Daniel sat in the seat facing the rear directly behind the glass shield separating the driver’s compartment from the passenger section. Ashley and Carol were sitting in the back, their faces intermittently illuminated by the flickering light of oncoming vehicles. With his procedure behind him, Ashley was ostensibly euphoric, carrying on an animated conversation with Carol about his political agenda after the Congressional recess. In reality, the discourse was more like a monologue, since Carol merely nodded or said yes at infrequent intervals.
As Ashley talked and carried on, Daniel began to relax from the tension engendered by his worry that Ashley was about to have a seizure and the associated concern of having to give a dose of the sedative. If the seizure was anything like what had occurred in the OR, Daniel knew the intravenous route would be close to impossible, and he’d be reduced to giving it intramuscularly. The problem with the IM route was that it took longer for the drugs to cause an effect, and any delay could be problematic if aggression was an issue, as Dr. Nawaz had strenuously warned. Considering Ashley’s size and surprising strength, Daniel knew that wrestling with him within the confines of the limo would be a nightmare.
The more relaxed Daniel became, the more his mind was able to go beyond the seizure concern. He became progressively amazed at the degree of mobility Ashley was displaying with his gestures and how normal his facial expressions and voice modulation were. He was a far cry from the semifrozen individual Daniel had seen that morning. Daniel was puzzled, since the treatment cells were not in their proper location, as was shown all too clearly on the CAT scan. But the effect he was observing could not be the result of the sedative or placebo, as he’d so blithely suggested earlier. There had to be some other explanation.
Like all scientists, Daniel was aware that science occasionally leapt ahead not by hard work alone but also by serendipity. He started to wonder if the errant site the treatment cells now occupied might prove to be particularly appropriate for dopamine-producing cells. It didn’t make sense, because Daniel knew that the area of the limbic system where the cells now resided was not a modulator of motion, but rather was involved with olfaction, autonomic behaviors like sex, and emotion. Yet there was a lot about the human brain and its function that was still a mystery, and at the moment Daniel was enjoying seeing such a positive result from his efforts.
When they arrived at the Atlantis, Ashley made it a point that he did not need assistance from the doormen as he climbed from the car. Although he had another bout of dizziness when he got to his feet, requiring him to hold on to Carol for a moment, it passed quickly, and he was able to walk reasonably normally into the lobby and to the elevators.
“Where is that gorgeous Dr. D’Agostino?” Ashley asked as they waited.
Daniel shrugged. “She either got here before us or will be here shortly. I’m not concerned. She’s a big girl.”
“Indeed!” Ashley agreed. “And smart as a whip.”
In the hallway of the thirty-second floor, Ashley walked ahead as if showing off his new capabilities. Although he was still hunched over to a degree, he was moving much more normally, including his arm swing, which had been almost negligent that morning.
Carol used her keycard when they got to the mermaid door. She opened it and stepped aside for Ashley to enter. As he did so, he turned on the lights. “Every time they make up the room, they close everything to make the place look like a root cellar,” he complained. He walked over to the wall switches and activated the curtains and the sliding-glass panels simultaneously.
At night, the view from inside the suite was nowhere near as dramatic as it was in the day, since the expanse of ocean was as dark as crude oil. But that was not the case from the balcony, where Ashley immediately went. He put his hands down on the cool stone balustrade, leaned forward, and surveyed the vast semicircular Atlantis water park splayed out in front of him. With its profusion of pools, waterfalls, walkways, and aquariums, all creatively illuminated, it was a feast for his eyes after the stress of the day.
Carol disappeared into her room while Daniel advanced to the balcony’s threshold. For a moment he watched Ashley as the senator closed his eyes and raised his head into the cool tropical breeze coming off the ocean. The wind rustled his hair and the sleeves of his Bahamian print shirt, but he was otherwise motionless. Daniel wondered if Ashley was praying or communicating with his God in some personal fashion now that he thought he had genes from Jesus Christ embedded in his brain.
A slight smile appeared on Daniel’s face. Suddenly he had more optimism about the outcome of treating Ashley than he had since the seizure in the operating room and more optimism than he thought possible after seeing the CAT scan. He began to think there was something of a miracle involved.
“Senator!” Daniel called after five minutes had passed and Ashley had not moved a muscle. “I don’t mean to bother you, but I think I will go to my own room.”
Ashley turned around and acted as if he was surprised to see Daniel standing there. “Why, Dr. Lowell!” he called out. “How nice to see you!” He pushed away from the balustrade and walked directly up to Daniel. Before Daniel knew what was happening, he was enveloped in a bear hug that kept his own arms pinned to his sides.
Self-consciously, Daniel allowed himself to be hugged, although he wondered if he had any choice in the matter. It was a testament to how much bigger and heavier the stocky Ashley was in comparison to Daniel’s spare and comparatively bony frame. The hugging continued beyond what Daniel thought reasonable, and just when he was about to voice impatience, Ashley let up and stepped back but kept one hand gripping Daniel’s shoulder.
“My dear, dear friend,” Ashley oozed. “I want to thank you for all you have done from the bottom of my heart. You are a tribute to your profession.”
“Well, thank you for saying so,” Daniel murmured. Feeling himself blush, he was embarrassed.
Carol reappeared from her bedroom and her presence rescued Daniel from Ashley’s clutches. “I’m on my way back to my room,” Daniel called out to her.
“You get a good rest!” Ashley ordered, as if he were the doctor. He gave Daniel a pat on the back, which was strong enough to cause Daniel to take a step forward to keep from losing his balance. Ashley then turned around to retreat back to his place at the balustrade, where he assumed the same meditative pose he’d struck earlier.
Carol accompanied Daniel to the door. “Is there anything I should know or do?” she asked.
“Not that I haven’t already told you,” Daniel said. “He seems to be doing okay, and certainly better than I expected.”
“You should be very proud.”
“Well, yeah, I suppose,” Daniel stammered. He wasn’t sure if she was referring to how Ashley was doing at the moment or sarcastically to the complication. Her tone, like her broad expressionless face, was hard to read.
“What exactly should I be watching for?” Carol asked.
“Any change in his health status or his behavior. I know you have no medical training, so you’ll just have to do the best you can. I would have preferred he stay in the clinic tonight so his vital signs could have been checked through the night, but that didn’t happen. He’s a strong-willed individual.”
“That is an understatement,” Carol said. “I’ll watch over him as I usually do. Am I supposed to wake him during the night? Anything like that?”
“No, I don’t think that is necessary, with him doing as well as he is. But if there is any problem whatsoever or you have any questions, call me, no matter what the time.”
Carol opened the door for Daniel and then closed it behind him without another word. For a moment, Daniel stared at the carved mermaids. Trained as a hard scientist, he knew psychology was far from his forte, and people like Carol Manning confirmed it. She confused him. One minute she seemed the perfect, dedicated assistant; the next she seemed as if she was mad about her subservient role. Daniel sighed. At least it wasn’t his problem, provided she watched the senator through th
e night.
On the short walk to the suite he shared with Stephanie, Daniel’s attention switched back to the shocking improvement in Ashley’s Parkinson’s. He was mystified on many counts but enormously pleased, and he couldn’t wait to share the news with Stephanie. He opened the door and was surprised not to see her, especially when she wasn’t in the bedroom either. Then he heard the shower going.
When Daniel entered the bathroom, he found himself enveloped in a fog as if Stephanie had been in there for a half hour. He put the toilet seat down and sat. With his line of sight at a lower level, he could now make out Stephanie’s form behind the frosted and fogged shower door. It appeared as if she weren’t moving beneath the full force of the spray.
“Are you all right in there?” Daniel yelled out.
“I’m better,” Stephanie answered.
“Better?” Daniel questioned silently. He had no idea what she meant, although it reminded him that she had been rather silent all afternoon. It also reminded him of her seemingly insensitive response to Carol’s offer to ride with her, although he admitted if the situation had been reversed, he would have responded similarly. The difference was, in contrast to him, Stephanie ordinarily concerned herself about other people’s feelings. Daniel didn’t consider himself base or even rude, but rather he just couldn’t be bothered. People had to understand that there were too many more important things for him to think about than social niceties.
Daniel debated with himself whether or not to go out to the minibar to get something to drink. In many ways, it had been one of the most stressful days of his life. Ultimately, he decided to stay put. He was eager to tell Stephanie about Ashley; the drink could wait. But Stephanie didn’t budge.
“Hey, in there!” Daniel yelled at length. “Are you coming out or what?”
Stephanie cracked open the door, and steam billowed out. “I’m sorry. Are you waiting to get in here?”
Daniel waved the vapor away from his face. The bathroom had become a Turkish bath. “No, I’m waiting to talk to you.”
“Well, maybe you shouldn’t wait. I’m not sure I’m up to talking much.”
Daniel felt a wave of irritation course through him. Stephanie’s response was not what he wanted to hear. With the day’s events, he needed and deserved a bit of support, which he certainly did not believe was asking too much. Abruptly, he stood up, left the bathroom, and slammed the door. While he got himself a cold beer, he brooded. He didn’t need any more aggravation. He plopped himself down on the couch and concentrated on sipping his beer. By the time Stephanie appeared, wrapped in a towel, he had recovered.
“I can tell by the way you slammed the door you’re mad,” Stephanie said in a calm voice. She was standing in the doorway to the bedroom. “I just want to let you know I’m emotionally and physically exhausted. I need some sleep. We did wake up at five this morning to make sure everything was ready.”
“I’m tired too,” Daniel said. “I just wanted to tell you that Ashley is doing unbelievably. Most of his Parkinson’s symptoms have already mysteriously improved.”
“That’s nice,” Stephanie said. “Unfortunately, it does not alter the fact that the implantation went awry.”
“Maybe it didn’t go awry!” Daniel responded. “I’m telling you that you will be amazed. He’s a different man.”
“He certainly is a different man. We’ve inadvertently crammed a horde of aberrant dopamine-producing cells someplace into his temporal lobe. An experienced neurosurgeon strongly believes he’ll be saddled with the hell of temporal lobe epilepsy. For Ashley, that will be even worse than the Parkinsonism.”
“But he’s not had a seizure since the one in the OR. I’m telling you, he’s is doing marvelously.”
“He’s not had a seizure yet.”
“If he has a problem, we can deal with it the way I suggested to Dr. Nawaz.”
“You mean with the cytotoxic agent attached to the monoclonal antibody?”
“Exactly.”
“You can do that if you are so inclined and if you can talk Ashley into subjecting himself to such a foolhardy experiment, but it is not going to be ‘we.’ I’ll have no part of it. We haven’t even tried it in cell culture, much less animals, and as such, it is a quantum leap more unethical than what we have already done.”
Daniel stared at Stephanie. He could feel his irritation sweeping back over him. “Whose side are you on, anyway?” he demanded. “We decided on a goal to cure Ashley to save HTSR and CURE, and by God, we are going to get there.”
“I’d like to think that I am crossing over to the side less motivated by self-interest,” Stephanie said. “Today, when we realized the OR was not equipped with the necessary X ray, we should have stopped the procedure. We were gambling with someone else’s life for our own benefit.” Then she held up her hands as Daniel’s face flushed and his mouth opened to respond. “If you don’t mind, let’s cut it off right here,” she added. “I’m sorry, but this has become exactly the kind of discussion I did not feel capable of having tonight. I told you I’m drained. Maybe I’ll feel differently after a night’s sleep. Who knows?”
“Fine!” Daniel said sarcastically, with a wave of his hand. “Go to bed!”
“Are you coming?”
“Yeah, maybe,” Daniel said angrily. He got up and went to the minibar. He needed another beer.
Daniel wasn’t sure how many times the phone had rung since his exhausted mind had incorporated the jangle into the nightmare he was having. In his dream, he was a medical student again, and the phone was something to fear. Back then, it was often a call to an emergency he was untrained to handle.
By the time Daniel’s eyes popped open, the ringing had stopped. He sat up and looked over at the now silent phone on the side table and wondered if it had rung or if he’d just dreamed it. Then his eyes darted around the room to orient himself. He was in the living room, still in his clothes, with all the lights on. After two beers, he’d fallen fast asleep.
The door to the bedroom opened. Stephanie appeared in her silk shorty pajamas, squinting and blinking in the bright light. “Carol Manning is on the phone,” she said, in a voice thick with sleep. “She’s upset and needs to talk with you.”
“Oh, no!” Daniel said worrisomely. He swung his legs off the coffee table. He even still had his shoes on. Without standing up, he leaned across the length of the couch and picked up the phone. Stephanie stayed in the doorway to listen.
“Ashley is acting strangely,” Carol blurted into the phone after Daniel identified himself.
“What’s he doing?” Daniel asked. The old medical school fear of incompetence in the face of an emergency came flooding back. With as many years as Daniel had been away from clinical medicine, he had forgotten most of his doctoring skills.
“It’s not so much what he is doing, it’s what he’s complaining about. Excuse my language, but he says he smells pig shit. You told me that if he smelled something strange, it might be important.”
Daniel felt his heart skip a beat and the optimism he’d felt earlier vanish. Immediately, there was not a modicum of doubt in his mind that Ashley was having an aura heralding the onset of another temporal lobe seizure. At the same time, the last vestiges of clinical confidence Daniel was holding on to crumbled as he acknowledged he was about to face handling an episode of what Dr. Nawaz predicted would be worse than the first. “Has he been aggressive or is he acting out in any way?” Daniel asked nervously. Frantically, he looked around the room for the black pouch containing the sedative and syringes. Thankfully, he spotted it on the table in the foyer.
“Acting out is a little strong, but he has been irritable. Then again, he’s been irritable for the last year.”
“Okay, be calm!” Daniel said, as much for his own benefit as for Carol’s. “I’ll be right down to the room.” He looked at his watch. It was two-thirty in the morning.
“We’re not in the room,” Carol said.
“Where the hell are you?”
/> “We’re in the casino,” Carol admitted. “Ashley insisted. There was nothing I could do, and I tried. I didn’t call you because I knew there was nothing you could do either. When he makes up his mind, that’s it. I mean, he’s a senator.”
“Good God!” Daniel complained. He slapped a hand to his forehead. “Did you try to get him to come back to the room when he smelled the pig poop?”
“I suggested it, but he told me to go out and jump in the shark tank.”
“Okay! Where in the casino are you?”
“We’re at a bank of slot machines on the ocean side of the room, beyond the roulette tables.”
“I’ll be right down. We’ve got to get him back to the room!”
Daniel got to his feet and glanced at Stephanie, but she had disappeared back into the bedroom. He dashed over and looked in. Stephanie was tearing off her pajamas and pulling on her clothes.
“Wait!” she called out. “I’ll come with you. If Ashley is going to have a seizure anything like what he had in the OR, you’ll need all the help you can get.”
“Okay,” Daniel said. “Where’s the cell phone?”
Stephanie nodded toward the bureau as she hastened to button her blouse.
“Bring it along! Where are the numbers for Newhouse and Nawaz?”
“I’ve got the numbers already,” Stephanie said, stepping into her pants. “They’re in my pocket.”
Daniel ran to the medical pouch. Just to be sure, he pulled open the zipper. He felt some reassurance after seeing the vial and the syringes. The trick was going to be getting the medicine into Ashley before all hell broke loose.