Chapter 11

When Mike pulled off to the side of the road and parked he could tell before he turned off the ignition that his sisters were home by the cars in the driveway, and everyone was waiting for him by all the lights on in the house.

Seeing his mother standing in the doorway Mike quickly got out and threw the shoulder strap of Laura's duffle bag over his shoulder before grabbing his suitcase and hurrying around to help Laura from the passenger side.

"I can carry my bag," Laura protested pulling at the strap over Mike's shoulder.

"and get lectured from my Mom about being a proper gentleman, no way," Mike countered before motioning Laura toward the door that was being held open for them.

Mike followed Laura through the door and quickly set the bags down behind the couch before bending over to give his mother a hug.

"Mom this is Laura Elmer," Mike introduced, "Laura this is my mom."

"My son has told me all about you," Mrs. Stoker greeted as she reached out and took Laura's hand not in the sling.

"Well if it was all good then he lied," Laura countered, "It's nice to meet you Mrs. Stoker, Your husband told me a lot about you."

A young woman in her late teens entered the room followed by another girl in her mid twenties, being very large with child, waddling along with her husband behind her holding her up.

"This must be the girls," Laura greeted, "No, don't tell me, let me guess, Sarah, and the pregnant one is Mellissa."

"That's right," Mellissa answered.

"I see your still hanging in there." Mike said to his sister as he reached around her stomach to give her a hug before shaking hands with her husband.

"When are you due?" Laura asked,

"Four days ago," Mellissa answered rubbing her stomach.

"Yeah, well those kids come when they want, not when we want," Laura jibbed.

"We thought last night was going to be the night but then the contractions stopped as soon as we got to the hospital." Marty, Mellissa's husband, informed.

"That was the third time that's happened," Mellissa added.

"What's your doctor saying?" Laura asked.

"He says that it should be any time now but if it isn't born before next Monday he'll induce labor," Mellissa answered as her husband helped her into a nearby arm chair before sitting on the arm of it with his arm around her.

Laura tilted her head and closed one eye as she looked at the miserable lady in waiting. "I'm just guessing but I don't think you'll last till Monday."

"Have you ever delivered any babies," Marty wanted to know as Mike guided Laura to the sofa and his mother next to her.

"A few," Laura answered, "twenty four over two days once, including three sets of twins."

While Laura chatted with his siblings Mike slipped into the kitchen for a glass of milk which he brought to Laura. "Do you need some help getting the pill bottle open?" Mike asked as he held the glass of milk out for her.

Laura looked at Mike laughing and shaking her head before pulling her antibiotics from her pocket and dumping two in her hand. After popping them in her mouth she took the milk from Mike and drank half the glass.

"Is it true that you were with my husband when he died?" Mike's mother asked.

"Before actually," Laura answered, "I wasn't there when he actually passed away."

With that question asked Mike slipped out to his truck and returned with the box full of information he had gathered at Headquarters and the little group stayed up talking and looking at videos until after three a.m. in the morning. When Mellissa fell asleep in her chair Mike's Mom thought it best to get everyone in a bed.

"I thought I'd put you in Mike's old room," Mrs. Stoker spoke to Laura, "And Mike can sleep on the sofa in the den."

"I have a better Idea," Laura countered. "Let's let Mike sleep in his old room, I think it would be better for him to be in familiar surroundings and I'll sleep on the sofa, it's more like what I'm used to any way."

"Oh but, you're our guest," Mrs. Stoker protested.

"Trust me," Laura stood her ground in the most assuring way possible, "It will be better this way. I'm a very noisy sleeper and will keep the rest of you awake if I'm not on the other side of the house."

After helping his brother-in-law pull his pregnant sister to her feet Mike carried Laura's bag to the den where a bed had already been made up.

"Can I get you anything, a glass of water or another pillow for your shoulder," Mike asked fussing a little over his guest's comfort.

"No, I'll be just fine," Laura assured, "You get some sleep it's been a long day."

Mike then headed for his childhood room running into his mother in the hall way. "Is she settled in?"

"I think so," Mike answered with a backward glance, "I don't think she likes being fussed over."

"She seems real nice," Mom talked in a whisper and Mike was sure what was coming next. "I bet she wouldn't mind being married to a firefighter."

"Mom, I just met her," Mike gave his mother a stern look before they both smiled and went their separate ways.

Mike's old room was full of memories as he stripped down to his underwear and draped his jeans across the foot board of the twin bed. The light from the streetlamp was all he needed to see the three model fire engines on the top of the book case in the corner. His father had helped him put two of those together. He had commented when they were working on the biggest of them that it had so many parts that the engine should actually run once they got it together.

The shelves under them were filled with the Hardy boys and Sherlock Holmes books that his father would read to him at bed time even long after he could read himself. His sisters had the Nancy Drew and Little house on the Prairie sets in their room.

Mike rest his head back on his pillow and studied the shadows on the ceiling as he remembered the times when his sisters would join him for story time. Since there were two of them and only one of him they usually out voted him for the choice of story. As the shadows of the leaves from the outside trees danced across the ceiling Mike could hear his father's voice once again as his mind raced to try and solve the mystery before the solution was reveled in the book.

Hours later Mike awoke from his pleasant dreams, not sure why but aware that he had been breathing through his mouth and needed a glass of water. Pulling his pants on he quietly wandered to the kitchen for a drink and leaned on the counter in thought as he toyed with the half empty glass in his hands. From the den he could hear a muffled voice that called his attention.

"one,,, two,,, three,,, four,,, five,,, breath, one,,, two,,, three,,, four,,, five,,, breath, clear, no, hit him again. one,,, two,,, three,,, four,,, five,,, breath," Mike recognized the mantra of CPR and moved toward the den with haste not sure what to expect. "No, NO, we can't give up, hit him again. 400 watts," Laura called out as he silently opened the door, "we can't quit, we have to keep going, can't give up yet. We can't quit." Mike could see Laura in the grips of an active dream as she tossed and jerked on the sofa. He paused only a moment to wander if she was dreaming about his father or hers before he went behind the sofa and reached over the back to give Laura's good shoulder a gentle shake.

Laura woke with a start grabbing her shoulder in pain with the sudden movement. As Mike stood by she looked around and realizing where she was slowed her breathing before turning to Mike and to instant embarrassment.

"I'm sorry; I thought for sure I'd be able to keep from waking anyone if I stayed at this end of the house." Laura apologized as she painfully forced herself into a seated position holding her left arm with her right.

"You didn't wake me, I was getting a drink of water," Mike was quick to respond, he had been there, he knew how embarrassing it was to wake someone else up with their nightmares. "That shoulder must really be hurting; I'll go get you some water so you can take your pain pills."

"No that's okay," Laura protested, "I really don't handle pain pills very well, I'm better off just gutting it out, really."

Mike sat on the back of the sofa looking at his guest and feeling like he had to do something when he had an idea. "My mom has some ice packs in the freezer; I'll go get a couple of those for you."

Mike returned quickly with the ice packs and a glass of water and proceeded to try and help his guest get comfortable and place the ice in a way that it would stay where it was placed with out having to be held and still be in the area it was needed.

"I'll be okay now, you should get some sleep it will be morning soon." Reluctantly but obediently Mike left the den but remained outside the door listening for any sign of distress before he went back to his room.

He did lightly sleep his dreams again filled with pleasant memories until the first rays of sunlight came through the window. He may be able to sleep later in the day but his internal alarm clock was now going off and it was time to get up and out of bed.

It didn't take him long to realize that he was the only one with the early morning alarm clock so he quietly slipped outside to the cab of his truck and programmed the buttons on his radio. Once they were programmed he sat behind the wheel listening to the radio till his eyes fell on the order forms book he had accidently left in the truck. Ready now to read his father's last words for him he picked it up and turned the pages until he read Dear Son:

Dear Son:

You'll never believe what I've been doing for the last couple of days or where I am now because of it. I can hardly believe it myself. In spite of what some would feel is dire circumstances I've never felt more alive in my life. There's this crazy tom boy of a nurse down here with us guys that keeps tickling my feet just to make sure I'm still alive. That is when she's not sleeping, she was dead tired when she got here this morning and says this is the closet thing she's had to a day off in over a month. I've told her about you and invited her over to the house for dinner to meet you, when your mom's feeling better but she says she has to get back home some where in New Mexico. Too bad, I think she'd make a good catch for you and I'm sure she wouldn't have a problem being married to a fireman.

00000

Mike paused his reading and smiled allowing his eyes to fill and then drain down his cheeks before wiping them with his hand and continuing on.

00000

She gives real good foot massages I can tell you that.

She also says that you'd be real proud of me for what I've done. Well I don't know about that but thinking about the ten people that we pulled out of this mess today and knowing I had a small part in it feels real good. I now understand why you love your work so much and I know why I'm so very proud of you. I can't wait to get out of here and talk with you about this, I'm sure we'll have a lot of fun comparing notes. Don't really know why I'm writing these words down but at least it's something to do until they get to us.

Until we see each other again

Love your very proud and honored Father.

00000

Mike laughed to himself as he thought about what he had read. His dad was trying to set him up and the thought of him trying to sell her on meeting his son seemed very funny right then. Then his eyes filled again and drained volumes down her cheeks. Laura had told his Dad that he'd be proud of him. Oh, that he could have told him that himself, but at least some one did and he was ever so grateful for that.