Disclaimer: I don't own Third Watch, or any characters you can recognise.

AN: I have no medical knowledge, just way too much time to search the internet.

I have decided that I really didn't like how I'd written this fic, so here it is, completely rewritten. Please remember to review, even just a few words would be greatly appreciated.

Enjoy!

Kim, Carlos, and Holly are standing around the kitchen at the firehouse, Doc is running late, and Kim is getting concerned.

"This is the latest he's ever been." Kim tells Holly as she continues to pace.

At this moment, Carlos hangs up the phone, and walks over to them as he says. "No answer, he's got to be on his way."

"You know, a cleansing breathe can be very refreshing this time of day." Holly tells Kim as she continues to put some fruit into a bag for them.

Shockingly, Kim pays no attention to her, and says. "You know the company's going to be back soon, and Steeper's going to be up in my ass for not being out of the house." She turns around to face them as she adds. "I don't have a full crew."

"Why don't you two guys go out, and I'll wait." Carlos suggests, trying to be helpful.

"No, I can't go out on the street until I know everyone's here. What's Steeper going to think of that?" Kim says questioningly, she's clearly stressed by the whole situation.

Always helpful, Carlos questions her sarcastically. "Which one of you is our boss?"

Kim looks at Carlos incredulously as she says. "He's a captain, Carlos. You want him reporting to downtown that I can't take care of a crew properly, so then he gets someone else to come in here?!" Upon seeing the smirk on his face, she questions him. "What?! You think this is so funny?"

"Would they do that?" Holly asks, concern in her voice.

Kim turns and walks away from them as she says. "You know what, I'm going to keep trying the numbers, you two go out together, try to go by his apartment, I mean maybe he's overslept, or can't hear the phone, or something."

Meanwhile, a cell phone goes unanswered.

Several minutes later, Kim is just hanging up the phone, apparently still no success when the company returns. She stands up, and walks hastily to her locker, trying to hide why she is still there, and simply the fact that she is still there.

But within a few seconds Steeper sees her, and in an irritated tone he says. "Something wrong?"

Kim turns to face him, and replies. "No sir."

Steeper is unrelenting. "What're you doing in here?"

"Doc's got a doctors appointment, I'm just waiting for him to get in." Plausible enough, but Steeper sees straight through it.

"He late?"

"No, no, no." Kim says a little too quickly, and then adds. "I knew about this."

"The duty roster has you partnered with Levine, and Doc with Nieto."

"Yeah, um, I forgot to update it when Doc told me about his appointment." Kim covers, and this time it seems to work.

"Sure everything's okay?"

"Yep." Kim says with much more confidence than she feels. "We'll be out of the house as soon as he gets here."

"Alright." Steeper agrees as he walks towards his office.

At this moment, Cruz enters the room, and asks Kim. "Is Parker around?"

"No, not yet." Kim tells her.

Steeper's attention has been caught by Cruz, and he questions her. "Who're you?"

Cruz turns around to face him, and says. "Er, Sergeant Cruz, I work-"

Steeper interrupts her by questioning. "PD?"

"Yeah." Cruz answers shortly.

"See a House Watch down there?"

"Well there was a guy down there in the office but he was on the phone so I just..." Cruz trails off slightly as she motions in the direction of the house watch, and that give Steeper the chance to interrupt again.

"Visitors must be announced at a firehouse."

"Yeah, well I just..." Cruz mumbles, caught off guard.

Steeper turns to Kim, and harshly asks her. "Did you people follow any rules before I came here?"

"Hey, look, it's not her fault. I just..." Cruz defends Kim quickly, it isn't her fault.

"You wanna talk to somebody, go downstairs, speak to the House Watch, and come back upstairs." Steeper tells Cruz.

Cruz then points out the obvious by saying. "But I'm already up here."

"Downstairs." Steeper orders, clearly he's not going to back down.

"You know what, I'll give Doc your message." Kim tells Cruz, trying to end the dispute.

It works, Cruz walks away.

But Steeper doesn't back down, telling Kim. "Rules are for a reason." As he looks at her pointedly.

"Yes sir."

"I will not have people wandering in and out of this house, not even PD. Understood?"

"Understood."

Steeper then begins to walk away, but as he does, he says. "Let me know as soon as Parker gets here."

Which prompts another "Yes sir." From Kim as she buries her face in her hands, and sighs wearily.

Awhile later, Kim, Steeper, and the rest of the engine company are in the kitchen making dinner when Steeper abruptly tells Kim. "Okay, call downtown, and get a replacement to ride along."

Kim stands firm. "But I told you this was approved."

"He isn't coming." Steeper says adamantly.

"All due respect captain, stay out of this, I can run my crew."

"You call that respect?" Steeper says disbelievingly.

Before Kim can respond DK interrupts them by asking a trivial question about the meal, and it works, Steeper is walking away, but then there is an announcement. "Hey, Parker's here."

Kim looks up at Steeper as she straightens some papers, and needlessly says. "He's here."

Steeper unhappily says. "Make it fast. You're an hour late getting out on the street already."

"Yeah, as soon as he changes." Kim says as she walks over to Doc. She then says to Doc. "Doc, listen-" She stops when she sees that he is in his dress uniform, and questions him with no idea of what is about to unfold. "Why're you in your blues?"

Doc simply tells her. "Hey Kimmy, listen I'm not going on the street today. Excuse me." Before continuing to walk towards the kitchen.

"Wait. Listen, Doc I need to talk with you, just..." Kim begins, but she stops abruptly when she sees the glint of a gun.

There is no chance for anyone to intervene as Doc fires a single round point blank into Steeper's abdomen.

The shock and even more so the surprise is clear on everyone's faces as they seek cover.

"Like I said, I'm not going on the street today."

Everyone except Kim backs away from Doc, and subsequently Steeper, except for Kim, who tries to make Doc see reason. "Doc-"

But Doc refuses to listen. "Stay where you are."

Kim spares a glance down at Steeper, who is lying on the floor, moaning in agony, and then she pleads to Doc. "Let me help him." It's not that she likes him, but still how can she stand back and watch him bleed to death on the floor.

Doc looks at his watch as he says. "Fifteen minutes." As though it makes all the sense in the world.
"What?" Kim asks, confused.

"Fifteen minutes." Doc says again.

This time DK asks. "What're you talking about?"

Doc points the gun down at Steeper as he tells his coworkers. "When he closes this house the people in this community will have to wait at least 15 minutes for medical or fire response. See, I did the math, calculated the response times." He then turns to face Steeper, and says. "Isn't that how you do it, Jack? Huh. Reduce it to a workable number."

"Please." Steeper begs Doc.

But he doesn't listen, he just asks. "Everyone understand?"

Walsh steps forward, and tries to reason with Doc. "He's dying."

"Billy, just back up for a minute, okay?"

"No, Doc." Billy says, he can't just step back and watch this happen.

This throws Doc completely, they're meant to be on his side, they're meant to be grateful that he's doing all this for them. Why are they getting in the way of his plan?

And then another firefighter, Bobby walks into the room, and ends up staring down the barrel of Doc's gun. "What the hell's going on?!"

Why can't they see the plan?! They just have to wait for fifteen minutes, and then they can treat him. Why is that so hard to do?!

Kim attempts to calm Doc down with little to no success as he waves the gun around.

Then, pointing the gun directly at Bobby, Doc orders him. "Have a seat at the table." And he then demands to Kim. "Stay there."

"Doc, just let me help him, okay?" Kim pleads, hoping that she will eventually get through to Doc.

After waving the gun around, and forcing everyone away further, even Billy, who until that moment had stayed beside Kim, Doc tells Kim. "He doesn't listen Kim, so we gotta put it in terms he can understand." He says this as if it justifies shooting a man.

"All right, well, we're all listening, okay? We're all here. We're all listening. So why don't we just...just calm down, okay?"

"No, no, I'm calm, I told you I wasn't gonna let this house close."

"By letting a man die?" Kim questions him, he has to see reason.

Again, Doc just continues his mindless rant. "No, no, he doesn't have to die. All he has to do is see what 15 minutes feels like when you need help."

"I'm not closing the house." Steeper says weakly as Doc kneels beside him.

"No you won't." Doc agrees, but he then adds. "Because you'll know what it feels like to wait when you need help."

"You're crazy, Doc." Billy says. This has to stop.

Why aren't they on my side?! This is going all wrong!

"At least let me give him some fluids." Kim says, trying to move closer to Steeper, but being blocked by Doc.

"Kim...if we were out on the streets, who'd give him fluids? Huh? No one, because help wouldn't be here yet."

Before anyone can say anything, Steeper grabs Doc's pant leg, startling him enough that he fires another round into the air, narrowly missing several of them.

"Sit down! Everybody sit down!" Doc screams, waving the gun at them wildly.

Everyone complies, seeing that in his current frame of mind it's very possible that he will shoot them.

Just then, they hear foot steps on the stairs, and then Carlos call out. "He turn up yet?"

"Hey, where've you been?" Carlos asks Doc casually, not having realised what he's just walked in to.

"What're you doing here?" Doc questions Carlos. This is getting out of control, it was meant to be simple, just fifteen minutes, but they just don't understand.

It is now that Carlos sees Steeper lying on the floor bleeding, and then his glance goes to the gun in Doc's hand. "Doc? What's going on?" Carlos asks, inching closer to his partner cautiously.

"What're you doing here?" Doc repeats. Why can't they just leave him be? If anything they should be thanking him, helping him, he's doing this for them.

It is now that Carlos makes the mistake of kneeling down at Steeper's side in an attempt to help him.

Everyone jumps from their seats. Kim also goes to Steeper's side.

But before they can do anything, before anyone realises what is happening, Doc fires off three more rounds.

And all hell breaks loose.

DK and Walsh tackle Doc to the ground, and wrestle with him for the gun.

Everyone else hits the floor, and it isn't until DK has the gun, and Billy has Doc pinned face down on the ground that anyone takes a moment to survey their surroundings, and when they do, the first thing they see is Kim and Carlos lying over Steeper, a rapidly increasing pool of blood underneath the trio.

TBC...

Thanks for reading!

Please review! And feel free to use the reviews to ask questions or suggest something.