Michael Connelly - Blood Work

McCaleb loudly let out his breath in disappointment but Graciela raised her finger in a one-moment gesture. She then hit the screen up key and a new screen of names appeared. There were maybe fifteen more. The name James Cordell sat on top of the new list. She ran her finger down the screen and found Donald Kenyon’s name second from the last.

This time McCaleb’s breath caught and he just nodded. Graciela looked up at him, the somber look of confirmation in her eyes. McCaleb leaned close to the screen and read the information that followed the names. Cordell hadn’t given blood for nine months and it had been more than six years since Kenyon had spared a drop. McCaleb noticed that the final notation after each name was the letter D followed by an asterisk. Other names had one or the other but only a few had the combination of both. McCaleb reached down and tapped the screen below the letter.

“What’s that? Deceased?”

“No,” Graciela said in a quiet voice. “The D means donor. Organ donor. They signed papers, put it on their driver’s licenses, all of that, so that if the time comes that they come into a hospital and die, they can take the organs.”

She looked at him the whole time she said this and McCaleb found it hard to look back at her. He knew what the confirmation meant.

“And the asterisk?”

“I’m not sure.”

She scrolled the screen until she got back to the legend at the top. She ran her finger along the symbols until she got to the asterisk.

“It means CMV negative,” she said. “Most people carry a non-threatening blood virus called CMV. It’s short for some big word. About a quarter of the population doesn’t have it. It’s something that has to be known to make a complete blood work match between donors and recipients.”

He nodded. It was information he already knew.

“So that’s today’s lesson,” Graciela said quietly.

She moved the mouse and McCaleb saw the arrow move to the disconnect icon at the top of the screen. He reached down and grabbed her hand before she could click the mouse button and sign off the BOPRA system.

Graciela looked back up at him, the question on her face. McCaleb looked back at Patrice. He couldn’t talk. He looked around and saw a clipboard on the counter with some forms on it and a pencil connected to it with a string. He signaled with his hand to Graciela, pointing to Patrice and then back to her and making a talking sign with his fingers. He then grabbed the clipboard and started to write.

“Hey, uh, Patrice, how’s Charlie doing?” Graciela asked.

“Oh, he’s fine. Still an asshole.”

“Boy, you guys get along so gooood !”

“Yeah, we’re real lovebirds.”

McCaleb held the clipboard in front of Graciela. He had written three questions.

1. Can you print out that list?

2. Can you call up your sister’s file?

3. Who got her organs?

Graciela hiked her shoulders and mouthed the words I don’t know to him. She then turned to the computer and went to work. First she printed out the list of type AB donors. Thankfully, the computer was attached to a laser printer which did the job almost silently and Patrice paid no notice. McCaleb quickly folded the list lengthwise and put it in his inside coat pocket. Next, Graciela went back to the original welcome screen and pulled down a window of commands. She clicked the mouse on an icon that showed a red heart. A screen that saidORGAN PRO -CUREMENT SERVICES appeared and there was another template seeking an access code. Graciela hiked her shoulders, looked up at the code taped above the screen and typed it in again.

Nothing.

The arrow switched to an hourglass and nothing happened. McCaleb looked at his watch. It was 12:15, the end of the window of opportunity they had agreed upon. Patty Kirk would be back any moment and they would be discovered. When she had planned all of this out, Graciela hadn’t said anything about how they would explain what they were doing if they were caught.

“I think the computer’s freezing,” Graciela said.

Out of frustration she whacked the side of the monitor with an open hand. McCaleb always considered it amazing how many people thought this might help a computer. He was about to tell her not to bother when he heard the wheels of Patrice’s chair move. He turned to see her getting up. Maybe she was going to take a shot at the computer also.

“There it goes,” Graciela said.

McCaleb kept his body between Patrice’s view and the computer.

“Damned thing,” Patrice said. “It’s always doing that. I’m going to go upstairs to the porch for a Coke and a smoke. See you later, Graciela.”

She smiled at McCaleb.

“And nice to meet you,” she added.

McCaleb smiled.

“Nice to meet you,” he said.

“See you later, Patrice,” Graciela added.

Patrice walked around the counter and out into the hallway. She never looked at the computer screen as she passed. When she was gone, McCaleb looked down at the screen. There was a flashing message across it.

LEVEL 1 ACCESS ONLY

TRY AGAIN

“What’s that mean?”

“It means I don’t have the code to get into that file. What time is it?”

“Time to go. Sign off.”

She clicked on the disconnect button and McCaleb heard the chick-chick sound of the telephone connection being broken.

“What were you doing?” Graciela asked. “What did you want?”

“I’ll tell you later. Let’s get out of here.”

She got up, moved the chair back the way she had found it and they hurried around the counter. Out in the hallway they took the first right and headed back toward the elevators. They walked quickly, as if they were thieves. There was a woman coming toward them, carrying a can of Coke and a Styrofoam sandwich box. She was about eighty feet away and she was smiling at Graciela.

“Oh, shit,” McCaleb whispered. “Is that-”

“Yes. We’re cool.”

“No, stall her.”

“Why? We’re fine.”

He raised his hand to rub his nose and block his words from traveling to the approaching woman.

“The screen saver. They don’t usually come on for at least a minute. She’ll know.”

“It doesn’t matter. We’re not stealing government secrets.”

As it turned out, Graciela didn’t have to stall. Patty Kirk stalled herself.

“Graciela, what are you doing here?” she said as they approached. “I just saw Jane Tompkins in the cafeteria and she was bitchin’ about you not coming in again.”

They stopped and Patty Kirk stopped.

“Don’t tell her I was here!” Graciela urged.

“Well, what are you doing?”

She raised her hand to signal Graciela’s uniform.

“This is my friend, Terry. He’s pre-med. UCLA. I told him I would show him around today ’cause he might transfer his residency here. I thought with the pinks on, it would be a lot easier to get around. Terry, this is Patty Kirk.”

They shook hands and smiled. McCaleb asked how she was doing and she said fine. He had visions of those flying toasters finally returning to her computer screen.

Patty Kirk looked back at Graciela and shook her head.

“Janie’s going to kill you if she finds out. She thought it was something with Raymond again. You owe me big time for this, girl.”

“I know, I know. Just don’t tell her, okay? Everybody is mad at me down there. She’s the only friend I’ve got left.”

They said their good-byes and McCaleb and Graciela moved on to the elevator. When Patty Kirk was out of earshot, Graciela asked if the stall was long enough.

“Depends on what the screensaver is set on. But it’s probably okay. Let’s get out of here.”