Chapter 6
Tuesday, April 30
Outside Remy's Diner
4:35 pm
Martha couldn't help but keep an eye on Jenny Ryan. The young woman was ghostly pale, had flushed cheeks, rocked from foot to foot and wrapped herself tightly with her arms. She looked to be only a breath away from either vomiting or a panic attack.
Maternal instincts didn't always come naturally to Martha, as Richard would attest, but right now she felt the need to comfort or shield the petite blonde as much as she could.
While she debated how to handle the situation with the near-stranger, Jim, who flanked Mrs. Ryan's other side, made eye contact with her, glanced at Jenny and then looked back. He noticed too, and was equally concerned.
That was all it took. Martha Rogers was no shrinking violet, especially not when someone needed her.
The elder red-head of the group stepped closer and threw an arm around the new-comer. Jenny startled momentarily but relaxed again (or at least returned to her former level of tension) just as quickly. "Darling, you look very anxious or perhaps ill. I know this is a troubling time for you, for all of us, but I'd like to help. Is there anything I can do for you? Get you some water? Call someone?"
"Oh no, thank you though. I'll be OK."
"Perhaps you're hungry? Sometimes when I'm very stressed, I just need something full of calories to take the edge off."
Alexis turned in toward the conversation."Gram, where are you going to get Gin out here?"
"Oh shush, you. I was thinking more along the lines of chocolate, or juicy burger or a giant plate of mashed potatoes with gravy. Comfort food."
Jenny swayed and quickly raised her fingers to her lips, but her stomach growled loudly as well.
Alexis and Jim both reached out to help steady her if needed, but Martha's comforting arm was still snug around Jenny's shoulders.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have..." Martha froze and quickly appraised the woman next to her. A small smile, the first one in hours, crept upward over her face as recognition hit. Nausea and hunger? Pale and flushed? Light headed? Yes those could all be stress, but Martha knew it was more. She didn't even question the impropriety of her next move; curiosity was her guide.
Martha leaned down and whispered in the other woman's ear. "How far along are you?"
Jenny froze, stiffened, and looked around with round, nervous eyes. "I, um," she swallowed and then drew up her courage. "Well, since you asked, about eight and a half weeks."
Jim and Alexis shared a look as they picked up on the situation, but Martha was already squeezing Jenny tight. "Congratulations! But you poor thing, going through all this when you probably already feel so physically and emotionally overwhelmed."
"I'll be fine as soon as I can see Kevin."
"I know, but until then, let me take care of you."
"Really, I don't need..."
"But I do. I can't help my own son right now, and I need to do something. I'm going mad just standing out here with my fears and imagination. And I'm an actress, my imagination is likely much worse than reality at the moment. So please do this old woman a favor and let me dote on you."
Jenny looked at Alexis and Jim with questions in her eyes. Alexis shrugged. "Once she has it in her mind to do something, you probably won't be able to change it."
"See Dear, listen to my granddaughter. If anyone knows, it's her. So please, let's go sit down in this diner, get off our feet, and drown our sorrows in milkshakes. I know Jim and Alexis will notify us if there are any updates."
Jim nodded solemnly. "Definitely will."
With that settled for her, Jenny was swept away by the spirited thespian, and the remaining pair turned back toward the scene.
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Tuesday, April 30
Triage Tent 2
4:10 pm
"No! I absolutely refuse. You just said it yourself, I seemed to be in fair condition. I'm not leaving my people here to go sit in some crowded ER!"
"Captain," the young medic argued calmly. "Even if we ignore the fact that you probably have a couple broken ribs, you have a head injury. You need to go to the hospital and have it checked out. You do seem to be well right now, but without an MRI or CT, we can't know that for sure. I'm certain you have a concussion. That alone is grounds for an immediate ER visit. But you could have cracked your skull, there could be bleeding on the brain or pressure building up. Something like that could lead to vision or hearing loss, blood clots, stroke or worse. This is serious. Now with all do respect Ma'am, please lay back down and allow Sal and Nikko to load you into an ambulance."
"Sir," she answered coolly.
"Excuse me?"
"You called me Ma'am. That's what you may call my mother. You are to call me Sir or Captain. Is that understood?"
The man looked around at the others nearby, wondering if this was normal behavior for the 12th's Captain, or if this was a sign of further head trauma. "Yes Ma', uh, Sir. But that doesn't change the situation. You have a possible life-threatening injury and require further medical attention."
Victoria Gates glanced at the medic's name tag. "Mr. Wells, is this always how you comfort your patients?"
"No, Sir. But I'm not trying to comfort you. As anyone here can clearly see, you are a woman who appreciates directness. I'm simply telling you the truth."
"I like you Wells. I do. But let's get something straight, you're going to have to knock me out to get me to leave. Don't think I haven't heard the reports. Only twenty-three people have been removed from the wreckage so far and four of them didn't survive. Do you have any idea of how many people, my people, are still in there? Even assuming that many escaped, there could be more than a hundred souls still in there and I'll tell you one thing right now, I'll be damned if I voluntarily leave before every single one of them is out."
"Sir, that could could take... days."
Gates looked toward the smoldering pile of rubble and softened. Sadness, pain and something else... perhaps memories, haunted her chocolate eyes. "I'm a life long New Yorker and a career cop, tell me something I don't know."
Wells nodded toward the men who had been waiting to transport the Captain, dismissing them. "Captain Gates, I'll have a chair and some water set up just outside the triage tent. It's close enough that you can keep your eyes on the rescue, but if you start to feel ill, I'm just a shout away. Will you promise me that you'll tell me if you start to experience any symptoms like vision issues, dizziness, nausea, intense pain, breathing difficulties, spitting up blood, or if you feel like you can't stay awake, that you'll call me?"
Victoria paused to think, not wanting to commit to something she wouldn't stick too. "Yes, Mr. Wells. I believe I can promise you that."
"Good, you sit here. I want you to take some Ibuprofen, eat a sandwich, and drink a bottle of water before I let you out of my sight."
Twenty-five minutes later, a beat cop walked with Gates to the folding chair and crate set up just outside of the giant white triage tent. "Here you go Captain. Is there anything else I can get you?"
"No, I'm fine. Thank you, Porter."
"You're welcome, Sir."
The young officer began to turn away, but Gates touched her elbow, stopping her.
"Yes, Sir?"
"Were you inside when it came down?"
Porter rocked back on her heels with a far off look in her green eyes. "Moments before, Sir. I was on the first floor, near booking. But as soon as the explosion sounded, Officer Hastings began evacuating the area. I'd say a dozen or so people got out a side exit before the building fell, thanks to her quick thinking."
"Ann Hastings?"
"Yes Sir."
"And she got out as well?"
Porter swallowed hard. "I'm not sure, Captain. I haven't seen her."
Silence filled the space between them. They were both aware of the unspoken fear that they shared.
"Thank you Porter."
The young cop walked away, with shoulders slumped, and Gates turned her attention to the mountain of rubble that had become her work home. She couldn't help but wonder how many other people hadn't been seen since the explosion. Familiar faces ran through her mind. She'd already seen many people who'd thankfully escaped, but many, many more were still missing.
She watched as fire fighters, paramedics, and men and women in hard hats and neon vests swarmed over and around the collapsed building. Hoses watered down the smoldering ruins, while large cranes and machinery carefully removed piece after piece of heavy debris. A thick layer of dust had settled over the entire area, and papers and brick littered the street like cookie crumbs on a plate.
Suddenly, shouts of people on the pile and nearby, grew louder than the hum of machinery. They found someone else, and from the frantic rush of stretchers and medics, they were alive.
Victoria stretched gingerly but couldn't see anything, so she carefully stood and slowly drew closer to the scene. A large crane had just hoisted a gigantic piece of concrete from the top, and rescuers headed to those trapped below. At first it looked like they were going to bring someone down, but then about half the people that she could see in that location, disappeared.
More than fifteen minutes passed but eventually the shouts began again. Aside from the obvious rescuers, there was someone being brought out on a stretcher, and someone else, a man who was shirtless and had a large bandage around his head, walking out on his own.
Gates squinted to see if she recognized the latest freed victims. The person being rushed onto the gurney was unrecognizable at that distance, but she definitely knew the one walking. Even injured and picking his way down thirty feet of rubble, the man had a certain swagger in his step. Javier Esposito. Which almost certainly meant the one being carried was his partner, Kevin Ryan.
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Tuesday, April 30
Triage Tent 1
4:50 pm
Lanie Parish couldn't stop shaking. Her legs, her hands, everything trembled. Javi was alive! Everything she'd been holding in came out in a rush as he strode toward her. Dirt and blood covered almost every inch of his body, but his dazzling white smile appeared the moment he saw her.
Thankful that she wasn't treating anyone at the moment, she ran directly at him, arms open, and calling his name. When they finally met, he swung her round in a full circle and then kissed her with the passion a man has when he's been given a second chance at life.
"Javi, I thought I might never see you again!"
"Girl you know I wouldn't give up without a fight."
He dipped his head again and captured her trembling lips for another kiss. When they separated, Lanie immediately began examining him for injuries, starting with the scalp laceration under his makeshift bandage.
She asked him questions about how he felt, while probing his flesh and bones. And then lead him to the tent to clean and prep his wound.
"You're gonna need a dozen stitches at least. But the ER can do that for you."
"That's nothing compared to what Ryan's going to need."
"You've seen him? Where is he?"
"Loaded him straight into an ambulance. He's bad."
All the joy of the reunion was now gone. Javier was stoic and began to withdraw.
"Tell me Javi. Jenny is over at the barricades with Jim Beckett, Martha and Alexis. Tell me everything you know."
I haven't seen Castle and Beckett. They were in the elevator. God knows where they are now." Life seemed to drain from his eyes even as he spoke.
"And Kevin?"
"Belly wound. Impaled with a piece of the white board. He's lost a lot of blood. By the time they took him out, he uh, he wasn't conscious. They said they found a pulse but..." Tears started to form in the tough man's eyes. His lips trembled and he crumpled forward into her arms. Everything else he said was muffled by her shoulder, but Lanie was still able to make out what her boyfriend said. "The last time I saw him, his skin was ashen and his lips were blue. Dear God, he can't die. He can't!"
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A/N: OK, OK, so I got Ryan and Espo out... I'd ask if you're happy now, but I think I know the answer to that. Ha.
Thank you sooooo much for all the continuing feedback and support. I'm loving how invested you guys seem to be in it. It absolutely thrills me from head to toes.
Just FYI, so far all the updates have been posted early in the morning. Tomorrow, don't worry if it's not til mid afternoon. Sunday mornings, getting the family up and out the door on time for church, doesn't allow for much time to go online and post things. So unless I'm up extra early for some unexpected reason, expect chapter 7 to show up 5-6 hours later than usual.
Alright, have a fantastic weekend, And I'll see you again tomorrow!
DeBo81