Hi y'all! Sorry for the false alarm chapter update! There was a slight technical error. I have attached the new chapter. Sorry for any errors you may find. Wrote this in a bit of a hurry, as the inspiration hit! Enjoy!
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"You okay, Junior?" Roy leaned down a bit to speak into his younger partner's ear. Johnny's head was slumped forward, his chin resting heavily on Roy's forearm. "Junior? Hey, Junior, you okay?"
No response.
Once again, he wondered, why couldn't it have been a full moon? "Can't see a blasted thing." Roy grumbled, reaching for the ground beneath them with his right foot, trying to secure a footing. "John!" He gently shook his partner, and rolled his eyes when there was no response. "Great."
Above the stranded paramedics, the shouts of the police officers could be heard. Suddenly, a bright light shone down into the faces below, causing Roy to instinctively shield his eyes.
"You guys okay down there?" The sheriff that had accompanied them was leaning over the edge, a bright spotlight in his hand.
"Thanks for the light, Sheriff. Could you aim it a little less directly over us? Thanks, that's better. Johnny is out. What is the ETA for the rescue team?"
"Forty minutes."
Roy grimaced. "Yeah, okay."
He carefully let his unconscious partner slip to the ground, kneeling beside him with the dark haired paramedic's head on his knees. "Hey, hey, partner. Stick with me okay? I know it's been a rough way to go, but help is almost here. Just a little bit longer." He turned slightly to glance up at the sheriff helplessly watching from above. "Hey, sweep that light across the valley here and see if you can catch a glimpse of Cap or Ashley!" He concentrated on his partner, ignoring the dizziness that tugged at his own mind. He couldn't fail Johnny now.
Marco leaped from the police chief's patrol car almost before it stopped and rushed toward the cliff edge, zipping his coat against the cold, and was almost to the edge where the sheriff put up an arm to stop him.
"Sir! Sir, please stay back from the edge-"
"Let me through, senor!" Marco growled, moving quickly past the barricade and leaning over the side of the ridge to see where the bright beam of light was directed. "I am a coworker of Roy and Johnny's. I have experience in skiing and avalanches. Got to help my men. Excuse me for a moment. Roy!"
Roy was still tensely examining his still and silent partner. The shock of what had just occurred and the pain from his recent injuries and his previous concussion had been too much for Johnny and Roy's experienced hands could tell he was starting to shake and shock was taking over, as well as potentially hypothermia. The call from above startled him. "Marco?" The surprise in Roy's voice tugged at Marco's heart. "Marco, man, am I glad to see you! Johnny is out cold and an avalanche just took Cap and Ashley down into the valley – I don't know-" His voice trailed off and a chill ran down his spine, sending a wave of nausea over him. He was beginning to feel the effects of the day's fatigue and strain.
Marco noticed the hesitation, and spoke calmly.
"Don't worry, Roy, we will get you out of there as fast as we can. Rescue team is a half hour out."
Marco turned to the sheriff and lowered his voice. "45 minutes. They have 45 minutes in that avalanche at the most!" Marco tapped his foot in the snow nervously. "Fifteen minutes worst case scenario. Come on, move on it! Give me a beacon. I can ski down through the valley and see if I can see them."
The sheriff frowned. "You could also trigger another avalanche that could take Roy and Johnny beyond our reach too. Or bury Captain Stanley and Ashley even deeper in a snow coffin. No, not going to work. We have to get Roy and Johnny out of there, before we touch that snow."
Marco kicked the snow and walked away, muttering words to himself in Spanish that he didn't want anyone else to hear.
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Hank slowly stood, the dire situation finally sinking in. He shook his head to clear his thoughts, shaking off the snow that had nested in his dark hair. He glanced around the valley, now that his eyes had adjusted to the darkness. He could see that all around them was a barren wasteland. No shelter could be seen except for a small hunting cabin on the other side of the valley, a half hour trek across unstable snow and there were no trees. Just an ocean of snow. He punched the snow with a fist and turned his attentions to his sister. She was still unconscious. "Hey, Ashley? Ashley, honey wake up please."
Her eyelashes fluttered beneath the dusting of snow and he brushed the flakes away with his right hand, careful not to touch the gash on her forehead that Johnny had bandaged up. The snow had ripped the dressing off. "That's it, come on. Wake up and talk to me."
Slowly, her eyes opened and Hank immediately saw the confusion in them. She did not recognize him. He decided to play along to keep from agitating her.
"Hi my name is Captain Hank Stanley. I am a fire captain from LA fire department station 51. I am here to help you. I just need you to answer a few questions, is that okay?"
She did not meet his gaze but gave a tiny nod of her head, then squeezed her eyes shut in pain. "Captain Stanley."
He frowned and tilted his head to look her in the face. "Yes?"
She threw her head back and took a few quick breaths. "What is my name?" She turned pleading eyes to Hank's face. "Please tell me who I am."
Hank frowned. She had forgotten everything. He also knew that maybe he would find out why she had tried to end her life if her memories returned to that point. But that was a slim chance. There was a slim chance either of them would survive the cold night without their gear. There was also a slim chance they would be rescued. The snow was still dangerous and darkness would hinder efforts of a ground crew. Maybe a helicopter could get out but in the increasing snowfall it was doubtful.
Hank smiled kindly. "Your name is Ashley Stanley. We have the same last name. My parents adopted you when you were eight. My name is Hank. We were friends."
She gazed up at him, expression blank. "I'm sorry, Hank. I just don't remember."
She shivered, and he sighed, glancing around them again.
"Don't worry. Hank will keep you safe. Those memories will come back as soon as you rest a bit and get somewhere warm."
He ran a rough hand across his own face. What on earth was he going to do? "Does anything else hurt?"
She hesitated then nodded uncertainly. "My right knee."
From the accident, Hank remembered. Johnny had bandaged it. Hank's heart hurt thinking of Roy and Johnny. "Alright, Ash, honey we are going to have to try to make it to that cabin on the other side of the valley."
She nodded wearily. "Okay. How far is it?"
Hank took a deep breath. "Uhm, not too far. We can build a fire then and you can rest." He frowned and eyed the shadow of the cabin in the distance. It looked as if a whole continent separated them from its safety. He shook his head. He had to try.
"Alright, honey, come on let's try to get up okay?"
Hank picked her up bridal style, cradling her broken arm. He stood, finding that apparently he had twisted his left ankle too. Gritting his teeth, he began the long, cold walk to the only shelter he could see.
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Marco paced the icy road like a caged lion. "And just why can't we send out a helicopter?!" He sat down on the hood of the sheriff's patrol car, a defeated hunch in his broad shoulders. The snow was falling faster than ever, and he knew it would be too dangerous to send out a helicopter with such low visibility. It wouldn't hurt to complain though. It was either that or he would lose his sanity just waiting there in the dark. The sheriff, who introduced himself as Dean Mitchell, sat down next to him.
"Sorry, man. They are correlating with Rescue and the Chief. If the Chief says go, then we will send a chopper up. Got to wait. It's going to be labeled as a recovery mission anyway. It's been almost twenty minutes."
Marco cast him a dark look and folded his arms across his chest. "You don't know my captain, Mitchell."
The sheriff nodded. "No, I suppose I don't. If he is worth all this concern and worry, then he must be a real good fire chief. You know, I once knew a guy in Sacramento -"
A shout across the road brought both men to their feet, interrupting the sheriff's story. Bright lights cut across the curtain of blowing snow, and a rescue squad rumbled into view. The waiting group cheered quietly, afraid of starting another avalanche.
"Hang on, Roy," Marco muttered under his breath, clapping his gloved hands together to restore the feeling to them. "Help has arrived." He glanced up at the sky, and blinked against the onslaught of snow that fell into his face. There was no way the chief was going to let a chopper go up.
The police chief waved toward Marco. "Come on, man. Let's get these guys up here. I've got a rescue chopper on the way for the other two. There's no way I should be allowing this, but let's just say LA wants their fire chief back."
The expression of surprise on Marco's face made the chief chuckle. "Don't count your chickens yet, Marco. The pilot is a daring young man that our force has great trust in. We would be very disappointed if something happens to him. But so far, he has flown several dangerous flood missions and one search during a blizzard. He has done well so far, so we feel semi-comfortable with his efforts. He is on his way right now, and will search the valley with a spotlight. In the meantime, let's get these boys out of this valley. Roy!"
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In the meantime, Roy had been assessing his partner. Johnny was fading in and out, and mumbling in his unconscious state. "Come on, Johnny. Don't do this to me. You've got to stay with me." Roy desperately patted his partner's face, drawing him slightly out of his shell, but then just as quickly Johnny faded back into his own world. Roy shook his head and pulled his partner's coat tighter around him, zipping it to his chin. He rubbed Johnny's hands in his own - to stimulate the blood flow - then ripped off his own gloves and tugged them onto his partner's shaking hands. He sat back on his heels for a moment
He propped his right elbow on his right knee and rested his forehead on his arm. This was not how this week was supposed to go.
He thought about his captain, so quickly ripped from their grasp as soon as they had him back. It just wasn't fair. Their captain that had gone through fire with them, had laughed with them, joked with them. The captain that they trusted with their lives, to call them out of a fire just when it was too dangerous to stay in a moment longer. Their captain that they had rescued several times, and had listened to his lectures when he was trying to keep them on the straight and narrow. The captain that trusted his men to always be their best and never disgrace his ranking or his station. Their friend that had trusted them with his family story and the care of his sister. The captain that they would never report to again.
Roy angrily brushed tears out of his blue eyes, feeling his face flushing from the rage that rushed over him. He stood and punched the snowy wall, it's unrelenting stone leaving him with a bruised hand. His anger flowed away, leaving him chilled and sad. He looked down at his partner and sighed. Somehow life had to go on. He just wasn't sure how.
