realized. Do it for Lori.
Hardening his resolve, Josh decided to leave the medical center and go where he'd always wanted. He'd read about the Ford Institute and their groundbreaking cures, and instantly he knew that was where he wanted to be. With Lori gone, he spent a year boning up on his surgical skills, then set out to contact Ford. Josh was ready for a change.
The grand entrance for the Ford Institute loomed below the window where Josh now stood, pulling him from his painful memories. He shook off the chill of his reverie and took a closer look. A stark white van came through the gates and drove toward the rear of the building. Josh stared a long moment at the vehicle and felt his pulse quicken.
He recognized the familiar logo on the truck's panel: Aurora Life Extension
Chapter 20
Josh arrived home, closed the door behind him and locked it. His eyes wandered to his recently purchased bookshelf and the stack of books and periodicals on it.
He wasn't going to need them for a while.
He walked over to the coffee table and picked up a copy of Neurology Today and flung it across the room. It slapped harmlessly against the wall and fell to the floor. The gesture didn't make him feel any better. In fact, it made him feel worse, and the effort exhausted him. He picked up the magazine, smoothed out a few wrinkled pages, then dropped it back on the table. Plopping down in the armchair by the window, Josh stared vacantly out at the cactus, whose spring flowers were in full bloom. He was gripped by overwhelming sadness. He knew he had better shake this self-pity if he was going to accomplish anything. Josh struggled with a deepening sense of self-doubt. By undermining his confidence, he worried that maybe Hench was right. Maybe he had erred in administering the drug that killed his patient. Maybe he had used the wrong concentration. Maybe Cynthia Harwell's death was his fault.
Hours slipped by as Josh's preoccupied mind wrestled with a growing sense of worthlessness. Everything he'd ever done seemed stupid and pointless. He'd spent years grooming himself for a top position in his field, and just when he's made it, it's all taken away in an instant.
Josh watched the sky change from powdery blue to dark crimson as the day ebbed, and night approached. As he sat there in the gathering gloom, he suddenly had an idea. He wasn't helpless despite the fact he felt that way right now. There were some things he could do to affect his destiny. With a renewed sense of resolve, Josh pushed himself out of the armchair and went to the desk drawer. From it, he yanked out the phone book and scanned the pages for the number of Kelly Frock; the nurse who'd cared for Cynthia Harwell the night she died.
He wasn't going to let Hench get away with ruining his career. At least not without a fight. He held his breath as he ran his index finger down the names. He stopped at K. Frock in Scottsdale. That was promising. He punched the number into his cell and waited. The phone rang once, twice, then a third time. He was ready to hang up when a cheerful voice came through the receiver.
Josh realized he hadn't given a thought as to how to begin. Abruptly, he said hello and gave his name. He wasso unsure of himself, he was afraid she might hang up, but before he had time to think about it any more, he heard her ebullient "Hello, Dr. Logan!" She sounded genuinely glad to hear from him.
"I'm glad you called. I was hoping you would. I heard about all your problems at the institute."
"I'm sorry to call you on the spur of the moment like this, but I was wondering if we could meet somewhere and talk?"
"Well, sure," Kelly said.
"If it's inconvenient, I could-"
"No, no! It's fine. Come on over," Kelly said before Josh had a chance to finish.
Then she gave him directions to her house.
Chapter 21
The Aurora Life Extension compound lay amid tall desert cactus, its grounds encircled by an electrical fence, its entrance guarded by expressionless young men
Hardening his resolve, Josh decided to leave the medical center and go where he'd always wanted. He'd read about the Ford Institute and their groundbreaking cures, and instantly he knew that was where he wanted to be. With Lori gone, he spent a year boning up on his surgical skills, then set out to contact Ford. Josh was ready for a change.
The grand entrance for the Ford Institute loomed below the window where Josh now stood, pulling him from his painful memories. He shook off the chill of his reverie and took a closer look. A stark white van came through the gates and drove toward the rear of the building. Josh stared a long moment at the vehicle and felt his pulse quicken.
He recognized the familiar logo on the truck's panel: Aurora Life Extension
Chapter 20
Josh arrived home, closed the door behind him and locked it. His eyes wandered to his recently purchased bookshelf and the stack of books and periodicals on it.
He wasn't going to need them for a while.
He walked over to the coffee table and picked up a copy of Neurology Today and flung it across the room. It slapped harmlessly against the wall and fell to the floor. The gesture didn't make him feel any better. In fact, it made him feel worse, and the effort exhausted him. He picked up the magazine, smoothed out a few wrinkled pages, then dropped it back on the table. Plopping down in the armchair by the window, Josh stared vacantly out at the cactus, whose spring flowers were in full bloom. He was gripped by overwhelming sadness. He knew he had better shake this self-pity if he was going to accomplish anything. Josh struggled with a deepening sense of self-doubt. By undermining his confidence, he worried that maybe Hench was right. Maybe he had erred in administering the drug that killed his patient. Maybe he had used the wrong concentration. Maybe Cynthia Harwell's death was his fault.
Hours slipped by as Josh's preoccupied mind wrestled with a growing sense of worthlessness. Everything he'd ever done seemed stupid and pointless. He'd spent years grooming himself for a top position in his field, and just when he's made it, it's all taken away in an instant.
Josh watched the sky change from powdery blue to dark crimson as the day ebbed, and night approached. As he sat there in the gathering gloom, he suddenly had an idea. He wasn't helpless despite the fact he felt that way right now. There were some things he could do to affect his destiny. With a renewed sense of resolve, Josh pushed himself out of the armchair and went to the desk drawer. From it, he yanked out the phone book and scanned the pages for the number of Kelly Frock; the nurse who'd cared for Cynthia Harwell the night she died.
He wasn't going to let Hench get away with ruining his career. At least not without a fight. He held his breath as he ran his index finger down the names. He stopped at K. Frock in Scottsdale. That was promising. He punched the number into his cell and waited. The phone rang once, twice, then a third time. He was ready to hang up when a cheerful voice came through the receiver.
Josh realized he hadn't given a thought as to how to begin. Abruptly, he said hello and gave his name. He wasso unsure of himself, he was afraid she might hang up, but before he had time to think about it any more, he heard her ebullient "Hello, Dr. Logan!" She sounded genuinely glad to hear from him.
"I'm glad you called. I was hoping you would. I heard about all your problems at the institute."
"I'm sorry to call you on the spur of the moment like this, but I was wondering if we could meet somewhere and talk?"
"Well, sure," Kelly said.
"If it's inconvenient, I could-"
"No, no! It's fine. Come on over," Kelly said before Josh had a chance to finish.
Then she gave him directions to her house.
Chapter 21
The Aurora Life Extension compound lay amid tall desert cactus, its grounds encircled by an electrical fence, its entrance guarded by expressionless young men
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