Disclaimer: I do not own Emergency! Or any rights to it or its characters. I use them for my enjoyment only. I hope you enjoy as well.
CHAPTER 9
Mikki stayed in the ICU for another three days. Every time she woke up there was somebody else in the room with her. If it wasn't John, it was Roy or Captain Stanley. Even Chet, Marco and Mike came by to see her. A lot of the staff from Rampart popped in as well. It made the time go by fast for her. By the time she was ready to be discharged, the swelling in her eye had gone down. It had blossomed with color but she could fully open it now. Her cheek was also brightly colored but was heeling nicely. Her ribs would take some time and she would have to be careful of Tommy jumping on her in the morning while she was lying in bed.
Johnny came in the door. "Ready to go home?"
"Just about. I'm just waiting for Dr. Brackett to come around with the final discharge instructions." She replied.
"Oh, he gave me your instructions for this afternoon and he will bring the rest of his instructions over tonight when he comes to check on you."
"He doesn't need to check on me. I'll be fine. The boys will be there with me."
"He wants to come out and see the horses."
"I don't have any horses."
"But I do…that is where you are going. To My House!"
"John, I can't do that. I have to go home with the boys."
"The boys are already at my house and settled in nicely. Cathy brought them there yesterday. They stayed over last night. I put a television in the family room so Tommy can watch TV. I was going to put it in his room but Frankie mentioned that we might have trouble getting him to go to sleep if I did that." Johnny had one of his crooked grins on his face. He was just waiting.
Captain Stanley walked in the door. "Well, good afternoon. Are you ready to go home?"
"Johnny says I'm going to his house. I want to go to my own house."
"Sorry, orders from the bosses…Dr. Brackett and me. You can't refuse Dr. Brackett's orders because you work for him and if you ever want to ride along with my paramedics again, you had best take orders from me too."
"I guess I have been told." She relented. "Can we at least stop by my house so I can get some clothes and stuff."
"Already been taken care of." Cap and John replied in unison.
"Is there anything that I can say that you haven't taken care of." She asked.
"Nope!" again in unison.
Dixie arrived with a wheelchair. "Ready to go?"
"Not in one of those." Said Mikki.
"Yes, in one of those. Hospital regulations." Replied Dixie.
"Great." Said Mikki very sarcastically.
Johnny helped Mikki get in his Rover and headed for the ranch. Hank Stanley was right behind them. Mikki thought she recognized the car that was in front of them too.
"John, who is that in front of us?"
"That's Detective Randall. He said he wanted to escort us to the ranch and then he can brief his guys that are at the end of my road. He doesn't think that anyone would try to come to the house but he doesn't want to take any chances either. Actually, the whole crew is at the house waiting for us for a BBQ."
"I don't know if I'm ready for that."
"Sure you are. You're like me. You'll feel better when there are people around and trust me, until that trial, you will have lots of people around. Now, why don't you close your eyes for a few minutes until we get there."
Mikki did just that and before she knew it they were at John's ranch. He helped her get out of the Rover and in the house. John walked her in to the guest bedroom that Tommy had fallen asleep in during the first BBQ she attended at his house. He thought the memory of that would make her feel more comfortable. It was also right across the hall from his room and he would be able to hear her if she needed him or there were any problems.
Once Mikki changed into a t-shirt and jeans and was more comfortable, she headed out on to the back deck. She found the boys and gave Frankie a big hug. She had to wait patiently from Tommy to come to her. Joanne came over to her and gave her a gentle hug. They chatted for a few minutes and then Joanne went off to help with the food. All the guys from 51 were there as well as many of the doctors and nurses from Rampart. After about an hour, Mikki was starting to feel pretty overwhelmed and emotional. She very quietly headed down to the stable to get a few minutes alone. She was standing at the corral fence and Cassie came over for a nuzzle.
"Hey Cassie. How are you girl?" asked Mikki.
Cassie nuzzled into Mikki's neck and Mikki started to cry. The flood gates opened and she couldn't stop. The next thing she knew there was a hand on her back. She turned her head and looked up. John was behind her. She hadn't even heard him coming after her. He pulled her in to him.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
"Yes. I guess I'm just overwhelmed by all the people here. It is so nice that you have so many friends and that they always include me in everything."
"These aren't just my friends, Mikki. These are our friends. They care as much for you as they do me. They want you to know that you have their full support. Do you know how much courage you had to have to go to the police with the information on Buchanan? Do you know how much courage you have every day to get out of bed and take care of those boys of yours? Do you know how much courage you have when you enter a burning building or go over a cliff to rescue someone? Dixie told me when I first asked about you that you don't give yourself enough credit. She's right. You need to realize that you are a fantastic person. We all know that, now it is your turn."
By the time Johnny finished what he was saying Mikki was crying even harder. She had a small smile on her face and he would have seen how she was blushing if it wasn't for the bruise on her cheek.
"Well, I guess even I have something new to learn today."
John looked at Mikki. Neither of them noticed but Cassie had moved so that her head was behind Johnny. Mikki looked up at Johnny and Cassie gave Johnny a light nudge.
"I think Cassie is trying to tell me something." With that John leaned over and kissed Mikki gently on the lips.
"Ready to go back?" he asked.
"Yes."
After everyone had eaten supper, Mikki went to the guest room with Dr. Brackett because he wanted to check her over to make sure that everything was okay. Once that was done, he gave her some pain meds for the nighttime if she needed them and told her not to do too much. He expected that she would stay at John's until she was ready to return to work. He told her that John was back on duty in two days and that day she could come in the office. That way she would be in the hospital while John wasn't home and the hospital staff could look after her. Cathy would be staying with her and the boys overnight and then John would be home the next morning. Detective Randall was going to leave his officers at the end of Johnny's road to keep an eye on who was coming and going from the house. The trial date had been set for two weeks from now and Mikki was to stay at John's until she left to go back east for the trial.
While Dr. Brackett was telling her all this, Captain Stanley joined in the conversation and agreed with everything that Dr. Brackett told her. He also told her that when she had been cleared to come back to active duty that there was a bunk with her name on it. She was welcome anytime.
Mikki was learning not to argue with Dr. Brackett and Captain Stanley. They were looking out for her and the boys and she was grateful for that. She just hoped that she didn't disappoint them or place them in any danger because of what they were doing for her.
Author's note: I hope I'm not disappointing anyone. This story is kind of writing itself. I'm not sure where it is going but I think I like where it has been so far. Thanks for all the kind reviews. They help add fuel to the fire.
