"That's great." Maria said. "The timing is absolutely perfect. The 'wet wool' feeling I always get just before a bout of depression has started. I'm on my way to the gallery to pick up the Navajo rugs. It's my last stop. I have an appointment at the gallery in a few minutes, so I can be home in about three hours. I love you and thank you for doing this for me."
Maria couldn't wait to get home to Jeffrey and the experiment. She bought eight of the Navajo rugs; one for the office, the refreshment area, their home and the rest for the guest rooms. They were truly works of art. She knew she was spending a lot of money on the motel, but she had convinced herself it was a wise investment. She hoped it would appeal to people and perhaps they would stay at the Blue Coyote whenever they were in the area. She hoped it would be a "word of mouth" success.
Jeffrey was really pleased. The months of mulling everything over in his mind had paid off. He knew he had discovered something that drug companies would be very interested in purchasing. As he waited for Maria, he thought about how he should market the mixture. He was pretty sure he could easily sell it for a huge sum of money. If he tried to sell it here in the United States, issues would be raised about clinical trial tests and there would be a long waiting period. The FDA would no doubt put a ban on using it while they did testing. Other countries didn't have the strict regulations that stifled the development of new drugs in the United States. When new drugs were developed outside of the United States, they could be sold at a much lower cost because the years of research and development needed in the United States were pretty much side-stepped at overseas locations. Jeffrey thought the pendulum had swung a little too far here in the good old U.S. of A.
He had determined that the solution to avoiding the FDA's strict rules, regulations, and unacceptable delays, would be to use the motel guests as his clinical trial. He was sure there would not be any damaging physical, mental, or emotional effects from taking the drug, but he planned to monitor the dosages very carefully.
Jeffrey also decided that from time to time the mixture would be piped into the house which was attached to the motel by a breezeway. When the commercial air-conditioning unit had been installed, Jeffrey made sure that the air-conditioning vents for the motel were also connected to the house at the rear of the premises. He felt certain that both he and Maria would benefit from occasional doses of Freedom. Jeffrey knew there would be no problems with Freedom, and decided to self-administer the drug to both of them.
Jeffrey had never been so wrong.
CHAPTER 25
Maria turned onto westbound Interstate 10 in Phoenix, happy to be heading home. She couldn't wait to share her purchases with Jeffrey and she was ready to try the "feel-good" drug. Her bouts of depression always started with a dark cloud that seemed to fall over her mind. She thought of it as "wet wool," although where that thought came from, she had no idea. As the bleakness deepened, the cloud turned to near total darkness.
She had been to numerous doctors who had prescribed different kinds of anti-depressants, beginning with the one she had first consulted at the "free clinic." The drugs eased her despondence, but didn't entirely take it away. Usually, these bouts just had to run their course. Before going to the gallery to buy the rugs, she had taken the most recent anti-depressant prescribed by her doctor and felt a little better. She hoped and prayed that Jeffrey had discovered something that would make her bouts disappear completely. She knew the signs of depression well and it would be wonderful to never have to experience them again.
The drive from Phoenix was uneventful. As she was getting ready to pull off the highway onto the road leading to the motel, she saw where Jim had installed the pole for the neon sign advertising the Blue Coyote. He'd done a good job placing the sign and she hoped it would bring business to the motel.
She was pleased with what she and Jeffrey had been able to accomplish in such a short time. They were almost ready to open the doors to the public and could hardly wait for the first guests to arrive.
The motel looked like a jewel in the setting sun, a creamy adobe color with a red tile roof, very Southwestern. The landscape plantings she had so carefully chosen were perfect for the look they wanted. Various forms of cacti and succulents reflected the desert setting and required almost no water.
The large solar panels that Jeffrey had installed were on the back side of the motel and out of sight. He wanted to use the solar panels as the primary source of energy and knew a high electricity usage in his laboratory would trigger a visit from the local electrical company. He wanted his work to be free from scrutiny and the extra energy he hoped to produce with the solar panels would insure that no one would be coming to the motel to check on him. If the solar panels malfunctioned, he still had the gypsy electric power line he could rely on.
Jeffrey had turned on the outside lights and the whole motel area where they had worked so hard glowed with a warm and inviting look. Maria was certain that anyone who turned in the driveway and saw the motel would want to stay. She drove to the rear of the motel where their house was located. It was lit up as well, a welcoming beacon in the lonely, harsh desert.
"I'm home. Come help me unload the car. I can't wait for you to see the rugs I bought," Maria yelled out. She opened the trunk and carried some of them into the house.
"It will have to wait for a few minutes. Please, come with me. You have to experience what I've been doing; then I want to see how you feel. And just how are you feeling now?" Jeffrey asked. Maria looked tired and Jeffrey sensed that one of her periodic bouts with depression was beginning to drain her.
He gently led her to the big leather chair in their living room and poured her a glass of wine. Jeffrey told her to stay there and that he'd be back in a minute; that he wanted to try out his experiment on her. He ran down to the lab and connected the vent feeding their house with Freedom. As he turned the switch, the green light on the control console lit up, indicating that the mixture was being fed into their house.
He knew from his experiment earlier that afternoon that it would take about fifteen minutes for the drug to begin to work. Excitedly, he hurried back to the house and poured himself a glass of wine as he and Maria talked about their day. She began to tell him about the beautiful things she had seen at the Native American gallery. After a few minutes had gone by, he noticed that Maria was smiling. Maria never smiled when she was having one of her bouts. This is encouraging, he thought, and as they continued to talk, he noticed a sparkle in her eyes that hadn't been there when she had returned from Phoenix. He watched her closely and after about fifteen minutes had passed, he asked her how she was feeling.
"I feel better than I have all day. I smell something, which I think is sandalwood and it's very pleasant. I think I'll just sit here awhile and enjoy it. Judging from how I feel, I think your experiment is a huge success," Maria said happily.
"Okay. I'll unload the car while you relax." Jeffrey was thrilled. His experiment was indeed a huge success. He knew that Maria couldn't pretend to feel good when she was down. It had worked. He had been able to get rid of Maria's depression.
He was back in a few minutes, arms loaded with the Navajo rugs. "These are beautiful! They probably cost a fortune, but I'm glad you bought them. They'll finish off the whole Southwest theme we've developed here at the Blue Coyote. Is one of them for our house?"
"Oh, Jeffrey, I just knew you'd love them as much as I do. The third one down is for the house. We have a lot of leather in here and I thought the browns and deep reds would go well with the leather. I also bought one for the office and one for the refreshment area. The rest are for the guest rooms. I'll decide which ones go where tomorrow, but for now, I just want to sit here and enjoy feeling good. Your experiment is an absolute success because I feel one hundred percent better. You know that dark cloud I've told you about, that 'wet wool' feeling I get? Well, it's gone and it has to be because of the success of your experiment. I hope and pray this will work from now on. I feel like I've just received a miracle.
Thank you so much! Now, explain how it works."
Maria had come to dread the “wet wool” and was thrilled to think it might be a thing of the past. Jeffrey seemed much happier as well. Maybe, she thought, this wonder drug he has created will be a very good thing for both of us as well as for our marriage.
Jeffrey told her what he had done, how the vents could feed the mixture into any location on the premises. He told Maria how he had named the drug "Freedom" because hopefully, it would free her from her bouts with depression. For now, he said, he would only infuse the mixture from time to time into their house, the office and his lab. He said he was going to use Freedom on some motel guests as a sort of clinical trial so that he could get a sense of how it was doing, although he didn't anticipate any problems. Maria would choose which of the guests she felt would benefit most as she would be the one checking them in at the front desk. Jeffrey knew she had a sixth sense about people and he trusted her judgment.
He thought there could be legal issues, possible lawsuits, and potentially, even criminal prosecution if anyone ever discovered that he was infusing a controlled substance into a guest's room. After all, he was administering a drug to people who had no knowledge they were receiving it. There was a total lack of personal consent. On top of that, the drug had not been sanctioned or approved by the United States government. Jeffrey knew he should file for a patent to protect his discovery, but that would probably start an investigation into what he was doing. His motto had become "The fewer people who know what I am doing, the better."
"Do you think there could be any side effects? I feel great, but if we use this for a long period of time, and we probably will because it makes us feel so good, could we be at risk for some type of adverse reaction, perhaps even becoming addicted?" Maria asked.
Jeffrey replied, "I honestly don't think so. None of the ingredients by themselves would be a problem. I suppose it's a case of one plus one doesn't necessarily mean we get two. I think it's worth taking the risk. As for our guests, one night of this stuff shouldn't hurt them. If anything, it will help them and the effects will last for quite a while. I think of it as a type of therapy. Feeling better will help them get better, both physically and mentally. We'll try it for a few months and see if we notice anything different in our day-to-day lives. Is that okay with you?"
"Absolutely," Maria replied. "I just wouldn't want to unknowingly hurt our guests. I imagine we could be liable if anything happens to them." Maria knew nothing of FDA standards, relying on Jeffrey's knowledge of the world of science.
"Don't worry," he said. "The only thing they will notice is the slight smell of sandalwood. They'll think we're burning incense somewhere and that's a pretty common smell in this part of the country. It's been a long day for both of us. Let's get something to eat and go to bed. We only have a few more things to do before we open the motel to the public. I found a guy in Blythe who's a computer website guru. He's coming out tomorrow to help me design our website. We really are coming down to the finish line!"
CHAPTER 26
It was April in the desert, the most beautiful time of all. Brightly colored wildflowers carpeted the desert floor and climbed up the hills. The earth looked like it had erupted in a riot of color. The air was crisp early in the morning and turned balmy as the day became warmer. It was a welcome passage between the bitter cold of winter and the searing heat of summer.
Tomorrow was the big day when the motel would finally be ready to open. Just a few more things remained to be done. Maria and Jeffrey were meeting with Jim, the contractor, in the early afternoon for a final walkthrough. Their dream had become a reality, a charming reality.
While Maria was cleaning up after breakfast, Jeffrey told her he wanted to get a few more things ready for the experiments he would soon be starting and left for the lab. As she put the last dish away, the beautiful spring day beckoned and she walked outside. This would be a perfect day to take a walk in the desert with Jeffrey. She knew that it might be their last carefree day for a long time. Between motel guests and Jeffrey's work, they wouldn't be able to leave the property together for a while.
Maria entered the door marked "Basement" and took the steps down to the lab. Today was the last day Maria would feel comfortable about going down to the lab. The test rats for Jeffrey's experiments were being delivered tomorrow and rats reminded her of her awful days in the barrio and the horrible experience of the gang rape. Maria was deathly afraid of rats. She decided she wouldn't think about them today.
"Jeffrey, this is by far the prettiest day we've had since we moved here. Let's take a long walk before we meet Jim. This might be the last time we can take a leisurely walk for a while," Maria said.
"Okay. Let me turn off a couple of the machines. I'm at a place where I can take a break and I couldn't agree more; let's enjoy today. We deserve it!" Jeffrey turned off the machines, flicked the switch on the laboratory lights, and together they walked up the stairs.
By now, it was 9:30 a.m. They went to the main house, put on light jackets, and began walking. Behind their property was an arroyo, a dry desert ravine teeming with lupine, desert ironwood and canyon bursage. They walked beside it for about an hour. Desert animals skittered and the brilliant blue sky covered Maria and Jeffrey. It truly was the most beautiful time of the year in the desert.
Maria's eyes welled up. "I've never been happier. I love this place and now that we have Freedom, I feel wonderful all the time. Really, this is the best time of my life. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I'm so sorry about Moore Labs, but I think we've come out just fine. And you, are you okay with what we're doing?"
Jeffrey took her hand in his, stopped walking, and answered her. "I couldn't agree more. I am so excited about my experiments. What you've done to the motel is incredible. It looks as good as any motel in the Palm Springs area and I love my laboratory. I love the quiet and peace of the desert and most of all, I love you. Yes, I'm not only okay with what we've done, I am very, very happy." They turned around and began the long walk back to their new life, looking forward to the results of Jeffrey's experiments and the opening of the motel.
Jim arrived promptly at 2:00 p.m. for the final walkthrough. The three of them went into each room, testing the lights, the water, the air-conditioning, and the furnace. They made sure that each room was finished properly. They checked to see that the computer was working in the office, as well as the lights and kitchen appliances. They turned the lights on outside each unit. In the refreshment room they checked the microwave, coffee maker, and refrigerator.
One of the things they wanted after buying the property was a swimming pool. They situated it so pool users would have an unobstructed view of the nearby Eagle and Coxcomo Mountains. It was a brilliant decision. The pool was full and sparkled in the sun. They admired the brightly colored umbrellas and chaise lounges surrounding the pool. After Jim assured himself that everything was working properly in the rooms and at the pool, they went to the main house to see if there was anything Maria and Jeffrey had overlooked there. They'd been living in the house and hadn't noticed any problems, but Jim was a perfectionist, insisting they do a thorough walkthrough.
Hiring Jim had been a stroke of luck. He turned out to be far better than they could have asked for, giving them great advice and showing them numerous ways they could save money on the remodeling project. Probably the best part was that because he was such a perfectionist, nothing had been done in a haphazard manner. He had been a class act from start to finish. Who would have thought they would have found a contractor like him in Blythe?
After they finished the walkthrough, they went back to the office where Maria happily wrote a check to Jim for the remainder of the work he had done. He had been worth every cent.
One last thing remained to be done. Jim finished the final wiring needed on the highway sign and tested the neon lights. It was perfect. The words "Blue Coyote Motel" glowed brightly, a beacon for weary travelers. With the lights on, the motel was officially open. Mar
ia and Jeffrey high-fived each other and went into the office where the phone and computer were now up and running. There was nothing to do but wait for their first guests.
CHAPTER 27
The past few months had gone by quickly for Doug. They had been very good months. Even though the recent past had been ideal in many ways, he still occasionally would have a flashback of the person he used to be; a loser, broke, fat, smoking, drinking too much and visiting prostitutes. When the flashbacks ended, he would be bathed in sweat, his heart racing and vowing once again to do whatever it took to never become that person again.
He consistently was the top sales producer at Aravalve. Jack couldn't have been happier with his sales performance and had given him a much larger territory, the Western United States including Hawaii. He particularly liked the frequent trips to the San Francisco Bay Area and Hawaii. He had a generous expense account, which allowed him to eat at great restaurants, stay in hotels with beautiful surroundings, and take Lacy with him when she could get away. After his disastrous start with Aravalve, he never would have foreseen this new development in his life.
Doug had never been to Hawaii and he quickly fell under its spell. His sales calls took him mainly to the islands of Oahu, Maui, and Hawaii. While most of the tourists gravitated towards Maui and Oahu, he enjoyed the peacefulness of the island of Hawaii, or as it was called by the locals, the “Big Island.” It was a little sleepier, no nightlife to speak of and fewer tricked-out expensive resorts. He found the port town of Hilo to be especially charming. The farmer's market with its colorfully extravagant displays of Hawaiian flowers like plumeria, anthurium, and orchids delighted him. Doug loved the nearly empty beaches, lava formations, waterfalls, and the warmth of the Hawaiian people. He'd even gotten to like Spam, a favorite dish of the local island residents.
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