I have a new story up for Patrons, based on a couple suggestions from last month and this month, dedicated to a certain someone. If you’d like to read it, check it out here! The suggestion box is still open by the way, and a bit bare this month, so if you’re a patron and want to see something from me, now’s the time to ask. Here’s a short preview of the story, to whet your appetites.
There were, it turned out, some things that massive amounts of money couldn’t buy. Albert was in his mid fifties, and his heart was failing him. Albert was rich, but he had a problem–he had a congenital defect that meant he couldn’t get a transplant–no matter how much he paid the doctors to tell him otherwise. He was struggling along as best he could, on medications and a pacemaker, but at his weight and age…the prognosis did not look good. But Albert hadn’t become a rich man by giving up–and he certainly wasn’t about to give up on this now, not with his very life at stake.
He turned to the black market instead, but again, he found himself thwarted by his own body’s weaknesses. Even shady surgeons wouldn’t touch him–it was simply too risky. That, in the end, is what led him here, to this little veterinarian clinic out in the middle of nowhere. It turned out that there was a possible solution to his problem–at least, an experimental one. Doctors had been testing out replacing human hearts with pig hearts as transplants, but the trials were in the very early stages. Still, where there was medicine, and money, certain hoops could be jumped through, and this vet came highly recommended–as highly recommended as one could come off the black market.
The conditions had been strict. Albert had to come alone, and he could tell no one where he was going. If he survived the procedure, and all was well, in three weeks he’d return to his life, all the better. If not…well, this was the only chance, wasn’t there? The clinic was run by a single doctor, who served the entire county–Dr. Pontiac. He was a muscular fellow, hairy with a large beard, and a rather stern face. He gave Albert his exam, and told him they were good to go–he would do the surgery that night.
Albert had expected a little more prep time, but Dr. Pontiac insisted. He’d just had a carcass come in, perfect shape for what was necessary, presently on ice. It was now, or he would have to wait days, or possibly weeks–and Dr. Pontiac assured Albert that he might not have weeks in his current state. So Albert was stripped down, taken into the operating room of the little veterinary hospital. He could hear the sounds of animals all around him, as Dr. Pontiac and his assistant prepared him for his surgery. Then the mask was over his face, and the last thing he saw before he went under, was Dr. Pontiac smiling down at him, assuring him that when he woke up, he would feel like a brand new animal.
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