Extreme Medical Services: Medical Care On The Fringes Of Humanity (10 page)

   
He shrugged again. “We all thought it was kind of weird. Zach was a city employee and he didn’t seem like he would have had the money to pay a couple of months rent in advance like that. It was just strange, that’s all.” They rode in silence for a bit longer then they were in front of Freddy’s trailer.

   
“Thanks, I guess, Freddie. The problem is, what do I do with what you just said?” Dean asked as he slid the gearshift into park. “I’m so new at this job, I positively squeak. I’m not sure from one day to the next what I’m doing. I wouldn’t begin to know what to do about something like this.”

   
“Well you don’t want to confront James head on or antagonize him in any way,” Freddy advised. “I’m sure he doesn’t deal well with things that don’t go his way. Everyone in the Unusual community knows that. You should be careful. It’s just that we’re worried about her. Brynne’s changed a lot in the last few years since she started hanging out with James. She’s told me it’s nothing to do with him, but I don’t know.”

   
“Thanks for the heads up, Freddy,” Dean said as he jumped out and went around to let Freddy out of the passenger side. “I appreciate it, and you can let your friends know that I’ll try and keep an eye on her as best I can.”

   
“Just be careful,” Freddy warned. “Like I said. James is an old school vampire, you know, feudal lordship and respect and all that. He thinks he’s at the top of the food chain socially and in reality. To him, she’s not just his girlfriend, she’s his property. I don’t think he would just let her go with a ‘fare thee well.’” He took a few steps to the house trailer then turned. “You’re a good kid and everyone already says you seem like a good guy to have around when there is trouble. Do not go out there and get yourself injured, or worse, missing like Zach. That’s all I am saying.” Freddy turned and shuffled up to his door and inside. Dean stood in the pool of the pickup's headlights in the growing darkness.

   
Dean stared at the closed door of the trailer for a bit before turning and getting back into his pickup truck. He backed onto the road and drove back towards the highway. Freddy had given him a lot to think about. He had a feeling that something was not right with James and Brynne. Now he had some confirmation. Still, he couldn’t act on a suspicion. Brynne was able to do her job and take care of herself and if she didn’t want help, he couldn’t force it on her. That would be just as bad as whatever James was supposedly doing to her.

He was just going to have to watch and see if there were overt signs not just his hunch and the word of a zombie chef. He couldn’t go tell the shift commander his immediate supervisor was in danger because she was dating a vampire. Heck, he couldn’t even be sure that the lieutenant knew about the Unusuals anyway. He’d gotten the impression that beyond a very tight circle of people, the real purpose of Station U was where you put the rejects and weirdos.
 

   
Dean just couldn’t figure out who he could turn to. Then a thought occurred to him. Maybe Mike Farver was the answer. Mike, his old paramedic school instructor, could be the right person to talk to.
 
Mike was a founding paramedic member of Station U. He might know what to do with a troublesome vampire or how to handle it with Brynne.
 

   
Dean started putting together a carefully worded email message in his head as he drove back to his apartment. He had to be careful. He would have to make sure the message got the idea across without alerting any others who might see it to what was really going on at Station U. That might just end up with him locked up in a psych ward for a few nights. That was not a desirable outcome for this situation and it would leave Brynne unguarded. Dean was so engrossed in his thoughts that he didn’t see the headlights of the darkened SUV behind him or realize that they might be following him home.

       
After he got home that night, Dean tried to compose the email he intended to send off to Mike Farver. He couldn’t figure out how to state the problem as he didn’t have any proof. He hadn’t seen any physical signs of injury. He deleted the e-mail – for now. He decided to keep his eyes open and see if he could come up with proof of danger to his partner. He would watch Brynne and learn what he could about both her relationship with James as well as the best ways to treat their patients.
 

   
The only thing that stood out over the next few days was that Brynne continued to wear the turtleneck despite the warm temperatures. The calls were routine. They dealt with chest pain, respiratory distress, and the occasional assault. In cases where police were involved, Dean noted the same two or three police officers were dispatched with them. They seemed to be the equivalent to the Station U ambulance crews. Brynne knew them all by name and introduced Dean to them so they would get to know him.

   
It wasn’t until they moved back to night shift that he saw James again. He was working on a patient care report from a call earlier that evening when the door to the parking lot opened and James swaggered in. Dean was surprised because that door was supposed to be locked. James either had his own key, or there was some vampire talent he didn’t know about. The station wasn’t a home or other residence so they couldn’t deny him access. He’d learned about vampire lore from Brynne and found vamps couldn’t enter a home unless invited in by the homeowner or other permanent resident. That was good news. He felt safer in his own apartment now.

   
James met Dean’s stare as he crossed to the recliner where Brynne was sitting. “Hello my dear,” he said to his girlfriend. He bent down to give her a kiss. It lingered a little longer than was proper in a public situation, Dean thought to himself.

   
“What are you doing here, James?” Brynne asked. “I didn’t expect to see you tonight. You said you were traveling for a few days.”

   
“I am getting ready to leave,” James responded. “I wanted to see you again before I left. I also wanted to let you know that I have left Rudolf in charge here while I’m gone. If you need anything, you let him know and he’ll take care of it.”

   
“I’ll be here, too,” Dean interjected. “I’m sure we can cover anything that might come up.”

   
“I’m sure you are up to the mundane challenges you might expect, Dean,” James retorted. “I’m talking about the non-mundane things that crop up from time to time. When the cat’s away, the Unusuals will play, as the saying goes. When those problems crop up it is best to let us deal with it, in-house if you will.”

   
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Dean said. “Where are you off to anyway?”

   
“Personal business,” James responded. “I need to return to Europe and deal with some things that have cropped up.” He turned to Brynne. “It is entirely possible that this is a distraction to get me away from my home base. If so, Rudolf will be ready to deal with things until I can return.”

   
“I’ll let folks know to contact him if trouble crops up,” Brynne said. “I suppose you need to go. I’ll walk you out to your car.” She got up and crossed to the door arm in arm with James.

   
Before they walked out, James turned to Dean. “I do appreciate your willingness to help out and watch over my dear Brynne, Dean. I’m sure you will do anything in your power to protect her, too. I thank you for that.” It sounded almost sincere.

   
Dean nodded in reply.

   
The couple was in the parking lot for about ten minutes before Brynne came back into the squad room. Dean was just finishing up his report and hit the send button on the screen to shoot it off to the hospital and headquarters with his electronic signature.
 

   
“What am I going to do with you, Probie?” Brynne asked as she entered the squad room. “You don’t want to get in a pissing match with James, believe me. Just let him play his games his way. I can handle myself without your help.”

   
Dean turned in the desk chair to look her way. “What was up with all that ‘Rudolf will watch over things’ stuff? It’s like he’s the king of Elk City or something.”

   
“He is,” Brynne said.

   
Dean started to laugh but stopped. “Wait, you’re serious.”

   
“Dean, the Unusual population is a very old and established group of world citizens. They’ve coexisted with humans for thousands of years without being known as anything more than legend and myth by the bulk of the population. They’ve done this by governing themselves. Because their government is so old, it is kind of like a feudal system. They have leaders, sub-leaders, and vassal subjects.”

   
“So, James is the king?” Dean asked.

   
“He’s more of a Baron actually,” Brynne said. “His area covers a fifty-mile radius around Elk City. Most of the areas are led by a vampire or other higher order Unusual that craves order. A Minotaur rules Washington, DC and its surroundings.”

   
“So what is it that James does as the leader of the Elk City Unusual population?” Dean asked.

   
“He makes sure that no one draws undue attention to themselves for starters,” Brynne said. “Anonymity is key to their being able to coexist peacefully with humans. Anything that threatens that anonymity is cause for action by the Unusual leadership. He also acts as Judge for high and low justice when there is a dispute between Unusuals in the region.”

   
“Why don’t they just take their arguments to court like the rest of us?” Dean asked.

   
“That’s a remedy they might use for a dispute with a normal human.” Brynne replied. “But when they have a dispute with each other, they turn to the local leadership for a judgment. It’s much faster than human courts, and the decisions are final. There are rarely appeals to the decisions of the local Barons. You have the right to appeal but if you choose to bother the higher authorities at the national level and you lose your appeal, the consequences can be severe. It deters all but the most desperate cases from going higher.”

   
“So they’re a sub-government hidden within our own democratic government?” Dean asked.

   
“Yes, although they’re also active in human politics as well.” Brynne said. “There are enough people in the human leadership that know about Unusuals that it behooves them to vote and pay attention to what we’re doing politically as well.”

   
Dean thought about that. It made sense to pay attention to what the leaders in your area were up to if you were a human and he guessed it was a good idea to pay attention to that for Unusuals, too. “Who’s Rudolf, then?” Dean asked. “Is he another vampire?”

   
“Rudolf is a Lycan, a werewolf, who is James’ second in command. He’ll be our contact should we need to deal with an Unusual problem beyond our limited abilities.”

   
The alert tones dropped, startling them out of their conversation. “Medical Box U-265, Respiratory Distress, 57 Quartet Drive,” intoned the dispatcher as the printer began whirring and spit out the sheet with the address and additional information. Brynne grabbed the paper as the paramedics jumped up and headed out to through the doors to the ambulance bay. Brynne handed the sheet to Dean as she headed to the driver’s side.

   
“You’re going to have to let me drive at some point, Brynne,” Dean laughed.

   
“Maybe tomorrow,” Brynne said.
 

   
“Maybe never,” Dean muttered under his breath.
 

   
Dean climbed in as Brynne started the engine. He picked up the mic and put them on the street. “U-191 responding.”

   
“U-191 responding,” repeated the dispatcher. “Switch to med channel 1 for additional.”
 

   
Dean switched the radio over to the secure, trunked med channel. “U-191 on med channel 1.”

   
The dispatcher’s voice came back immediately. “Respond for a 22-year-old woman complaining of respiratory distress.”

   
“Copy dispatch, U-191 out.” Dean said, replacing the mic on the dash. He made a mental note to continue the conversation they had started earlier. He wanted to delve into this topic more. Just when he thought he had the Unusuals figured out, something else cropped up.

       
It took them 8 minutes to get to the quiet suburban neighborhood of small, single-family homes. As Brynne turned the ambulance left on to Quartet Drive, Dean started reading numbers on the mailboxes and the house numbers when he could see them. “It’s going to be on the right side of the street,” Dean said noticing that the odd numbered houses were on his side of the road.

   
“There it is,” Brynne said. They saw a person frantically waving on the front lawn of the ranch style house. She pulled the ambulance up to the front of the house. When she came to a stop, Dean jumped out and began pulling bags out of the side compartments on the unit. He shouldered the oxygen and airway bag then grabbed the med bag and started walking across the broad yard to the front door. Brynne caught up to him with the heart monitor clutched in one hand and the portable suction bag in the other.