First Do No Harm

by L Jan Eira

  An abrupt loud noise from behind startled Jack, causing his heart rate to suddenly quicken and his hands to quiver. A sinking feeling appeared in his chest and his face turned pale. All his muscles tensed, as he experienced the primitive flight or fight reflex. Shaking all over, Jack turned to the location of the clatter. It was a raccoon that had just pushed over a garbage can. The animal fled the area, likewise disturbed by the sudden clang. The mystery of the clamor solved, the nerves began to unruffle. Jack took a deep breath. The search for an entry into the cabin resumed. No key could be located. Discouraged that he made the trip for nothing, Jack started to walk back to the car. Doing so, he recalled there was another porch upstairs, off the master bedroom, yet another vantage point to admire the strikingly beautiful meandering brook and falls

  Jack took off his jacket and placed it over one of the rocking chairs on the downstairs porch. He climbed up a nearby large oak until he reached a limb that coursed near the upstairs veranda. Stretching his right arm as far as he could, he placed his fingertips in close proximity to the edge of the balcony. Before attempting the transfer, Jack spied in all directions looking for potential witnesses. He smiled realizing he was in the middle of the wilderness. No human souls for miles. He took a deep breath and jumped. With all his might, Jack held on to the railing to the veranda and got his knee onto the ledge of the woodwork. From there, it took little effort for him to climb onto the upstairs porch. He took a few seconds to admire and enjoy the awesome view and collect himself.

  He took another deep breath and walked to the sliding door leading into the master bedroom. Darn it. The door was locked as well. Jack tried with all his strength to slide the door open but to no avail. He looked at the locking mechanism through the glass door, but he soon gave up. To the right of the doorway, there was a small window. He would try that next. He breathed a deep sigh of relief when the window gave to his pushing. He slid the window open and entered the master bathroom.

  Jack spent twenty minutes snooping around inside the cabin. He wasn’t sure what he was looking for, but he hoped he would recognize it when he saw it. Nothing visible. He thought about moving things and potentially finding a hidden closet. He looked at his watch dispiritedly. A strong gut feeling that he had been wrong about the whole thing began to arise. This cabin was too far to come out and hide important things. He would snoop for fifteen more minutes then call it all a useless trip and colossal waste of time. After a few more minutes of further search, a large beautiful painting of a civil war scene, which served as a door to a hidden safe, rewarded Jack. He slid the painting to the side exposing the miniature-cloaked vault.

  “Oh, please be unlocked, please,” pleaded Jack. It was not. The strong thick metal door would not give an inch.

  “What is your secret combination?” asked Jack of the safe. The combination to the locking mechanism involved three rows of numbers, two digits each totaling six digits. He stared at it for a long moment, pensively. He noticed the numbers as he found them and made a mental note: first row, 52; second row, 27; third row, 23. He tried 12-34-56. No go. Then backwards. Locked.

  “I wonder how I can find out what his birth date was? Or his wife’s measurements?” Jack smiled faintly. “He didn’t have a wife. Mistress then.” Another grin.

  Staring at the combination lock, he had an idea. He removed his cell phone from his pocket and figured out which numbers corresponded to the word LABRAT, Rupert’s license plate number.

  “LA is 52, BR is 27 and AT is 28. Okay, let’s try it. Don’t let me down?” said Jack to no one in the room. As he started to turn the dials, he grinned. He knew he was right on. The dial had initially displayed 52 on the top row, 27 on the middle and 23 for the bottom. The only number that was off was the third row, 23 instead of 28. Jack did that, too, in similar circumstances. Only one number to remember and change. Jack turned the dials accordingly and paused shortly to compose himself. He took a deep breath and tried the door. Voila! The lock gave way and the door opened with little effort.

  “Come to Papa!” said Jack cheerfully. Inside the tiny vault, there was a small envelope marked First Federal Bank of Evansville. In the envelope, there was a small key with the number 232 imprinted on it. There was also a small thumb drive labeled Research Log—LFJ659. Jack smiled big as he held the small envelope and the tiny USB computer drive in his right hand.

  He exited the house, making sure that everything was as he found it. When he arrived in his car, he called Claire and filled her in on his discovery. He began his trip back home.

  “Will you please find out how many First Federal Banks there are in Evansville?” he asked her. A few minutes later, Claire called back and indicated there were five branches and gave him the addresses and phone numbers. He wrote them down.

  “Good afternoon. I would like to rent a safe deposit box. What time do you close today?” asked Jack deceitfully. There was a pause.

  “Oh, all your deposit boxes are at your main branch on Green River Road? Okay, thank you,” said Jack when the other party was finished speaking. As he drove toward the city, Jack entered the address information into the GPS. He sat back and drove on, content with the results of this trip.

  On his arrival, Jack got out of the car and brushed off the dirt from his clothes.

  “You can take the man to the country, but you can’t take the country out of the man,” he said, smiling to no one in particular.

  He walked into the bank, greeting an elderly security guard at the entrance. A doorway to his left displayed a sign overhead: Safe Deposit Boxes. He entered the room and found box number 232. He opened the drawer and removed all its contents. He closed the deposit box and returned to his vehicle. He needed a safe place to review the documents. He drove toward Newton Memorial Hospital. First, he would stop to get dinner and the essential post-prandial Starbucks coffee.

  Stomach full and back in the car driving to Newton Memorial Hospital, Jack removed the Treo from his pocket and dialed.

  *****

  6:42 PM

  Susan felt betrayed by Jack and Claire. She was starting to fall in love with Mike. He was kind, smart, devoted to his job and treated her like a lady. As a police detective, she would know if Mike was involved with such heinous crimes. Wouldn’t she?

  Right here and now it was time to put all that aside. Mike was at her home and a romantic dinner and evening were in the cards. Nothing was going to ruin that, not even Jack and Claire’s assertions that Mike could possibly be a mass-murderer.

  “Ridiculous. My God, he’s a decorated FBI agent. He’s here helping us with this difficult case,” she thought as she prepared the dinner table. Mike was right behind her. He looked particularly attractive. He wore a well-fitting, expensive suit and tie, attire that would leave most cops envious. She smiled at him lovingly.

  Mike opened up the bottle of red and struck a match to light up the candles on the dinner table, bringing Susan’s attention back to the moment. Everything was set. Everything was perfect. They sat down, soft music playing in the background. Susan looked into Mike’s eyes from across the table and saw love and irresistible passion. Mike might very well be the one.

  “Great music, great food, great company, great, well, everything,” said Mike tenderly, taking a sip of merlot. She imitated him, eyes still locked on one another.

  “I love this song,” she managed to say finally, hoping this moment would never end.

  “Would you like to dance?” asked Mike getting up from his chair. Lou Rawls’ You’ll Never Find Another Love Like Mine played softly on the CD player.

  “I thought you’d never ask,” said Susan shyly. He helped her up, like the gentleman he was and soon they embraced to the rhythm of the music on the makeshift dance floor.

  “I’m just glad the case is finally closed,” he whispered in her ear.

  The statement surprised her. Whether the case was closed or not was impossible to say at this time with any degree of confidence. It was so complex and involved, who kne
w what else was yet to come? Jack and Claire’s words hypothesizing Mike’s involvement echoed vividly in her mind.

  “Me, too,” she replied softly going along with Mike.

  “I’m sorry about Herb. I know the two of you were close.”

  “We were. Herb was my bud. I’ll miss him terribly,” said Susan, a tear down her check. Mike wiped the tear then held her tightly, dancing to the music.

  “He had this case almost completely wrapped up. How sad for him to die of a seizure. I heard the doctors say he may have had a stroke that caused the seizure. I am so sorry, Susan.”

  “You don’t think he was murdered, do you?”

  “Absolutely not. I was looking at him in the parking lot when he collapsed. Poor guy. Great cop. I know I’m gonna miss him,” said Mike. Susan remained subdued and pensive. The two continued dancing without saying a word until the song was over and then kissed passionately. Mike helped Susan to her seat at the dinner table. Susan served herself mashed potatoes and steak and then passed the plates to Mike.

  “You know,” Mike paused for a beat, then continued, “I’m not so sure Jack Norris isn’t involved with the crimes. I’ve been thinking a lot about it lately. I might just snoop around a bit and see if I can find any connection between him and Rupert,” said Mike convincingly.

  Susan was intrigued by the possibility. Herb and she had been so sure of Jack’s innocence that it was hard to fathom anything else. She would go along with Mike, for now, and see where this conversation was going.

  “Interesting thought,” she said, taking a forkful of mashed potato.

  “This food is delicious, Susan,” said Mike appreciatively.

  “Thanks.”

  “So, what will you do now?” she probed.

  “I’ll follow Jack around for a bit and see what he does and where he goes, as we wrap up the case. Then I’ll need to go back to Indianapolis. But I’ll be back. For mashed potatoes like these, you’d better believe, I’ll be back. If you’ll have me, that is,” offered Mike with a smile.

  “Sure, I’ll have you back. I was hoping you’d be back for me,” said Susan, bashfully.

  “Of course, it’s you, silly girl.” The two sat in silence and ate for a long moment, while Lou Rawls sang ’Georgia on My Mind’.

  “You did a great job on the grill. My steak is impeccable,” said Susan, interrupting the peaceful quiet.

  “Thank you. I learned grilling from my dad. It’s a family secret.” Both smiled. Susan felt herself fall for the man. Suddenly her cell phone rang. She excused herself, walked to the kitchen, found her purse and fished out the mobile device.

  “Hello,” she said pleasantly.

  “Susan, it’s Jack,” she heard on the telephone. She wanted to hang up and go back to the unfolding romantic evening. But she did not. She struggled to remain calm and polite as she spoke, and, for the sake of the ongoing investigation, inconspicuous.

  “Yes.” She purposely left out the caller’s name.

  “Susan, I wanted to keep you in the loop. I went to Rupert’s cabin in the woods and found some files. I haven’t looked through these yet, but I’m going to. I’m headed to my office at Newton Memorial Hospital. I think these files will answer many questions for us. Are you interested in joining me? I can meet you at police headquarters and—”

  “No, this is not a good time,” she interrupted. After a short pause, she continued. “Give me a call tomorrow and we’ll discuss your finding.”

  She hung up the phone, returned it into her purse and rejoined Mike. She felt confused and alone. Vulnerable. How she wished Herb was there to give her advice. Ever since her father passed away from cancer five years earlier, Herb had taken his place in her heart. She had learned so much from him. One lesson she would always cherish and remember was how to follow her gut instinct. Her gut was telling her Mike was a good person.

  “Who was that?” asked Mike, nonchalantly.

  For a short moment, Susan struggled as to whether to and how to answer. Then, she replied: “That was Jack Norris.”

  “Oh, what did he want?” The topic had obviously piqued Mike’s interest.

  “He found some files that he thinks might be important in the case. He’s looking them over at Newton Memorial,” she answered truthfully.

  “Found files? Where? What kind of files?” persisted Mike, taking a sip of the red wine.

  “Rupert had a cabin in the woods somewhere. He found them there. I didn’t get much information. I wanted to get back to you quickly,” she finished with a smile.

  “Of course. Please forgive me. Where were we?” With this Mike stood up, gestured for Susan to get up and they returned to the area in front of the fireplace, the designated dance area. They danced, now closer than ever, her head resting on his upper chest. No words. They kissed tenderly.

  “This feels so right,” reflected Susan. They kept on dancing.

  Susan couldn’t remember ever having felt this way. She had been able to put work completely aside and enjoy the here and now. Having lost Herb so tragically made her feel vulnerable and alone. Mike was providing her with the strength she so needed and desired.

  When they were done eating, she excused herself to change into something more comfortable. Mike was sitting on the sofa in front of the fireplace, a glass of Merlot in his hand. A log crackled noisily in the hearth, adding to the romantic ambiance.

  Susan exited the room and made her way to the master bedroom. Her first stop was the bathroom. While sitting on the commode, she barely noticed the music had been turned louder. She thought nothing of it. She washed her hands and reentered the bedroom. She took off her dress and put it on the bed.

  She thought she heard Mike speaking. She put on a robe and sneaked out of the room essentially to ascertain if Mike was talking to her. He was not. The stereo had been turned up and Mike was not in the living room anymore. The door to the guest bedroom was now closed. Susan knew it was open before and surmised he went in there.

  “Why would he go in there?” she thought to herself. She walked towards the closed door to the guest bedroom deviously. He was definitely in there talking to someone on his cell phone. She couldn’t make out any words.

  Intrigued, she went back to the master bedroom. As she took off her robe and put on her comfy jogging pants, Mike returned to the TV room. The stereo music volume was again lowered little by little, as if to avoid perception.

  “Why did Mike make a phone call he didn’t want me to know about,” she asked herself. “Maybe he received a private call? From the FBI? From another woman? Should I approach him about it? No. I’ll let it go and enjoy the moment,” concluded Susan, still in deep denial.

  She entered the living room. The door to the guest bedroom was open again, as she had left it before Mike’s arrival. The FBI man stood up, a glass of wine in each hand, one of which he delivered to Susan.

  “You are so beautiful,” he declared.

  *****

  6:57 PM

  Jack was sitting at his office when his cell phone rang. It was Claire.

  “I thought I’d hear from you by now. I got worried. What’s up?”

  “I’m in my office at the hospital looking through all the documents from Rupert’s deposit box. There is a lot of stuff in here. I want to go through each piece carefully.”

  “What have you found so far?”

  “There are a series of letters from the U.S. Marine Corps. From Major Rooner, saying that they are interested in pursuing and learning more about the potential military value of the aerosolized bubbles, but they required more animal research. They point out that it is unethical to experiment with humans. They weren’t willing to fund the project. There are invoices and documentation about the equipment they are using to deliver LFJ659, which Rupert coined Rat Poison, as we already knew. There are notes about the meetings with Akrim. That is where I am now.”

  “What about Susan. Will you call her?”

  “Yes. I called her earlier and told her I am r
eviewing this stuff in my office. I’ll call her with details tomorrow morning. There might be evidence against Mike Ganz in here. I don’t want her to know about any of this until I understand it myself. Let me call you later, when I figure out everything.” Jack was anxious to get off the phone and continue his investigation.

  As soon as the call ended, Jack’s attention was again focused on the documents in front of him.

  The administrative offices of the Department of Medicine and Cardiology were located in a separate wing of the hospital. There were no clinical services provided in this location. As such, the place was already deserted. The lights were off in the halls, which were illuminated only minimally from the dim sunlight peeking through the windows. The hallways were silent. Eerie. Spooky.

  Down the hall, exceptionally soft footsteps approached. A man walked slowly and soundlessly, every step a bit closer to Jack. Unhurriedly, the man continued steadily on his path, advancing at snail’s pace, ascertaining along the way that he remained unnoticed. Like a ninja warrior in the dark, the man was now just outside Jack’s office door.

  The mysterious figure placed a protective transparent mask over his face and mouth. He removed an aerosolizing device from his left pocket and another apparatus from his right pocket. Armed and ready, he covertly and slowly sneaked into the office. Due to his enthusiasm and focus, Jack remained clueless to the man’s presence for a long moment.

  *****

  7:42 PM

  “Hi, I didn’t hear you come in? What’s with the mask?” asked Jack, totally surprised, as he finally saw the man in his office, now only a few feet from him.

  The assailant did not speak. He remained serious. By the time Jack realized what was going on, it was too late. The man was rotund of body, giving his identity away easily. He sprayed into the Jack’s mouth and nose, using the element of surprise to his advantage. After spraying the deadly microscopic tiny aerosolized bubbles for a few seconds, the man stopped and smiled. Mission accomplished. All that was left to do now was to allow a few more seconds for the bubbles to descend into the alveoli sucked in by an obligatory breath and enter the circulatory system. At that point, the proper frequency would be dialed in and the ultrasound device would be activated, creating a supersonic, indiscernible beacon that would travel several yards. This would penetrate the human tissue unimpeded and disintegrate the bubbles releasing their lethal toxins. Given the certain death about to come, Jack would not divulge any information about what he found regarding the Rat Poison project. The prosperous venture would lead to great riches beyond anyone’s dreams.