Harry ducked down in his cubicle, reached down to lift his pants leg, and removed the small Glock 29 10 mm pistol from an ankle holster he kept on hand for such occasions. Crouching, Harry sidled out through the door that lead directly into the main warehouse, and ran across the floor. He looked up as he ran in a crouch to avoid hitting his head on the conveyer belts where plastic boxes filled with urgent courier envelopes traveled above him to the various and sundry vehicles that would deliver them from this purgatory.

Harry�s heart was pounding in his throat, and he could hear movement in the dispatch office he had just escaped. He ducked into the employee lounge, and to his chagrin, discovered too late there was no way out. He was a sitting duck. He heard the door from the dispatch office to the warehouse open with a bang as if it were kicked in, police commando-style.

�Holy shit,� Harry whispered as he crouched in the corner of the room, behind a counter. Harry used his sleeve to wipe the sweat from his forehead, then balanced his arm on his knee, training the Glock�s sights at the door.

�I guess it�s time to ask You for a big favor. You know, I don�t ask for much, so I hope You can do this one thing for me,� he whispered, and he moved his eyes skyward in prayer. Funny, he hadn�t noticed that security camera suspended in the corner of the T-bar and tile ceiling before. �Please, please let that camera be out of order,� Harry prayed.

Diane looked into the ICU bay where Claire Kelly had been recovering the day before, and she was stunned to find her bed unoccupied. Diane spun around and grabbed a pretty young nurse that happened to be walking by.

�Excuse me. Can you tell me where Claire Kelly is?�

�Are you family?

�Well, no. Yes, I mean. I�m her partner.� The nurse�s face became cold and distant as she tried to push past Diane and continue on her urgent errand. Diane held her by the arm, and the nurse stopped with a huge sigh, then looked at Diane�s hand with irritation before glaring daggers at Diane.

�What�s with the brush off? Answer me,� Diane said, squeezing tighter for a second before she released the nurse.

Rubbing her sore arm, she sneered, �Look, lady. This is a Catholic hospital. We don�t go for that kind of thing here. If you�re not related to her by blood or any other legal means recognized by the State of New York, I�m not telling you nothing.� The nurse turned on her heels and ran to the nurse�s station to report the wicked homosexual interloper to her supervisor. Diane followed her to the desk, reaching into her pocket to show the supervisor her shield. She was beginning to understand why Claire guarded that part of her life so carefully. As a white female, Diane had not felt prejudice very often in her life, other than the garden-variety glass ceilings and male chauvinism that all women in her line of work experience. For just a second, in the grotesque, hate-filled face of that young nurse, she saw the ugly underbelly of society that an outcast experiences every day, and she didn�t like it one bit. She resolved to show more appreciation to John next time she saw him.