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| PAGE FORTY FOUR |
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"Easy.." Dr. Brackett said. "Here," he said. "Follow that I.T. with this saline flush. His lungs will absorb it better osmotically." And he handed DeSoto a 5cc saline syringe. Roy followed up. Mike immediately reconnected the ambu and forced O2 flow deep into Marco's lungs to make sure the serum reached as many spaces as possible inside his pulmonary tree. Then he slowed and lessened, backing off once more into a normal vent rate for a light, but firm ambu maintain. "Now, we wait.." Dr. Brackett said. Somehow, the black night blanketing the shattered firehouse seemed a little less oppressive to everybody surrounding Marco's bed, than it had just minutes before. ----------------------------------------------- Just as the new sun was rising over the refinery,Marco Lopez responded to epinephrine and soon began to gasp actively, fighting his airway. Cap thought. "Anyone's guess whose smile's bigger.. Way to pull it off, Marco..!" he said rubbing his shoulder affectionately. |
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His last sentence was drowned out by everyone's cheers. In the mean time, Dr. Brackett and Brice concentrated on getting Marco extubated. Kel shouted. "Marco!.. on the count of three, I want you to exhale as hard as you can. Don't swallow. I know the tube's uncomfortable, but we had to wait until you were ready to go solo. Ready? One, Two..Three.." Lopez let out a gushing liquidy breath and Brice removed the EOA quickly, by deflating its gastric bulb with a 2 syringe and drawing it out with a fast careful pull to not snag the tender structures in Marco's throat. Roy had a suctioning probe set and soon, he was coughing only sporadically as his weakened muscles decided they could learn how to breathe again. Stoker helped him on the demand valve enough to keep Lopez mostly awake to work out fluid and blood still interfering with good air draw. Marco's hands finally pushed away the resuscitator a few minutes later. His eyes fluttered open, squinting in the bright sunlight through the holes in the station roof. "Hey, gang. Mama here yet? "he whispered. "She'd better have brought breakfast, I think...I think I'm.. getting hungry...Maybe,, maybe even for some b- bacon...Any left?" At his feet, Bonnie barked, and reared up on her haunches with her terra cotta bowl balanced daintily in her mouth. -------------------------- Three hours later, Marco was stable enough to be flown out by air. Johnny leaped out of the helicopter with a dirt eating grin on his face when Marco's mom flooded his face with kisses for saving her son's life, promising a whole year's worth of Monday morning burritos.. |
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"It's the least I can do for the amigos of my Precious Hijo.." Rosa Marie Lopez said. "Hey! I heard that mama.." Marco's voice hollered out before the copter's chopper doors closed him off. "Wait on that regime til I'm back at the stationhouse working..! I don't want the guys to eat them all before I get back there." "Silly boy.." Marco's mom chuckled in a deep warm voice filled with a spanish flavor. "He still thinks Mrs Bandido and I cook on a limited budget. Just wait until I tell him we won de big California lottery, eh? Same day as the quake.." ------------------------------ At Rampart, days later.. Johnny and Roy were telling the rapt Dr. Early and Dixie McCall all about their three day, earthquake survival story. "Yeah.. when I woke up, I had a rod sticking out of my left hand. This long.." he said to Dix, enjoying the willies he was driving out of her. "Johnny. Cut it out.. Don't you know I'm squeamish?" she giggled. |
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"You are?" Roy asked., blinking in surprise. Dr. Early mumbled. "Yep. Why do you think she's at the front desk of Emergency so much? Haven't any of you noticed she only goes into those treatment rooms of people who aren't gushing blood all over the floor?" Dix smacked Joe good on the arm for letting out her very very old secret. "Dixxxxx..." Johnny egged, teasing her. "Shhhh, if Kel ever found out. I'd be mortified.." Dixie said. "Who'd be mortified?" Dr. Brackett said, just leaving an elevator from an upper floor. "uh, nuthin.." Gage said. "She was actually saying.. "Morton confided".. Yeah, that's it. Morton confided that he can only sing in the shower. So that's why he got drunk and sang to us all on the guitar under the sprinkler like he did. He's got a great voice..man." "Soaking wet you mean.." Kel said, ruefully shaking his head. "I almost had to give him some Narcan to sober him up..." he joked. Gage waxed serious.. "Wow, you doctors and nurses really throw a wild party. I even think Cap's wife blushed at a few of those dance moves of yours, Morton. Where'd ya learn em? Maybe I could ..you know.. use a couple of them going out on dates and stuff.. Maybe I can finally snag a nurse who'll take me for who I really am, know what I mean? " Their happy chitchat made the trip up to visit Marco in his hospital room, bright. And Lopez was very very glad to see them all to hear about the huge Rampart to Fire Department wingding he had missed that weekend. ------------------------------ |
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"And so there you have it boys and girls.." Johnny said, "A dozen tons of red steel and chrome with enough hose power to snuff out a whole three story house fire in just under an hour.." he said to his very attentive Groverland Middle school tour children dramatically. He made them jump by hitting the air horn, in its richest full brassy tone."Heheh.." he laughed. And they soon laughed along with him. "Glad to see you all back at the station.. Quite a different place than when you last left it a month ago, isn't it?" |
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"Yeahh..." A blond boy with glasses pushed forward. "Can I see the radio mike room again?" Johnny jumped down from top of the engine roof and waved Stoker out of the cab where he had been operating lights and firing off that blast cue for Gage. "Oh, hey Robbie.." Johnny said, kneeling by the child's side. "I've been wanting to see you." "You have?" "Yeah.." Johnny said. "I just wanted to thank you for doing what you did the day of the earthquake. You..probably saved all our lives.." he said, poking the boy in his nose. Robbie giggled. |
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