Chapter 28
Note: I have tried to look up information for LA County Fire Department from the 1970's but I am having a hard time finding what I need. In the interest of getting some writing done instead of getting bogged down in research and red tape I'm writing this chapter (mainly the process that Johnny will go through at Rampart and with Captain Stanley) based on fiction.
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Most of Johnny's visits to Rampart were usually work related and the County took care of those bills, so he usually didn't have to do much more than show up sick or hurt. Captain Stanley, the billing department at Rampart, and LA County Fire Department took care of the rest.
Johnny would live to regret his last statement.
Dixie said, "You know you're going to have to go up and seeing billing."
Going up to see billing wasn't what Johnny wanted to do right now, but he replied with a sigh and a shrug of the shoulder, "I hadn't even thought about that. Yeah, I guess I better."
"Just hold on a minute. You'll need to take them my paperwork." Dixie said as she finished out her part of the billing information then handed Johnny the paper.
Automatically he reached out with his right hand to find that with it being cut, numbed, and bandaged that he had made a bad choice. He frowned, changed his mind and his hand to the left one. Johnny looked to Dee Dee, "You can wait down here with Dix if you want, I shouldn't be long. They should have all my information in triplicate by now."
"Alright. Give me you coat. No sense in carrying it all over the place." Dee Dee offered.
Johnny replied, "Thanks."
After he walked down the hall toward the elevators, Dee Dee asked while holding both turn out coats, "I thought you said he was a lousy patient. He wasn't that bad."
Dixie rolled her eyes, "He must have been on his best behavior because you were in there. Coffee?"
"Sure." Dee Dee found an empty place to lay both the coats and took the offered cup.
Dixie asked, "So?"
"So?" Dee Dee questioned her aunt back.
Dixie raised her eyebrows a couple of times, "How are you two doing?"
"Good." Was Dee Dee's simple answer, then she added, "With the way both our shifts run, then with call in's, the EMT class, and now this, it seems that there are times that we talk more on the radio or professionally than we do in person."
"I tried to tell, ... " Dixie had already began.
Dee Dee cut her short, "I wasn't really complaining, just commenting that sometimes things get a lot hetic, but at least when the phone rings telling me to come in at 4 am he does understand, because he got the same call the night or so before."
Before Dixie could respond she was called away. Unfortunately, Dixie understood exactly what Dee Dee was talking about. It was all too familiar to her and Kel's relationship, if you could call it that. Most of the time Dixie wasn't sure herself exactly how to explain just what her and Brackett shared outside of Rampart.
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A couple hours later Johnny found himself standing in Dee Dee's living room waiting for Captain Stanley to pick up the phone for a conversation that Johnny had been dreading since leaving Morton.
"Captain Stanley." Hank answered professionally.
"Cap, this is Johnny. I really hate to call this late and all, ... but, ..." Johnny began.
Hank replied, "It's alright, Johnny. What's up?"
Johnny took a deep breath, then began, "I know this is really short notice and all on a 48 hour shift, but, ..."
"But, what, ... John?" Stanley asked in a much more formal tone that the conversation had started out.
"I'm not going to be able to come in for my scheduled 48 hours shift tomorrow." Johnny said.
Hank noted that Johnny sounded alright. He didn't sound as if he were sick. "John, you do know that you are required to have a doctors excuse for anything over eight hours."
Johnny looked at from his bandaged hand to the excuse Mortin had signed for him, "That is taken care of, Cap."
Hank prided himself on not just having a professional relationship with his men, but a personal one also, "Alright. What is wrong Johnny? Is there anything that the guys of myself can do?"
Johnny gave a sideways grin to the phone that he was speaking into, "No Cap, I'll be fine. I just cut my hand pretty badly. Dr. Mortin has me off at least until I see him on Monday."
Stanley felt bad for his man, but knew how hard he would be to replace. What bothered him more was that Johnny was the ultimate 'bad patient'. 'What had he done to get his hand that injured and yet already been seen in the emergency room before he called anyone?' Hank wondered, then voiced, "Don't tell me you were working on the Rover again?"
Johnny half wished that had been the case. "No, Cap it wasn't the Rover."
"Then what on Earth could you have gotten into to get hurt that badly?" Stanley asked.
Here is was, time for the truth, ... Johnny paused before replying, "I was at Dee Dee's when 204 got called out for an accident. I thought maybe they could use a hand so I went with her to the station and responded with them to a wreck. My hand got cut pretty badly getting the patient out."
Suddenly Hank was feeling a headache coming on. "John who authorized you to roll with them?"
Johnny replied honestly, "I asked Chief Potter if he needed me at the station."
"Alright, that at least is a start. Look I'll get the shift covered, just come on in first thing in the morning and we'll get all the paperwork started." Stanley advised.
Johnny had really looked forward to sleeping in since being told that he wasn't going to be allowed to work. He asked, "Paperwork?"
"Well, I know you don't want to miss at least 48 hours of work without pay. Surely, you know it can't be turned in on the County compensation, so, ... we'll have to get up with Chief Potter and turn it in on 204's compensation for the hospital bill and then we'll have to run either sick time or vacation time through payroll so that you get paid for your time off." Johnny now knew why he had never wanted that white helmet the Chiefs wore.
"Yeah, alright. I'll see you then. Thanks Cap." Johnny said.
"Just keep that hand clean and get it healed so you can get back to work." Stanley advised.
Johnny grinned at the phone, "Yeah, right Cap."
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Sorry this chapter is so short but it seemed like a good place to end. Please review as encouragement for a faster / longer update! Thanks for reading!
