Thicker Than Blood | Page 7

can make. Joe looked for
headlights or headlight markers but just got a pair of red Xs on his
clarks. The car's computer didn't know what to look for when sliding
sideways. Joe looked out the driver's side window and saw another
giant pothole. He heard a crunch and a bang simultaneously, the sound
of glass breaking and metal folding as the car's body hit the pavement.
He smashed into the drivers side window as the rear of the car lifted in
the air. The car was rolling, he knew he was done for. Joe woke up
coughing black smoke out of his lungs. A small flame flickered out of
the hole cut in the car's hood. He knew he hadn't been out for more than
a few seconds, because he would not have had woken up at all. Blood
was running into his eyes. He didn't have much time. He moved his
legs and arms, and they still seemed to function. He unbuckled his
shoulder harness, and climbed across the seats under the buckled roof.
He felt broken glass cutting his hands as he scraped them across the
passengers seat. Staggering out of the missing passenger's side door, he
flung his broken clarks off. "Where is the phone?" he mumbled to
himself while scanning the ground.
He mindlessly reached into his back pocket, and then his coat pockets,
looking for his cell phone. He couldn't think clearly anymore. He
collapsed to the ground. He knew he was going to die.
Chapter 3
I smell glass cleaner. No wait, not glass cleaner, ammonia. Joe
stretched his right arm to scratch the left. Why are my sheets itchy?
Who's cleaning around me? Joe listened. It's really quiet. I hear a
machine, maybe a computer? Joe reached across his chest to scratch

again. Why am I bandaged? Then Joe remembered everything. The
accident came back to him in more detail than when it happened. The
song, the clicking part about to fail, the pair of giant potholes, the blood
running in his eyes. How long have I been unconscious? Joe wiggled
his toes and his fingers. I don't seem to be paralyzed, he thought. I can
feel the sheets, so my limbs aren't phantoms. Wait, I walked away from
the car. It was on fire. Oh crap I loved that car, it was demolished. He
began to try to visualize the damage to the car. He began to take stock
of the damaged parts and how he would begin to fix them. Oh wait, he
thought, what if I'm blind? Joe opened his eyes. The light was intense,
so he blinked them shut. He squinted and tried opening them again. His
vision was snowy but his eyes worked. He was afraid the broken clarks
might have damaged his eyes. Every direction he turned his eyes, his
vision was speckled with little gray spots, like pepper. He heard voices
in the hallway. One was his aunt. As a childish reflex, he closed his
eyes and pretended to be asleep. "You don't have that right. Life and
death, is subject to a higher morality. It's not like any damage was done
to the project." Joe recognized his aunt's whispering voice. "This
hospital participates under a specific auspice," Joe heard a man say. He
had a southern drawl. "Our research effort counts on the limited funds
allotted to this project." "Don't cry poverty to me!" His aunt shot back,
"You people have more money than you know what to do with. That
boy is like a son to me. You would have done the same thing for your
daughter. The need was real and immediate." They're talking about me,
Joe thought. He immediately felt anger toward the man who spoke to
his aunt like that. "Okay, okay. I believe..." the strange man paused, "I
believe I can convince the committee that any risk of exposure is a risk
of a public debacle. I think that they will see it's far too risky to end the
project here. What you do need to do is disable them immediately, and
you do need to be far more careful with other people's property." The
man paused and then said, "I will expect full analysis and data." His
voice faded and echoed. He was walking up the hall. Joe heard a shoe
squeak. "You foolish child," Dr. Graceland whispered, startling Joe.
She was closer than he thought. Joe's eyes blinked open. "You're
awake," she proclaimed, suddenly ecstatic. "Yeah barely," Joe
mumbled. "I have to call your father," Joe's aunt was brimming with
joy. "I'm glad I'm alive too... I thought I would die for sure." "How do

you feel?" "Lousy, and my eyes are grainy. You aren't going to give me
a speech are you?" Dr. Graceland chuckled. "No, Joe, not