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FULL MOON BLUES |
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| PAGE NINE |
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"Ok.. uh, would you like to split up the kids and have my men take one or two each to show them around the firehouse?" Hank asked. "That would be wonderful..Might work out better separating them like that. They can be a handful.." she laughed. " The kids were so excited about coming here for their annual field trip.." "No problem.. They know to rejoin you immediately if the call tones go off for us?" "Yes. We've rehearsed that just before coming here." Chet picked two of the older boys and said, "Right, You and you. We get to play with the sirens first..Race ya!!" and the curly haired firemen with his two shadows headed off in a mad dash for the La France.. "Aww, man.." said one boy not picked, watching them go.. Roy picked him up. "We'll all get a turn. Just be patient there. What Fireman Kelly doesn't know is that MY group gets to wear the helmets first.... Who's coming....?" "Me!! Me!!" came a girl's voice, a blond child dressed in blue and red. "Ok, looks like we go with this young lady here all right..?.." he said, setting down the disappointed boy. Roy and his two children trundled off to the garage shed after Chet's group of two. "Marco, why don't you come with me?" his voice floated back. "We'll get out our two helmets from the squad.." "Sure thing pal.." Lopez said, giving the elementary teacher a jaunty wave of departure. And he, too, disappeared through the kitchen door. Johnny took two more girls, twins, to show them the hoses in the back yard so they could play man the hose by the old engine parked out back. His two children eagerly ran up to the antique and climbed on board it. Cap saw where they were through the kitchen window and grinned when they all heard the brass bell go off as the two girls experimented.. Then he looked down at the final child, a very tiny boy with glasses, still holding his teacher's hand. He knelt by his side. "Hey son, why the long face? I'm the only fireman in this whole station house who's the captain.." "Wow.." he said, eyes getting really big.. |
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"Yeah, so it looks like you and me are the only ones left.. That means we get to do the best thing before any of the others.. Mike's gonna stay back and chat with Miss Thorne here while we get to go do the tour.. Have you ever seen a dispatch radio before?" Cindy, Cap and Mike all grinned, thoroughly captivated by the cute awed expression on the boy's face when he slowly shook his head from side to side in hushed anticipation. Cap went on.."Well, I can let you talk to Sam, the man who calls out all the firemen everywhere to respond on rescues if you'd like.." "Wow.. can I really do that?" Cap winked at Cindy.. "It'll be the afternoon station's check.." he said aside. "Right this way.." Cap said, bending over and taking the herostunned boy's tiny hand into his own big one. They disappeared out to the garage too, to the radio substation alcove by the big LA County map. Stoker was left with Miss Thorne by the table "Well, have a seat. This may take a while. The gang gets pretty entertaining whenever school tours stop on by...." "I can just imagine..." Cindy said.. as sirens and engine hoots and antique pumper bells filled the air punctuated by animated laughter from both children and firemen alike.. Then she heard a subtle whining that she hadn't noticed before because of her student's happy noises..... "Do you have a station dog around here, Mr. Stoker? I think I'm hearing one." "Oh, yes, That's Bonnie. She's having an off day today. She just started carrying on about two minutes before you and the kids arrived. It's nothing. As far as we can tell there's nothing wrong with her. She's right there under the couch." "Poor thing. She doesn't sound too happy right now at all. One would think that she was upset because of the kids.." "oh, no, Miss Thorne. She's usually running around playing tag with them full throt--" Mike broke off his sentence when Bonnie's crying suddenly ceased abruptly. |
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A subtle low rumble rose from the ground and trembled into a great belching roar that slammed into their ears, shaking Station 51 up to the rafters . Laughter turned to screams from the children as the full teeth of a sudden earthquake threw them to the ground whereever they were from truck or hose like paper dolls. Out in the garage, the tremor burst open the main doors and they squealed in metal shrieks as they rose in their tracks until the fierce shuddering split them apart. --------------- In the fire engine..Chet grabbed his two boys and shoved their heads down onto the floor as he himself ducked as the ceiling came down in the garage, lights, rafter, roof and all, on top of the LaFrance only narrowly missing Roy's side of the rescue squad. ------------------- Roy had his two students under the squad, and all three were choking on dust from the walls and from the stove's ruptured gas line pouring from the darkened kitchen. He hugged the children's helmeted heads tightly to himself and started to pray.. ------------------- Cap shouted but couldn't be heard over the roar of violated earth moving beneath the foundations. He yanked his terrified student deeper into the comm's alcove and pushed him against the wall to cover him up with his own body as the garage roof caved in behind them over the engine and part of the squad. ------------------- Simultaneously, out in the yard, Johnny managed to grab the two girls with him off the old engine and he brought them to the ground into the only open area away from the yard's brickwalls, before they swayed, disintegrated and collapsed around them. In his worry for the girls, Gage, wasn't fast enough to get himself into the clear. |
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--------------------------- Only twenty feet away, the kitchen was remaining intact, shaking and shuddering. Mike Stoker and Cindy crawled under the swaying, shifting table, with Cindy screaming all the while for the children at the top of her voice. --------------------- Dust and tremendous destructive noise filled the air everywhere, for about a minute more, before silence fell over the place where six firemen, seven children and one teacher had been playing so joyfully a short time before. *** *** Cars on the boulevard outside Station 51, skidded out of control and screeched brakes as their equilibrium was thrown off as the earthquake sputtered and writhed around them. Then an awful quiet fell over stopped traffic as people, one by one, staggered from their halted vehicles. One driver looked up and couldn't believe his eyes. The firehouse he normally drove by everyday, had its garage collapsed down on top of its rescue squad and engine until only its outer walls were standing. "Oh my god..!" he said, "The crew must still in there!" and he and others rushed forward, but the earthquake had sent the water from burst hydrant out front, high into the air and smothering clouds of dirt and dust kept them from getting closer to the partially downed firehouse. |
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FULL MOON BLUES |
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Click Rescue Squad to Goto Page Ten :) |
