Chapter One
Author Notes:
1. This story is set in the same AU as "You Were Meant For It'. That being the case, this story is set after the series ends.
2, I have purposely changed a few major facts. A. Obviously, Pete and Jim are still partners. B. Sergeant "Mac" MacDonald is a widower and only has a son-and that son is in the military serving overseas. C. Duke actually proposed to Angie and D. The Lieutenant that is mentioned in this story was never on the series. Well, if the name was ever mentioned, I missed it.
3. Anyone who does not like AU's, please, do not read. While I am more than open to constructive criticism- I can always learn from it, and I can explain it to my special needs friend who wanted another Adam 12 story, I will NOT intentionally approve downright negative guest reviews. It's not like anyone is being forced to read this story.
4. Last item…, the episode where Pete, Sally, Jim and a very pregnant Jean go up to a ghost town-somehow got deleted off my list of recorded episodes. I can't remember where that ghost town is.. and the episode hasn't yet aired again. If it's not in the hills of Los Angeles, for the sake of the story – it is now. Though, for any future stories I might write-could someone tell me if it was in the hills of Los Angeles or not? Thank you guest...why I typed Judy instead of Sally is beyond me. I knew the right fact. LOL I have made the correction in this note.
Opening Scene
"You want the usual?" Angie walked up to Pete and Jim; she liked it when these particular policemen came in. They were always kind, polite and friendly.
"Yes," Pete smiled, though his eyes widened just a little as he looked at Angie's left hand; a nice, but simple, engagement band was on her fourth finger. "You finally caught Duke?"
"Yes, he finally proposed to me." Angie beamed, as she gave her two friends a shortened version of what had happened the day before.
"Congratulations!" Jim smiled; he had secretly hoped 'those two' would someday tie the knot. "When's the wedding?"
"We'll pick a date as soon as I can talk Mac. I want him to walk me down the aisle since my father passed away last year." Angie's eyes continued shining.
"When it comes to Mac," Pete gave his wrist a slight flick, "he took the week off. Though, I'm sure he'll be happy to do that for you." Pete assured her before she went to fill their order. Once she had brought their food and left, Pete looked at Jim. "What's wrong, and don't tell me nothing."
"I don't know. I…" Jim paused and then said, "I just got a funny feeling when you talked about Mac. I can't explain it." He started eating his sandwich.
Pete started eating his own food, though silently he was troubled. Not by Jim's words alone, but by the fact that he'd had the same thing happen to him. He didn't like it.
Chapter One
The wind was blowing fiercely; the black clouds gathered in the sky and the rumbling of thunder was threatening to pour bucketfuls of water down upon the ground any time. Also, the sun was almost set as an old red pickup truck came to a screeching halt in the middle of a dirt road. Old buildings lined both sides of the road. While one or two were both old and in good enough shape, the majority were falling apart. As far as the twenty-eight year old blonde haired driver, Timothy Andres, was concerned the ghost town-set far up in the hills of Los Angeles- was the perfect place to dump the 'cargo'.
"I don't know about this." Hank Tilton, Timothy's black haired best friend who was a mere two months younger than Timothy, got out of the truck and helped him remove the dark haired gentleman who had had the misfortune of walking into their camp and being beaten up quite badly-as the two men were absolutely sure he'd seen the items they were trying to hide. "We should drive out to Death Valley and dump him there instead." Hank growled just a little as he and Timothy dropped the man near the corner of a building.
"No! We don't have the time! Besides, he won't survive the beating we've given him." Though, after thinking a second, Timothy reached into his jacket's pocket and pulled out a gun, pointing it at their unconscious victim. "I guess we can make double sure of it." Only he found himself cursing-the firearm would not fire. Before the two men could decide what to do about the unexpected problem, the sound of thunder grew even louder and a streak of lightning could be seen in the distance.
"We better get out of here!" Hank practically flew to the truck.
After trying one more time to get his pistol to fire, Timothy cursed again and joined Hank-telling himself the failed attempt to shoot the man didn't matter-as the beating would still be the death of him. The two men roared out of the ghost town-never seeing the shadows in the upstairs of one of the better buildings.
Eliza R. Parker and her cousin, Robert Parker, waited until the red truck disappeared out of sight before hurrying out of the room and down the stairs that led to the room they'd been staying in, and down the boardwalk-making sure to avoid the spaces between boards. Soon they were kneeling down and looking at the bruised up face and fat lip the gentleman had. Shaking her head, Eliza checked his pulse. 'So much for time for myself.' The dishwater blonde was actually a doctor who loved the outdoors and would flee to them any chance she got. Many who knew her would joke she missed her life's calling when she chose a career that kept her in a town instead of an open range somewhere in a state like Montana. Robert was more like a brother than a cousin. The two had come to the ghost town with other friends only those friends had left the day before. Robert was due to leave any time.
"His pulse is strong." She looked at Robert, and then back at the unconscious gentleman. She hated moving him only he couldn't be cared for outside...she had just felt a drop of rain. She knew they really had no choice. "This is going to be interesting. Let's get him some shelter." She quickly moved, reached down and grabbed the man's ankles while Robert took a hold of his arms. The two then began the struggle to move the man into the nearest building-which was missing its front door. By the time they got him inside and maneuvered him to the back of the room-as there were holes in part of the roof, she was perspiring quite profusely and rain could be heard-and seen-falling from the sky. "He best be thankful you and I keep ourselves in shape, or he'd be soaked."
"I'd say that was an obvious statement." Robert stepped away from the stranger, in order to allow his cousin to open the man's shirt and examine her unexpected patient more thoroughly.
Eliza was extremely relieved to find no visible evidence of internal bleeding, and prayed like crazy there wasn't any. Though, he had more than one cut and bruise on his face and chest. She was sure they would find bruising elsewhere as well. She could also tell he had a couple of broken ribs. ''I'll be right back. While I'm gone, examine his legs more closely." She wished they'd been able to do the thoroughly examination before they had had to move him, as she hated the idea they might have hurt the gentleman even more than he had been when he was dumped at the ghost town.
Once she was in the room she'd been using, she grabbed a bag- which she had filled with various items- and some blankets. It wasn't long before she was back in the worn out building where her patient still lay motionless. "Thought I was only bringing these items with me in case something happened to one of us, or our friends."
"Guess not," Robert gave her a somewhat amused smirk, though he was in no way making light of the situation itself. "His legs are not broken, just hope there isn't any hair line fractures."
Eliza reached into the bag and pulled out what she needed to clean up his chest, and then pulled out a bundle of cloth strips that had been cut to enable them to be used the same way they'd been used by many doctors in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries had. "Forgive us, but we've got no choice." She spoke to the stranger even if he could not answer her. She and Robert started the long process of wrapping his chest with the cloth bandages. She couldn't help but mutter, "What I wouldn't give for a phone and an ambulance right now."
"You're not the only one." Robert said as he once again stepped away as he watched his cousin begin cleaning the dried blood that was on the man's face and chest. The whole time she could see in her mind's eye the men that had dumped her patient in a place where they were convinced he'd have no help. She might not know who she was caring for only she was still angry with the two men. No one had the right to do this kind of thing to anyone; she didn't have to know the circumstances to know she was right on that one. 'Wish I could have read their license plate only I'll never forget their faces. Someday, if I have my way, they'll pay for this.'
"We need help, and there's not enough room in my small car to get him to the hospital." Robert said as he looked toward the entrance to the building they were in; rain was still falling, and rather hard.
"It's what you get for buying a car with no back seat." Eliza refrained from saying what she thought when it came to her cousin's 'fancy' car-as he put it. There was nothing fancy about it, and was the ugliest color of orange she'd ever seen. "Once it stops raining, or eases off anyway, get in that thing and drive as fast as you legally can. First to the hospital and then the police station; they need to know about this."
He sat on a nearby crate while Eliza continued to care for her patient. "All right."