Luke spent a day without formal tests except his own wavering courage about checking outside news on the Star Tribune. He twice approached the laptop's news, once glimpsing a headline about a truck attack, and noted the welcome screen now showed his name instead of Donna's, marking her absence.

The next day, Luke was taken to C-Level for blood draws, an injection with no reaction, and a urine sample by tech Carlos and stern orderly Winona. They escorted him to D-Level, where an expensive MRI machine awaited. Before scanning, Dr. Evans briefly examined Luke's injection site and questioned him about seizures and Stasi Lights, pressing Luke not to lie. Luke denied any recurrence, while suspecting Evans wanted a positive report.

MRI tech Dave, assisted by Carlos, prepared Luke for multiple scan sessions. Although Luke first declined a Valium, after lunch delivered by Gladys he accepted one for the later scans, citing boredom and the length of the procedure. He endured loud, repetitive imaging in several sessions, dozing lightly during the last stint under the drug's calming effect.

When Winona returned to take him back upstairs, the Valium had faded, leaving Luke spaced out. Winona handed him tokens for the vending machines, dropping one for him to pick up, and suggested he relax with alcohol like Harveys Bristol Cream. Luke bit back a sharper retort, musing on the absurdity of offering booze to kids, and limited himself to a dry remark that nothing would help.

Winona warned him about his "wise mouth," and Luke gave a noncommittal reply. He counted nine tokens and decided to give three each to Avery Dixon and the Wilcox twins for snacks, keeping none for alcohol or stronger items. Tired and hungry, he thought only of getting a large, filling meal.