"Damn it!" Ray shouted. He lay the Mountie's head down and
started CPR.
Vecchio turned to the uniform officers on the scene. "Start
looking. Check every street, every building in this area. Look
anywhere he could've hidden. And someone get on the horn and get
Huey and Dewey down here, now! "
"One and two and three and four," Ray counted as he pumped
Fraser's chest. He then lifted the Mountie's chin and blew a breath
of air into his mouth. The chest rose, then fell. He started
compressing again. He could hear the screech of the ambulance siren
coming down the street. Shortly after, it arrived at the end of the
alleyway, and the paramedics rushed to Fraser's side. Ray stepped
back as they started revival efforts.
One paramedic put an air mask on Fraser's face and pumped the
balloonlike bag at the end, forcing air into the Mountie's lungs.
The defibrillator was brought out. "Clear!" someone shouted and
everyone stepped back. The shock jolted Fraser's body, but failed to
restart his heart. The bag on the mask was pumped a few more times
and another jolt was given. The process was repeated three, four,
five times, but each attempt failed.
As Ray watched the paramedics continue their efforts, he
realized how impossible Fraser's dying seemed. Everything had been
going so well lately. Ray didn't deny he'd thought Fraser was
strange at first. It hadn't exactly been easy learning to live with a
real life Dudley Do-Right who wouldn't swear, gamble or even carry a
gun. And then there was the tasting things and the red suit and the
constant politeness. But, once Ray got past all the oddities and
quirks, he'd learned to like Fraser. A bond of sorts had been formed
during all those months searching for the Hand of Franklin with only
each other for companions.
Ray's thoughts were interrupted as Vecchio nudged him to get
him to pay attention to the paramedic who was trying to talk to them.
"We've been unable to restart his heart," the paramedic said to
the detectives. "We've defibrillated six times. And we were told he
hasn't been breathing for several minutes now, so, even though we've
been forcing air into his lungs, the amount of oxygen he was getting
wouldn't have been enough to keep body tissues from beginning to die.
I'm sorry. "
"I understand", Ray answered.
Just as Ray finished talking to the paramedic, Huey and Dewey
arrived on the scene. "What've we got?" Huey asked. Ray stepped
aside, and Huey saw the body.
"Dead?" he asked.
Ray nodded. "You remember the Bower case? Fraser and I got a
call of an armed robbery and we thought we had him this time. It was
me he was shooting at, but Fraser shoved me out of the way."
"I can't believe he's dead again," Dewey said. "This'll be the
first time I ever went to someone's funeral twice."
Ray shot Dewey an angry glare. "Bastard," he muttered softly.
Dewey gave a sort of gasp, and Ray thought he might yell or
something, but Huey stopped him. " Keep quiet," he said to his
partner. "He's already angry and your comments aren't helping"
"I can't believe it's real this time around," Ray
answered. "And not some kind of trance thing like the last time. Will
you two see what you can come up with here? Vecchio and I want to
join the search."
"We'll handle it," Huey answered.
The two Rays walked back to their cars. Vecchio had pulled up
just outside of the alley, but Ray K's was down by the side street
where the chase had begun. When Ray rounded the corner from the alley
to the first street, he saw Diefenbaker trotting toward him. "Come
on," he said absentmindedly, forgetting that the wolf was
deaf. "You're coming with me. Oh geez, now I'm having a conversation
with the wolf again." Dief followed slowly and Ray walked back to
where he'd parked the car. But when he came to where the GTO had
been, it was gone.
"Damn!" he sputtered as he looked for the Riv to come around the
corner. He motioned Vecchio to stop and walked over to the car. "Can
I ride with you?" he asked.
"Stolen?" Vecchio asked.
"Yes, and I know damn well who it was."
Vecchio opened the passenger side door and Ray allowed Dief to
climb in back, then slid into the front seat.
"Go ahead and radio it in," Vecchio said, nodding toward the
radio. "I'll keep looking."
Ray called in a description of the stolen car, along with his
license plate numbers.
"You know he's not going to keep it long" Vecchio said.
"A car like that?" Ray answered. "No. I think he just wanted a
quick way out of there. It'd be too conspicuous to drive around for
long. I mean, how many cars like that do you think there are in this
city? I figure he'll probably try to get money off of it and…look,
there!"
His thought was interrupted as the GTO pulled around the corner
and was now in front of the Riv. Vecchio pulled up a bit closer
before anyone could get between the two cars, and Ray glanced at the
plate.
"That's it," he said.
Vecchio radioed that they were in pursuit of the stolen car,
quickly set the Riv's portable flasher on the roof, and gave chase.
TBC
started CPR.
Vecchio turned to the uniform officers on the scene. "Start
looking. Check every street, every building in this area. Look
anywhere he could've hidden. And someone get on the horn and get
Huey and Dewey down here, now! "
"One and two and three and four," Ray counted as he pumped
Fraser's chest. He then lifted the Mountie's chin and blew a breath
of air into his mouth. The chest rose, then fell. He started
compressing again. He could hear the screech of the ambulance siren
coming down the street. Shortly after, it arrived at the end of the
alleyway, and the paramedics rushed to Fraser's side. Ray stepped
back as they started revival efforts.
One paramedic put an air mask on Fraser's face and pumped the
balloonlike bag at the end, forcing air into the Mountie's lungs.
The defibrillator was brought out. "Clear!" someone shouted and
everyone stepped back. The shock jolted Fraser's body, but failed to
restart his heart. The bag on the mask was pumped a few more times
and another jolt was given. The process was repeated three, four,
five times, but each attempt failed.
As Ray watched the paramedics continue their efforts, he
realized how impossible Fraser's dying seemed. Everything had been
going so well lately. Ray didn't deny he'd thought Fraser was
strange at first. It hadn't exactly been easy learning to live with a
real life Dudley Do-Right who wouldn't swear, gamble or even carry a
gun. And then there was the tasting things and the red suit and the
constant politeness. But, once Ray got past all the oddities and
quirks, he'd learned to like Fraser. A bond of sorts had been formed
during all those months searching for the Hand of Franklin with only
each other for companions.
Ray's thoughts were interrupted as Vecchio nudged him to get
him to pay attention to the paramedic who was trying to talk to them.
"We've been unable to restart his heart," the paramedic said to
the detectives. "We've defibrillated six times. And we were told he
hasn't been breathing for several minutes now, so, even though we've
been forcing air into his lungs, the amount of oxygen he was getting
wouldn't have been enough to keep body tissues from beginning to die.
I'm sorry. "
"I understand", Ray answered.
Just as Ray finished talking to the paramedic, Huey and Dewey
arrived on the scene. "What've we got?" Huey asked. Ray stepped
aside, and Huey saw the body.
"Dead?" he asked.
Ray nodded. "You remember the Bower case? Fraser and I got a
call of an armed robbery and we thought we had him this time. It was
me he was shooting at, but Fraser shoved me out of the way."
"I can't believe he's dead again," Dewey said. "This'll be the
first time I ever went to someone's funeral twice."
Ray shot Dewey an angry glare. "Bastard," he muttered softly.
Dewey gave a sort of gasp, and Ray thought he might yell or
something, but Huey stopped him. " Keep quiet," he said to his
partner. "He's already angry and your comments aren't helping"
"I can't believe it's real this time around," Ray
answered. "And not some kind of trance thing like the last time. Will
you two see what you can come up with here? Vecchio and I want to
join the search."
"We'll handle it," Huey answered.
The two Rays walked back to their cars. Vecchio had pulled up
just outside of the alley, but Ray K's was down by the side street
where the chase had begun. When Ray rounded the corner from the alley
to the first street, he saw Diefenbaker trotting toward him. "Come
on," he said absentmindedly, forgetting that the wolf was
deaf. "You're coming with me. Oh geez, now I'm having a conversation
with the wolf again." Dief followed slowly and Ray walked back to
where he'd parked the car. But when he came to where the GTO had
been, it was gone.
"Damn!" he sputtered as he looked for the Riv to come around the
corner. He motioned Vecchio to stop and walked over to the car. "Can
I ride with you?" he asked.
"Stolen?" Vecchio asked.
"Yes, and I know damn well who it was."
Vecchio opened the passenger side door and Ray allowed Dief to
climb in back, then slid into the front seat.
"Go ahead and radio it in," Vecchio said, nodding toward the
radio. "I'll keep looking."
Ray called in a description of the stolen car, along with his
license plate numbers.
"You know he's not going to keep it long" Vecchio said.
"A car like that?" Ray answered. "No. I think he just wanted a
quick way out of there. It'd be too conspicuous to drive around for
long. I mean, how many cars like that do you think there are in this
city? I figure he'll probably try to get money off of it and…look,
there!"
His thought was interrupted as the GTO pulled around the corner
and was now in front of the Riv. Vecchio pulled up a bit closer
before anyone could get between the two cars, and Ray glanced at the
plate.
"That's it," he said.
Vecchio radioed that they were in pursuit of the stolen car,
quickly set the Riv's portable flasher on the roof, and gave chase.
TBC