"The night started out with a bang." "A gunshot to the chest on a drug deal gone bad." "All the elements were in place for a long weekend... heat, humidity, moonlight." "I was good at my job." "There were periods when my hands moved with a speed and skill beyond me." "But in the last year, I started to lose that control." "Things had turned bad." "I hadn't saved anyone in months." "I just needed a few slow nights, followed by a couple of days off." " Ladder Four." " We're there." "Respond to a 10-22." "Four-flight residential. 417 West 32." "77-David at 177 West 24." "There's a woman who says a roach crawled in her ear." "Can't get it out." "Says she's going into cardiac arrest." "63-Boy, men's room, Grand Central." "Man set his pants on fire." " Bad burns." " Move back." " Which apartment?" " 5-A." " Oh, Jesus, it's Mr. Burke." "Why is it always the top floor?" "Goddam." "No!" "No!" "No!" "No!" "No!" "No!" "Oh, God, they're here." "Shh, shh." "Over there." "Mary, it's two hands." "It's my dad." "We were just watching TV, and he was sort of punching his chest..." " Step outside." " Next thing, he locks himself in the bathroom." "So I told him I was gonna call you guys, and he said not to." " How long ago did he stop breathing?" " I don't know." "Ten minutes." "Twenty." "A woman on the phone tried to tell us how to do C.P.R." " Could you do something?" " We'll do what we can." "He was cryin'." "I never heard him cryin' before." "I need you to squeeze this once every three seconds." "Clear!" "Clear!" " Ma'am, I need you to step back." " Clear!" "Clear!" "No more." "Please don't." " Clear!" "Clear!" " Ma'am, step back." "Daddy." "In the last year, I'd come to believe in such things... as spirits leaving the body and not wanting to be put back." "Spirits angry at the awkward places death had left them." "I understood how crazy it was to think this way." "But I was convinced that if I turned around," "I'd see old man Burke... standing at the window, watching, waiting for us to finish." "I'll take over." "Call E.R. and ask for an 83." "Sorry." "Do you have any music?" " What?" " Music." "I think it helps if you play something he liked." "John." "Play the Sinatra." " What?" " Play the Sinatra." "What is it, Johnny?" "Okay, Frank, you can call it. 83." " No, we can't." "He's got a pulse." " No shit?" "Is he gonna be all right?" "His heart's beating." "Have 'em bring up a board." "No, no." "No." "No." "Help your family." "Ride with your mother and brother." "Help your family." "They need you more." "Help yourself." "For the family." "I had to concentrate to keep my mind from wandering off... on these short trips." "It was the neighborhood I grew up in... and where I'd worked most as a paramedic." "And it held more ghosts per square foot than any other." "Come on!" "Come on!" "Come on!" "Hey, partner." "Your man doesn't look well." "They not gonna appreciate you inside." " Nobody loves me, Griss." " Hey, Griss just tellin' you things are backing up." "Griss, let us in." "Whatever you say." "Oh, my foot!" "Don't even slow down." "Just keep on moving." "Sir, you say you've been snorting cocaine for three days... and now you feel as if your heart is beating too fast... and you would like for us to help you." "To tell you the truth, I don't see why we should." "Correct me if I am wrong here, if I'm mistaken." "Did we sell you the cocaine?" "Did we push it up your nose?" " Oh, come on." " For Christ sakes, can I please get a cup of water?" " Shut up, goddam civilian!" " All I want is a cup of water!" "Oh, no." "No, no, no, no, no, guys." "We're on diversion here." "We're not accepting any more patients." "The dispatcher should've let you know that, Frank." "I cannot do it." "No." "We picked him up at 49th and 10th." "You're the closest." "Where do you want me to put him?" "You tell me." "He wanted to come here." "He said that the nurses at Misery were the best." " All I want is a cup of water!" " All right, fine." "I'll kick someone out of bed three." "Excuse me." "You're a kind man, I can see that." "A man like you's not gonna deny a poor, sick, dying, helpless man..." " a small cup of water." " I can't." "I have to stay with my patient." "Will you shut the fuck up?" "Goddam it." "What the hell are you doing to me?" "We're all backed up in here." "Jesus Christ, look at this guy." "Looks like he needs the works." "What's wrong with him?" " You should know." "You pronounced him." " You told me he was dead." " Flatline." " He got better." "I hate pronouncing people dead over the phone." "Yeah." "Better, huh?" "They're fixed and dilated." "This guy's plant food." "Hey, we stole a stretcher from X ray, so put him in three next to the overdose." "All right, look." "He's our lowest priority now." "He shouldn't even be here." "All this technology." "What a waste." "Leave that dope alone." "The doc'll be out in a minute." " Sir, is there some way we could find out what's going on?" " Please, folks, step back." "Please, folks, step back." "I've already told you two to step back." " Mister..." " Now, look, don't make me take off my sunglasses." "First-time heart attack, age 45." "He should've gone to C.C.U. ten hours ago." "We got three bodies up there just like the one you brought in." "Over there, two AIDS patients." "One is 12 and filling up with fluids." "Mother won't sign the "Do Not Resuscitate."" "Mercy killing doesn't translate well in Spanish." "It's a sin to have to tube that kid." "We got three more O.D.s from this new killerjunk they're calling Red Death." "What's in it?" "It's a mix of heroin and I don't know what else." "An amino acid, maybe." "This stuff is so strong, they're drinking it with grain alcohol." "You need ten times the usual amount of Narcan." "And when they wake up, watch out 'cause they're liable to go nuts on you." " He one of 'em?" " No, that's Noel." "He used to be a regular off and on." "I haven't seen him for a while." "He seized and almost coded." "I gave him a hypertonic solution." "He drank so much his kidneys were taking out salt." " That's one for the textbooks." " Doc, you're the greatest." " You gotta help me." " Can you give this guy a drink of water?" "Noel, I am helping you." "You drink any more water, you could die!" "Hazmat, three's coding." "We got a flatline here." "Start C.P.R. Milagros, get me an epi." "Odette, wake up Dr. Starks." "Tell him we're gonna need him stat." "400 joules." "Clear!" "You want water?" "I'll give you water." " What a pain in the ass." "Just get out of here." " 600 joules." " Clear!" " So you get drunk every day and you fall down." "Well, why should we help you?" "You're just gonna get drunk tomorrow, fall down again." "Griss, this man wants to leave." " Thank you." " I know him." "That's Noel." "You better step outside." "Quickly." " Get..." " Fuck!" "Noel?" "Noel." "It's..." "It's me." "It's Mary Burke from 49th Street." "Oh, Mary." "Oh, Mary, I'm so thirsty." "They won't give me any water to drink in there." " Please." " I'll get you some." "I wouldn't do that." "The doctor seems to think he's suffering from some rare disorder." "He's had a rough life." "He grew up on our street." "He's a little crazy from it, but that's no excuse... for not giving somebody a lousy cup of water." "Here." "My father's dying, Noel." "Oh, Mary, Mary, Mary." "Oh." "Chinese closes in five minutes." "Beef lo mein." "Been on my mind since I awoke." "What do you think?" "I think the moment that food hits your mouth, we'll get a run." "Turn here." "You missed it." "Chink's on 11th." "Oh, finally." "Where you been?" "Hey, ambulance man, what you looking at?" "Yeah, pretty soon you'll be coming for me." "Do you think he'll come for me?" "Pretty soon you'll be coming for me." "Boy, some partner you are, Frank." "I could've walked there faster." "I'm starving, and you stop to talk to hookers." "You're making me nuts." "Is that what you're trying to do?" "Drag me down to Nutsville with you?" " Oh, no!" " What?" "I just remembered." "I'm so stupid." "I had beef lo mein last night." "I can't eat the same thing two nights in a row." "It's almost 2:00." "What the hell am I gonna do?" "What are you getting?" " I'm not hungry." " Yeah, you don't eat food." "I eat." "Larry, I eat." "Just haven't had coffee yet." "Only coffee and whisky." "Lucky you ain't dead with that diet." "I got it." "Half fried chicken and fries." "Let's go." "Rose's ghost was getting closer." "It had been six months since I lost her." "A homeless girl, asthmatic, 18 years old." "I used to block the bad calls out." "I used to forget, but she wouldn't let go." "And now she'd come to bear witness for all of them, all that had been lost." "These spirits were part of the job." "It was impossible to pass a building that didn't hold a ghost of something." "The eyes of a corpse." "The screams of a loved one." "All bodies leave their mark." "You cannot be near the newly dead without feeling it." "I could handle that." "What haunted me now was more savage." "Spirits born half-finished." "Homicides." "Suicides." "Overdoses." "Accusing me of being there, witnessing a humiliation, which they could never forgive." "Turn it off." " What?" " You know what." "The radio." "That's not the police band." "It's your fire department scanner in your bag." " Oh." "Ladder Four, respond to a 10-22." "Six-flight residential." "534 West 32." " Let's do it." "It might be a good one." " There are no good fires." "People die in fires." "People get burned up in fires." "People can't breathe." "That's what we're here for." "Let's go." " 63..." " Don't push it, Larry." " Oh, you're burned out, man." "You're scorched." " Not yet, Larry." "I'm still burning." "If you get any closer, I'm gonna put a burn on you." "6-3 Zebra. 6-3 Zebra." "Zebra three, I need you." " You see?" "He's giving it to us anyway." " Zebra, are you there?" " I'm holding an unconscious at 9th and 41st." " No, no, no!" "3:00 in the morning." "That can only mean one thing." " Mr. Oh." " Mr. Oh." "I'm not answering it." "Answer the radio, Zebra." "You know it's that time." "Four times this week I've had him." "Aren't there any other units out there?" " Zebra, are you there?" " Don't answer it." "They'll get somebody else." "63-Zebra, answer me now, or I'm sending a captain to your location." "Frank, when I say don't answer it, that means answer it." "You could do me that favor." " 6-3 Zebra." " Yes, Zebra, you'll be driving... to the man who needs no introduction." "Chronic caller of the year, three straight and shooting for number four, the duke of drunk, the king of stink," " our most frequent flyer, Mr. Oh." " 10-4." "Don't do it." "Not this time..." "Relax." "It's a street job." "It's easy except for the smell." "We just throw him in the back, zip over to Mercy." "No blood, no dying." "That's how I look at it." "He's just a drunk." "It's not our job to taxi drunks around." "Yeah, but they're just gonna keep calling." "Someone's gonna have a cardiac, and the only medics will be taking care of Mr. Oh." "He's bad, mister." "He ain't eaten nothing all day." "And he's seizing and throwing up." " So, what's different about him today?" " He says his feet hurt." " Oh, why didn't you say so?" " I can't find a pulse, but he's still breathing." "Well, it looks like we're just in time." "Step aside, sir." " He's drunk." " He's sick." "You gotta help him." "He's fine." "He can walk to the hospital." "Walk?" "Are you crazy?" "He's in the wheelchair." "Oh, don't give me that." "He walks better than I do." "Oh!" "Oh!" "That's right, Mr. Oh." "Come on, buddy." "Your limo's here." " Get better." " Good luck, old buddy." "Oh!" " Faster!" "Come on, Frank." "Faster!" " Faster?" "You want faster?" "Oh, no." "Take that stinky-ass motherfucking bug-ridden skell out of my face!" "Johnny, welcome back." "Good to see ya." "And my conscience simply will not allow that." "Griss, this gentleman would like to leave." "Oh!" "He looks so pale." "Hey, you getting enough to eat?" "You getting your fiber?" "Wasted." "That's my diagnosis." "He's shit-faced." "He just needs a bath and some food." "Let's take him in back." " Get a stretcher." " She's nuts." "That's why he comes here." " She encourages him." " Don't you dare." "This is not a homeless shelter." " He's gonna have to wait in the lobby." " No way, man." "Not even in the corner." "Griss cannot abide the funk tonight." "Senor." "Senor." "My first cigarette in over a year." "First is always the best." "The doctor doesn't think my father will make it." "Said he was dead for too long." "After six minutes, the brain starts to die, and after that, just close the door." "You never know." "You know, my father and I haven't spoken in three years." "When my brother called me and said that my father had a heart attack... and that he locked himself in the bathroom, all the way going over there, I was thinking of... how I was gonna tell him what a bastard he was." "When I got there and we put him up on the bed, and I thought of all the other things that I wanted to say to him..." "Well, right now I'm more worried about my mother than anything." "Go home." "Take her home." "Get some rest." " You're not gonna find anything out now." " That's what I told her." "If she could just see him for a second, then I know she'd let me take her home." "Thanks for the light." "Here's your dinner." "I wheel, you heal." "6-2 David, at 38th and 2, you'll find a three-car accident." "Two taxis and a taxi." "6- 2 Henry, 6-2 Henry." "487 West 22." "Report of a very bad smell." "No further information." "Larry, swing over to 10th." "We're gonna have to run one of these calls." "Relax, will ya?" "The biggest problem with not driving... is that whenever there's a patient in the back, you're also in the back." "The door's closed." "You're trapped." "5:00 or 6:00 in the morning is always the worst time for me." "Just before dawn." "Just when you've been lulled into thinking... it might be safe to close your eyes for one minute." "That's when I first found Rose." "She was on the sidewalk, not breathing." "I'm not feeling very well, Larry." "Let's say we go back to the hospital, call it a night." "You got no sick time, Frank." "No time of any kind." "Everyone knows that." "Take me back." "Put me to bed." "I surrender." "We've done enough damage tonight." "You take things way too seriously, Frank." "You ever think of doing anything else?" "Sure." "Taking my captain's exam next year." "Once the kids are in school, Louise can go back to the post office." "I thought, "What the hell?" "I'll start my own medic service."" "Out on the island, the volunteers are becoming salaried municipal." "It's just a matter of time and who you know." "Someday it's gonna be Chief Larry calling the shots." "I'd always had nightmares." "But now the ghosts didn't wait for me to sleep." "I drank every day." ""Help others and you help yourself."" "That was my motto." "But I hadn't saved anyone in months." "It seemed all my patients were dying on me." "I'd waited, sure the sickness would break." "Maybe the next call, maybe tomorrow, the feeling would drop away." "More than anything else, I wanted to sleep like that." "Close my eyes and drift away." "Zebra. 6-3 Zebra." "Zebra." "Zebra, answer the radio." "Come on." "I got one for you." "Pick up the radio and push the button on the side and speak into the front." "Come on." "Zebra?" " Zebra." " Suicidal male bleeding, corner of 44th and 8th." "No further information." "10-4." "We have a call, Chief." "Somebody's bleeding. 44th and 8th." "No, no." "Brake!" "Brake!" "It's the water." "Turn around." "Come on." "Kill me!" "Push it in!" "Do it!" "Kill me!" "Huh?" "Come on." "Kill me." "Just push it." "Huh?" "I'm gonna cut my throat, man." "No, don't!" "Drop the bottle." " Put down the bottle." " He's crazy." "Really?" "You look pretty thirsty, Noel." "You want some water?" "See, I can't do it." "I came out of the desert." "Those people left me in the sun to die." "You came out of the hospital." "You were tied down and hallucinating." "You got some bad chemicals in your head." " There's some medicine at the hospital that'll fix that." " No!" "No medicine." " No medicine." " He got ya." " Do it!" "Man wants to die?" "I know how to kill that mother." "Pop, pop." " Oh, sh..." " Shit!" "Noel!" "Noel!" "Noel!" "Larry, call for backup." "6-3 Zebra, 10-85 forthwith, 44 and 8th." "Get out of the road, you crazy bastard!" "Noel, you didn't let me finish." "We have rules against killing people on the street, okay?" "It looks bad." "There's a special room at the hospital for terminating." "It's a nice quiet room with a big bed." " You mean that?" " Yeah." "Man, thank you, man." "Wait a minute." "How?" "How are you gonna kill me?" "Well, you have a choice." "You can have pills, injection or gas." " Pills." "Definitely pills." " You fucking arsehole!" "Tom Wolls, that crazy motherfucker." " He used to be my partner." " Frank." "This the guy you called about?" "I know you." " Nah, you don't know me." "You don't know me." " Oh, yes, I do, Pedro." "I do." " I know you." "I know him." " I don't think so." "You give my friend here any more trouble, I'll kill ya." " Yeah, at the hospital." " What?" "At the hospital." "He's gonna kill me in the hospital." "Forget the hospital." "I'll kill you here." "This looks like a very bad man I took in a couple of weeks ago... who'd been holding two priests..." "not one, two priests... hostage with a screwdriver, and I told him... if he was ever caught making trouble again," " I'd kick the murdering life out of him." " It's not worth it, Tom." " He's surrendering." " What?" " The war's over." " Not mine." "Hey, Pedro, come here, you little motherfucker." "I just want to talk to you, give you a little psychological first aid." "I'm gonna give you your first lesson on how to be an American." "It's called "Eatin' My Shit."" " Come here." "Tom, don't do it, Tom." "Tom!" "I have to take him to the hospital." " I have to get him to the hospital." " Get up here, motherfucker!" " That's enough!" " Take that!" "There's a double shooting three blocks down. 41st and 8th, confirmed." "We'll do that." "Larry." "Larry." "Larry!" " I'll take it." "Motherfucker!" " That's enough." "I'll do that." "I'll see you over there, okay?" "What happened?" "Oh, man." "Just walked up and shot him." "Not a word." " Damn, that was cold." " E.M.S. Move it." "Where are you hit?" "You see this shit, man?" "Niggas put a hole in me." "Yo, Tiger did this shit, yo." "And money right here work for Outlaw." " We got a gang war about to start, yo." " Take a deep breath." "Major Tom!" "I'm going to Misery!" "You take yours to Bellevue." "Okay, Frank, you take yours to heaven." "I'll take mine to hell." "Let's go." "Get him on the board." "Let's go." "You're gonna feel a stick in your arm." "Don't move." "Listen, I'm quitting, man." "I'm going in the army where it's safe." "I don't wanna die." " No, I wanna die." "I'm the one." " You're not gonna die." " What did you say?" " Shut up!" "You're going to die." "He's not." "Got it?" " Hold my hand, man." " I can't." "I gotta do the other arm." " Hold my hand, man." " Hold this." "If you let go, I swear I won't kill you." "It's all right." "We're here." "Fuck." "He's not breathing." "Call a code." "Noel, let's go." "Let's go!" "Fucking Christ." "So here I am." "And this junkie got something jammed in his teeth." "Now, none of these junkies wanna give mouth-to-mouth." "It was a blow dryer." "So I pulls it out." "His body was cold except for his throat." "It had been blow-dried for an hour." "Junkie had second-degree burns of the tongue." "Did you ever give mouth-to-mouth?" "A long time ago, when I was your age, boy." "Never again." "Chances are you end up with a mouthful of puke." "Junkie puke." "I'd do it if I had to." "It's part of the job." " What about you?" " What?" "You ever do mouth-to-mouth before?" " Once." "On a baby." " Oh, babies." "Now, babies are a whole different thing entirely." "Did I ever tell you about the time that white woman approached me?" "I said, "Ma'am, I'm a true cocksman, and I don't mix my seed. "" "Only time you see me with a white woman when I'm holdin' her for the police. "" "That's the truth." "You shouldn't smoke." "It's okay." "They're prescription." "Works better with a little whisky." "Yeah, that was my brother's problem." "That's why he's passed out inside." "That's it!" "I've had it!" "Can't take it anymore." " You got... blood on..." " I know." "That boy you brought in, he's, uh, shot, wasn't he?" "Yeah." "He's dead, huh?" "Yes." "I think this place stinks." " Our Lady of Misery." " It's crazy in there." "What's the matter with that doctor... who keeps mumbling and poking himself in the eye whenever he talks to me?" "He's working a double shift." "Well, my father's in there." "He's in a coma." "My mother, she's... she's going crazy." "It's like, uh, she's in a trance." "She should go home." "Yeah, well, I'd take her, but somebody's got to stay here." " Did you see him?" " It wasn't him." "You saw him?" "They showed me someone." "It wasn't him." "It wasn't my husband." "Mrs. Burke, they'll take care of him." "You should go home now." "I should know my own husband." "They wouldn't let me see him." "Larry and I'll drop her home." "Help me get her to the ambulance." "Mom, they're gonna give you a ride home." "Come on." "This way." "You want some coffee?" "I have applesauce cake too." " Right here." "Right there." " Oh." "Thanks." "I'll call you if anything changes." "Saving someone's life is like falling in love." "The best drug in the world." "For days, sometimes weeks afterwards, you walk the street making infinite whatever you see." "Once, for a few weeks, I couldn't feel the earth." "Everything I touched became lighter." "Horns played in my shoes." "Flowers fell from my pockets." "You wonder if you've become immortal, as if you've saved your own life as well." "God has passed through you." "Why deny it that for a moment there..." "Why deny for a moment there God was you?" "Taking credit when things go right doesn't work the other way." "When things go wrong, spreading the blame is an essential medic survival tool." ""The elevator broke down." "The boyfriend was crazy."" ""I should've called in sick." "The tube wouldn't go in."" "The god of hellfire is not a role that anyone wants to play." " Good morning, Captain." " What am I gonna do with this guy?" "Pierce, I just got off the phone with Borough Command." "Out of 12 shifts this month, you've been late for nine, sick four." "That includes the shift where you came in late, you went home early." " I'm sick." "That's what I've been telling you." " You're sick?" "You're killing me, do you know that?" "You've got no sick time left according to Command." "I mean, I was told to terminate." "It's okay." "I'll just get my things out of my locker." "Excuse me." "It's not okay." "I-I never fired anybody in my life, man." "I'm sorry, Captain." "Don't take it too hard." "Nobody tells me to fire anybody, ever." "I told them, "Stick it right up your big one." Pardon me." "I said, "You wanna fire him?" "Come on over and do it yourself."" "You know they won't do it." "It's up to you." "You've gotta be strong." " Be a man." " I am a man." "You think they give these to sissies?" "Come on, kid." "This is a weekend of full moons." "Nobody wants to work." "I mean, your partner Larry's called in sick." "Okay, Larry Veeber." "Stupid Stanley too." "Come on." "I need bodies out there." "I got buses that gotta run." "I had to put Marcus on 62-Young." "Hey." "Hey." "You know he's not supposed to work two nights in a row." " You know what we're in for with that one?" " You swore you'd fire me... if I came in late again." " I'll fire you tomorrow." "Even better than that, what was I thinking about?" "I could forward you some sick time." "How about a week?" "A week's not gonna do it." "A week's not gonna do it." " Kid, you're saying no, it ain't gonna do it." "You're going out with Marcus." "Okay?" "Duty calls you, kid." "The city needs you." "Please." "I'll front you sick time." "I'll make it up to you." "Honest to God." "Look at me." "The next time I see you, I'll fire you." " I can bark too." " Pierce, you can do it all." "I never said I could bark better than you." "Go and help..." "Go and help the people of New York." "Go ahead." "Get out there and mop them up for me." "Go ahead." "Do your job." " Do your job." "You're the best." " Put down that crack stem." "Put down that crack stem and drop your jug of sin, your high-heeled skirts and your stock dividends, your patent leather underwear, televised suicides, lap dancers in leotards in delicatessens." "And the Lord said, "If you can find one that isn't a sinner... just one..." " then I will spare the city. "" " My Lord, Mother of Man." "Boy, you look like hell." "What you drinking?" "Captain almost fired me tonight." "I'm on my way out." "Anytime now." "Nobody gets fired, son." "Look at me." "The most they might do is transfer you to the Bronx." "Boy, you look like you aged about ten years since I rode with you last." "I ain't feeling so hot." "I've been seeing the ghosts." " You mean the people we lost?" " Yeah." "If they got to go, got to go." "God bless 'em." "You ever notice people who see shit are always crazy?" "Mm-hmm." "Scientific fact." " I think the worst is over." " Oh, no, son." "It can always get worse." "See, you can't change what's out there." "Only where you're coming from." "So you got to let the good Lord..." "Thank you, Jesus... take over in here." "6-2 Young." "Let's go, 6-2 Young." "Answer the radio." "Marcus, it's Love." "I haven't heard her in months." "Well, no, she only works when I'm on." "I makes her wait." "Drives her crazy." " It is true you and Love went on a blind date?" " Mm-hmm." " She hit you with a bottle?" " Why you gotta bring that up?" "She loves me the way no woman ever has." "6-2 Young, I don't have time for your games." "Now, answer me or do I have to come out there myself?" "Oh, sookie, sookie." "now." "Rough." "Now, see, I usually don't do calls before my coffee, but I think this'll be good for you, son." "6-2 Young is here, baby." "And I'm gonna take care of you." "Come on, white boy." "'Cause Big Daddy Marcus is alive and on arrival, baby." "I'm not your baby, Young." "I'm not your mother either." "You're going to a cardiac arrest." "30th and 11th, north-east corner." "It's a club." "Take the back entrance." "All right, 10-4, sweet mama." "You feeling better, Frank?" " I feel worse." " Oh, that's good, boy." "This here is for you." "I hope we're not too late from you folks holding us up here." "Excuse me." "Right this way." "Get the hell out of my way." "Okay, what happened?" " Please tell me he's gonna be all right." " No, he dead." " You buggin'." "We just signed our first record deal." " Look, he dead, son." "Ain't nothing we can do about it." "Come on, Frank." "That's it." " What do you mean he's dead?" " He's not dead." "It's a heroin overdose." "Let's break out the Narcan." "He's dead, unless you folks wanna stop bullshitting me and tell it straight." "Then, the good Lord willing, we'll try and bring him back." "He broke up with his old lady." " We didn't break up." "We were just seeing other people." " Oh, she broke his heart." " Shut up, arsehole!" "Nobody asked you!" " Was I talking to you?" "Dick, shut up!" "I'm still waiting and this young man here is still dead." " You wanna leave here in a body bag too?" " You'll end up like him, dick!" " Shut up!" " He's been snorting that Red Death stuff." "It's been going on for, like, four days now." "I rebuke the spirit of drugs in the name of Jesus." "What's his name?" " I.B. Bangin'." " What you mean I.B. Bangin'?" " I.B. Bangin'." " What the hell kind of name is I.B. Bangin'?" " I don't know his real name." " It's Frederick Smith." " Okay, Freddy..." " It's Frederick." "Okay, I.B. Bangin', we're gonna bring you back from the dead." "Now, I want everybody here to grab the hand of the person next to you." "Come on now." "We ain't got much time." "And look up towards the heavens." "Dear Lord, here I am again... asking one more chance for a sinner." "Please, Lord, bring back I.B. Bangin', Lord." "You have the power, Jesus." "You have the might." "You have the super light to spare this worthless man." " My God!" "Frederick!" " Rise up, I.B. Bangin'... and start your life anew!" "Oh, thank You, Lord." " What happened?" " You fucking died, you stupid bastard." " I warned you." " Damn, you guys are good." " Not us." "The first step is Love." "The second is Mercy." "That guy I brought in yesterday, post-cardiac arrest." "He's gone." "Burke?" "You're not gonna believe it." "He's showing cognitive signs." "It started with spontaneous respiration." "Now he's fighting to pull out the tube." "He had to be sedated." "He's in CAT scan." "There's no room in I.C.U." " What do you think?" " Who knows?" "It's all lower brain stem activity at this point." "The heart refuses to stabilize." "You know, he coded 11 times since he got here." "But the guy's a fighter." "Every time the Valium wears off, he starts yanking on the restraints." "The family know?" "I wanted to bring them in to see if he'd respond to voices." "But there was no one in the waiting room." "This guy's daughter was in my face all night." "Finally, I got something positive to tell her, she's gone." "You put poison in your veins, and now that you're breathing again, you can't wait to say "Thank you very much" and get back out to poison shopping." "Well, since we saved your life, could you do us a favor... and stop breathing in another city next time?" "I ever tell you about that time years ago..." "I was on this ledge uptown trying to pull this damn psycho inside?" "You mean where the guy jumped and you almost fell?" "No, you never told me that story." "No, you never listened." "There I was." "I put everything I had into saving this dumb-ass, low-life suicidal... that when he went down, it was like I wanted to go with him." "That happened once in Ireland." "This girl jumped off the cliffs of Moher and the wind blew her back up." " The wind blew her back up?" " Yeah, the wind." " No, that was Jesus, son." " It was also the wind." "The wind, my black ass." "That was Jesus." "Don't tell me about the Good Book." "I'll preach heaven and beat the hell out of you." "Don't tell me that now." "I was going, son." "But if someone up on high..." "Thank You, Jesus... hadn't have pulled me in..." "Would you turn left here?" "I wanna make a stop." "The point is, everybody go through a stretch where folks gonna die on you." "Just don't meditate on it." "I'll be right back." "Hello." "It's Frank Pierce from the ambulance last night." "I brought your father into the hospital." " I just learned some news." " I'll be right down." "He's better, isn't he?" "Well, the doctor says he's showing some movement." "I mean, it's still early." "It might mean nothing, but I thought you'd wanna know." "Yeah, I knew." "I sensed it when I heard your voice." "You-You look so different." "Oh." "It's awful, isn't it?" "It's like Night of the Living Cheerleaders." "No, I think it looks good." "Ah, I was going nuts in that waiting room." "I came back to check on my mom." " How is she?" " She's sleeping." "Sleeping." "I was just gonna get some food." "Pizza." "I thought maybe we..." "You can't kill my father that easy." "He's a real fighter, like with me." "He hasn't talked to me in three years." "But it's okay." "Sometimes you just have to put things behind you." "I gotta be getting back." "Hey." "Hey!" "It'll be tough to get a taxi here." "We can give you a ride if you like." "Okay." "Who that?" "She's the daughter of a cardiac arrest I brought in last night." "I told her we'd give her a ride back to Misery." "Her father's showing signs of improving." "Oh, Frank, you got it bad, son." "So much worse than what I thought." " I'm hungry too." "We gotta get something to eat after this." " God, help us." "He's hungry." "Dad?" "Can you hear me?" "It's Mary." "Squeeze my hand if you can hear me, Dad." "He squeezed my hand." "He's moving, Doctor." "He grabbed my hand." "Come on, Dad." "Show 'em." "Come on." "See?" "See?" "I'll be damned." "It's movement." "Just not sure how voluntary it is." "No, he heard me." "Come on, Dad." "Yeah." "Oh!" "Nurse Crupp." "Nurse Crupp!" "Ten milligrams of Valium!" "Get over here." " Where's that Valium?" " Why don't we step out for a little while," " wait till this passes." " Make sure he's breathing." "He wants to pull that tube out." "It's pretty painful." "That's why they keep him sedated." " But it's a good sign." " Are you sure?" "I know my father would hate being tied down." "He wouldn't even go to the dentist." "That's how it's done." "You have to keep the body going until the brain and the heart... recover enough to go on their own." "He's better though, right?" "He's better." "I'm sorry." "It's just..." "It's important to me." "I mean, a week ago..." "I was wishing he was dead." "And now, I wanna hear his voice just once more." "You know what I mean?" "Went over to Ray's and got this." "Must be a place reserved in hell for somebody who charges $1.50 a slice." "Anything comes up, I'll call you." " Bon appetit." " Thanks." " Thank you, Marcus." "Oh, thank..." "I'm not really hungry." "You know, my father's a really wonderful man." "There was nobody he wouldn't help." "You know that crazy guy, Noel, who I gave water to last night?" "He lived at our house for almost a year." "Total stranger he'd do anything for." "His own family, though..." "It's best not to..." "dwell." "Yeah." "It's good pizza, huh?" "Mmm, it's not as good as, uh, Nino's." "You remember that pizza place, Mimi's, on 10th, maybe 15 years ago?" "When you ordered a pie, it came with a little plastic Madonna in the middle." "Saint Anthony, yeah." "You from the neighborhood?" " I grew up on 43rd." "I went to Holy Cross." " Really?" "I went to Sacred Heart." "Where'd you go to high school?" "Well, you know, Mary, we moved out after that." "Upstate." "Yeah." "Like everybody else, except us." " So, your parents..." "Good." " They're fine." "My old man's a bus driver, and Mom a nurse." "Sort of born to it, I guess." " You married?" " Uh, no." "I was." "Hard to explain." "She had a hard time adjusting to, uh..." "Well, maybe-maybe it was my fault too." "White cocksucker!" "Don't be touchin' me!" "Is it always this bad in here?" "How does anybody survive?" " Gosh." " Well, it's been bad lately, but it's-it's always bad." "How long have you been doing this?" "Five years." "Wow." "You must've seen some things, huh?" "Well, no." "I mean, you sort of learn to block it out, you know?" "It's like, um..." "like cops fencing off a crime scene." "But then, something good'll happen." "Everything just glows." "You must get a lot of overdoses." "Bet you picked me up a couple times." "I think I'd remember that." "Maybe not." "I was a different person then." "Does everyone you meet just..." " spill their guts on you like this?" " Uh, mostly." "Must be my face." "My mother always said I look like a priest." "You do." "Yeah." "Yeah, my mom thought I was gonna be a nun... because, uh, I ran away to a convent when I was 13." "But I didn't want to be a nun." "I just..." "I wanted to run away." "Well, Sister Mary or Mary the Junkie, it didn't really matter to me." " You know, I better go check on my father." " Yeah, all right." "Thanks for the pizza." "I owe you one." "Maybe, um, when he gets better." " When we're through with all of this." " Sure." "Look after her, Griss, okay?" "Rule number one:" "Don't get involved with patients." "Rule number two:" "Don't get involved with patients' daughters." " You understand?" "What about rule number three?" "Don't get involved with dispatchers named Love." "Now, boy, you don't know nothin' about rule number three." "Cannot begin to understand the complexities of that rule." "Come on." "Let's go look at some hookers, hmm?" "Kit Kat Club be lettin' out 'bout now." "74-Will. 330, West 33rd." "Church of Jesus Son, for demonic possession." "72-Victor, you're goin' to 8th and 14th." "On the corner, there's a 40-year-old man hearing' celebrity voices." "76-X ray, take it uptown, 541 West 54th St, for the elderly woman abducted by her cat." "Look at these women." "Can't even tell who's a hooker no more." "Whatever happened to go-go boots and hot pants?" "They'll wear anything now." "Walk out the house with whatever they got on." "You got the wrong guy!" "Hands off, baby!" "The street's not like the E.R." "There's no walls, no controls." "To make up for that, they try to teach me how to act without thinking, like a soldier who can take apart and reassemble a gun blindfolded." "Kick his ass!" "Fuck him up!" "Fuck him up!" "Kick his ass!" "Beat the shit out of him, baby!" "Beat the shit out of him!" "I realized that my training was useful... in less than ten percent of the calls, and saving someone's life was rarer than that." "After a while, I grew to understand... that my role was less about saving lives than about bearing witness." "I was a grief mop." "It was enough that I simply showed up." "Except with Rose." "Shut up!" " I'll get ya a glass of water." "Noel, I'm your friend." "Come on, calm down." "I'm gonna take you to a spa." "I'm gonna get you a facial." "Shh, shh." "Get him in there!" "Look-Look-Look at that." "Hmm?" "Look at that." "Leaves you with no idea what's underneath." "Not even a suggestion." "Could be a skeleton for all you know." "Yeah, that-that's nice, though." "Right there." "Mm-hmm." "Pullin' back her hood as we drive by." "See, there's a mystery to it." " Then she shows ya." " She's not a whore, Marcus." "We're all whores, Frank." "You know what I'm talkin' about?" "The way she looked at me." "She wasn't lookin' at you, man." "She was lookin' at me." "Why did you kill me, Frank?" " I didn't kill you." " No, you didn't, Frank, and thank you." "But there's still a couple hours left on our shift." " No, it's not you." "It's some..." " You hearing' them voices again?" " I just need a drink." " What-What them voices sayin' to ya?" "They say, "Kill Marcus!" Okay?" "That ain't funny, Frank." "Look, I don't need shock treatments." "I'm not sick, all right?" " I just need a drink." " Okay." "62-Young, answer the radio." "I have a call for you." "I can't wait all night, Young." "I'm holdin' a priority, and if you don't answer I'm gonna knock you outta service." "62-Young is here, baby, and I'm gonna help you out." "Just remember, you owe me." "You're going to 370 West 98th Street." "17-year-old female, cardiac arrest." "No further information." " 10-4, hon." " Why is everything a cardiac arrest?" "What happened to chest pain, difficulty breathing, fractured hands?" "Come on, people!" "Lord Jesus, help me get through the night." "I hate this block." "Nothin' but crackheads." " I don't wanna go in there without the police." " I'm goin'." "It's easier than waitin'." "E.M.S!" " Ambulance!" " Oh, Jesus." "My bad back." "My feet hurt." "Damn crackheads." " E.M.S!" " Hello?" "E.M.S." "Hello?" "Please, hurry." "Please hurry." "Come this way, please." " She's over here." "This way." "Hurry." "My, oh, my, a fat crackhead!" "Now, that's a first." " What's wrong?" " No English." "She has terrible pain in her belly." " I mean, she's pregnant." " No, no, that's impossible." "We're virgins." "Are you pregnant?" "¿Estas embarazada?" "Can you walk?" "¿Puedes caminar?" " She say she in great pain." " Thank-Thank you." "Thank you for the translation." "What's your name?" "¿Nombre?" "All right, let's have a look." "You two know each other a long time?" "Yeah, two years, ever since we left the island." "This is a personal question, but I gotta ask it." " In all that time, you never had sex?" " No, never." "Maybe you had a couple of beers one night last summer." "You know how it works, son." " No cigarettes, no drugs, no beer." " No underwear?" " We're virgins!" " Oh, Jesus, we'd better go." "Call for backup!" " It's coming." "Hold her down." " My God!" "What the hell is that?" " It's three legs." " That's too many!" " They're comin'!" " Is she dying?" " She's having a baby." "Twins." " That's imposible." "It's possible!" "It's possible!" "She's having a baby, okay?" "It's a miracle." "Contractions stopped." "Help me get her out of here." "Ow!" "Hold it, hold it, hold it." "My back." "Hold it." " All right, look, let's just put her down." "Put her over here." "Let's just put her down." "You take the first one." "It's a boy, Frank." "He looks good." "How's yours?" "Open the door!" "She had a pulse!" "Code!" "Code blue!" " We're set up in Two." " Jesus Christ." "Get her on the monitor." " Where's the pediatric cart?" " It's right here." " Give me the blade." "How many months, Frank?" " Can't tell." " It was a breech." "Twins." "The other seems okay." " Step back, Frank." "Marcus is taking him and the mother to Maternity." "I'm a mother!" "I got a daughter!" "I got rights!" " Start compression." " Give her some Valium!" " Ten mil, stat!" " Flatline." "Let's start C.P.R." " Starting." " Status?" "I think I got a pulse." "I think." " Fuck!" " Nothing!" " Give me an I.V. line." " Call X ray." " I.V. 's in." "Give me epinephrine." " How long has she been down?" " About ten minutes." " Call respiratory." " Excuse me, sir." "Can I please bother you for a cup of water?" " Can we get an X ray here?" "Oh, my God." " For days, I have eaten nothing but sand, O Lord." " Stop compression." " I've waited so long." " All right, status?" " Can I please get some fucking water?" " Flatline!" "Jesus Christ!" "Who woke that guy up?" " Come on." " I've got nothing." "Shit." "Are the parents here?" "Someone's gonna have to tell 'em." "Don't give me that look." " What look?" " You know what look." "It's all over your face." "That I-Just-Saved- A-Little-Baby-Boy look." "We just saved a little, bouncing' baby boy." " Think of it that way." " I don't wanna hear about it, okay?" "That's three jobs for the night." "It's over." "Three jobs." "Time for a drink." "Six A.M.., the cocktail hour." "So, pass the bottle." "I know you're holding." "The bar is now open." "I hate gin." "You know, when I had that little baby in my hands," "I felt like I was 21 again." "Call like that makes me wanna go back to workin' three nights a week, not two." " You know, start runnin' again, cut down on my drinkin'." " I'll drink to that." "Here's to the greatest job in the world." "The greatest job in the world." "62-Young, I have priorities holding'." "Pick up the radio." "Don't do it, Marcus." "Please." "Tell her the bus died." "Tell her the radio's not working." "Tell her our backs are out." "Tell her..." "Tell her we're too drunk to take any more calls." "Okay?" " Let's take it!" " No!" "62-Young, this is Marcus." "Only for you, baby!" "Only for you!" " Keep it to yourself, Young." "Male diff breather, approximately 30." "West End and 72nd." "10-4, hon." "I'm comin', baby!" "Big Daddy Marcus is comin'!" " We comin'!" "We comin'!" " No!" "Lord have mercy!" "Thank You, Jesus." " Are you all right?" " Amen." "Thank You, Jesus." "Oh, thank You, Lord." "Oh, thank You, Jesus." "That is the last time you do this to me, Marcus." " Where are you goin', Frank?" " I quit!" "I'm through." "Oh, you think just 'cause you quit, them ghosts gonna quit too?" "It don't work that way, Frank!" "I've been there, son!" "You need the Holy Ghost, Frank!" "The Holy Ghost!" "Noel." " What's going on, Griss?" " Your friend there just untied the water beggar." "Griss was comin' out to thank her." "Probably saved Griss a murder charge." "She's having a tough time, though." "Excuse me." "You seemed like you were in trouble." "No, I'm all right." "I just..." "I can't stand seeing people tied up." "I'm in that waiting' room for hours, and I'm listenin' to Noel screamin'." "And the only reason that's he's screamin' is 'cause he's tied up!" " Don't seem so bad to me." " Don't say that." "I almost cut my father loose too." "You know, one minute they tell me that he's almost dead." "The next minute, they tell me he's better and I can go in and..." "It's killing me seeing him fight like that." "Well, since you're here, maybe, uh, maybe you could do me a favor and, uh... wait for me outside this building, 'cause I gotta go visit a friend who's sick." "Okay." "I'm only asking you because this is a dangerous building, and there's been some robberies and a woman was raped not long ago, and..." "This woman I'm seeing, she's gonna wanna sit and talk with me all day, but if I can point to you out the window and tell her that you're waitin', then she'll let me out quick." "If anything happens, I'm in 16-M." "Maybe I should come up with you." "If I'm not back in 15 minutes just hit the buzzer, and that way she'll let me go." "If that's what's gonna happen." "I'll come with you." "I'm okay." "I'm just visiting a friend who's sick." "I shouldn't have asked you to come." "You asked me not to come." "Promise you won't go inside." "Fifteen minutes." "You know, everyone at that hospital's crazy!" "I'm going crazy too." "You understand?" "I just have to..." "I just have to relax a little and not feel so guilty all the time." "We can still go back." "I'll walk you home." "You sleep for a couple hours." "Watch some TV." "Take a bath." "Don't be such a cop." "If you have any doubts about this, it's my fault." "You go on home." "Really." "I'm fine." "Thanks." "I don't need you." " Hi." " Hey, Cy, guess who's here." "Can I help you?" "Mary Burke." "She's a friend." "She's not here." "Wait a minute." "You can't go in." " Kanita?" " Hey!" " Hey, Cy!" " Be cool." "Be cool." " It's all good." " He looks like a cop." "No, he ain't no cop." "You're a medic, right?" "I'm Cy." "Cy Coates." "Frank Pierce." "Mary said you might be coming over." " Where is she?" " Sleepin', brother, in the back." "She asked me to pick her up, go out for a movie and a malt and bring her right home." "I know, I know." "I know." "But she told me to tell you she wants to crash here a few hours." "See, it's terrible about her father and everything." "I better just go in and see her." "Frank, see, I call this the Oasis." "It's a refuge from the world out there." "You wanna come in here, relax, sit down." "It's all right." "Brother, she is sound asleep." "She ain't gonna know any difference." "No, I'm gonna go see her." "Well, did you know two people got shot in this building' last week?" "A priest got robbed by ten-year-olds across the street." "Oh, brother, be careful." "That's the Tiger." "Lady's down the hall." "Clean up that nose, brother." "Welcome to Dayrise Enterprises, Frank." "Stress-free factory." "Mary." "Mary." "We have to get going." "She asked for something to help her sleep, brother." "Mary, we really have to go." " Whoa, Frank, she suffered enough, all right?" "Now, she's gonna be fine." "I promise." "Come on, Frank." "Now, I'm always interested in people with stressful occupations." "Now, bein' a paramedic, that's about as stressful as I can imagine." "Go ahead, take a seat." "Sit down." "Tell me some war stories." "You know, what's it like?" "Got a beer?" "Oh, that shit is poison, Frank." "We don't have alcohol around here." "What you need is one of these." "Did-Did you give Mary something called Red Death?" "Excuse me?" "Red Death." "Tell me something, Frank." "Does killing your clients sound like good business sense to you?" "Hmm?" "See, the kids selling' that Red Death are just tryin' to make a quick buck." "They don't got no respect for me or the work I done in this community." "But don't worry." "They're gonna be taken care of." "I got Tiger workin' on it." " I should be going." "I just quit." " Oh, look." "Sleep is all stress reduction." "All right?" "Here." "Now, if you take one of these, sleep for two hours..." "That's all you need." "Why do you think I'm tellin' you this, Frank?" "For my health?" "Now, brother, you gotta look at yourself in the mirror, all right?" "Kanita." "Would you get our new friend here a glass of water, please?" "Oh, you're so fine." "Is this what you gave Mary?" "Yep, that's the stuff." "I call it the Red Lion." "It's very king-of-the-jungle, "Makuna matata," all that." "There's no language." "Just brute power." "But, see, you just ain't gonna believe how relaxing' that shit really is, all right?" " I guess I'll be going." " Just relax." "You at the Oasis now." "All right?" "Take my pulse." "It's good, isn't it?" "It's perfect." "It's two beats per minute." "I knew it." "I was wrong about you." "You're not so bad." " You're in the stomach." " You sure?" "You're in the stomach again." " You're in the stomach again." "Let me try." " One more time." " Rose." " Huh?" "My name, Rose." " Stomach again." " No way!" "No pulse." "Let me try." "No pulse!" "No pulse, goddam it!" "Frank!" "Frank!" "Take it easy!" "Okay, what happened?" " He flipped out!" " All right, now, Frank..." "Frank, be cool, my brother." " You're havin' what you call a paradoxical reaction." " He's psycho!" " Listen to me, Frank." "Frank, where are you goin'?" "You're makin' a mistake." "Yeah, you go." "Okay, that's good." "You go in there." "You go in there, lie down." "Get some sleep, whatever." "Hey." "Look." " Cy, you want me to stop this?" " No, Tiger, it's all right." " You sure?" " It's cool." "Be cool." "Let him go." "Let him go." "Put me down!" "Frank, you are makin' a serious mistake, my man." "She's just gonna come back." "Oh, and Frank, you owe me ten dollars." "Put me down." "Get off!" " Did you and Cy have a nice talk?" " Let go!" "Did he tell you about Dayrise Enterprises helping people?" "Well, I've seen him hurt people." "Why are you following me?" "Because you can barely walk." "You remember Noel from the other night?" "How Noel is now?" "He wasn't always like that." "He was my brother's best friend." "Cy or Tiger or one of those goons put a bullet in Noel's head." "He was in a coma for three months." "He's been crazy ever since." "This is... my building." "What is it with you?" "You wanna help me?" "You feel sorry for me?" "Well, keep it to yourself." "I just need to sit down for a minute." "You wanna fuck me?" "Everyone else has." "Hi!" "Hi." "I've been clean for two years." "No drugs." "I got a job." "I paint when I'm at home." "I don't bother anybody." "Then all this shit happens." "Oh, no, you don't." "Hey, you can't stay here." "Come on." "Get up." "Hello." "I'm Frank." "Mary's friend." "A very close friend who loves animals." "Hello?" "I washed my face with three kinds of soap, each smelling like a different season." "It felt good to be in a woman's room again, especially a woman who wasn't comatose or severely disabled." "I felt like perhaps I had turned a corner... like I saved someone... though I didn't know who." "Hey, Pierce." "You're late, I know it, but I can't fire you today." " I got nobody to ride 66-X ray with Wolls." " No." "I got a form for you to make out about the accident when you get some time." "Come here, kid." "Come here." "Look, I'm gonna fire you tomorrow." "I promise you." "What-What if there is no tomorrow?" "Will you get out of here before I give you a big hug!" ""No tomorrow." I love that kid." "Frank." "Hey, man." "What do you know?" "You and me again, tonight." "The Rough Riders, tearing' up the streets just like old times, huh?" "This old bus is a warrior, Frank." "Just like us." "I have tried to kill him..." "many times, and he will not die." "I have great respect for that." "Okay." "Get up, right now!" "Get up!" "Cool it!" "I already told you you can't go in there!" "Didn't you hear me?" "Don't make me take off my sunglasses!" " Good morning, Griss." " We're full up here tonight, Frank." "Get the hell out of here." "Step back!" "Step back!" "Go to the bank, boy." "Take out everything you can." "Mr. Burke?" "I'm going." "I've had enough." " You do it." " I can't reach." "You're taller." " Don't do it!" " He's getting better." " Better than what?" "It doesn't matter!" " Better than what?" " Why not?" " The family wants us to keep him alive." "The wife wants to believe in miracles." "We keep him alive." "Shock him, Frank." "He'll come back." "He always comes back." "Clear!" " You son of a bitch!" " Nothing." "Shock him again." "Don't do it!" " Son of a bitch!" " Do it again." "Don't do it!" "Frank!" "Jesus!" "Move!" "Move!" "Clear!" "Hey, boy." "Where you goin', Frank?" "Hey, Frank!" "Frank?" "Frank, what the hell you doin' back there?" "I'm sick, Tom." "I need a cure." "Vitamin B cocktail, followed by an amp of glucose... and a drop of adrenaline." "It's not as good as beer, but it's all I got." "Come on, Frank." "There's blood spillin' in the streets." "Let's go have some fun." "Watch out." "You all right?" "These are hard times, Tom." "Yeah, it's great, isn't it?" "It's great to be drunk." "Sobriety's killing me." "Look up in the sky, Frank." "It's a full moon." "Blood's gonna run tonight." "I can feel it." "Our mission:" "to save lives." "Our mission is coffee, Tom." "A shot of the bull." "Puerto Rican espresso." "10-4." "El Toro de Oro." "Blast off!" "This cure's not working, Tom." "Maybe we should go back to the hospital." "Oh, come on." "Don't worry." "Tom will take care of ya." "Put your head out the window." "Get some of that nice clean air." " Come on, stop it!" " Okay, units, it's suicide hour." "14th and 7th." "A man with a noose around his neck and nothin' to hang it on." "66-X ray, don't even think about getting coffee." "I have a call for you too." "66-Exterminator here." "We like our coffee bloody." "This better be good." "My partner's dying to help someone." "You're in luck, X. Your patient awaits you with bleeding wrists in the tunnel." " 10-4." " Tom, where are the Band-Aids?" " This is an ambulance, isn't it?" " Be cool, man." "Look out!" "He does this every time he gets drunk." " You smell that?" " But he hates when I call you guys." "What the hell's goin' on here?" "You gotta take him to the hospital." " He tried to kill himself." " You guys got any coffee?" " Show him your wrist." "Go ahead, show him." " All right, come on." "Let me see." "It's not even bleeding." "He does this all the time." "He ain't right." "It was bleedin' before." "He kept spilling his beer." "I gave him mouth-to-mouth." "You're lucky you didn't kill him." "I wanna hear it straight from the Looney Tunes himself." "Try to bump yourself off?" "Yes." "Yeah?" "Why didn't you say so?" "Come on." "I'm gonna fix you up." "Come on, Frank." "Sir, I am going to give you some medicine that is still very experimental." "It's from NASA." "And although our astronauts have been using it for years, we are the very first service to try it." "Now, I am gonna put this patch on your forehead, like this." "And in about a minute, you will have to relax." "You will lose all your suicidal feelings." "It's very important that you wear the patch for at least 24 hours." "And keep checking the mirror." "If the patch turns green, you have to see a doctor immediately." "The side effects could be fatal." "Okay?" " Okay, now, what did I say?" "What color?" " Uh, clean." " Clean." " "Cream." You said "cream."" " Cream." "Green." " Green." "This, uh..." "Excuse me." "This is the worst suicide attempt I've ever seen." "Can you feel that pulse?" "Here?" "That's where you cut." "And it's not across." "It's down, like so." "Here." "Take it." " I can't." "I can't." " What?" "Oh, I see." "With all the poor people of this city... who wanted only to live and were viciously murdered, you have the nerve to sit here... wanting to die and not go through with it?" "You make me sick!" "Take it!" "Take it!" "We cured him!" "There's nothin' we can't do if we just work together." "I told you to stop for coffee." "Thanks a lot." "It sounds like they're trying to clean up the bus terminal tonight." "Hello?" "Major Tom to Frank." "Time to just say "no."" " Where you goin'?" " Come on, Tom, the city's burning." "What are you doin'?" "I'm driving out of myself." " Uh, these brakes are shot." " I've taken that into consideration." " Frank?" "Frank?" " Yeah?" "Are you okay?" "Never felt better in my life." "How are you?" " I'm good." " Good." "66-X ray." "X ray-66." " X." " First of all, I want you to know how sorry I am about this." "I've always liked you two." "A unit above none." "A legend in its own lunchtime." "So it hurts me deeply to do this, but I have no choice." "You must go to 48th and Broadway." "In front of a liquor store you'll find a 50-year-old male, unconscious." "It says here, "Man smells real bad."" " Do I have to say more?" " But you've said too much already." " Mr. Oh!" " It's early for him." "It's all right." "We're not meant to do Oh tonight." "Something's gonna happen." "I can feel it!" "Sergeant, put me on the back of that jumper." "E.M.S. to Central." "What was that call?" " E.M.S., a jumper." "A shooting." "West Side Projects." " 10-4." "One minute out." "Let's go." "Somebody's gonna kill themselves." "Let's go." "I don't wanna miss it." "66." "66-X ray, level one emergency." "Level one emergency." "I need units." "I need units." "We got fires in the hole." "8th and Broadway." "Shots being fired outside the Dynamite Club. 13th and 6th." "Fired workers are shooting each other at the post office." "Where are my units?" "Where are my units?" "6- 6?" "6-6 X-ray?" "Level one emergency!" "Level one emergency!" "Where are my units?" "The dead are rising, but you can't tell their faces from the smoke!" "Somebody holding' him or somethin'?" "Is he trying to jump?" "Go on home, sinners!" "Go back to your opium pipes and whisky bottles!" " What's with the rabbis?" " They love to hang around with us." "They offered us money for a new rig, so I deputized them." "Back to your slot machines, ribbed condoms, Mexican divorces, your sex clubs and martinis." "Back to your hot oil wrestling, Washington lobbying, organ donation." " What do we bring?" " Better bring it all." "You guys grab all the gear." "Let's go." " This guy a jumper?" " Got a call for shots fired on the 16th floor." " The jumper called right after." " He landed on 14." "I'm goin' to 16." "He must've left the tub on." "That's it." "Nobody else home." "Aye, that's gotta hurt." " Tell him not to move." " I'm going down to 14." "Forget that thing." "Go with the torch." "Go." "Hey, get this, Frank." "We got two patients." "Number one:" "the scarecrow outside." "Number two:" "the big fellah." "Misses the railing but breaks both legs on the balcony." "Then he throws himself through the glass window." "Then he starts crawling that way and, uh, he passed out." " Well, he's our shish kebab for the night then." " Gonna have to torch him." " How's he doing?" " I don't know." "I'm gonna work on Sleeping Beauty." "Hey, big guy!" "Either you jump or you get shot." "What are ya gonna do?" "I think I'd rather get shot." "Drug dealers." " Does that hurt?" " No!" "No." "No." "I don't think you're cut through any major arteries." "We have to get you off this thing without setting off bleeding." "Yeah, that's a good idea." "I'll take your blood pressure." " All right, I'm in." "You in?" " I am now." "If he happens to fall, I don't think anybody'd be cryin' too much." "They're gonna torch the fence." "You're gonna feel the metal getting warm." "Maybe very warm." "I can't hold my head up anymore." "Hold this." "Jump!" "Let him fuckin' go!" " Let him die!" " Let him go!" "So, Frank." "Am I gonna live?" " You're gonna live." " Frank." "That ten dollars you owe me?" " Yeah?" " Keep it." "I've been thinkin' about things, you know?" "Oh, you guys gave me lots of time to meditate on the future." "What'd you do, huh?" "Stop for Chinese on the way over here?" "I was tired." "I needed a coffee." "What about Kanita?" "Dead." "That's, uh..." "That's too bad." "Hmm." "See, Frank, make some money, fine-lookin' lady on your arm, then everybody wants to take a piece." "Yeah, there's some kid... who I wouldn't let wash my Mercedes, comes to the Oasis, starts shooting' at me." "The Red Death Gang." "Bunch of 12-year-olds." "I thought I could make it on the balcony, like Tiger." "But he's fat." "Falls faster." "That's why." "I'm tryin' to watch my weight, and look what happens." "Goddam, that's hot!" "Bring it on!" "Bring it on!" "You can't kill me, duck-ass kids!" "Oh, yeah." "Ooh." "Look at that." "Look at that." "Look at that." "Hey, isn't that beautiful?" "Isn't that beautiful?" "Oh, when the fires start to fall, them that's strongest rule it all!" "Oh!" "I love this city!" "Good thing we clipped you in, huh, Frank?" "What about me?" "Who buckled me in?" " I thought you did." " Nah, I thought you did." " I'm sorry about that, sir." " Yeah, right." "Aah!" "Stop jerking' my pole!" "I-I got a fence up my ass, all right?" "I need something for the pain." "We'll get you another sedative." "And somebody'll be by to take you to the O.R., hopefully sometime this morning." "Hopefully?" "Hopefully sometime this morning?" "Oh, Frank." "Frank." "Psst." "You saved my life." "Yeah, I know." "Nurse Crupp, we're gonna need some Valium here." "He's waking up again." " Where's that Valium?" " Coming." "Frank, give me a hand over here." "I gotta get something between his teeth." " Don't!" "Don't do it!" " Valium's in." "How many times have you shocked him tonight?" "Fourteen." "Finally got him a room up in I.C.U." "He should be up there in a couple hours." "What are you gonna do, just have somebody follow him around with a defibrillator?" "That's a good one, Frank." "No, but we might surgically implant one... around the shoulder over here, 'bout the size of my thumb." "Two electrodes connected to the heart." "Sends a shock whenever he needs it." "Or we could just send him home with a defibrillator." "He could do it himself." "Look." "Last night I was weak, and it won't happen again." "All that shit I was sayin' was just 'cause I was stoned." " Just forget it." " No problem." "Thanks for letting me crash." "It was the best sleep I've had in months." "I used some of your soap." "Did you see my father?" "You know, the doctor said that, uh, that his brain's startin' to come around." "They're just waitin' for his heart to stabilize." "I don't know who to believe." "Can I bring you back something to eat?" "A falafel or some pizza?" "No, we just ate." "I keep thinking about how tough my father was." "Now I know he had to be like that... to make us tough." "'Cause this city, it'll kill you if you aren't strong enough." "No, the city doesn't discriminate." "It gets everybody." "I gotta go." "Another call." "We're all dying, Mary Burke." "Get ready, Frank." "Missed a drug shooting while you were dicking around in there." "Gonna be trauma tonight, baby." "As long as we keep moving." "No standing still." "Look at your screen!" "Give us some blood!" "66-Xray, a man at the bus terminal... shot three years ago says his arm hurts." "Come on, Tom." "Pick up a job." "You want some bum in the bus terminal?" "We'll wait for a real call." " Let's get in a fight then." "That's your job." " Who with?" "Just keep driving." "Keep moving." "No stopping." "We're sharks." "We stop too long, we die." "Let's break something, Tom." "Let's bust something!" "Let's bomb something!" " What do you wanna break?" " I don't know." "Let's break some windows!" " Why?" " Destruction!" "Distraction!" "I feel the need!" "You need a reason, Frank." "You just don't go around breaking people's windows." " That's anarchy." " What's the reason, Tom?" "Give me a reason." "All right, let me think." "Oh, look at this." "Classic cabby move." "Hey, swami!" "It's called a crosswalk!" "You're supposed to stop before it, not on it!" "You Senegalian raghead!" "Motherfucker!" "I know who to work over." "Him!" "This guy's been terrorizin' the neighborhood for weeks, ever since he got out of jail, wreaking general havoc, contributing to the bad name of the place." "You know, the term "menace to society" was made up for him!" " He's crazy." "He can't help it." " Oh, yeah?" "Well, why don't they put him away?" "Prisons don't want him." "I took him to the hospital yesterday." "I gave him a cup of water." "I was very nice to him." "And here he is again." "Oh!" "Look at that!" "Tell me that's a crazy person." "Huh?" "Every move is calculated!" "He knows exactly what he is doing." "Frank, this is the guy." "I've been after him for weeks." "He's quick, though." "He runs like a rat." "He'd be tough for one person." " But with the two of us, you know..." " Okay, what do I do?" "Okay, I'm gonna get out here." "If he sees me, he'll run." "He doesn't like me." "You start talkin' to him about baseball or something." "I'll sneak around behind him and get down, and then you push him." "And when he falls, we get him." " That's ridiculous." " Believe me, it always works." "The simpler, the better." "Okay?" "Havin' fun now!" "That's a hell of a swing you got there, Noel." " I'm thinking Mattingly in his prime." " Mattingly ain't shit." "Me, I swing like Reggie." "Huh?" "Mr. October, number three." "Game six of the World Series." "All right!" "You hit it." "Come on, take a crack at it." "It's okay." "Come on, hit it!" "I better not." "Go ahead." "Give it a go." "Try it." "Yeah?" "Okay." "What the hell." "The next year, tiebreaker for the division in Boston." "The Yanks down two to nothing." "Bucky Dent steps to the plate." " Lucky-Fucky-Bucky, man." " The pitch: high heater." "Bucky knows what's comin'." "He steps in." "Smash!" "Over the Green Monster!" "Yeah!" "Frank!" "What the..." "What the hell are you doin'?" "Huh?" "Now get down those stairs and go after him!" "You meet me back here in ten minutes if you can't find him." "Call out if you see him!" "Remember, he runs like a rat!" "Come on, Frank!" "Get with the programme, man!" "Why did you kill me, Frank?" "I didn't mean to." "You should've helped me." "I tried to help." "I wanted to." "Rose?" " Don't you love me?" " Rose." "Rose?" "To the moon, Alice!" "Little motherfucker!" " Get the kit!" "We're gonna tube him!" " What the fuck?" " Get the kit!" " Frank!" "You're gonna be all right, Noel." "We're gonna save you." "Do it, Tom!" "I'll call for fuckin' backup!" "I swear!" "You'd call for fuckin' backup?" "Fuck you!" "You're gonna make it." "You're gonna make it." "Let him through!" "Let him through." "Bring him through." "Who got that funky motherfucker this time?" "Last show of the night." "What do you got?" "What..." "Oh, boy." " Oh, boy." "Nurse Crupp!" "Anybody else hurt?" " No." "Get him over by the counter over there." " All right, we're gonna need an X ray for a C-spine." " Got it." "I'm gonna need respiratory down here." "Crazy bastard." "At least he's intubated." " Won't hear him screaming' tonight." " People, hear me out." "Now, the path to your well-being and salvation will not be over Griss' body." "You can forget about that, 'cause Griss gets off in 47 minutes." "Then he's goin' home to take a bath." "Nice warm bath..." "Nurse Crupp, I'm gonna need another line here." "Fine." "One second." "Here you are." "Notify CAT scan." "We're gonna need a C.T. right away." "Welcome home, buddy." "Oh, look who we have." "You're gonna have to start paying rent here." " Where are you puttin' him?" " Three." "Give me some gloves, please." "Nurse, call CAT scan." " Tell 'em we'll be there in a couple minutes." " I got it." "Is Patrick Burke here?" "I brought him in." " Frank?" " Yes?" "Where have you been?" "What is it?" "Let me go." "Code!" " What's this?" " He just coded." " What a way to begin the day." "Are we doing C.P. R?" " Mm-hmm." "One mil epi." "Let me see this." " Is this the man who was down in the E.R. for so long?" " Yes, it is." "Seventeen codes." "My God." " Who's this man?" " He says he's the one who brought him in." "The family?" "Seventeen codes." "Well, they must be prepared." "You know how they can be." "Yeah, I know." "Okay, stop C.P.R." "That's it." "I'm calling it. 6:02." "Are you gonna tell the family?" "Die!" "Die!" "Die!" "Son of a bitch!" "Die!" "Die!" "Die!" "Die!" "Die!" "Die!" "Bastard!" "Who is it?" " Frank." " Oh, come on up." "Hi." "He's dead, Mary." "Your father passed." "They just moved him to the second floor, to I.C.U." "He coded." "They shocked him too many times." "I'm sorry." "I don't know how he held on as long as he did." "I'm sorry." "You have to keep the body going... until the brain and heart recover enough to go on their own." "Forgive me, Rose." "It's not your fault." "No one asked you to suffer." "That was your idea." "Noel was almost killed." "I took care of him." "He's gonna pull through." "Would you like to come in?"