John was finally allowed to sleep, uninterrupted. He was moved from the observation ward to a room close to ER. Dixie was on duty by the afternoon, so both Roy and Hank made their way home to get a well-earned rest. Johnny slept for eight hours straight. He woke in time for the evening meal.

"Well it's about time you woke up. How do you feel?" Dixie asked as she wheeled in his evening meal.

John stretched and tried to sit up. "My head doesn't hurt as much and I can see a lot clearer now." He yawned, "I feel good," he simply stated.

"Hungry?" Dixie placed the meal in front of her friend smiling knowingly. She had a surprise for him.

"What?" John asked the suspiciously smiling nurse. He could see Dixie was up to something. He had to admit the meal smelt good, and familiar.

Dixie lifted the stainless steel dome to reveal his favourite meal, cheesy chicken pasta. "You remembered." He smiled at this wonderful woman. "I haven't had this for a long time."

"Well then enjoy...and...I expect a clean plate when I come back with your meds." Dixie patted his arm and left.

This was the first time Johnny had been left alone since he was attacked. He ate in silence and thought back on his Captains words. His chief's face jumped into his mind, sadness consumed him. "I'll miss you." He said to no one. The hospital room echoed his words. He could almost hear his chief's deep commanding voice telling him to rise above the grief and be strong. "I will be strong and I'll make you proud," he whispered to himself.

Dixie entered the room; she had just caught the proclamation. "All done?" She looked at the plate. "Good Boy."

"Always for you Dix." John gave her his crooked smile. Dixie's heart skipped a beat; she was so pleased to see Johnny smile.

The door opened and Dr Brackett walked through. "How's our hose jockey?" John smiled at the nickname.

"I'm feeling much better Doc," replied the paramedic.

"How's the head?" Dr Brackett checked the young man's eyes and took his pulse. "That's much better Johnny."

"My head still hurts, but not as much as this morning." He sat up straighter.

"That's good….I think if all goes well over night you can go home tomorrow." He checked John's chart once more. He sat down on the bed and looked serious. "John I need to ask you this for medical reasons. What exactly is your part in Jay Blackcrow's funeral?"

John took a deep shaky breath. "I'm supposed to make the coffin, I'll speak at the funeral, and I will lead his horse to the gravesite." He looked at both Dixie and Dr Brackett.

"I know someone else is making the coffin on your behalf. The rest sounds, ok, but you will need to rest up until the funeral, and, rest means not doing anything." Dr Brackett gave the young paramedic a knowing look. Johnny was not one to just sit around and rest but if he was to take part in this funeral he would need to do just that, rest.

"I'll make sure he gets his rest." Roy walked into the room smiling at his partner. "He'll be coming home to my place."

"Thanks Roy." John smiled at his friends. He really was blessed to have such good friends.

"Come on Dix, I'll buy you dinner." Dr Brackett took her arm and started to lead her out of the room.

"In that case, I'm out of here," she declared. Dixie stopped and walked back and kissed John on the forehead. "I'll see you tomorrow my friend."

"You look tired. Why don't you get some rest or would you like to talk?" Roy asked, hoping his partner would confide in him as to how he felt.

"If anything, I feel over tired."

"That's the concussion…. it gives you that heavy feeling. Maybe if we talk, it will relax you enough, for you to sleep." Roy sat next to his partner's bed.

"I feel like a huge chunk of my life has been ripped away." Johnny said despairingly.

Roy sighed. "You know Johnny, in a way it has….unfortunately….and…it was all through greed." John looked at his partner puzzled. "It turns out….Cap's neighbour had a gambling problem and owed a lot of money. He figured if he faked the robbery he could make a claim on his insurance and then pay back the debts with that money."

Johnny was shaking his head angrily, then suddenly stopped. The shaking had caused his head to hurt and made him slightly dizzy.

"He was going to kidnap you and take you back to his place. Then he was going to call the police and say he caught you in his house. He figured the insurance company would pay up straight away. Apparently when the police dropped the investigation of you and started asking...Matt…that's the neighbour's name…Anyway the police started asking him more questions and the insurance company had put a hold on the claim. He was running out of time and he was desperate."

"Desperate men do desperate things," John quoted.

"You're right there Junior. Now he's in jail for murder and attempted murder, along with a lot of other charges." Roy shrugged his shoulders and sighed. "I'm sorry Johnny, I can't imagine how you're feeling, but I'm here for you if you need to talk."

"Thanks," John whispered. All for a gambling debt, he thought to himself. Jay Blackcrow, his mentor and now saviour, having saved his life by getting between the neighbour and himself, had died because of gambling debts.

"Have you thought about what you'll say at the funeral?" asked Roy.

"I have a few ideas. If you don't mind I'd like you to help me with it...and...maybe we could give the Cap a call and he could come over and help too."

Roy smiled, his partner was finally giving his Captain a chance. "I think that's a good idea Johnny. How about you lie back and try to rest…I'm just going to get some coffee. I've got my book, I'm up to a good part." The older paramedic held up his book smiling with anticipation. John nodded and slid down into the bed. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He had a tough couple of days coming up but he knew with the help of his friends he would get through it. In the end, he thought, hopefully when everything is over, his life will be richer because of a new friend he could trust and turn to; the Cap. He was asleep in a matter of minutes.

Hank was thinking about his next shift. He knew he had to make some changes if he was going to keep his promise to Jay Blackcrow. He had the power to change the stressful atmosphere that had developed at the station, but he wanted to make the changes without their being any resentment. For his part some of Kelly's pranks helped lighten the atmosphere in the station, but boundaries needed to be established. That was the tricky part, setting boundaries without repercussions. He knew this would be a big test of his leadership skills and if achieved, he would hopefully have earned his youngest crew member's trust.