Chapter 2
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Buck was woken from his after shift nap by someone hammering on his door. He groggily dragged himself downstairs to answer but as soon as he cracked it open he was pushed back as Chimney stormed in.
"Is it that late already?" Buck asked confused, he was babysitting that night while Chimney spent time researching, looking for traces of Maddie. "Where's Jee-Yun?"
"She's with the Lees," Chimney said dismissively.
"Okay then, what's up. Have you heard from Maddie?" Buck asked eagerly.
"She took Jee to the Emergency Room during the blackout, and I only found out from the insurance company informing me that they'd paid the bill," Chimney said angrily.
"What happened? What's wrong with Jee-Yun?" Buck asked shakily. "Was this the doctor's visit Maddie had mentioned, it sounded more serious than Maddie had made it seem.
"I tracked the Doctor down and he reassured me that Jee-Yun wasn't injured, she slipped under the water for a moment while Maddie was bathing her, so she took her in to be checked out," Chimney reported.
Buck sighed in relief, though he did think it was a bit odd that Maddie who was a trained nurse would panic so much about what was probably a second or two under the water. Still if the PPD was making her doubt her training and experience then hopefully seeking a second opinion helped. Buck had a horrible feeling that it hadn't helped and this was the reason that Maddie had run away. Or worse that Maddie's PPD had got the better of her for that moment and Jee-Yun hadn't just slipped under the water, or had slipped and Maddie had hesitated before lifting her out. Still, he couldn't help Maddie now, he needed to focus on Jee-Yun for the moment, she was okay, that was the main thing. "I'm glad she wasn't hurt."
"Yeah, she's fine. But Maddie is out there somewhere, beating herself up because she lost grip of a slippery child. She needs to know that this wasn't her fault," Chimney said frantically.
"Once she's got some help for her PPD, I'm sure she'll be able to see that," Buck tried to calm and reassure his friend.
"She needs me. I'm going after her, I can't wait any longer," Chimney said.
"Well, sh-she said sh-she didn't want you to do that, right?" Buck said wondering if their friendship would survive him telling Chimney exactly why he thought that was such a terrible idea. The last things Buck thought his sister needed was Chim's attitude that he alone could fix her PPD, or feeling threatened by another lover tracking her down and taking her choices away from her.
"Buck, you're not listening. She exiled herself because she thinks she's a danger to the baby. I can't leave her alone like that, believing that, thinking the worst of herself. She needs to know that it isn't true that it was just an accident and I don't blame her for it. She needs to know that she's a good mother," Chimney said frustrated.
"Chim, she knows that you support her. She knows that you love her, but positive affirmations on their own, telling her that she's a good mother won't fix her PPD. What she needs is time, and professional help, which I hope she is getting. She will come home when she's ready," Buck argued.
"Why weren't you surprised that Jee had been to the ER?" Chimney demanded.
"What, I didn't know she'd been to the ER. I was just relieved you said Jee-Yun wasn't injured.
"She called you and you already knew about this because she told you? Where is she, Buck?" Chimney yelled in rage.
"I-I... I don't know. She wouldn't tell me. She called to tell me she was going away for a while and to ask me to look after you. She never said anything about Jee getting hurt. She never said anything that wasn't in the message she left you except she promised to come back and asked me to look after the two of you for her," Buck said.
Chimney was incensed that Maddie had promised to come back to Buck.
"Eight... days. You have waited eight days while you have seen the hell I've been going through, and you didn't tell me?" Chimney said furiously.
She asked me not to tell you, she made me pinky promise. She- she said she didn't want you to be hurt because she left you a message and called me. I don't think she planned to call me, but she'd promised she'd never just disappear without warning again. She-she said she was fine, you know? She-she just needed to figure some stuff out. And she-she was more worried about you," Buck all but begged his friend to understand that as close as they were his loyalty would always be to the sister who'd pretty much raised him.
Chimney lost his temper completely and punched Buck in the face. "Tell me where she is?"
Buck was looking at the floor, trying to find the words to help his friend, so he didn't see it coming. He didn't have time to duck, or even to flinch before Chimney's fist hit his face. Howard Han was a small man 8 inches shorter than Buck but he was a firefighter, trained to use his body and muscle power to maximum effect. Buck staggered back, pain exploding across the side of his face.
"I dunno," Buck slurred, unsteadily.
"I don't believe you? Where is she?" Chim said raising his fist to hit him again.
"I swear I don't know, she was still in LA when she rang me. You hadn't even got to the station to pick up Jee-Yun and she wouldn't tell me where she was or where she was going. I was going to head to the station and then Bobby rang and told me you'd picked up Jee and you refused to have anybody come and help you. I waited a while and then Eddie was expecting me. He'd broken up with Ana and Chris was asking for me," Buck said, one hand cradling his face and the other up protectively.
Chimney turned around and stormed out of the apartment slamming the door so hard that he didn't notice when it didn't catch and bounced back open.
Buck stood there breathing deeply, trying to will the pain away. He looked towards the open door planning to go and shut it. Even in a building like this where he knew all his neighbours he didn't feel safe leaving it open like that, particularly after what had just happened. There were two doors, or rationally Buck knew that his loft only had one door on that wall but he could see two of them and he wasn't even sure which one was the right one, or in the right place, he took a step towards the doors and the room began to spin and he threw up everything he'd eaten that morning. He crashed to the floor unable to keep his balance and after throwing up again when he tried to get up, decided to stay there.
The floor still felt like it was moving and Buck had more than enough experience to self diagnose a concussion bit the double vision was more of a worry, he pulled out his phone and rang Eddie, but the call rang before going to voicemail. Buck knew Eddie probably wasn't avoiding his calls though it still felt a little like a rejection. The older man was probably just asleep. The rest of his team probably was too. Reluctantly he dialled 9-1-1, grateful that at least it wouldn't be Maddie taking this call.
"9-1-1 What's your emergency," an unfamiliar voice answered.
"This is Firefighter Buckley of the 118, in my home at Unit 104, Rowan Building 460 S Spring Street. I've gotta concussion and double vision, I'm dizzy even lying still and I can't get up," Buck said, having to concentrate hard to speak clearly.
"Dispatching paramedic's now, are you okay with the 118 attending, they will be the quickest response time," the operator asked.
"Yeah, tha's fine," Buck replied.
"Stay on the line please, Firefighter Buckley, can you tell me how you sustained the concussion, are there any dangers for those attending to be aware of?"
"I was punched in the face but he isn't here an'more, the door is open, you won't need ta stop and getta key," Buck replied.
"Okay Firefighter Buckley, paramedics and support and LAPD officers are on their way. They're about ten minutes out. Tell me about your symptoms…"
"What do we know?" Firefighter Stover asked as the ambulance left the station.
"It's one of our own. Battery victim with a concussion, perpetrator not on scene. It's Buck, he called it in himself," B shift Captain Calley replied, sounding upset. "He's still conscious but from what he said I'd rate his concussion at level 3 or 4 and he's experiencing double vision and extreme dizziness from a punch to the eye socket."
"That's Buck's home address, he was assaulted in his home?" Who would hurt Buck?" Firefighter Logan asked.
"Focus on the job, speculation later, we do this one by the book and document our impressions. Body cameras on from the moment we leave the truck. LAPD are en route. Don't let your worry about a colleague influence your reactions, hang back and assess the scene and we 'll wait for LAPD if it's safe to do so, I want whoever did this to Firefighter Buckley caught and punished," Calley said.
Luckily, the LAPD were pulling up right behind them and they followed the officers up the stairs. Buck was still awake and talking and gave permission for LAPD to photograph the scene before he was moved.
"I don' need all this, I don' wanna press charges. Chim dint meanta hit me," he slurred.
"Are you rescinding your permission?" the officer recording his statement asked.
"Don't move Buckley. Let them do their jobs," Calley said.
"Tis Okay. You c'n photograph ever'thing. Thena would be mad if I dinn let ya," Buck slurred.
"His speech is getting worse we need to get him to hospital," Paramedic Johns said urgently. He needs a back brace and spinal board.
The LAPD continued to take photographs as Firefighters Logan and Stover moved in and strapped Buck to the spinal board while Johns performed a quick neurological exam. "Let's move."
"Chim hit you?" Johns asked as the Ambulance started its journey.
"Don't ask him about it, we don't want to influence his statement," Calley ordered.
"Sorry Cap," Johns replied. "Returning to asking Buck random questions to keep him awake and talking.
They arrived at the ER and wanted to stay but dispatch already had another call for them so they handed him over to the staff, insisting that he was suffering a severe concussion and his next of kin needed to be called.
"I don't know who his next of kin is now that his sister's done a runner," Stover said.
"My guess is it's either Diaz or Nash," Calley replied. "His sister has a new baby, he wouldn't have had her as the sole point of contact."
The doctor did a cursory exam and sent him straight to X-ray. "I don't like the look of that zygomatic arch," he said. "I think it's going to need surgery, we're going to need his medical proxy to sign off on that."
"How long m'I gonna need off work?" Buck asked.
"That will depend on whether there is a fracture and whether it needs surgery, we need to complete the tests before we can answer that," the doctor replied.
Buck whined. "I don't wanna miss work, we're already man down."
The nurse chuckled. "Typical Firefighters never willing to take the advice they'd give others, she said.
"Eddie Diaz," Eddie answers sleepily.
"Mr Diaz, this is Nurse Maeve O'Connell from the ER at LAC + SCU, we have an Evan Buckley who has you listed as his medical proxy," the nurse said calmly.
"Dios, what's happened to Buck now?" Eddie asked panicking.
"Mr Buckley sustained a zygomatic arch fracture and the attending is recommending surgery but Mr Buckley has a concussion and is not competent to sign the consent forms," Maeve said.
"I'm on my way. I give verbal consent for the surgery," Eddie said hurriedly dressing and heading out to his truck.
"Thank you, we'll get set up so we can take him in as soon as you arrive and sign the forms," Maeve said.
"Eddie, whatcha doin here?" Buck said trying to smile at his friend.
"Where else would I be after they told me you were hurt?" Eddie said trying to smile back.
"I'm Eddie Diaz, his medical proxy. What level concussion does he have?" Eddie asked the nurse.
"He's got some double vision, which is increasing his nausea and dizziness, it could be coming from the fracture but the concussion is at least a three, it'd be a definite four if the fracture isn't causing the double vision. He's waiting for CT now," the nurse replied.
"You're still trying to confirm the fracture? I was told he needed surgery," Eddie said.
"He does from the X-ray, the surgeon wanted the CT to rule out a second fracture, before surgery" the nurse replied.
"Okay Buck, I need to go sign some papers and I'll be right back," Eddie tells him.
By the time the papers were signed Buck had been taken to CT so Eddie chatted with the nurse for a moment before going to the waiting room.
"Am I wrong or does Buck's injuries look like he was punched?" Eddie asked hoping to be mistaken.
"He's been admitted as a victim of battery," the nurse confirmed.
"Ay Dios" Eddie muttered, assuming Buck had been mugged. Buck did some stupid shit sometimes but instigating violence was never one of them, he didn't even like to spar for practice.
Eddie sits for a moment but realises that Bobby needs to know Buck's going to be out injured and Buck would want Athena involved in investigating the incident.
"Hello Eddie," Athena answered her personal phone.
"Are you at work?" Eddie asked.
"This is my day off. Are you in need of my professional services," Athena asked, recognising stress and potentially anger or sadness in Eddie's tone.
"Not me, Buck's been assaulted, the ER nurse is calling it battery. I haven't managed to get the story out of him yet. The hospital called me as his next of kin because his concussion prevented him from being able to consent to surgery," Eddie said.
"Where are you baby? You don't need to deal with this on your own," Athena said gently.
"LAC, still in the ER," Eddie said.
"We'll be there soon. Is he going to be able to eat after surgery? I know Bobby will want to bring him something," Athena asked.
"I don't know, he's got a fractured cheekbone that they're going to operate on, so maybe something soft that doesn't need chewing otherwise he's going to be living on his horrible green smoothies," Eddie replied.
"Are the police there?" Athena asked.
"No they weren't by the time I got here but he was admitted as an battery victim so I assume they've been called. Buck's not up to giving a statement yet anyway," Eddie replied.
Buck came back from CT and Eddie was able to see him for a few minutes before they took him upstairs to prep for theatre.
"Hey Eddie," Buck greeted him.
"Hey Buck," Eddie said, concerned that Buck was surprised to see him sitting there. Didn't he remember seeing him earlier?"
"Are you mad at me?" Buck asked hesitantly.
"No Buck I'm worried about you. You got hurt again. What happened?" Eddie asked.
"Chim worked out tha' Maddie had called me, he's really angry wiff me. I don't think he's gonna forgive me fer keeping itta secret but I promis'd Maddie. Maddie's gonna be mad at me too, fer telling," Buck said miserably.
"Chim hit you?" Eddie asked incredulously. He knew the older man had a temper and that he'd been incredibly stressed since Maddie left but to hit Buck like that was out of character. "Did he punch you in the face or did you hit your face on something when he shoved you, or something?"
"He punched me in the face, I wasn't looking at him so I didn't dodge. Trying to explain tha' I'd promised my sister and then my face exploded," Buck said, reaching up to touch it.
Eddie caught his hand. "Don't touch you've got a broken bone that needs wiring, you don't want to do more damage."
"Bobby's gonna be mad too, now we'll be two man down," Buck said.
"Bobby's not going to be mad at you. This isn't your fault," Eddie tried to reassure him. "Maddie's not going to be mad at you either."
"You dint promise tha' Chim'll forgive me," Buck noticed.
"You're the one in hospital, you should be worried about whether you can forgive Chimney. Not whether he'll forgive you," Eddie said, careful not to sound as angry as he was at the older man since he knew that in this state Buck would assume he was blaming him as well.
"I din't mean ta get punched?" Buck said sadly. "My face hurts."
"Just get better Buck, Athena and Bobby are on their way. We'll sort out the rest," Eddie said.
"Promise they won't be mad," Buck begged.
"I promise they won't be mad at you," Eddie qualified. Athena and Bobby were going to be as mad as hell when they saw Buck's face.
Buck was in surgery and Eddie was pacing around the waiting room by the time Bobby and Athena arrived. He'd already rung Carla and she was able to pick up Christopher from school so he could stay as long as Buck needed him.
"Eddie, what's wrong? Has something more happened?" Athena asked rushing up to hug him.
"He's in surgery, I haven't heard anything yet but the surgeon warned me it would be another hour. You should have heard him, Athena. He was sitting there taking the blame for being hit, begging me not to be mad at him for getting hurt. I had a hell of a time convincing him that you and Bobby wouldn't think it was his fault, and be angry at him," Eddie said angrily
"Why would he think it's his fault?" Athena asked.
"Partly he's worried about the inconvenience of being a second man down, Bobby, and I think he thinks we're going to take Chim's side in this," Eddie said.
"You're telling me Buck was battered by Chimney Han?" Athena asked furiously.
"Why would Chimney hit Buck?" Bobby asked, shocked.
Eddie decided that it would be better for Bobby to have the full story and get over his initial reaction before he spoke to Buck, even if the anger wasn't directed towards him, Buck was in no state to recognise that at the moment. "He said that Chimney guessed that Buck had spoken to Maddie. Maddie had asked Buck to promise not to tell Chimney."
"Chimney needed to know that Maddie is alright. He's desperate for news of her and fearing the worst. Why wouldn't Buck tell him?" Bobby said disapprovingly.
"Maddie rang Buck just after she left Jee-Yun at the station. Buck didn't know anything that wasn't already on the message she left for Chimney. In fact, he knew less than that, Maddie didn't say she was going to be gone more than a day or two," Eddie said. "Maddie made him promise not to say anything because she didn't want Chim to be hurt by the fact she'd left him a video message but actually spoken with Buck. If he'd heard from her since or knew what she was planning or where she was going then he would have told us, but Chim didn't believe him."
"I checked in with Elaine, Buck told 9-1-1 dispatch that he'd been assaulted, the LAFD were on the scene by the time LAFD got there, but Buck was still responsive so they hung back until everything essential was documented and photographed before he was brought to hospital. He'll need to make a statement but it sounds like that has to wait for his concussion to resolve a bit," Athena said.
"Buck said he didn't want to press charges. Hopefully he'll change his mind about that," Eddie said.
"You want Chimney to be charged?" Bobby asked.
"Buck is currently in surgery in danger of losing his career, his livelihood and a lot of his independence if they can't fix his double vision issues. Why the hell wouldn't you want Chimney to be arrested and charged with assault and battery?" Eddie demanded.
Bobby's face fell. "Chimney is out of his mind with worry about Maddie, but you're right it doesn't excuse him injuring Buck so grievously," he said.
"So, it would have been okay that he hit Buck if he'd only given him a black eye? Buck wasn't over at Chimney's apartment, in his face and refusing to back off, he was in his own home, the one place he should have felt safe," Athena asked incredulously. "And it's more than understandable for Buck to want to keep a promise he'd made to his sister."
"Yes but Buck also doesn't understand how ill Maddie might be, perhaps keeping the contact secret wasn't in Maddie's best interests," Bobby said.
"I don't know how knowing that Maddie called Buck and asked him to look after Chimney and Jee-Yun before she left town eight days ago would help. Maddie wouldn't tell him where she was, where she was going or what her plans are," Eddie said.
"Chimney's not in his right mind. He would never hit Buck normally," Bobby said.
"So Buck was right. He was worried that you'd think it was his fault and he wouldn't believe my reassurances that you wouldnt. I think you should go home. Come back and visit him once you've had time to calm down and think things through less emotionally. Victim blaming is really ugly Bobby," Eddie said.
Bobby looked at Eddie in shock. Was that really how he sounded? Like he was blaming Buck?
"If you're so concerned about Chimney's mental state then I'll push for him to receive a mental health evaluation once he's in custody, but that only makes it more urgent that he's found before he hurts himself or someone else," Athena said soothingly.
"He has Jee-Yun and Buck said he's still talking about going to look for Maddie," Eddie said. "How long is it going to be before he gets frustrated at the lack of answers?"
"I'll make sure the BOLO includes that information," Athena said. "If he gets across the state line it isn't going to look good for him."
"Should I call him and ask him to present himself for questioning?" Bobby asked.
"Ring and check up on him, don't mention Buck or that you know about the battery unless he's already out of the city then you can ask him to stop by his nearest police station to clear things up so it doesn't look like he's running. Try to get his plans find out where he thinks Maddie might have gone and where he's planning to look," Athena suggested.
A/N: Thank you to all those who reviewed, commented positively, followed, bookmarked or favourited or gave Kudos to this story for your support.