As luck would have it, Nurse Oliver was on duty. The nurse looked up from the chart she’d been studying, stood, and smiled.
“Detective Rizzo, so nice to see you.”
She wanted to correct the nurse. After all, she was a sergeant. But did her title really have any impact on anyone other than her?
“Hello, there. How you holding up?”
“Still a little shaky, Detective. It isn’t every day you’re part of a CSI series. I’ve spoken to a number of people and everyone is in shock that Doctor Youngblood was the Resuscitator. It certainly is disconcerting that such a well-respected doctor could be a cold-blooded killer. I guess one never knows where evil lurks.”
“Sometimes the least likely people have the darkest souls.”
Nurse Oliver nodded. “What brings you here, Detective?”
“I’d like to visit McKenzie O’Neill. Can you tell me what room she’s in?”
“Sure thing.” Nurse Oliver checked her computer. “She’s in a private room—six forty-five.” She pointed. “Go down the hall and turn right.”
“Thank you,” Sami said.
“Have a nice visit, Detective.”
When Sami walked into the hospital room, McKenzie appeared to be sound asleep. She tiptoed to the side of the bed and sat on the metal chair. The young woman’s body looked like something out of a horror movie. She couldn’t find a visible place on her body that didn’t have a hose or wire attached to it. She saw a heart monitor, an oxygen sensor, and other equipment she didn’t recognize. Sami could hear hissing and sucking and pumping sounds. She guessed that McKenzie was heavily sedated because no one could sleep through such a racket.
One nurse after the other zoomed in and out of the room, checking her vital signs, adjusting IVs, making notes on McKenzie’s chart. That she slept through it all, amazed Sami. The nurses were cordial, but said little more than hello.
After waiting for more than an hour, Sami decided that McKenzie wouldn’t soon awaken. Just as she was about to leave, a nurse walked in.
“Hi there,” the nurse said. She gave Sami a once-over. “You’re the detective that figured out Doctor Youngblood was the killer, right?”
Sami nodded.
“We haven’t had that much drama around here since the bomb threat back in the mid-nineties. Did he really jump off the roof?”
“That he did.”
“God rest his soul.” The nurse walked toward her. “I’m Sister Mary.”
“Detective Rizzo.” As soon as the words came out of her mouth she realized that it would take some time for her to get used to her new title.
“Have you been here long?” Sister Mary asked.
“For more than an hour.”
“I guess you’re tired of waiting, huh?”
“I was hoping to talk to her, but it looks like she’s going to be sleeping for a while.”
“Actually, I’m here to wake her and prep her for surgery.”
Sami felt goose bumps all over her body. “Is there a problem?”
“Quite to the contrary. It seems we found a donor. She’s scheduled for a heart transplant in less than an hour. Her new heart is on ice right now.”
Sami couldn’t believe her ears.
“When I wake her I can give you a few minutes alone with her if you like.”
“I appreciate the offer but I’ll come back in a few days. She’s got more important things on her agenda than chatting with me.” Sami fished through her purse for a business card. “Would you be kind enough to call me after her surgery and let me know how she’s doing?”
“I’d be happy to, Detective.”
“I’m curious though. When I spoke to Nurse Oliver, she didn’t say a thing about the transplant.”
“That’s because the call came in a short time ago. We don’t waste any time with heart transplants. Everything happens pretty quickly.”
“Who’s the donor?”
“A young man in his mid-twenties was in a motor vehicle accident as a passenger in his friend’s car.”
Sister Mary walked to the bedside and checked the flow of the IV bag.
“Tell me, Detective, do you believe in miracles?”
“I never really thought about it much.”
“I think you’re Ms. O’Neill’s guardian angel.”
“Why do you say that?”
“We had little hope that we’d find an ideal donor for Ms. O’Neill. Her blood type is O negative—the rarest type of blood. She can only receive an organ from an O negative donor. But because it’s so rare, she was number one on the waiting list. That some young guy in Northern California with O negative blood would suffer fatal injuries seems statistically unbelievable. Especially when you consider that the driver of the car walked away with only a broken nose from the impact of the air bag. To make it even more mind-boggling, not only does the blood type match, but the tissue samples are compatible, and the chest cavity of the recipient is perfectly proportioned to accommodate the size of the donor’s heart.”
“I still don’t think I’m anybody’s guardian angel.”
“It gets better. It just so happens that the young man’s driver’s license identifies him as a registered organ donor. Just to add even more food for thought, he didn’t die until he arrived at the hospital, which ensured that his organs could be harvested while they were still viable. All this happened while you were quietly sitting here in her room.”
“I guess you could call it a miracle, but one person had to die for another to live. Where’s the miracle in that?”
“According to the victim’s father, his son suffered from chronic cystic fibrosis, an insidious disease. The young man was always in pain. In a way, his death might have been more merciful than what he was facing alive. In fact, his father said his son’s death gave his family a sense of relief. They didn’t know how much longer they could endure watching him suffer. His father was happy that the young man’s heart would live on.”
Sami left the hospital in a daze. She tried to process what Sister Mary had told her, but she just couldn’t get her head around it. Considering all the factors, what were the odds that a donor would come along at such a crucial point in time? Was it really a miracle?
The other issue that troubled Sami was Dr. Youngblood’s motivation. What would possess a respected cardiologist to perform such gruesome experiments on innocent people? Why would he brutally rape the women? Until these questions were answered, Sami didn’t consider the investigation closed.
Al sat on the bench at Crystal Pier in Pacific Beach, overlooking the unusually calm ocean, waiting for Sami to arrive. He was pleasantly surprised when she called and asked him if they could meet. What pleased him even more was the fact that she had suggested they meet where he first revealed his love for her. Was this a good sign? He sat nervously, his eyes focused on the boardwalk.
The marine layer was thick this morning. The sun hadn’t yet burned through the stubborn clouds. But the air was still warm. Al believed that what happened today would reshape his life in a profound way. Whether he walked away holding her hand or shuffled along by himself, rejected and beaten, today would redefine who he was.
Lost in his thoughts, he didn’t notice Sami approaching until she stood five feet away.
He bolted up like a boot-camp corporal, ready to salute his drill sergeant, and moved toward her, hoping she would welcome his hug. She didn’t back away, but the hug was more perfunctory than intimate.
“Thanks for meeting me, Al.”
“I should be thanking you.”
They sat together on the bench, but she kept her distance.
“Would you like a cup of coffee or something to drink?” Al asked. “I can run over to Starbucks.”
“Thank you, but no. My stomach’s on another rampage.” Sami paused for a minute and looked out at the ocean. She shared with him the details of McKenzie O’Neill’s transplant and her favorable prognosis. “Sometimes I think God speaks to us through miracles but we don�
�t hear Him.”
“I think we’ve witnessed a lot of miracles over the last thirty days,” Al said.
“How so?”
“First off, my sister survived a car crash and your mother survived a heart attack and bypass surgery. Then, Emily came along as a gift from heaven to care for your mother and Angelina.”
“I guess I took those things for granted,” Sami said. “Closing the investigation on the Resuscitator ranks up there as well.” Sami briefed Al on Dr. Youngblood’s research grant and his presumed motivation for the surgical experiments. No one could answer questions about the sexual assaults. Sami guessed that the reasons were put to rest along with Youngblood and would forever remain a mystery.
“And let’s not minimize your promotion, Sergeant Rizzo.”
She laughed. “Now that’s a miracle.”
They sat quietly for a few minutes, enjoying the peacefulness of the ocean air.
“I have something to tell you, Al.”
He had a feeling that she hadn’t met him to talk about McKenzie O’Neill. “Before you say anything, can I get something off my chest?”
“If you must.”
“I’m not going to beat a dead horse because there’s nothing I can say that I haven’t said already. You know that I love you and also that I deeply regret what I did. The thought of losing you has opened my mind and made me realize that I never really proved to you how deeply I love you.”
Al stood up, pulled a small box out of his pocket, and dropped to one knee. He opened the velvet box and showed Sami the princess-cut engagement ring. A small crowd of curious onlookers stopped in their tracks and watched.
“Make me the happiest man in the world, Samantha Marie, and agree to be my wife. I promise to spend the rest of my life proving my love for you.”
Sami desperately wanted to say yes, but not until she revealed her secret. If this didn’t scare him away, then she’d know for certain that it was meant to be.
“There’s no easy way for me to say this, so I’ll cut to the chase. You know that my stomach has been out of sorts for a long time, and that when I’m stressed, I occasionally miss a period and my whole body goes on a rampage. Well, when I missed two periods in a row and puked nearly every morning, I finally went to the doctor.”
She could see his face tighten and his eyes narrow suspiciously.
“I’m pregnant, Al.”
His face lit up like a Christmas tree. “I’m going to be a father?”
Sami nodded. “I guess that’s just another miracle.”
Lost in his thoughts, Al stood speechless.
“I’ve got a great idea,” Sami said. “Why don’t we head home, pick up the clan, and go to Sunday services at Saint John’s Church?”
Al thought about that for a minute. “Okay. But I must warn you: the foundation of the church might shake when I walk in the door.”
“I’ll take my chances.”
Al leaned toward Sami and they kissed. There was little doubt in Sami’s mind that Alberto Diaz and Samantha Marie Rizzo would soon walk down the aisle as husband and wife. Sami had no unrealistic expectations. All might not be rosy. But in a fairytale kind of way, she felt in her heart that love could conquer almost any obstacle. And those difficulties beyond love’s healing power, she would pass on to God.
I would like to thank the following people for their invaluable contributions to the creation of Resuscitation. Without their marketing brilliance, technical expertise, editorial feedback, medical knowledge, and words of encouragement, writing this novel would have been nearly impossible. If I’ve forgotten anyone, please accept my deepest apologies.
Larry Kirshbaum, Terry Goodman, Sarah Tomashek, Jacque Ben-Zekry, Jenny Williams, Charlotte Herscher, Jennifer Chasser, Anthony Annechino, Kristin Peters, Richard Shade Gardner, Paula Brandes, Cayla Kluver, Kimberly Phifer, and Elena Stokes.
Photograph by Jennifer Ann Chasser
D.M. Annechino wrote his first book, How to Buy the Most Car for the Least Money, in 1992, while working as a general manager in the automotive business. But his true passion has always been fiction, particularly thrillers. He indulged his taste for suspense during his former career as a book editor specializing in full-length fiction. He spent two years researching serial killers before finally penning his gripping and memorable debut novel, They Never Die Quietly. A native of New York, he lives today in San Diego with his wife, Jennifer. When not writing, he enjoys cooking, drinking vintage wines, and spending time on the warm beaches of Southern California.
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