Thank you very much to Kathey, Linda, Jada, and Wendy for taking the time to let me know what you think about continuing. I've got a vague idea in my head so we'll see where it takes me. I hope you enjoy this as much as the rest of it. I have a fear that I'm going to stretch it a little thin. Please let me know if I do.

Susanne

P.S. I'll keep your ideas under consideration, Jada. I can all ready see the epilogue but again, we'll see where I go.

"Aren't you supposed to be resting?" Dr. Brackett asked as he looked at Roy. The paramedic had just asked to be cleared medically so he could help with a search for another camp up in the hills. The man must be nuts. Kelly Brackett couldn't imagine the pain the man must be in but he was completely serious in his request.

"Are my ribs going to magically heal in the next two days if I rest?" Roy responded.

The four of them had found Captain Stanley again and filled him in on the information Chris's Mom had supplied them. Hank Stanley had finally found Battalion and filled them in on their escapades so far. The brass at Battalion had been impressed that they'd made it back but had also made it perfectly clear that they weren't to go running off again. The n Roy asked to be allowed to go on a search based on information coming out of Canada of all places. If he hadn't known Roy as well as he had, he would have thought the senior paramedic had a brain injury.

After much debate and a little arguing, Hank had relented with the condition that Roy gets a clean bill of health medically. The captain of A shift at Station 51 had thought that was a hoop that Roy wasn't going to be able to jump through.

"No," Dr. Brackett conceded. "But none of you are in any shape to be wondering around out there, trying to find a camp."

"My brother's out there. I don't care if I get an okay from anyone here, I'm going to find him," Chris said. The spark was back in her brown eyes. There was also a determination that burned inside them that made Dr. Brackett realize very quickly that he wasn't going to be able to talk her out of it. He wasn't sure he even wanted to.

"We're not going to let you run off by yourself, Chris. You don't even know your way around," Johnny stated. He was quite enjoying being in camp with all its amenities, like fresh water and hot food. He really wasn't that eager to head off into the desolation again. But he would if he had to to keep the woman safe.

"You won't have a choice. I'm not going home without him." Chris looked at the men surrounding her. They all meant well but she wasn't going to let them or anyone else stop her. Paul was in the hills somewhere, or he was yesterday and she was going to comb the hills until she found him. Or until he found her, whichever came first.



"I can't in good conscious clear you to go off on another search, Roy," Dr. Brackett interjected. He didn't much like where this conversation was going. He understood the woman's motives and even admired them but he didn't agree with dragging the two paramedics into it. Especially Roy with his battered ribs.

"If I'm going to be forced to rest then I'm taken off the roster, right?" Roy inquired. He wasn't taking no for an answer but he also wanted to make sure that he had a job to come back to when he was finished.

"I suppose. Where are you going with this?" Dr. Brackett asked.

"If I'm off the roster then I can pretty much do what I want. I can go with Chris to find her brother if I choose to, right?" Roy persisted.

"I wouldn't go that far, Roy," Kelly Brackett countered. "If I order you to rest then you're required to and when I say rest, that's exactly what I expect you to do."

Captain Stanley had headed off to Battalion to let them in on the new development. The people in charge hadn't known about the other camp at all. Even with their helicopters and other aerial machines they hadn't seen any signs of another camp gathering anywhere in the hills. That left an awful lot of territory for anyone to search, much less a Canadian woman who didn't know her way around. At least that was the argument Hank had presented to his superiors.

His face completely serious, Stanley walked up to the arguing doctor and paramedics and waited until they noticed his arrival.

"What does Battalion have to say, Cap?" Johnny asked. He was getting tired of the whole situation and was ready to either go get some sleep or to head out, whichever was going to happen first.

"Well," Hank began. "Apparently Battalion and the other services didn't know about this other camp. They're a little curious as to why that might be so they've decided to send out a search party as soon as the fires are under control."

"And when will that be?" Chris asked. She didn't want to wait.

"Probably early tomorrow afternoon. Look, I know you're anxious to head out but I'd recommend waiting until then. The Chief said he'd have a helicopter drop the search party off in the hills so they don't waste time getting through the city. That alone ought to save a few days time," Captain Stanley said.

"They know that I'm going on any search party they send, right?" Chris asked. If she had to she'd sneak out in the middle of the night and go it alone. There was no way she was going to be left behind. These people didn't know what Paul looked like and she didn't have any pictures to show them. Therefore she had to go herself to ensure that he was one of the people found.



"The Chief wasn't too keen on the idea but I told him that if he didn't let you go that you'd find your own way there. Besides, you're a Canadian, there isn't a lot that we Americans can do to stop you."

"I'm glad that they saw reason. Now, where do I go to get some sleep? I'm ready to fall down on my face," Chris asked. As much as she didn't want to wait she understood the logic in Battalion's suggestion. Besides, she really was exhausted and needed to get as much sleep as she could between now and when the search party headed out the next day.

"I'm glad that you've decided to stay for a little while anyway," Hank said. "Battalion has sleeping quarters set up in the tents just below the embankment. We're all off duty until further notice so I'll show you the way."

As Chris lay her head down on the pillow she supposed that she should have asked who the search party was going to consist of. But at the moment she was too tired to worry about it. That would be one of her first questions once she was awake and functioning again. The woman was asleep before any of the others even had time to sort themselves out. She would have been touched by Roy and Johnny's concern if she'd been aware of the fact that they took the cots on either side of her. Then they too were asleep.