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"Turn around!" Bobby ordered sharply.
"What?" Buck was surprised as he hit the brakes. This was supposed to be a practice driving run, so it was just Buck and Bobby in the truck. The idea had been to give Buck a chance to practice driving with his new CDL license. "The rig won't turn around on a dime. Or on a narrow street like this."
"Then back it up!" Bobby said.
"Hang on!" Buck said. Backing up straight, that he could do. He shifted the truck into reverse and the automatic warnings kicked in. Beep - beep - beep
Bobby picked up the hand-mic for the radio. They hadn't worn their gear -- why would they need gear for driving practice?
Buck looked out the window in the direction of Bobby's eyes and swore. He was never going anywhere in the truck without full turn-outs again. He heard Bobby calling in to Dispatch to send another truck.
Smoke oozed out of a second story window of the dilapidated house. In spite of the windows being boarded up, someone could be living there. Buck hadn't seen the smoke against the gray house on the passenger side of the street. He had been focusing on staying clear of the cars that were parked on both sides of the narrow one-way street.
Buck positioned the truck to be ready to support the next truck to show up.
"Cap!"
"You can't go in there!" Bobby ordered. "You don't have any gear!"
"Up there!" Buck pointed. "Someone's pushing on the boards from the inside."
"Take a ladder and do what you can until help arrives," Bobby ordered.
Buck grabbed a ladder and went back for a Halligan once the ladder was up. He could help from the outside.
With the help of the person on the inside, they got a strip of wood off and Buck was horrified to see bars on the window.
"Take my babies," the woman begged. Her hands were bleeding from her efforts to open the windows.
"Give them to me," Buck said. He could hear sirens coming their way. "More help is coming."
"This is Angel," the woman said as she thrust an infant in his arms.
Buck went down the ladder and lay the child on the floor of the truck. He swarmed back up the ladder.
"This is Marianna," she said as she squeezed a toddler through the bars.
"Are there more?" Buck asked.
She shook her head. "Get away. They made the drugs... meth... My name is Trinidad Matias. I am illegal. Tell my babies I love them!"
Buck swore. "I'll be right back."
"You keep safe," she sobbed. "Keep my babies safe..."
Buck went down the ladder and took the toddler to the truck.
"CAP!" he shouted. Bobby looked at him. "It's a meth lab inside!"
"Stand down," Bobby ordered. "It's too dangerous to go back."
"The mom..." Buck started to protest but flinched as the house blew up and was engulfed in flames.
"Damn." Buck cuddled the wailing toddler in his arms. "Hey, Marianna. It'll be okay. I know it's scary. Let's go find your brother." He went back to where he had left Angel. He laughed slightly. The infant had slept through it all.
Eddie came up to him at that point. "Last time you are going anywhere alone!"
"Hey! Bobby was with me," Buck protested softly. "This is Marianna. Her mom was a brave lady." He nodded at the house.
"Oh. Damn. Okay, how about we get you to Hen. She can check you out?" Eddie said.
"That's Angel on the floor of the truck," Buck pointed. "He slept through it all."
"Let's get them to the ambo and then see what Cap wants us to do," Eddie said as he carefully picked Angel up.
"You brought my gear?" Buck grinned.
"Of course," Eddie nodded. "Why wouldn't I?"
"Thanks!"