Anatomy • Eddie's daughter

The Story and The Footnote

27

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Wishin' I was someone else,
feelin' sorry for myself
When I remembered someone's
kid is dead
── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──

Buck sat anxiously next to the radio, waiting for any news about the missing girl.

Maddie watched as her baby brother bounced his leg up and down quickly. His hands fidgeted with his hair.

He just wanted to lay his eyes on Jo.

Jo, Chris, and Eddie.

They deserve to be a family.

And he took that away the second he lost track of Eddie's two kids.

The only thing he truly cares about in life.

Chris sat in his hospital bed, playing with a small Rubik's cube that Maddie had in her purse.

It was quiet in the tent since this one was meant for firefighters or other medical personnel and thankfully there weren't a lot of major injuries from any of them. But Bobby insisted that both Buck and Chris be checked out in there.

It just made sense in the Captain's head.

"I'm gonna go check on Buck, okay Chris? I'll be right over there if you need me."

Chris nodded and continued playing around with the cube. Maddie nodded and stood up, making her way over to her brother.

Maddie laid a soft hand on his shoulder, making Evans's head turn and look at her. Her soft eyes reflected some comfort in him. "Any news?"

"Bobby called for 2 ambulances not long ago. That's all I've heard. But-" He cut his words off making Maddie sit down in the chair next to him.

"But what?"

"But I've walked out there. It's bad. Getting an ambulance through that would be nearly impossible. It's not like a firetruck. You can't just run over things that are in the way. One jump could cause a million more problems."

Maddie takes a deep breath in, rubbing her brother's shoulder in comfort.

"I'm sure they will-"

The radio echoes in, making both Maddie and Buck quiet.

Bobby's sad voice sounds through the room. "Dispatch, this is Captain Nash. Cancel call for 2 ambulances." The radio breaks out before turning back on. "One will do."

Buck's heart drops to his stomach and hits his feet. The weight of the guilt in his body makes it feel like the chair is crashing into the floor and through the surface of the earth.

"Buck," Maddie calls out, watching her brother's face morph into agony. His shoulders slump and his brave stature shrinks. "We don't know anything yet."

Buck slams his arms down on the table and jumps out of his chair, making all eyes turn to him, including Christophers. He whips around and looks at Maddie with tears settling in his eyes. "I shouldn't have let her go to the bathroom alone. I should have waited. Why the hell did I do that?!"

Buck threw his hands to the top of his head, trying to take deep breaths but all the stares made it harder. Maddie stood up and grabbed onto his shoulders. "Buck, we don't know anything yet, okay? We can't assume anything. Panicking will make everything 10 times worse." She looks to the side to see Chris watching the two. "Chris does not need to see you freaking out. He needs you to be calm so he can be calm."