“That’s a few days away. When do I get my legs back?”

“Maybe not till after Christmas. The stumps all have slight infections and I want you to take it easy till that clears.”

“So I’m grounded.”

“How about chaired?”

“Funny. You’re not the one stuck in this thing. Maybe it would be good to super-glue your butt into one of these for a week.”

“Could I get you to promise to use it except to get around in the dorm if I gave you the prosthesis back? Understand, that means no trips outside the dorm without the chair and no walking beyond what you have to use your legs to get into and out of the chair and bed.”

“Sure, I’d promise. God I would sell my first born for that. I never realized how much those artificial legs meant till now.”

“Let’s see how your stumps look in a week.”

“Come on. Let me have them now.”

“No way. Let’s let that for now. I’ll have your roomie check on you to make sure you listen.”

“She’d squeal too.”

“I know. She cares about you. Now, how can I get to see the three potential patients and their families?”

“Let me try to get them together next Saturday.”

“I want them here at the hospital. Janice and George will be coming in too. I want you to come, to remind them that this is experimental.”

“Sure. Any special time?”

“How about all day. I’ll need the time. Let’s start early in the morning. Say about nine?”

“I’ll have them here. I’ll be bringing a version of my program to try.”

“Good. See you then.”

That evening she broke the news to the others. They would be going to Kensing on Saturday. The girls called their parents and they all agreed to meet them there.

The next Saturday was an anticlimax. The day was spent measuring, examining and testing the three women. Kathy got the chance to hook up to her legs with the new program and try it. It had some bugs but was getting close. Dr. Western looked at her stumps and told her she could have the prosthesis. Then he told her they were at the college. She could get them when she got back. He told Barb to call him if she tried to exceed his restrictions. Barb nodded. She would make sure Kathy complied.

Dr. Western then laid out the plan for the other women. They would come in and be admitted to the hospital on the day they got off college for Christmas vacation. They would perform at least two of the operations on the first day. Gwen and Wendy would be first. Barb would have surgery late that day or early the next. All three women would wake up in Stryker frames to support their backs. They could expect two to three days and then they would be back in a regular bed. As soon as they could get about, Kathy would start their programming. This would involve creating sensations and inducing motions to get the chips interfaced. From there it was all conjecture. There were no guarantees except that they would try. Back at school it was hard to keep a secret for the week. Having the prosthesis helped a lot but Kathy chafed to get her legs back.

Kathy’s Legs: Chapter One, The Accident

Kathys Legs 6: Kathy Returns to College

Kathys Legs 8: The Friends with SCI Have Surgery