Authors: Dianne Harman
Maria had a bad feeling about the meeting. In Jeffrey's present state of mind, he was not capable of realizing that what he was doing was illegal and that potentially, he could be arrested for it. She had no choice but to lead the assembled guests to the stairway that led to the secret basement laboratory. She hoped they would want the drug enough to keep quiet about it.
CHAPTER 33
Maria opened the door leading to the basement lab, cautioning her six guests to watch their step as the stairway was not well lighted. It was just as Sean had remembered it. The "Emergency" and "Keep Out" signs were still on the door. There was a collective gasp as they opened the door to the laboratory. In front of them was a state-of-the-art scientific laboratory that stretched the length of the motel. A huge computer screen, which doubled as a microscope screen, was over a desk in the center of the room. Beakers, tubes, and bottles filled with different substances were spread everywhere.
Through a doorway, they could see cages housing the hundreds of rats Jeffrey used in his experiments. Sophisticated electronic apparatus was mounted on custom-made tables and stands made especially for their use. A huge glass-front, walk-in refrigerator dominated one of the short walls, housing plants and herbs of all types. Track lighting dimmed by switches on the walls covered the ceiling. A large electric range and a microwave took up one corner of the room. Racks fitted with various microscope slides were laid out on a counter. Clear plastic pneumatic tubes were arranged on a wall in order of their size. A small glass front second refrigerator was filled with food items.
As they tried to absorb the spectacle in front of them, a side door from the small office opened and Jeffrey stepped into the main lab. His hair was unkempt, a dirty shirt was half tucked into his pants, and his beard was shaggy, but his eyes told the full story. They were the eyes of a madman, red-rimmed and gleaming with an unnatural light. It was hard to look into those eyes and not think that you were looking at a person who had gone over the edge.
Sean took over. He had experienced madness before and he knew he was looking at it now. The first rule when confronting a person displaying symptoms of madness is to act as if nothing is wrong, even if the person is obviously mad.
He extended his hand to shake hands with Jeffrey and said, "Hi, you must be Jeffrey. I'm Sean. Let me introduce you to the other guests." They took their cue from Sean and acted as if meeting a madman in a state-of-the-art laboratory in the basement of a motel in a godforsaken place in the middle of nowhere was the most natural thing in the world.
Jeffrey gave them a tour, explaining the purpose of each piece of equipment and even showed them some of his most recent experiments. As mentally unbalanced as he was, they soon realized they were in the presence of a genius. His experiments were light-years ahead of anything any of them had ever heard of or read about. The two who were the most knowledgeable about science, Sean and Sam, were clearly in awe of the man's mind and his accomplishments. If there were any lingering doubts as to whether or not Jeffrey was capable of introducing some unknown substance into the air supply in their rooms to make them happy, those doubts quickly disappeared. That thought alone was terrifying. If he could do that, what else could he be capable of doing or had already done that they didn't know about?
After he finished the lab tour, Jeffrey spoke to them. "I understand you wanted to meet with me. Actually, I had thought about asking you to meet with me, so this works out perfectly. Tell me, how have you been feeling?”
Sean began, “Jeffrey, I think I can speak for all of us. When each of us came here the first time, we were dealing with various different life issues, and not handling them well. After spending the night here, we all awoke feeling great. The feelings continued and all of our lives changed for the better. Then, for reasons that are still unclear to us, our lives have begun to unravel. All of us have returned to the Blue Coyote hoping to regain those good feelings.”
“Let me explain and show you something," Jeffrey said. He asked them to step to the side wall where there was a large cabinet door. He opened it, revealing nine pipes. Below each of them was a large, clear glass beaker and adjacent to the beakers, a series of switches.
"I developed a gaseous drug, which causes people to feel good, and I don't mean just sort of good, I mean really good. The beakers are filled with a compound, which becomes a gas and flows into the pipes. I've mixed the compound with the scent of sandalwood to mask any odor. Using the switches next to the beakers, I can select which of the rooms in the motel I want to introduce the drug into. It causes no side effects. It simply makes people feel better.
"I pipe it into the motel rooms, the reception area, the refreshment area, my home, and the lab. Maria decides which guests she thinks will benefit from the gas and then I pipe it into their room. I call this new wonderful drug that I have invented Freedom. You have been my clinical trial ‘test rats.' Different dosages were given to each of you, which resulted in some of you receiving the benefits of the drug for a longer period of time than others."
Sean could feel the eyes of others directed at him. His instincts had been right. They had been drugged without their knowing about it. The guests looked shocked and dismayed. A ragged edge of fear was starting to show on each one of their faces.
Jeffrey continued, "After I started making the drug and after I administered it to you the first time you came to the Blue Coyote, I suspected you might want to continue with the drug. I also thought it would probably be difficult for you to come back to this remote desert location for a 'pick-me-up' whenever the drug wore off. For the past few months I've been working on converting the drug to a pill form, which can be taken monthly. Just recently, I successfully tested the new pill and my tests indicate it performs as well as the gas form of the drug.
"The raw materials for my drug come from some unique and relatively unknown plant substances that are shipped to me by a dealer in Mexico. Although I can combine the products and make the drug, I can't grow the plants here so I'm forced to pay an exorbitantly high price to get the raw materials I need to make the drug. I know that what I'm doing would not be considered legal by the authorities, but here is the offer that I have for you. The price for a year's supply of the drug is $25,000. If you're interested, you can send me an annual check and I'll send a supply of pills to you."
Jill was the first to speak. "How do we know that the pills are safe to take? Have you ever tested them on humans? And what about the aging process? I know when the drug began to wear off, I experienced depression, lack of energy, uncontrollable shaking in my hands and premature aging. It was horrible."
The others vehemently nodded in agreement. Not only had they experienced symptoms ranging from chills to vomiting, each of them had experienced the aging problems as well.
Jeffrey began, "Yes, it's true that one of the side effects of even a slight withdrawal from Freedom is premature aging. However, many years ago I developed an anti-aging hormone, which Maria has been taking. If you look at her, she looks exactly as she did when I met her when she was twenty-three. I have put a small amount of that drug into the new pill form of Freedom. I think that will take care of the aging problems and also keep you looking younger.
"As to the side effects on humans, no, the pill has not been tested on humans. I can tell you that I have been giving these pills to the rats in the cages and they are fine for a month or so and then they begin to show signs of depression and aggression. But as soon as the pills are re-administered, they become happy once again. I made this pill to act as fast as the drug that was piped into your rooms. Within a short time of taking the pill, you will start to feel good again. The good feeling created by the airborne variety lasts for several months, depending on the dosage, while the pill variety lasts about a month. As to aging problems, as long as the rats take the pills, they show no signs of aging. Is it experimental? Probably. Will it work? I have every reason to believe it will and I have never had a failure. I refuse to accept failure.
“Let me tell you something else. I’m going to share this drug with the rest of the world. After that happens, there will be no more wars, terrorism, or inhumane actions, because everyone will feel good. Soon, every place where people gather will have Freedom. I alone can and will change the world.”
Jeffrey was becoming more and more agitated. His voice had been rising as he talked to the guests and now he was literally shouting at them. His facial muscles had developed a nervous twitch and spittle was starting to come out of the corner of his mouth. His eyes began rolling around in their sockets. Sam and Sean were certain he was in the throes of a complete mental breakdown.
Sean became concerned for the safety of the group. It was time to get away from this madman. He acted as the spokesman for the group once again and said, "Thank you, Jeffrey. The tour was fascinating and I think I speak for each one of us when I say that it was one of the most interesting things I've ever seen. As far as your drug proposal, we need some time to think about it. It's getting late and I would suggest we meet here at 8:30 tomorrow morning. That will give us at least an hour before some of us have to leave. Would that be all right with you?"
Jeffrey had no doubt that each of them would want the drug, but he agreed to meet them in the lab at 8:30 the next morning. He told them that the pills were ready for them, neatly counted out in batches of twelve. He had already put them into small white vials.
The assembled group of guests closed the lab door behind them and made their way up the dark staircase. When they shut the door to the basement, Sean turned to them and said, "I suggest we meet in my room at 7:30 tomorrow morning. Each of us has a lot of thinking to do and I'm sure that the longer we think about it, the stronger some of our feelings will be. As a therapist, I think it might be a good idea to share our feelings, thoughts, emotions, and yes, probably our anger."
They agreed to meet in his room the next morning and with hardly a word to each other, the guests hurried to their rooms, wanting to be alone and to digest what they had just seen and heard.
At 7:30 the next morning, they met once again in Sean's room. From the looks of them, they had slept little, if at all, during the ten long hours since they had left one another.
Sean was the first to speak. "I don't know how any of you feel, but the more I think about it, the angrier I get. I'm ready to call the police and tell them what we know. What is happening here is horrific. I'm speaking both as a therapist and a person who has had a bit of a bout with an addiction to the bottle. I was a priest before I became a therapist. I was defrocked for reasons I won't go into, but a lot of my problems stemmed from my addiction. I made wrong choices, but at least I was the one making them. What Jeffrey is doing is addicting people who have no choice. We did not even know we were being given an addictive drug.
"I wonder how many other people have become addicted to Freedom. Their lives may be in shambles and they may not associate the Blue Coyote Motel with Freedom or even know they've become addicted. This is beyond anything I've ever seen, heard, or read about. When people discovered the atrocities that happened in World War II, like the gassing of innocent people, there was a global outrage such as the world has never known. I'm sure if people knew what was taking place here, they, too, would be outraged and if this maniac has his way and the means to do it, he intends to addict the world's population. Can you even begin to imagine the consequences of something like this? It's beyond the scope of my imagination to consider the logistics of how he plans to do this, but if even one more person is addicted, that's one too many.
"I've made my mind up that I won't buy the drug. I've had to break an addiction before, and yes, this motel was one of the reasons I was able to do it. But I refuse to become addicted again to any substance. If any of you want to talk to me about this situation, I would be happy to speak privately with you. As much as I want to call the authorities and have this madman put away for the good of society, I will wait until each of you decides what you intend to do."
Sam was the next to speak. "I am a man of medicine and a Native American tribal medicine man trainee as well. There is no way that I will be a part of any of this for a number of reasons. If I look like I'm shaking, I am. I've had anger issues in the past, but I have never felt the depth of rage I feel right now. I know what drugs and alcohol can do to people. The Native American populations have been decimated because of addiction. Once-proud people grovel on their way to the liquor store or drug dealer to get their fix. I won't do it or be a party to it," he said. His voice became louder and he was visibly shaking with anger.
"This madman must be stopped and we're the only ones who can do it. We have to agree as a group not to buy the drugs. When we leave, we'll contact the authorities and close him down. In his demented state, he'll probably go to a mental hospital for the rest of his life. The only way we can help ourselves and others is to see that Jeffrey is put away. None of you has the right to selfishly want to keep feeling good when who knows how many other innocent people will become addicted if he's not stopped now." Sam stopped talking and caught his breath.
Sean spoke again, "Sam, I agree with everything you've said, but as a therapist assessing Jeffrey, I don't think he's going to be capable of producing this drug for very long. And we don't have the right to judge the others who are here and may want to take the drug." He turned to them. "Each of you had your own reason for needing it in the first place. If any or all of you decide that you want to continue to take the drug, it may cause me to make a decision that will be in the best interests of the group, rather than what I would personally like to do."