This is a text version of the original still airing imaged, music soundtracked story. Emergency Theater Live, Episode Forty Eight 48. Hostage Season Six- Episode 48 Short summary- Moods are down when friends fall and a when a foe comes to pay a call on Squad 51. Will Rampart's think tank save the day in time? Hostage©, Mark VII Limited© and Universal Studios© Production # 37411 Original Teleplay Character Dialogue was written by Susan Keenan©. ****WARNING**** The long summary to come is very story spoiling and will take away plot surprises if you read it now before reading the longer story below it. Decide now if you want to read this episode's detailed summary before doing so. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Long Summary- A house fire leads to a career ending health problem being discovered for a friend of Johnny and Roy. A game of basketball was interupted by another rescue call at a glass shop. Chet goes silent thinking he jinxed the guys. A young couple arrived at Rampart thinking they were going to become parents. Only to find out it wasn't quite time. Roy and Johnny are called called to rescue a child whose hand was stuck in playground equipment. Johnny and Roy are taken hostage on the way back from Rampart. They are forced to care for a heroin addict while his buddy holds them at gun point. Roy must get creative to disclose their location without saying it outright. The boys are eventually found and upon their return to the station greeted with Chet's voice returning, a warm dinner and a round of applause. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Story Unfolds... Season Six, Episode Forty Eight §§ Hostage §§ Debut Launch: August 1st, 2007. @@@All writer credit goes to Hostage©, Mark VII Limited© and Universal Studios© Production # 37411 Original Teleplay Character Dialogue was written by Susan Keenan©. @@@ ************************************************** From: "patti keiper" Date: Wed Aug 29, 2007 1:01 am Subject: Hostage- Opening Tease Scene.. Hostage©, Mark VII Limited© and Universal Studios© Production # 37411 Original Teleplay Character Dialogue was written by Susan Keenan©. Technical Advisor: LACoFD FF/PM Jim Easley Producer: William Stark It was day, most likely, in the heart of a living room, on fire. The smoke was so thick, anything even attempted to be seen was nothing more than a gray void. Sounds filled the flame muffled space; it was the hissing of steady breathing coming from scba masks. The ghostly figures of firemen paramedics Gage and DeSoto stuck close to the floor as they searched for something or someone. The scene was eerie with only their own sounds and the hiss of the fire. Crawling slowly, both turnout protected paramedics left the living room and went down a hallway, still moving along on their stomachs under the layer of clearer, cooler air. They entered the first door they came across. It was a child's bedroom. From what they could see of it, it was a mess. The smoke was still very heavy and some of the room still smouldered with small fires. Everything was wet from the hose cannon and part of the ceiling had collapsed. Roy and Johnny checked carefully so they wouldn't miss anything. Gage gasped, starting to feel the heat. "He's got to be right near here.." he said loudly in frustration so Roy, lying next to him, could hear. Johnny thrust another couple of feet of charged hose ahead of himself as Roy swung his flashlight from one spot to another. Suddenly, its light caught the glint off a fireman's hat. Roy shouted. "There he is!" The two paramedics moved as quickly as they could to Firefighter Roger Demick's side. He had been knocked down by a section of the collapsed ceiling. His air line had been torn open and his neck cut by a piece of mirror that had fallen with him. As Roy and Johnny uncovered Demick, they checked his pulse and respirations and began to apply pressure to the wound on his neck to control the bleeding. DeSoto caught his breath even as he sighed in relief that they still had somebody to rescue. "I think I can carry him okay... if you'd help me get a good hold on him." Johnny nodded, giving Roy a hand. Then he picked up the flashlight and the inch and a half line as they moved back into the gloom of the hallway. They exited the bedroom and moved back toward the living room as fast as they could. The house was a low one story ranch style home in the fifty five thousand dollar class. The outside was a flurry of action. Lopez and Kelly were up on the roof, ventilating, while firemen from two other companies, 127 and 82, were taking in salvage covers and hosing down the flames and adjoining areas. Onlookers and neighbors were straining for a better look as a police officer kept them back. The front door was kicked open with a shoe as Gage and DeSoto emerged with Demick. Gage gave his hose line to a fireman and Captain Stanley joined them to help carry their victim over to the squad. Roy nodded at Cap. "This should be okay. I'll get his vitals." he told him as they lowered him onto a burn tarp. Gage was already giving Roger oxygen as DeSoto applied a compress to his neck and started checking his vital signs. After Johnny had hooked up a cannula, he reached for the biocom. Gage pulled off his helmet and mask from around his neck. "Rampart Base. This is Rescue 51." --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A hand reached for the speak button of the transmitter as Gage's voice came over the speaker. ##Rampart Base. This is Rescue 5-1...## Doctor Brackett's hand depressed the switch as the door of the glass base station closed behind him. "This is Rampart Base. Go ahead 51." ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Johnny held the receiver closer to his face as a spraying fire hose passed close by their location on the street. Roy was bending over, taking a blood pressure on the hurt fireman. "We have a male Caucasian, Fireman Roger Demick, suffering from smoke inhalation. He is unconscious. Respirations are slow and shallow, we're administering O2. He also has a severe cut on the left side of his neck. His vitals are.." Gage glanced up at DeSoto. Roy kept on cutting off Roger's uniform as he continued his primary survey. "Pulse 118.." Gage parroted him. "Pulse 118." "B.P. 132 over 80." added DeSoto. "B.P. 132 over 80." Johnny told Kel as he checked Demick's neck carefully for signs of further developing problems. "That cut has apparently missed any major blood vessels, but he's lost a lot of blood." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Brackett had taken all of the information down and Dixie had joined him. "Start an I.V. with Ringer's Lactate and transport as soon as you can." he told Johnny. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The ambulance was just pulling onto the scene as Roy started to administer the I.V. The attendants rushed toward the paramedics with their gurney. "10-4, Rampart." said Gage in conclusion and then he hung up the phone. They loaded Demick onto the gurney and started toward the ambulance. Roy looked at Johnny. "I'll ride in with the ambulance." Gage nodded tiredly. "Right." Johnny bent low to wrap up the equipment and then he started reloading all the gear back into the squad. DeSoto was just getting into the Mayfair in the background when a small sports car pulled up. A tall man got out. It was Stan Johnson who made a beeline straight for Captain Stanley. He wasn't angry. "That's my house. My name's Johnson." he declared matter of factly. Hank barely blinked an eye as he gave the facts how they were. "Okay, we've done about all we can. As soon as the smoke clears a little more, we'll be able to get a better idea of the total damage, and perhaps, how it started." he said to the man. Johnson nonchalantly lit up a cigarette. "Take your time. I've got plenty of insurance." Gage couldn't quite believe Johnson's attitude. He had finished loading the squad and was ready to leave for the hospital. He had heard every word and was rapidly becoming very upset over the man's dismissal of his and Roy's closest friend's recent near miss. The house owner's smug attitude carried on. "Actually, I'm sorry you guys had to go to so much work. I've been trying to sell this house for the last six months. And this fire has just saved me the trouble." he said happily. That comment was the last straw. Gage whirled on him. "Saved you the trouble?!" he shouted, his anger rising. "Look, mister.." he growled, lifting a finger at the man's grinning face. Captain Stanley held up a hand of his own, calming the storm. "Johnny, you'd better get on over to Rampart." he said quietly. Johnny sputtered. "But, Captain,.. Roger--" Hank's eyes sparked. "Johnny.." he warned, still just as quiet. Gage got into the squad, slammed the door shut, and left sharply. Johnson pointed, throwing a careless hand into Johnny's departing direction. "What's with him?" It was Hank's turn to control his temper with the man. "Because of that.." he indicated the house. "...a fireman might die." he spat. He turned, pacing away to direct the clean up, leaving Johnson standing alone by his neatly parked car. ------------------------------------ Photo: A fully involved suburban house fire. Photo: A firefighter crawling with an airbottle in thick smoke. Photo: Roy and Johnny treating a downed fireman. Photo: Johnny on a biophone on a smoky scene. Photo: Brackett and Dixie by the biophone. Photo: The squad leaving the scene fast. Photo: An angry Cap glaring by the engine. Photo: An inappropriately happy witness, grinning. ************************************************** From: "patti keiper" Date: Thu Aug 30, 2007 1:17 pm Subject: Act One.. Hostage Hostage©, Mark VII Limited© and Universal Studios© Production # 37411 Original Teleplay Character Dialogue was written by Susan Keenan©. It was full day at Rampart Emergency Hospital. Demick was still unconscious on the treatment table as Brackett and Early work on him, assisted by Dixie and another nurse. Demick was on a bird respirator and there was an I.V. going into his arm. An EKG machine was hooked up, and this Brackett was studying as the tape fed out a reading onto the floor. Everyone was busy in the teeth of a critical situation. Roy DeSoto stood by the door, watching the swift actions being taken by the hospital staff, but he didn't interfere. After a few moments, he left the room and went out into the hallway. As Roy left the treatment room, Johnny spied him as he was coming down the hall and together, they started walking towards the base station. Gage couldn't contain his worry. "How's Rog?" DeSoto frowned, still analyzing what he had seen in the room. "They're not sure yet. He seems to be stable enough. But there's some problem with his heart." he replied. The two paramedics reached the front desk and helped themselves to coffee. Johnny was surprised, worried. "Rog doesn't see the type to have a heart problem." Roy's face mirrored the same reaction. "I know. He's only twenty eight and has always been a big jock." Behind them, the sound of an opening door attracted their attention as Dixie exited the treatment room and crossed to Base Station 17, where the two of them were standing. DeSoto leaned into when she finally sat onto the desk stool. "Any change?" Dixie's face was serious. "No." Gage became ansy, but his voice didn't reflect any of it yet. "No indication of what's causing his heart to act up?" McCall pursed her lips, thinking. "The EKG showed depressed S-T segments in the V-leads. You guys were pretty close, weren't you?" she asked. Johnny took in a deep breath and straightened up uncomfortably. "Roy went to high school with Rog. And he and I were together when we joined the fire department. Dixie nodded, still serious. "I'll sure keep you fellas up on his progress." she promised. Roy studied his hands. "Thanks, Dix." The two medics started down the hall with their new supplies and walkie talkie in hand. As they got halfway down, they spotted Rog's young wife, Molly, going into the reception area with her two year old daughter, Cindy. Gage called out. "Molly....Molly!" he said, hurrying to reach her. The red haired woman turned, finally seeing Roy and Johnny and she rushed over at the sight of familiar faces. "How is he? Can I see him?" she asked, agitated. DeSoto picked up two year old Cindy and greeted the young curious child. "His condition seems stable,..but--" Molly interrupted him, almost frantic just under the surface. "But what?" Gage finally told her. "He's still critical. They've found a heart problem and they are trying to isolate it." "His heart? Can I see him?" she asked again, looking around for any clue that would tell her where her firefighter husband was. DeSoto gripped her arm to comfort her. "Not right yet." Dixie McCall came over and joined them, taking the young girl from Roy. "Mrs. Demick?" "Yes?" "I'm Nurse McCall. Why don't you and your daughter come with me?" she suggested, knowing that Roy and Johnny had to return back to duty. DeSoto gripped Roger's wife's hand meaningfully."Molly, I'm sure everything's going to be okay." he said. Smiling bravely, but still frightened, she nodded and followed Dixie down the hall. Inwardly, Roy hoped that his last statement was the truth. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The sun was stil hot in the back yard behind the station. A scuffed, well used basket ball makes a netless hoop attached to a backboard soundly. Stoker and Lopez are shooting baskets as Gage and DeSoto came out of the station, looking for everybody. Marco grinned excitedly, sweating. "You guys want to play a little two on two? Or horse?" Gage finally smiled, accepting the ball that Lopez tossed into his chest. "Why not?" Mike eyed up the two paramedics. "Did you see Chet anywhere?" DeSoto shrugged. "No. Maybe he's in the office." Johnny tried a shot with the basketball and missed an easy layup. Roy chuckled. "I guess they don't call you the "Stilt" for nothing." he teased. Gage's eyes flashed playfully, not taking offense. "All right, Wise Guy. Let's see how you can do." he said, sending the ball hard into his partner's chest. Roy absorbed the impact without even flinching. His eyes accepted the challenge. "From where?" Johnny leaned over onto his knees and motioned to the ground with both hands. "From right where you are." he replied, waiting expectantly. Roy was about twenty five feet away from the basket. He shot and he made it without even drawing iron. Gage tried very hard to hide the fact that he was impressed. Returning the ball to DeSoto, he offered his thoughts. "Luck. Try it again." he taunted. Just then, Kelly came out of the station and crosses over to his car. Marco shouted. "Hey, Chet. Why don't you join us?" Chet got whatever it was that he had been looking for and he headed back across the parking lot without saying a word or acknowledging them. All eyes were on him as he disappeared back into the station. Gage scoffed, finally dribbling the ball he stole away from Roy. "What's with him?" Lopez shrugged, still watching the closed door that had shut behind Kelly. "He's been like that ever since we came on duty today." Roy stole the ball back instantly from Gage and shot it up high without even looking for the basket. Twenty five feet away, again, it swished through it solidly, to Gage's marked disapproval. The alarm goes off and they all react, going back into the station. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Captain Stanley took down the information as the rest of the firemen boarded their vehicles. ##Engine 51, Squad 51. Man trapped at Greg's Glass and Mirror Works. 1030 East Green Street. Cross street, Lyle. Time out : 1035 hours.## Hank hung up the microphone after replying. "Station 51, ten four. KMG 365." The captain got into the Ward and together, they exited the garage. Roaring Code R down the freeway, they hurried toward their destination. They arrived very soon into the business district, outside the building. Squad 51 and Engine 51 pull up outside the store. Greg Liggatt, a short balding man of about fifty, the store owner, is waiting out front. He's very nervous and excited as he approached Hank. The paramedics joined him. Liggatt began to talk, fast. "It's my brother in law, Ralph. He was up on the second floor, fixing the rack and checking for earthquake damage, when it happened." Stanley asked the question. "What happened?" The owner stammered, still panicking slightly. "The rack collapsed, pinning him under hundreds of pounds of glass and mirrors." Roy started hurrying as he began to get equipment out. "Is he conscious?" "Yes, some of the rack is keeping the majority of the glass off of him. But I think he has a bad cut on his leg." Cap began issuing orders. "Lopez, Kelly, porta-power, jacks, some salvage covers and some rope. Let's go." Gage and DeSoto had completed unloading all the medical gear and they joined the gang entering the store before them. A police officer arrived as they did so and began controlling the on lookers. Station 51 crossed quickly through the store, following Greg to the back stairway. The store was glinting in the late morning sunlight in the usual display of mirrors and glass in various shapes, styles and sizes. Liggatt grunted with worry. "I hope one of you is skinny enough to get through to him." he said. They passed under the stairway landing and went up to the next floor, laden heavily. Hank led the way, after the owner, followed by DeSoto, Gage, Lopez and Kelly. The storage room was typical of a store the size of Greg's Glass and Mirror. There were storage racks where large pieces of plate glass and mirrors were kept. It was one of the main racks that had collapsed, with its contents, on top of Ralph. The broken rack was supported partially by a beam that was propped up against the wall. But Hank soon noticed that their victim was at the far end of the row and he saw that the only way they could get to him, was to crawl through on their stomachs, under the teetering rack of glass. The space was very tight and looking around, he saw that only Gage was small enough to fit through the opening. He frowned. There was the continual danger of falling glass as stock continued to slide out piece by shattered piece, around them. He knew everyone would have to be more than careful. He spoke. "Johnny, looks like you're elected." he said, after peering around quickly. He stepped back to give Johnny a look. "We'll start to try and get this mess off of him." Gage kept on his gloves, eyeing up the worst risks in the glass surrounding them. "Ralph? Can you hear me?" They all heard a gasping start up. It was weak. "...yes." Johnny began to worm his way in past the glass his crewmates began to hold steady with their gloves. "This is the Fire Department. Can you tell us what has happened to you so we know what to take into you?" Ralph began to reply, with difficulty, unaware that Johnny was doing a consciousness level check on him. "..I- I think so.. I've....got a large cut on my thigh..and I think my right arm's ...broken. And.. I'm pinned to the floor.. Oh,....It hurts! Please hurry.." Gage answered. "I'll be there in a moment." he grunted as he crawled carefully. He stopped only long enough to begin to stuff into his pockets all that he would need...M.S... an I.V., bandages..and a splint. DeSoto, nearby, began to set up the biocom. Johnny made sure his gloves were covering his skin as he slowly entered the tunnel of glass. He made his way very gingerly through the darkened space. Suddenly, the weight above him shifts, sending bits of glass bouncing off of his helmet. Freezing. Johnny ducked protectively, until it was over. Then he started crawling again. He reached Ralph, who was on his back, pinned to the floor by the rack on his right arm. There was a little more room around the man but still Gage couldn't rise up off of his own stomach at all. In the background, he could hear Roy on the biocom, beginning a hail. Gage started smiling when he saw Ralph connect eyes with him. "All right. Now try not to move." Ralph coughed weakily. "I'll try." Gage took out a compress and applied it quickly over the gaping wound on the man's bloody thigh. "Can you hold this?" he said while he tied it off tightly with other bandages. "I think so." gasped Ralph. Johnny shifted his position. "Okay. Let's see what we can do for that arm." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Roy was already on the phone with Rampart Emergency. He could just see Gage and Ralph ahead of him, through the peeks in between the masses of sharp, broken glass sheets that lay between them. Johnny was gingerly taking a blood pressure. DeSoto spoke again, with more information. "...Male Caucasian approximately forty eight, medium build. He has a deep cut on his left thigh and a possible broken right arm. He's in severe pain." He lifted his head when Gage shouted. "Pulse is 110!" Roy echoed that to the doctor on the other end of the line. "Pulse 110." "...B.P is.....126 over 70." gasped Johnny, his voice muffled. "Respirations 18. " Roy nodded, signalling visually to Johnny that he had heard. "..B.P. is 126 over 70. Respirations are 18. Request permission for M.S." Dr. Early was on the transmitter. Joe said. ##Start an I.V. D5W as soon as possible and then administer 5 mgs M.S. I.V. Monitor vitals closely.## "10-4." In the store room, Roy set the phone down onto his jacketted shoulder. "Did you catch all that, Johnny?" Gage grunted. "Right." Johnny quickly began preparing the morphine injection. He glanced down at Ralph. "This should ease the pain some." he told him. Then he started the I.V. and injected the drug into the line's port. Stanley, Lopez and Kelly attached some lines to the wooden frame of the tipped over rack and they got busy unfolding some of the salvage covers. Liggatt was watching anxiously nearby. Hank spoke softly to his men. "The big problem is not the frame. I think we can hold that okay." he said. "It's just when we move this thing.. What's going to happen to all of that glass?" he asked them, pointing, wanting their opinions. Roy leaned into the hole. "Is there anything more you need in there?" Deep within, but close by, Johnny rechecked the flow of Ralph's I.V. before he began to immobilize the man's shoulder with a splint. "Not right now." He turned to Ralph. "There. Now relax as best you can while I try to get this on." Ralph's eyes started to close slowly, groggily. "Are we going...to get out of here without being cut in half?" Johnny instantly got into his line of sight. "We will. They're working on it right now." he said, continuing to put on the splint slowly. Stanley knelt by DeSoto near the narrow opening. He had a salvage cover with him and a few sections of one by twelve boards. He yelled to get Gage. "If we can get this wood and cover in to you, then we can move the glass." he shouted. Johnny replied, still out of sight. "I might be able to back up some. Then you can place it on my back." he offered. Roy looked up. "Cap, I'll hand it into him." Hank passed over the bundle. "Give us the high sign when you're ready for a lift." he said. DeSoto licked his lips nervously, worried for both Johnny and the wounded man. "Right." --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Johnny began slowly backing up. It was a dangerous move as chunks of glass and mirror kept falling near him and off of his helmet. But slowly, he was getting closer to Roy and the equipment. "Another two feet!" DeSoto encouraged him. "Okay.." grunted Gage. "That's good." Roy told him as he placed the supplies onto Gage's back. Slowly, Johnny began his return trip back to Ralph's side. Glass continued to fall, and the wooden frame began to creak under the pressure. When he got there, he did a fast vitals check on the still man while he started to make a shelter for the both of them using the wood and tarp. Nearby, Lopez and Kelly have the porta-power in place and they were ready to pull the rack of glass away from the wall, but only when Gage and his victim were completely covered with first the wood and then the salvage cover. Johnny took a deep breath, his voice muffled. "We're ready!" Roy heard the word and relayed the message to Hank, standing by the wall. "They're ready." Marco and Chet slowly began to pump up the porta-power. Stanley shouted. "Lie still. Here we go!" he replied back. Breathing fast, Johnny kept a hand on Ralph's stomach to monitor his sedated breathing rate. He kept low as the rack started to creak. Glass popped as it slowly began to rise. DeSoto was shielding his hands from glass dust as it began to trickle down from the pile above Johnny, watching his partner as best as he could. The gang was pumping very carefully when suddenly, there was a very loud pop and then the crashing of broken glass. He shouted in dismay when he saw Gage and Ralph quickly covered by a terrible shower of broken glass and debris. His face filled with fear for both of them. ::I can't believe what's happening!:: he thought. Trying to get closer, but very aware of danger, Roy began to dig at the now covered hole. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Photos: None. ************************************************** From : patti keiper Sent : Thursday, September 6, 2007 5:37 PM Subject : The Mystical Effect Hostage©, Mark VII Limited© and Universal Studios© Production # 37411 Original Teleplay Character Dialogue was written by Susan Keenan©. Police were controlling the bystanders outside as the gang rushed out to where Engine 51 and Squad 51 were parked outside the glass factory for shovels and more gear. Inside the store room, many gloved hands were clearing away jagged pieces of glass from where Gage and Ralph were lying. They all got it off quickly as Kelly and Lopez got on either side of the salvage cover to lift off the remaining glass. DeSoto tossed the boards away and he was relieved when he saw Gage's face turn towards his to look up at him. "Are you both okay?" asked Roy. "I think so." grunted Gage. "I must admit, it had me a little worried." DeSoto tended to Ralph, checking his arm. Johnny sighed, resting. "That's the best I could do in a prone position." he said about the splint and blood compresses. DeSoto grinned. "Looks like it's just fine." he replied. A couple of Mayfair ambulance attendants arrived and soon, Gage and DeSoto helped them load Ralph onto their gurney. Johnny brushed the glass dust off of his jacket as he looked at them. "Take it real easy going down the stairs." Liggatt, the owner, stopped Johnny. "That was a brave thing you did." Johnny grinned. "I think he's going to be okay. You can follow us if you'd like. We're going to Rampart General." he replied, accepting the compliment. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In a treatment room, Firefighter Demick lay on an exam table. Dr. Brackett hovered over him with a nurse in attendance. He looked over his chart and some test results and nodded in satisfaction. He handed them back to the nurse and left the room. In the hallway, he met Johnny and Roy just arriving with Ralph on their gurney. Dr. Early was with them. They all followed as the bed was carted into a treatment room. Gage held the door open as Early and a couple of nurses filed in after the glass wounded man. Then they continued down the hall to where Dixie was on the phone and where Brackett was having a quick cup of coffee. They did the same thing, keeping quiet while McCall finished her on the line conversation. "Right.." said Dixie. "Dr. Brackett wants a CCU bed ready as soon as possible... Right.....Demick, Roger, R. ...Thank you." she said and then she hung up. Gage couldn't contain his dismay and concern any longer. "How's he doing?" Kel swallowed with satisfaction. "He's regained consciousness and his respirations have improved. And, we've found out what the problem is." Roy's face mirrored dread. "What's that?" Brackett's frowned. "The EKG indicates ischemia. Chances are, he has serious coronary artery disease despite the fact that he's young and has never had any chest pains. The smoke inhalation and lack of oxygen brought it to the surface." Gage couldn't speak for a few moments, stunned. "Is he going to be okay?" Brackett set down his empty coffee mug onto the countertop near the rescue recorder. "We can't tell yet if there's been any permanent damage. But I'm afraid his career as a fireman might be over." Roy looked pained, worried. "Has anyone told his wife?" Dixie spoke softly. "Not yet. She's on the patio, having some lunch." DeSoto blinked, thinking. "Can I tell her?" McCall smiled, supporting him. "Sure. Go ahead." DeSoto left the group and headed for the coffee shop, keeping the squad's HT with him. He winced when he heard Gage still trying to digest the news behind him. "Leave the department?" said Johnny. "Rog and his wife are going to take that pretty hard. You know he's been accepted for the next paramedic class..." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The nurse that had been with Demick suddenly whipped open his door. "Doctor! Come quick!" she shouted. Brackett, Dixie, and Gage all responded and rushed into the treatment room after her. On the bed, Demick was silent and sweating under his oxygen mask. A high fluting tones alarm was sounding on the EKG oscilloscope. Johnny could see Roger was suffering some PVC's. Kel leaned over the bed, studying the monitor and Roger's inhalation efforts. "PVC's. Dix, a hundred milligrams bolus of Lidocaine..." he ordered. McCall prepared and injected the medication into Demick's I.V. line. Soon, everybody was working hard to save the fireman's life, taking vital signs, double checking his airway, and his lung and heart sounds. The EKG monitor changed pitched when Demick suddenly slipped into V-tach. Johnny gripped Roger's neck and shook his head at the lack of a pulse. The nurse looked up from the monitor she was watching. "V-tach." she added. Gage reached over to the crash cart and gelled the paddles up, powering the unit on full. Then he handed them to Dr. Brackett who rubbed them together swiftly to spread the conductive paste. "Clear!" hollered Kel. He defibrillated. And everyone looked tensely at the scope as the forced rhythm danced hideously afterwards. The screen settled into a resumption of pulseless V-tach. Brackett's face became firm with determination. "Clear!" he called out again. Once more, Roger's body arched off the bed under his tubes. The irritated, chaotic heart activity disappeared into a straight line after the second shock. Working rapidly, Kel began to bark orders. "Take the paddles.." he said to Gage, passing them off as he started CPR on Demick himself. "Dix, Isoproterenol I.V." he snapped. Dixie added the cardiac booster to the I.V. port on Roger's left side as the second nurse began ventilating Roger with an oxygenated ambu bag. Kel looked at McCall while he maintained his compression rhythm. "Okay..Increase the drip." he told her quickly, beginning to sweat. Johnny was frozen, fearing the worst as the steps he knew so well were carried out on a close friend. He found his eyes glued to the scope and the recapture attempt progress tensely. Brackett was equally focused, watching the screen. "Just a little more on the drip.." he stated. Then he suddenly broke off his CPR as a fluting tone began to sound off a viable beat. "Slowly." he cautioned. Johnny's face broke into a scared, grateful grin. "Fifty five.." Kel wiped his lip free of moisture. "A little more.." he said to Dixie, who was turning the dial on Demick's drip chamber. Gage burst out in happy news. "Seventy.. And it's holding." he sighed, gripping the sides of the bed as Roger began to breathe again through his unconsciousness. Letting out the breath he was holding, Kel stepped down off the gurney foot rails where he had been standing throughout the resuscitation effort. He started to smile. Everyone was relieved. Soon, all of them were working to stabilize Roger's heart. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In the patio coffee shop, Roy and Demick's wife and little girl were sitting in bright sunlight. Molly was fussing with her daughter, Cindy, who was in a highchair. DeSoto was sitting across from Molly, toying with his half empty coffee cup and he was talking steadily. "..I know it's going to be hard on him." he said to her. Molly wrung tears out of her eyes, trying to hide them so her daughter wouldn't see her crying. "The fire department is his life, Roy. What is he going to do?" Roy pursed his lips, and began again. "Look, you're the one that's going to have to be strong. He needs that." Molly shook her head, fighting emotions. "I know ...you're right, b-but what is he going to do?" she said again, still trying to wrap her mind around the idea of her husband's career ending so suddenly. Roy tried to lighten the matter. "Probably anything he wants to." he said, leaning back and smiling at her as he crossed his arms over his chest."Except, be a professional athlete." he joked. Mollys face crumpled. "...or a fireman... or a paramedic.." she wilted. Roy took her hand instantly, easing her pain. "Now, please." he encouraged her. "You have to just be strong." he said gently. "Let's see how Rog feels about all of this before getting too upset, okay?" Molly gripped his hand in return, in gratitude. "Okay.." she sniffed bravely. DeSoto covered her cold fingers with his warm ones. "Let me get you a refill of coffee." He rose from the table with both his mug and Molly's and he headed for the coffee pot counter. He was just out of her sight when Dixie and Dr. Brackett intercepted him as he was filling the two cups. Roy noticed that they looked tired. Kel spoke. "How's Mrs. Demick?" DeSoto eyed him up, instantly alerted. "A little shook. But she's doing better." Brackett suddenly confirmed his goosefleshed shiver. "I wish I could say the same thing about her husband." Roy didn't move, overfilling his coffee cup. "What?" Brackett helped Roy mop up the overflow with a nearby cafeteria towel. He made sure DeSoto hadn't burned himself with a glance first before he said more. "He went into V-tach. We had to hit him twice to get him going again." he reported. DeSoto was shocked, and turned around, leaning on the tray rails for support. "How's he doing now?" Brackett folded his arms together thoughtfully. "He's stable on Isoproterenol. I think he may need heart surgery. There's a specialist on his way down now." Roy nodded, glancing over at Molly. "I guess I'll head back to the station." he replied, realizing that Kel and Dixie had come to tell Molly of her husband's newly averted crisis. "Keep us posted." he asked. Kel nodded. Dixie smiled. "We'll do that. Here, I'll take the coffee." Kel glanced up soberly to where Molly was hugging her toddler tightly in a hug. "This is always the most difficult thing about being a doctor." Nodding in agreement, Roy left the shop as McCall and Brackett crossed over to join Mrs. Demick and her daughter at their table. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Johnny Gage was already in the squad at the emergency entrance. Roy got into the driver's seat, putting the truck into gear and they moved on out. Almost too quickly, Gage picked up the mic."Squad Fifty One. 10-8." he said. ##Squad 51.## replied L.A. Johnny returned the microphone to its spigot and tried not to fidget as he relived again the almost death of their friend Roger. Roy paused a bit, as if he wanted to say something. But then he decided to concentrate on the road as they pulled out onto the street to head back towards the station. He drove for a minute, in silence, when Johnny finally spoke. "Man, that's hard to understand.." he said. Roy didn't even need clarification. "I know." Johnny was bothered, disturbed deeply. "How come things like that happen to someone as dedicated as Rog?" DeSoto shrugged reluctantly. "I can't explain it." Gage went on, trying to voice his feelings. "I mean,..he's such a good person. Why does he have to carry such a burden?" Roy looked up at his partner's troubled face seriously. "Look, Johnny. Everyone has their cross to bear. I'm not justifying what has happened to him. I just mean that things like that happen. And it's all part of life." Johnny looked away and out the window, depressed. "I know. It seems so unfair." DeSoto gripped the steering wheel a little more firmly and he began to smile. "If and when Rog gets back on his feet. I'm sure he and Molly will adjust to their new life. And you and I can help by giving as much positive support as we can." Gage began to relax, thinking about things, hard. "You're right." he whispered. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The trip back to the station was uneventful. Soon, the squad pulled up in front of the station and backed into the garage. When the squad came to a halt in its parking place, Gage piled out. "Am I starved!" he declared as they both made a beeline for the kitchen. "How's Rog?" asked Hank as he and the others were finishing up the last bitefuls of lunch. Roy rubbed a few aches out of his shoulder and neck as he said. "He's stable. I don't think they'll know much more until after the surgery." Stoker looked up. "What a lousy break. I sure hope he gets better." he said firmly. Gage and DeSoto made their way over to the stove where Lopez, the cook, was dishing them up some lunch. Their curiosity was peaked when Marco leaned into them, suddenly whispering. "We still can't find out why Chet's been so silent. Maybe you two can work on him." he said secretively. Johnny spoke quietly, acknowledging his hush hush demeanor. "We'd be more than glad to." he declared, smiling richly. The two paramedics turned with their plates and took seats on either side of Kelly as they dug in and began to eat. Gage rubbed his hands together and said grandly. "Marco, these are super enchiladas. Wouldn't you say so, Roy?" DeSoto spoke up, also pseudo serious. "Right, Johnny. These are the best I've ever had." Johnny winked up at Lopez, feigning amazement. "I don't know how you do it, Marco, do you, Chet?" he said, glancing casually back at Kelly, seated next to him. "Ummph." said Chet, not looking up from where he was picking his teeth over his empty plate. Roy continued the put on, still serious seeming. "What has gotten into you, Chet? Your days off must've been too much for you." Johnny said more, still straight faced. "Come, Chet. What's bothering you? You can tell us. We're all your friends." Kelly looked up at him in sudden genuine worry. "Friends.. That's why I want you to leave me alone." he said empathetically. "I'm dangerous." he declared with a broad sweep of his hands. "I might hurt you." Nearby, Hank regarded his man with a puzzled narrow eyed look. Johnny tapped Chet on the arm softly. "What do you mean by that?" Roy agreed with him and spoke up, too. "Have we done something to upset you?" Kelly let out the sad breath he was holding. "No, ..it's nothing like that. I'm...not mad at any of you." Gage insisted next, getting irritated. "Well, then, what is it?" Marco jumped on the bandwagon, where he was frying ice cream. "Come on. Tell us." Kelly held up defensive hands and finally bellied up. "All right. But I don't want anyone to laugh. This is serious." Roy immediately met his eyes evenly. "We promise." The whole gang stopped what they were doing and listened intently as Chet began to recount his story. Of them all, Gage was the only one having trouble keeping a straight face. Chet didn't even look at him. "Well, it all started innocently enough. My crabby downstairs neighbor was barbequeing late yesterday afternoon. Well, the smoke was coming right over the balcony and into my apartment. So I called down to him to please move it. He wouldn't. Then I thought some terrible things. One being that he'd burn his dinner. Well, he did. And now the smoke was worse. I then hollered down to him that the smoke was more than I could bear. He made some crack about a little smoke shouldn't bother a fireman. Well, that was about all I could take. I told him I was on my way down to settle it in another way. He said not to bother..cause he was coming upstairs to shut ME up. Well, he's a big guy and I was sorta making an idle ...threat.. but now I was in a fix. Then I thought some more terrible things. I mean, it worked with his dinner.. Well, one of those thoughts was that he'd break his leg before he got all the way upstairs. And...then.. he did. In two places." he said meekly. Gage leaned over dramatically, almost laughing. "So?" Kelly eyed him up, hurt. "So? Can't you see that I'm dangerous?" Johnny fired his reply back instantly, still chewing. "Coincidence." Kelly looked away, still miserable. "I wish it was.. but it's..." The alarm overhead sounded. And all the firemen started. When the rest of the gang heard that the call was just for the squad, they returned back to the dishes while Cap and the paramedics left for the bay. They couldn't wait to hear the rest of Kelly's story. ##Squad 51. Child injured at Latigo Park.## Roy and Johnny boarded the rescue squad as Hank wrote down their information in the response alcove. ##...Daleridge Road. Cross street via Vista. Time out: 1350.## Cap acknowledged the run. "Squad 51. KMG-365." The squad exited the garage and entered traffic, going Code R. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Photo: Gage rubbing paddles together at Rampart. Photo: A doctor shocking a ventilated patient. Photo: An alcove full of stacked glass. Photo: Glass jags sticking out of a frame. Daylight. Photo: Shattered pile of broken glass on a floor. Photo: Dixie looking tense by a treatment tray. Photo: An I.V. drip chamber. Photo: A depressed red haired wife. Close up. Photo: Roy and Johnny meeting a sad wife. Photo: Roy looking sad in the coffee shop. Photo: Cap eating. Johnny probing. Photo: Chet eating defensively. Photo: Squad 51 on a road in daylight. ************************************************** From : patti keiper Sent : Saturday, September 15, 2007 5:13 AM Subject : That Gentle Touch.. Hostage©, Mark VII Limited© and Universal Studios© Production # 37411 Original Teleplay Character Dialogue was written by Susan Keenan©. Squad 51 rushed along non Code R. They began to flank a residential park filled with picnic tables, lots of grass and trees, and a soft ball diamond. There was a new area containing an assortment of slides, swings, climbing bars, and merry go rounds. The squad pulled up a short distance away from a cluster of people surrounding a twenty foot high cork screw slide. A covered area at the top was made of sheet metal and that is where they found a five year old little girl, with her finger stuck. Her mother was up on the slide with her. Another small group of mothers and children were gathered at the base of the slide as Gage and DeSoto arrived with their gear, still in their helmets. Johnny looked up. "I don't know if this thing is sturdy enough to hold us all." he remarked, adjusting the strap on his chin as he studied the girl's position. Roy nodded, pulling off his helmet. "Let's not take a chance. I'll take the kit and the small pry bar, and you can stay below." he suggested. DeSoto went up the slide's ladder only to meet an embarrassed, slightly irritated young mother. "I don't know why she always insists on coming up here. She never slides down." she declared, hands on hips. Roy noticed dripping blood. "Where's her finger stuck?" The mother pointed with her chin. Both her arms were supporting her daughter around the waist, preventing her from slipping down the chute. "Right here. Her left index finger." she said seriously. DeSoto found the girl's hand was wedged between a section of the sheet metal edge and the tubular frame of the slide. ::If she slips.:: thought Roy. ::Or if her mother lets go, her finger's gonna be hurt seriously when it starts to support her whole body weight.:: he realized. Roy smiled for the child's benefit. "I see. I think we can pry the metal away without too much trouble." He ruffled the sniffling girl's blond hair. "You just sit nice and still." he told her. On the ladder, Johnny got the small pry bar ready to pass up. Roy got the child's attention after making sure the finger's oozing wasn't arterial. "My name's Fireman DeSoto. What's yours?" he asked. The child replied quietly, trembling a little but very wide eyed at the sight of an actual fireman sitting in front of her. "Kirsten." "Okay Kirsten. This won't hurt at all." Roy said, accepting the tool from Johnny. He started to separate the two pieces of metal from the frame gingerly, around the girl's hand. "Kirsten is a pretty name. How old are you?" "I'm five." she sniffled, squeezing her eyes shut at the sound of creaking metal. The pry bar slowly opened a space. Roy gave out a triumphant grunt when he finally freed her finger. "Here you go." he said, grinning. The mother, was highly relieved. "Thank you so much." DeSoto grabbed the first aid box from his partner. "Let me look at that cut." He opened the medical kit, stopped the bleeding which had only been dripping because of the girl's fright and put on some antiseptic and a bandaid. Then he began to use an alcohol bottle and a few gauze pads clean up the splashes of blood on the slide frame and floor grate. "Has she had a tetanus shot lately?" "Oh, yes. Just a couple of months ago." replied Kirsten's mother as she hugged her daughter and admired the large bandaid Roy had applied to her daughter's finger. She pretended to nibble at it to end the child's tears. Roy smiled, putting away the soiled materials he had used tidying up the slide, into the biocontainer in their kit. "Good. Keep the cut clean and covered for a few days." Then he turned to the little girl, still parked seated in between her mother's legs. "You can go down the slide now." he said. Kirsten made a frown. "No. I want to go down the ladder." she said, pointing with her good finger while she hugged the wrapped one closely to her chest. Both paramedics chuckled and between Johnny and mom, they helped guide the woe be gone child back down to the sandy ground. Roy handed down the equipment but instead of coming down the way they had gone, he simply shrugged, moving back over to the slide chute. He shot Gage a look of 'why not?' and down he went. Johnny winced as DeSoto hit the bottom in a cloud of dust in a three point landing. He jogged over quickly, trying to keep a straight face and failing. "Quiet!" Roy hissed, brushing himself off. Gage just smirked anyway. "I didn't say a thing." DeSoto cleared his throat, flushing five shades of red. "I know what you're thinking though." he accused, pointing at his face. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The daylight hours never penetrated the surgical suites of Rampart. Doctors were in the midst of Roger Demick's heart operation. Heart specialist Jim Caruso was performing the operation while another surgeon assisted. They were surrounded by silent, but relaxed nurses and an anesthetist at the fireman's head. Dr. Brackett was also in the room, masked, to observe. Dr. Caruso grunted as a nurse wiped away the sweat on his forehead created by the hot surgical lights aiming down. "Sponge. ...Hemostat." Brackett looked up at the anesthetist, his hands held ready, in sterile gloves. "How's he holding?" The man nodded minisculely. "Steady. But weak." he said, monitoring the carotid pulse he had a hold of under the blue sheets. Caruso lessened Kel's worry instantly with a firmer reply. "We should be able to close in a few moments." he said. Jim entered the critical portion of the operation. He carefully made the correction needed to improve circulation and end Demick's cardiac nodal rhythm re-entry problem. The fireman looked pale under anesthesia and the open heart that lay beating in the cavity before them looked vivid by comparison. Kel eagerly assisted when his colleague nodded for retracters and suturing forceps crisply, nodding in understanding when he saw a creative solution crafted that solved a complicated bypass puzzle. Caruso again nodded for a brow swipe from the nurse attending him with supplies. A minute later, the surgeon finally added the last tight knot in the coronary juncture he was working on. "Larry," said the older doctor. "You can close now." he said finally. Kel and he stepped back from their patient as the new, closing team closed in. Together, they left the operating field. They entered the scrub room where the two friends began to removed their soiled gowns, masks, caps and gloves. Kel grinned wearily, but he was awed. "You continue to amaze me, Jim." Caruso sighed proudly. "He's a lucky young man. We got it just in time." Brackett held the door open after drying his hands. "I'm going to go see his wife now. Would you join me?" he invited. Jim looked at his watch. "Sure." he shrugged. They left the room. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Molly was sitting alone with her daughter, who was lying asleep in her lap. Brackett and Caruso entered quietly, mindful of the exhausted child. Jim gently stroked the child's cheek to soothe her back into sleep as he crouched to take the mother's hand. "You husband is going to be fine." Roger's wife sighed hugely, tears glistening. "Oh, thank God. When can I see him?" Jim and Kel looked at each other, beaming. Caruso replied. "I'd say in about two hours." Molly rose off the waiting room couch, still holding her sleeping daughter. She whispered tearfully. "I don't know how to thank you both.." she sobbed, grateful. Kel just grinned, noticing the child for the first time. He brushed some hair out of the girl's face without thinking, the caretaker in him still very much in the foreground. "Looks like your daughter is a little tired." he said. Molly dipped, still rocking gently. "I know. I'll take her to her grandparents and come back. Thanks so much." she smiled, still crying in relief. She left the annex for the parking ramp, still cradling her daughter. The doctors soon followed in her wake, feeling pretty good. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gage and DeSoto were at the base station, checking out some supplies from Dixie when the two surgeons came down the hallway towards them, still in their greens. Kel stopped there, waving to Jim as he continued on to his next case. "See you, Kel." said the cheerful, cherubic faced man. "I've got another patient waiting." Brackett waved him on enthusiastically. "Right." Sighing in contentment, Kel joined the others at the base station. Johnny couldn't wait to ask. "How's Roger?" he blurted out in worry. Roy touched his arm. Brackett began to smile to reassure them both. "Thanks to Dr. Caruso." he said, pointing to the surgeon retreating away from them. "Roger should recover good as new." Gage dropped his head and rapped on the counter in celebration. DeSoto dared ask the question that had been in their heads for hours. "Good enough to stay with the department?" Brackett's smile finally faded. "I doubt that very much. But he should be able to do just about anything he wants to.. except fight fires." he told them. DeSoto nodded, thankful for Kel's honesty and disclosure. "We're sure glad it all went so well." he said, picking up their supply box. Gage echoed the sentiment. "Thank you. See you all later." he said. McCall and Dr. Brackett watched them go. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gage and DeSoto came out the double doors in the emergency parking area and starting loading their supplies into the back. Roy tried to smile. "Great news about Rog." Johnny grinned, but it didn't last. "He's still going to take it hard about not being a fireman anymore." Roy was thoughtful, pausing a bit as he relocked a gear door. "I don't know. We'll just have to wait and see." The two paramedics finished loading the Squad and climbed into the cab. Taking a deep expansive breath, Johnny instantly changed the subject. "Now what are we going to do with our psychic?" DeSoto looked at him askance. "Chet?" Gage frowned, rubbing his chin in deep thought. "Yeah, there's gotta be a way to snap him out of it." he declared. Roy scoffed, starting the ignition. "If you think of anything, let me know." Johnny nodded ruefully in agreement and put his helmet on. He picked up the mic. "Squad 51 available." ##Squad 51.## They pulled out of the parking area. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The peace in Rampart's reception area, was shattered. Through the entrance door came a very nervous and distraught young prospective father, Curt, and his very pregnant wife, Suzi. Curt was carrying Suzi as he staggered towards the desk. The woman was in pain, but somewhat embarrassed by her overeager husband. Nurse Carol was behind the counter and she immediately looked up. Curt blurted. "My wife's going to have her baby! You've got to do something!" ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Photo: Playground with a corkscrew slide. Photo: Roy working intently in a helmet. Photo: Child going down a slide. Photo: Trapped hand on a slide. Photo: Gage looking concerned up close. Photo: Happy girl hugged by a mom. Photo: Doctors operating. Photo: Brackett in scrubs. Photo: An older doctor in scrubs. Photo: Gage, Roy, Dix and Kel at desk. Photo: Nurse Carol Photo: Concerned man, witness. ************************************************** Subject: Breadcrumbs. From: patti keiper (pattik1@hotmail.com) Sent: Wed 10/03/07 6:34 AM Hostage©, Mark VII Limited© and Universal Studios© Production # 37411 Original Teleplay Character Dialogue was written by Susan Keenan©. Carol left her place behind the reception desk and motioned for an orderly to bring over a wheelchair. "How far apart are the pains?" Suzi grunted. "About ten minutes." she said. Curt leaned against the desk, still carrying his wife. "Do something." Nurse Carol indicated the wheelchair that was quickly wheeled over to them. "Please set your wife down in that wheelchair." Curt did so after Carol locked the brakes and opened the foot stands. Dr. Morton noticed the expression on Suzi's face and joined the group after leaving an examination room. He left his chart on Carol's desk. Carol filled him in. "Dr. Morton, her pains are ten minutes apart." Mike nodded, crouching by Suzi's chair. He set a hand on the woman's gravid stomach through her oversized sweater, feeling for cramps. "Do you have a doctor you want us to call?" he asked. Suzi tried to smile. "No. He's up in Santa Barbara." Curt added more. "We were on our way to visit my folks in San Diego. We're not.. I mean,.. she's not due for another month.." he stammered. "Please, do something!" he shouted. Morton was firm and no nonsense. "We are. Let's go to Room Three." he told the orderly standing at the chair's handle grips. They started down the hallway and approached a treatment room that was color indicator flag flipped to be unoccupied. Curt balked.. "Aren't we going to maternity?" Morton pushed the door open and waited for the man to preceed the rest of them. "We have to be sure she's in labor first." he replied. Curt didn't enter the room. "You mean you're NOT sure--" he got mad. "What kind of a hospital is this?" he declared, getting loud. Suzi held up a hand in between the puffs of air she was taking. "Curt, honey. Take it easy. There are thousands of babies born everyday." she panted. Morton and Suzi and the orderly entered the room. Firmly, Carol stopped Curt at the door at a slight signal from Dr. Morton. "This'll only take a second. Why don't you wait right here?" she told him. The door closed, leaving the nervous, fretting husband behind. Suzi was helped up onto the table. She was slow and cumbersome, and relied heavily on the orderly to guide her bulk onto its surface. "Please forgive Curt." she smiled at them all. "First baby, you know." Morton held the back of her head. "That's all right. Now just lie back. Carol, why don't you see if you can calm the nervous husband. I'm okay." he said about preparations. Carol nodded and left the room, coming toe to toe with Curt awkwardly in a near collision. The door shut behind her. "Doctor Morton should have an answer in just a moment." Curt was beside himself still. "With pains as close as she's having.. doesn't that mean the baby's on the way?" he asked eagerly, running fingers through his dark hair. Carol replied. "That all depends on--" She was interrupted when the door opened and Dr. Morton appeared. "Your wife's in false labor.." he said. Curt calmed down, frowning in perplexity. "What does that mean?" Morton smiled. "It means that your wife won't have the baby for at least another couple of weeks. And as soon as she rests for a while, you can continue your trip to San Diego." Curt fell against the door, holding his chest, sighing. "Can I go in?" he asked in complete relief finally once he pulled his emotions back together. Morton pushed the door back open, in answer with a flourish. "Sure." he replied, offering an after-you hand pointing into the room. Curt went into the treatment room, leaving Morton and Carol in the hallway. Just as they started back to the reception area, the door opened and Curt stuck his head back out. "Doctor!" Morton and Carol stopped and turned back, expecting the worst. Curt smiled broadly, still peeking out. "Hey, thanks a lot.." he said. Then his head disappeared again, leaving doctor and nurse alone to share ruefully amused grins. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Roy and Johnny were relaxed as they began the return trip back to base at the stationhouse. DeSoto was driving as they passed city streets, while Gage was thinking. Suddenly, something caught Johnny's eye. "Stop in front of that book shop for just a moment." he said, pointing eagerly. Puzzled, Roy slowed and parallel paused along the curb. The book shop through the windshield read, 'Gemini Bookstore, Everything on Witchcraft and Astrology.' DeSoto made a face. "There?" Johnny was excited. "There." And he opened his passenger door when the squad stopped moving. He got out. "I'll be just a second." he said, holding up an eager finger, knowing Roy hated breaking protocol rules about stopping for personal purchases while still on duty. He entered the store before he had to weather any protests. The owner of the store was at the back, stacking some books. His name was Homer and he definitely looked like he was the type who would be running that type of book store, a poor man's Vincent Price. Johnny entered, startling at the gargoyle bell hanging over the door. After a few seconds looking around, not certain of what he wanted, he found the owner for some help. Gage whispered, mindful of the crow sitting in the cage on the counter who was regarding him with a baleful eye. "Excuse me." Homer turned from his restocking. "Yes?" Johnny jolted at the creepshow appearance of the man. "Uh,..I'm looking for a book for a friend." Homer smiled ingratiatingly. "What kind of a book?" Gage swallowed, still unable to take his eyes off the taller man's creepy ones. "Well, this friend thinks he has some sort of psychic power.. and what he wishes comes true.." he stammered. Homer shrugged, after blowing some dust off of ancient gold leaf bound volumes.."So?" he prompted, asking for more information, politely enough. The crow echoed his word perfectly in a bird imitation. Gage's gaze shifted to its beady black eyes warily. "Well, it's a lot of baloney. And I want to prove it to him. I thought you might have a book that could do this for me." he smiled nervously as both man and bird fluttered about in uncanny like motions. The sallow faced man smiled hideously. "I do have lots of books on the subject. However, none of them would disapprove that your friend is a psychic. They would prove just the contrary." Gage swallowed, creeped out by the environment of the place and its haunted looking owner. "Oh, well,... thanks." he peeped, starting to back away slowly. Homer seemed to drift over the countertop, following. "Your friend is a young man, right?" Johnny smoothed down the goose pimples that began rising on his arms as he put some cautious distance between himself and Homer. "Ah, yes he is,...uh..." Homer pursued, still smiling grotesquely. "He's a fireman?" Gage seeped away, hurrying, feeling behind himself for any obstacles. He bounced off an Egyptian sarcophagus and corrected his flight without looking back. "Uh, yes." Homer grinned, staying close. "He has a moustache?" Johnny had had enough. He abruptly whirled around when his shoulder hit the same Victorian bell that rang whenever the front door opened and he yanked the brass handle until sunlight showed him his escape route back outside. "Yes, he does. Well, thanks again." he waved quickly. Then he rushed out the door, fleeing with many backward glances. Homer melted away from the windows as if he had never been. Gage climbed back into the squad quickly. "Let's go!" Roy's eyebrows climbed into his hairline, and he smiled a little, curious. "Didn't you find what you were looking for?" "No. Let's go." Johnny pointed fast, tipping his helmet down to block the view of the store front. He hoped that he hadn't seen a crow flying around and landing on a dusty skeleton near the faded red velvet curtains festooning the window displays. DeSoto pulled out into traffic. Roy noticed his nervousness. "What's bothering you?" Johnny jumped at his partner's touch on his sleeve. "That..weird guy at the bookstore. He gave me the creeps." But Roy was no longer listening. He had spotted something ahead. "Hey.. I wonder what he wants?" @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ EDIT MARK @@@@@@@@@@@@ Gage looked forward through the windshield. A young man of twenty five was flagging them down. His name was Paul. The squad pulled up next to Paul who stuck his head in the passenger side urgently. "My friend is real sick. I'll take you to him if I can get in..." Johnny nodded. "Sure." And Paul pulled open the door and climbed inside the squad after Gage slid over to the middle of the seat. As he got in, Johnny picked up the mic to call in, but when he did, Paul pulled out a gun and pointed it at both paramedics openly. "No radio calls." said the man, dropping his earlier clean kid facade. "Just drive down to Twenty Fifth Street and then turn right." DeSoto gripped the wheel, not making any sudden moves. "What is all this?" Paul snarled. "Be quiet and drive." Roy didn't make any sudden motions as he pulled the squad back out into traffic. Paul kept his gun trained on Gage's chest, below the level that anyone else could see. Johnny and Roy couldn't believe what was happening. Roy just talked. "I don't know what you're trying to prove.. but.." he began as they turned onto 25th St. The sweating man interrupted him. "Now keep going until you reach Ash and then turn left. And no more yak!" he growled, shoving the muzzle into Gage's ribcage for good measure. At Johnny's surprised grunt, Roy clammed up, fretting instantly with worry and dismay. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Captain Stanley looked at his watch from where he sat at his office desk. Then he got up from his desk and stuck his head out into the garage as he called out to the firemen wiping down the engine. "You guys don't have any idea what's taking Gage and DeSoto so long to get here?" he asked. Lopez looked up, surprised. "No, captain." Hank nodded, going back to his desk. He picked up the phone and dialed it out. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In Rampart's base station, Dixie McCall was just finishing organizing the morning's recorded rescue response cassette tapes into a storage drawer when the phone rang. She picked up the white phone off the wall. "Rampart General, Nurse McCall." she cocked her head, listening as the caller shared more. "No Captain. They left here about twenty minutes ago." She paused, beginning to frown. "No.. I was there a few minutes ago and their squad wasn't outside." she replied. Then she sighed. "Right, I will. Goodbye." As she hung up the receiver in puzzlement, Dr. Brackett entered the room for an EKG tape he needed for a case. "What was that about?" he asked, recognizing that the landline inside the base station alcove was rarely used. Dixie chewed a pencil end. "That was Captain Stanley asking if we'd seen the boys. I told him they left twenty minutes ago." Kel grunted in reply and both doctor and nurse turned back to what they were doing. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ L.A.'s voice was blaring over the radio, but Squad 51's paramedics weren't allowed to answer it. ##Squad 51. Do you read?.......Squad 51, L.A.## came Sam's hail. Johnny looked at it subconsciously. Paul didn't look away from either of them. "Ignore it. All right, here's Ash. Turn left and then pull into the driveway at the side of the corner house." There was an old Victorian style rooming house on the corner. Roy drove the squad into the driveway next to it and into an old garage at the rear. He frowned when he realized the squad was no longer visible from the street. The truck came to a stop. Paul got out and then the two paramedics out Roy's door. Paul twitched the gun menacingly. "All right. Get everything you'll need for someone who's O.D.'d on 'H'." Gage and DeSoto took what they needed from the equipment bay cautiously, including the resuscitator and defibrillator. "Now let's get going. Stay in front of me.." Paul warned when they were done. They exited the garage. Paul ushered the paramedics outside, pausing only briefly to shut its door. "That'll keep the curious neighbors away." he told himself more than them. Johnny tightened his lips when the last line of sight of the squad was covered up. "Look mister, we.." Paul shouted. "Cool it, skinny! Up those stairs!" and he cocked the safety off on the gun. Both Roy and Johnny twitched when they heard it as they walked. They obeyed without saying another word. But Johnny shifted the drug box enough at his hip so his gripping hand brushed by his belt containing the hemostat and scissors. The hemostat fell from his holster to the ground. His eyes shifted quickly to the ground and back up again. Their kidnapper hadn't noticed and Gage sighed in sweaty relief as they moved ahead along the sidewalk path. The group started up the outside stairs leading to a set of upper apartments. Paul got out his keys and started to open the door, keeping the gun trained carefully on the paramedics. "Now one word of warning." he said. "Les is a very sick man and I need him well. If you two don't pull him through.. then neither of you are coming out of here alive... understood?" he snarled. Gage and DeSoto nodded numbly and started to enter the apartment. Intentionally, Johnny bumped into Roy's shoulder as they both went inside long enough for the door jam to knock the scissors off his belt and onto the door mat. He didn't look down as they fell. Again Paul didn't notice anything amiss as he forced them inside with a shove. "Hurry it up!" said Paul. The door closed behind them, leaving sunlight to wink off the scissors lying on the landing. END of Act 3 -------------------------------------------------------------- Animated Photo: Roy and Johnny inside squad with flashing lights. Photo: Cap, frowning at the station, closeup. Photo: A strange curio shop. Photo: Dixie and Brackett at the base station. Photo: A hemostat lying on the floor. Photo: A man with a gun, looking stressed. Photo: Gage, looking scared, outside. Photo: Two armed men ushering gear laden Roy and Gage ahead of them into a house. ************************************************** From: patti keiper Date: Thu Oct 4, 2007 6:59 pm Subject: Clues Do.. Hostage©, Mark VII Limited© and Universal Studios© Production # 37411 Original Teleplay Character Dialogue was written by Susan Keenan©. The apartment was like many of those that were in old houses. There was a small kitchen area to one side, a bath in the back, and a small bedroom next to that. In the back of their minds, Roy and Johnny noticed that the furniture was old and fit the feel of the place. Aged, from a bygone era, smelling of mothballs and permeated with the scent of newly rented spaces. There were a couple of suitcases and some cartons lying about, as if someone were planning to leave. Les, the patient, was lying on the couch in the living room, not moving at all. Gage and DeSoto were pushed quickly into the room. Johnny frowned, eyeing him up. "I hope we're not too late." he mumbled to Roy as he pushed the end table out of the way as he knelt to feel the man's carotid. Paul sneered. "I hope not, too. For your sake." he told them, still brandishing the gun. Johnny gave Roy a short nod when he found some vital signs. He angled the man's head so he could breathe freely as he watched Roy open the medical kits. And the biophone. Paul saw that and immediately became suspicious. "What's that?" he asked, gesturing his gun muzzle. "It's a radio.." replied Roy. "So that we can talk with a doctor at the hospital." Paul licked his lips, worried and aggressive. "I don't want you using any radios." he demanded. DeSoto stayed crouched down, his hand on Les's chest, monitoring his breathing. "Look. If you want him to live, we're going to have to talk to a doctor." he said softly, keeping his face carefully neutral. Paul eyed him up. "How do I know you're not calling the cops?" Roy explained softly, holding out the phone receiver and the antennae he had been inserting into the communications port. "This radio is only to the hospital. And we need it to--" Paul shut his eyes, impatiently. He interrupted, shushing DeSoto. "Let me think about it!" Gage spoke up, making no apology with a harsh tone of voice. "B.P. is 85 over 45, Roy." DeSoto nodded, his eyes never leaving Paul's. "Look mister. You'd better decide fast. This man's in a bad way." --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Stanley, Lopez, Kelly and Stoker were grouped around a desk in the office at the fire station. Marco fretted, meeting everybody's worried gaze. "It's not like them to not have the handy-talkie if they're out of the squad." Chet rubbed his moustache. "Something's wrong. I suggest we call the police and have them keep a look out for their squad." Hank bobbed his head quickly. "Good idea, Chet." Cap picked up the phone and started dialing. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Brackett and Dixie were finishing up at the base station, having cups of coffee when Dr. Early entered the alcove, seeking some of his own. Joe spoke. "How's that fireman doing?" Kel smiled. "Great. Looks like he's out of danger now." ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Roy and Johnny worked feverishly over Les. Gage made sure of a rich oxygen flow while Paul paced back and forth, trying to decide whether to let them use the bio-com or not. DeSoto tried another viewpoint. "We're not doctors. But we can save his life if you'd let us talk to one." "I'm thinking!" Paul said, getting a little wild with stress. Gage recognized the symptoms of drug withdrawal beginning to work on Paul. ::He's an addict, too? Terrific.:: he thought. ::Now we're really in deep with all of this.:: he thought. "And we're not policemen. Right now, we're only interested in saving his life. Not in what problems you have have with the law." he tried to explain to their mind clouded captor. Paul halted in his tracks. "All I want is that he becomes well enough to travel." he shouted. Then he blinked. Hard. Paul licked his lips nervously. "All right. Use your radio. But remember, I'm listening to everything you say." Roy picked up the phone on the bio-com and called Rampart as fast as he could, worried for both themselves and the overdosed Les who was fading in front of them. "Rampart Base. This is Rescue 51." he started to hail. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Brackett, Early and Dixie all turn to the transmitter in surprise. Brackett stepped up to the phone to answer, hesitating only briefly as Roy's voice continued to speak. ##Rampart, this is Rescue Fifty One..## "This is Rampart Base, 51. Go ahead." he said with curiosity. In the apartment, Roy didn't look at Paul's reactions directly. Instead, he concentrated on his note pad and pen so he wouldn't provoke the situation further. "Rampart, we've a male approximately twenty eight. Unconscious. Pupils reactive. Possible overdose of heroin. Vitals are: BP is eight five over forty five. Pulse is weak at 25. Color is ashen. Respirations are twelve." Kel took down the information as Early listened in as well. Dixie was on the phone with the fire station behind them, speaking quietly. "Yes, Captain. Brackett is on the biocom with them now. I"ll see if I can find out." Brackett said. "Patch him up and insert an esophageal airway. Also start an I.V. with D5W." Roy replied. ##10-4, Rampart.## Dixie moved behind Kel's ear. "Can you find out where they are? The station didn't hear them get a response." Brackett startled. So did Joe. Kel nodded. "I'll try." He thumbed the mic. "Where are you located, Fifty One?" In the apartment, Paul reacted with anger. Roy froze, speaking fast as the gun came to bear directly at his face. "Cannot give you our location." he said. Brackett frowned, trying again. "We need your address for the ambulance." he said, prying once again. DeSoto felt a trickle of sweat run down his forehead. "I repeat. Unable to give location. EKG will be lead two. Looks like a junctional rhythm." he added, changing tact. Kel's frown deepened into frustration laced with concern. The odd answer reflected back out of his expression as he glanced up at Joe and Dixie, perplexed. McCall stayed on the phone with Captain Stanley. "10-4, 51." he finally said, pointing down at the speaker so Dixie saw that he had tried unsuccessfully to pinpoint the information. He shook his head in puzzlement. Dixie turned back to the phone. "They wouldn't give their position, Captain." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ In the station's office, Cap gaped, still surrounded by the rest of the gang grouped around him. "That's really strange. I think we'd better have the police come down there with you, since you're the only line of communication with them. I'll call from here..... Right." He hung up and then redialed L.A. for a direct line to active P.D. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Brackett and Early watched the EKG tape as it came in through the telemetry port. Dixie hung up her phone and joined them. Joe, was frowning. "Didn't DeSoto say his rate was twenty five?" Kel blinked. "He did. And the EKG, shows a junctional rhythm of about forty." Dixie's mouth opened. "He wouldn't make a mistake like that." Brackett thought hard on it and could only come up with one conclusion. "Maybe it's not a mistake." he decided. McCall nodded. "The police are on their way down here now." --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gage finished suctioning around Les's esophageal airway. Then he reconnected the end of their demand valve to it while Roy secured his I.V. line with tape. Paul was hovering nearby. "How's he doing?" Johnny was frank. "Not good. You have to let us take him to a hospital." he jabbed. "No way." Paul replied. "Look, I want him well enough to travel. Even if it takes all night!" he ordered loudly, trembling. Both paramedics could see that Paul needed a fix of his drug himself and that waiting would only raise the possibility of violence in him. Roy told him the truth. "There's a good chance he won't last the night if you refuse to let him go to a hospital." Johnny's foot bumped DeSoto's as his eyes fastened on the screen of the datascope. "He has dropped some!" he said urgently, providing an opportunity. DeSoto picked up the biocom, not having to feign quick worry. "Rampart, his rate is still twenty five. But he's getting weaker." he paused. "He's still ashen." In the base station, Brackett, Early and Dixie were huddled tight over the transmitter. Kel replied immediately. "Add two milligrams Isoproterenol to the I.V." ##10-4, Rampart.## Roy said quickly, almost on top of Kel's order. That raised more red flags in all three of the staff. DeSoto wasn't acting normally at all. And that got them thinking about it. Brackett experimented. "Again, what is your position?" DeSoto could almost feel the muzzle of the gun being held a foot away from his face. "I'm sorry.." Paul yelled. "That's enough with the radio!" and he kicked the biocom away. "Now you're on your own." he snarled. At Rampart, both doctors and the nurse were shocked at what they had heard. Brackett blurted out. "They're in some kind of trouble.." Joe nodded, pulling the most recent EKG tracing nearer to all of them where it was trailing around their feet. "Again, his rate was different.." he said, pointing. "Thirty two. And DeSoto said twenty five." Kel snapped his fingers when a brainstorm struck him. "Dix, get me a street map!" ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gage added the Isoproterenol to the I.V. and adjusted the drip while Roy studied the EKG monitor intently. "A little more.." Roy told him. "More. Easy.. That's good." Johnny immediately let go of the chamber dial. Paul was nearby, his foot perched on a chair where he stood. "What's that for?" Gage didn't look up. "To stabilize his heart rate." Roy frowned, feeling the man's pulse weaken even further as his vascular system began to shut down. "Look, if you care anything about this man. Then you'll let us--" But Paul wasn't listening. His face was glistening with sweat. "I really don't need.. for long. Just to find out where he hid his stash.. He owes me. After I get that,...he can go to the hospital, or whatever,.. 'cause I'll be long gone." he mumbled, lost in an almost haze as his addiction began to bite down, demanding surrease. DeSoto replied. "He's in no condition to talk. Let alone travel.." he said, delivering pure oxygen into the airway connector. Paul whirled on him, his gun shaking. "Well, that's your job. You're going with us!" he demanded. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Joe, Dixie and Kel looked closely at a recent street map spread out onto the counter top. Kel pointed. "It's got to be Twenty Fifth Street and something. He must've given another clue somewhere." Detective Sargeant McNally arrived and entered the room. "I'm Sgt. McNally. What's about a couple of missing paramedics?" Brackett told him. "They're in some kind of trouble. I think we may know how to locate where they are. Dix, what are the streets that intersect with 25th from here to the station?" "There's Elm, Oak, Spruce.. Maple.. Ash.. Walnut.." Kel's eyes widened in discovery. "Ash! He said, "ashen". He even repeated it! That's got to be where they are." McNally reached for the red phone. "This is McNally. Concentrate the search at the intersection of 25th and Ash. Right. Quietly. And on foot. We have two firemen paramedics in some kind of trouble." ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Paul was pacing while Gage and DeSoto bent over Les. They had already begun assisted ventilations on him when his own breathing had faltered a few minutes earlier. "Why isn't he getting any better?" said Paul, slightly crazed. "He can't even talk." he said, not comprehending the meaning of his friend's intubation. Roy didn't move, but he spoke. "We've told you his condition is critical. He only has a chance at a hospital." Paul threw up his hands, getting agitated and fretful. His pacing quickened. "I know what you've told me. But that hospital bit will not work. He's gotta get better here." he told them. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Two black and white units pulled up near the intersection they had been sent to and four officers got out. The first officer began issuing orders. "You and Carl take this side and we'll go around the street. Keep a look out for the fire truck, it's probably hidden nearby.." The four officers moved into action. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Rampart staff and McNally were waiting anxiously for word. Early looked up from the EKG monitor that was still running on live display. "His condition is getting worse." Kel moved to the black phone. "I'll get an ambulance to go down near the intersection and wait." He started to dial out. McNally rubbed his chin. "I sure hope this 25th and Ash hunch is right." he muttered. Dixie looked at him, her eyes filled with worry. "Don't we all.." ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The first set of policemen searched quietly. One of them looked into a garage window. "Look here.." he motioned to his partner. The second cop rejoined him. Inside the dark space, parked Squad 51. They drew back from the window and peered about at the nearest house. "They're probably in that place somewhere." said the older one, pointing at the Victorian two story next to the garage. His partner frowned. "But where?" The first officer motioned, coming up with a plan. They started slowly toward the first floor doorway when one of the officers spotted the hemostat that Gage had dropped. He picked it up. It was very close to the stairwell winding up the side of the house. So the two officers followed that route cautiously, their pistols ready. They made it to the landing and soon spotted Johnny's clothes shears on the mat. Now they knew they had the right door. They squared off on either side of the door frame and began. "Police officers! Open the door!" Inside the apartment, Paul was stunned at the announcement, his eyes casting to Roy and Johnny who were still caring silently for Les. He said the first thing that came to his fevered mind. "Not on your life!" he said, whirling to the front door. Gage saw his chance and he took it. He dove at Paul, knocking him to the floor and over an arm chair. The gun went off, discharging into the ceiling. The two alerted officers kicked in the door and rushed over to assist Johnny and soon had Paul spread eagle and face down, safely away from his weapon. They handcuffed him quickly and began reading the confused druggie his rights. "All right, on your feet! You have the right to remain silent. If you give up the right..." Their voices continued, but neither paramedic heard them. DeSoto restored their connection to the hospital as the commotion died down behind him. "Rampart, this is Rescue 51. Situation is now under control. We can now transport patient." He said, eyeing up Johnny, who was getting himself together physically and mentally nearby. Kel celebrated and so did the others at the hospital. "There should be an ambulance at your location any moment. Keep monitoring vitals and get him in here stat. By the way, are you guys okay?" The officers took Paul out roughly as the ambulance attendants came in with their gurney. Roy sighed in relief when he saw Johnny begin to do the same thing. "We're fine, Rampart. Thanks to Johnny. Ambulance is here..." DeSoto said, his voice cracking with emotion. The two paramedics helped load Les up for the trip into the E.R. and soon, they were leaving the criminals' hideout den swiftly. The only casualty was their tattered emotions in the end. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- It was several hours later at Rampart and it was night. There was a nurse on duty in Fireman Demick's hospital room. Roy and Johnny had been visiting with Roger and his wife sharing a few tales along the way. But it was getting late. So both of them stood respectfully, mindful of Roger's still tender condition. Roy said. "Don't worry. You just rest. We'll visit you again." Gage and DeSoto started to leave. Roger whispered, looking up at them from within his bandages. "One more thing. I know my firefighting days are over. But I've got it all planned. I'm going back to school on my G.I. bill. Heck, with that, and my disability, we'll do fine.." he promised. Molly fussed over her husband, smiling. "Honey, you'd better rest." Demick sprung his surprise goal on them. "All right, but in about five and a half years, you'll know who to come to, to get your teeth fixed." he joked. Gage and DeSoto smiled. "A dentist.. How about that." Johnny celebrated. Roy lifted up his hand in farewell. "Hang in there, Rog." Johnny did they same as they opened the door. "Catch you later." They left the room and the door closed shut on the sight of Roger and Molly embracing each other in support. And love. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The squad backed into the station deftly in the darkness. The squad stopped in its usual place and Gage and DeSoto got out wearily to head for the kitchen. It had been a long day, and neither one of them hid how beat they were. As they entered the brightly lit room, the firemen all started getting up. Chet grinned cheekily when they had finished. "Let's hear it for the returning heroes!" he crowed. And he led them all into a hearty round of applause. Gage grinned, bemoaning happily. "That's enough, guys. We're starved!" Kelly beamed. "Well, Marco and I made you guys something very special. You two just have a seat." he said eagerly, putting on some oven mitts and an apron. The two paramedics sat down as Chet moved to the oven and opened it. He brought out a steaming dish that smelled heavenly and very rich with cheese. "It's Chili Rellenos a la Lopez and Irish Stew a la Kelly." he said as Marco retrieved a second huge pot. Johnny closed his eyes, leaning back with his hands folded behind his aching neck. "Sounds terrific. Bring it on." he said, cracking open a cloth napkin and tying it around his throat. Marco and Chet brought over a pair of plates while the others poured out hot cups of coffee and pushed forward the salt and pepper shakers to within easy reach. Roy thought of something as he dug in to the hot food. "Yeah, hey, Chet. How come you've been doing all the talking. The last time we saw you, we--" Kelly scoffed good naturedly, continuing where he left off. "...thought I was screwy. I did, too." he admitted. "However, I've found out differently now." he said. Gage blinked in surprise, doing his best to chew, fully chipmunk cheeked. "You mean you're off this psychic kick?" The other firemen looked at each other knowingly, amused. Chet drew up to his full modest height. "On the contrary. I'm convinced I have the power!" he declared mysteriously. Johnny threw up a hand, doubtfully. "Come on." Kelly said, "Is that all the thanks I get for saving you guys?" he said, perching his butt on the back of Roy's chair. Roy stopped his eager chewing. "Saving us?" he asked. Chet nodded eagerly. "Yes, while you were being held hostage, I just put my powerful thoughts to work, and hoped you'd get out of it." he shrugged happily. Gage's mouth dropped open and he mocked. "And that convinced you that you're a psychic?" Kelly angled his head in challenge, not at all offended. "Why you're here. Safe and sound. Aren't you?" Johnny sputtered. "Yes, but..." He was drowned out by the full laughter erupting from the rest of the gang as Kelly failed keep a straight face any longer as the gem of the week long joke on Johnny sparkled into being. It took a while for Johnny to forgive them all, but he finally managed a chuckle or two good naturedly before the last bite of supper disappeared into his gut. Then Roy and he shared a look of gratitude at cheating fate once again that day for long moments in deep contentment, at peace, at last. FIN Episode Forty Eight, Season Six. Hostage©, by Susan Keenan©. Emergency Theater Live ------------------------------------------------------------------ Photo: A heroin freebaser on a bed. Photo: A criminal in close up. Photo: A gun pointed at you. Photo: Trackmarks on a drug user's arm. Photo: Cops behind a car, aiming guns at something. Photo: Johnny balking at a gun to the ribs. Photo: Brackett and Dixie at the base station, puzzled. Photo: The gang in the kitchen. Photo: A plate of Chili Rellenos. Photo: Chet looking into the kitchen from the vehicle bay. Photo: Gage smiling contentedly. Good close up. ************************************************** Emergency Theater Live® =+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ ETL Hosts : Patti Keiper and Erin James in the United States **Theaterhost@voyagerliveaction.com Emergency Theater Live® "Offstory" Email Address For Midi Music Requests and General Inquiries http://www.voyagerliveaction.com/emergency.html Emergency Theater Live® Homepage http://groups.yahoo.com/group/emergencytheaterlive Writer's Pre-Production Distribution Site http://www.myspace.com/emergencyfans Emergency Theater Live®/Emergency Fans Unite at MySpace ETL's Emergency Community Forum http://emergency.tv-series.com/ ____________________________________ Mark VII Productions, NBC, and Universal owns all of Emergency!© and its Characters. 2009©. All rights reserved. ========================= ***NOTE: All author writings submitted to the theater will be set free onto the web to reach as many readers as we can manage to find. 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