Sorry for the short chapter. Work's been getting in the way. I hope to get a few chapters done this weekend. Thanks to all those who have taken the time to review. I love hearing what you have to say.
Susanne
The entire group stood by the windows or door, watching to see what the helicopter with the search light was intending to do. Deep in each of their hearts, they were hoping desperately that their rescue had finally come.
The search light panned over the fire, the ransacked shops and the clinic. It paused for several moments on the clinic before the helicopter passed over them. The group was forced to cover their ears with their hands to protect them from the loud noise of the machine's rotors. Chris thought her head was going to explode with the pounding of the blades. She was beginning to wonder what the pilot was doing when the clinic shook slightly.
"They've landed on the roof," Jon stated. Suddenly blocking off the ventilation system didn't seem like such a wise move.
"Paul, you fit through the shafts better than the rest of us, go up there and see what's going on," Ponch stated. He and the younger man were heading toward the backroom as he spoke.
Thomas and Nick pried the board off of the main ventilation shaft and then helped to boost the smaller man inside. Effortlessly, Paul shimmied his way through the shafts. They were pretty narrow but he wasn't a very large man and had done this once all ready. In a matter of minutes he was at the top of the shaft. He paused for a moment before trying to push the metal plate up. For all he knew the helicopter was parked on top of the plate.
Cautiously, he pressed against the thick metal plate. He was greatly relieved when the plate began to move upward. He was immediately startled when the plate was pulled out of his hands and lifted off. Paul's first instinct was to let go of the sides of the shaft and slide down it but before he had a chance to relax his fingers, strong, gloved hands caught hold of him and pulled him out of the shaft.
"Are you alone?" a tall, menacing man in a uniform barked.
Paul stalled long enough to glance around at the four other men standing beside him and the helicopter with its still spinning rotors. "Why?" It wasn't brilliant or witty but it was the only thing he could come up with.
"We're with the National Guard. We've been told to evacuate this area. You can try to stay here but it's our duty to make you leave," the guard stated. With the helmet and the rest of the gear it was hard to make out the man's features but he was taller than Paul and heavier. Paul wasn't going to have much of a chance to break away from these people. Besides, they had guns and knew how to use them.
"There are eleven of us. We're hold up in the clinic below to work on our wounded and to keep ourselves safe," Paul finally admitted. Unconsciously, he glanced toward the parking lot, half expecting a mob of people to come swarming over top of the building.
"How many are injured?" the tallest of the five asked. He had a deep voice and a presence that made Paul not want to cross the man.
"Three, no four. Johnny just got cut from broken glass."
"What kind of injuries are we looking at?"
"Roy isn't moving very well. I think he has broken ribs. Jon has a broken arm and a wrenched knee. Sam has a broken arm as well. Johnny was being stitched up when we started watching the helicopter." Paul watched as the other men took up position to scan the areas around the clinic. Their rifles made them very intimidating indeed.
"Are they mobile?" the leader asked. Paul was searching for some sign of insignia but all the men's uniforms had the same markings. They didn't even have names on them.
"Sam's fine. Roy and Jon are moving pretty slowly. Johnny should be fine. We also have two women with us. Helen is older and Chris is a little over weight but she moves pretty good. How are you going to get them up here?" Paul had to ask. He couldn't see some of the others climbing up the air shaft. He also couldn't see any of these men climbing down it; they were all too bulky to fit.
"Is this the only way up here?" The man was looking around the rooftop, trying to come up with options.
"Now that we're inside we could use the front or back door but then we'd still have to get them all up here. Not all of them can climb."
"We can use repelling gear or we have a rope ladder in the chopper" one of the men suggested. He was positioned on the front wall and had yet to find a way down.
"Only as a last resort," the leader stated. Quickly, he paced the roof, taking in every inch of the walls as he went.
"I need to go down and let the others know what's going on. They're going to start worrying soon. What should I tell them?" Paul asked.
"I could go down with him," the smallest of the group offered. Paul looked at him sceptically.
"You'd have to drop most of your gear, Mac. We'll find another way down."