InSight

tests by an independent lab that determined the drug wasn’t a panacea for the treatment of schizophrenia, but neither was it entirely ineffective. As with most drugs, success depended on the reaction of each individual patient. Okay, I could live with that. My bosses told me to back off, and I did.
    “But after Martin died, things changed. Carlotta Gentry set up a research lab independent of Synthetec. On paper, she had nothing to do with it, which allowed the Gentry-Serrano Foundation to award a grant to the researchers to perfect a second generation of the drug, along with researching other anti-psychotics. The foundation board, comprising Serrano-Gentry buddies, either overlooked the blatant conflict of interest or they didn’t know what was going on.
    Luke: “What if you went public with the chemist’s name?”
    Matt: “It’d probably get him killed, and I don’t want that on my conscience. Anyway, he said if I used his name, he’d deny everything and sue me for libel. I should have taped him.
    “Now here’s where it gets interesting. Before the stove incident, the chemist gave me the name of another chemist. What she told me blew me away. This time I brought along my recorder. I can send you a copy of the tape.”
    Luke: “Who is she?”
    Matt: “Her name is Dr. Valentina Kozov , and she had a dialogue with her conscience. Here’s why. Carlotta Gentry’s research lab houses a second lab that manufactures a combination form of the potent psychedelic DMT. The variation, a mix of plant and synthetics, produced in this lab is more controllable and has longer-lasting results than an ordinary street hit of DMT. The drug can be ingested as a pill or injected in liquid form. Administered in the right dosage, it’s the perfect pharmacological weapon to induce long-lasting highs, including major psychedelic side effects, like vision and voices. Now, I ask you, why would anyone want to create such a drug, other than for the street?”
    Luke: “Jesus, this is all starting to come together.” Luke then typed in the description of the pills found in the cabin.
    Matt: “You’re right, Luke. This is coming together. Dr. Kozov gave me a detailed explanation, which I didn’t understand, but the bottom line was that when she ran her own trials, she realized its chemical composition provoked schizophrenic symptoms in individuals with a genetic history of mental illness. When she approached her superiors with her findings, they removed her from the project. Curious, she questioned the drug’s alleged application and her boss said her services were no longer required.”
    Luke: “Did she go to the FDA or report it?”
    Matt: “No. She was approached by one of the bosses who offered a suggestion ― or in her opinion, a veiled threat—that she think carefully before divulging anything to put her or her family at risk. She stressed to me that if the conversation had been taped, nothing he said could be interpreted as intimidating. She felt fortunate to leave the company in one piece. I asked her what would happen if she were called upon to testify against anyone involved at the lab. She said she’d disavow any knowledge of the drug’s production. When I asked her if she would commit perjury, she said, ‘Absolutely.’ I think she may be in the country illegally. None of that matters because after the interview, Dr. Valentina Kozov disappeared.”
    Luke’s hands paused over the keyboard while he took in the implications. The eerie implication that Mrs. Gentry’s company developed a drug that induced her son’s illness sent chills down Luke’s spine. If Stewart had a genetic predisposition to mental illness, why would she turn that into a reality?
    Luke’s suspicions raised more questions.
    Luke: “What are the names of the chemist’s superiors?”
    Matt: “Dr. Sylvan Crock supervised the secret laboratory. I’ve run the name. It’s a phony. Kozov said she never saw Crock, no one did, but the guy who threatened her was a tall, athletic man who dressed in expensive clothes, sported a Vandyke beard, and gave her the creeps.”
    Luke: “Who is he?”
    Matt: “His name is Graeme Collyer. He’s a ruthless SOB. Whoever gets in his way will wish he hadn’t. If I didn’t have a major character flaw, I’d have learned my lesson. But I’m too hardheaded to benefit from experience. I’d bet the state-of-the art wine cooler in my brand-new kitchen that he rigged the explosion in my old one. Collyer’s