Page 49 of Anchor Point

“Well, don’t get yourself all dirty on my behalf. Leah, get the man a chair, for heaven’s sake.”

From the doorway, Leah made an exasperated noise. If I didn’t get her out of here, these two would start bickering, and keeping Francis calm was key.

“Actually, I need Leah to go make sure the guys know where you live. Leah?” I looked over my shoulder and gave her a pointed look. “Can you go wait for the ambulance for me? I’m gonna hang here and keep Mrs. O’Malley company.”

Leah’s expression softened and she nodded. “Okay.”

“Now, you’re not going to have to cut my clothes off me, are you?” Francis sounded almost hopeful. “Because I don’t want you cutting my good bra. Just unhook it like a good boy.”

I froze, suspended in shock. Pretty sure my mouth dropped open as I stared at my elderly patient. Under any other circumstance, I would’ve been able to hold my composure, remain stoic and professional. But Francis had always had the ability to both take me by surprise and make me blush.

Leah made a sound of disbelief. “No one is cutting any clothes off. Behave, Francis.”

“Leah, medics,” I reminded her and then continued my assessment.

“You seem to be tolerating the pain pretty well,” I stated. Francis really was in a good state considering the circumstances.

“Probably that edible I took this morning,” she replied with a wry grin.

The medics arrived and packaged Francis, and together, we lifted her onto the stretcher and loaded her in the ambulance.

In the meantime, Leah gathered bags, her voice echoing down the hall as she made a series of calls, first to Mike, then to her best friend, Kylie, and then to Jordan, Nate’s girlfriend.

This community of friends, this family they’d built, was unexpected. It was good that they had each other in times like this, and I was fortunate that they included me from time to time.

We met out on the porch, and I walked Leah to the ambulance. Francis was loaded, Nate and Thoren hanging out at the open back doors, watching over the old woman like nervous parents.

“Bye, sweetheart. We’ll come check on you later. Jordan’s on her way already,” Nate called before closing the doors. They each took a step back as the bus pulled away, and Leah sidled up to Thoren, who threw an arm around her shoulders.

“Is it broken?” The concern in her voice turned Thoren’s head.

“Most likely.”

Standing by like this always made me feel like the worst kind of interloper. I should be used to it by now, but this patient was special, and the situation hit the group hard. They all loved this old woman, and it was a damned good thing she had them in her life for situations like this.

A little seed of something unpleasant planted itself in my mind. If I were in her place, who would even know to come look after me? The guys didn’t call me daily to check in on me. Sure, if they needed something, they knew to call because I was always there for them.

But what if the roles were reversed?

Would anyone come take care of me in the hospital? Or was I in for a long, lonely life in my senior years?

Shoving those thoughts aside, because wallowing never did anyone any good, I ordered, “You guys get back in service. Thoren, see if Mike is available to take Leah.”

“I already talked to him, sir. He’s in the middle of an interview. He said he’d meet her there later.”

I sighed. I couldn’t in good conscience leave her to drive there alone. She was too upset. So even though the command unit was supposed to be city personnel only, I said, “I’ll drive Leah over.”

The drive was mostly silent until I pulled under the awning at the hospital. Leah reached for the door handle and paused, before looking back at me. “I’ve always thought you were the best kind of man, Mac. You don’t have me fooled. You’re this gruff meanie on the outside. But I know there is a heart of gold under that rough exterior.”

What was I supposed to say to that?

“I don’t know why some good woman hasn’t snatched you up. But I hope you find someone who will take care of you as well as you take care of others.”

Then she was out of the truck and disappearing through the sliding doors of the emergency room waiting area, leaving me with a tight chest and a throat I couldn’t swallow through.

Images of Olivia and Rosie flashed in my mind. What would my life have been like if Olivia and I had kept contact over those years? If I’d been able to raise my daughter? If I’d had a family of my own? Would I still feel like an outsider, a fraud, in this found family?

The fire brotherhood was out of my reach even in the normal day-to-day. Sure, we pulled together when shit hit the fan, but largely, it was me calling on my crew when bad things went down. I got it. It was hard to be friends with the boss.

---