Green Kills (23 page)

The elevator doors opened and they went out into the corridor.

“It’s dark as death here.” Brian chuckled in a desperate attempt
to ease his fears. His eyes scoured the area with apprehension. Only the light
of a red bulb, hanging above the morgue door, hinted the way to his
destination. The rest of the corridor was shrouded in utter darkness.

“Get going. Remember, I’m right behind you, even if you can’t
see me.” Gadi took off the uniform and stuffed it into the nearest trash can.
Then he turned in the opposite direction and whispered, “Good luck.” Brian
looked back, but Gadi had already been absorbed by the darkness.

Brian walked toward the morgue door, repeating the secret entry
code in his mind again and again. When he reached the heavy doors, he pressed
his ear against them and waited.
Not a living soul inside
, he thought,
enjoying his clever choice of words. A moment later, he began to punch in the
entry code. The elevator door opened behind him, and the assassin silently
emerged from within, a gun in his hand. The morgue’s electric doors began to
move slowly, the sound of the hinges blocking the almost inaudible “poof” the
silencer produced as the deadly bullet was fired.

New York, October 30, 2013, 8:30 AM

When Ronnie entered the conference room, Henry, David and Jim
were already waiting for him. He apologized for the slight delay and placed the
three copies of the acquisition contract on the table, ready for signing.
Satisfied grins appeared on everyone’s faces, and the atmosphere at once turned
relaxed and congenial. Ronnie began, “As you know, yesterday we were able to
iron out the final details of the TDO acquisition agreement and I have in my
possession a signature sheet with the names of all the other investors in the
company, authorizing the four of us to sign the contract on their behalf. I’ve
scheduled an afternoon appointment with the investment bankers, and once we
deliver them the signed documents, they will transfer the payment to our escrow
account.”

Ronnie made a slight pause, drank from the water glass in front
of him and ignored the expectant looks of all present.

“Before we sign, I’d like to say a few words. I wouldn’t be
telling you anything new, if I told you we wouldn’t be sitting here if not for
the two tragic events that we experienced during the final two operations —
incidents that pulled the rug out from under our feet and blackened TDO’s reputation,
turning it into a company that didn’t stand a chance to raise money from
venture capital funds. Throughout the process, I’ve felt the sour taste of
disappointment, which I know you’ve all felt as well. I know I’ve lost my
temper more than once and insulted some of you. I’d like to ask for your
forgiveness.” Ronnie smiled toward Henry and David, who returned conciliatory
nods. “But what I’d like to stress the most is that we wouldn’t have reached
this happy day without Jim’s active involvement.”

Henry gave Jim a pat on the back in appreciation, as the latter
couldn’t conceal his pride.

“In a consultation with the fund’s attorneys, they pointed out
that even though the contract we’ll soon be signing has a clause that releases
the investors and the company from any future claims, this clause is not
legally binding unless it is signed in good faith. Therefore, they’ve
recommended we formally discuss the subject before signing and create an
ordered protocol to properly protect ourselves. I suggest we have this
discussion now, and I’ll distribute the protocol at a later time. It won’t take
long, but it’s an important step—”

“Ronnie, we all agree the company didn’t commit any crimes. I
suggest we postpone this discussion, sign now and prepare the protocol later,”
Henry cut him off and looked around the table, as if seeking everyone else’s
approval.

“Of course, I agree with you regarding the innocence of the
company, but I ask you to give me five minutes of your time, if only so we can
provide honest testimony, if this ever reaches a court of law. Is that too much
to ask, Henry?”

“All right.
Just keep it brief,
please.”

“Thanks, Henry. I don’t know why Christian killed himself and
probably never will. The subject of the patients who died remains shrouded in
mystery as well. True, we’ve discovered one of them had had his surgery
rescheduled at the last minute, but the clerk who scheduled the surgery,
switching it with another patient’s, disappeared without a trace. Why were the
dates switched? I can only assume that as one of the patients was a member of
the Amish community, which opposes postmortem operations, there was a need for
another patient whose family would object to an autopsy as well—”

“Ronnie,” Henry cut him off again, “in the type of discussion
you’d like us to have here, it’s important to try and avoid guesses and
theories and stick to the facts. Let’s finish up quickly, sign the contracts,
and then you can tell whoever’s interested everything that’s preying on you.”
The rest of the people in the conference room nodded their approval.

“You’re right, Henry,” Ronnie answered. “So let’s talk about
what I do know. Someone broke my leg on purpose. The man was Chinese. I saw him
at the hotel where Christian died as well. Yesterday, I came across the
following item which appeared in some of the Philadelphia newspapers.” Ronnie
took copies he’d printed off the internet and handed them to his colleagues in
the room.

“The body of a Chinese male, about forty-five, has been found
dead at the Thomas Jefferson University Hospital morgue in Philadelphia. The
cause of death was determined to be a gunshot to the back of the neck. The
hospital has no explanation as to how the body reached that location. Anyone
who’s able to identify the deceased is urged to contact the police.” At the
bottom of the message was a photo that had obviously been retouched to make it
appropriate for publication.

“This is the Chinese man who broke my leg. What was he doing in
the Philadelphia hospital? Perhaps one of you might know?” Ronnie gave Henry an
inquisitive stare.

“Are you out of your mind? Your racist insinuation that because
we’re both of Chinese descent I had anything to do with this and sent someone
to break your leg is infuriating and inappropriate.” Henry turned red, snatched
the folders and began to flip through them nervously. “Just tell me where to
sign and let us be finished with this sad joke.” 

“The other question that bothered me was how
could
someone
have managed to sabotage the medicine and who would have the knowledge
to do so?” Ronnie ignored Henry.

“Enough,” Henry shouted and pointed a warning finger at Ronnie.
“I don’t understand your outrageous behavior, Ronnie.”

The door opened and Gadi entered the room. “Good morning,” he
addressed the group; they just stared at him in confusion.

“Who are you and how’d you get in here?” Henry shouted. “Someone
please call the police.”

“What makes you think the police are not already here?” asked
Ronnie in a calm voice. Utter silence fell on the room. Henry and David sat
stone-like in their places, expressionless.

“May I continue?” Ronnie’s eyes wandered over the attendees. “As
mentioned, the question that kept eating at me was who would be able to
exchange the medicine, and who would have the know-how and the opportunity to
do so. I must admit, I was convinced, more than once, that Christian was the
one behind the sabotage. I thought that once he’d realized the severity of his
actions and that there was no way for him to correct his error, he decided to
commit suicide. Nevertheless, another question has been gnawing at me: What
could have been Christian’s motive to ruin the company he’d built with his own
hands? Does anyone have any ideas?”

The room remained silent.

“Then, Jim opened my eyes,” Ronnie continued, giving Jim a
reassuring smile. “Christian was not the only person who had access to the
medicine or the knowledge to change it. Jim, would you tell everyone your
theory?”

Jim shifted in his chair uncomfortably. “It’s just a theory. I
don’t want to defame a man without proof. I’d rather not talk about it.”

“I’d rather you
do
talk about it. We’re all family here.
You didn’t have a problem sharing your suspicions with me, why would you feel
uncomfortable telling them to Henry and David…”

Jim turned his head toward Gadi.

Gadi smiled. “That’s all
right,
I’m one
of the good guys.”

Jim shifted in his chair uncomfortably and began to speak, “The
medicine’s quality control process requires each handling to be done in the
presence of at least two people. I’ve recently discovered that Christian used
to give Brian, the man appointed to supervise the Mount Sinai clinical trial,
the keys to the safe, so he’d take the medicine out by
himself
.
Brian had also been responsible for the medicine from the moment it left our
laboratory until the medicine vials were opened in the operating rooms. This
gave Brian countless opportunities to ‘take care’ of the medicine—”

“And why would he do something like that?” Henry interrupted.

“I suppose someone had paid him a lot of money,” Jim hurried to
answer.

“Who?”

“I don’t know. Perhaps a competitor…”
Jim
squirmed. “It’s just a theory.”

“So you’re claiming he damaged the medicine while it was still
in the company laboratories?” Ronnie persisted.

“Maybe, or maybe just in the hospital. After all, the doctors
had no way of knowing whether he’d already treated the medicine. They let the
fox guard the henhouse.”

“And how was he able to do this simultaneously in New York and
Philadelphia?” Ronnie asked, wide-eyed.

“Perhaps he had a partner. I don’t know. All I know is that
without telling anyone, Brian has been in Philadelphia for the past two days,
roaming around in the hospital. If I had to guess what he was doing there, I’d
say he’s trying to hide evidence.” Jim turned toward Gadi. “And perhaps the
police should really handle this.”  

“Thank you, Jim.” Ronnie moved the conversation forward. “Does
anyone have any more questions for Jim?”

“Where’s this Brian now?” David asked quietly.

Gadi went to the door and opened it. Brian entered the room and
sat down.

“Everyone, this is Brian,” said Ronnie. “The distinguished
gentleman who opened the door for him found him in the hospital and arranged
for his arrival. But let’s continue. Brian, some of the people present in the
room suspect that you’re the one who caused the deaths of the two patients.
Would you like to respond to that?”

Brian looked around him, considering his words. “I’m very
relieved that you’ve finally realized this is about murder—”

“How dare you speak that way?” Henry screamed. “There isn’t a
single piece of evidence to support what you say. There were no autopsies; the
two patients were buried. I suggest you don’t throw around accusations of
murder, unless you also intend to confess to your crimes.”

Brian searched his bag, took out a three-page document and
placed it by his side. “I broke the law. I admit it. And I know I’ll pay for
it. But I had no choice.”

“Why did you murder them, and how can you be so indifferent
while admitting to it?” asked David, his face pale and his hands trembling.

“I never said I murdered anyone.” Brian narrowed his eyes at
him. “Contrary to what you were all thinking, only one of the victims has been
buried. Samuel Yoder, the patient who died at Jefferson University Hospital, is
still in the morgue. The local police are trying to convince the family to
agree to a postmortem. I decided on my own to break into that morgue and take a
tissue sample from the body. I don’t exactly know how to pronounce all the
exact terminology, but this document is a report produced by a private
laboratory confirming that the sample I gave them contains a toxic substance
known to be slow acting. That would explain why the operations had been
underway almost an hour before the patients died.”

“You’re claiming someone injected the patients with a toxic
material during the operation?” Jim wasn’t able to hide the ridicule in his
voice. “In two separate hospitals at the same time? Well, come on…”

“That isn’t what I’m claiming. I agree with you, Jim, that the
only way to pull this off would have been to insert the poison in the medicine
before it left the company grounds.”

“It’s impossible to add any substances to the medicine” — Jim
scornfully waved off Brian’s explanation — “unless you did it after the
medicine left the—”

“Why do you think it’s impossible?” Ronnie interrupted.

“Because before we package the medicine, we weigh it and recheck
it. From that moment on, the medicine is in the safe. Before we send it to the
hospital, we weigh it again. No one would be able to add even a drop into the
vial without it being discovered. In addition, any attempt to tamper with the
vial covers would’ve been discovered because the covers are breakable and
wrapped with a sensitive material bearing Christian’s or my signature. I
personally checked the vials before they left the company offices. I even took
photos of them, as the protocol requires, and I’m willing to swear they were
both intact.”

“But just a few minutes ago, you explained to us that it had to
have been Brian who sabotaged the medicine because he had access to the safe.”

Fear and embarrassment mixed on Jim’s face.

“Brian, I understand you took a photo of the medicine vial before
it was taken into the operating room. Would you please show us the photo?”
Ronnie continued, without waiting for Jim’s reaction.

Brian took his cell phone from his pocket, brought up the photo
of the vial on the screen and handed it
to Ronnie.

Ronnie passed the photo among all the people present in the
conference room and finally handed it to Jim. “Jim, would you please explain to
us the nature of the defenses preventing the forgery of the vial?” he asked in
a low voice.

Jim turned the screen toward those present, and said with
evident reluctance, “As you can see, the vial is covered by a delicate material
bearing my signature. Any attempt to mishandle the cover would blow the casing
like a popped balloon. This prevents anyone from injecting materials into the
vial or secretly drawing some medicine from it,” Jim finished his explanation.

“Impressive,” said Ronnie. “I assume there are more safety
measures on the vial. Would you show them to us again? Unlike Henry, I’ve never
had the chance to see them.”

“There aren’t many. The main mechanism to prevent forgery is the
sticker, which is also below the casing. The sticker provides the vial its
identity. For example, here you can read the number describing the batch and
the specific vial number. But why are you asking me all this?”

“Because you’re the CEO and CTO of the company
and the only one in this room who truly understands the details.
Would
you please read the number and explain what it represents?”