Leah's hands had been shaking for nearly half an hour when she finally walked into her apartment--driving anywhere in Hill City during rush hour took forever. All she could think about as she whipped-off her raincoat in the entry was the gnawing ache in her stomach. She dashed to the kitchen and threw open the fridge, grabbed a half dozen eggs and a carton of milk. Turning to the stove she flicked on a burner and fumbled to break the eggs over a frying pan, fishing out bits of shell while she stirred-in the milk with a fork.

"Come on," she pleaded, "I'm starving." Leah downed the remainder of the milk carton in three quick gulps. Then grabbed a jar of peanut butter from the counter, hoping it would satisfy her until the eggs were ready.

Half an hour later Leah lay sound asleep on her couch while the television showed images of a twelve-car pileup on the interstate. An empty plate and half a brick of cheese sat on the floor next to the couch. The ! phone rang and Leah stirred, but did not wake up. Her machine picked up and a frantic female voice could be heard.

"Leah, this is Liz, if you're there pick up! Have you seen the news? It's the mayor... Oh crap, gotta run." Click.

Leah stirred again and opened her eyes, glancing at the television. She sat up, staring at the young field reporter talking into a channel 7 microphone. "...whose young son Wilfred is reported to be among the injured."

"Well, Shauntell," said an older, clean-shaved anchorman, "our best hopes go out to the mayor's family. Have the authorities commented on the possibility of foul-play?"

"No word yet..." Shauntell's voice cutoff as Leah grabbed the remote and clicked the power button. I have to get to Hill City General, she thought, running for the bathroom. She stood on the scale for a moment, then sprinted for the door.

"Ten pounds since Tuesday," she said grabbing her raincoat and car keys. "Must be a big one." The streets were still wet from the afternoon rains, and the drive to the hospital seemed to take forever. It was nearly seven-thirty when Leah parked her car in the ramp and hurried across the skywalk to the hospital's second floor.

"I need to see Wilfred Ganes," she panted to the pediatrics receptionist.

"I'm sorry, miss," she answered, "but the Mayor's family has already gone home."

"Oh no," Leah said softly, turning away, "I'm too late."

"Miss."

Leah turned back to the receptionist. "Yes?"

"The boy is fine. He wasn't seriously hurt."

"Thank God." Leah relaxed, "I was afraid..." she stopped. "Were there others brought in from the accident?"

"I'm sure there were," answered the receptionist, "But none came in here--most of the injured were adults. Anyway they would probably be in surgery or intensive care."

Leah turned away from the desk. She could already feel herself growing w! eaker--it wouldn't be long now--she had to find out who needed her. Leah made her way to the elevators.

Her head was swimming when she stumbled off the elevator into the ICU and fell to her knees. An orderly stopped to help her, asking if she was okay. "I-" she stammered, "I need to see a doctor." "Well, ma'am, you've come to the right place."

Leah nodded and tried to smile but then everything went black.

"Well," said the surgeon peeling off his gloves into the biohazard bin, "I hope Dr. Phelps knows what he's doing--I'd hate to waste a perfectly good set of heart and lungs."

"I just can't believe the luck of it," his assistant said, scrubbing his fingernails over the sink. "What are the odds of this woman dropping dead, right down the hall, just when we're praying for a donor."

"Do you really think it was luck, Pete?" Asked the surgeon, "I mean the girl's organs were a perfect match."

Pete turned off the faucet, and shook his head. "What are you saying, Jim--you think she's angel?" "No, if she was an angel I don't think she'd be dead. I'm just saying it seems like too much to be a coincidence."

"Fine, Jim, believe whatever you-"

A nurse burst into the room cutting him off in mid-sentence. "Doctors, something's wrong!" "Slow down a minute," said Jim. "Just tell us what's going on."

"She's gone! --the woman is gone!"

"What?" Pete started. "What woman?"

"The donor!"

The three of them raced down the hall to the room where Leah's body had been left. There on the stretcher lay the bloodied linen they had used to cover her, but her body was nowhere in sight.

Half an hour later Leah walked up to her apartment door and turned the key in the lock--forgetting she had been in too much of a hurry to lock it earlier. She pushed through, hung her keys on a peg and walked into the living room. A light was blinking on her answering machine so she hit the play button and smiled slightly at the frantic message. Anything concerning Mayor Ganes was a big deal to Liz, who was a reporter for the Hill City Herald.

Leah walked to the bathroom and weighed herself again. "One-thirty-seven," she said. "Back to normal." She stood in front of the mirror and pulled off her hospital gown, fingering the long, jagged scar on her chest. The wound continued to heal even as she watched. "Lungs," she said. "Maybe lungs and heart both."

Liz had told her once that she would kill to be able to eat like Leah and keep her figure. Leah smiled as she reached for her toothbrush. "I wonder if you'd die for it, Liz."