Bridgetown's Eleventh Hour

by Shirley A. Roe

  “We’re doing more planting at the public school, but I’ll have my phone on. Give me a call later and I think I’ll call Jack and see if he needs any help with anything. I better get going, bye Sweetheart.” He kissed her goodbye and headed out to work. Christine cleaned up the apartment and went to her laptop to put the finishing touches on her latest article before picking Sarah up at the hospital.

  Sarah was up and dressed early, anxious to get to her meeting. She still felt weak but she was determined to get out of here. Christine arrived at the hospital, picked her up and dropped Sarah off at home with more than an hour to spare. “Want to come in?”

  “No, I have work to do and you have an important meeting with Martin and Schultz Chemical. See you later Sarah, are you sure you are feeling alright?” Christine thought that Sarah looked fine, but she was still worried about her friend.

  Sarah opened the back door of the car and removed her overnight bag. “I’m fine now Christine. Thanks for everything. I’ll call you later this afternoon.” As she took her keys from her purse, Sarah noticed a small package on the doorstep. She picked it up and carried it inside the house in anticipation. She headed for the bedroom. Leaving the bag, she sat on the bed and opened the small package. She sucked in her breath. In her hand was a box bearing the mark of British designer, Matthew Williamson. Sarah opened the box carefully and discovered a beautiful bracelet. It was one of the new ‘Charity Bracelets.’ A small card was enclosed stating that all profit from the sale of this bracelet would be donated to charity. She put the bracelet on her wrist, holding it high so she could admire it. She searched the package for a card and found a short handwritten note.

  Sarah dearest, I was very upset to learn you have been ill. I pray you are completely recovered. This bracelet is for you my darling, wear it with pride knowing we have helped those less fortunate. I can’t wait to see you again, Love Will.

  Still feeling weak, but filled with inspiration, she danced around the room, happier than she had ever been. First he sends her Jimmy Choo shoes and now a Mathew Williamson bracelet; she was very impressed. Sarah could never afford accessories like this on her salary. Life is good. Thank you Will my love, hurry home. She made a quick call to his cell, reaching voice mail. “Will, it’s Sarah. I am out of hospital and much better now. Thank you my love, I adore the bracelet. Talk to you soon.” Realizing the time, she quickly showered and changed into her business suit. She smiled when she saw the bottled water that Christine had left on the counter. There wasn’t time to type her notes so she stuffed the notebook into her briefcase, ate a banana, washed her pills down with a bottle of water and left for the meeting with Charles Martin. The new bracelet sparkled on her wrist.

  Jack and Bernie watched the television announcement together. Their impression was much the same as Christine’s and Matt’s, bureaucratic bull! “What are you doing today, Jack?”

  “After watching that nonsense, I am going to see Doctor Hardy at the hospital. I won’t let them cover this up Bernie. Charles Martin is being interviewed at one and I don’t want to miss that. After I hear what he has to say, I will decide what to do next.” Jack bowed his head before digging into his bacon and eggs.

  “Watch yourself with Martin, Jack. I wouldn’t trust him as far as I could throw him.”

  “Don’t worry Bernie old pal, I know what I’m doing. Sometimes you have to get into bed with snakes to get what you want, but I have no intention of getting bitten. I need a favor.”

  “Sure, what do you want me to do?” Bernie placed his cereal bowl in the sink and reached for an apple.

  “Call Sarah and make sure she is okay, will you? She won’t speak to me.”

  “Sure Jack. I’ll call now, and then I have to get to work. See you later.” Bernie grabbed his cell from the table and left Jack alone in the kitchen thinking of Susan.

  Jack decided he would call her and bring her up to date. He just wanted to hear her voice. Susan’s phone rang but went to voice mail. “Hi Susan, I’ll call you later, there are new developments here and I miss you. Love ya.”

  Jack was feeling the effects of the past weeks and he was exhausted. Relieved that the dump site was now exposed and would be cleaned up, he felt elated, but he was tired. He knew in his bones that Martin was disingenuous, but he couldn’t prove it. While seeing Dr. Hardy about the toxicity from the dump site, he also wanted to discuss his own condition with Doctor Phillips. Perhaps he had done too much, too soon after his kidney transplant. His back ached and he was very tired all the time. No time to be sick now, Jack. There is much to do. He ate the last bite of toast and stood up. As he rose, a sharp pain shot down his back. His hand grabbed for his lower back and he winced. Bernie appeared in the doorway. “Sarah is fine, and off to a meeting with Martin. You okay, Jack?”

  “Just a muscle twinge, it’s nothing. Thanks Bernie, I’ll see you later.” Bernie watched Jack move toward the counter, his friend was in pain, but Bernie knew better than to mention it again. He left Jack alone.

  Jack met with Doctor Hardy mid morning. The doctor explained that certain procedures had to be followed, once there was proof of chemical leakage. “There are specific recommendations for each chemical substance, Jack. What we do is gather substance information including physical and chemical properties, routes of exposure, inhalation, skin, eye contact, ingestion, acute health effects regarding organ systems affected by acute exposure and potential sequelae. All of this must be known before we can take action.” Jack hated medical ‘clap trap.’ He just wanted the facts.

  “What exactly is the action that will be taken?” Jack moved his weight around in his chair trying to get comfortable

  “Action includes, self-protection, recover, decontamination, estimation of inhaled dose, further evaluation and treatment, and initial treatment. Then come patient release and follow up.”

  “When will this information be available to you?”

  “You have to understand Jack. Testing is only available from specialized research laboratories and disaster plans need to indicate the potential chemicals of concern so that the appropriate tests can be made available. We have to wait until the barrels are unearthed to see if there was any leakage before we can decipher what chemicals we are dealing with.”

  “Thanks Doc, I guess all of us will have to wait.”

  “Jack, just between you and I, I have sent blood samples to one of the labs for chemical toxicity testing. I will have those results later today. If my patients are suffering from toxicity, I can start treatment sooner. Keep this to yourself, Jack. We are dealing with a highly explosive topic and the last thing we need in Bridgetown is utter chaos and panic.”

  “I appreciate your sharing that with me. I have another appointment in the hospital. Thanks again.” Jack stood up and in a quick reflex, grabbed his back

  The doctor had not missed the reaction. “Jack, are you okay? You look like you are in pain.”

  “It’s just a muscle twinge. Thanks again and call me when you know something, please.”

  Jack went to the second floor to Dr. Phillips office and took a seat in the waiting room.

  Sitting on the examination table, Jack felt light-headed. Dr. Phillips took his blood pressure and looked concerned. “Your blood pressure is up, Jack. How are you feeling right now?”

  “A little light-headed Doc, but this place always makes me nervous.” He forced a laugh.

  “We are going to need some x-rays and an ultrasound as soon as possible. My nurse will call you. In the meantime, I want you to take it easy, Jack.”

  “What do you think it is?” Jack didn’t like the sound of x-rays and ultrasound, he was getting nervous.

  “I hope we are not dealing with Stenosis of the Renal Artery. It is typically a late complication that can occur, from weeks to years after surgery. This complication happens when the lumen of the artery is narrowed, which decreases blood flow through the artery to the kidney. But let’s not jump to conclusions. Go home and we will call you when t
he nurse books the ultrasound.” The doctor closed his notebook and left Jack alone to get dressed. Jack was not happy about this complication with everything else he had to do right now.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Charles Martin walked to his Mercedes on route to his interview at the television station. He watched the hazmat team at work. Men in protective suits were everywhere. Machines of all shapes and sizes worked carefully extracting earth and barrels. Each barrel was carefully inspected before being loaded onto a flatbed truck. He waved to one of the men before climbing into his car. Charles had prepared well for the interview and his heart was racing in anticipation.

  Sarah was waiting for him at the television station. “Are you ready, Mr. Martin?” He patted the bulge made by the rehearsed speech in his breast pocket and smiled.

  “Don’t you worry your pretty little head Sarah; I have this covered.” She held her breath as she watched the interview from the production room. This was a nightmare as far as she was concerned. Possibly jeopardizing all of her hard work to make Martin and Schultz a “green” company, they needed this interview to go well.

  She was surprised when Charles referred to one of ‘ their own’ being affected by the Virus X and how he wanted to know if there was any link between it and the chemical dump as everyone else did. He went on to say how she, Sarah, had spent time in hospital, but was recovering now. He embellished her hospital stay giving the impression it was more serious than it had been. He said that he was very worried about her and understood how the television viewers felt, having had this problem hit so close to home. He finished up with “We are all in this together.” He laid it on a little thick in her opinion, but the interviewer seemed to be eating it up. She had to give him credit; he knew how to ‘schmooze’ the press.

  Sarah was worried about Jack’s involvement with Mr. Martin, not convinced that he was a willing ally in the cleanup operation as Charles Martin had just told the surprised interviewer. She knew Jack better than that. I bet you’re loving this Jack, you can’t wait to destroy me, make a mockery of my campaign and all I’ve worked for. The raised voice of the interviewer caught her attention.

  “You mean Jack Giovanni, the protestor that was arrested years ago in front of Martin and Schultz? He is working with you on this cleanup?” The interviewer gazed at the camera in disbelief.

  “Most definitely, Mr. Giovanni came to me when he discovered the problem and he and I agreed wholeheartedly that the safety of the townspeople was more important than any past grievances we might have. He is completely on board with our plans to detoxify the dump site.” Sarah was thinking that she had better tell Mr. Martin not to trust Jack, when she realized how far she had come since her relationship with him ended. Once upon a time I would have done anything for Jack Giovanni. She pulled her focus back to the television studio. The interview continued with Martin reiterating that he was completely unaware of the existence of the site and shocked and dismayed at its discovery. Sarah breathed a sigh of relief when it was over. Charles Martin handled the entire interview very well.

  In his apartment, Jack stared open mouthed at the television. Martin had just made him look like the biggest hypocrite in the world. He picked up the phone to call Bernie, but it started to ring in his hand. “Hello?”

  “Is this Jack Giovanni?”

  “Yes, this is Jack. Who is this?”

  “Mr. Giovanni, this is Miss Jackson from the local television station. We would like to schedule an interview with you on Friday morning. Are you available?” Jack assured her that he was and hung up the phone. Well, well, there really is a God. He would have a chance to tell his side of the story and much more if he could get all of the test results before Friday. They couldn’t stop him from blowing the whole thing wide open on real time, live television. He remembered that he was scheduled for x-rays on Thursday and would have to have everything ready before Friday. He started to assemble his notes. Finally he would get his chance to expose all the lies and cover ups. This was going to be his finest hour.

  Needing to do some research, Jack headed for the library at the university. He was there for hours. By the time he was heading home, he was feeling very weak. “I just need something to eat,” he told himself. He drove through the drive through at the fast food restaurant and ordered two burgers and a coffee.

  The phone was ringing when he arrived home. He dropped the brown bag containing his food on the table. “Hello?”

  “Jack? It’s Susan. Listen I have some information for you.”

  “Hey Susan, it’s nice to hear your voice. What kind of information?” He lifted one of the burgers from the bag, unwrapped it and took a bite.

  “Have you ever heard of ‘fracking,’ Jack?”

  “Fracking? I think so, but I don’t know much about it.” Jack took another bite of his burger and washed it down with coffee.

  “Fracking is the process to obtain natural gas and it can contaminate drinking water and cause serious problems, like explosions and radioactive wastewater.”

  “You think this might be our problem?” Now she had his attention. He put the burger down.

  “I’m not sure, but hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, injects millions of gallons of fracking fluids into a gas well to create pressure. This cracks open the underground, releasing the natural gas. Are there any wells being drilled in your area, Jack?”

  “Not that I know of, but I will check on that first thing in the morning. So the drilling can cause toxic, waste water runoff?”

  “Exactly, and they use a mixture of more than 600 chemicals, water and sand to do the fracking. Naturally there is a very dangerous loophole that currently exempts energy companies from complying with the Safe Drinking Water Act and disclosing the names of the chemicals they are pumping into the ground. Lawmakers need to support the new legislature to close this loophole.”

  “Are there actual cases of contamination?”

  “Pro Publica, who I have worked with, reported events resulting in the contamination of one thousand groundwater wells in shale, in places such as Wyoming, Pennsylvania, Texas and Colorado.”

  “And you don’t know what it is that they are using?” Jack was pacing the room.

  “Fracking chemicals can be highly toxic and they include chemicals such as petroleum byproducts, potassium-based chemicals, silicas and alcohols, just to mention a few. But no one really knows exactly what the chemicals are. It was discovered in the shale from New York to Tennessee that there is as much as three million gallons of contaminated water in the ground for every well drilled.”

  “Thanks Susan. I am going to look into this in the morning. Right now everything is pointing to the chemical company, but you may have hit on something. I have to get ready for my interview and I still have more evidence to compile. This is it Susan, my chance to expose the cover up.”

  “How are you feeling? What did the doctor say?” Susan was concerned when she heard that Jack had been to the doctor.

  “Just a little high blood pressure; it’s nothing to worry about.” He decided not to tell her about the ultrasound or the Stenosis of the Renal Artery. “You are wonderful, talk to you tomorrow.”

  “You take care of yourself, Jack. I love you and good luck with the interview.”

  “I love you and thanks again.” Jack hung up feeling like he finally had a soul mate in his life, a person that thought and felt as strongly as he did about the environment and life in general. He went to his computer and tried to discover if there were any natural gas wells being drilled near Bridgetown. In his heart he wanted it to be the Martin and Schultz dump site, but as a scientist, he had to look at all of the possibilities. Susan may have introduced another potential source of the pollution and he wanted to be sure before he did his interview.

  Bernie, Christine and Jack all met in the coffee shop the next morning to discuss Jack’s interview. “This is going to be your chance, Jack. I just hope the interviewer gives you a chance to talk and doesn’t try to hush up
any of the details,” Christine commented as she took notes for an article she intended to publish after Jack’s television appearance. This was the break they had all been waiting for.

  “Charles Martin’s interview was so phony. It just reeked of political ambition,” Bernie added as he chomped on his chocolate donut. The others agreed. “I wonder how Sarah feels about all of this?”

  “I haven’t seen Sarah in days. I am sure she is very busy trying to make sure this doesn’t derail her entire campaign.” Christine waited for Jack to gloat, but was surprised when he didn’t.

  “I tried to warn her. I am sure she will handle it professionally.” Jack changed the subject. “I have to have all the facts. Susan brought up a good point and I’m waiting for a call back from my source at Natural Gas. If there is a gas well operation in the area, we need to know about it.” Jack sipped at his coffee and shifted his weight in the chair. His back was hurting again and he could not help but wince with the pain.

  “What’s wrong with your back? You have been squirming all afternoon.” Christine had not missed the fact that Jack seemed uncomfortable.

  “It’s nothing, now where were we?” Jack didn’t want anyone to know about the tests the next day. Christine and Bernie exchanged a knowing look. There was more to this than Jack was saying.

  “So when are we going to meet this mysterious Susan?” Christine had been curious about Susan ever since Jack told them about her. It was obvious that something was going on between them.

  “When this mess is finished, you will be the first to meet her and I know you will love her Christine, you two have a lot in common.” Jack’s face took on a faraway longing when he spoke of Susan. Christine was even more anxious to meet her now.

  Later that afternoon, Sarah and Charles met to go over their next move. The interview seemed to be well received and the cleanup was going quicker than they expected. So far no broken barrels had been discovered. This was a huge relief to them both. “Mr. Martin, I want you to be careful with Jack Giovanni. He isn’t exactly one of your biggest fans.” Sarah felt almost as if she was betraying Jack, but her loyalty had to be to Martin and Schultz now.