Phall used the injector again, administering antibiotics directly to the site of the bites. The bleeding had started to slow down some when she began to probe the two large wounds. The chimp’s teeth had sunk more than half an inch into the shoulder. It would require deep stitching to close up where the muscle and skin had torn. She grabbed a sterilizer and gently probed each of the incisions with it, making sure that every inch was covered. Next, she used the cauterizer to stop the bleeding that still oozed from the wound.
Ross and Kandyce entered the med-lab at that instant, Ross taking everything in at once. Phall kept working on the injuries Doc had sustained while she gave a concise description of what had happened. Kandyce inquired if Phall needed any assistance, and, upon her negative reply, turned and followed Ross as he walked out of the med-lab heading for the secondary bay where the accident had happened. Phall had completed cauterizing the wounds before she had finished explaining the incident to Ross and Kandyce. She began closing the wounds from the inside, working out as they left the med-lab. After she had completed stitching up the wounds, she gave the injury the last injection that would speed the process of healing. She then covered the entire injury site with a living bandage. The living bandage was a recent discovery the medical profession found invaluable. Nearly invisible on the skin, it slowly became absorbed by the injury site. This eliminated the need for bandage changes and precautions against getting the injury wet or dirty. It also prevented the formation of scar tissue, so there would be no tenderness or stiffness after it healed. All that was left to do now was to get Doc into one of the med-lab recovery-monitoring beds and wait for him to recover from the effects of the stun wand.
Ross hit the panel that opened the door to the bay, entered and reached for a pair of stun wands. They could see the chimp lying halfway down the bay in the aisle. There were no sounds in the bay, except their breathing through the masks they had donned before entering. Then Kandyce pointed with her wand to the back of the bay. Ross saw the chimp and took a step backward. Kandyce did exactly the same thing and reached with her left hand to reopen the doors that had closed behind them. At their movement, the chimp screamed a blood-curdling challenge and leapt off the pod it had been sitting upon, rushing forward on all four appendages. Both Ross and Kandyce passed through the doorway before it reclosed, then Ross reached for the seal button that effectively locked the doors from being opened by anything on the other side.
Stepping to the right of the doors, Ross removed his mask and began to read the list posted on the wall. “We’re going to have to flood the bay with a knockout gas to make sure we get everything that’s loose,” he said. “I’m not about to face even one chimp with just one of these.” He held up the stun wand and then handed it to Kandyce. Turning back to the panel, he hit a series of contact points. Above the panel, a viewscreen came to life showing the inside of the bay. The chimp that had rushed towards them was with the stunned one lying in the aisle. Another chimp had joined it, but this one didn’t look right. It seemed to be leaning heavily to the left and looked like it was dragging its left arm.
Kandyce spoke for the first time since they had made their abortive entry to the bay. “Looks like it broke its arm or shoulder and possibly a leg or ribs, and nothing healed back correctly. We’d better put them to sleep so we can get to work up front.”
Ross agreed and hit a couple of contact points on the panel and then watched the viewer. “Shouldn’t take but a few seconds.” The scene began to get foggy and soon the crippled chimp fell to its side, followed a second later by the first chimp.
They waited another minute and then Ross activated the panel again. Soon, the fog in the bay had cleared out and a light appeared next to the viewer. Ross donned the mask again and joined Kandyce as the doors opened for her and they stepped through. They walked quickly to the sleeping chimps and began to move them, one at a time, to a holding pen at the rear of the bay. Ross and Kandyce were breathing hard when they finished. Ross looked the bay over one last time and then turned to Kandyce. “We’ll have to leave the rest of this until later. We’ve got more important business up front. And I want to see how Doc is doing.” Kandyce gave her agreeing nod, then turned with him, and the two of them headed back to the med-lab.
12
Now You See It, Now You Don’t
Before we begin this chapter, I want you to take a look at Bill’s prison logs—these are from San Quentin.
290th Day – Friday – 8/16/96
0700 – Breakfast – 1 Boiled Egg, Grits, Milk.
0900 – Shower/Shave
0945 – Phone – Brian – 4 times – No answer. Patty – out till the 26th. Tricia – Wants a Visitors form so she can come up for a visit, will talk to Frank about Cookbook and to Randy about Comp.
1100 – Sack Lunch – Meat, Cookies, Pretzels, Banana, Lemon Drink.
1505 – Laundry Blues Returned.
1700 – Supper – Chicken Breast, Beans, Peas, Salad, Watermelon, Bun.
291st Day – Saturday – 8/17/96
0700 – Breakfast – 2 Boiled Egg, Sausage, Tater Cakes, Oatmeal, Cantaloup, Milk.
1100 – Sack Lunch – Cheese, Corn Nuts, Cookies, Banana, Fruit Punch.
1700 – Supper – Fish, Cheese Noodles, Green Beans, Salad, Cake.
292nd Day – Sunday – 8/18/96
0700 – Breakfast – Waffles, Dry Cereal, Milk.
1000 – Shower/Shave.
1030 – Sack Lunch – Meat, Cookies, Corn Nuts, Apple, Cherry Drink.
1100 – Phone – Brian – Will be up on the 26th, Lee may be up with him, will draw-up new contract between him and me only, Don is cut out of the loop, will pick up my stuff then, Gave me Mom’s new #. Mom – Hopes to send pkg. This coming week, will try to get pens for me, coffee and cigarettes are in pkg. Bernice received Award in school for excellence.
1700 – Supper – Turkey Ham, Mashed Taters, Peas & Carrots, Salad, Cake.
2100 – Legal Mailout – Tricia.
293rd Day – Monday – 8/19/96
0700 – Breakfast – Omelet, Oatmeal, Milk, Grapefruit Juice.
0900 – Yard Time – 2nd Wave, 1st Out.
1300 – Recall – Sack Lunch – PB&J, Pretzels, Graham Crackers, Apple, Orange Drink.
1700 – Supper – Chicken Patty, Cheese Taters, Beans, Noodle Salad, Cake.