Dark as Daylight Ch. 25

Everything, and everyone in the operating room stopped moving, waiting for the phone to ring.

It did.

The transportation coordinator followed the surgical nurse through the sterile area, where they passed their contemporaries going in the opposite direction. As they reached the assigned area to drop off the carrier. A nurse on the receiving end, cut open the seal, and opened the carrier. She removed the box from the dry ice, and unsealed the plastic box. She signed the paperwork, placed the plastic box in front of Doctor Reynolds, who removed the heart from the gel. Doctor Reynolds placed it into the chest of Lucius Canyon, above the connections to the heart lung machine.

"Lucius, I sure hope you knew what you were doing. This heart is not nearly as good as the heart you gave up."

He looked up and said, "Someone call that tall, brick shit house that was in here with the Colonel. Tell him where we are, at this moment, and we are starting the implant on his mentor. I don't want him to start breaking down walls, and eating them, while he's waiting. Check Matti's time and reset our clock to hers, and give her our time."

"Yes Doctor."

"Okay people, let's start the reverse process of what we just finished doing on this man. Let's keep him alive for as long as the rest of his body will allow him to go on."

Celia said, "I'll drink to that. Put a move on it Doctor, I don't like the way his blood pressure is fluctuating."

"How can his blood pressure be fluctuating, when he is on the heart-lung machine?"

"Check this machine, and make sure it's working properly. If it's not, get a replacement in here, quickly."

The technician checked the equipment and replied, "According to the computer, the machine is working perfectly. Just to be on the safe side, I'll get a replacement in here, as a backup."

"Excellent thinking Rodriguez, better to be safe than sorry in the long run."

"You are a chicken, Celia."

"Colonel Canyon is your patient, Doctor, not mine. If he dies, you have to sign the death certificate, not me. If that wall that talks gets his hands around your throat, I will not resuscitate you. I will give you a blessing, from my home country, and tell God you're on your way to hell, on the express bus, so he can wave goodbye to you."

"Celia, you are mean, when you are angry. What did I do to hurt you?"

"You took liberty with one of my patient's, Doctor. I don't like losing a patient, who is under my care. I would rather take a 5-inch needle, and stuff it up your nose, with a little formaldehyde, and pickle your brain with it, then lose a patient, who is expecting my best work."

"The physician's oath, 'Do No Harm.' Today Celia, this man will go to his room alive, because we will do our best work, together. I love talking while my hands are busy putting together the veins and arteries of a human heart. The first time I touched this heart, I thought it was a lost cause. Now, it almost seems viable. The back, which was almost gelatinous, when Matti removed it from Mrs. Zabo's chest a few months ago, has some substance to it now. It's not great, by any means, but it has a fibrous membrane across the back of it that it didn't have before. It's flexible, and it contracts as a human heart is designed to do as its pumping blood. I believe, when Matti used the red laser on it, after we finished scraping all that green junk off it, she probably destroyed all the bacteria that remained, not only on the heart, but on the new vein that was added to replace the diseased vein. That woman takes no chances with her patient, none at all.

The rest of the disease that remained inside her, probably died off, because of the drug cocktail her body was subjected to after surgery. This heart, given a long time, a great deal of rest, and the best care ever given a cardiac patient, may even work as it was designed to do for many years to come. Then it could be used as a temporary transplant to another high-risk patient, because we know this patient will not be with us for an extended period of time"

"This patient will determine that, Harvey. He only has months to live according to his tests. Let's do our part to keep him alive, and let the medical doctors do their job."

"I couldn't agree more. Another 70 minutes, and I will be ready to close."

"Tell me when I should start bringing him up. The sooner I start, the better I will like it."

"I would like to keep him asleep, while his chest is open. I don't like patients seeing their insides, while I'm working on them."

"Harvey, I am never inviting you to dinner, again."

"Thank you very much, Celia. The last time I went to your place for dinner, the fire department showed up to make sure the building wasn't on fire."

"How was I supposed to know you're not supposed to put out a grease fire, with water?"

"Common sense, Celia! You never mix an acid with a base, oil and water don't mix, and so on. We learned that in grammar school labs. You use salt or baking soda to put out an oil fire. Salt is best. You noticed my wife dove out of the way, when she saw you trying to put water into that pan. I was amazed you survived, without a burn anywhere. I'm amazed I survived, without a burn anywhere. I just stood there, in shocked amazement at what you did."

"Here I thought you were brave, like me."

"I was as stupid as a Buffalo."

"Yes, Buffalo are a stupid species, aren't they?"

...In Operating Room 9 Matti was engrossed in her work.

"How the hell do you do that, Matti? Every stitch, on every vein and artery, comes out exactly the same as the one before it."

"This is my 2032^nd heart operation, Steve. If I don't have it down pat by now, I never will."

"I work with every other heart surgeon in this hospital, and not 1 of them gets every stitch to come out exactly the same as the one before it. You are just not human when it comes to your stitches. You are like a machine; your stitches are perfect every time."

"I'm not sure I like the machine equivalency, but I will take it as a compliment. The less I have to trim off, the less chance there is of anything being left inside the body of my patient, to contaminate the operating field. If I can keep the field pristine, the less chance of infection setting in."

"As always, Matti, you have the perfect answer to a complex question. I didn't consider the possibility of a sterile string causing an infection, as time went by. Even though the string is treated, and supposedly disease resistant, there is always the possibility that one part will cause an infection."

"It's another reason we use suction to clear the field, Steve. It's not only for blood, and tissue. It's to clear up everything else we doctors' can accidentally leave behind. We don't want to sign postmortem documents, because we were inefficient, or sloppy when closing."

"That's why we fight to work with you, Matti. We know, when our workday is through, it's over for us. We will never be called in, later in the day, to explain to a board of inquiry what went wrong with a procedure. If 1 of your patients died, while on the table, it's because the patient was beyond help in the first place, and only a miracle could have saved the patient. You didn't have a miracle in your pocket that day, and the patient died. This lady is alive today, because you had a miracle in your pocket, and we are performing a second miracle on her today."

"Steve, this one is not a miracle. This one is a gift from one person to another. It is also a tribute to science. We couldn't have one without the other today. We can only hope that both will work. Harvey and I have the technical skills to do it. Now we have to hope that our patients have the willpower to pull this off. It's a long shot for both of them. Jemma is very ill, and to receive a new heart while she is this ill, is extraordinary. Lucius is very ill, and for him to receive a very weak heart, into a very fit body, is extraordinary. I don't know what is going to happen to him, when he wakes up. I do know he will have the best of care going forward. I don't normally pray for my patients, but I will for these 2, because both of them will need all the help that they can get."

"Prayers from an agnostic. God will be very pleased with you, Matti. She will stand up and take notice of them."

"I hope so, because I will mean every one of them. Wait a minute, when did that happen? 'God is a She'."

"You have been reading the wrong newspapers, Matti. Women have taken over all the leading roles in the world. More women are the leaders of countries, states and cities than men are. So about 10 years ago, or so, women decided that God had to be a Woman."

"Amazing."

*************************************************

"Paul relax, or I will have 1 of my guards shoot you in both legs. You have at least another 1½ hours before the procedures are over."

"Patty, if you don't leave me alone, I'm going to squish you down to the size of the teabag, put you into a cup, and boil you in water."

Stephano asked, "How much do I have to pay you to do that to her?"

"I'll do it for free, if you don't keep her away from me."

"Sic him, Patty, go for the jugular."

"Steph, you're going to be missing your balls tonight."

"I'm not the one you should be angry with, it's Paul."

"I should sic Paul on you, you dimwit."

Anna said, "The 3 of you will sit down, or I will sic Cloudy on you."

"How the hell did I get involved in this? Either one of them will kill me."

"Don't worry about it, baby. I will name our next child after you."

"You will not," Patty yelled.

"Okay, mom, I'll name the baby Claude, or Claudia, instead."

"Either name is acceptable. If you name the baby that's in your belly, Cloudy, I will cut your tongue out, cut off your clit, and, sew up your vagina."

"Mom, I think it's time for you to talk to Dolores, again. You are overreacting."

"Anna, I let you marry that tall drink of water, because you loved him. I couldn't get past his name, but I did get past your love for him.

His parents still don't like you. They only like your money, and what it can do for them. My lawyers made sure none of it could, trickle down to them in the event of your death, his death, or both.

Rose Anna will be the wealthiest 8-year-old girl in the entire world. Since I may be a way, visiting Laura, while that happens, Vincent Caruso will be her attorney, and in charge of all her affairs, until she reaches the age of 24. If the 2^nd child arrives, before you 2 die, the 2 children will share the estate equally, upon reaching the age of 24. If anything happens to Vincent, Antonia will become the children's guardian. Nothing will happen to Antonia, Celeste will make sure nothing happens to her, or your children."

"Mom, I think you should go live with Dolores, until the Good Luck 2 departs. Do you really think either Cloudy or I will die over the next 10 years?"

"I certainly hope not, but what happens if you die in an airplane crash, or a meteor strikes near your home, or some other tragedy befalls you 2?"

"Mom, I think you should take Dolores with you to Atwater Luck. I'm not sure if the people there could live with you the way you are now."

"I am just fine, Anna. I am just looking out for your welfare, while I'm gone. Don't mock me, while I am doing that for you. I'll put you over my knee, and spank you, as you have deserved to be spanked for years."

"Mother, you should know better. You can't strike a pregnant woman. The baby will have handprints all over it."

"That is an old wives tale. I'm going to be hitting your ass, not your stomach."

"Paul, I will double my father's offer, if you squish my mother down to the size of a teabag, put her in a cup, and boil her in water. She is getting too smart for her age."

"If I put my money, your money and your father's money together, I might be as rich as the Colonel. I might be able to buy Montana."

"Why, in God's name, would you want to buy Montana?

"Oil, shale oil, there are billions of dollars' worth of it there. I could keep it off the market forever. I could help the planet by reducing the amount of carbon emissions from the use of that garbage for 50 to 100 years. By then, we should have come up with a way to produce electricity using a more effective, and less polluting method then the fossil fuels we use today.

In 50 years, or so, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, Alaska, and Brazil will nearly be out of their oil reserves, according to Forbes, Oil Business Forecast, and Business Review. My heirs will bring the shale oil onto the market slowly and at a manageable price so there is no shock to the market. We will have also done our due diligence to make sure there will be no contamination to groundwater, streams and rivers. We will be ecologically friendly, or we won't do it at all."

Cloudy said, "You should talk to my boss, Dycke Schneider. He thinks the same way you do, and you 2 would make a great pair, Paul."

"I won't be doing anything, until the Colonel and I talk it over. Until he passes away, he is in full control. He has been my mentor, since I joined the Army, when I was 17 years old. I have followed him since then, and I will be at his side, until he passes away."

Patty smiled at Paul.

"How would you like to pin Generals Stars on his shoulders, Paul?"

"That's not possible, ma'am. He's not a full Colonel, and he has to go through that rank before he becomes a general."

"How would you like to fly up to West Point, with me, and look at the display with the Colonel's citations in it. It would take us a total of 4 hours, up and back. You would be surprised to know that Lucius C. Canyon was promoted to full Colonel, by the Army Chief of Staff 24 years ago, and it was approved by the Congress of the United States.

He was promoted to Brigadier General, by the Congress of the United States, 13 weeks ago, and signed by the President of the United States 2 weeks ago. The president wanted to pin the star on his shoulders, in a White House ceremony, but found out the Colonel was too ill to attend.

Therefore, he has allowed you, his closest confidant, to do it for him. I have the Stars, and Citation in my purse. If you wish, you can read the citation to him, after we get my father into General Canyons room."

"Mrs. Valentino, if you take one step from where you are now, I will turn you into a teabag, and you know the rest."

Stephano whispered into his wife's ear.

"Patricia look into Paul's eyes. If you move, you will have to be named a new type of tea, because even the finest doctors and chiropractors in the world will not be able to get you back to your original tiny size and shape."

"Steph, you had to be nasty about this, didn't you? You know I will get even with you, when we get home, don't you? I will have to kill you for that remark, because I am better than you are at revenge, and you know it."

"Patty, I never considered myself to be the best, or brightest, at Penn, or anywhere else. I knew I had a 4.0 average, but so did many other students. It was the professors, who broke the tie, both in my undergraduate, and graduate schools. I never considered myself on a par with you, because you and a computer are an unbeatable combination. I still work with a pencil, adding computer, and paper. I have to be correct to the penny, or it drives me crazy.

We are billionaires. We don't have to work, unless we choose to work. However, if the FBI has an unsolvable problem, they call you. Why; because there is no one in this world, quite like you. You are better at catching computer thieves, or someone trying to break into a secure system, than anyone in the world. The Chinese have feared you, ever since you broke into their computer system, shut it down and turned all their coded messages into Sanskrit. They still don't know how you did it, without entering their country, but they don't fuck with our computers anymore. They've signed an agreement with the USA stating that in writing.

The Russians don't do it either. They work through their satellite countries, and paid hackers to try to break into our secure facilities. Now they try to break into our businesses to get classified information, and it works. Our businesses are told who to call if they needed help protecting their computers, but they were unwilling to pay the price. They keep putting Band-Aid fixes on their computers, and they still get ripped off.

Who the heck gets paid $3.5 million a day, beside you?

Jeff Bezos? Bill Gates? Warren Buffett? Anna? Harold & Cassie? Richard? Us, and a few others.

We are the exceptions to the rule, not the rule. We pay our taxes willingly, others hide their money, so they can pay less than they are required to.

When was the last time you heard of a millionaire, or billionaire, who was caught by the IRS cheating on their tax returns? I've never heard of one. It would cost the IRS too much money in auditing fees, and attorney's fees, if they found irregularities in those tax returns. There would be arbitration fees. If there was no agreement between the parties. Legal fees would mount up quickly, between the IRS attorneys, and the Department of Justice attorneys. No one goes after the big money cheaters, absolutely no one, because of the costs involved."

There was a president, in 2016, who refused to turn over his tax returns by claiming he was being audited by the IRS. The IRS said they were not auditing him. He still refused to turn over his tax returns, while he was in office. He was a joke of a president. He successfully divided the country into 2 warring camps, between the far right and far left. No one ever saw his tax returns, even though he was under subpoena to turn it over to the Congress, immediately. He tested the Constitutions' Division of Powers Provision, up to the line, and according to many scholars, well over it. It took the courts many years to make a decision on what the Constitution meant, even though it reads quite clearly, who and where the division of power lays.

He was out of office when the Supreme Court finally came down with its decision. He laughed it off, only as he could, by saying he was no longer president, and the subpoena was no longer valid, because he was a private citizen. He took it to court as a private citizen, and the nonsense started all over again.

According to Forbes Magazine, he had $5 billion in assets. A few million dollars in legal fees, over 5, 10 or more years, was not going to put him in the poor house, or into jail."

The woman in charge of the waiting room walked over to William Junior, and gave everyone the message she had just received from the operating rooms.

"Sirs, madams, I have just received word from the operating rooms. The 2 hearts have been placed in their new bodies. Both patients are doing well, and the operations should be over in 90 minutes. This does not mean the patients will be out of the OR in 90 minutes. It means the hearts will be beating on their own. The doctors will have to close the patient's chests, and bring their patient's back up, from the coma like state they are in now. That might take another 45 minutes or so. Everything is going along well, and both doctors are very pleased for their patients. Thank you.

William, Paul and Stephano shouted thank you, as each of the women hugged each other and cheered.

Then the question started.

"Gwen, what are they doing now?"

"Am I getting paid for this consult, or is it a freebie?"

Patty said, "Talk, before I rip off your dress, and have the orderlies have their way with you."

"I don't know about your sex life, but my husband and I had sex, in the limo, on the way here this morning."

"You did not, you liar."

"We had Julio put up the privacy screen, and told him to put the radio on loud, and go slowly. We had so much fun when we did it, from the hospital to the restaurant, the day mom had her heart attack, we wanted a reprise. It was wonderful."