Blood Test by Kellerman, Jonathan

“Nope. Bone dry.”

The deputy brought Raoul out. I told him about

my visit to the Retreat and the.negative findings.

He took it in, looking downcast and beaten, and

offered no protest.

The sheriff, pleased With-his passivity, treated

him with exquisite courtesy while he signed him

out, He asked Raou] what he wanted to do about

his Volvo, and the oncologist shrugged and said to

have it fixed, he’d pay for it.

I led him out of the room and down the stairs.

BLOOD TEST ‘221

He was silent throughout the ride home, not even

losing his cool when a chubby female border guard

pulled us over and asked for his identification. He

accepted the indignity with a mute acquiescence

that I found pitiful. Two hours ago he’d been aggressive

and poised for battle. I wondered if he’d

been laid low by the accumulated stress or if cycIi-cal

mood swings were a part of his makeup i’d

never noticed.

I was famished but he looked too grungy to take

to a restaurant so I ‘bought a couple of burgers and

Cokes at a stand in Santa Ana and pulled to the

side of the road near a small municipal park. I gave

BaoUl his food and ate mine while watching a group

of teenagers play softball, racing to finish before

nightfall. When I turned to look at him, he was

asleep, the food still wrapped and lying in,his lap. I

took it, stowed it in a trashcan and started up the

Seville. He stirred but didn’t awaken and by the

time I got back on the freeway he was snoring

peacefully.

We reached L.A. by seven, just as traffic on the

downtown interchange was untangling. When I

turnedoff at the Los Feliz exit he opened his eyes.

“What’s your address ?”

“No, take me back to the hospital.”

“You’re in no shape to go back there.”

“I must. Helen will be waiting.”

“You’ll only scare her looking like that. At least

go home and freshen up first.”

“I have a change of clothes in my office. Please,

I threw up my hands and drove to Western Peds..

After parking in the doctors’ lot I walked him’ to

the front door of Prinzley.

222 Jonatkan Kelterman

“Thank you,” he said, looking at his feet.

“Take care ofyourself.”

On the way back to the car .I met Beverly Lucas

leaving the wards. She looked tired and worn, the

oversized, purse seeming to weigh her down.

“Alex, I’m so glad to see you.”

“W-hat’s the matter?”

She looked around, to make sure no one was

listening.

“It’s Augie. He’s been making my life miserable

ever since your friend interrogated him, calling me

unfaithful, a quisling. He even tried to embarrass

me on rounds but the attending doc stopped it.”

“Bastard.”

She shook her head.

“What makes it hard is that I see his point. We

were–close, once. What he did in bed was nobody’s

business.”

I took her by the shoulders.

“What you did was right. If you got enough distance

to see straight that would be obvious. Don’t

let him get .to you.”

She flinched at the harshness in my voice.

“I know you’re right. Intellectually. But he’s falling

apart and it hurts me. I can’t help my feelings.”

She started to cry. A trio of nurses walked our

way. I steered her off the walkway and -into the

stairwell to the doctors’ level.

“What do you mean falling apart?”

“Acting strange. Doping and drinking more heavo

ily than usual. He’s bound to get caught. This morning

he pulled me off the ward and into a conference

room, locked the door, and came on to me.”

She lowered her eyes in embarrassment.

“He told me I was the best he’d ever had, actu-

BLOOD TEST 223

ally tried to get physical. When ! stopped -him he

looked crushed. Then he started to rant about

Melendez-Lynch–how he’d scapegoated him and

was going to try to use the Swope case to terminate

the fellowship. He started to laUgh—it was a freaky

laugh, Alex, full of anger. He said he had an ace up

his sleeve. That Melendez-Lynch would never get

rid of him.”

“Did he say what that was?”

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