Just a little Fruity

These good fellows don't belong to me but I promise when I'd done to pick um up, dust um off and with a kiss on the cheek return them safely home.

"It's not hard to make a decision when you know what your values are." Roy Disney.

Chapter 21

Karen was furious at that big oaf brother of hers. He could have at least called to tell her what was going on. No news was good news, bull. Whoever started that load of crap should be shot. Her hands kept re-gripping the steering wheel as she fumed and drove. Squealing her tires around the corner she continued to silently and not so silently at times, cuss her brother out. If he didn't get it right this time she was gonna kill him herself. Pulling off the interstate she continued her high speed seemingly oblivious to the world passing by much too quickly around her. As she approached the next light she never even saw it turn red.

"Johnny going home today Roy?" Marco asked.

"Yea later on. Kanda's taking him home with her after she finishes her shift."

"Ahh," Chet said. "To recover on the green rolling hills with fresh air and home cooking."

Roy laughed, "Yea and mucking stalls, fixing fences, training horses, and dealing out hay and feed."

Chet frowned, "He has to do all that?"

Roy stood up, "Oh, I'm sure Kanda will try and make him rest but something tells me Johnny isn't going to sit around for two weeks just doing nothing. Even if he did he would drive her nuts."

"Maybe we can go visit Chet," Marco said. "I'd love to see you on a horse."

"I'd be just fine on a horse," Chet said as he put the danishes out on the table for them.

"Must be the Indian in him Marco," Roy said and laughed.

Before Chet could reply to the jibe the tones sounded.

"Engine 51, Squad 51. Traffic Accident………………….time out 0832."

Roy was paired up with Brice today who had miraculously remained quiet so far this morning. Roy learned a long time ago to just let Brice check the boxes and do the inventory and not interfere. It just wasn't worth the debate. They both pulled on their helmets as Roy pulled the squad out with the engine closely following behind. Curtis was covering for Mike today and the crew knew him well also.

At least one thing that remained consistent was the quiet drive to the scene. Brice had already looked at the map before leaving and he knew what directions that Roy would need. Speaking only when needed the two men mentally prepared for the unknown scene that loomed before them.

As Roy pulled up to the intersection they could immediately see there were three cars involved at the scene. Both men went straight to the side doors and pulled out the oxygen, bio-phone, and trauma boxes. Brice jogged over to the first car as the engine pulled up behind them.

"Marco, Chet check those batteries. Pull a reel line and cool down that engine," he called out to them. The two men moved quickly following their Captain's commands. Curtis was already at the controls as he regulated the flow that they required. Brice reached the first vehicle which was a station wagon . Roy ran past him and saw Vince standing by the second car.

"What cha got Vince?"

"This one ran a red light; hit the station wagon which managed to then plow into the convertible." He pointed around as he talked. "Driver of the convertible was ejected and is DOA. This driver looks in bad shape but we couldn't get to her."

Roy looked in the window and could see a woman slumped over the steering wheel, unmoving and apparently unconscious. He reached down and pulled hard on the door handle without any results in getting the door opened. Vince ran around to the other side and didn't have any better luck because the entire front end of the car was wrapped around a telephone poll.

Roy turned around and yelled to Hank, "Cap, need some help over here."

Hank turned to Chet who was back at his side, "Chet get the jaws and get over there with Roy. He looked over to Curtis, you too." As Marco came running up, "Marco see if Brice needs any help buddy."

Hank then pulled out his radio, "LA, 51. We need two ambulances at this scene."

"51," They replied.

Chet ran over with the jaws and quickly assessed the situation. Laying it down on the ground he pulled out his gloves and slipped them on. Roy stood back and glanced over to Brice who was helping a woman out of the car. Since she was talking non-stop and waving her arms he assumed she wasn't badly hurt.

With expertly trained precision Chet positioned the equipment and began to open the door up. Roy was ready, his adrenaline was at full force and getting his hands on the victim was his top priority. As the door started to open he took his hands and began to pull until it reached that point of breaking loose.

With a final grunt Roy pulled and felt it give. Chet stepped out of the way and Roy immediately moved to the victim's side and took his gloves off. Her face was facing down into the steering wheel as he gently reached for a carotid pulse. It was slow and barely palpable. Quickly moving down her neck and spine he assessed her for spinal injuries.

"Chet, I need a backboard and C-collar pronto," Roy said without stopping his assessment.

"Got it Roy." Chet was off through the parking lot to get his needed supplies.

Roy then quickly glanced back to see what Brice was up to and saw him dealing with crying children in the backseat of the wagon. He turned to see Curtis behind him opening up the bio-phone and getting it set up. Within a minute Chet was back at his side and handed Roy the backboard first. He slipped it back behind the unconscious woman and pushed down on it a little to position it correctly. Next he took the c-collar and positioned it behind her neck. Chet knelt down beside him, ready to help however he could.

With one hand on her head and neck with the collar he pulled her away from the steering wheel and back against the board. Without hesitation he tied it off thus stabilizing her neck for further injury. Glancing back, "Chet give me some of those large gauzes." Her face was covered with blood which was a constant stream from the large open gash on her forehead. Taking the supplies in his hand he turned back to her and started dabbing the blood from her face. Wiping her cheeks his movements slowed down. As he pulled the bandage around her head to hold pressure on her cut he, for the first time, looked closely at her face and his heart jumped into his throat.

Roy found himself backing out of the car. His brain told him to treat her, he was a paramedic and her life was fragile at best right now but his heart couldn't bear the thought of touching her. Another step back and he almost tripped over Chet and the biophone.

"Roy, what's wrong?" Chet said but got no response from him. Roy seemed frozen in the moment of time.

Hank looked between the cars and saw that Brice was up to his hips in children and somehow one was wrapped around his legs. Marco was helping him and no one looked seriously injured. But when he glanced over to Roy he was puzzled by what he saw. Roy was standing up and not moving as he looked into the car and Chet was now looking at him with great concern. Deciding to check it out himself Hank jogged over to the car, "Problem Roy?"

Roy turned to him and Hank saw a look on Roy's face that he wasn't sure he had ever seen before. "It's her."

Hank was puzzled, "Who Roy?"

"Karen."

That single word or name brought Hank and Chet also to a stop. The woman who had created so much havoc in their lives. The one who had worked so hard and diligently to kill their co-worker and friend was now in desperate need of their help.

Hank, for a split second, hesitated on what to do. He took the medic by the shoulder, "Roy, it's your job. Treat her now." He understood every ounce of hesitation that Roy had but he also knew that if he didn't do his job it would come with many consequences. One would be that he would live the rest of his life knowing that his failing to treat her lead to her death.

"Yes Cap," Roy whispered. He knelt down next to her as Hank picked up the biophone. Roy put the blood pressure cuff on her arm, obtained her pulse and checked her pupils for response. He continued his head to toe assessment in a methodical, unattached and unemotional. His care was precise and done with in an expert manner. He would do his job to the best of his ability because that was who he was.

Hank watched the medic work knowing he was doing everything he was supposed to do as he relayed the information to Rampart. Her condition was critical, her vital signs failing despite the double IV's Roy was giving.

Brice had finally gotten the family settled down with the mom having a cut on her head, the youngest boy having a broken arm, the older boy with a cut on his leg and the daughter being fine except for an apparent hair crisis. He put them all in the same ambulance and sent them off to Rampart when he moved over to see if Roy needed any help. As he approached the scene he could see that the victim was now out of the car, IV's had been established and Roy was performing chest compressions. It was obvious that the victim had lost a severe amount of blood and she was remaining unresponsive to all interventions. But he was keenly aware of something being wrong with this scene. It was too quiet, the looks on the men's faces told of an unspoken pain they were experiencing but they weren't sharing right now.

"Do you want me to take her in Captain?" Brice asked.

Roy looked up, "No, I will. It's something I have to do."

Hank nodded his understanding and his admiration for what the man was going through. As they loaded her into the ambulance Roy climbed in to continue the compressions while Chet and Hank closed the doors and banged on the back.

"I don't know that I could have done it Cap," Chet said as the ambulance pulled away.

"Let's just hope that it's something that we never have to face pally."

His mind was focused on the task as he struggled to put everything else out of it. Each compression simply a mechanical movement but he knew it meant he was fighting for her life. He wanted her to pay for what she did but deep down he knew he wasn't asking for her to forfeit her life. He couldn't.

Kanda was nauseated and ran to the bathroom to expel the lunch she had just eaten.

"Are you okay?" Johnny asked her as he leaned back in the bed. His discharge was planned for today and she had stopped by to eat lunch with him. They talked about many things, her smile brightening the room until just now.

She came out of the bathroom and her appearance had dramatically changed. He quickly pushed his tray aside and hopping off the bed he ran to her side, "Kanda, what's wrong. Do I need to get Brackett?"

She shook her head; her breathing was quick and shallow. "Something's wrong Johnny, really wrong."

"Where?" Who, what …all the questions went through his mind but he knew she could only focus on one at a time when she felt this way.

"Close," she said. Then with a look of deep fear in her eyes, "Roy. It's Roy."

Johnny's heart about came out of his chest, "Is he hurt?"

She closed her eyes, "Pain, his pain is so bad. It's all I can feel."

He pictured Roy half dead somewhere. A rescue gone wrong? Who should he call first? "You said close, is he nearby?"

She reached for the back of the chair. The feeling was overwhelming and she felt like her legs were going to fold on her. "Close."

Johnny ran to the phone.

The ambulance doors opened to find Dixie, Brackett and Early waiting for the arrival of the critical patient. They had the full trauma team ready and waiting. Roy's call in report was bad and they were prepared for the worse.

Roy was on the stretcher as it was wheeled down the hall and into the trauma room. He never missed a beat. There had already been several rounds of drugs and a couple of cardiac shocks without any response. The resuscitation continued in the room.

Dixie had watched the senior medic perform his duties but something was different about this run for him, beyond the normal loss of a patient. Roy now leaned against the wall of the room, quiet as he watched them continue to try and save her.

"Roy?" Dixie called to him.

He simply looked to her.

"Are you alright?" Her concern was growing with his silence.

He swallowed hard, "It's her Dix."

She shook her head, not getting it. "Who Roy?"

He almost choked on the word, "Karen."

Karen, Karen…Dixie was trying to figure it out. Then it hit her like a ton of bricks. She looked over to see Brackett and Early back away from the table. Their efforts now over for their nameless victim. They both looked over to see Dixie's wide eyes and Roy looking like he was about to fall over.

Brackett furrowed his brow as he watched Roy abruptly leave the room and head down the hallway. "What's wrong with Roy? Taking this one harder than usual?"

"Kel that is Karen. The Karen."

Both doctors looked back at the lifeless form on the table and suddenly it all became clear. Roy's reaction, what he must be going through. Then even more as it sank in about his having to run her rescue and care.

Early was instantly concerned, "Where did he go Dix?"

At that same minute the elevator opened to find Johnny and Kanda running out of it. He ran straight up to the three ER workers and friends, "Where's Roy?"