I saw Marcus smiling beside visiting foreign specialists in photos from a hospital gala. Later, he appeared in a local television interview and then onstage accepting a clinical excellence award.
Still, my hospital phone never rang.
Not once in ten days.
Working as a senior healthcare quality auditor had taught me one rule: verify the facts before reacting.
I logged into the hospital’s administrative portal and reviewed the transplant project’s official protocols.
Within minutes, I found Section 4, Paragraph B:
Personnel in isolation may request a temporary dispensation of up to two hours for immediate family medical emergencies, life-threatening illnesses, or surgical procedures, subject to standard re-sanitizations.
Then I searched the system for dispensation requests submitted by Dr. Marcus Hayes.
Zero.
Not one.
