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lobby of the Consolidated Labs； where he would sit watching a small； flickering TV until it was time to make his rounds again。 Evans would not step foot into the morgue。 He did not understand how anyone could； and I knew he was scared of me。
'I won't be down here long；' I told him。 'Then I'll be upstairs。'
'Yes； ma'am；' he said； still shaking his head。 'You know where I'll be。'
Midway along the corridor in the autopsy suite was a room not often entered； and I stopped there first； unlocking the door。 Inside were three freezers unlike any normally seen。 They were stainless steel and oversized； with temperatures digitally displayed on doors。 On each was a list of case numbers； indicating the unidentified people inside。
I opened a door and thick fog rolled out as frigid air bit my face。 She was in a pouch； and on a tray； and I put on gown； gloves； face shield； every layer of protection we had。 I knew I might already be in trouble； and the thought of Wingo and his vulnerable condition thrilled me with fear as I slid out the pouch and lifted it onto a stainless steel table in the middle of the room。 Unzipping black vinyl； I exposed the torso to ambient air； and I went out and unlocked the autopsy suite。
Collecting a scalpel and clean glass slides； I pulled the surgical mask back down over my nose and mouth； and returned to the freezer room； shutting the door。 The torso's outer layer of skin was moist as thawing began； and I used warm； wet towels to speed that along before unroofing vesicles； or the eruptions clustered over her hip and at the ragged margins of the amputations。
With the scalpel； I scraped vesicular beds； and made smears on the slides。 I zipped up the pouch； marking it with blaze orange biological hazard tags； almost could not lift the body back up to its frigid shelf； my arms trembling under the strain。 There was no one to call for help but Evans； so I managed on my own； and placed more warnings on the door。
I headed upstairs to the third floor； and unlocked a small lab that would have looked like most were it not for various instruments used only in the microscopic study of tissue； or histology。 On a counter was a tissue processor； which fixed and dehydrated samples such as liver； kidney； spleen； and then infiltrated them with paraffin。 From there the blocks went to the embedding center； and on to the microtome where they were shaved into thin ribbons。 The end product was what kept me bent over my microscope downstairs。
While slides air…dried； I rooted around shelves； moving aside stains of bright orange； blue and pink in coplin jars； pulling out Gram's iodine for bacteria。 Oil Red for fat in liver； silver nitrate； Biebrach Scarlet and Acridine Orange； as I thought about Tangier Island； where I'd never had a case before。 Nor was there much crime； so I had been told； only drunkenness； which was mon with men alone at sea。 I thought of blue crab again； and irrationally wished Bev had sold me rock fish or tuna。
Finding the bottle of Nicolaou stain； I dipped in an eye dropper and carefully dripped a tiny amount of the red fluid on each slide； then finished with cover slips。 These I secured in a sturdy cardboard folder； and I headed downstairs to my floor。 By now； people were beginning to arrive for work； and they gave me odd looks as I came down the hall and boarded the elevator in scrubs； mask and gloves。 In my office； Rose was collecting dirty coffee mugs off my desk。 She froze at the sight of me。
'Dr Scarpetta？' she said。 'What in the world is going on？'
'I'm not sure； but I hope nothing；' I replied as I sat at my desk and took the cover off my microscope。
She stood in the doorway； watching as I placed a slide on the stage。 She knew by my mood； if by nothing else； that something was very wrong。
'What can I do to help；' she said in a grim； quiet way。
The smear on the slide came into focus； magnified four hundred and fifty times； and then I applied a drop of oil。 I stared at waves of bright red eosinophilic inclusions within infected epithelial cells； or the cytoplasmic Guarnieri bodies indicative of a pox…type virus。 I fitted a Polaroid MicroCam to the microscope； and took instant high…resolution color photographs of what I suspected would have cruelly killed the old woman anyway。 Death had given her no humane choice； but had it been me； I would have chosen a gun or a blade。
'Check MCV； see if Phyllis has gotten in；' I said to Rose。 'Tell her the sample I sent on Saturday can't wait。'
Within the hour； Rose had dropped me off at Eleventh and Marshall Streets； at the Medical College of Virginia； or MCV； where I had done my forensic pathology residency when I wasn't much older than the students I now advised and presented gross conferences to throughout the year。 Sanger Hall was sixties architecture； with a facade of garish bright blue tiles that could be spotted for miles。 I got on an elevator packed with other doctors I knew； and students who feared them。
'Good morning。'
'You； too。 Teaching a class？'
I shook my head； surrounded by lab coats。 'Need to borrow your TEM。'
'You hear about the autopsy we had downstairs the other day？' a pulmonary specialist said to me as doors parted。 'Mineral dust pneumoconiosis。 Berylliosis； specifically。 How often you ever see that around here？'
On the fifth floor； I walked quickly to the Pathology Electron Microscopy Lab； which housed the only transmission electron microscope； or TEM； in the city。 Typically； carts and countertops had not an inch of room to spare； crowded with photo and light microscopes； and other esoteric instruments for analyzing cell sizes； and coating specimens with carbon for X…ray microanalysis。
As a rule； TEM was reserved for the living； most often used in renal biopsies and specific tumors； and viruses rarely； and autopsy specimens almost never。 In terms of my ongoing needs and patients already dead； it was difficult to get scientists and physicians very excited when hospital beds were filled with people awaiting word that might grant them a reprieve from a tragic end。 So I never prodded microbiologist Dr Phyllis Crowder into instant action on the occasions I had needed her in the past。 She knew this was different。
From the hall； I recognized her British accent as she talked on the phone。
'I know。 I understand that；' she was saying as I knocked on the open door。 'But you're either going to have to reschedule or go on without me。 Something else has e up。' She smiled； motioning me in。
I had known her during my residency days； and had always believed that kind words from faculty like her had everything to do with why I had e to mind when the chief's position had opened in Virginia。 She was close to my age and had never married； her short hair the same dark gray as her eyes； and she always wore the same gold cross necklace that looked antique。 Her parents were American； but she had been born in England； which was where she had trained and worked in her first lab。
'Bloody meetings；' she plained as she got off the phone。 'There's nothing I hate more。 People sitting around talking instead of doing。'
She pulled gloves from a box and handed a pair to me。 This was followed by a mask。
'There's an extra lab coat on the back of the door；' she added。
I followed her into the small； dark room； where she had been at work before the phone had rung。 Slipping on the lab coat； I found a chair as she peered into a green phosphorescent screen inside the huge viewing chamber。 The TEM looked more like an instrument for oceanography or astronomy than a normal microscope。 The chamber always reminded me of the dive helmet of a dry suit through which one could see eerie； ghostly images in an iridescent sea。
Through a thick metal cylinder called the scope； running from the chamber to the ceiling； a hundred…thousand…volt beam was striking my specimen； which in this case was liver that had been shaved to a thickness of six or seven one…hundredths of a micron。 Smears like the ones I had viewed with my light microscope were simply too thick for the electron beam to pass through。
Knowing this at autopsy； I had fixed liver and spleen sections in glutaraldehyde； which penetrated tissue very rapidly。 These I had sent to Crowder； who I knew would eventually have them embedded in plastic and cut on the ultramicrotome； then the diamond knife； before being mounted on a tiny copper grid and stained with uranium and lead ions。
What neither of us had expected was what we were looking at now； as we peered into the chamber at the green shadow of a specimen magnified almost one hundred thousand times。 Knobs clicked as she adjusted intensity； contrast and magnification。 I looked at DNA double…stranded； brick…shaped virus particles； two hundred to two hundred and fifty nanometers in size。 I stared without blinking at smallpox。
'What do you think？' I said； hoping she would prove me wrong。
'Without a doubt； it's some type of poxvirus；' she hedged her bets。 'The question is which one。 The fact that the eruptions didn't follow any nerve pattern。 The fact that chicken pox is unmon in someone this old。 The fact that you may now have another case with these same manifestations causes me great concern。 Other tests need to be done； b