A/n On Tuesday February 9, Captain Phil Harris of the Cornelia Marie passed away after suffering from a major stroke late January. This gruff, funny, warm hearted captain will be sorely missed, as he touched, not only those around him, but the millions of viewers who watched him every week. Rest in peace Captain Harris.
"Are you okay Andy?" Johnny asked, pulling himself over to the co-captain. He was injured himself, but didn't want the others to know before he had the chance to check on the injured Hillstrand brother. He saw Mike get his gear out of the cabinet and bring it over to him.
"I think so, just had the wind knocked out of me," he said, trying to sit up again.
Jonathan held him down. "Your are not getting up until Johnny checks you out."
Andy didn't say anything but shot a dirty look at his brother. Johnny smiled, smothered a chuckle and began looking him over. Andy acts just like I do when I'm injured and Roy wants me checked out! As he touched Andy's lower left leg, Andy gasped and squirmed in pain.
"Just had the wind knocked out of you huh?" Jonathan asked, looking down at his brother.
"Well, it does feel broken and I believe he has a concussion as well," Johnny said, sitting back on his knees, his breath slightly rapid. His arm was hurting like crazy and he knew Andy had to be in pain too. He knew he had to hold out a little longer to get Andy patched up before they could head back to port.
"Yeah, well, you were knocked out too and your not using your left arm right now," Andy countered. He could tell by the look on Johnny's face that his was injured and was trying to hide it.
"What?!" Jonathan yelled, moving over next to Johnny. He looked Johnny over, to make sure that he wasn't hiding any more injuries.
" Okay, so I'm injured, but I'm taking care of Andy first. Mike, can you help me splint his leg, then you can help me splint my arm." Johnny said, opening his bag and pulling 2 splints out.
As Mike and Johnny were splinting Andy's leg, Jonathan went over to Neal, who was still trying to navigate the horrendous storm still raging outside. The camera guy followed his moves while trying to catch the action going on with Andy, Mike and Johnny. Jonathan looked back, hearing the rest of the crew heading up to the wheelhouse.
"Andy! Are you okay?" Scotty yelled, heading straight for his uncle. He knealed beside Johnny as John and Eddie made their way over to Jonathan and Neal.
"Yeah, I will be. Just have a broken leg, I'll be fine. What about you, Eddie and John? Are you guys okay?" Andy asked, looking over his nephew.
"Yeah, we're fine. Everything's a mess, but we can worry about it later."
"How's it going Neal?" Jonathan asked, standing behind his brother.
"It's still bad out there. Do we need to change direction, head to St. Paul?" Neal asked, not turning around. He kept his eyes on the rough seas.
"Yeah, we need to head there. Andy has a broken leg and it looks like Johnny has a broken arm. Set the course and then I'll take over."
Neal changed their course, heading for St. Paul, then stood up, relinquishing his spot in the captain's seat. Jonathan had just sat down when the radio came to life.
"Time Bandit, this is the Northwestern. Are you out there Jonathan?" Sig's worn out voice came over the radio.
"This is the Time Bandit, what's up Sig?"
"Well, a lot's going on, but for right now, is your paramedic available?"
"Give him a minute or two. He's working on Andy," Jonathan said as he ran a hand through his unruly hair.
"What? What the hell happened? Is he okay?"
" We took 2 pretty bad waves that tipped us twice; once tilting us portside, the other righting us. Andy has a broken leg and a concussion. Then we found out Johnny has a broken arm and concussion too."
"Oh man. I hope they'll be okay," Sig said sincerely.
"We do too. We are heading to St. Paul to have them checked." Johnny came beside Jonathan, worried why the captain of another boat was looking for him. "Okay, Johnny's done, so here he is."
"This is Johnny, what can I do for you Sig?"
"We need some help. We are on our way into St. Paul too. The Coast Guard is en route to us and is going to meet us half way. We got hit with a rogue wave that nearly wiped my crew out. Karen was taking care of my two injured deck hands. Now she's unconscious. Before she passed out, she did tell me that she sprained her ankle and she was sure she had a couple of broken ribs. What could be wrong with her?"
Johnny sat stunned for a moment. His partner was injured! Oh no! I hope to God she's okay! He took a deep breath before he began.
"Sounds like she has a head injury. Was she unconscious at any time and how long has she been unconscious now?"
"Hold on," Sig said. He heard muffled voices, then Sig came back on. "None of my guys know. It's possible she was knocked out; she has a bruise and a cut on her forehead. She's been unconscious for 5 minutes now."
"It's definetly a head injury. You said the Coast Guard was on the way. Is she going with them?" Johnny asked, silently praying for his partner as he tried to re-adjust the splint on his arm.
"Yes she is. I told them she was injured, but didn't know details at the time. What do we need to do until we meet them?"
"Try to get her to come around. The longer she is unconscious, the harder it's going to be to get her to wake up. Other than that, monitor her breathing. If one of the broken ribs has punctured her lung, it can could collapse at any time, causing her to go into respritory arrest. How are your other deckhands?"
"Edgar has a concussion and his arm has a nicked artery. The bleeding's slowed down; I think one of my guys is still holding pressure on the wound. Jake has a dislocated shoulder. Other than that, we're okay."
"Okay, let me know if there is any other complications before the Coast Guard arrives. If not, I guess we'll see you at St. Paul," Johnny said, letting out a shaky breath.
"10-4. Thanks Johnny. Northwestern out." Sig replied.
"You okay Johnny?" Neal asked, looking the paramedic over. He could tell Johnny was in some sort of distress; his face was white as a sheet.
"I'm fine, just worried about my partner," Johnny replied, sitting in the port side seat.
Everyone could tell that the pain etched on Johnny's face was not only from the broken arm, but realizing that his partner was injured and in danger. Their hearts went out the injured paramedic as the boat continued to take waves on the trek to St. Paul.