The Big Mouse

by Connie #2

Why me? Sarah thought, What did I ever do to deserve this life? Sarah rubbed the lump on her head, which still throbbed from the episode the night before. She grabbed some of her things and tossed them into a backpack. I'm not going through this again, he can find someone else to beat on. She walked out of the door vowing never to come back.

It had been five years since her mother had died. It was rough on her losing her mother at the tender age of ten but the worst was yet to come as her father took to the bottle to ease his pain. He became unpredictable and angry. Sarah tried her best to do everything right as not to upset him but some nights it just didn't matter. Last night she was ironing his work shirts and ran out of starch, so she ironed the last few without the starch. He became enraged and knocked her in the back of her head with his fist, demanding she rewash the shirts and start over. That was the last straw.

As she walked down the street where she grew up, a flood of memories came back to her. She couldn't believe how her life had changed over the last few years. Where would she go? What would she do? Those questions were important ones to answer, but she needed to get some distance between her and her father before she started to answer either of them. She cut through a wooded area and began to feel at ease as she walked along listening to the birds chirping. How lucky the birds are, she thought, they can just fly away if they don't like where they are.

Sarah was deep in thought as she walked out of the woods and attempted to cross the street. She looked up when she heard the screeching tires but it was too late. The last thing she heard was a sickening thud as she bounced off the hood of the oncoming car. The darkness enveloped her.

The man who had been driving the car got out of the car and ran over to her. When he saw her body lying in a heap, he expected the worst until he rolled her over and she moaned slightly. He covered her with his coat, put her backpack under her head as a pillow, and waited for help to arrive.

~*~*~

It was a quiet morning at the station; Marco was putting on a fresh pot of coffee while Johnny was describing the woman he was going to go out on a date with that night. Roy, Mike and Cap were trying their best to look interested. Chet was on the couch rubbing Henry's ears and reading the morning newspaper. It had been a quiet night and all were hoping it would stay that way for the rest of the shift.

The silence was soon broken as the claxons sounded. Squad 51, injured pedestrian. 1368 Howard Street, one-three-six-eight Howard Street. Cross street Lincoln, time out 06:20.

When Johnny and Roy got to the scene, they grabbed their gear and ran to the side of the road where a crowd had gathered. "Get back," Roy said, "we need to get through."

Johnny was shocked at the scene that lay before them. Oh God. Thought Roy as he looked at the girl on the ground.

The driver got up and let Roy get close to her; he went back to his car with the police officer to answer questions about the accident.

"Johnny, get on the phone to Rampart," Roy said. "We have a definite head injury here, possible broken right arm, and multiple contusions. I'll get you some vitals."

"Will do," Johnny said.

"Rampart this is Squad 51, how do you read?" Johnny asked into the biophone.

"Go ahead 51," Doctor Brackett said.

"Rampart, we have a teenage, female patient, victim of a car versus pedestrian accident, unconscious with apparent head trauma. Pupils are equal and reactive. Patient also has a possible right radial and ulnar fracture and multiple contusions, vitals to follow. BP is 100/70, pulse 80, respirations are 20. There is not any bleeding from the nose or CSF fluid in the ears."

"51, go ahead and start an IV D5W. Splint the wrist and transport as soon as possible," Doctor Brackett said.

"10-4," Johnny verified. "IV D5W, splint and transport. ETA 10 minutes."

Sarah became aware of voices and pain. As she found her way out of the darkness, her mind began to race, Where am I? What happened to me? Who do these voices belong to? She felt an intense amount of pain in her forearm. She attempted to pull away from the force that had her arm but met with resistance.

"Hey now," Johnny said. "Calm down. I'm just putting a splint on your arm. You've been in an accident and we are here to help you. My name is Johnny and this is my partner Roy. What's your name?"

"Um, my name is Jenny," Sarah said convincingly.

"Well Jenny, how old are you?" Asked Roy.

"Eighteen," said Sarah; she knew that if they thought she was a minor they would have to have parental consent before they would treat her. She hoped they would buy her lies. "I gotta go," said Sarah, "I am fine, really I am. Thanks for your help."

As she struggled to get up, Johnny and Roy restrained her. "Come on now," Roy said. "You have a head injury that knocked you out cold.  You've gotta have that looked at. Is there anyone we can contact for you?"

"No," Said Sarah "I just moved here from out of town. No family or friends nearby."

"Ok," Johnny said, "let's get you loaded up." Johnny and Roy carefully picked her up and put her on the stretcher. Roy grabbed the biophone and got in the ambulance with Sarah. Johnny followed behind in the squad.

"So, where did you move from Jenny?" Roy asked.

Sarah flashed him a deer in the headlights type look and then answered "Seattle, Washington. I moved down here to go to college. I'm feeling dizzy, gotta close my eyes"

"Come on, stay with me," Roy said, but since she didn't want to answer any more questions, playing unconscious was the best thing she could think of to do.

"Exam Room 5 is available," Dixie said as the ambulance attendants wheeled the stretcher in. Doctor Early followed them in and asked, "Roy, has she regained consciousness at all?"

As Roy was helping lift her onto the bed he replied, "yes, for about 10 minutes, then she complained of dizziness and went out again."

Doctor Early turned to the nurse and said, "Get me a full head series and routine labs stat." He was beginning his neurological evaluation when Sarah started to stir.

"Hey there, welcome back," said the kindly Joe Early.

Sarah opened her eyes and looked around the room.

"How do you feel?" Roy asked.

"My head hurts and I'm a little nauseous," Sarah replied. Her mind was racing, What have I gotten myself into? I've gotta get out of here.

"Well," Roy said, "I'm going to leave you in the capable hands of Doctor Early and get some supplies. You're going to be fine." She shot him a quick look of fear then looked away.

Johnny met Roy as he came out of the room. "How's she doing?" He asked.

"She's ok I guess, there's just something I can't figure out about her. She's acting a little bit skittish," Roy responded.

"Well Pally, you'd have that deer in the headlights look too if you almost became road kill this morning," Johnny commented.

"Maybe that's all it is, but I don't think so," Roy said.

They got their supplies and were having a cup of Dixie's coffee when Doctor Early came out of the exam room. "How is she?" Roy asked.

"We're going to keep her for observation overnight but she should be fine. Ortho is in with her now casting the arm. There were multiple contusions, some from today but obviously some were a little bit older. I asked her what they were from and she said she was accident-prone. I find that hard to believe especially since she would not answer any more questions after that," Doctor Early said.

"Maybe I'll go up later," Dixie said. "Maybe she'll talk to me."

"It's worth a shot," Roy said. "We'll catch you later. Come on Junior, let's get back to the station so we can go home."

The orderlies wheeled Sarah out of the examination room and brought her up to her room. She played the game of being the good patient to bide some time but she knew as soon as she could walk without the dizziness she'd break out. She closed her eyes and eventually fell asleep.

~*~*~

When Sarah awoke it was dark; Gosh I must have slept for hours. She heard an announcement come over the speaker above her head. "Visiting hours will be over in 10 minutes. All visitors are requested to leave." Sarah sat up and tried to get out of bed, she had to steady herself with the bedrail as a wave of dizziness passed over her. She felt this tug on her hand and realized she was attached to an IV. She disconnected her IV with a few tugs and then she made her way over to the drawer where her backpack was and took out some clothes. She changed into clothes and opened the door.

Peering out slowly she saw a group of people walking down the hallway. If I can mingle in with them, the nurses at the desk won't notice me. She slipped out the door just as they were walking past her room and not only did the nurses not notice her, they didn't even look up.

The night air felt cool as she set foot outside. Her head was pounding and she felt woozy but at least she was on her own again. She had no idea where to go so just started to walk. She walked for a few miles before it started to rain. It was pouring buckets; Sarah was wet, tired and hungry. But still she trudged on. She rolled her eyes as she realized this running away thing was beginning to be really draining. If only that stupid car hadn't hit me. As another wave of dizziness hit, she realized she had to find a safe place to rest, maybe a few more hours of sleep would ease her pain. She spied a garage type building with an overhanging roof. She crawled in between the building and the fence and sat down. It wasn't the Ritz Carlton but at least it was out of the direct rainfall. She dozed on and off during the night.

~*~*~

The crew was in the kitchen after roll call. Chet was reading the morning paper at the table. Marco and Mike were clearing off the bulletin board. Roy and Johnny were checking for supplies they needed and Cap was in the office catching up on a stack of paperwork. Johnny went to the kitchen for a cup of coffee and grabbed the section with the comics in it when a picture in the paper caught his eye. He snatched up the paper and brought it out to Roy.

"Hey Roy, look at this," Johnny said handing the paper to Roy. "Isn't this the girl from yesterday?"

Roy looked at the picture and read the story about the missing girl. "It sure looks like her," Roy said, "but the name and age are different. The police suspect a runaway, but abduction has not been ruled out. We should probably let Rampart know in case it is the same girl. That would explain a bit of the skittishness about her yesterday."

Roy got on the phone to Dixie who informed him that Jenny/Sarah had gone AMA sometime during the night. "I went up to talk to her this morning and the unit secretary told me she disappeared sometime after visiting hours ended. We notified the police as we do with all of our AMAs."

"Well maybe she went home or she'll turn up. She can't be too steady on her feet yet with the lump she got yesterday. Talk to you later," Roy said.

Johnny came in as he was hanging up the phone and could tell by the expression on Roy's face that all was not well. "Lemme guess," Johnny said, "our road kill victim flew the coop last night?"

"That's right Junior," Roy said shaking his head.

The claxons sounded startling them both. "Station 51, respond to a warehouse fire. 150 Main Street, one-five-zero Main Street. Cross street Higgins, time out 09:15." Everyone climbed into the vehicles and headed out.

~*~*~

Sarah woke up with a start when sirens began to blare. Where were they coming from? She crawled over to the edge of the building and saw the fire engine and squad pulling away. Great, the place I choose to curl up and take a nap is the wall of a firehouse. Wait a minute! A fireman has to eat, they must have some food inside.

Sarah snuck around the back of the building and went in through the back door. She found her way to the kitchen and spied a box of donuts on the table. She grabbed a couple of chocolate glazed donuts, then opened the refrigerator and grabbed the milk carton. She grabbed a cup and poured some coffee in it. She hated coffee, but she was chilled to the bone so she drank it anyway. She nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard a dog bark behind her. Henry was sitting on the couch looking at her inquisitively.

She grabbed a piece of donut, walked over to him, gave him the donut and petted him on the head. "Hey fella, don't tell anyone I was here, ok?" She headed out the door toward the sleeping quarters in search of a blanket. She grabbed one off a bed and headed back out through the kitchen. "Now I know how Goldilocks felt raiding the house of the three bears," she giggled.

Food has never tasted so good. Sarah thought as she wolfed down the donuts and milk. Wonder what's for supper. She wrapped herself up in the blanket and sat on the wet ground in hopes of a little more sleep. When sleep didn't come, she decided to find a place a little drier and more comfortable to sleep. On her way back to her hiding spot she had spied a Land Rover in the back of the station, which looked quite comfortable.

She knew it would be hours before the owner would come out and drive away so she slunk over to the Land Rover and got behind the driver's seat. It must be my lucky day; someone was trusting enough to leave this car unlocked. It was high enough that she felt no one would see her if she got down on the floor. She pawed though a bag of laundry that was in the back and found a sweatshirt. It was a little dirty and a little smelly but at least it was warm and dry. She put it on and curled up in the blanket and tried to get some sleep.

~*~*~

The fire was a run of the mill warehouse fire. After the fire was out Roy and Johnny went over to Rampart to restock supplies. When they got back to the station, Johnny rushed right into the kitchen to eat the donut he had been thinking about all morning. "Chet, Did you eat all the chocolate glazed? I wanted one, you pig."

"No Gage," Chet said defensively, "I didn't touch them."

"Where are they? I know there were chocolate ones in here this morning," Johnny said.

"Maybe a mouse ate them," Roy suggested raising his eyebrows.

"Very funny," Chet said. Johnny grabbed a plain donut and wolfed it down. It was no substitute for his chocolate donut but it would have to do.

Sarah awoke to the sound of a dog barking. Chet had let Henry outside and he made a beeline (as fast as Henry could anyway) to Johnny's Land Rover. "Come on Henry, what are you doing? It's raining and it's no time to play, do your business and get back in here buddy," hollered Chet. Chet finally had to go over and grab Henry by the collar to bring him back inside.

"Johnny, What do you have in your car?" Chet asked as he shook the rain from his head. "Old Henry here was really interested in whatever it is."

"What are you talking about Chet? There's nothing of interest in my car. What are you trying to pull?" Questioned Johnny suspiciously.

"Nothing," Chet responded innocently, "I've just never seen Henry so excited before."

"Maybe it's a mouse," Roy suggested, holding back a giggle. Chet and Johnny both shot Roy back an evil look.

Sarah watched as the fireman came out and took the barking dog back inside. That was too close for comfort. She climbed out of the Land Rover and headed back into her first hiding place. She wrapped the blanket around her and thought, I'll stay here til it gets dark, Hopefully they will get called out on a fire or something so I can grab another free meal before I hit the road.

The thought of Chet having messed with his Land Rover was too much for Johnny to bear. He decided to brave the rain to make sure the phantom had not done anything to his pride and joy. He peered through the windows and saw that his bag of laundry was sprawled out all over the back. He crawled into the back to repack his laundry, cursing Chet for pulling his laundry all apart. Everything was muddy and wet. Chet had gone too far this time and owed him a car cleaning. He noticed a strange shirt balled up on the floor. He picked it up and noticed that is was a girl's shirt. Where the devil did this come from? Johnny's mind raced. Why would Chet plant this in with my laundry? He grabbed the shirt and headed back inside.

"Chet, What are you up to? Are you trying to get me in trouble with the girls I date by planting a strange girl's shirt in my car? I don't appreciate the mud interior and I don't appreciate this!" Johnny growled, throwing the shirt at Chet.

"What'd I do?" Asked Chet. "Hey Pal, I didn't put this in your Land Rover. I haven't a clue where this came from."

"Somehow I don't believe you!" Johnny snorted. "Don't worry. I'll get you back."

The evening passed pretty uneventfully. The engine went out on a call but quickly returned, as it had been a false alarm. The men of 51 were on their way in to crawl into bed for hopefully a full night rest when Chet looked at his bed and noticed his blanket was gone.

"Gage! Where's my blanket?" Screeched Chet. "I haven't done anything to you, why did you take my blanket?"

"I didn't take it," Johnny replied. "Haven't a clue what you're talking about."

"Maybe a mouse needed it for some bedding," Roy suggested. Johnny picked up his pillow and tossed it in Roy's general direction.

"All right fellas, let's tone it down and get some sleep," Cap ordered. "Chet, go get a blanket from the closet."

~*~*~

Sarah waited awhile after she saw the lights go out to go foraging for food. She was feeling a little stronger so she decided to grab something for the road and then start walking. She grabbed her backpack and quietly opened the door.

Johnny woke up and noticed Chet was not in his bed. What is this guy up to now? He got up and went to investigate. He heard movement in the kitchen so he walked in as quietly as he could and grabbed the shoulder of the figure at the refrigerator door. "Chet, what are you. . ." Johnny let go of the shoulder immediately when he realized it wasn't Chet's, but it was too late. He heard the scream of a girl and felt immediate pain in his groin area. He winced and groaned in pain as he dropped down on the floor in a fetal position.

Sarah had just started to open the refrigerator door when she heard a man's voice and felt a hand on her shoulder. Instinct caused her to lash out and scream. The plaster cast came in contact with a body and the pain resonated up her arm. She got disoriented and bolted out toward the squad and engine.

Hearing the commotion Cap and Roy jumped out of bed and headed toward the kitchen with Marco and Mike not too far behind them. Sarah was looking back toward the kitchen and she ran smack into Roy, almost knocking him over. He grabbed a hold of her and attempted to restrain her. Sarah struggled, lashing out at anyone who came near her until she realized she had backed herself into a corner. Then she just slid to the ground and put her head on her knees.

"Hey there, calm down," Roy said soothingly. "We're not going to hurt you. You can trust us. Hey, wait a minute! You're the runaway from the other day. I rode in the ambulance with you."

"Um, yeah that was me. Can't believe of all the fire stations in the county, I pick the same one that scraped me off the pavement the day before. Um. . . how did you know I ran away?" Responded Sarah.

"We have our sources," Roy answered. "Why don't we head into the kitchen and have a look at you?"

"What's the meaning of all this?" Cap asked.

"I think we caught our mouse," Roy replied.

Chet burst out laughing when he spotted Johnny writhing in pain on the ground.

"What happened to you Johnny?"

"Hit and run," Johnny moaned.

Chet was helping Johnny up off the floor as everyone entered the kitchen.

"Look," Sarah said, "I'm really sorry I bothered you. I was hungry and hoped maybe you would have leftovers. I really should be going." She turned to Johnny and said, "I'm so sorry for hitting you with my cast. Gut reaction."

"No problem," Johnny winced. "Let me take a look at that arm, your cast is trashed." He reached for her arm but she pulled away from him. "You can trust me; after all I splinted you up the first time," coaxed Johnny. "By the way, nice sweatshirt. We must shop at the same stores."

"Mike, round up some warm clothes for her. I think I have a spare T-shirt in my locker. See what else you can find. We got to get her out of this wet stuff or she'll catch cold. Chet, Why don't you take her out back and show her where the showers are. While Marco is reheating some food, she can clean up. Stand guard outside the door though as we don't want her to get away. At least 'til after we have a look at her. Roy, Johnny, let's go in my office and figure out what we are going to do about her," Cap ordered the men into action.

Sarah started to refuse, but reconsidered as a hot shower was really inviting after being out in the rain for so long, and a warm meal would hit the spot. She decided to let down her guard a little and followed Chet out the door.

Cap closed the door behind Johnny and said, "Ok fellas, what are we going to do with her? She can't stay here. The authorities need to be called, as should be her parents. That cast is mangled from getting soaked. It needs to be replaced. And I would like to get some sleep tonight."

Roy thought about it for a bit and then said, "Well why don't we let her sleep on the couch with Henry for the rest of the night? We'll keep an eye on her so she doesn't sneak away. In the morning, Johnny and I can run her over to Rampart to replace the cast at the end of shift. We can cut the cast off and put it in a splint until then. Then we can figure out what to do from there."

"That sounds logical," Cap replied. "Let's just hope it's a quiet night without a run, otherwise she may not be here when we get back."

Sarah slipped into the clean, dry clothes that had been left in a pile for her. They were a bit baggy on her but at least they were warm and dry. Johnny was waiting for her by the engine when she came out.

"Geesh, you clean up pretty good. Hard to believe there was a person under all that mud," kidded Johnny. "Let me take that cast off. It's soaking wet and not doing you a bit of good anyway. I'll splint your arm and in the morning we'll get a new cast put on."

Sarah nodded but didn't say anything. Johnny sat her down in the kitchen and proceeded to remove the cast. Roy brought in a splint from the squad and put it on Sarah's arm while Johnny threw out the plaster pieces from the cast.

Marco brought a plate of chili over to Sarah and she gave him a nod of thanks. Cap came in and suggested that since Roy and Johnny seemed to have everything under control the rest of the gang should get some sleep. Everyone agreed and headed back to bed, leaving Roy and Johnny in the kitchen alone with Sarah.

"Why did you run away from home?" Asked Roy.

Sarah looked away from them and said nothing.

"Hey, come on now. If you don't talk to us, we can't help you," Johnny coaxed.

Sarah still refused to say anything, got up from the table and went over to the couch and started to pet Henry. "Hey doggie, I thought we had a deal. A piece of a donut for silence seemed like an even trade this morning, then you almost blew my cover," Sarah chuckled.

"Let me guess," Johnny said, "you and Henry snacked on the chocolate donuts and it was you in my Land Rover that Henry was so interested in this afternoon?"

"Pretty good detective work, Sherlock. Maybe you should look into a job change," Sarah replied.

"Well, if a career change is in my future, it won't be headed toward mind reading, as I am obviously no good at it. We can't help you if you don't tell us what's going on," Johnny responded. "We'll do anything we can to help you."

"Please, no more questions, I'll explain it in the morning. Right now my arm is killing me and I am getting sleepy," Sarah pleaded, hoping to buy herself some time until morning. She was looking for reassurance that they were trustworthy.

Roy got up from the table and said, "I'm going to go grab a pillow and blanket and make up the couch for you, as long as you don't mind a four-legged friend as a sleeping companion."

"That's fine," Sarah giggled. "Anything has got to be more comfortable than sleeping up against this brick building."

Johnny watched Sarah's face as Roy tucked the blankets under the couch cushions. The look of fear and distrust softened a bit and for a brief moment Sarah seemed to relax a little. He was so good at this father thing; it was no wonder he had a couple of great kids.

When Sarah lay down on the couch, she was taken by surprise when Roy, instinctively tucked the blankets in. It had been many years since she had been tucked in for the night. For the first time in a long time she felt safe and secure. Henry curled up at her feet and began to snore.

"Hey Junior, why don't you go get some sleep? I'll stand first watch," Roy offered.

"Sounds good to me," Johnny replied. "I'm bushed, but give a yell if you need anything." Johnny headed off to his bed as Roy settled into a chair.

Roy looked at the girl, sleeping on the couch and contemplated the possible horrible things she had been through to make her decide to go it alone in life. He thought of his own kids at home and hoped to keep them as innocent and safe as long as he could.

The silence of the night was broken as the claxons rang out. "Engine 51; respond to a Dumpster fire. 1846 Easton Street. Time out 03:56. Cap responded with the usual "KMG-365" as he wearily rubbed his eyes and jumped into the engine.

Sarah woke up and looked around as she heard the engine pull out of the station. She was alone. Perfect chance to get her things and leave. Just as she was getting her shoes, Johnny walked through the doorway. "Just where do you think you're going, little missy?"

"I um. . . er. . . was just going to the bathroom, you know, um. . . nature calling," Sarah replied.

"Yeah, well, sure you were. Let me refamiliarize you with where the facilities are located. And by the way, you don't need your shoes. Hand them over." Johnny said as he reached for her shoes.

Johnny walked Sarah back to the couch after she answered nature's call. "Where's Roy?" She asked as she crawled back under the covers. "He went to catch a few Z's before the shift is over," Johnny answered, "which is something you should consider doing too."

"Does he have any kids?" Sarah asked. "He seems like Daddy material."

"Yep, he has two. A girl and a boy," Johnny replied.

"I wonder if they realize how lucky they are?" Sarah mumbled.

"What was that?" Asked Johnny.

"Nothing," Sarah said. She reached over and scratched Henry's head. He opened one eye and then went back to sleep. She curled up around him and closed her eyes.

Johnny sat in the recliner opposite the couch. He watched Sarah as she drifted to sleep and wondered what would become of her when the sun rose. Surely her parents must be worried about her. What had happened to make her so distrustful of people? He hoped when morning came she trusted them enough to let them help her.

Cap came into the kitchen after the engine returned from the fire. "How're things in here?" He asked.

Johnny whispered. "She tried taking off when she heard the engine pull out. Thought she was alone when Roy and I were changing places. Something isn't right with her home life. She hasn't said anything specific but I'm guessing she may be abused."

"Well, we'll have to contact her parents in the morning, especially to get consent to treat her at Rampart. Hopefully she'll open up to us, otherwise our hands are tied and we'll have to leave her in the custody of the authorities if her parents can't be reached. I‘m gonna clean up and maybe get a little more sleep before change of shift," Cap responded.

Sarah was deep in sleep when Roy walked over to the couch and nudged her. "Hey Kiddo, time to get up," Roy whispered. Sarah had no idea where she was at first. Had it all just been a dream? She opened her eyes and glanced around the room at all the faces. The realness of the situation came back to her the moment she moved her arm and winced from the pain.

"Morning, Mouse," Johnny said, taking note of the painful grimace. "We'll get that arm taken care of this morning and maybe get you something for the pain. Let's give your parents a call and they can meet us at Rampart."

"Can't do that," Sarah said. "My dad is at work. I don't have the number where he can be reached."

"And your mother?" Roy asked.

Sarah looked down at the ground and shifted her weight from one foot to the other. "She's dead," Sarah said softly. "She died when I was ten."

Johnny and Roy looked at each other hoping the other could come up with some quick words of sympathy. Johnny broke the awkward silence "Wow, that's rough Sarah. I'm so sorry. Now let's get back to the issue at hand, you still haven't told us why you were running away."

"It was a dumb reason; I don't want to talk about it. Look, let's just get this arm taken care of and then I will go home," Sarah pleaded.

Johnny and Roy were surprised at her reaction. Did she truly want to go home or was she just playing another cat and mouse game of telling them what they wanted to hear and then doing the complete opposite? Only time would tell.

Before they left the station for Rampart, Roy called Joanne to inform her of the events that had unfolded the night before. Although she was not real impressed that he had gotten himself involved in the situation, she understood and told him to do whatever he needed to do to help the girl.

"Well, good morning fellas, what do we have here?" Dixie asked with an eyebrow raised.

"This is Sarah, she was in your luxury suite a couple of days ago, she got lost trying to find the bathroom and ended up at our station last night," Roy said. "Since she had been out in the rain, she got her cast a bit wet and now it needs a replacement. According to her, her father is unreachable for consent. Is Doctor Brackett around to take a look at her?"

"He's currently in Exam 1 with a patient but if you go into exam 3, I'll let him know." Dixie smiled and winked at Sarah.

Johnny, Roy and Sarah went into the exam room and had a seat. Doctor Morton walked into the room looking for a chart and asked, "Johnny, Roy, what are you doing here? Aren't you off shift? Who is this?"

"This is Sarah, Sarah Price, a friend of ours. She needs a new cast put on. Doctor Brackett knows about her and should be in shortly," Johnny replied.

"Well, do we have parental consent; she certainly doesn't look old enough to be eighteen? " Doctor Morton queried.

Roy looked at Sarah who was beginning to look panicky again with all these questions and replied, "We have tried to get a hold of her dad but we haven't been able to. Johnny was about to go out and try again, weren't you Johnny?"

"Uh, yeah," Johnny answered, raising an eyebrow in Roy's general direction.

"Well, I'll see what I can do," Doctor Morton said as he was leaving the room. "Maybe Medical Records has some other next of kin information?

"Please don't call my dad, I beg of you. Johnny, Roy, please don't," Sarah begged. The look of fear and distrust came across her face stronger than ever before.

"Look, if there is a reason why you don't want your dad called, we need to know what it is. We can't help you if we don't know what the problem is," Johnny said.

"I can't tell you," Sarah whispered, struggling to hold back tears. "You couldn't help me anyway."

Doctor Morton called Medical Records and got Sarah's home number. He dialed it and was surprised when a man answered the phone. "Mr. Price, this is Rampart Emergency. Your daughter is here with a broken wrist and we need your permission to treat her." The man on the other end of the phone gave his permission and stated he was on his way to the hospital.

After examining Sarah, Doctor Brackett ordered some forearm x-rays to check the alignment of the fracture before putting another cast on. Roy went for some coffee while Johnny wheeled her down to Radiology.

Johnny wheeled Sarah back to the room and got her comfortable. "I'm going to go tell Roy we're back, don't go anywhere. I'm just going down the hall and will see you if you try to make a run for it, so please make it easy on both of us and stay put. . . ok?" Johnny pleaded.

Sarah was counting the holes in the ceiling tiles when the door opened. She looked up expecting to see Johnny and Roy and was mortified when she saw that the man walking into the room was none other than her father. He came over to her and grabbed her by the collar pinning her against the back of the gurney. "Hey, girly, girl guess you didn't expect to see me," he sneered. "You got another thing coming if you think you can get away from me that easily."

He reeked of alcohol and when she tried to squirm away from him, he picked her up by the collar and threw her to the floor. Sarah cried out in pain as she attempted to break her fall with her hands outstretched. Hearing her scream just increased his rage. He began to curse and kick her. "Get up you sissy, get up," he screamed as he grabbed her by her hair.

Johnny and Roy were on their way back to the exam room when they heard the commotion. They opened the door and saw a man beating on Sarah. Johnny yelled for security while Roy attempted to pull the man off of Sarah. It took the strength of both men to pull and subdue Sarah's attacker. After security came in and dragged him away, Roy reached out to Sarah who was sobbing uncontrollably, picked her up and held her for what seemed an eternity before she settled down enough to let anyone else near her.

"Hey there," Roy said soothingly "It's ok now, he's gone. Is that why you didn't want your father called? Is he the one who gave you all those old bruises?"

"I didn't want to get him in trouble," Sarah sobbed. "I just didn't want him to be able to hurt me anymore. That's why I ran away. Why did that doctor have to tell him I was here?"

"Don't worry Mousy," Johnny reassured, "he won't be able to hurt you again. We'll make sure of it."

Doctor Brackett, Doctor Early and Dixie rushed in when they heard what had happened. After a ton of convincing Sarah let go of Roy. Roy moved out of the way so that they could examine her, but kept constant eye contact with her hoping that would be enough to reassure her.

Johnny walked out of the room and tried his best to keep his composure as he watched Vince arresting Sarah's father. No man had the right to do what he had done, especially to his own daughter. It sickened Johnny to think about what Sarah had put up with over the last few years. No wonder she was so scared and distrustful. After Vince placed Sarah's father in the squad car, he looked up and saw Johnny walking over to him. "If you need a witness, Roy and I can help you. She's a good kid and we want to help her anyway we can," Johnny offered. Vince acknowledged Johnny's offer and said he'd be in touch.

Johnny went back into the exam room and slipped over next to Roy. He glanced in Sarah's direction and noticed the level of fear in her eyes was equivalent to the eyes of a cornered mouse. "How's she doing?" Johnny whispered.

"She's scared out of her mind. The fracture has been displaced and it will need to be reset surgically. She has a cut over her forehead, which will need stitches. They are going to do another skull series, some chest x-rays to rule out more fractures. How could anyone do this sort of thing to his own child? It boggles my mind," Roy answered.

"Come on fellas, let's let the X-ray tech do his job and get us the films," interrupted Doctor Brackett. "Ok Honey, we'll be right outside this door, this man is going to take some more x-rays and then I promise to send Johnny and Roy back in to stay with you. Is that ok?"

Sarah quickly looked at Doctor Brackett and then back to Johnny and Roy, pleading with her eyes not to leave her alone. Johnny patted her on the head and said, "Don't worry, we'll be right outside and as soon as this guy is done, we'll be right back in here."

Doctor Brackett pulled Johnny and Roy aside as they exited the exam room. "We're going to keep her here for a couple days. I will put a call in to Ortho and the OR, and I'm guessing she's going to need a pin or two put in to stabilize the arm fractures. She has been through so much today, we will probably keep her pretty sedated after the surgery, plus that will decrease the risk of her taking off prematurely again. That man really did a number on her. I can't believe a father would do that to his own daughter."

"Then what will happen to her?" Asked Roy.

"Social services will be called in and she will probably end up in a group home if there aren't any other relatives that can take her." Replied Dr. Brackett.

Roy and Johnny cringed at the thought of Sarah becoming a number and getting lost in the system. They looked up as the X-ray tech left the exam room and they hurried back in to Sarah as not to break their promise.

Sarah was terrified at the thought of having to have surgery but the sedatives that Doctor Brackett had given her were beginning to kick in and she had no choice but to relax. Johnny and Roy promised one or both of them would be there when she came out of the anesthetic and they walked down the hallway to the OR with the gurney as far as they were allowed to go. They watched as Sarah disappeared behind the closing doors, which were marked AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY!!!

Johnny drove Roy back to the station so he could get his truck to run some errands he had promised to do for Joanne. The silence was deafening the entire ride back; both were deep in thought about what they had witnessed. As Roy got out of the Land Rover he said to Johnny, "I'll get back to Rampart as soon as I can. Why don't you give Cap a call to let him know what happened?"

"I'll do that," Johnny said. "See you in a while." Johnny turned the Land Rover around and headed back to Rampart.

~*~*~

After sitting in the waiting room for what seemed an eternity, Johnny was relieved to see Doctor Early coming toward him. He got up and met Doctor Early in the hallway. "Well Doc, how is she?" Inquired Johnny.

"Ortho has done a beautiful job pinning the arm, she is groggy but we are getting ready to move her into a room," Doctor Early replied. He told Johnny the room number and offered to leave word with Dixie for Roy so he would know where to find them. Johnny shook his hand and then headed off to find Sarah's room.

Sarah was out of it most of the day and into the night. Doctor Brackett had been true to his word in regards to sedation. The few times she opened her eyes she couldn't focus on Johnny or Roy's face but was calmed just by hearing their voices. When visiting hours were over, they both said their goodbyes to Sarah, even though she was deep in sleep and promised they would check in on her the next day.

The next morning at the station Johnny and Roy retold the story of Sarah and her father to the uninformed. Chet, Marco and Mike sat and looked at them unable to believe their ears. Johnny and Roy were hoping for a busy day of runs to give themselves ample excuses to sneak up to Sarah's room to see how she was doing.

~*~*~

Their prayers were answered as the claxons rang out. "Station 51, traffic accident. Intersection of Oakdale and Main. Time out 08:52." The doors of the station opened and the sirens began to howl as the squad and engine turned left and headed toward the accident scene.

~*~*~

Sarah sat up in bed and attempted to clear the drug induced cobwebs from her head. Dixie came in to see how she was doing. Sarah was starving; it had been over twenty-four hours since she had eaten any solid food. "Dixie, is there any way I can get something to eat around here. I'm starving," Sarah begged.

"Do you feel like going for a ride?" Dixie asked. "I'll get a wheelchair and we'll go down to the cafeteria for some Jell-O." She laughed when she saw Sarah scrunch her nose in disgust. "Then maybe if that sits with you ok, we'll move onto something bigger and better for lunch."

Sarah nodded and waited for Dixie to come back with the wheelchair. Dixie helped her into it and then wheeled her down to the cafeteria. Along the way they passed Doctor Brackett and Doctor Early who both stopped and asked Sarah how she was doing.

When they got to the cafeteria, Dixie was getting Sarah the Jell-O when Sarah spied some donuts. "Dixie, can I please have those two donuts for a snack later?" Sarah asked politely.

Dixie agreed and put the two donuts in a container and plopped it in Sarah's lap. "Remember those donuts are for later," Dixie reprimanded, shaking her finger at Sarah.

"Yes Ma'am," Sarah giggled.

After sitting at a table and enduring a bit of small talk, Sarah asked to go back up to her room so she could rest. Dixie needed to get back to work anyway so she wheeled Sarah out of the cafeteria and back upstairs. Along the way they came upon Johnny and Roy in the hallway.

"Hey, Mouse, how are you this morning?" Asked Johnny. "You're looking better."

"I still have a few cobwebs in my head from the painkillers but overall I'm feeling pretty good," Sarah answered.

"Why don't you boys escort Miss Sarah the rest of the way to her room while I see if any of the doctors need anything here?" Dixie suggested.

"We can do that," Roy said as he grabbed the handles and began to push Sarah.

Johnny helped Sarah climb into bed and took the container that was in her lap and placed it on the tray. "What's this?" He asked.

"Snack for later, when I can eat something besides Jell-O," Sarah responded as she scrunched her nose again in disgust. "If it's not too much of a hassle, could you bring me something to read?"

"We'd be glad to," Johnny said, "but until then, there is a great Soap on. I watch it every time I am laid up here." He switched the TV on for Sarah.

"Stay here a lot do you?" Asked Sarah.

"It's his home away from home," Roy said, trying to hold back a laugh.

Johnny gave Roy an evil look and then smiled. He was about to make a snide remark back but was interrupted by the handie talkie. "Squad 51, what is your status?"

"Squad 51 available at Rampart," answered Roy.

"Squad 51, respond to a child down. School Street Park, cross street Jefferson. Time out 10:56."

"10-4, Squad 51. Come on Junior, they are playing our song. Bye Mouse," Roy said.

"Take it easy Mouse, and we'll see you in a bit." Johnny reassured.

"Be careful guys, see you later," Sarah said as she turned her attention to the television.

Sarah watched TV for a while and then the painkillers kicked in again sending her off to dream land. She was not quite asleep and not quite awake when Johnny and Roy poked their heads in later that afternoon. Johnny left the magazines on the tray on top of the box for Sarah. They were on their way out the door when the social worker that was working on Sarah's case walked in.

Sarah focused on the voices in the room trying to come out of her daze. She couldn't understand much of what was being said as the voices were whispering but she was able to make out the words, "discharge" and "group home." The voices stopped when Sarah began to stir. She opened her eyes and looked in their general direction.

"Hey, Mousy, I hope we didn't wake you. We just came to drop off a book and a couple of magazines. You get some more sleep and we‘ll be back later," Roy whispered. "We have to get some supplies and get back to the station for some drills."

Sarah watched as the social worker and the two paramedics walked out the door. Did she hear correctly? Were they shipping her off to some group home located in God knows where? That was not going to happen to her if she had anything to say about it. She picked up the magazines and book that they had brought her and threw them across the room. She felt betrayed. Betrayed by her father, the firemen who seemed to care but couldn't find a way to help her, the doctors who were keeping her drugged so she couldn't function and the system she would inevitably get lost in if she allowed herself to be placed in a group home. Tears of frustration welled up and she began to cry, then she got angry.

By evening the pain medication had worn off enough so Sarah could think clearly. She made it look like she had taken her afternoon doses, but in reality she had stuck them in her backpack for later use. She decided to make a break for it. She got dressed and proceeded to leave her room. She headed away from the nurse's station looking for a stairwell. She found one and proceeded to start down the steps.

She glanced back down the hall just in time to see Johnny and Roy heading toward her room. Darn it, she thought. These guys certainly have the timing thing down. She rushed down the stairs and peeked out the door checking for an escape path. She dashed out of the stairwell and out the door.

She snuck over to the squad and placed a box in the seat. It was a small token of thanks but she wanted them to know she appreciated everything they tried to do for her. She began heading down the road toward the bus station. The future looked a little less bleak thanks to the boys of 51 who had managed to restore a little of her faith in human nature.

"Hey, Mouse!!" Johnny sang as he opened the door, "we brought you some real food. . ." his voice trailed off when he realized Sarah wasn't in her bed.

"Dammit!" Roy said. "Where is she? I'll check the bathroom." He slammed the door when his search came up empty.

"Roy, she's taken off again. She's sneaky but she couldn't have gotten far," Johnny said with growing concern. Roy and Johnny split up as they left the room covering both possible escape routes. Johnny stopped in at Dixie's desk to let her know what had happened and to keep an eye out while Roy ran outside scanning the parking lot for any sign of her.

Johnny was surprised to see his partner standing by the squad with a dumbfounded look on his face. Roy looked up and said, "She's gone Johnny. I doubt we'll see Mouse again. She won't show back up at the station because she knows we'll have to turn her in." He handed Johnny the box that he had found on the seat of the squad and cracked a smile.

"What's this?" Johnny asked.

"Open it, you'll see," Roy giggled, raising an eyebrow.

Johnny cracked a smile as he took note of the contents of the box. Two chocolate glazed donuts.

"Well, let's go back to the station Junior," Johnny said slapping Roy on the back.

"All right, Pally," responded Roy.

Somehow they knew that Sarah had what it took to make it on her own.  Her wit and humor would be able to get her through anything.

The Mouse Returns - Installment Two

Misconceptions - Installment Three

A Christmas Eve To Remember - Installment Four

Can Time Heal All Wounds? - Installment Five

Log Book