does happen, I don't know about you but I don't think I can just walk away."

"Me either Johnny, it wouldn't feel right."

"This new contract is more than fair, it gives you all a 10 percent raise and better benefits. We don't think the city will have a problem with it."

A fireman in the back named Luke Brett stood up. He was known as being a hothead; he was about 6 foot 4, had short shaved hair and weighed about 250 pounds of solid muscle. "Yeah right Bishop, they won't go for it! The contract you gave them earlier only had us getting a 5 % raise and they rejected it!"

Johnny turned around and saw who was talking. "Oh great, it's Brett."

Roy looked behind him and saw the big man. "He's going to stir up trouble."

Bishop shook his head. "Then we'll strike, it's that simple. We have the advantage here, the city wouldn't dare leave 7 and a half million people without emergency services."

Brett made his way through the crowd. "Why wait for them to say no? Let's just do it now!"

Roy and Johnny both stood up, they had both heard enough. "Now wait a second Brett, we can't go jumping to conclusions."

Johnny nodded. "That's right, the city has been just a bullheaded about this as all of you have been; if we walk out they just might fire all of us."

Brett was getting angry and his comments were starting to rile the other firemen; the angry murmurs started back up. "They wouldn't fire us! Without us this rotten city is up a creek!"

Roy shook his head. "You don't know that for sure Brett."

Brett got closer to both Johnny and Roy. "This city treats all of us like second class citizens. Why should we be on the job if they aren't going to treat us right? We go through this hassle and bull every time we need something. You know how badly some of the stations need new fire engines but do you think that the city will cough up one red cent? They always give us some baloney about not enough money in the budget; well I say enough is enough. I say we strike now!"

The rest of the firemen and paramedics in the building all got to their feet to show their support. Bishop put his hands out so they would settle down. "Now wait a minute. We can't do this half cocked, we have to all agree. I want to see a show of hands, all in favor of a strike, raise them high."

Every hand in the building went up in the air with one exception, the men of 51. Not a one of them raised their hands and the rest of the men in the hall all turned and looked at them. Brett saw none of them was for the strike.

"What's wrong with you 51 guys? Don't have any guts?"

The 6 men stood up. "We have plenty of guts and brains. This is a dumb idea; if we do this the city will cut us off at the knees."

Brett shook his head at Roy. "I never have liked you DeSoto, you and that partner of yours think you are better just because you are paramedics."

Roy was just staring at him. "No we don't, and we aren't the only paramedics in this room Brett and you know that."

"You're the only ones in this room that don't have their hands raised."

"Johnny and I have families to think about, what about them?" He looked at all of the men. "What about your families? What are they going to do if you go through with this and walk out on your job?"

Johnny totally agreed with his partner. "That's right, I have a brand new son. I'm not about to do something stupid and rash that is going to jeopardize his future."

"Just calm down all of you and think about that for a minute."

The noise in the hall started to calm down, all of a sudden some hands started to go down. Brett shook his head. "Cowards, that's what you are."

Roy shook his head. "No Brett, they aren't cowards. They're smart and they are thinking about more than themselves, maybe you should try it."

Brett scowled deeply and grabbed Roy by his shirt. Johnny grabbed Brett's hand and tried to pry his partner's shirt out of the closed fist. "What are you doing? Let him go!"

The rest of 51 tried to help Roy, Brett let go of Roy's shirt and started to push the men that were around him away. Brett was getting angry, he started swinging his fists around and that's when it happened. The hall had just started to calm down but that was over in a heartbeat, now it had erupted into a full scale brawl.

Min was in her white robe, she reading a book to Evan in the living room. He was on her lap and the little boy yawned widely, the young mother smiled at him. "Someone is getting sleepy." She gave her son a kiss on the head. "Don't worry I'll put you to bed as soon as the story is over."

The phone suddenly started ringing and she reached over to the end table and picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Min, it's me."

It was her husband. "Johnny, what's wrong?" She couldn't help but notice how funny he sounded.

"Listen I don't have time to explain right now but you have to come downtown and bail me out."

Both of her eyebrows went up. "What? What happened?"

"I'll explain later, just bring the checkbook. You have to get both me and Roy out."

"What happened to JoAnne?"

"Roy can't get a hold of her."

Min sighed. "Okay Honey, I'll pack up Evan and be right down."

"Thanks Min, bye."

Min closed the book and set it down on the couch. "Come on Evan, we have to go rescue your father." She held him close to her chest as she went to go get his stroller and his diaper bag.

Johnny, Roy and the rest of 51 was in one jail cell, the entire hall had been arrested. The men were all beaten up, Johnny had a paper towel pressed against the area above his eye, it was split open. Roy turned towards his partner, he had a cut on the corner of his mouth and one of his eyes was starting to turn purple.

"How's the head Johnny?"

"Hurts, what about your eye?"

"Hurts, I don't even know how it happened."

"Same with my head."

Chet sighed; he too had a black eye. "Who knows, everyone was swinging."

Johnny turned his attention to Chet. "None of us were, we were trying to get out of there."

"Yeah and it didn't do any good. This is all Brett's fault, him and his temper got everyone riled up."

Roy shook his head. "I don't know how that guy can even be a fireman." He touched his damaged eye carefully. "The one good thing out of all this is we aren't going to strike."

"Tonight but there is always tomorrow." Johnny's head was hurting him, he sighed and wished his wife would hurry up and get there. The bench he was sitting on was not comfortable at all; his body had been through enough for one night.

The metal door at the end of the hall opened and Min wheeled Evan in his stroller down the hall, she was followed by a policeman. She had put on her husband's bright blue 911 t-shirt and blue shorts. Johnny saw her and he stood up, he put his hands on the cold bars. "Min!"

The young woman saw her husband. "Oh my God Johnny what happened?"

"Long story, I'm glad to see you."

The officer unlocked the cell door. "Okay 51, this young woman has made bail for all of you, everyone out."

The men were surprised. "You did? You didn't have to do that Min." Chet came out of the cell and kissed her cheek.

"It was nothing Chet, don't worry about it. I know you; Marco and Mike don't have wives to bail you out. She looked at Captain Stanley. "And I know that Irene is out of town. I couldn't leave you all here in this little concrete box."

Hank took her hand and shook it. "Thanks Min, I'll give the money back to you."

"Don't worry about it, just go home and rest."

Mike smiled at her. "He's right, I will pay it back." He gave her a nod of his head and left.

Marco nodded. "Me too, good night."

Min looked at the two paramedics. "Come on, let's go back to the house and clean you both up."

They all left the cell area and headed back to the Union hall to get the Land Rover and then it was home.

"Hold still Johnny."

The threesome was sitting at the dining room table; Min was sitting on the edge of the table carefully cleaning the wound above her husband's right eye. They had put Evan to bed and Roy had a steak pressed against his eye. "Well this has been an eventful evening."

Johnny hissed through his teeth as his wife put peroxide on his cut. "Yeah it's been great, we all get beat up and arrested."

Min sighed as she dabbed his cut with a cotton ball. "I can't believe a brawl broke out at the hall, who started it?"

"Luke Brett."

Min took some butterfly bandages out of her husband's black tackle box and carefully put 4 of them on her husband's cut. "There, that should do it."

Johnny touched it. "Thanks."

Roy took the piece of meat off of his eye; it felt like it was the size of a golf ball. "How does it look?"

Min turned her attention to Roy. "It looks okay; I don't think it'll swell. What did JoAnne say?"

"She just got home and had put the kids to bed. She said she's get the neighbor to watch the kids and be right over. She is going to flip when she sees my eye and my mouth."

"Well she can blame that Brett guy."

There was a knock at the door and Roy got up and went through the French doors and into the living room. He went to the front door and opened it. JoAnne was there wearing a set of pink sweats, she saw her husband and she gasped.

"Roy what happened?"

He gave her a small kiss. "I'll tell you on the way home."

Min and Johnny left the dining room and went to the front door, Roy smiled at them. "Thanks for taking care of me." He looked at his partner especially; Johnny was the first one to jump to his rescue Brett had grabbed him. The dark haired man smiled at his partner and gave him a nod. "Anytime."

Min smiled at the paramedic. "You go get some rest Roy."

"I will, bye."

"Bye, see you in the morning."

Roy nodded as he closed the door behind him and JoAnne.

Johnny's head was still hurting him. He was lying on the bed, he had taken some aspirin but it hadn't kicked in yet. Min had gone to the kitchen and brought back a sandwich on a plate.

"Here Johnny, have something to eat, you'll feel better."

"Not unless you cut off my head." He sat up slowly and picked up the sandwich, it was ham and cheese and he took a bite. "That was unreal Min, a bunch of grown men all pounding each other like teenage boys."

Min sat beside her husband and stroked his hair. "Well, a lot of tempers have been going off lately Johnny; this thing with the city has everyone on the edge."

"Brett wanted all of us to agree to strike tonight."

"Tonight?"

"Yeah, Bishop said they have a new contract to present to the city in the morning. He said if the city rejects it, we're going to strike."

Min closed her eyes briefly. "I don't even want to think about that."

"Me either, Roy and I both agreed that we couldn't just walk away from our jobs, even if they do strike."

"What do you think the city is going to do if all of the stations strike?"

Johnny ate more of his sandwich and wiped the crumbs off of his face. "There's a possibility they will fire anyone that leaves their job."

Min sighed. "Great, you all are going to be put in between a rock and a hard place. If you stay on the job you won't get paid if you walk away you're fired."

He was done with his sandwich and put the plate over the side of the bed onto the floor. "Yeah that's about the size of it, either way we are in trouble."

Bo came into his sister's office. He was absolutely happy, he was whistling but when he saw her face, it made him stop in mid tune.

"Hi Min, what's with the face?"

The young woman was holding Evan in her lap and watching the negotiation coverage. "They are about to announce whether or not they are going to accept the new Union contract."

Bo sat down on the edge of her desk. "Oh good, maybe it'll finally be over."

Min saw her brother and how happy he looked. "So what are you so happy about?"

He grinned. "Well, I'll tell you when they make the announcement."

Min sighed and hugged her son to her, she was hoping that the city would accept it; the thought of all the firemen in the city on strike terrified her. The city would be in chaos without emergency services, it was a dreadful thought and she shook it out of her mind. She watched as the man that represented the city stepped up to the podium to address the press. He was an older man with salt and pepper hair, he was dressed in a dark grey suit. The man's named was Donald Tate, he cleared his throat and pushed his wire rim glasses up; beside him was the members of the Unions, they were sitting on chairs. Robert Bishop was among them.

"Ladies and Gentlemen of the press, after much deliberation between myself and the City Council, we have decided to reject the contract given to us by the Union."

Min gasped and closed her eyes, she hung her head. "Oh God."

Robert Bishop was furious; he stood up and almost pushed his counterpart aside. "That is fine, the city wants to play that way well so can we, effective immediately all fire department personnel are officially on strike."

The press naturally got on their feet fast and started shouting questions to the Union members, to Robert Bishop and to Donald Tate. The older man raised his hands to silence the mob.

"I have been authorized by the City to inform any members of the fire department that if they abandon their jobs they will be considered as voluntarily terminated."

Bishop once again almost pushed him aside. "I urge all firemen and paramedics to walk away this moment from their stations and go home, this fight is not over yet, not by a long shot!"

Min had heard enough she pressed the button on the television, it turned off and she shook her head. "That's it then, they're on strike."

Bo reached out and touched her shoulder. "So what does that mean? Is Johnny going to walk away?"

Min touched her brother's hand. "No, he wouldn't do that."

The phone on Bo's desk rang and she picked it up, she knew who it was. "Johnny?"

"Yeah it's me, you heard?"

She sighed. "Yeah, I was watching, what are you and the rest of 51 going to do?"

"We talked about it and we're going to let HQ know that we are going to stay."

Min nodded. "I'm glad, I bet you guys aren't the only station that does."

Johnny sighed on the line. "I don't know Min there were a lot of firemen at that meeting the other night that agreed with Brett."

"I hope not Johnny, 51 can't handle the whole city by itself."

Johnny and the rest of the men were sitting at the kitchen table, all of them were silent. Captain Stanley was on the phone with Headquarters, he didn't look too happy; he was talking to Chief Forrester.

"Yes sir, I understand. I'll let them know, yes sir, bye."

He hung up the phone and ran his fingers through his hair. He was in the garage in the small office out there; he walked back into the kitchen and saw his men.

"51, we need to talk."

Five pairs of eyes turned their attention to the Captain; he put his hands on his hips. "I just got off the phone with Chief Forrester. At least half of the firefighters and paramedics in this city left their stations; the city is now running at less than half its usual capacity for emergency personnel. Out of this whole city, 51 is the only station that is complete. Chief Forrester is thrilled about that but because of the sudden shortage, HQ has instituted Crisis Procedures."

The men all looked at each other; Roy uncrossed his arms and looked at the Captain. "Crisis Procedures? But that means-"

Hank nodded his head at one half of his paramedic team. "As of this moment, we are officially on ES."

All of them shifted in their chairs and Johnny sighed and covered his eyes with his hands. "Man, Endless Shift, that means we are on duty until they resolve this strike, we won't be allowed to go home."

"That's right Johnny. I know this is hard but it has to be this way, there are no other options."

Johnny thought of his wife and his son. "And what if they don't end it? When am I going to get to see Min or Evan?"

Hank sighed, he felt for all of his men and himself. "I wish I knew, there are no days off. You can call your family but that's it, you can't go home."

The two paramedics looked at each other; they were in for a heck of a time, with the way the City and the LAFD were getting along, the possibility of going home sometime in the next century looked pretty bleak.

Min was very upset, she talked to her husband on the phone and he had told her about the predicament that he and the rest of the firemen in the city were now in. She sighed and rubbed her hands over her face. She thought this was totally ridiculous and she was not about to sit idly by and wait for the city and the LAFD to grow up and get their heads on straight, she was going to do something about this.

Pete and MacGyver were in his office going over paperwork when the phone on his desk buzzed. He pressed the button. "Yes Sandra?"

"Mr. Thornton, Mrs. Min Gage is here to see you."

Mac was sitting on Pete's couch; he got up and walked over to his desk. "Min is here?"

"That's what the lady said."

"Send her in."

Pete pressed the button. "Send her in Sandra."

"Yes sir right away."

The door opened and Min walked in, she had Evan in his blue stroller and she smiled when she saw her friend. MacGyver smiled at the dark haired woman. "Hi Min."

Min stopped the stroller and hugged her friend. "Hey Mac."

"How are you holding up?"

"Not good."

The hug ended and she sighed. "It's been three days Mac; I can't take much more of this."

MacGyver had on a black Phoenix t-shirt and black jeans; he crouched down and touched Evan's hands. "Hi little man, how are you?"

"Miserable, he misses his father and so do I."

Min suddenly remembered Pete and she gasped, what she had done was very rude.  "I'm sorry, Pete, I totally forgot my manners." She extended her hand. "It's good to see you."

Pete had on a dark grey suit; he stood up and shook her hand. "You too and there is no need to apologize Min, I understand what you have been going through."

"Thank you but it was still rude of me."

He sat back down. "So what can we help you with today?" He pointed to his chair. "Please, have a seat."

Min was wearing a grey knit shirt and grey pants. She sat down in the chair and moved the stroller close to her; she picked up Evan and set him in her lap. The little baby had on a bodysuit with baseballs and bats on it and a pair of blue shorts. "Thank you, I came here to see both of you because I want to ask a favor."

Mac was sitting on the edge of his friend's desk. "Sure that's what we're here for."

Min sighed, she was glad to hear him say that. "This favor mostly involves you."

The blond haired man nodded. "Okay, what?"

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Mac, I want you and the Phoenix Foundation to step in and take over the negotiations between the city and the LAFD."

Both men's mouths dropped open and MacGyver put his hand to his chest. "Me?"

"Yes, you and Phoenix have a reputation for sorting things out and that is exactly what the city and the LAFD need, a cool, calm levelheaded negotiator that will help them work this out."

Pete nodded, he liked the idea, he had been following the coverage closely. "You're right Min; I think he would be perfect for the job."

MacGyver turned towards his boss. "You think I'm perfect for this?"

"Yeah I do. The Mayor and the City Council owe us for those asbestos inspections we did to the buildings downtown, I think it's time we called in that favor."

Min saw his hesitation; she leaned forward and touched his hand. "Please, I haven't seen my husband in three days, this thing is getting worse and if it keeps up it might be a long time before he can come home. He and the other working firemen in this city have been running themselves ragged."

MacGyver looked into her pleading dark eyes, he could see the lack of sleep and worry reflecting in them. He looked down at the little baby boy she held and he put out his hands. "Can I hold him?"

"Sure." She lifted him up and Mac took him. The little baby smiled at him, he could see his father in the little boy's face.

"You miss your Dad don't you little one?"

Evan touched Mac on the mouth and he kissed his little hand and looked at his mother. "Okay, I'll do my best."

Min smiled widely, she got up and gave him a partial hug. "Thank you so much Mac. I'm going to owe you big time for this one."

Johnny dragged himself into the bunkhouse, he was covered in soot, they had just gotten back from a call. A restaurant on the far west side was burning and they had to go put it out since that station had only 2 firemen that had stayed on the job.

He got a wet washcloth out of the bathroom; he plopped down on his bed and started cleaning off his face.

"Going to take a nap?"

Roy was already in there, he was sitting on his bunk. He watched his partner clean off the black from his face.

"I'm going to try."

"Me too, maybe we can sleep for an hour or two before the alarm goes off." Roy swung his legs around and stretched out on his bed.

"I wouldn't hold my breath." Johnny's washcloth was black with soot from his hands and his face; he set it on the nightstand that was between the two beds. "I'm so beat Roy; I don't know how much longer I can do this."

"I know Johnny. I feel the same way, but you know as well as I do we are stuck."

Johnny laid down, he rolled over and reached into his back pocket. He took out a photo of his wife and son. Min had a big smile on her face, she was holding Evan out in front of her; the little boy was smiling. He touched the photo of them gently. "I wonder what Min and Evan are doing."

Roy sighed, his eyes were getting heavy. "It's afternoon Johnny, they're probably at the club."

"Yeah, Evan is probably having his lunch, sitting with his mom." Johnny closed his eyes and imagined them, it made him smile but it was fleeting, he missed them so much. All he wanted to do was go home and hug both of them to him.

"Are you going to call them later?"

Johnny swallowed a small lump in his throat. "Yeah."

Roy yawned and rubbed his eyes. "Get some sleep Johnny, you'll feel better."

Johnny sighed; he knew no amount of sleep was going to make him feel better, only his wife and son could do that. He pressed the photo to his chest and closed his eyes; he fell into a heavy sleep thinking about Min and Evan.

Min wasn't at the club, she didn't have the heart to go in to work, her mind was elsewhere. Bo knew she was having a hard time; he had been staying with her in the house to not only lend a hand with Evan but to try and give some comfort to his sister. She was in the living room reading a book, Bo was in the garage giving her Mustang a tune up. The doorbell rang and she set the book down on the couch and got up. She peeked in the peephole and saw MacGyver and Gillian behind the door. She opened it and smiled at them both.

"Hi!" She hugged Gillian to her. The redheaded woman patted her back.

"Hi Min, how are you?"

"Terrible until I opened the door, come in." She stepped back and the couple came in. "What are you both doing here?"

MacGyver unzipped his black vinyl jacket. "We were in the neighborhood and decided to drop by."

They walked into the living room and sat down. "Can I get you both something to drink?"

"Got any juice?"

Min smiled. "Of course I do Mac, how's grape?"

"Good." He looked at his wife. "Gill?"

"The same please."

Min went into the kitchen and poured them two glasses of white grape juice and put a few cubes in it. She walked back into the living room and handed them to her friends. "Here you go."

"Thank you." Gillian took her glass and sipped it.

"Thanks Min." MacGyver had a drink of his and put the glass down on the coffee table.

Bo came in from the garage. "Min was that the-" He saw the couple; they turned towards him and smiled. "Hi."

Mac got up and shook his hand. "Hey Bo, long time no see, how are you?"

"Good MacGyver, really good." He looked down at the redheaded woman. MacGyver remembered that they had never met.

"Gillian, this is Bo Duke, Min's brother."

She stretched out her hand and Bo shook it. "Nice to meet you Bo."

Bo smiled at Gillian; he thought she was very pretty. "Nice to meet you too." He was wearing raggedy clothes and there was oil on his white t-shirt. "Excuse the mess; I was tuning up my sister's Mustang."

Mac sat back down. "Don't worry about it; it's impossible to stay clean when you work on a car."

"How is that going Bo?"

He turned his attention to his sister. "Not so good. I can't get that starter wire to stay in place, it keeps slipping out."

Min sighed. "Perfect, as if the week hasn't been tough enough."

MacGyver cleared his throat. "You're having wire problems?"

"Yeah, a starter with a wire problem."

He nodded. "Can I take a look?"

"Sure, the garage is over here."

Mac excused himself and followed Bo into the garage. The hood to the bright cherry red Mustang was popped open and Mac leaned over the engine and looked down into it, he saw the starter and the wire Bo was talking about.

Bo was also leaning over the engine. "See it?"

"Yeah, I see it." He took off his jacket and set it on top of the roof. "What we need is a way to fuse the wire in place so it won't keep slipping out." He turned and looked at Bo. "Got a sodering gun?"

The blond haired man shook his head. "No."

Mac licked his lips and pressed them together. "Well we need one to fix that starter, so let's find something to fake it with."

Bo creased his brow. "Like what?"

"Good question." He sighed and looked around the garage. "Can you take the starter out and take it outside to the Corvette? I need to get a few things and meet you out there."

Bo picked up some tools. "All right, give me a minute to get the starter out."

Mac saw where Bo got the tools out of, he crouched down and started going through the big red tool box and saw a metal file. He picked it up and left the garage, he went back in the living room. "Min do you have a key you don't need anymore?"

The two women had been talking and they both turned and looked at him, the dark haired woman was puzzled. "I think so, why?"

"I'm going to fix your starter."

"With an old key?"

MacGyver had the file tucked into his back pocket. "Yeah."

Min got up from her chair and went to her keychain, she still had the key to the apartment that her and her husband had once shared; she took off a silver key and handed it to him. "Here you go."

Mac looked it over. "Thanks, this will work nicely."

Min was very curious as so what he was going to do, so was Gillian they both followed him outside. Bo had come out the garage door, he had the starter wrapped in newspaper and was holding the bundle. "Here is the starter."

MacGyver took his keys out of his pocket and unlocked the Corvette. He pulled the trunk lever and went around to the back of the black car; he opened the trunk and got out a pair of jumper cables. "Thanks Bo, set it down on the ground."

He closed the trunk and opened the driver side door back up and popped the hood. He walked around to the front of the Corvette and raised the hood.

Bo was watching him. "What are you going to do with jumper cables?"

Mac took the covers off of the battery leads and hooked them up, he handed Bo his keys. "Here can you get behind the wheel and start it up when I say to?"

Bo smiled widely. "Sure no problem!"

MacGyver snapped his fingers, he forgot something. "Min do you have a wire hanger?"

Min was standing next to Gillian. "Sure, in the front closet in the living room.

"Thanks." Mac ran back to the house and opened the door, he came back out with a wire hanger, he bent it and straightened it out.

Min leaned close to the redheaded woman. "Gill, what is he doing?"

Gillian sighed and shook her head. "Just being Mac."

MacGyver unhooked one of the jumper cables from the battery, he squeezed it open and it gripped the wire. He tugged it to make sure the teeth had a good hold of it. He took the key that Min had given him and the metal file out of his back pocket. He tore off a piece of newspaper that was around the starter and crouched down; he started filing the key until he had a nice pile of metal shavings on the paper. He stood up and looked around the hood at the blond haired man behind the wheel of his car. "Okay Bo, hit it!"

Bo started the Corvette; MacGyver took his dark sunglasses out of his pocket and slipped them on. He picked up the pair of cables. Bo got out of the car; he wanted to see what MacGyver was going to do.  Mac looked up and realized he had a crowd around him.

"Stand back."

He picked up the jumper cables and tapped them together, sparks started to fly and the three people moved back.  He picked up some metal shavings and sprinkled them on the wire and the place it was supposed to go. He turned his head away a little and touched the straightened hanger to it, there was a few sparks at first. He put more shavings onto the wire and used the hanger to soder it in place. He blew on the wire and gave it a tug, it didn't move.

"Okay Bo, kill the engine."

Bo went back inside the Corvette and turned off the ignition.

Mac stood up and took the jumper cables off of the battery; he closed the hood and walked around to the back of his car. He took off the hanger and put the cables behind his seat.  Bo picked up the starter and looked at what his friend had done.

"Think it'll hold?"

"It should."

Bo shook his head. "That was a pretty smart idea, let's go put this baby back in and see how well your homemade sodering gun worked."

The two men went inside and Min and Gillian followed them.

"Okay MacGyver, cross your fingers and turn it!"

Bo stood up and took a rag out of his back pocket and wiped his hands. MacGyver was behind the wheel of Min's Mustang, he turned the key and the powerful engine came to life. Bo slammed the hood and tapped it hard.

"Yes! All right!"

Mac cut the engine and got out of the car, he smiled at his friend. "Well we got lucky, it worked."

Bo patted his back. "That was a good idea. I've got to let you do some work like that on the General Lee."

MacGyver creased his brow. "The General Lee?"

Bo took his wallet out of his pocket and took out a photo of him and Luke standing next to the bright orange stock car, he handed to his friend. "Here take a look."

"Wow nice color! '69 Dodge Charger?"

"Yeah the one and only General Lee, that car has won more races than you can count."

"What kind of engine?"

"440, 4 barrel carb."

MacGyver whistled. "I bet that thing moves."

Bo smiled proudly. "It does, he's fast, maybe the next time you are free I'll introduce you to him."

The two men walked back into the living room, the two women stopped and Min smiled.

"I heard my car start, so the wire is holding?"

Bo nodded. "Yeah, it's holding." He smiled at his sister. "Hey Min, should I take Mac here to meet the General?"

Min grinned. "You want to introduce him to the General Lee?"

Gillian was the only person in the room that wasn't sure what they were talking about.  "Who?"

Bo handed her the photo, she took it and looked at it. "Now that is a color you won't lose in parking lot, 1969 Dodge Charger, right?"

"Right, my cousin and I built that car."

Gillian gave the photo back to him. "Nice, I bet its pretty fast."

Min nodded. "Oh he is, the General is a great car, he's almost human."

Mac sat back down beside his wife. "Well Bo promised to take me one weekend to meet him."

Bo excused himself and went to go clean up, Min watched him leave and smiled at her friend. "Thanks for the repair job Mac."

He gave her a nod. "No problem, I only hope the problem between the city and the LAFD is just as easy to fix. That is one of the reasons we came to see you, Pete talked to the mayor and the City Council. They gave us permission to take over the negotiations."

Min sighed; she was worried that the city wasn't going to allow the Phoenix Foundation to get involved. "Any trouble from the Unions?"

"No, they were more than willing to have us help out."

Min was playing with her wedding ring, she kept looking at it. "I miss him, so much. I'm going nuts in this house, poor Bo has been trapped here for three days."

Gillian reached out and touched her hand. "I understand what you are going through; I feel the same way every time Mac leaves for an assignment."

"I know you do Gill, I appreciate your concern."

MacGyver leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "Why don't you and Evan come stay with us? It'll give you a chance to get out of this house and you can help me with the negotiations."

Min looked surprised. "Me? How can I help?"

"You are a fireman's wife Min; you have insight that none of us involved in this has. Johnny comes home to you every night; you see first hand how hard he works and how tough his job is. That kind of information would help me a lot."

Gillian nodded. "We have plenty of room Min, please?"

The young woman looked at her two friends, she was feeling rather down and their company would certainly make her feel better.  She thought about Evan too, her son was crazy about Gillian and MacGyver. This also gave her a chance to help get her husband home and that was something she really wanted to do.

"Okay, when Johnny calls me I'll tell him what's going on and then I'll pack up Evan and myself and come over."

Min was folding up Evan's portable playpen when the phone starting ringing. She checked her watch and it was 6, that had to be Johnny. She raced into the master bedroom and picked up the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hi Honey it's me."

The voice of her husband got the young woman's heart racing' she sat down on the bed. "Johnny…it's so good to hear you."

"It's good to hear you too, how are things going?"

Min sighed. "Terrible without you but there is a small ray of hope, what about you?"

"Not so great either. I finally managed to get two hours of sleep before the alarm went off. What is this ray of hope?"

The young woman smiled. "You're going to hear about this sooner or later so I'm going to go ahead and tell you now. I went to see MacGyver and Pete at the Phoenix Foundation, I asked them to step in and take over the negotiations."

"You did? And what did they say?" Johnny got excited; he knew that the Foundation being involved could bring this crisis to an end.

Min smiled. "They said okay. MacGyver starts first thing in the morning; he's going to be the negotiator."

Johnny sighed. "That is great news Honey, it really is."

"I know, I had to do something Johnny. This thing is so stupid and I want you to come home."

"So do I Min, how's my baby?"

"He misses you and so do I."

"I miss you both too, if this thing is ever over we are going to go on vacation for at least a week or two. I want to take you both out of the city and go someplace nice."

"I would like that, a lot. And speaking of not being home, Mac and Gillian asked me to come stay with them so I can help MacGyver with the negotiations. Do you know their phone number?"

"Yeah I know it, when are you going?"

"I told them as soon as I talked to you I would be over."

"That's good Min, I'm glad you are going to stay with them, you won't be alone and I know they will take good care of you."

"Well Bo was here."

"I know but he has the club to worry about."

Min sighed. "Are you guys taking care of yourselves?"

"Yeah we are, it isn't easy but we are managing to get rest and food whenever we can. We have been all over this city Min. Roy and I are taking care of people in areas of this city we have hardly been too before, all because of this strike and the lack of firemen and paramedics."

"Do you think that the ones that left their stations are going to be fired?"

"The city said yes but I'm hoping that is something MacGyver can change. If he can't make them change their minds about that, we will be in trouble; this city can't function without those men."

"I'll tell that to him. He said he wanted information, I'm going to give it to him."

Johnny sighed. "I have to go now Min, dinner is almost ready and then I want to try and get some more sleep before the alarm starts going off again."

Min could feel her eyes get wet; she didn't want him to hang up. "Do you have to go?"

"I don't want to, but I have to."

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I love you Johnny, take care of yourself okay?" She wiped her face.

"I love you too Min and you know I will. I'll call you at their house as soon as I can."

Min nodded. "Okay Honey, talk to you soon."

"Bye Min, give Evan a kiss and a hug for me."

"I will, bye."

She hung up the phone and covered her eyes with her hands and let her tears flow.

Johnny sighed as he hung up the phone in the bunkhouse and went into the kitchen. It was Chet's turn to cook; he had made hamburgers and potato salad. He saw his fellow fireman's face as he put a hamburger and some potato salad on a plate and handed it to him.

"Here you go Johnny, talk to your wife?" Chet could tell by his face, his face looked rather passive.

Johnny took the plate from him. "Thanks, yeah just now."

Chet nodded. "How are they doing?"

Johnny gave his friend a little smile. "They're holding up, but she did tell me some good news."

He sat down at the table and all of the men seated there turned towards him.

Roy wiped his mouth. "What news?"

"An outside party has just agreed to help the city and the Fire Department work this out."

The men got excited, this was good news. "Who?"

Chet asked the question and Johnny smiled a little. "The Phoenix Foundation." He looked at Roy. "Min went to see MacGyver and he agreed to help out."

Roy smiled and laughed a little. "That sneaky, brilliant woman."

Johnny nodded. "Yeah I know, she said that she's going to go stay with MacGyver and Gillian at their house so she can lend a hand personally. She's going to tell Mac about trying to change the mind of the city about firing the men that went on strike."

Chet sat down at the table. "That's good, that's probably almost an important an issue as our raises."

"Exactly, I told her that without those men even if the strike is over, we would still be in trouble because all of the firemen in the city would have to work longer and harder to make up the difference."

Hank was done with his dinner, he pushed his plate aside. "And the City Council agreed to let the Phoenix Foundation help?"

"That's what Min said Cap. I don't know how they did that but what's important is that both sides have finally agreed on something, it may not be much but it's a start."

Everyone had a glass of milk and Hank lifted his. "Here's to hoping this is over soon."

All of the men lifted their glasses and clinked them together, for the first time in three days; the men of Station 51 were happy and hopeful.

Min was still upset as she pulled her Mustang into the driveway beside MacGyver's truck. She got out and pulled the passenger seat forward, she took Evan out of his car seat and slung his diaper bag over her shoulder. She walked up the driveway and rang the doorbell. The door opened, it was Gillian, she smiled and opened it.

"Hi."

"Hi Gillian."

Gillian had changed out of her work clothes and put on a pink tank top and white shorts; she stepped aside and the young woman walked in. MacGyver he was still in his black t-shirt but he had on black shorts, he came out of their bedroom and saw her.

"Hi, need some help with your stuff?"

Min nodded. "Yes please."

"I'll take Evan while the two of you go unload your stuff."

Min took the diaper bag off of her arm and handed her son to the redheaded woman. "You stay with Aunt Gill Ev, your uncle and I are going to go bring in our stuff." She gave him a kiss and touched his hair.

Gillian held the little baby boy close to her. "Come on Evan; let me show you where you're going to be staying." She walked down the hall with him and Mac touched his little hand as he passed his wife and went out the front door.

Min unlocked the trunk and opened it, she had brought his playpen for him to sleep in and she had taken apart his swing and brought it along. MacGyver picked up the playpen and their suitcase.

"I got these can you bring the swing?"

"Yeah I can get it." She gathered up all the pieces and closed the trunk.

The first spare room just off of the master bedroom was where Min and her son were going to sleep. It was pretty good sized; it had a queen size bed, a dark oak dresser, and a dark oak nightstand with a phone on it. Min looked around; it was decorated in the same Southwest style as the master bedroom. There was a Navajo blanket above the bed and the walls had a few pictures of famous Indians on them. The comforter on the bed matched the design of the blanket that hung on the wall. She sat down on the bed and folded her legs under her.

"What do you think?"

Min saw MacGyver standing in the door way, she tried to smile but it wasn't genuine. "It's nice."

He walked into the room and set the suitcase and the playpen down. "What did Johnny have to say?"

"He's glad you are going to help and he wants me to tell you that one of the things you need to work out is the firing of all of the firemen that went on strike. He said if you don't change the city's mind about that things won't go back to normal, all of the firemen will have to make up the difference and that means double and triple shifts."

Mac sat down on the bed beside her. "Yeah I know, that is one of the things I plan to address tomorrow."

Min sighed heavily. "He said he knows that you and Gillian will take good care of me and Evan until he gets home." She wasn't looking at him, her head was down.

"That we can definitely promise, you both can stay here as long as you need to."

"I appreciate that Mac."

He turned towards her and touched her chin, turning it so he could see her face. Her dark eyes were very sad. "Hey, keep your chin up, okay?"

Min laughed a little. "I'm trying."

"Good." He stood up. "Come on. Gill made dinner, you must be hungry."

Min had put Evan in his swing and it was rocking gently, it was getting close to the baby's bedtime. The foursome was in the dining room having dinner. Gillian had made lasagna, garlic bread and salad, Min actually felt better, the food was good but it was the company that made the difference. She had another bite of lasagna and wiped her mouth.

"This is great Gill; you need to give me the recipe."

"Thanks, I love to cook." She served herself some more salad.
MacGyver was drinking some ice tea. "Yeah the problem is you cook too good Gillian. You're trying to make me fat."

Min coughed a little and wiped her mouth. "Oh please Mac, you couldn't be fat if you tried." She shook her head at her friend. "Johnny says the same thing; he claims it's some great conspiracy I planned that if I make him gain weight he'll have to leave the Fire Department."

Gillian looked at her. "And what do you say?"

"I tell him he's nuts. He's way too active, even if I wanted him to gain weight it wouldn't happen."

"Aha, see Mac same thing with you."

MacGyver was done with his dinner, he pushed his plate aside. "Yeah yeah keep denying it."

Gillian shook her head at her husband. "You are so paranoid." She got up from the table and went to the fridge.

Mac watched his wife. "What are you doing Gill?"

"Getting dessert."

"What dessert?"

She brought out a chocolate cake and Mac folded his arms across his chest and looked at her sideways. "Not trying to fatten me up huh?"

Gillian shrugged. "Coincidence, I got this because we have a special guest for dinner."

"Uh huh."

She walked by her husband and whispered something in his ear, he turned red. She kissed his burning cheek. "Still think I'm trying to make you fat?"

Mac cleared his throat. "No."

Min shook her head at both of them, she could just imagine what Gillian must have said to her husband to turn him as red as an apple. "Looks good Gill."

She set it down on the table and picked up a knife and turned towards her husband. "So I take it you don't want any?"

MacGyver smiled. "I didn't say that." He picked up his plate and she put a small piece on it.

"Min?"

The dark haired woman handed Gillian her plate and she put a small piece on it. Evan made a noise and it made Gillian laugh. "Sorry Sweetie you are too young for chocolate cake."

She cut a small piece for herself and started eating it.

Min was wide awake; she couldn't sleep, not without Johnny beside her. She turned towards the clock on the nightstand, it read 11 30. She pulled back the covers and got up, she decided to go get something to drink and maybe find a book to read. She had on her white sleeveless night gown; she picked up her white robe and slipped it on. She walked over to Evan's playpen and peeked at her son, he was asleep; she kissed her fingers and touched them to his cheek. She left the room quietly and walked down the hall towards the kitchen. The light was on and walked in and saw her friend sitting at the table, he didn't have a shirt on and she quickly turned around.

MacGyver heard a noise and turned around, he saw her with her back to him.

"Min? I hope I didn't wake you up."

Min wasn't looking at him. "No, I wasn't asleep."

Mac saw that she was turning her head from him and why. "Sorry I didn't mean to embarrass you, I'll get a shirt." He got up and went into the garage; he came back out with a t-shirt. He sat back down at the kitchen table. "What are you doing up?"

The young woman got over her embarrassment. "Like I said I couldn't sleep what about you?"

Mac sighed and wiped her hands down his face. "I'm just going over the 4 contracts that the Union has submitted to the City."

She walked over to the table and looked at the pile of papers. "4? That's a lot."

"Yeah it is." He got up and went to get himself something to drink, he opened the fridge. "Do you want something to drink?"

Min picked up the newest proposal, the one that had caused the strike. "A glass of milk, please."

Mac got out two small glasses and filled them with milk, he brought them over to the table and handed one to his houseguest. "Here you go."

"Thanks." Min was going through the proposal. "This is the one that caused the strike."

He sat back down and nodded. "Yeah I know, it really isn't that bad, none of them are, hardly worth losing every fireman in the city over."

"I know but tell that to the city."

MacGyver had a drink of his milk. "I plan too, first thing in the morning, or better yet…we plan too."

Min creased her brow. "Who's we?"

"My team of course."

"Which is?"

MacGyver smiled. "Gillian and you."

Min set her glass down on the table. "Me? What good is it for me to be there Mac?"

"It'll do a lot of good Min, like I said you see this thing from another point of view. You get to see the other side; all the city sees are firemen that want more money and better benefits."

"But what about Evan?"

"Can Bo watch him for you?" Mac saw her hesitation and he touched her hand. "I need you there tomorrow Min. This whole situation is in my hands and I don't want to mess that up and keep the firemen from their families any longer than they already have been. You asked for my help now I'm asking for yours."

Min looked at her friend, it had been her idea to ask him to help; she couldn't turn him down.

"Bo can watch Evan, all I have to do is ask."

MacGyver smiled at her and breathed a sigh of relief.

Min wasn't the only person that couldn't sleep; Johnny was lying on his bunk with his arms tucked under his head. He was staring up at the ceiling listening to the other firemen around him in the throes of slumber; their deep peaceful breathing filling the room. Johnny sighed, his bunk felt tiny and empty, he missed his bed and his missed his wife. Min would hold him close in the dark; her warm body pressed against him was a comfort. Sometimes he would wake up in the middle of the night and look at his wife. Her beautiful face peaceful as she slept, looking like some heavenly creature that didn't belong on Earth and certainly not with him. He realized how much she really meant to him, he thought about the first time they had met. He had pulled his future wife out of a battered and beaten up Mustang. The last thing he ever expected was to fall in love with her. His mind drifted to their wedding, seeing her in that beautiful white dress made him smile. She looked so beautiful, as she walked down that aisle towards him, being escorted by her brother and her cousin.

Johnny had put a gold ring on her finger and promised to be forever hers. He thought about the most precious thing his wife had given to him besides her heart and her love, his son.  Johnny could never tell her how much Evan meant to him and how truly grateful he would always be to her for his son. He could see them in that white room waiting for Evan to make his appearance, how scared and excited he was at the exact same time. Min leaning back against him, she had been so brave that whole time. Johnny watched the doctor put that tiny crying baby on her chest and how his throat had tightened when he saw him. He closed his eyes against that image; all he was doing was making himself more miserable. He turned to the side and faced the wall.

"Good night Min, night Evan." He kissed his fingers. "I love you."

Johnny whispered, he closed his eyes and tried to go to sleep.

The negotiations were going to take place at City Hall, a room had been set aside, it had a dark wooden table and a cart full of refreshments. There were 5 chairs, three along the top of the table and one on either side of it. MacGyver, Gillian and Min all walked into the room.

The threesome had dressed up nicely for this, MacGyver had on a pair of black dress pants and a dark blue button down shirt; he had a dark sport coat over it. Gillian had on a long black skirt and a white silk shirt; she had put her hair up in a French twist. Min had borrowed some clothes from Gillian, she had on a short dark grey skirt and a light grey silk shirt, she had left her hair down.

"Well this is it." MacGyver took off his sport coat and hung it on the back of the center chair at the head of the table. He reached into his pocket and clipped his Phoenix Foundation badge to his left breast pocket.

Gillian saw him and set down her folder full of papers. "Oh my badge." She put it on her pocket and turned it over so her photo could be seen.

Min was watching them. "Slight problem here guys, I don't work for the Phoenix Foundation. Aren't they going to wonder who I am and what I'm doing here?"

MacGyver reached into his pants pocket and took out another badge. "Problem solved." He handed it to her and Min looked at it. It had her photo on it and her name; it stated that she was a Operative Consultant Level 5.  She creased her brow. "But I don't work for Phoenix."

Mac nodded his head. "You do now; you are representing the Phoenix Foundation."

"What is an Operative Consultant?"

The couple looked at each other and MacGyver laughed. "Well, I'm an Operative and you are here to consult me that makes you are an Operative Consultant."

Min sighed and pinned the badge to her shirt pocket. "And I suppose level 5 means I'm important."

Mac pulled out his chair and sat down. "Yeah, I thought it was a nice touch."

At exactly 9 am, the doors opened and in walked Donald Tate, the City representative. The threesome stood up and MacGyver cleared his throat. "Mr. Tate?"

The older man with the salt and pepper hair and a navy blue suit turned towards him and nodded. "Yes, I assume you are Mr. MacGyver from the Phoenix Foundation?"

"Yes sir I am." They both shook hands and he turned to the two women on either side of him. "This is my assistant Gillian MacGyver." He turned towards Min. "And Min Gage, she is a consultant in this matter."

Donald Tate gave them a slight bow and extended his hand. "Ladies, a pleasure."

They both shook it and he went over to the cart and poured himself a cup of coffee and sat down on the right side of the table. The doors once again opened and Robert Bishop walked in, the brown haired man with the graying sides and a black suit looked at his counterpart drinking coffee, he frowned at him. He turned to the three people and stretched out his hand.

"Robert Bishop, Union representative, Mr. MacGyver?"

MacGyver shook his hand. "Yes, good of you to come today."

Bishop looked at the shook Min's hand. "Robert Bishop."

The dark haired woman gave him a slight smile. "Min Gage."

"Very nice to meet you."

He walked over to Gillian and shook her hand. "Robert Bishop."

"Gillian MacGyver."

"A pleasure to meet you all."

He sat down on the left side of the table and stared at his counterpart. "Mr. Tate."

Donald gave him a nod of his head. "Good to see you Mr. Bishop."

MacGyver nodded; at least they were being civil to each other, for now. The two women on either side of him sat down yet he remained standing.

"We all know why we are here today, my associates and I have been going over the 4 contracts that Mr. Bishop and his fellow Union members came up with. My first question to both of you is, what's the problem? All of the contracts were more than fair."

Donald Tate raised an eyebrow. "Well Mr. MacGyver you certainly cut right to the heart of the matter don't you?"

"Yes sir I do. I didn't come here to play games with both of you; this city is in trouble right now because the two of you can't seem to agree on what color the sky is."

Tate sighed. "There is no way we can give the LAFD what they want. The raise is way too high and the benefits are already very good."

Bishop scoffed. "The lowest we went on the raise is 5 % and as for the benefits. The families of the firemen and paramedics have to fork out a lot of money for doctor visits and prescriptions; we don't want them to have to pay anything. And it is not only that but the life insurance is too low. These are high risks jobs; they can easily leave the house and never come back."

"The benefits are for 10 thousand dollars, that's more than fair."

Min turned towards MacGyver and touched his arm, he leaned down and she whispered something in his ear. He listened to what she said, he nodded and straightened up.

"Excuse me Gentlemen but it has also been brought to my attention that there is no vision or dental insurance either." He turned to Tate. "And 10 thousand dollars is not much at all Mr. Tate, not if there are things like mortgages and young children to consider."

MacGyver finally sat down and Bishop nodded. "Mr. MacGyver is right Tate, that is nothing, most of the firemen are married and have children. How will that measly amount provide for them?"

Gillian opened the folder and took out a copy of the first contract, it also had the retirement plan mentioned in it and she showed it to her husband. He took the paper and nodded.

"Gentlemen what about the retirement plan?"

Tate shrugged. "What about it?"

Bishop shook his head. "Is that what you call it? I call it an embarrassment."

"What's wrong with it?"

"Tate it calls for the firemen to only get 25 % of their salary paid for the rest of their lives, that's sad."

MacGyver looked over the paper. "That is rather low Mr. Tate, most retirement plans pay at least 50 %."

The older man took off his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Oh give me a break, 50 %? That's outrageous."

Mac got up from his chair and walked around the table. "No I don't think so." He sat down on the edge of the table and looked at the City representative. "Let me see if I get the gist of things here Mr. Tate. You want the firemen and paramedics to go out everyday and save lives while putting theirs at considerable risk yet have to pay high prices for their medical care and get very little money if God forbid something does happen to them. Then if they do make it to retirement, you want them to get barely get enough to live on for years of dedicated service."

Tate cleared his throat. "Well, yeah."

Bishop lifted his head high and crossed his arms over his chest; he was glad that someone other than himself had finally pointed that out. "Thank you very much Mr. MacGyver."

Mac got up from the table and shook his head. "No wonder they went on strike." He stood in front of Robert Bishop. "And you Mr. Bishop, you want the city to totally pay for everything with no compromise?"

Bishop uncrossed his arms. "Well…yeah."

Mac also shook his head at him. "No wonder the city rejected it."

He sat back down between his two counterparts. "Gentlemen, that's the problem right there. The two of you are so busy being outraged and angry at each other you forgot that this is not about either one of you. It's about the firemen and the paramedics, who are out there right now breaking their backs because the two of you can't work this out. There is another issue here that I want to address to the both of you, the firing of the striking firemen."

Tate shook his head. "No, that is not even an issue. They walked away they are fired, it's that simple."

"No sir, I'm afraid it isn't that simple and what about the men that didn't walk away?"

"That was their decision."

Min leaned forward towards MacGyver, she whispered in his ear. He nodded and cleared his throat. "So they are not going to get compensated is that right?"

"Why should they? The LAFD is on strike, technically there is no Fire Department."

"Yeah but what choice did you leave them Tate? If they left they are jobless, if they stay they get no money. I know for a fact that more than half of the firemen and paramedics in this city left, the other half are still working because their conscience wouldn't allow them to leave the city without emergency services."

Bishop shook his head. "I encouraged them to leave and go home."

MacGyver sighed. "They aren't about to do that Bishop, they care about other people's lives as much as their own. They aren't about to take the chance of people dying just because the two of you can't see eye to eye. Would you want to live with that?"

Tate got up from the table and went to the cart, he refilled his coffee. "The City Council told me to tell the firemen if they left they were voluntarily terminated."

"Well the City Council instructed me to wipe the slate clean and start again and that's what I'm going to do." Gillian stood up and passed out copies of the first contract to both Tate and Bishop, her husband already had a copy, she handed one to Min.

"We are going to start with the first contract. My assistant will be taking notes; we're going to go over every contract until we settle this."

Bishop got up from the table and got himself a cup of coffee and a sweet roll; he took off his black blazer and put it on the back of his chair. "All right, were do we start?"

MacGyver picked up the contract and looked at it. "The medical insurance, according to this, the firemen have to pay a copay whenever they see a doctor."

"That's right they do."

"How much is it?"

Bishop's eyebrows went up. "Uhh, I don't know."

Min touched Mac on the shoulder, he turned towards her and she whispered in his ear.

"The copay is 25 dollars for an office visit and not to mention the 25 for prescriptions." He looked at Tate. "Mr. Tate? Don't you think that 50 dollars is a bit high?"

The older man shrugged. "Well, maybe."

Gillian wrote down the information and also what she thought was more reasonable, she casually lifted her notepad and showed it to Min. The dark haired woman nodded and nudged Mac, he looked at what his wife had written down. "Mr. Tate how you would feel about 15 for office visits and 10 per prescription?"

Tate thought about it, that was half the amount but it wasn't that bad. "That's fine with me."

Mac turned his attention to Bishop. "Mr. Bishop?"

The brown haired man nodded. "That's acceptable."

MacGyver smiled. "See there you go, you two finally agree on something."

Gillian crossed that off of the list and whispered to her husband as she took out copies of the second contract, this one focused on the life insurance. She gave everyone a copy of it and sat back down.

"Okay, now let's talk about the life insurance pay out." Mac looked at both men. "Don't you think that firemen need more then 10 thousand if something were to happen to them?"

Tate sighed. "How much do you think would be adequate?"

MacGyver cleared his throat. "50 thousand."

The City representative's eyes got wide. "That's 5 times the amount."

Min cleared her throat and MacGyver turned towards her; she cupped her hand to his ear and whispered in it. When she was done saying her peace she casually sat back in her seat.

"Mr. Tate, are you married?"

Donald Tate adjusted his tie. "Yes Mr. MacGyver I am."

He nodded. "So am I and so are a lot of people, especially in the LAFD. Wouldn't you want your family to be well provided for in case something did happen to you?"

The older man nodded. "Yes I would."

"Do you honestly think that 10 thousand dollars would do that?"

Tate looked across the table at Bishop; both of his eyebrows were up.  "Answer the question Tate."

The City representative closed his eyes briefly; he knew full well that it wouldn't. "All right, it wouldn't."

MacGyver nodded. "Good, so 50 thousand then?"

The older man reluctantly nodded. "Yes, and the addition of the vision and dental insurance as well."

"Good, that's what I thought; after all, firemen need to see if you expect them to do their jobs."

MacGyver smiled at his wife as she crossed that off of their list, things were actually starting to progress. The firemen had won three victories; it was a small start but a good one.

The City Hall building had a nice cafeteria, they had stopped for lunch and the three of them were huddled in a corner table going over the last two contracts; these dealt with the life insurance and the raise. MacGyver was eating a club sandwich; he had a sip of his ice tea. "I have to hand it to those two, they are pretty stubborn."

Gillian had ordered a Cobb salad, she nodded. "Yeah I know, is it any wonder all this mess started in the first place?"

Min was playing with her salad; she was thinking about her husband, Mac saw her. "Min?"

She didn't hear him, he said her name again and she flinched. "Oh sorry, my mind was somewhere else."

"Yeah I think I know where."

She finally stopped playing with her lunch and started eating it. "Do you think things are going good?"

Gillian wiped her mouth with a napkin. "Actually I do, we only have a few issues left to cover and then it'll be over."

Min sighed. "I'm so glad to hear you say that."

The only man at the table pushed his tray aside. "Let's not start throwing confetti just yet, those two mules are really going to dig their heels in. The last issues are also the ones that caused the strike in the first place, especially the raise." Mac took Gillian's notepad and flipped it to a blank page, he took out a pen. "That's what I wanted to ask you Min. This is personal and totally none of my business and I know that but I have to ask, what does Johnny make?"

Min wiped her mouth. "It's okay; I know you are asking for a good reason. Since he is both a fireman and a paramedic he gets a little more. He brings home 1150 dollars a paycheck after taxes."

He wrote that down on the pad. "So he brings home 2300 a month which works about to 27600 a year, that sound about right?"

Min nodded. "Yeah, it's supposed to be 30 actually but with taxes and all."

"Do you know what a regular fireman brings home?"

"I think Johnny said they make 24000 a year, that's fresh out of the academy."

MacGyver put his pen in his mouth briefly. "According to the current retirement plan he would make about 7500 dollars a year." He shook his head. "That is terrible, to go from 30 grand to 7500? No one could afford to retire on that."

Gillian nodded. "Yeah that is pretty bad."

"We have to convince Tate to go with the standard 50 %, at least that is livable; it isn't champagne and caviar but its burger and fries at least."

Min finished her salad and pushed her tray aside. "What about the raise?"

MacGyver sighed. "That is the big one, Bishop's last contract he submitted to the City Council and Tate called for a 10 % raise. I honestly don't think that Tate would go for that."

"So what do you plan to ask for?"

"5 %." He did the math on what that would mean to Johnny's salary. "It would raise his salary from 30 to 31500, which would mean 162.50 more a month. How does that sound to you Min?"

"Well they definitely deserve something. I mean 162 bucks isn't a lot but it's decent, I think the 5 % is fine."

MacGyver turned towards his wife. "Gill?"

The redheaded woman nodded. "That's a good amount, and Min is right, they do deserve something."

The break for lunch was over and the 5 people were back in the meeting room. MacGyver stood up and addressed the two men.

"Gentlemen I take it your lunch was good and you are ready to get back to business."

Bishop gave him a nod. "Yeah, it was fine."

Tate also nodded. "It was good, thank you."

"Good."

Gillian stood up and gave everyone a copy of the third contract.

MacGyver scooted out of his chair and walked around the table. "You see before you is contract number 3, this is the one that addresses the issue of the retirement plan. As I said earlier, I think that the 25% that the firemen have now is too low. I propose it be raised to 50%."

Tate crossed his arms over his chest. "I don't think so, the 25 is more than adequate."

Bishop scoffed. "It is not and you know that."

Mac stretched out his hand towards his wife and Gillian stood up, she handed him her notepad. He flipped up the page cleared his throat. "According to our calculations, a fireman/paramedic brings home less than 30000 a year, 25% of that would be 7500 dollars." He lowered the pad and looked at the city representative sideways. "7500 dollars Mr. Tate. You spend more than that on your suits alone."

Min pressed her lips together and lowered her head; she was trying so hard not to laugh. She looked over at Gillian; she too had a slight grin in her face.

Robert Bishop didn't try to hide his laughter, he let it out. "That is a very good point Mr. MacGyver."

Donald Tate cleared his throat. "30 %."

Mac shook his head. "That's 9000, 50%."

"40 %."

MacGyver sat down on the edge of the table near the City representative.  "12000, no that isn't good enough, you couldn't live on that little why should they. I want 50%."

Tate sighed and shook his head. "All right, 50%."

Bishop slapped the table, he was happy. "Yes! All right!"

MacGyver smiled and got off of the table, he gave his wife a nod and she stood up and passed out the last contract.

He sat back down between the two women. "Okay Gentlemen, this is going to be double jeopardy here. The first issue I want to talk to you about is the firing of the striking firemen. I think they should be allowed to return to their stations."

Donald Tate looked at the negotiator. "I thought we had this settled."

"No, we talked about it but nothing was decided, I want to do that now. First off, are they terminated; before the three of us were brought into this the answer was yes. The City Council has put this in our hands, so I'm asking you Mr. Tate, do they get to return to their jobs or do they lose them because they took a stand?"

The two women turned towards the older man, along with the Robert Bishop, Tate was silent. MacGyver sat back in his chair. "Come on Mr. Tate; don't tell me you never took a stand against something you didn't think was fair."

Donald sighed. "I would be lying to you Mr. MacGyver if I said I have never gone against something."

Mac nodded. "Then you can understand how anger and frustration can sometimes lead a person to do irrational and illogical things."

The brown haired looked at his counterpart. "Tate, you know as well as I do that sometimes your temper can get in the way of your judgment. I think we know that better than anyone, if we had been able to keep ours in check the firemen wouldn't have walked off to begin with."

Min was watching him, she had her fingers crossed under the table, she was hoping the words that were being spoken to him were getting through his obviously thick skull.

Donald Tate took his glasses off of his face and rubbed his eyes. "All right, they can come back to their jobs."

MacGyver smiled. "Good, one issue left, and I think you both know what that is, the Fire Department getting a raise."

Robert Bishop looked at the negotiator. "I propose the LAFD get a 10% raise."

"All right." Mac turned his head towards Donald Tate. "Mr. Tate?"

Tate raised an eyebrow. "That is an awful lot, 10 %."

Min licked her lips and turned towards MacGyver; she cupped her hand to his ear and whispered some things into it. He nodded and she turned forward again.

"My counterpart brings up an excellent point Mr. Tate; the job has a lot of hazards to it, should this not be a factor in your decision? And what about the men that are both firemen and paramedics, that's twice the duty and twice the risk."

Bishop also nodded. "The young lady makes a point Tate, those men do risk a lot and they do it on a daily basis, they haven't had a raise in at least 5 years. The last 4 times I proposed it to the city it was rejected."

MacGyver didn't think that Tate was even going to discuss the 10% he was going to propose 5% but since things were going so well he decided to keep his mouth shut and see if they could persuade the City representative to go for the 10. "Mr. Tate, I do believe the ball is in your court."

Tate sighed. "If I agree to the 10% Bishop then it will be at least two years before the City Council will even entertain the idea of another raise for the LAFD."

Three sets of eyes turned towards the Union representative, Bishop had a little smirk on his face. "So if I push for 10% you won't talk raise for at least another two years?"

Donald Tate gave him a nod. "Yes, exactly."

Bishop swallowed hard and cleared his throat; he stood up and stuck out his hand. "Done."

MacGyver closed his eyes and sighed, he stood up. "Mr. Tate, most gentlemen seal deals with handshakes, do it quick before he changes his mind."

Donald Tate stood up and shook the Union representative's hand. "Done."

They both started smiling as they shook hands, MacGyver was very happy. "You both will receive the contracts first thing this evening. We will hold the press conference and announce the agreement has been reached, see you both back here at 5 pm."

The two men broke the handshake and shook MacGyver's hand. "5 pm Mr. MacGyver see you then."

Mac gave the two gentlemen a nod. "5 pm, Have a good day Gentlemen."

Tate smiled at the two women. "A pleasure ladies, good day."

Bishop was ecstatic; he put his coat back on. "I can't believe we pulled that off." He looked at the three people. "Thank you so much, the firemen will be grateful to you as well." He started to leave and MacGyver called out to him, the Union representative turned around.

"The next time you have to deal with the city Bishop, trying looking at things through the eyes of the men you represent, it'll give you a whole new perspective."

Robert Bishop gave Mac a smile and a nod. "I'll try that, see you in a little while."

He walked out of the room and as soon as the double doors closed, Gillian got up and hugged her husband. "Oh my God Mac we did it!"

Mac sighed and hugged his wife. "Yeah we did. Man that was tough."

Min was overjoyed, as soon as they let go of each other she turned MacGyver towards her and hugged him. "I knew bringing you in on this was right thing to do, it's over now and Johnny will be coming home, thank you."

MacGyver patted her back. "Hey now I couldn't have done anything without the two of you; you both kept me on the right track."

Johnny was lying on his bunk with his arm slung over his eyes; he heard the phone ring and Chet poked his head into the bunkhouse. "Gage, phone."

"Who is it?"

"Who else would be calling you?"

Johnny uncovered his eyes. "Min?"

"Yeah."

He got out of bed fast and ran into the kitchen, the rest of the men were playing poker, he took the phone from Chet. "Min?"

"Yeah it's me."

He smiled. "How's it going?"

Min started laughing. "Baby its over! Turn on the TV in two hours and you will see Donald Tate and Robert Bishop signing the new contract!"

Johnny's face bloomed into a huge grin. "You're kidding?"

"No Honey I'm not!"

He started laughing. "Hold on a second."

"Okay, go ahead and tell the rest of the guys."

Johnny covered the phone and looked at the rest of the men, they were watching him. He smiled at all of them. "It's over! The strike is over!"

The rest of 51 were overjoyed, they took all of their playing cards and tossed them in the air. All of these questions started flying at Johnny.

"The raise?"

"Are the firemen that left fired?"

"The insurance?"

Johnny put the phone back to his ear. "Min what about the raise?"

"10 % Johnny, you guys get your 10%."

The paramedic was still grinning. "We got the 10?"

Chet started yelling. "Johnny you tell that wife of yours I owe her a big kiss!"

"Ha! Stand in line Chet." He put the phone back to his ear. "And the men that went on strike?"

"They'll be back on the job as soon as the ink is dry. The insurance copayments got lowered, the life insurance pay out got raised to 50000, the vision and dental got added. You all got pretty much everything you wanted."

Johnny sighed and leaned back against the brick wall. "I'm so glad Min; you tell Mac I owe him a steak and lobster dinner for this."

"I will Baby, I'll be at the station as soon as the press conference is over."

Johnny kissed the phone. "I'll be waiting."

"I'll see you soon Honey, bye."

"Bye." He hung up the phone and looked at his partner, Roy was smiling.

"It's over Johnny, we're going home!"

"I know, it's great isn't it?"

The two paramedics were laughing as they hugged each other and kept their arms slung over their shoulders. Both men were happy, exhausted and totally relieved.

The 6 men of Station 51 were all huddled around the television; they saw Min, Gillian and MacGyver standing around the table. Johnny smiled when he saw his wife.

"There's Min."

MacGyver had two contracts in his hands and he set them down on both sides of the tables. The doors opened and the two representatives came in and sat down where they had been earlier. Bishop was to Mac's left, Tate to his right.

"Gentlemen, you know why you have come back here this evening. You both have agreed to all of the terms outlined in this contract." He leaned forward and pointed to a line. "Mr. Bishop, you sign here."

Robert Bishop picked up the long black pen and signed his name, he set the pen down.

"Thank you."

MacGyver turned to the City Representative. "Mr. Tate, you sign here." He pointed out the line and Donald Tate picked up his long black pen and signed his name.

"Thank you Mr. Tate."

Mac picked up both contracts and checked to make sure everything was in order. He fanned them to make sure the ink was dry and put them in a black briefcase, he closed it and locked it.

"Gentlemen, thank you for coming, have a good evening."

The two men got up and walked out of the room, Mac turned towards the camera.

"It is over now LAFD, you got what you wanted. All of you that left your stations can go back now, your jobs are waiting for you. For those of you that stayed you will be getting paid for the 4 days of nonstop shift work. I talked to Chief Forrester and you all have also been given the next 4 days off. Chief Forrester also asked me to give a special message directly to the one station that stuck together." He smiled. "Station 51, you're very dedicated to your city and your profession and deserve not only his thanks, but the city of Los Angeles' as well, good job guys. Take the next 4 days off and rest, I think you've earned it."

Mac looked at the press. "Now if all will excuse us, this press conference is over."

MacGyver picked up the briefcase and offered both of his arms to his female counterparts. Both Min and Gillian took his arms and the threesome walked out of the room.

The news station people covering the press conference didn't even get a chance to ask any questions of the three negotiators, they were gone that fast.

MacGyver pulled up his black Corvette along the street of the red brick stationhouse. He honked the horn and got out, he moved his seat up and offered Min his hand. She got out and went running up the driveway.

"Johnny?"

The big white door slowly opened and Min saw her husband standing there, she ran up to him and hugged him hard. She closed her eyes and held him tightly to her.

Johnny had his arms around her waist and buried his head in her shoulder. He sighed and closed his eyes; it felt so good to hold his wife.

MacGyver and Gillian were standing there watching them. He had his arm slung over his wife's shoulders, he had a smile on his face. "Look at those two mushies Gill, disgusting ain't it?"

Gillian sighed. "Yeah please, this is a public place!"

Roy came out to see why he heard a horn blow. He saw his friend; he walked up to MacGyver and slapped him on the back. "Hey MacGyver."

"Hi Roy, how do you feel?"

"Fantastic, A shift is coming in right now at 6 and we are all out of here."

MacGyver smiled. "Good, I'm glad you don't have to wait until the morning to go home."

Roy shook his hand. "Thanks for settling things, we really appreciate it."

"No problem, I'm glad I could help."

Roy smiled at him and went back inside.

Johnny and Min finally let go of each other, Min touched her husband's face. "You get to come home at 6?"

The paramedic nodded. "Yeah, A shift is coming in so we can leave."

"I'm glad."

Johnny touched his forehead to his wife's. "As soon as the 4 days is up I'm putting in for a two week vacation. I want to take you and Evan somewhere nice."

"You don't have to do that Johnny."

"No, I want to." He gave his wife a kiss.

Mac winked at his wife. "Oh please, get a room!"

The couple turned towards him and Johnny looked angry, he walked up to his friend. "Get a room? Is that what you think I should do?"

Mac nodded, he face growing serious. "Yeah! Got a problem with that?"

"Yeah I got a problem with that!"

"So what are you going to do about it?"

The two men were standing nose to nose and Johnny smiled widely and stuck out his hand. "Shake your hand."

Mac started laughing and shook his friend's hand. "Boy you firemen are tough!"

Johnny shook his head, his face breaking out into a grin. "Thanks Mac, like I told Min. I owe you a steak and lobster dinner for this."

"Nah, you don't."

"No I do, Friday night, how does that sound?"

MacGyver smiled. "Okay, call the house on Thursday night and we'll figure out where."

Johnny nodded and slapped his friend's shoulder. "I will."

It was only 8 o'clock but the Gage house was dark and quiet. The only sound came from the master bedroom; it was filled with the sounds of deep, restful sleep. Min was lying with her head on her husband's chest; Johnny had his arm around her shoulders. Evan was lying in the crook of his father's left arm; the little baby was snuggled against his father's chest.

Johnny opened his eyes and hugged both of them a little tighter to him. He sighed and a small smile came to his lips, he closed his eyes and went back to sleep.