“Laparoscopy takes a little longer but most patients seem to recover faster and feel less pain after the surgery,” he explained, taking off his glasses and using his kerchief to clean them. “We also needed to carry out intraoperative cholangiography to check for stones outside the gallbladder. That’s why it took some more time.”
Oh, and we also removed a healthy kidney along the way.
Chapter 45
IN HIS OFFICE, Santosh pressed a button on the multipoint controller and watched the oversized LCD screen spring to life. There was a time difference of twelve and a half hours between Delhi and Los Angeles. It would be ten thirty in the morning for Jack, a good time to reach him.
“What’s bugging you?” asked Jack, picking up on Santosh’s worried expression.
“The case,” said Santosh. “I’m wondering whether it leads Private Delhi into a political quagmire.”
“Well, it was always a bit boggy,” drawled Jack. “But how come I’m getting the funny feeling that it turns out to involve the suicide of your Health Minister.”
“Kumar,” offered Santosh. “That’s what they’re saying in the States, is it? That it was suicide?”
“I’ll be honest, Santosh, it’s not that big a story here. But yeah, that’s what they’re saying.”
“Well, it wasn’t. I saw the body. It was murder. We’ve established a link between the city’s hospitals and the body parts found at Greater Kailash. We think there’s a link between that find and an earlier murder in which the victim’s eyeballs were removed. And now Kumar, who was drained of all blood and the blood taken. The theory I’m currently working on is that we’ve stumbled across some kind of organ-harvesting or illegal-transplants operation. And my instinct is that this goes right to the top.”
“Okay, hang in there. I’m on my way back to Delhi to address the Global Security and Intelligence Conference. We can talk more when I arrive.”
“The one being held at Vigyan Bhawan?” asked Santosh.
“Precisely,” said Jack. “Grab a cab, pick me up from the airport, and we’ll chat in the car on the drive into town.”
“Will do. Just one small request in the meantime.”
“Shoot.”
“I need you to find out whether any American insurance companies encourage their customers to come to India,” said Santosh.
“For what?” asked Jack.
“For organ transplants or medical procedures,” replied Santosh. “It’s called medical tourism.”
“Anything else?” asked Jack.
“If any of them do encourage clients to have their procedures perfo
rmed in India, then which ones? I’m particularly interested in one company: ResQ.”
Chapter 46
JACK MORGAN SAT at the round ink-black lacquered table in the octagonal “war room” of Private Los Angeles. Padded swivel chairs were clustered around the table, jumbo flat-screens mounted wall to wall.
Opposite sat the CEO of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, headquartered in Kansas City—a man called Denny. Jack had helped him with several delicate investigations involving insurance frauds worth millions. Requesting Denny’s help that morning, he had not expected him to be in LA for a meeting, but as fortune would have it …
“So here’s the deal, Jack,” said the insurance man, adjusting his horn-rimmed glasses to read from a folder on the table. “There is indeed an increasing trend to send American patients to India on account of the new super-specialty hospitals that have been established there. Doctors’ services are a fraction of the cost. In addition, postoperative care is also cheap. Insurance providers can cut costs tremendously by doing this.”
“And clients are willing to travel halfway around the world for medical procedures?” asked Jack.
“Around a hundred and fifty thousand patients travel to India each year for medical procedures. The size of the industry is already around two billion dollars per year.”
“Any specific insurance companies that specialize in the India game?” asked Jack.
“Leading the pack in this effort is a company called ResQ,” said his friend. “It’s listed on the NASDAQ but their main operations are now in India. The name of their CEO is Jai Thakkar.”
Chapter 47