“That sounds almost too good to me,” Cal said. “Under the circumstances I can’t imagine that this kind of potential disaster could have any better outcome. Raj, it seems as if you did a terrific job.”

Raj began to perk up. He even made eye contact with several people. Led by Cal, there was even spontaneous applause. “Let’s get a bunch of Kingfisher from the fridge and make a toast to Raj,” Cal said.

“What about stopping any more episodes?” Veena questioned. “I think we should decide now to stop them, at least for a few days. Let’s not push our luck.”

“That seems reasonable,” Cal said, “but let’s get full advantage of this one. Did you get the patient’s hospital record?” Cal asked Raj. Raj went into one of his pockets and pulled out his USB storage device and the succinylcholine syringe. Cal took the storage device and handed it to Santana. “Let’s get this death episode right to CNN. With the failed resuscitation attempt, it should make good copy and have even more impact. Encourage them to get it on the air ASAP.”

Santana took the storage device. “It will only take me a few minutes, then I’ll be back for that beer. How about waiting.”

Chapter 21

Chapter 21

OCTOBER 17, 2007
WEDNESDAY, 9:05 P.M.
NEW DELHI, INDIA

Jennifer’s sleep pattern had never been so out of whack. When she’d returned to her room from having dinner with Lucinda Benfatti, she was so tired she’d almost fallen asleep brushing her teeth. But once she’d gotten into bed and turned out the lights, her mind started waking up. Before she knew it, she was anticipating Laurie and Jack’s arrival with great excitement and wondering whether she should have already reserved one of the hotel cars to pick them up. It seemed that ten p.m. to two a.m. was when most of the international flights arrived, so the demand for the hotel’s vehicles was the highest then.

Worried that she might already be out of luck, Jennifer sat up, turned on the light, and called down to the concierge’s desk. Talking with the concierge, she learned something she didn’t know. An airport pickup for Amal Palace guests was complimentary, and a vehicle was already scheduled to pick up Laurie and Jack. Asking if she could join the pickup, the concierge assured her she could, told her when it would be leaving, and promised to let transportation know that she would be going along.