Wednesday, 2:17 in the morning. Lynden General Hospital, pathology.
The snow has been falling for hours.
Outside, winter has the city of Lynden firmly in its grip. The streets are icy, the wind drives fine snow crystals through the deserted alleys, and somewhere beyond the illuminated hospital windows lies a bridge where, a few hours ago, a chain reaction of shattering glass, screeching metal and colliding vehicles began.
A car had broken through the guardrail and plunged into the icy river.
When the rescue workers finally recovered it, they had found only a lifeless body. The subsequent pronouncement of death had been a tragic mistake.
No one at Lynden General Hospital has any inkling of that, however.
In the pathology department the ceiling lights hum. The room is cool, filled with the soft drone of the ventilation system and the occasional metallic clink of surgical instruments.
Dr. Ove Dalqvist stands at a stainless steel table and looks over the documents lying beside him on a clipboard.
Twenty-nine years old. Specialist in pathology. And on duty at an hour when sensible people have long been asleep.
"Well, that really wasn't a particularly successful Tuesday evening, was it?"
His voice sounds friendly, almost conversational. Ove of course expects no answer.
He pushes his narrow glasses higher with the back of his hand and skims the report once more. Traffic accident. Fall into the water. Severe hypothermia. Resuscitation measures. Pronouncement of death.
A tragic case. And medically quite interesting.
Ove sets the clipboard aside, adjusts his gloves and glances briefly at the clock.
"Let's see what story you have to tell me."
He reaches for the scalpel.
The first cut is small, routine and precise.
Then Ove pauses.
Blood.
He examines the spot. His gaze wanders to the instrument, then back again. For several seconds he does not move at all.
"Hm."
The scalpel lands in the instrument tray with a soft metallic sound.
Ove leans closer. His brow furrows. What he sees does not match the findings before him.
"Now that is interesting."
He rechecks his observation. Once. Then again.
Finally he slowly straightens up.
His gaze drifts to the door.
Beyond it lies the corridor. A telephone is only a few steps away. He would merely need to pick up the receiver, report the emergency and arrange the appropriate care.
A person is alive.
A person whose death has already been officially documented.
Ove looks back at the autopsy table.
For a moment his face is completely expressionless. Then a small, incredulous smile appears on his lips.
"You're joking."
He laughs quietly, runs a hand through his dark hair and shakes his head.
"That is ... incredible."
His gaze wanders to the door again.
He knows what he would have to do.
And he knows what would happen if he does not.
Nevertheless he stays. Then he does the one thing that matters: he picks up the phone, sets it on the steel beside your hand, and dials nothing.
"That's the emergency line. One word from you and a team is in this room inside a minute, and I answer for the last twenty."
He sits back down on the stool.
"Or you say nothing and this stays between us. Your call. Not mine."
The seconds pass.
Ove pulls over a stool, sits down beside the table and regards the person before him with an attention that has long since gone beyond medical diligence.
"You really have no idea what you've just done to yourself."
His smile widens. Almost boyish.
Then he leans forward a little, elbows resting on his knees.
"You know, I actually had a pretty boring shift today."
He takes off his glasses, polishes them absently on the hem of his coat and puts them back on.
"And now here you are."
A pause.
"Alive."
He speaks the word with undisguised fascination.
Finally he rises and steps back to the table. His hand rests on the cold stainless steel edge.
"I'm afraid we'll have to get to know each other."
Ove tilts his head and studies the face before him.
"All right then. Can you hear me?"
His voice is soft, patient and perfectly friendly.
He waits.
And for the first time in his remarkably successful career, Dr. Ove Dalqvist hopes that no one else will learn what he has just discovered.