"Stephen Woodworth - Transubstantiation" - читать интересную книгу автора (Woodworth Stephen)

Transubstantiation
By Stephen Woodworth

27 November 2000


Marcus squeezed the ball in his hand until his fingernails dug into its rubber
surface, as if to pump every drop of blood in his body into the little plastic bag
connected to his arm. A white-coated Red Cross matron with flat-topped granny
glasses hurried over to the cot where he lay.


"Whoa! That's enough!" She pulled the needle from his arm and placed a square
of gauze padding over the hole in his arm. "If you could hold that for me a
moment . . . ."


He placed his left hand over the gauze and lifted his right forearm.


"Ah, I knew you were a pro at this!" She sealed and labeled the bag, which now
bulged with burgundy fluid. "Sure filled that one fast." Nudging his fingers off the
gauze, she taped the pad to his arm. "Now, you go ahead and lie here for a few
minutes--"


Marcus sat up and swung his legs off the cot. "I'm okay."


"Are you sure?" She quickened her steps to keep up with him as he stalked
toward the exit. "You know, you shouldn't drive until the dizziness passes."


He smiled at her. "I'm fine, really."


"Well, here." She bustled over to a table and dug some items out of an ice chest
and a paper grocery bag. "At least take these along to fortify you." She handed
him a half-pint carton of orange juice and a little package of chocolate-chip
cookies.


The thought of drinking orange juice again nauseated him, but he accepted the
gifts graciously. "Thanks."


Once outside the clinic, he dropped the juice and cookies in the nearest trash
can, then ripped the tape and gauze off his arm and added them to the garbage.
There wasn't even a scab left on his skin.
He checked his watch: half past three. If traffic wasn't too bad on the Santa