Even in Forrest’s weakened state; Liu was still hesitant about telling him that they were no longer controlling the bugs in the complex. Of the 152 he had used, the only ones left were the sixteen in the relay chain to the shaft. He had set them to return ‘home’. They would do this automatically once they were exposed to sunlight. Since they were invisible, there was no danger of them being intercepted. Liu’s cell phone vibrated. He read the text message. ‘It’s time.’
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Eli watched and waited. Through his Bluetooth link to Liu’s laptop, he watched Liu hack into the hospital’s computer system. He set the cameras in the room to play a thirty second pre-recorded loop that he’d taken earlier, of Forrest alone in his room sleeping. He slipped on a pair of latex gloves and produced an insulin syringe, filled with a clear liquid, from his pocket. He grinned as he approached the sleeping man. “I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time, you sick bastard.”
Just as he took the cap off the syringe, the speaker above Forrest’s bed hissed. “Mr. Liu, we need to see you at the nurse’s station. There’s a problem with Mr. Forrest’s medical records.”
“What kind of problem?”
“We have conflicting information, concerning the DNR order on Mr. Forrest’s chart.”
“I’ll be right there. Shit! Now what?” Liu took off his gloves, recapped the syringe and left the room. Ten minutes later he came back, frustrated from the interruption. His uncle was waiting for the call that the job had been done, and now Liu had to start over. He re-donned his gloves, restarted the camera feed loop and cautiously approached Forrest again.
The red light on the camera behind Liu flashed and started recording, again; Liu didn’t notice.
Remembering how Forrest had nearly strangled him before, Liu kept a close watch on Forrest’s movement. Forrest didn’t flinch. With a grin of satisfaction, Liu quickly finished the job. “End of the line Toothless Tiger,” he hissed, picked up his rubbish and stepped out onto the balcony.
A few seconds later, the alarm on Forrest’s respirator went off. His EKG went ballistic. Forrest’s body gave a couple of strong jerks and stilled.
Liu glanced at his watch, waited a few seconds and turned. Seemingly frantic, Liu rushed in the room and watched as the doctor checked Forrest. “It’s over,” he sighed. “I’m calling it. Time of death 11:05 pm.”
The doctor walked over to Liu. “Would you like a moment alone with him?”
“Yes, I would,” Liu said, appearing to be upset.
The doctor motioned for the nurse and they left, closing the door behind them.
Liu pulled Forrest’s briefcase out and quickly scanned through the documents in it, hoping to find a copy of Forrest’s will. It wasn’t there. He was pleased to see several copies of Forrest’s signature and a document bearing Wilson’s signature. Perhaps he wouldn’t need the will, after all. He was also pleased to see that Forrest’s pen was tucked in one of the upper pockets. “Well ‘Tai-Pan{6}‘,” he said, mocking Forrest. “I had hoped to watch you suffer longer, but that was not to be. It may take Meng Po{7} some time to decide which of the 18 chambers{8} to put you in first.”
Liu picked up Forrest’s briefcase and walked out the door. He stopped by the nurse’s station and let them know they could pick up Forrest’s body. He stepped out of the hospital and hailed a taxi. “Take me to the Vermont Hotel,” he said and crawled in the back. With a satisfied smile, he opened his cell phone and pressed a speed number. “It’s done.”
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Richard went back to Donna’s room. Sam was still sitting there as promised. He’d concealed the letter and with difficulty, regained his composure. After having read her letter, it was going to be more difficult for him to keep his feelings hid. He’d been right. Donna was in love with him; she’d admitted it. If the virus worked, Sam now had something to hope for.
“Anything?” Richard asked.
“No.” Sam stood.
“Has Sheila been in, since I left?”
“She came in and checked on her about five minutes ago. You know if she pulls through this, Sheila is going to want some kind of explanation. What are we going to tell her?”
Richard frowned. “Sam, if my wife and baby are OK, I couldn’t care less, what she’s told. I’ll let my Dad worry about that.” Sam slowly stood and turned. Richard held out his hand. “Thank you, Sam, for saving their lives.”
Sam glanced at Richard’s hand and studied his eyes. “I haven’t saved them, yet, Richard. Donna is still brain dead.”
“I know, but it was your quick thinking that made giving her the virus possible. If you hadn’t had a hunch about the neurotoxin and hadn’t known what to do, Donna would have died. So, for that, thank you.”
Sam swallowed the lump in his throat and shook Richard’s hand. “I hope you realise, just how lucky you are.”
Richard grinned. “I do Sam.”
Sam snorted and left. He met Lady Triplet as she was leaving the waiting area. “Here, let me help you,” he said, reaching for her arm.
Lady Triplet jerked her arm away and glared at him. Sam’s eyebrows shot up; he threw up his hands. “Fine – suit yourself. It’s your broken bones. I was just trying to help.”
Lady Triplet leaned forward on her cane. “You’ve helped enough already, young man. Stay away from my grandson’s wife!” she forced through clenched teeth. “Donna does not need dross like you. She has Ricky. She has his baby, and she has the Triplet fortunes. Heed my words – leave her alone!”
Sam shook his head. Sheila stepped into view. “Looks like Lady Triplet stamped ‘unapproved’ on your forehead, as well.”
Sam grinned. “At least it’s a better place than where I stamped her,” he said, patting his backside. He put his arm across Sheila’s shoulders. “Come on. Let’s give the neighbours something to talk about. Have a drink with me in my quarters.”
Sheila smirked at him. “Just a drink?”
“Yes, Sheila,” Sam chuckled. “Just a drink. I’m off the market – remember?”
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A soft tap on the door and the click of Lady Triplet’s cane roused Richard. He slowly lifted his head off the bed and grinned. “Hello Grandma. I was wondering when you’d get here.” Richard stood and gave her his chair.
“Your father just told me. I’m a little hurt that you didn’t let me know sooner. How is she, Ricky?”
“The same. There’s been no change.” He pulled up another chair and held Donna’s hand again.
Lady Triplet softly touched Donna’s face and faked a smile. “She is so much like her mother. She’s got the same sweet smile and determination.” More so than I’d hoped. She tenderly patted Richard’s hand. “You don’t worry, Son, your new wife and baby will be just fine. It’s just going to take a lot of love and a lot more patience. Grandma is not going to let anything or anyone take them away from you.”
Richard smiled and put his hand over Lady Triplet’s. “I know Grandma.”
“Now, if you won’t go back to your quarters, lay your head down on the bed and rest. I’ll see to our Donna. If she so much as twitches, I’ll let you know.”
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Gary sat in the cafeteria. Kindle in one hand, a cup of hot coffee in the other. He was busy scanning over Donna’s notes on the virus while he finished his crumpets with cream cheese and blueberry conserve. Six hours had passed, and there had been no change in Donna’s condition. He was beginning to think that maybe they’d been a little too optimistic. According to Donna’s calculations and spreadsheet, they should have seen some results, but they hadn’t. Donna still had no brain activity – not even sporadic. Something had gone wrong, but without Donna there to figure it out, the only thing they could do was wait and hope.
The only other person who knew anything about the Dine'é Kay-Yah gene was Jared, but he was not a genetic engineer. Gary wasn’t sure Jared understood the gene’s functionality. That was another thing weighing heavy on his mind – Jared. Gary had faithfully promised Jared if anything like this should happen that he would let him know. Why couldn’t Gary bring himself to make the call? He knew if he did, Jared would be there – one way or the other – by Donna’s side to the end. It wouldn’t make any difference to Jared what Richard, or Sam, or even Sir Richard had to say, and none of them could stop him. Maybe that was why Gary hadn’t kept his promise. Did he fear Jared’s rage, or the look of betrayal he would get from him? Whatever the reason, the longer he waited, the worse it was going to be. Gary pushed a hand through his hair and groaned. “Even now, she’s got me between a rock and a hard spot. Maybe I should be asking myself what D would want?” Gary’s inner voice screamed at him. You already know the answer to that! He softly chuckled and shook his head. “Of course I do!”
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All night, Richard and Lady Triplet had sat by Donna’s bedside. After he’d fallen asleep, holding her hand, Richard decided to go back to his quarters for a quick shower, and a shave. He couldn’t understand. Why hadn’t they seen a change? Was the virus even working? The Dine'é Kay-Yah healing gene was part of Donna’s DNA. She should have healed faster than Alan or Melissa, yet she hadn’t. It had healed Donna’s surgery. It had healed her gunshot wound. Were they simply asking too much of the virus to bring back the dead?
Daria Lupu had once tried to explain this to Richard - choice and consequence, but until now he’d never understood. If Daria had been right, it was starting to make sense to him. If he hadn’t gone to the States if he hadn’t come between Jared and Donna, this might not be happening. Had that been a wrong choice on his part? Would losing Donna be the consequence of that choice? What about the baby? How did it fit into the bigger picture? What led Donna to believe his birth was so important?
Richard sank to the side of the bed. For a long while, he stared at the image of Rich, in Donna’s locket. He closed the locket and sighed. “Pet... what do you see that I don’t?” He put Donna’s jewellery in the bedside table and went back to the infirmary.
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“How is she, Dad?”
Sir Richard stood as Richard entered the room. “The same, Son,” he sighed.
Richard sat in the chair and took Donna’s hand. He bent over and kissed her forehead and then sat in the chair beside her bed. “Has Sam or Sheila been in?”
“They came, not long after you left. Sam ordered some more blood work. He’s concerned that she may go into renal failure. If she does…” Sir Richard broke off. He lowered his head and swallowed the lump in his throat. “I’m sorry, Son.”
Richard turned cold determined eyes on his father. “I’m not giving up, Dad!”
“I know, Ricky, but time may come when we have to make a decision. She can’t communicate with us. For all we know, Donna may be in pain. The question is how long do we wait? Letting go is never easy, Ricky, but sometimes, we have no choice.”
“Yeah, well, I’m not ready to make that choice, Dad.”
Sir Richard’s cell phone rang. “Sir Richard, it’s Gary. Has there been any change?”
Sir Richard shook his head and swallowed. “No, there hasn’t.”
“I need to speak with you. It’s about Donna.”
Sir Richard glanced at Richard’s back. “Meet me in my office.” He ended the call. “Ricky, I need to take care of something. I’ll be back soon.”
Richard nodded and kissed the back of Donna’s hand. “I’ll be here.” Sir Richard patted his shoulder and left.
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“Gary, are you sure about this?” Sir Richard incredulously asked.
Gary swallowed hard. “No, Sir, but I think it’s the right thing to do.”
“You know what this could mean.”
“Yes Sir, I do. Believe me. I’m not looking forward to it either. This is one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make.”
“Ricky is not going to agree, and neither is Sam.”
Gary sighed. “Under the circumstances, Sir Richard, I don’t really care what they think. I’m not doing this for them. I’m doing this for D. I promised I would look out for her best interests, and that’s what I’m doing. This is what Donna would want. I don’t want to fight you on this, but if I have to… I will.”
Sir Richard studied Gary’s eyes. “I’m not going to fight you. I think you’re right. It is what Donna would want.”
“Then let’s get this over with.”
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