Chapter 17: The Arranged Marriage
The next morning Pierre was up early to get ready to work at the station. He gave a soft kiss to Stephanie on her cheek and walked down the stairs. "Hey, I will take care of her while you are gone," Janice said. "Just make sure you come back to us today."
"I will, Momma," Pierre said. He walked out the front door and saw the chief in his SUV.
"Let's go," he said.
"You got it, Chief." Pierre got in the SUV and drove to the station. Everyone was waiting outside the station.
"Hey, Tank. Welcome back," lieutenant Jacobs said as he held out his hand.
"Thanks, glad to be back." Tank shook his hand.
"Question, that lovely lady you were with a week ago, is it serious between you too?" Jacobs asked.
"She is my wife, and we are expecting our first child, so yeah," Tank said, shaking his head as he walked into the station.
"Jacobs, Tank is going through a lot. He lost his house and last night his SUV, so take it easy on him," Franklin said.
"Got it, chief," Jacobs said. The two of them walked in when the alarm blared. Everyone suited up. They jumped on the truck and left. When they got there, they saw a crushed Rangeman SUV.
"Okay, we got work to do. Get the jaws," Franklin said. Tank and Jacobs grabbed the jaws from the storage compartment in the rig. Tank powered up the jaws and used them to create an opening in the SUV. He saw Lester and Hal. "Hang on, guys, we will get you out," Tank told them.
A few minutes later, Lester and Hal were both out of the SUV and strapped to the backboards. Tank noticed Ranger watching the scene. "Chief, I will be right back," Tank told him.
"Got it." Chief Franklin watched Tank walk up to Ranger.
"They are going to be alright, Ranger," Tank said loud enough for the chief to hear. "If you want, we can meet at the hospital," Tank said before leaving Ranger.
Tank walked up to the ambulance to check on Lester. "Tank, please come back even if it is just part-time. We need you at Rangeman," Lester said. Tank closed the back of the ambulance door and hit it with his fist, letting them know they could leave. He watched the ambulance take off to Trenton Hospital.
The rest of the shift went without a single call. Around three-thirty, Tank was dropped off at his mom's house. He saw Stephanie sitting on a swing on the porch. "How did it go?" she asked Tank.
He walked up to the porch and sat down next to his wife. "I don't know. I now remember why I left Station 15. There is relatively no action, but Lester and Hal were in a bad accident. They are saying that Rangeman is in trouble and wants me to come back. If I do return, we could get our apartment back in Rangeman. I don't trust Ranger, but we would have the apartment back along with all the benefits," Pierre told his wife. Just then, he noticed the chief walking up to both of them.
"Chief, what is going on?" Tank asked his boss.
"I'm afraid it's bad news. I just got a call. The city is cutting hours at the station. You might want to go back to Rangeman for a while. I have to cut some of the crew, and since you just got back, you're the first on the chopping block." Franklin shook his head. "Trust me, Tank, this is killing me," Franklin told him.
"I know, chief, and if the city is cutting hours, that is fine. I can go back to Rangeman with little to no problem," Tank said. Stephanie and Pierre watched the chief leave them and called Ranger.
"Hey, do you want me back?" Tank asked.
"Yeah, Rangeman needs you right now. Come on back, and just to let you know, I never processed your termination papers, so you still work here. We can get your stuff back in your apartment for you and Babe," Ranger told him.
"Thanks, Ranger," Tank replied.
"We'll see you tomorrow," Ranger said. He hung up the phone, grinning.