Begin 6

As John looked through the shattered window he could see that Dixie had her fingers on Elise's carotid artery and that she was unable to turn because she was trapped against the seat by the steering wheel in her lap.

"Did she hit her head Dix?" John asked as he dug the claws of the crow par into the seam of the door.

"No but she slammed into the shoulder strap across her chest, her heart rate is really erratic right now," Dixie reported breathlessly.

"I need the scope and the defibrillator over here fast!" Johnny called out as he used every ounce of adrenalin he had to pull against the pry bar and then rip the door open.

Mike didn't even look at what Johnny was doing or where he was, when he heard the call for the scope and defibrillator he turned away from his gages and to the squad to grab the requested items. He then jogged them in the directions the call came from glancing at his gages as he passed by to make sure they were stable.

When Mike reached Johnny's side Johnny was just heaving the passenger door of the middle car out of his way when he heard, "Johnny! I just lost her pulse," coming from the driver of the car.

Johnny turned around to take the equipment from Mike's hands and Mike could see that Johnny's patient was also the person they had just been introduced to as his wife.

Mike watched for just a moment as Johnny quickly cut through the seat belt then ripped his wife's blouse open before grabbing for the paddles of the defibrillator. Mike watched him as he jelled the paddles and with the tube of jell still in his teeth placed the paddles and instinctly called "Clear" before pressing the buttons sending a jolt of electricity causing his wife's body to arch.

Mike didn't wait around to see the results of Johnny's actions, Cap needed to be told, and fast.

Mike ran as fast as he could in the direction of the captain, when he passed by the engine the gages were the farthest thing from his mind.

"Cap!" Mike called as he reached out and took a hold of his captain's shoulder. "Gage has a full arrest over there, it's his new wife."

Hank's eyes flew open wide as he turned toward John's partner. "DeSoto, can you break free?"

"No, Cap I have a lacerated artery here," Was Roy's response.

Hank slapped Mike's coat in the area of his stomach and ordered, "Go help Roy," before taking off on a run toward Gage. When he arrived he found John moving his wife out of the car and laying her out on the ground. Being the good captain that he was he had to question such actions without the proper spinal precautions.

As John positioned the Oxygen Mask on his wife's face Cap inquired. "Do you need any help here Johnny?"

"Yeah, we're going to need jaws to get Dix out, I haven't gotten to those two over there, but the way their crying and yelling at each other their clearly not the priority here. What's the ETA on the ambulance?"

"I'll find out," Hank replied as he pulled the handy talkie to his mouth while he watched John pick up the Bio-phone. "LA, this is station 51, we've got our hands full here dispatch a second engine and a squad to our location for manpower and can you tell me the ETA of the first ambulance to our location?"

"Station 51 10-4 on the additional Squad and Engine crew, stand by for ETA." Hank took over holding the oxygen mask on Elise's face as he waited for the information he had requested.

As Hank took in the victim he also took in his youngest paramedic. John's face was pale and ashen and his fingers at times hesitant. This was the last patient John should be working on at this moment but he had no choice there was no one else. Hank was relieved when Brackett's voice came over the bio-phone.

"Doc, we're at an auto accident with four cars involved. Elise was in the middle of a three car rear end sandwich; she was thrown against the shoulder restraint belt on impact and went into an erratic heart rate that progressed into V-fib. Counter shocked once and now have a palpable pulse but rate is still irregular sending you a strip now."

Hank watched as Johnny pulled a cord from the scope and after unplugging some wires from a box attached to Elise's waist plugged them into the cord and then into the Bio-phone.

"51, did you use manual chest compressions?" Brackett inquired.

"That's negative Rampart just the defibrillator."

"Good work Johnny. Start an IV with saline and piggy back an isoproterenol drip. Do you have an ambulance on scene yet?"

'Maybe John wasn't the last person who should work on this patient,' Hank began to think.

"Negative Rampart but we can hear sirens in the back ground that could be our ambulance it's too soon to know for sure."

"Transport as soon as possible and monitor vitals every five minutes and keep an eye on that ECG, Call in if it makes any changes at all."

John stopped his preparations to start an IV just long enough to acknowledge the order in a robotic manner then went to work.

Hank didn't know what he was seeing on the scopes screen but he knew it wasn't good. His mind flashed to his office and the envelopes in his top drawer waiting to be placed in John's file. "Please don't make me open Elise's letter today," Hank pleaded silently as he watched his friend and paramedic establish an IV with his usual proficiency and then administer the drugs that had been ordered.

The Siren coming around the corner drew Hank's attention away from the patient for just a minute. "Engine 86, come in and relieve my men on the hose have one of your men assist DeSoto in the lead car and get his patient ready to go in the first ambulance. Lopez and Kelly as soon as you're relieved get the jaws and start extrication of the driver in the middle car."

Hank stood high to see what the next siren belonged to and saw an ambulance a block and a half away. Then he looked down at his panicked groom, now that the IV's and meds were on board John picked up his wife's hand and tenderly held it in both of his. "Hang in there Elise, don't leave me now, we have too much to do together. Just hang in there, do it for me please." John pleaded and Hank saw the tears fall onto the patient's hand.

Hank had to make sure John wasn't alone with the patient in the ambulance, he wasn't going to be able to stay on auto pilot forever, and the best way he could think of was to make sure Roy and his patient were on board too.

When the ambulance pulled on scene Hank looked around and noticed them securing Roy's patient to a back board and then waved the ambulance attendants and their gurney in his direction. As he helped lift Elise onto the gurney Hank noticed that the rest of his crew were just about ready to pull the steering wheel out of Dixie's lap. The next sirens belonged to the squad from 36's and Hank waved them to Dixie's aid.

"Take her and go," Dixie admonished, "They'll get me out and I'll be along as soon as I can. I'll be fine."

Hank followed Johnny and Elise to the ambulance and helped to lift the gurney on board. As the firemen loaded Roy's patient Hank took hold of his arm and pulled him close. "When your relieved get to John's side and stick there like glue until you're told otherwise." With that order given Hank helped Roy into the back of the ambulance and shut the doors behind them giving the ready to go double slap. He then turned back to help extricate Nurse McCall and noticed that the other three victims were also being taken care of. Once Dixie was packaged for delivery Hank helped to load her and while others were closing the ambulance doors Hank pulled his handy talkie from his pocket.

"LA, Station 51 reports accident scene under control, Time out 20 minutes for clean up. Request Chief McConnike to meet me at quarters ASAP."

"10-4 51 OUT 20 MINUTES, Chief McConnike is being informed of request."

"Chief McConnike to Engine 51, ETA to station 5 minutes."

"10-4 Chief, I'll meet you there."

Hank had just enough time to put Mike in charge of the engine crew and ask the other captain to take charge of the scene. He then climbed behind the wheel of the squad and headed for the station and the envelopes in his office desk.

The squad was driven not backed into the bay and Hank jumped from the squad leaving the engine running and the door open. The Chief saw his move and drove up behind him and met Hank in his office.

"What's going on here Hank?"

Hank was breathing heavy and knew he looked panicked, he chose not to hide it. "I just watched my paramedic treat his own wife of only eighteen hours in a full arrest situation at that accident we were called out on. My gut tells me he is going to need the legal documents in this envelope to be able to see to it that she gets the treatment she's going to need." Hank reached in his drawer and pulled the thickest of the envelopes out to show to his Chief, at that second he decided not to take Elise's letter to John, he wouldn't tempt fate. "Could you possible replace me or put Mike in charge for an hour possible two so that I can go take them to him and make sure he's alright."

"Who's your medic?" the Chief asked as he processed what he'd been told.

"John Gage, he had just introduced her and stunned the rest of the station and then she was involved in an accident just two blocks from here."

"I thought Gage was a confirmed bachelor," the Chief showed he could be stunned too.

"He was married yesterday afternoon at the court house by a judge; he called me to be a witness just a couple of hours before."

"Is she bad, his wife? Well I guess if she went into full arrest she must be." The Chief was still recovering from his own shock. "Go, you're covered, call me here as soon as you know anything and I'll call in a replacement medic. Gage shouldn't be working at a time like this."

"Thanks Chief, I really appreciate this, I told Stoker to bring the engine back here when they're done with clean up."

"Go already, I'll take care of everything," the Chief waved him out.

Hank hurried to the back bay doors and pushed the button to open them, as they were working their way upward Hank hurried back to the squad stuffing the envelope in his shirt pocket as he jogged. He then put the truck in gear and drove out the back door and around the side of the building before turning onto the road and making a B-line for Rampart.

00000

At Rampart everything was hopping. Brackett had ordered an OR prepared and called in the cardiac surgeon as soon as he was off the radio with John, Elise needed that pacemaker and she needed it now. An orderly had been handed the ECG strip from the machine and sent to deliver it to the Dr as he was scrubbing up for surgery.

Kell hung around the base station long enough to get the information on Dixie. She was banged up some and probably had a whiplash. She'd need some x-rays and possibly a room where she would be nursed instead of doing the nursing for a night but she'd be alright.

When Kell exited the closed in Base station he was greeted by the hospital administrator and another man he knew to be a lawyer who represented the hospital. Also at his side was a man Kell knew to be the loudest opponent of Elise getting her wishes and the most over barring member of her family.

"Dr. Brackett this gentleman has issued a claim that we are, namely you are manipulating patients in order to perform experiments on them."

"I'm sure he has, but it has been proven in court that he's wrong. If you'll excuse me I have some patients coming in that are in serious condition, I don't have time for this right now." Kell pushed past the three men and headed for the ER receiving doors at a fast pace.

As he helped move Elise from the ambulance he hoped that the oxygen mask and some well placed emergency personnel would keep the constant complainer from recognizing his patient. But Tom Sulston recognized Johnny as he raced in next to the gurney holding the IV's high with one hand and Elise's hand with his other.

"Come on Elise stay with me, I'm right here, ya gat'ta hang in there," Johnny begged and dispelled any doubt there might have been as to who the patient was.

As Dr. Bracket was listening to Elise's heart and lungs through a stethoscope the nurses were cutting her clothes away and preparing her for surgery.

Kell pulled the ear pieces out of his ears and looked at Johnny. "She needs that pacemaker right now. We're ready up in surgery now we need your permission."

Johnny gulped back his tears and nod his head to the affirmative, "Go for it Doc, just tell me where to sign the papers."

With a shake of his head Kell instructed a nurse to take Johnny to sign the permission forms and she placed her hand on Johnny's shoulder encouraging him toward the door.

Once they were in the corridor Tom Sulston took a firm hold of Johnny's arm and turned him around to face him. "What are you doing to my sister in there?" he demanded.

"Don't you mean sister-in-law," Johnny corrected but he was much too distressed to see the eyebrows of the in house lawyer shoot upward. Johnny just jerked his arm loose from Tom's hold and without another word proceeded to follow the nurse to the desk where the permission forms were kept.

When the papers were pulled out and sat on the desk top, Tom was quick to notice what they were and moved in close again. "You can't sign those papers you're not even a relative."

"I hold Medical Power of Attorney," Johnny tried to turn his back to the man he didn't want to talk to.

"Oh yeah, can you prove it?" Tom taunted, he knew it would take several days to process the papers and get them in the right files there hadn't been time yet.

"Yes he can," was heard from behind them and every one turned to see Captain Hank Stanley standing there with a stuffed envelope in his hands.