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Steve leaned against the fence, held two fingers to his lips and whistled. “Come on Danny, “ he hollered, clapping his hands. “You got this.”
Not long after he began coaching Gracie’s PeeWee team, Danny had joined the Police Softball League. It was his thing, and for once, Steve had let him have it, coming to every game with Amber, and usually Gracie, to support him. The only reason Grace wasn’t there tonight was because it also happened to be Rachel’s birthday, and Grace’s presence had been required at their family dinner.
Danny didn’t look up from the pitcher’s mound, too focused on the game to be distracted by the whoops and hollers coming from the bleachers and dugouts. He was pitching a great game, throwing strike after strike, only giving up four hits so far. It was the ninth inning, and their team was winning two to zero. If he struck this batter out, he’d win them the game.
Danny scuffed his foot into the dirt, adjusted the cap on his head and leveled his gaze at Duke Lakela, their team’s catcher. He smacked the ball in his glove, his jaw rhythmically working a piece of gum as he shook his head once, then twice, before finally nodding. He dug his cleats into the dirt around the mound, shaking out his arms.
The batter stepped up to home plate, taking another practice swing as Danny readied his stance.
Amber stood up in the stands and yelled, “You got this Danny! Strike that sucker out. One more baby, just one more. Bring er home Danny!” She whooped and clapped her hands.
Danny went into his wind up, his body moving with a graceful liquidity that belied the speed with which the ball left his hand.
Steve wasn’t prepared for what happened next. How quickly the ball was returned in a line drive that barreled straight into Danny’s chest, dropping him to the ground like a stone.
Where he didn’t move. Not one muscle. It was as if time had stilled. The baseball field fell silent in shock, everyone collectively frozen in place.
Except Amber. Who was already sprinting to Danny’s side before Steve had managed to get his muscles to obey his mind’s commands to move. She reached Danny seconds before he did, kneeling next to him, her slim fingers extending towards his neck even as she lowered her cheek to Danny’s mouth.
“He’s not breathing,” she said, her voice clipped.
Steve whipped out his phone. “I’ll call an ambulance.”
“There’s no time,” Amber barked out. She leaned over Danny’s prone body and interlaced her hands to begin CPR. “Every ball park has a defibrillator. Get it. Now.”
“I’ll call the ambulance, Steve,” Duke interjected. “The defibrillator is in the home team dugout.”
Steve bolted, met mid field by one of the umpires carrying the device Amber had demanded. Steve grabbed it, hurtling back towards Amber, still pressing determinedly on Danny’s chest.
He set the defibrillator next to Danny. “Do you know what you’re doing, Amber?”
“Yes, Steve, I do. And we have five minutes left before it’s gonna be too late. Pull his shirt open.” Amber demanded as she readied the device. She placed the pads of defibrillator on Danny’s chest the second Steve bared it.
“Move back, Steve,” Amber warned. The machine green lighted the charge and Amber set it off. Danny’s back arched up off the dirt. The monitor blipped once, twice, and then dropped back to a flat line.
Amber bit her lip, recharging the device. “Come on Danny,” she muttered. “Don’t do this.”
She hit Danny with the electrical charge a second time. Once again, his body flopped upwards. And again there was a responding blip on the monitor. Followed by another.
“Breathe, Danny,” Steve murmured. “Come on.”
The blips on the monitor picked up speed, finally settling noticeably into a rhythm.
Amber didn’t settle back on her heels in relief until Danny’s chest responded in kind, slowly rising and falling. She tossed the paddles back on to the device and set her fingers on the underside of Danny’s wrist.
“Amber?” Steve tentatively touched Danny’s other arm.
“He’s back, Steve,” Amber smiled at him, her eyes now glistening with tears. “We’ve got him back.”
‘How did you…?” Steve stared at his partner’s girlfriend in confusion. “How did you know how to do that?”
Amber flushed and looked down, her hand shakily stroking Danny’s cheek. Her non answer was interrupted by a small groan from Danny, whose blue eyes suddenly opened to slits.
“What the…?” Danny moaned, trying to lever himself to a sitting position.
“Uh uh,” Steve lightly pressed the palms of his hands to Danny’s shoulders. “You took a knock to the chest hard enough to stop your heart. Stay down, buddy. EMTs are on the way.”
“Stopped my…what?” Danny stared at them both, dumbfounded. His eyes suddenly caught on the defibrillator. He glanced up at Steve. “Wait a second, you used that on me? They teach you that in SEAL school too?”
“Not me, Danny,” Steve shook his head. “Amber’s the one that saved your life.”
“Danny, just take it easy, okay?” Amber pleaded, leaning down to kiss him gently on the lips. “I’ll explain later. You just need to focus on breathing right now.”
Danny nodded. His fingers tightened around Amber’s as he winced slightly.
“Hang on, Danny,” Amber soothed.
“Hurts…to…breathe,” Danny whispered.
“I know, baby,” Amber gently stroked his cheek. “Just take slow breaths for me, okay? The ambulance is almost here.” She moved, repositioning herself so she could settle Danny’s head in her lap. Softly she stroked his hair until his eyes drowsily fell closed.
It was probably only five minutes before the EMT’s rolled up, but to Steve, watching Danny’s painful wheezing, it felt like forever.
“What happened here?” The petite brunette medic flashed a reassuring smile at Amber as she knelt down and began to tend to her patient.
“Thirty seven year old male, blunt force trauma to the chest, followed by cardiogenic shock,” Amber rattled off. “I began CPR and hit him twice with the defibrillator and he went back into normal sinus rhythm.”
The paramedic arched an eyebrow at the detailed information. “Are you a medical professional?” she asked, prepping an oxygen mask and placing it over Danny’s nose and mouth.
“Uh…no,” Amber stammered. “I’ve had classes in First Aid, that’s all.”
“Well, great job,” the paramedic smiled. “Those first aid classes probably saved his
life.”
Danny barely stirred the entire time the medics were attending to him, and he was still out of it as the paramedics moved him onto the gurney and trundled him towards the waiting ambulance.
“We have room for one of you,” the paramedic glanced from Steve to Amber.
“You go with him,” Steve said, jogging to the Camaro as Amber followed Danny’s gurney into the ambulance.
Tripping the Camaro’s sirens, Steve followed the ambulance into the steady Honolulu traffic, practically hugging its rear bumper as he followed it all the way to the hospital.
**
Steve sat on one side of the bed, Amber on the other. Danny was dressed in a pale pink hospital gown, the red and white wires of the heart monitor poking out of the top. A nasal cannula supported his oxygen levels. An IV ran into the top of his right hand.
Danny was lightly sleeping; he’d dropped off not long after a dose of morphine. The doctors had determined that his sternum, though badly bruised, was not fractured, but it was no less painful. And it would be for a while.
Amber was quiet, her face pensive. Her gaze was focused on her fingers, loosely intertwined with Danny’s. He woke with a start, his mouth opening in a slight gasp. Amber moved her other hand to his thigh, squeezing it gently.
“Hey,” she smiled. “You’re okay.”
Danny turned his head on the pillow, his face instantly relaxing as he caught sight of her. “Hey,” he murmured back sleepily.
Danny’s eyes flicked to Steve. He took a breath to speak and immediately winced.
“Take it easy, Danny,” Amber soothed. “Don’t talk if you can help it.”
Steve raised an eyebrow and smirked at Amber. “This is Danny. You know that, right?”
Amber laughed, gently stroking Danny’s arm. “Even so. Your chest is going to hurt for a while, I’m sorry Danny.”
“What…happened…exactly?” Danny asked, carefully measuring each breath so as not to put too much pressure on his abused chest.
“You took a line drive directly to your chest and it stopped your heart,” Amber explained, her fingers tightening around Danny’s.
“And then your girlfriend saved your life,” Steve arched his eyebrows. “We still haven’t talked about how you did that.”
“I just did what anyone who knows first aid would do. That’s all,” Amber shifted uncomfortably in her chair.
“But you’ve done that before, haven’t you Amber?” Steve puzzled out. “Your reactions, they were instinctual. You were calm and in complete control. And the way you spoke to the paramedics. It was professional.”
Amber closed her eyes, her lips twisting and her hand shaking slightly in Danny’s.
“Sweetheart,” Danny gently closed his fingers around Amber’s hand. “What’s wrong?”
“They said I could never tell anyone,” Amber’s voice quivered. “Or they’d move me. I’m sorry, Danny. It’s not something I set out to keep from you.”
“They…” Danny closed his eyes and carefully took a breath. Steve beat him to the punch.
“Witness protection,” Steve said in wonder. “You’re in witness protection?”
Amber nodded miserably.
“What happened?” Danny asked softly. “Did someone hurt you?”
Amber shook her head. “No. It wasn’t like that. I was a 3rd year Resident at Johns Hopkins. I was outside the ER taking a break one night when I got abducted at gunpoint and taken to a house where I was ordered to treat a man with a gunshot wound. I couldn’t save him, but I saw some things and some people I shouldn’t have. I managed to get away and instead of completing my residency, I found myself the star witness for the prosecution and number one on a mafia hitlist. So they moved me here until the trial.” She bit her lip and gazed at the two men. “Please don’t tell anyone I told you. I don’t want…” she shook her head and bit back her tears. “I don’t want to leave.”
“We can protect you,” Steve said. “You’re safe here, no matter what.”
Danny pulled Amber’s hand to his lips, kissing it tenderly. “Your secret is safe with us. But if you decide you want your life back, and want to go back to medicine, we’ll keep you safe then too Amber. I promise.”
Steve stood up and walked over to Amber. He put his hands on her shoulders and bent down to kiss the top of her head. “You saved Danny’s life. That makes you ohana. And we protect our own.” He glanced up at his partner. “I’m going to let everyone know you’re okay. Take care of our girl. I’ll be back later, okay?”
As Steve closed the door behind him, he saw Danny pull Amber close, gently stroking her back. And he knew he’d do whatever it took to keep the both of them safe.
End