As soon as Robert ended the call with Andy, he finally released all the stress he was feeling from seeing her in pain and not being able to be around her. He paced around trying to think of a way to help Andy, but he didn't know what to do. He needed to be close to her, to take care of her. And all that distance was being cruel to them.
Robert didn't think long and soon made the decision he needed. He picked up the phone and called Lucas.
Lucas: Sully? Is everything OK? You calling me at this time of night... did something happen?
Robert: Luke, I need to get back to Seattle.
Lucas: Wow. I never imagined that one day you would say that.
Robert: Neither do I... Look Luke, I know we're not at our best yet, but if I can ask you a favor, get me a job in Seattle. I don't care if I need to lower my patent, I just need a spot.
Lucas: If you had told me earlier, I could have signed you up to replace Captain Herrera from Season 19, who is retiring. But now the candidates are already being evaluated and we are almost completing the selection process. Probably, Captain Herrera's daughter, Lieutenant Herrera, will replace him. She is without a doubt the best candidate.
Robert was happy with what he heard. He knew how hard Andy was trying to get that spot while taking care of her father. She deserved the job and was competent to do so.
Robert: I understand. But if there is another vacancy, please let me know. I have an urgent need for my return.
Lucas: Any special reason?
Robert was silent.
Lucas: Sully I know you. There's a woman involved in this story and for you to be wanting to return to Seattle, I see it's not an adventure. You are in love.
Robert: Okay. I can't lie to you. But it's not something I can talk about yet.
Luke: All right. I will not insist. But know that I was happy to hear that you are finally opening your heart to love. I know you suffered a lot with Claire's death and it's good to know that you're slowly getting your life back on track.
Robert: I never thought I could feel for someone the way I felt for Claire, but I found someone who made me feel alive again and yes, I fell in love with that person. That's why I need to get back to Seattle. To be close to her.
Lucas: At the moment I don't have any vacancies to offer you, but I will do everything to help you get back to Seattle.
Robert: Thank you.
Robert ended the call and tried to sleep, but his head was thinking about Andy. How bad it was to know she needed him and he couldn't do anything for her. But at least now he was hopeful that Lucas would help him get a position in Seattle and finally he could be available to Andy whenever she needed him.
The next day, Andy woke up a little calmer. She needed to get ready to go to the hospital, but her heart was asking her to call Robert, as she was feeling selfish asking him such a sacrifice.
Then, still lying in her bed, she called Robert.
Andy: Good morning, did I wake you up?
Robert: Good morning my love. I was already awake, but even if I was sleeping, I would wake up to talk to you. Are you a little calmer?
Andy: Yes.
She replied a little sad and at the same time thoughtful, as she wanted to choose the right words.
Andy: Robert, I'm sorry about last night. I shouldn't have said I wish you lived here, in Seattle. I said that without thinking and I was selfish putting my pain above yours. I know everything you went through in your last days living in Seattle and I will never forget how you felt when you first returned here. So I'm sorry I asked you for something that might cause you pain.
Robert: Andy, you don't have to apologize for that. On the contrary. I want you to tell me everything you're feeling. I am very worried about you and of course your father too. All I wanted at that moment was also to be close to you and it hurts me a lot to see you sad and crying.
Robert decided not to talk to Andy about his desire to return to Seattle. Even though Andy regretted what he'd said the day before, he was determined to move in close to her. He couldn't stand the distance anymore. But at the same time, he didn't want to create false expectations or make her anxious about something he didn't yet know would be possible. Also, he wanted to make a surprise when everything was set for his return.
Andy: Anyway, I shouldn't have said that. I miss you yes, but I understand all the reasons that keep us apart and just hearing your voice a little every day makes me feel better.
Robert: You can call me whenever you want. No matter the time, I will always be ready to listen to you and somehow help you.
Andy: I know that you will always be with me, even if far away. I thank you for that.
Andy heard the doorbell ring. It was Ryan, who was taking her to the hospital to visit Pruit.
Andy: Ryan is coming to go with me to the hospital.
Robert: I feel sad that I'm not by your side, but knowing that Ryan is helping you, supporting you in this difficult time, I feel a little reassured that you're not alone.
Andy: He's been helping me a lot and as soon as we can reveal our secret, I want you to know him.
Robert: I hope that soon we can all be reunited. Me meeting Ryan and talking to your dad and you meeting the real Luke.
Andy: I can't wait for that to happen. Now I need to hang up or I'll be late for the hospital.
Robert: Send me news when you get out of the hospital. And never forget that I love you.
Andy: I love you so much too.
So they ended the call and Andy headed to the hospital with Ryan.
When Andy and Ryan arrived at the hospital, they found Pruit much better than the day before. He was awake and the tube had already been removed. Andy was overjoyed with what she saw and tears started to roll down her face.
Pruit: Hija, I scared you yesterday didn't I? I'm sorry.
Andy: It wasn't your fault papi. But yeah, I was really scared to see you like that.
Pruit: Dr. Bailey said it was my body reacting to the cancer.
Andy: She told me that too, but I can't help but think you might have died if Ryan hadn't come to our house.
Pruit: Let's not think about what could have happened. Let's just be grateful that I was rescued in time. So thank you Ryan for bringing me to the hospital and also for always helping my Andy.
Ryan: No need to thank me and I'm glad to hear you're okay.
Knowing that Andy had arrived, Dr. Bailey went to them.
Bailey: Andy, I repeated all the exams and your dad is doing great. It was really a reaction to the treatment and now, we have already adjusted the doses of the medicine and this should not happen again. Furthermore, we have seen that the cancer is regressing in a very satisfactory way and I believe he will have a 100% recovery soon.
Andy: This is so good Dr. Bailey. I appreciate the attention and care of my father.
Bailey: We'll see how he looks in the next 24 hours. If he stays well, he can go home. But for today, I want him to be alone to rest. You can stay another 20 minutes with him and then you have to go. You can return tomorrow.
Andy: ok.
They did as requested by Dr. Bailey. They stayed in the hospital for a while longer and then each went to work.
The next day, Pruit was released to return home. Andy picked him up in the morning, and coincidentally, that was her day off, so she can stay home all day taking care of her dad.
After lunch, while Pruit slept, Andy talked to Robert and told him that her father had improved and was already home. Robert was happy with the news and felt a little more relieved to know that Andy wasn't sad anymore. But even as Pruit improved, Robert was determined to live in Seattle and was eager for Lucas to get him a position in the city.
It had been three days since Robert requested his transfer to Seattle. That morning, he was woken up by a call from Lucas.
Lucas: Sully, good morning! I have good news for you.
Robert: Hey Luke. You can say.
Lucas: The season 12 captain has filed for retirement. He will only work this month. I'll pass the vacancy over to you. But for that, I need you to come to Seattle so we can start preparing your transfer.
Robert: I don't know how to thank you. I had already communicated to my superiors here in Montana that I intended to move to another city. So give me a few days, and I'll definitely go to Seattle.
Lucas: ok. You have that deadline. I will be waiting for you.
Robert: Thank you very much.
Robert was happy with the news. He could finally get along with Andy and being the two captains, they would have the same rank and it would be okay to assume their relationship for everyone.
He wondered how Andy would react to the news of his move. So, he decided he would keep the surprise and not say anything to her.
Robert went to work and began to prepare all the necessary paperwork for his transfer. He also decided that later that day he would start packing all the things from his apartment to ship to Seattle.
Two more days passed. In Seattle, Pruit was recovering more and more each day. He already felt so good that Andy could go to work and leave him alone. Sometimes he even took a walk around the neighborhood to get out of the house for a bit. Finally things were calming down.
At the station, it was Jack's day to take charge. Everyone was in the kitchen when Chef Ripley arrived.
Lucas: Gibson and Herrera, I need to talk to you two at the office.
The three went towards the office and then the chief said:
Lucas: I got a report of a fire in a building downtown. It's a massive fire and soon you'll be triggered. During all the days that I have evaluated your work, we have not received a call as important as this one. That's why I've decided that you two will take over the station together. I want both of you to act as captains so that I can assess you in more extreme situations than you have faced in the last few days.
Andy – Jack: Okay chief.
As expected, at that same moment, the alarm was triggered and everyone headed for the building.
It was a 15-story office building. Some teams were already working on site and as it is a famous building in the city, many fire brigade commanders were present, closely monitoring the situation.
Station 19 was assigned to evacuate and fight the fire the 15th floor.
Andy and Jack stayed outside doing the radio command while the team went upstairs to start work. When they reached the floor, they saw that it was a big office, with lots of papers and wooden furniture that made the fire spread faster, however, there was almost no one in the place. There was only one female lawyer who was working in her office and next to her was her baby that she had taken with her to work.
The woman and child were frightened but uninjured. Maya and Travis went to tend to the victims while the rest of the team tried to put out the fire. They were managing to control the situation, but they realized that the only door that had not been hit by the flames was the one at the back of the building, however, that door was closed.
Woman: This door is locked because it can only be opened with biometrics and only my boss could open it.
The team was trying to fight the fire, but with the door closed, they found themselves trapped and with no alternative to exit the building. With that, they needed to ask for backup on the radio.
Maya: Captain, the fire spread very quickly. We have no way out via the elevator or the main stairs.
Travis: The only door that hasn't been hit is the main office door, but it has a biometric system and we don't have the resources to open it.
Andy and Jack became concerned about their team's situation and went to call other teams for help.
Andy: Chief, we need backup on the 15th floor. Our team is trapped between the flames.
All the other stations were also busy, scattered throughout the other floors of the building. When the chief verified the situation of the floor, he thought it was risky to send another team to the site, as the 13th and 14th floors were also already very compromised.
Lucas: We can't put any more of our own at risk. I've asked all stations to leave the building immediately until we analyze a safe way to get your team.
Jack: They can't be kept waiting. They need to get out of the way.
Lucas: I'm sorry, but we still don't have a sure way to get there.
Meanwhile, on the 15th floor, the team began to despair, as the child was already getting his breathing compromised. So Maya took off her helmet and put it on the baby so he could have ventilatory support.
Travis: Captain, Maya is out of oxygen because she passed hers on to the baby and soon we're going to need to put oxygen on the mother too.
Andy and Jack looked at each other and through the exchange of looks they decided they would go and help their friends themselves. So, they took the necessary equipment and were already preparing to go up when they heard the boss say:
Lucas: You are not allowed to go upstairs. It's not safe.
Andy: Our team is at risk of death. He has a woman and a baby with them. We're not going to stand here and wait for them to die.
Jack: Sorry chief, but we're going up.
Lucas: I said you are not allowed to go upstairs.
Andy and Jack ignored what the chief said and went upstairs.
One of the top fire department chiefs, Dixon, saw what happened and went to Lucas.
Dixon: Are those the two candidates that you told me are the best options to take over station 19?
Luke: Yes. These are Lieutenant Herrera and Lieutenant Gibson.
Dixon: Then review your choices or prove to me that they really deserve the job, because what I saw here was two adventurers who want to be heroes and a scenario of disrespect for their authority.
Soon Dixon withdrew.