Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Nineteen

     Olive and Corby stood in line at the clinic. The clinic was full of people. A couple of children were running amok while their mother chased them down. There was an elderly couple sitting on the other side of the room people watching.

     Olive wrapped her arm around Corby, “You must love me.”

     His eyebrows raised, “Huh?”

     “You’re willing to take me with you to your appointment,” she said.

     He shrugged, “Yep, I’d propose to you, but this place wouldn’t be appropriate.”

     Olive smiled and laughed, “I’m glad you want my company in this misery.”

     Corby kissed one of her hands. As they stood in line they heard someone shouting. Everyone in the waiting room began to look around. Some people snickered.

     One of the doors leading back to the doctor’s office burst open. An older gentleman was yelling at the staff as they were pushing him out of the door. Most of the patients in the waiting room jumped at the sudden outburst.

     “You have no right! It’s none of anyone’s business!” the man screamed. “You’re violating our privacy!”

     The nurses quickly shut the door. The staff behind the counter looked at each other in shock. One of them picked up the phone to call the police.

     “These people are violating privacy law!” he continued. “These new booklets?” He took out a book that looked like a passport. “The government is tracking your medication and medical history. Your medical history is being tracked by the government! Everything is being tracked!”

     Everyone in the room looked at him with their eyes wide open. The man stormed out of the clinic. Some of the people in the waiting room looked at each other and picked up their purses and children and left the building.

     Corby patted Olive’s hand, “They are probably facing a prescription shortage and keeping track.”

     “That’s even more alarming,” said Olive. “How can we have a shortage?”

     A nurse looked into the waiting room, “Corby Thayne?”

     Corby looked up and waved at her. He stood and vanished behind the door with the nurse. Olive waited for him.

     She wondered if she would see any more outbursts or more people storming off. People arrived and left without further incident. Corby finally came back and he didn’t look happy.

     “You ready to go?” he asked. Olive nodded and stood.

     The drive was relatively quiet. The radio was on, but she wasn’t listening. She remembered the ride in the truck with Bradley. Whatever happened to him?

     “What did the doctor say?” she asked.

     “If what the man said was true we are in a world of hurt,” Corby muttered.

     “What do you mean?” she asked.

     He took out a passport size booklet. “Whenever you get any kind of medicine they must stamp this booklet. You get any kind of pill they put a stamp in here. You get a vaccination you get a stamp. This history is being documented.”

     “Wouldn’t that prevent drug abuse?” Olive leafed through the booklet.

     He shrugged, “Perhaps, but this documents every single thing. If you were on birth control or antidepressants would you want your government to know about it?”

     “How do we know that the government is aware of what drug someone is on?” she closed the booklet and handed it back.

     “Because it’s a mandate that Wolfe passed,” he said.

     “Isn’t that against privacy law?” she asked. “That man was right. Are you actually going to let them keep track of your medical history?”

     “No,” he said. “I can see where else I can get my medicine.”

     “We need to do something besides looking for a loophole,” Olive said.

     “I don’t know what else to do,” said Corby. “Even if I said anything to the local government they would ignore it. I don’t hear anyone else arguing with them.”

     Olive felt fired up about the situation. When was the insanity going to end? She wanted to find out more. She wanted to know how to make the insanity to stop.