"911. What's your emergency?" I said as I answered the phone.
"There's a bat in my house." A loud scream came over the speaker. "Send someone to come and get it. "
"Alright ma'am, I will send animal control over as soon as possible." The caller thanked me and said she will be outside waiting. I pressed the button to dispatch the nearest unit.
I sat in my cubicle, doodling with my ballpoint pen on a piece of blank white paper. Being a dispatcher isn't always easy. Especially in the middle of nowhere Montana with a population of 500. We get random calls about bobcats, bison, and bears coming in the front yards, teenagers prank calling because they are bored, and of course, the regular hunting emergencies. But all of this is few and far between, sometimes we can go hours without getting a call. Which makes it hard when you work the night shift alone.
"Kara?" I heard my straight-laced boss say as he came down the hallway.
"I'm here." I yelled back, still doodling on the white paper. I could hear his staggered footsteps coming my direction.
"Oh hey," he said, popping his head around the corner. "I'm leaving. Do you need anything before I go?"
"I think I'm good." I held up my now cold coffee.
"I'll turn off the rest of the lights then. Have a great night."
I heard the sound of the lights turning off down the hallway. It's those florescent lights that make a buzzing sound whenever you're under them. I hate when they get turned off, everything gets so silent. Being in this building at night all by yourself, the imagination can get the best of you.
I sat at my desk looking at the seven computer screens. On one screen, I could see exactly where the emergency responders are located at any given moment. I started memorizing the street names that in our designated area. At this time nothing was going on. It had been a very quiet night.
Taking a sip of my cold coffee, I started jotting down my grocery list for the next day. At this point the coffee was only doing so much to keep me awake at 1am. "What do I need," I asked out loud. I wrote down that I needed chicken, vegetables, toilet paper, wine...multiple bottles of wine. I finished making my list, folding it into my jeans' pocket.
A beeping sound started coming through my headphones meaning someone was calling in. I looked up as a name and number flashed on the screen in front of me.
"911 what's your emergency." I said clearly to the person on the other line.
"I need help." A child's voice said.
"What's your name? What can I help you with?" I said back to the frightened young girl.
"I need help." She said again.
I replied, "I can't help you unless you tell me what's wrong," and then the phone line went dead.
Immediately dialing the number back, I waited for it to ring. But there was no dial tone and it wouldn't reconnect. I decided to call one of the responding officers to check it out.
"Jenkins, I need you to respond to 5689 Hickory Valley Road. There could be a possible VIC. I tried calling her back but I got no answer." I said into my headphones.
"Thanks Kara. Hope you are having a good night all by your lonesome." He started laughing. "What are you going to do all by yourself in that little cubicle of yours?"
"You're an asshole. As a matter of fact, I am having a great night by myself. Keep me updated." I said back.
"Rodger that!"
