His gut twisted into a painful knot. "Philip, I know she's a freak but you need a doctor," he told him. But his legs wouldn't take him away from that bed. He pushed his hair out of his face, and could feel his racing pulse in his neck.

Stay calm, Shotaro. While somewhere in the back of his mind he knew he'd come back if he died, that was no real reassurance. He flicked his hat off his head in a fit of anxiety and ran his fingers through his hair.