Digital Heretic by Terry Schott Read Free Book Online Page A

silent. No one said a word; they watched Zack’s chest rise and fall, waiting for it to stop as the life support systems no longer did his breathing for him.
      The silence became heavy. Zack’s chest continued to determinedly move up and down. Everyone in the room had seen death; they knew it would take a few seconds for his body to quit functioning.
      Moments later, Zack’s chest stopped moving. The doctor stepped forward and quickly untaped the breathing tube from Zack’s mouth. Brandon had given clear instructions earlier; he didn’t want Zack remaining connected to the myriad of wires and tubes. The doctor waited respectfully for a moment, then gripped the tube and pulled it out from Zack’s lungs in one practiced motion.
      As the  tube cleared Zack’s mouth, his body took a huge gulp of air, startling everyone in the room. Seconds passed, then Zack began to breathe regularly.
      Brandon looked at the doctor in confusion. The doctor looked back, equally confused. The doctor felt Zack’s wrist and frowned. “There’s a pulse,” he muttered. 
      He lifted Zack’s eyelid and flashed a light quickly back and forth across the pupil. “This isn’t possible,” he said quietly.
      “ What is it, Doctor?” Brandon asked.
      “ He’s breathing, there’s a pulse, and his pupils are reacting. I’m looking at a normally functioning, but unconscious, human here.”
      “ You mean he’s…?” Michelle began.
      “ Alive.” The voice was raspy and groggy, but it came from Zack . His hand raised slowly to push the doctor’s out of the way. His eyes were open and he was looking at Brandon, weary, but with a half grin on his face. “It appears that way. How did we do, Brandon? Did I finish number one?”

 
    Chapter 12
      “Miracles happen every day. All that is required to witness them is to look. So often we ignore them or explain them away as nonsense.
      It’s a shame we don’t give them the wonder they deserve.”
    Trew Radfield - Avatar
     
      “What’sthe matte r ?” Zack asked. “You all look as if you’ve seen a ghost.” He sat up on the edge of the bed, looking strong, fit, and ready to get up and go home. 
      Brandon looked at the doctor who just shook his head in confusion. The others quickly surrounded the bed, and began to talk excitedly, everyone asking questions at once. Michelle and Lilith were crying; Angelica was speechless.
      After a few minutes, they all stood back and Brandon spoke up. “We feel like we’re looking at a ghost, Zack. What’s the last thing you remember?”
      Zack shook his head. “It’s all still a jumble, but something inside me says that’s normal, right? I definitely remember that this isn’t how I’m supposed to come out of the Game. Usually the room is quiet, all white, and there’s only one friend to greet me. Last time it was Kyle, I think?”
      Brandon looked at Zack quietly, searching for irregularities. His eyes remained locked on the young man as he addressed the doctor. “How soon can we get him out of here, doctor?”
      “ Couple of weeks, maybe a bit less,” the doctor said.
      “ What?” Zack and Brandon said in unison.
      The doctor swivelled his head between the two of them, not certain who he should address. He finally decided on Brandon and looked at him seriously. “The boy was dead, sir. It’s a miracle he’s even alive, let alone acting normal. I want to run a barrage of tests to make sure he’s all right, then see if we can determine what happened to him in the first place and how he came out of it.”
      Brandon shook his head. “There’s no time for any of that, doctor.” The doctor started to protest, but Brandon raised his hand to stop him. “You’ve got two hours. I’ve got billions of dollars. Run all the tests you can in that time, then make sure he’s fine and release him.”
      The doctor closed his mouth and nodded.
      Brandon looked at the ladies. “You three, I need you to