Read Online A Case of Need: A Novel by Michael Crichton, Jeffery Hudson - Free Book Online
Authors: Michael Crichton, Jeffery Hudson
Tags: Suspense, Literature & Fiction, Medical, Thrillers, Genre Fiction, Mystery; Thriller & Suspense
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brain?”
“No permission,” Weston said.
The medical examiner, though he demanded an autopsy, usually did not insist on brain examination unless the situation suggested possible neuropathy.
“But I would have thought a family like the Randalls, medically oriented …”
“Oh, J. D. is all for it. It’s Mrs. Randall. She just refuses to have the brain removed, absolutely refuses. Ever met her?”
I shook my head.
“Quite a woman,” Weston said dryly.
He turned back to the organs, working down the GI tract from esophagus to anus. It was completely normal. I left before he finished everything; I had seen what I wanted to see and knew that the final report would be equivocal. At least on the basis of the gross organs, they would be unable to say that Karen Randall was definitely pregnant.
That was peculiar.
1 Position as an intern or resident, where one is an M.D. but not licensed to practice, and still completing education.
2 Formerly the most violent area in Boston was Scollay Square, but it was demolished five years ago to make way for government buildings. Some consider that an improvement; some a step backward.
3 The frequently bizarre cases mean that every doctor and surgeon has a backlog of strange stories. One surgeon is fond of telling how he was on the Accident Floor—the City’s EW—when two victims of an auto accident were brought in. One man had lost his leg at the knee. The other had massive crush injury to the chest, so bad that the degree of damage could not at first be ascertained from the heavy bleeding. On an X ray of the chest, however, it was seen that one man’s foot and lower leg had been rammed into the second man’s chest, where it was lodged at the time of admission.
4 Dead on arrival at hospital.
5 The seeping of blood to the lowest portions of the body after death. It often helps establish the position of the body.
6 Pelvic Inflammatory Disease, usually infection of the fallopian tubes by Neisseria gonococcus, the agent of gonorrhea. Gonorrhea is considered to be the most common infectious disease of mankind. Twenty percent of prostitutes are thought to be infected.
7 Deaner is a traditional term for the man who takes care of the dissecting room. It is an ancient term, dating back to the days when anatomy dissections were done by horse gelders and butchers. The deaner keeps the rooms clean, cares for the corpses, and aids in the dissection.
8 A drug to contract the uterus, useful for initiating birth and for stopping uterine bleeding.
9 See Appendix I: Delicatessen Pathologists .
SIX
I HAVE TROUBLE BUYING LIFE INSURANCE . Most pathologists do: the companies take one look at you and shudder—constant exposure to tuberculosis, malignancies, and lethal infectious disease makes you a very poor risk. The only person I know who has more trouble getting insured is a biochemist named Jim Murphy.
When he was younger, Murphy played halfback for Yale and was named to the All-East team. That in itself is an accomplishment, but it is amazing if you know Murphy and have seen his eyes. Murphy is practically blind. He wears lenses an inch thick and walks with his head drooping, as if the weight of the glass burdened him down. His vision is barely adequate under most circumstances, but when he gets excited or tight, he walks into things.
On the surface it would not seem that Murphy had the makings of a halfback, even at Yale. To know his secret, you have to see him move. Murphy is fast. He also has the best balance of anyone I know. When he was playing football, his teammates devised a series of plays especially designed to allow the quarterback to point Murphy in the proper direction and send him on his way. This usually worked, though on several occasions Murphy made brilliant runs in the wrong direction, twice charging over the goal line for a safety.
He has always been drawn to unlikely sports. At the age of thirty, he decided to take up mountain climbing. He found it very
“No permission,” Weston said.
The medical examiner, though he demanded an autopsy, usually did not insist on brain examination unless the situation suggested possible neuropathy.
“But I would have thought a family like the Randalls, medically oriented …”
“Oh, J. D. is all for it. It’s Mrs. Randall. She just refuses to have the brain removed, absolutely refuses. Ever met her?”
I shook my head.
“Quite a woman,” Weston said dryly.
He turned back to the organs, working down the GI tract from esophagus to anus. It was completely normal. I left before he finished everything; I had seen what I wanted to see and knew that the final report would be equivocal. At least on the basis of the gross organs, they would be unable to say that Karen Randall was definitely pregnant.
That was peculiar.
1 Position as an intern or resident, where one is an M.D. but not licensed to practice, and still completing education.
2 Formerly the most violent area in Boston was Scollay Square, but it was demolished five years ago to make way for government buildings. Some consider that an improvement; some a step backward.
3 The frequently bizarre cases mean that every doctor and surgeon has a backlog of strange stories. One surgeon is fond of telling how he was on the Accident Floor—the City’s EW—when two victims of an auto accident were brought in. One man had lost his leg at the knee. The other had massive crush injury to the chest, so bad that the degree of damage could not at first be ascertained from the heavy bleeding. On an X ray of the chest, however, it was seen that one man’s foot and lower leg had been rammed into the second man’s chest, where it was lodged at the time of admission.
4 Dead on arrival at hospital.
5 The seeping of blood to the lowest portions of the body after death. It often helps establish the position of the body.
6 Pelvic Inflammatory Disease, usually infection of the fallopian tubes by Neisseria gonococcus, the agent of gonorrhea. Gonorrhea is considered to be the most common infectious disease of mankind. Twenty percent of prostitutes are thought to be infected.
7 Deaner is a traditional term for the man who takes care of the dissecting room. It is an ancient term, dating back to the days when anatomy dissections were done by horse gelders and butchers. The deaner keeps the rooms clean, cares for the corpses, and aids in the dissection.
8 A drug to contract the uterus, useful for initiating birth and for stopping uterine bleeding.
9 See Appendix I: Delicatessen Pathologists .
SIX
I HAVE TROUBLE BUYING LIFE INSURANCE . Most pathologists do: the companies take one look at you and shudder—constant exposure to tuberculosis, malignancies, and lethal infectious disease makes you a very poor risk. The only person I know who has more trouble getting insured is a biochemist named Jim Murphy.
When he was younger, Murphy played halfback for Yale and was named to the All-East team. That in itself is an accomplishment, but it is amazing if you know Murphy and have seen his eyes. Murphy is practically blind. He wears lenses an inch thick and walks with his head drooping, as if the weight of the glass burdened him down. His vision is barely adequate under most circumstances, but when he gets excited or tight, he walks into things.
On the surface it would not seem that Murphy had the makings of a halfback, even at Yale. To know his secret, you have to see him move. Murphy is fast. He also has the best balance of anyone I know. When he was playing football, his teammates devised a series of plays especially designed to allow the quarterback to point Murphy in the proper direction and send him on his way. This usually worked, though on several occasions Murphy made brilliant runs in the wrong direction, twice charging over the goal line for a safety.
He has always been drawn to unlikely sports. At the age of thirty, he decided to take up mountain climbing. He found it very
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