Singed Synapses and Deranged Dendrites

The Call Gods (#bribery)

Like pollice verso, when the ancient roman crowds passed judgment on a defeated gladiator, Brian looked up from his Xbox game, frowned with contempt, and slowly twisted an outstruck thumb downwards, pointing it towards the gates of hell.

Marcy gasped, "You guys are just cruel. That old man might die! His blood pressure is already quite low." She sat hunched on the sofa next to Brian wringing her hands over the decision.

"Now, now," said Edgar in a mocking voice. He lay back casually in an oversized chair, one leg flung nonchalantly over an armrest. He didn't look up at his friends as he spoke but was calmly filing his nails to perfection with an emory board. Beneath his large golden curls, his beautiful face wore an expression of boredom.  

"I'm sure the good Dr. Smith will give the right orders to nurse Mathews to save his life," said Edgar. "Besides, we aren't The Fates. We don't decide who lives and who dies."

Marcy gave Edgar a stare that told him she thought he was a total jerk, but Edgar ignored it. 

The threesome sat in silence for nearly an hour, the only noise in the room the sounds of shooting coming from Brian's game of Fortnite.

"I think nurse Mathews should call in the afternoon lab abnormalities. None of them are serious and it is just ten pm," said Marcy. 

"I assured they would get hidden under a pile of faxes," said Edgar, now twisted in his chair into a yoga pretzel, studying his large beautiful feet with interest. 

"But nurse Mathews will find them at 1am and wake Dr. Smith out of a dead sleep. She needs her sleep," Marcy protested.

"Dr. Smith is on call. It's her job. She is the doctor on call," said Edgar.

"But there is nothing serious wrong in those labs other than a few chronically low sodiums," protested Marcy. "And the doctor has been on call for thirty-six hours already! And she has to work again in the morning."

"Not my problem," said Edgar, taking a sip from a golden chalice that sat on an elegant table beside him.

"Look," said Marcy. "Sunday morning Dr. Smith cleared out her inbox and email, and cleaned her bathroom." 

"And her bribery worked," said Edgar. "She went for a run with no pages. But that was so long ago I barely remember it."

"Damn it!" said Brian.

Marcy and Edgar jumped because Brian never spoke. But they realized it was because he had lost a fight on the Xbox.

"Ares kicking your ass again?" asked Edgar. 

Brian just growled in response. 

"I think since Brian lost to the god of war we should cheer him up and send Dr. Smith three back to back pages," said Edgar. Brian smiled in response.

"You guys are just cruel!" yelled Marcy. "Whatever can the good doctor do to get some rest?"

Edgar said nothing but gave Marcy a placid look with his perfect face that at once said nothing and said so much. 

"I...Demand...Sacrifice," said Edgar.

Brain let out a low laugh at Edgar's performance and Marcy fell back on the sofa, arms crossed giving Edgar a look of death that she knew was useless against an immortal.

And come Monday I...demand...a transfer out of this department, thought Marcy.