Connie never locked the cart when she ducked into the rooms. Officially, she was supposed to, since it was a fundamental regulation in the nursing home that medication carts be locked when the nurses were out of view of them. But in all the weeks that Jack had spent on the ward he almost never saw the nurses lock the carts, unless they had to leave the area for a length of time—but never for a fast dip into a patient’s room. And why bother, since everybody on this ward was mentally out of it?
In a flash, Jack’s hand shot into the folder, and a moment later a card of thirty Memorine tabs was inside his shirt. He ducked his head into Joe’s room and said good-bye. Joe had caught his breath and waved. “Good-bye, Father. And thanks for stopping by.”
“Any time, m’lad, and God bless.”
Half an hour later, Jack was home.
It would take them another day to realize that a card of thirty was missing. And nobody would connect the absence to Jack. Even if they did, it would be too late to stop him. He looked at the card of pills.
And the son of a bitch also had a black SUV. He’d been tailing him for weeks. He knew Jack was on to him. He knew, and now he was dead and had taken it with him.
81
MEMORINE CLEARED BY THE FDA FOR THE TREATMENT OF ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE
BOSTON—GEM Neurobiological Technologies of Walden, Mass., today announced that it has received marketing clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for Memorine, a new drug for the symptomatic treatment of mild to severe Alzheimer’s disease. Memorine has proven highly effective in reversing the damage done to patients with mild to advanced Alzheimer’s disease while enhancing cognition and patient functionality.
“GEM Tech’s dedication to the needs of patients and their families and our commitment to human health care and Alzheimer’s disease research have fostered this new breakthrough therapy,” said Gavin E. Moy, president and chief executive officer of GEM. “For generations, Alzheimer’s disease has been a family tragedy affecting millions of people. Memorine represents the first cure of this dreadful affliction, thereby all but eliminating the anguish of families and terrible deterioration of patients.”
Controlled clinical trials in over 900 patients demonstrated that more than 70 percent taking Memorine dramatically improved in tests of cognition over the course of the studies and assessment of patient function and behavior and activities of daily living, in comparison to patients taking placebos, after 24 weeks of treatment.
The efficacy of Memorine was established by placebo-controlled Phase III clinical trials. In the trials, patients diagnosed with mild to severe Alzheimer’s disease received single daily doses of either a placebo or 10mg of Memorine for 24 weeks … .
Cognitive improvement and memory were measured by the Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale-Cognitive Subscale (ADAS-cog). Patients on Memorine achieved results nearly 80 percent higher compared to placebo groups. Likewise, patient function was markedly improved, based on clinicians’ observations and interviews with patients and caregivers … .
Memorine will be available by prescription by the beginning of next year … .
THE TELEPHONE PULLED JACK AWAY FROM the morning paper. It was the administrator from Cedar Lawn Cemetery returning his call from the voice mail messages he had left yesterday.
It was an unusual request, and Jack had to answer a few questions to prove his identity. But they had the information he had sought.
Leo K. Najarian was born on July 19, 1931, and died on March 30, 1972.
Jack asked the man at the other end to repeat those dates, and the man did so. They had come from the coroner’s certificate of death.
Jack thanked the man for his time and effort and hung up the phone.
And for a long moment Jack stared at what he had written down. Leo Najarian had died eleven months before Jack was born.
82
IT WAS CLOUDY, AND THE FORECAST was for an evening thunderstorm. Jack was packed and just leaving the house when he heard the doorbell ring.
It was René. Her face was stiff and white. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
“And a good morning to you.” He closed the door behind her.
She glared at him. “The nursing staff at Greendale reports that a thirty-tab card of Memorine is missing from the med cart. They also report that you had dropped in for a visit on the same day.”
“And they sent you over here to see if I know anything about that.”
“No, they didn’t, because they can’t possibly imagine why you’d be interested in the stuff. They’re still searching for it.”
“Well, that’s a relief.” A week had passed since he was out there.
“Jack, what the hell do you think you’re doing?”
He picked up his travel bag. “I’m going to find out who killed my mother.”
“This is absolutely crazy.”
“No crazier than the stuff I’m carrying in my head.”
“First, you don’t even know if it’s going to work for you. Second, you can’t just pop a pill and wait for flashbacks. It has to build up in your system. Third, I resent your suspicions of Nick Mavros.”
He reached into the travel bag and pulled out the card of tabs. Nearly a third of them were gone. “It works, but all I’m getting is snippets—nothing connecting. I need the proper stimulus. The right setting. The right conditions, like the weather.”
“What if something goes wrong? What if you trigger some awful psychotic reactions?”
“It’s a chance I’m willing to take.”
She tugged at his arm. “And what the hell do you hope to accomplish?”
“The truth.”
“What truth? That you’ve got some sick obsession about your mother’s death and you’re trying to pin it on an innocent man?”
“I’m stuck in a little horror loop and it’s going to continue until I do something about it.”
“Like what?”
“Like opening a door.”
“This is insane. You don’t know what you’re doing. I’m telling you, you’re not going to do anything but set off more seizures.”
“That’s what I’m hoping for.”
She stomped her foot. “Jesus Christ! You could damage your brain.”
“Been there, done that. And just in case … ,” and he reached into his pocket and pulled out four vials of pills. Dilantin, Depakote, Tegretol, Zyprexa—antiseizures, antipsychotics, anticonvulsants, you name it.
She looked at the labels. “I don’t believe this,” she muttered in exasperation.
“If I begin to trip out, I pop some of these. Isn’t that what you do on the wards?”
She looked at him nonplussed. “Did it ever occur to you that you may not be in any mental condition to take any of this?”
He nodded. “Then want to come along and hold watch?”
“Where?”
Jack checked his watch. “The boat leaves in three hours.”
THEY ARRIVED AT NEW BEDFORD JUST in time to catch the one o’clock ferry. Jack had brought with him a travel bag with enough food for the weekend. The sky was a bundle of dark clouds, and rain was beginning to fall.
René had continued to protest as they drove along until she realized it was a lost cause. Jack was adamant, but he was also touched by the fact that maybe René Ballard cared enough to come along to keep watch. Or maybe it was to defend the reputation of her friend and former professor. Whatever, he was glad she was with him.
Earlier Jack had called Olivia Sherman to ask if he could rent the cottage for the weekend. She said that the weather would not be good, but he said that he didn’t mind. In fact, he preferred the beach under dramatic conditions. She didn’t seem to understand but welcomed him to come.