Shift Two:
Holly strolled into the engine bay of Station 51, ten minutes before 'C' shift was due to be relieved. "Hey, guys, how's it going?" she asked.
Andy Fredericks replied, "Great. At least I won't have to stay overtime. How's Katya?"
Holly rolled her eyes and said, "Your little wifey is just fine, Andy. She'll be by to pick you up in a few minutes, once she turns the squad over to the 'A' shift at 16's. Do you think you can wait that long, or will your heart pine away in the next half hour or so?"
He smiled wryly. "Ha, ha. I think I can manage to survive. How are you finding life on the 'A' shift?"
"Interesting." She patted her knapsack and added, "Chet will never know what hit him. It's going to be a scorcher today, according to the weather forecast. I've got a couple of things I've been dying to try out, and now is as good a time as any. It's all a matter of chemistry and physics."
Andy nodded slightly, then said, "Nothing personal, but I'm sure as hell glad I'm not on your shift. Just don't pass any of your recipes for disaster along to my wife – I'll sleep a lot better for it."
She shook his hand. "Andy, you've got yourself a deal. 'Course, if she just happens to pry it out of me, all bets are off – we are friends, after all. I need to go stow this stuff before Chet gets here. See you in a couple of days."
-E!-
The last item on the list of duties at roll call concerned fire inspections. Hank flipped to the last sheet on his clipboard.
"Okay. Fire inspections – Roy and Johnny, you'll be doing the Riverside Public School. Chet and Holly, you have the Broadview Public School. Mike, you'll drop them off while you and I handle the Frith Academy. Right – if we get a run, we'll bring the engine to Broadview and pick you up there. Roy, you two just head to the scene from Riverside. Any questions?" Hank turned to Holly and asked, "Do you have your shopping list for dinner? The squad can pick up what you need on the way back from Riverside."
Holly replied, "Just let me write it down – I've already put the matzoh in the kitchen, but we'll need some chicken for the main course. I'll need a couple of other things, too." She took out her notebook and scribbled down a list, then handed it to Johnny. "The last item is really important," she whispered slyly.
Johnny glanced at what she had written. He gave her a startled look, and she winked. He folded the list and put it in his pocket. Why on earth does she want Kool-Aid? And why so many different flavours?
-E!-
"CHET!" shouted Holly angrily as she got out the matzoh for the dinner.
Mike and Hank carefully hid their smiles with the sections of the newspaper they were reading. They'd both seen Chet manage to smuggle some rubber worms into the decorated bag where Holly had put the matzoh that morning. Chet sauntered into the kitchen, his hands in his pockets.
"You screamed?" he replied in a low voice, somewhat reminiscent of the butler Lurch, from the Addams Family television program.
She threw the rubber worms at him and said, "You're just lucky I'm not Orthodox. I'd have your ass in a sling – strictly Kosher preparation, of course!" Then she giggled and said, "How'd you do it? I might want to subject my brother to the same thing."
Chet folded his arms and shook his head. "Sorry, Holly, you know the rules – secrets must not be divulged. Besides," he added mockingly, "I thought you would like to work it out for yourself."
She pursed her lips and said, "Throwing my own words back at me, I see. Very well – the brakes are now off. Enjoy the next couple of shifts – I'm gonna get out the heavy artillery."
From behind his newspaper Hank said calmly, "Ramsey, remember your promise. Nothing destructive."
Holly replied innocently, "Cap, would I do anything like that? Li'l old me?"
Hank lowered his paper. "See that you don't."
-E!-
"Holly, that was an excellent dinner! Even if the matzohs do taste a bit like cardboard," said Chet.
"Thanks, I think! Hey, at least I didn't subject you to the prayers and the questions that are part of the whole tradition," Holly replied. She sighed and said, "Of course, another part of that tradition involves the whole cleaning process. Why don't you all go out and play basketball or something while I make like a domestic goddess for a while? I'm sure the temperature has gone down a lot by now, so you shouldn't overheat yourselves," she suggested.
"You sure you don't need any help?" asked Mike.
"No, these are special dishes, used only at Passover. It's way too complicated to get into. Just go outside and play, boys."
Johnny wasn't fooled by her assurances. Besides, I'm dying to know why she had us pick up so much Kool-Aid, when it obviously had nothing to do with the meal. He cleared his throat and said, "I'll just put together some water bottles for us. Be right out." He waited until the others had gone to the court, then whispered, "What's all the Kool-Aid for?"
She looked at him and whispered back, "What took you so long to ask? I need a fellow conspirator for this one, and I was sure you'd fill the bill. You can act as the look-out. Come on," she said mysteriously, grabbing the packets of Kool-Aid.
-E!-
Johnny watched in puzzlement as she put a rubber sheet under the linen sheet of Chet's bed. He was even more mystified when she sprinkled the different flavours of Kool-Aid on top of the rubber sheet, in a pattern that resembled a rainbow. By the time she had replaced the linen sheet on top of the Kool-Aid, he was bursting with curiosity. "Holly, you've got to explain this," he said from his lookout spot at the door.
She quickly led him back to the kitchen, where they poured ice water into some bottles. "It amazingly simple," she whispered. "It's pretty hot today, right?" At Johnny's nod, she continued. "Okay, take the temperature, then add the fact that Chet will be sleeping on a rubber sheet, and what do you get? A hot, sweaty sleep. Now, when Kool-Aid gets wet, it stains things, okay?"
Johnny began to smile. "So tomorrow morning, Chet will be 'Rainbow Boy', right?"
Holly nodded, grinning widely. "And it will probably take a couple of days for the colours to wear off. I first got the idea when I spilled some Kool-Aid at a party a couple of weeks ago. I played around with it, and thought it would be good to try. I hadn't planned on testing it this soon, but I just can't stand to pass up a golden opportunity like this. Now you get out there and play with the other boys," she said, shooing him out of the kitchen.
-E!-
As everyone turned in for the night, Holly muttered to Captain Stanley, "I'll pay for the sheets, Cap, just don't let him know anything..."
Hank looked at her and whispered, "Is this one going to contribute to an ulcer?"
She smiled briefly and replied in a low voice, "Not your ulcer, at any rate."
Hank shook his head and looked heavenward. Why me? Should I put a stop to this? True to their word, nothing really destructive has happened, and God knows we do need something to lighten things up on occasion, but really! Oh, well, at least we get two days off after the end of the shift.
-E!-
Chet yawned and stretched. Despite the fact that they had had no runs the previous night, he had not slept well. He felt hot and sticky, and decided to start the day off with a nice, cool shower. He wasn't the only one who wanted a shower. He met Mike and Hank just coming back from the shower, and ran into Roy and Johnny, who was just about to step under the water. Chet turned, removed his shirt, and was startled into full wakefulness by Johnny's laughter.
"It worked! It really worked!" Johnny crowed in delight. Chet spun around, confused, and caught a glimpse of his back in the mirrors over the sink. As the other men started laughing too, Chet muttered a number of curses and tried to wash off the colourful rainbow on his back and out of his t-shirt. No amount of soap seemed to work.
Johnny said, in parting, "It should wear off in a couple of days, 'Rainbow Boy' – just keep scrubbing."
-E!-