Hello everybody ! I hope you'll have a great diner tonight to prepare the new year haha. Or for those who already had diner: I hope it was good :D
So I wanted to post a new chapter to bring the new year.
ANYWAY: happy new year 2016 and have a great diner (and don't drink too much) !
In Chicago Med, doctors and nurses were hurrying. Chili had called from the ambulance 61, asked Connor to get ready to recieve a polytrauma and added that Will asked this. They will be there in a minute.
« Prepare room 1 ! Bring the portable x-ray, and call the scan, now ! And call the blood bank for O neg ! », Connor ordered.
Soon after, everyone heared the syrens of the ambulance. Connor, Natalie and April got out to help the two paramedics.
« Thirty-five year old firefighter, got out of the debris of a exploded house. He was the closest of the explosion. Femoral and pelvic fractures, chest pains, possible skull and brain traumas. Weak pupillar reaction, GCS estimated at 8 on scene. In cardiac arrest for seven minutes, one hour ago. In respiratory arrest for a minutes, fifteen minutes ago. Pulse at 130, BP at 16 over 5, sature at 94% with the non-rebreather mask. Intolerant to beta-blokers ».
« What's his name ? »
« Matt. Matt Casey ».
Connor nodded and turned his head toward the stretcher while indicating the room 1.
« Matt ? Matt, can you hear me? »
He heard a moan from him. At least it was a good thing.
« Good. Can you open your eyes for me ? »
When he saw that Matt didn't open them, he rubbedd his sternum. Again, he heard him groan, and this time, he opened his eyes.
« Hey Matt ! Do you know where you are ? »
He mutteres something incomprehensible through the mask, so doctor Rhodes had to remove the mask partially.
« What did you say ? », he asked while approaching his ear to his mouth.
« Beach... »
The doctor stood straight, and threw a questionning look to the paramedics, thinking they could bring some answers.
« He... He said bitch ? »
Chili was going to answer, but Brett was faster.
« No, he said beach. When he was in cardiac arrest, he hallucinated. He took what he felt and heard and changed them : the heat of the flames was a sunny beach, the lack of oxygen was sea air and waves, and the noise from the K12 was a birsong ».
Connor turned to April.
« Check his temperature ».
She nodded and grabbed a thermometer.
« 101 ».
Connor palpated some areas that were going to be painful for Matt as to make him react, but nothing happened apart the groan.
« Okay, GCS at 5, call the anesthesiologist for a respirator ».
« We'll sedate him ? »
« A polytrauma with a GCS less than 8 ? Always ».
He talked to the nurse that wished to become a doctor and was taking some night classes.
« Be ready to push twenty milligrams of etomidate and ninety milligrams of quelicin. Matt ? »
he rubbed again his sternum to make him open his eyes, and after thirty seconds, he did.
« Everything is gonna be okay. We'll make you sleep, you will relax and let us do our job okay ? »
« Mh... Gab... »
« Gab ? What is it ? »
« It's Gabby », Brett corrected. « She's his girlfriend, she's also under the rubble. She made him stay alive the time for the rescue team to come ».
« She'll be here soon ? »
Brett and Chili didn't talked anymore, but shook their head left to right. Soon before leaving, they heard Patterson on the radio saying that the concrete slab collapsed and they lost the contact with the group. Connor understood the main information and turned his head to Matt while signing to the nurse to push to anestaesics.
« She'll be here soon. But for now, it's you, our patient. You need to relax, slowly, and after your awakening, Gabby will be here, okay ? »
« Mh... »
Matt closed his eyes, without reopening them.
« Alright. Lets intubate him before the quelicin stops its job ».
He grabbed the laryngoscope and opened his mouth.
« Damn, his airways are swollen ».
« You need a cricoid pressure ? »
« No SCI. We can try ».
Sarah -the nurse-, placed her hand on his Adam's apple.
« You're in doctor ? »
Connor was finally seeing the cords. He took the ET tube on the cart and tried to pass it, in vain.
« I need a smaller tube ».
April ran toward the other cart to bring another tube and tend it to Connor. He grabbed it while the monitor began to ring.
« His vitals are dropping. Sature at 89% »
« Almost in. More pression ».
Even if he knew he could do this, he forced the tube swhile Sarah pushed a little more on the cartilage.
« I'm in ! »
April took the balloon while Connor got the laryngoscope and the probe connected it to the tube, finally pumping air into his lungs and looking the monitor soon after.
« His vitals are coming up ».
« Bulge faster. It's an 8 size tube ».
She , looking Sarah put some tape around the tube to secure it and Connot grab his stethoscope to hear Matt's lungs.
« It's in. Where is the respirator ».
« On route ».
« Okay, I need x-rays from his chest and basin, and an echography from his abdomen for now. And then, we'll brng him to the scan for his head ».
In Humboldt Park, everything was still confused. The access to the air pocket was still possible, to the gallery too, but everything was blocked from the end of the tunnel. This time, it was Gabby who saved them. The six men had followed their primary instinct, which means stay alive, and so they had listened to Gabby's voice. This one that said to go to the gallery to be safe. They blamed themselves, but at least, they were alive.
« Alright, we'll need some torches, K12 and somewhat to clean the place to join them again, and get them out of this hell », Vermulen explained.
But this wasn't the time to tell out loud what everyone thought deep down themselves. Obviously they were going to do everything they could to bring them to the surface, obviously they needed the stuffs to get them out, and it was obvious that Vermulen had again forget something important, vital even. And Patterson, Vlad and Cruz nocited this.
« Uh, lieutenant ? No offense you... », Cruz began.
« But shouldn't we stabilize the structure before starting to clean the area ? », Vlad continued.
« Especially if one of the structure collapsed. It means there might be other collapses », Patterson finished.
Vermulen turned suddenly, eyes full of anger.
« You're teaching me my job now ?! »
Instinctively, Patterson grabbed his radio and turned it on without Vermulen noticed it.
« If your damn candidate and your... Pregnant woman didn't go under the rubble, anything won't happen ! »
« What do you mean here ? », Patterson asked.
« I mean that this wasn't the good firefighters for doing this job ! »
« Oh, so you would have done a better job than them ? »
Vemulen placed his hand on his hips, ready to fight Patterson.
« If Gabby didn't come inside, Casey would be dead by now ! And if Borelli didn't come inside, with his genius, there wouldn't be any structure, we would have digged at the wrong place, and above all, the concrete slabs would have crushed of them ! »
Vermulen was ready to replicate but he was interrupted by a call on the radio.
« This is Boden, I need you on the surface, now ».
Vermulen was angry, very angry, but he had to obey. He had to obey the chief of this operation ».
« Got it chief ».
To the surface, chief Boden had heard the entire conversation between Patterson and Vermulen. He was angry, ready to hit the first man, especially Vermulen. What Vermulen didn't know, or didn't notice, apart that Patterson had turned his radio on, it was that the radios placed by Tony were still on, so everyone heard the conversation, the entire conversation. And Vermulen didn't know that one of the district chief and the mayor were here to see how the operation was doing, and that they also heard everything.
« Chief Boden ? »
He turned to the district chief. It was Riddle.
« What is this story with the pregnant woman and the new candidate ? »
« Our new candidate Jimmy Borelli volunteered for this mission, as well as Gabriela Dawson. And they was the only ones who could go down the hole we did and do the primary rescue ».
« And why ? »
« Dawson was the former PIC of our ambulance 61, and Borelli had a rescue training before going to the firefighter Academy. They were qualified for this job, so we brought them down ».
« You authorized a pregnant woman to go down on an unstable place and full of smoke to rescue your men, is that it ? »
Boden opened his mouth. With the mayor and a district chief, he couln't lie.
« I didn't authorize this. Dawson insisted ».
« Why ? »
Boden bit his lips. This time, he didn't have the choice to say the truth.
« The father was inside. She wanted to get him out. And I have to add that Dawson is claustrophobic. She delt with this phobia to save the man she loves ».
« I don't care about his feeling ! You had to stop her before going down ! »
« If she didn't do it, the father would be dead by now ! »
« Are you sure abour this ? »
Will came between them, seeing the chief in difficulty to keep his calm.
« An hour ago, Casey's heart stop beating for seven minutes. If Dawson hand't be there to rescue him, he would be dead. And aroung twenty minutes ago, he stopped breathin. If she hand't be there, keeping her cool while I was guiding her, he would be dead ».
« And now, he's probably dead under the rubble ».
« Before the collapsing, we managed to get him out. He is in Chicago med right now ».
Boden took great care to not giving his name to Riddle so they wouldn't have trouble, as Gabby. But will sort of ruined everything.
« By the way, I heard... Casey ? The lieutenant Casey, the one who is in charge of truck 81 in which Dawson is ? »
« Correct ».
« And you knew? »
« It doesn't affect their job. What happens to the job stays at the firehouse, what happens at home stays at home ».
« It's against the low, Boden ! »
« It's forbidden for a married couple be serve on the same truck yeah ! Casey and Dawson have devided to sacrifica their wedding to do their job together, to realise her dream. They sacrificed everything for this job ! They are a good team, and nobody doesn't complain abut this ! They are a part of an elite team of Chicago, and that's how you thank them ? »
« Thank them ?! »
« THAT'S ENOUGH ! »
Riddle, Boden and Will jumped up. They were so far on their argument they forgot the fact that the mayor was near them. He sighed deeply, closing his eyes and shaking his head.
« We have four firefighters under the rubble to get out, and you just think to fight to know why two firefighters are together ?! »
The mayor was right. The most important for now wat to save these firemen. And they they also forgot that the rescue was now on the surface.
« Mr. Mayor, it's a pleasure to meat you », Vermulen began.
But the mayor was very angry. To see firefighters serving the city fighting instead of help people, and here to save some of their own.
« You're making me wanna vomit », the mayor launched. « How dare you talking about your brothers and sisters like this ! I never was a firefighter, but I know their rules, and one of them says ''each firefighter is my brother, treat him with respect''. And you didn't show any respect for those who are under the rubble when we're talking ! And you chief Riddle », he continued turning his head to him, « You don't have the right to question your firefighter when they are a couple ! You didn't hear anything, so it's not interfiering with their job. You don't respect anything. Both of you ! You don't respect the ethics of firefighters ! So, as I'm the authority here in this fire department, I release you from your occupations immediately ».
Vermulen and Riddle opened their mouth, but the pseech the had against them didn't allow them.
« You... You fire us ? »
« Exactly. You don't respect the ethics, you don't have a place in the fire department. Now dismiss, take your stuffs and go away ».
The mayor was strict, and he wouldn't change his mind.
« And the one who doesn't agree with me can also go away ! »
Nobody didn't dare to move while Riddle and Vermulen left the place. And the mayor authorized himself to breathe again. He turned to Boden, who was still opemouthed, as all of the firemen around them.
« I'm sorry chief Boden. But I had to react. You have somedoby to save right ? »
Boden lowered his head, then left it up, and turned his head to all of his men.
« I need six vulonteers ».
Everyone made a step forward, showing they wanted to save their brothers and sister. So he took the same rescue team with just a change : he will go down under the rubble too, to find his men.