Chapter 15
Hank caught a glimpse of his paramedics out of the corner of his eye and it was all he could do to head them off. Placing both hands on Roy's upper arms he pushed him back against a wall and held him tight. "Not yet Roy we have to let the police clear the way for us."
"But Cap, My daughter," Roy started to protest until his captain stopped him by holding up his hand.
"This is their area, Roy, if you rush up that ladder before they get things under control no one knows what could happen. Jennifer could be severely injured or worse. How's Chris?"
"He's going to be alright," Roy answered knowing his Captain was right but hating with every fiber in his body the mere thought of waiting to go to his daughter's aid. "He's having spasms in his," Roy was at a loss for words as he motioned to his own stomach with his hand. "He's having trouble breathing but they'll take care of him at Rampart."
Hank managed to get eye contact with John and knew he was as much of a risk for bolting before the police had things under control and Roy was. Some how he managed to place the two of them in the capable hands of the rest of his crew before he left to report to the chief who had just arrived on scene.
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Jennifer couldn't catch her breath, when the big oalf smashed her against the wall she felt something pop in two places in her shoulder and the whole thing hurt real bad. When Mr. Bunker grabbed her under the arms and started tossing her around like a rag doll along with another little girl she didn't know all that well. Her shoulder hurt even more. She knew what needed to be done but Mr. Bunker was doing everything wrong to take care of her and she couldn't do it herself the way he was carrying her. Still she reached over with her good hand and pulled her other arm against her stomach and held it as tight as she could.
Once on the roof of the school Mr. Bunker placed both girls on the ground and smiled at the three boys who had brought the two other 'problem student' to the roof with them.
Mr. Bunker was in the process of using some boards on the room to secure the door, "There now no one will join our little party will they."
Jennifer managed to pull the bottom of her t-shirt up over her elbow to support her injured shoulder, she was still in a lot of pain but at least her other arm was free to do something else. The other little girl was paralyzed with fear and stood nearby crying, a sound Mr. Bunker seemed to like to hear.
Mr. Bunker started pacing back and forth swinging a narrow tree branch he had found on the roof and slapping his opposite palm with it as the walked and talked. The words he spoke were words Jenny had heard before. Stuff about obeying your superiors, your elders he called them, doing what you're told and only what you're told, until you learn what it means to be a leader.
The three Bunker boys seemed to be listening with pride at their leader's speech but Jenny, Allen and Jason were looking around and watching the firemen and police move in and watching for a chance to make a move.
Cindy, Jenny had managed to learn the other girl's name, was trying her hardest to keep her crying as quiet as possible. Still her tears poured down her face before dripping into her clothes. She was a year older than Jenny and in one of the second grade classes. Why she had been targeted no one seemed to know.
As Jenny was watching the action around them she noticed the tips of a ladder being raised against the building behind Mr. Bunker and turning to make eye contact with her fellow hostages she was able to shift her eyes back to the ladder and they saw it too.
When Jenny saw a hand reach the top rung of the ladder she gave Cindy a gentle shove and whispered for her to run to the ladder as she ran Mr. Bunker tried to swat her with is tree limb but Jenny managed to get a hold of the end of it with her good arm and held it back.
Allen and Jason notice the surprise on the three boy's faces and managed to pull their arms free as Jason administered an elbow to the ribs and then a karate chop to the throat of the Bunker boy closest to him. That boy placed his hands to his throat and sunk to the roof top gasping for breath.
Allen had already stomped on the instep of the boy holding him and liking the results of the chop to the throat swung his casted elbow at a similar target on his captor. He missed his mark getting that boy hard in the caller bone area but a follow up bunch to the bread basket gave the desired results and the third boy decided that he didn't want the same so he took a couple of steps back keeping his fists at the ready but still in retreat the score has changed instead of three on two it was now two on one.
Mr. Bunker tried regaining control by grabbing Jenny by her good arm and twisting it in his hands intentionally causing pain. Jenny managed to use a trick she had learned in a Stranger Danger class she took and pulled her weight against Mr. Bunkers thumb and managed to unlock his grip on her falling down on the roof in her efforts, both Allen and Jason were coming to her aid when Mr. Bunker stepped on her good wrist pinning her to the roof top as he reached out and took hold of Allen's casted arm. He noticed that the cast how had a good crack in it and in an effort to cause him pain started twisting the cast as the crack.
"Why is it that you children will not obey your elders and do what your told?" he spoke with a growl in his voice as he nearly brought Allen to his knees.
Jenny's arms might not have been any help at the moment but her feet were unrestrained. She swung her feet up and as hard as she could, and made clear contact with Mr. Bunker's boy parts and his eyes nearly popped out of his head. Allen took advantage of his change of condition and with his good hand administered a tight fisted punch right at Mr. Bunker's throat.
"Because you only half know what you're talking about," Jenny answered Mr. Bunker's last question at the top of her lungs with all the anger she had accumulated, "And you're too mean to listen to anyway!"
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The police was making their quiet assent up the ladder hoping to be able to sneak up behind those hostage takers and disarm the situation prior to motioning up the firemen to help the children down to safety. The last thing the lead police officer expected when he slowly eased his head over the edge of the roof as a panicked young girl ran at him and jumped into his arms. It was all he could do to catch her as he momentum would have been enough to topple the ladder over back wards had not there been two firemen at its base holding it in place against the building. It took the police officer a couple of precious seconds to get young frightened Cindy securely in his arms and several more precious seconds to hand her off to the police officer next on the ladder. Then and only then was the police officer able to engage with the perpetrators on the roof. Knowing it would take time for his back up to be there only slowed him down long enough to see Jenny administer her effective kick and the boy with the broken arm land a punch to the windpipe.
As Mr. Bunker crumbled to the gravel covered roof top, Jenny was trapped under him she couldn't move.
The first police officer held his gun ready and moved it from standing boy to standing boy so no one made a move. The next two officers on the roof were directed to Mr. Bunker and as soon as hand cuffs were applied he was rolled off of young Jenny with no effort to keep from doing more harm to what ever injuries he had.
As he was roll Jenny managed to roll up on her knees next to him One arm still tucked in her shirt and hurting and now her other arm hurting with the slightest movement.
"He's not getting any air in him you have to fix his airway." Jenny instructed and since the police officers had almost as much first aid training as young Jenny they did make a few adjustments to the man and everyone hear she shrill wheeze of his first inhaled breath.
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Roy was waiting at the bottom of the ladder with every muscle twitching. The ladder was loaded with police officers ready to make what they hoped would be a surprise attack. His captain's hand was still firmly clamped around his upper arm and Roy was grateful it was there. He needed to know someone would keep him from making a mistake in his frightened father mindset that he was now in. Mike and Marco were holding firm to the ladder making sure is stayed in position as the police officers climbed.
Roy heard the whisper to move out and turned his eyes to the top of the ladder just as the first officer managed was struggling to catch and then get a good old of a young girl who seemed to have been thrown at him.
Once she was under control they girl was handed down to the next officer on the ladder and then to the next as Cap and Roy reached together to take her from their hands at the first possible height.
When he could Roy gathered the girl in his arms and tried to comfort her. Somewhere were parents who felt for her just as he did his children. After a quick assessment where no injuries were found she was handed over to Chet who started talking to her as he gently carried her to the waiting ambulance attendants more completely.
Chet had just turned to leave with Cindy when the call came over the edge of the roof, "situation secured."
Roy was the first one on the ladder with his Captain right behind him, closer than was normal, John was behind the captain and Brice and Bellingham came up after them.
Roy was so relieved to see his daughter once he got to the roof. She was kneeling at the side of the notorious Mr. Bunker and when she saw her father she lifted one knee and pushed herself to a stand turning to him.
"We have some significant airway difficulties here," Jenny spoke taking time to enunciate each word as if she were teaching someone to say them for the first time, "He got a hard sock in the throat."
A stunned Roy was starting to make a move to where his daughter was directing him when Captain Stanley once again took hold of his upper arm. "I think we can let the next guy take care of him," Cap advised and Brice was the one to oblige with his partner Bellingham to assist him.
"This guy over here has the same problem," Jason Connor called out nodding to the kid he had put down, "Just not quite as sever."
Johnny raced to that boy's aid and that left Roy to kneel down in front of his daughter. Seeing her right arm tucked in her turned up shirt Roy carefully reached out to hold her but she flinched away and cried as his reach got close to her shoulder.
"I hurt daddy, both arms," Jenny cried her left arm hanging motionlessly at her side.
Roy quickly took his turn out coat off and spread it out on the gravely roof they turned back to his hurting little girl. "I'm going to lay you down right here honey, but I want you to let me do all the work."
Roy then carefully and with the help of his Captain who seemed to be attached at his side, placed his arm around Jenny's neck and under her bottom and lifted her from her feet and gently laid her on the turnout coat blanket. As he did so Roy felt a rather large lump on the back of his daughter's head. While Captain Stanley used his body to keep the sun out of the young girls eyes her father carefully continued his exam, when he pulled the neck line of her shirt away slightly he could see for certain that she had a fractured Collarbone and an obviously dislocated shoulder. All else seemed to be in place until he reached her left arm. As tender as it was to touch Roy was certain it was fractured.
Since he felt that Jenny's arm splint was superior to the ones carried on the squad Roy asked his daughter a question that made her day. "Would it be alright if I used the supplies in your first aid Kit?"
"Yes daddy, any time," Jenny answered, "but only you and Uncle Johnny."
Her special, made out of newspaper, splint was applied to her left arm and since Chet saw fit to bring a bunch of the card board splints up the ladder with him when he came Roy put one of those over the top to secure the elbow better.
The pediatric cuff was perfect for her little arms as he read then recorded her vital signs. Everything was a little high but Roy was sure his were high too.
"Do you need a triangular bandage?" Chet asked as he tried to assist in the care of the little girl.
"Yeah," Roy agreed with a smile, "But not that one," he glanced and the one in the box that Chet was about to open.
Chet realized quickly what he meant and playfully bopped himself up the side of the head. "Well of course not, not for our Jenny." Chet then looked through the supplies in the opened first responder's kit at their side. "Let me see, we have flowers, stripes, Barbie, and race cars, what would be to your liking ma'lady?"
"Barbie," Father and daughter spoke in unison, and Barbie it was.
Mr. Bunker and the boy who had similar injuries were whisked to the ladders and lowered down to a waiting ambulance. Bellingham was sent in with them since their injuries were of highest priority.
Roy was tenderly binding his daughter's wounds and waiting for another stokes to be brought on the roof as Johnny and Brice were checking out the rest of the kids. The boy Allen got in the shoulder with his cast was given a plain triangular bandage and left to the supervision of the police officer who held the key to his cuffs, the other boy in cuffs at his side. Johnny then turned to Jason Connor whom he'd met at Roy's house the night Chris had been injured. There were plenty of bruises but nothing more.
Brice sat Allen down on the Trauma Box and was looking him over; there were his original injuries he was still recovering from but there were also a few fresh bruises and superficial cuts, and blood every where. Allen's cast was a mess. Not only was it covered with the blood of at lease half a dozen other boys it was split and cracked in at least three places.
"It appears to me that you haven't been treating this cast properly," Brice began as he was cleaning up the small cuts and abrasions on the boy's face. "You know you should be more careful then maybe you wouldn't have gotten the cast on in the first place."
Roy reached over and placed a hand on Brice's shoulder to stop him for saying more then gave Allen his most sincere expression. "Thank you for protecting my son Chris and for all you've done for Jenny. I know they both would be in much worse shape if it weren't for what you did."
Roy then turned to Craig Brice, "Don't chastise him, he's a real hero here today."
A ladder truck was used to lower Jenny to the ground and Roy couldn't get to the ground fast enough to meet her there but Captain Stanley was on hand to steady the stokes the last few feet before it was placed on the stretcher and as the attendants were strapping her in he knelt near her head and talked with her until her father was once again at her side.
"That was kind of fun," Jenny said of her ride down in the stokes. "Do I have to get hurt to do it again or can you arrange something?"
Hank just laughed at the girl and carefully ruffled the hair on top of her head. "I'll have to see what I can do, we can't have you getting hurt just to get a ride in a stokes now can we."
At that moment Hank was planning to add stokes rides to the next fireman's picnic but he knew Jenny was planning on joining them on their next stokes training.
The stretcher was loaded in the ambulance and Roy was helped in along with both Allen and Jason, and they were on their way.