Weapon of Choice
Page 29
Later, the body was identified as William Matthews aka Will Banks. Age thirty-one. A known white supremacist, member of the Council of Conservative Citizens, wanted by the FBI for questioning in a rash of hate crimes throughout the South.
Emma turned off the television and gathered her family in prayer.
EPILOGUE
THREE MONTHS LATER
FEBRUARY 1986
Laura and Stacy savored a cup of tea and a croissant in an airport coffee shop. During a random phone call, they’d discovered that their paths would cross in Atlanta. Stacy heading to San Francisco, Laura changing planes on a flight to Philadelphia.
“First flight I’ve been on since the epidemics,” Laura said. “The hospital’s back on course, busy as ever. The kids are in school. And I’m on my way to Tim Robinson’s surprise birthday bash.”
“How old is he and what’s going on with you two?” Stacy asked.
“Tim’s turning forty-five. I got an invite from the Pediatric Surgery Department at Children’s Hospital. I got to know a lot of the doctors back when Patrick had his surgery there seven years ago. Tim’ll be surprised to see me, in a good way, I hope.”
“I’m impressed that you’re going that far, leaving the twins and Patrick at home. No more significant motivation here than a surprise party?”
“No, Stacy, I don’t think so. Tim’s been there for me, albeit long distance since Steve died, but—”
“We’ll see after this weekend,” Stacy said, gulping her tepid tea. “Tell me about Natalie. You were worried about her the last time we talked.”
“At first, she was reclusive, refused to talk to anyone except Nicole. She was angry, she told her sister; angry that I’d let Trey die. She believed that I could have gotten him ticokellin in time to save him. With time, she’s improved. You know what helped? Spending time with Trey’s parents. I reached out to them, despite our legal entanglements, which, by the way, have gone away with a settlement to workers. The Standishes have literally put their arms around Natalie and, more than anyone else, have gone a long way toward convincing her that Trey did not have a chance.”
“So she’ll be okay,” Stacy concluded.
“I think so,” Laura said. “I hope so.”
Both women checked their watches, smiled, and rose from the table. An elderly couple at the next table turned to gape.
“They’re looking at you, Stacy,” Laura said. “You’re that famous scientist now.”
“Hey, girlfriend, have a great party. I’ll be thinking about you.” Stacy leaned in to hug Laura. “And guess what? When I get back, I’ve got a date with that special agent who delivered the Tampa staph culture to my lab. Stay tuned!”
AUTHOR’S NOTE
While Weapon of Choice is a novel, with fictional characters, places, and events, the era circa 1985 was embroiled in the emergence of the biggest health care concern in modern history. Four years earlier in 1981 an outbreak of Kaposi sarcoma and pneumocystis among gay men in New York and California became known as GRID—gay-related immune deficiency. But soon the disease spread to heterosexuals, intravenous drug addicts, and patients receiving blood transfusions. In 1983, a virus was found to be the cause of the disease, and the outbreak became known as HIV/AIDS (human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome).
By 1985 a test was approved by the FDA for use in blood transfusions. In the meantime the virus was spreading throughout the country and there was no known cure. Thus the scenario in Tampa—the city’s first known case of HIV/AIDS—typifies the reaction of communities all over the country as they grappled with the frightening epidemic shrouded in misinformation and controversy. In 1987, an antiviral drug, AZT, was approved by the FDA. That was the year President Reagan first publicly acknowledged the HIV/AIDS problem and used “AIDS” in a speech. Now, over twenty-five years later, we have dozens of drugs approved to fight HIV, but the disease is still a global plague.
Flesh-eating bacteria, as well as bacteria causing necrotizing fasciitis, are real and are usually due to either a group A Streptococcus or a resistant strain of Staphylococcus. Both are highly lethal. In Weapon of Choice, the research scenario in the NIH and the CDC is fictional, but judging from what we know about the government’s experiences with anthrax, not unrealistic. In 1985, Iraq began an offensive biological weapons program producing anthrax, botulism toxin, and aflatoxin. In 1985, what was the United States’ secret biodefense program focusing on?
We do know that in 1984, the American Biological Safety Association (ABSA) was officially established and biocontainment requirements were set and classified so that researchers like those in Weapon of Choice would have protection against biological hazards in their BSL3 (P3) laboratories.
As encountered in Weapon of Choice, the element beryllium is an industrial problem. Because of its stiffness, light weight, and stability over a wide temperature range, it is used extensively in the defense and aerospace industries as well as in the production of precision optical instruments, meteorological satellites, MRI scanners, and other sophisticated equipment. But beryllium is a Category 1 carcinogen and causes pulmonary and systemic granulomatous disease. The element can be handled safely as long as appropriate procedures are used. However, some individuals are hypersensitive to beryllium and if they inhale dust are susceptible to chronic beryllium disease, an immune disease that requires aggressive treatment.
In 1985, the Council of Conservative Citizens (CCC) was founded on the premise of white nationalism, and is now headquartered in St. Louis. The CCC was the 1980’s reincarnation of the White Citizens’ Council (WCC), which had been formed in the 1950s and kept active in the 1960s by remnants of the KKK in order to combat school desegregation.
The CCC is made up of local chapters, the agenda is unabashedly racist, and the meetings regularly feature politicians as keynote speakers. And like the KKK and the WCC, rabid extremism is never far from the surface at the CCC chapter meetings.
Circa 1985, white supremacy groups were active throughout the country. The Order, a radical extremist group, is real. Founded in 1983 by factions from the Aryan Nations and the National Alliance, the group funded their terror tactics by armed robbery, counterfeiting, and other violent operations until forced underground when the leadership was apprehended by the FBI in 1984.
Sadly, despite hate crime legislation, hate groups are active across America today. In 2010, The Southern Poverty Law Center had documented a staggering 1,002 active hate groups in the United States—a more than 65 percent increase since 2000.