The Cicada Prophecy: A Medical Thriller - Science Fiction Technothriller Page 8

  Assembled around the table were chief executives and directors of some of the largest and most prominent public and private enterprises around the globe—Endogen’s Board comprised only the best of the best. Normally Jamieson would be in his element among this high-powered group, but today he found the eerie silence and averted gazes unnerving. Just when he couldn’t imagine the tension getting any worse, the Chairman entered the room and quietly took his seat at the head of the table. There were no warm individual greetings and small talk to be made this morning. It was apparent from the scowl on Jack Knight’s face that he was going to be all business today.

  “Good morning everyone,” started the Chairman. “It’s obvious that we are meeting today under less than ideal circumstances, to say the least. I think we should all be prepared for a long and sober deliberation of the circumstances and implications surrounding the surprise announcement of the United Nations yesterday morning.”

  “Was it really a surprise, Jack?” suggested Ted Hiller. Ted was CEO of IntraHealth, the nation’s largest Health Management Organization, and had long resented Jamieson’s arrogance and domination over the industry. “I mean, couldn’t we have seen this coming? It didn’t take a rocket scientist to determine that Endogen had an unhealthy concentration and exposure in this area.”

  “Exactly,” added Andrew Graham, Chief Investment Officer of Occidental Growth Funds, the largest single block shareholder of Endogen stock. “Why didn’t top management have a plan for preventing or at least mitigating this possible turn of events? They must have known the likely impact of such a change. Our fund has been decimated, and many of our individual shareholders have been wiped out overnight.”

  Oh great, Jamieson thought—let the blame-calling begin. He wasn’t about to take these accusations lying down.

  “No one at this table saw this coming,” he interjected. “It was never mentioned as a potential threat at prior Board meetings, and you all approved the strategic plan for Endogen as recently as last July.”

  “No one around this table is responsible for anticipating these effects besides you, Roland,” replied Andrew. “You are the CEO of this company and it is your primary role to set the direction and manage the risks attendant with the execution of the plan. Our role is simply to monitor your actions and ensure the shareholders’ interests are protected.”

  “I agree,” added Mike Binnington, Managing Partner of New York’s pre-eminent law firm, DesLaurier Binnington. “You can’t blame any of us for your lack of foresight in this matter. This was entirely an error in judgment on the part of the senior management of this company. You simply dropped the ball here, Roland.”

  Jamieson looked around the room slowly, and was met with many nodding heads. It was apparent that the group was closing ranks on him in a none-too-veiled attempt to protect their own interests. Every person at the table had a fiduciary responsibility to Endogen’s shareholders, and no one wanted to admit culpability with the threat of personal legal liability accompanying his position as a director.

  “All right, gentlemen, let’s not stoop to mudslinging,” Jack weighed in. “We are all responsible for the interests of this company’s shareholders, and we may all be held to account in one manner or another. I think we should start discussing how we can best mitigate the effects of this catastrophe and save this organization from even more harm. Although this is a tremendous blow to Endogen, things could still get worse.”

  “How so, Jack?” asked Phil Friedrich, Managing Partner at ComGroup Consulting. Phil was especially incensed over the matter, given his exclusion by Jamieson over the last few years from Endogen’s inner consulting circle. “I can’t imagine a worse state of affairs than this. The stock has been crushed, Endogen will likely have to fire more than half its staff, and we all face the real possibility of personal lawsuits in connection with the negligent management and oversight of this company.”

  “At least the organization is still a going concern today,” intoned Matt Benson, CEO of Fidelity Bank. “If Endogen’s loans are called in, this could seriously impair its liquidity and operating ability. And the company would be hard pressed to recapitalize by floating new shares in the current atmosphere. Roland, what actions have your creditors taken to this point?”

  Jamieson was reluctant to admit he had been deferring such calls. He had received many ominous messages from the company’s largest lenders asking for an immediate meeting to discuss the terms and conditions of outstanding loan arrangements.

  “We’ve received no formal notices as yet, and I’m confident we will be able satisfy our ongoing debt obligations for the foreseeable future,” he said, trying to sound confident and reassuring, even though he could feel the beads of sweat starting to form on his brow.

  “How can you possibly be confident of your ability to meet Endogen’s credit requirements when its cost of capital has effectively doubled overnight?” Matt argued. “Surely, this will put the company in breach of its loan covenants, and invoke the calling of many loans?”

  “Although technically we may be in default of certain loan agreements,” Jamieson said, trying desperately to tread water amidst the barrage of questions, “I believe as long as we can satisfy our lenders that we’re able to continue servicing the debt in accordance with the prescribed payment plans, they will not call any of our debt.”

  “And how exactly do you propose to do that Roland—” demanded Andrew, “with more than half your revenues obliterated?”

  Jamieson cleared his throat.

  “By systematically downsizing the company in advance of the termination of our patch supply agreement with the U.N., so that our revenues continue to be aligned with expenses.” He could hardly believe he was uttering these words.

  “You mean by cutting down this company to a shadow of its former self?” suggested Jack. “I don’t think our shareholders will like that plan, no matter how much it may satisfy our creditors in the short term. I think we need to look at some longer-term solutions to rebuild this company’s equity and shareholder value. What plans or initiatives do you have in the works to expand into new markets?”

  Jamieson hesitated, as he pondered an appropriate response.

  “As most of you know, the process of gaining regulatory approval for new products is long and demanding. Most of our initiatives are multi-year proposals that are not likely to begin adding incremental revenue for quite some time after we lose the exclusive supply of Endopatches.”

  “You’ve got nothing ready, or even planned?!” asked Phil incredulously.

  Jamieson could feel his heart pounding in his chest but fought to maintain his composure.

  “Well, we are nearing completion on the final testing for a premium patch that would regulate skin tone, but our marketing people tell us the revenue potential for this product is limited. It would certainly hardly make a dent in the loss of revenues associated with our share of the Endopatch.”

  “So that’s it?” interjected Ted. “All you’ve got is a puny upgrade for an effect the vast majority of consumers hardly even want or need? I can’t believe you put all your eggs in one basket, and didn’t even have the foresight to plan ahead for the possibility that you might not have preferred status on the Endopatch indefinitely!”

  Jamieson was beginning to feel the sting from the combined press of the directors’ questions and accusations. He desperately needed a solution—quickly.

  “There was one other possibility,” he began slowly, his voice breaking slightly. “But I’m not sure it will fly technically, nor be able to gain the necessary regulatory approvals.”

  “What is it? Don’t leave us all hanging out to dry for God’s sake!” Mike implored, his fear of personal liability rising by the moment.

  “Our Research and Development Group has been working on a new patch that could improve sexual function…”

  “How so?” Andrew interrupted, suddenly intrigued. “The Viagra craze has long since passed now that seniors have been replaced w
ith a new generation of juveniles. And I can’t speak for the rest of my colleagues, but I don’t sense a problem in this area.”

  “Yes, of course it’s true that juveniles are for the most part sexually functional,” Jamieson agreed. “However, with the hormone mix set at prescribed levels to maintain everyone at the physiological level of an eleven-year-old, there is an opportunity of sorts to enhance both the drive and intensity of sexual performance among this segment.”

  Jamieson could see a few eyebrows raised around the table. He knew he had tweaked their interest—at least temporarily. Perhaps he’d found a reprieve, albeit a tenuous one.

  “Without affecting the physical maturation status of the individual?” asked Ted, wary of maintaining the precarious endocrine balance that kept everyone locked in a perpetual, but safe, state of pre-pubescence.

  “Yes, so my Chief Scientist tells me,” Jamieson replied carefully.

  “Well, that could show some promise,” offered Andrew. “This kind of designer drug could have wide currency and separate Endogen from the other suppliers in this huge market. What is your timeline for development and release?”

  Jamieson began to feel some of the tension ebbing from the room.

  “I’m having my Chief Scientist work on this as we speak, and he’s promised to provide an accelerated project plan for me next week.”

  “I think he should present his findings to this entire Board at the first opportunity,” Jack ordered. “Roland, I want you to arrange it and notify us as soon as possible. This could be your last opportunity to save more people than you know from an unfortunate demise.”

  Jamieson understood full well Jack’s meaning. But he had far more serious concerns than the possibility of his losing his job as CEO of Endogen. That would be a temporary embarrassment from which he could recover. He knew he had enough connections to land another high-profile academic or professional position fairly quickly. The more critical matter was his personal financial liquidity. Not only was his generous allotment of company stock options now firmly under water and unlikely to hold value ever again, he had made the mistake so many other arrogant executives had made in similar situations: he had borrowed aggressively to purchase more stock of the company under his management.

  Suddenly—like Endogen itself—he was heavily in debt, with little counter-balancing equity to offset his loans. But unlike Endogen, his own personal cash flow would not be sufficient to satisfy these loan requirements. Jamieson knew that it was only a matter of time before his personal bankers called to redeem his debts, and that he would be unable to meet their demands.

  12

  As he briskly scaled the granite steps leading into Vanderbilt Hall, Rick reflected upon his previous week’s Bioethics lecture. The discussion had been lively and stimulating and not without some surprising twists and turns. Today’s lecture was to have a new theme, but there was still some unfinished business from the last meeting and he had prepared himself to go wherever his students wished to take him. He knew that with any Bioethics class, the discussion could lead almost anywhere, and he didn’t want to impede his students’ creativity by limiting the discussion to just one topic.

  Approaching the lecture hall, Rick could hear a loud buzz coming from the charged-up assembly, but the group suddenly fell silent when he stepped into the room.

  This should be interesting, he thought.

  “Good morning, creative thinkers!” Rick began. “We had a lot of fun last time exploring the profound topic of the meaning and genesis of life, and I hope you found yourselves stretched as much as I was.”

  Rick saw many heads in the assembly nodding in affirmation.

  “Today, I want us to consider what I hope you’ll find to be an equally stimulating subject—cloning—and what implications this may have for humanity when compared to the natural and somewhat old-fashioned way of creating life.

  “But first, we have the open matter of our unsolved riddle to address. Who’s come up with an answer to the infamous question: Which came first—the chicken, or the egg?”

  Matt raised his hand. This week it would be the law contingent to start things off.

  “If we accept the notion of the infinite regress put forward last class, then it would appear to be indeterminate. It’s circular reasoning, with no finite starting point,” he stated resolutely.

  “So it would seem,” Rick replied. “So that’s it then—no one has a solution to this age-old conundrum?”

  He slumped his shoulders and sighed, feigning resignation.

  “That’s a little disappointing!”

  “How could there be one under those conditions, Dr. Ross?” asked Rachel, the Philosophy major.

  “Well I suppose if you limit yourself to thinking of life in its broadest sense, then I guess you’re right, Rachel. If an organism is simply a product of its progenitors, forever back in time, that would appear to be true.” Rick hesitated for dramatic effect. “But when does a chicken not resemble its progenitor?”

  The room became still.

  Silence. Painful, delicious silence, thought Rick. Is there any better moment, when the anticipation and contemplation of what might follow is more intense?

  After waiting a few moments, it was apparent that he would need to break the group’s mental logjam.

  “Gabriel, you stated last class that different life forms evolved over time from random meiotic divisions among germ cells, which are passed on to subsequent generations. Doesn’t this suggest that each progeny will have different characteristics from its parents?”

  “Well…yes, Dr. Ross,” the graduate medical student replied tentatively, “but these mutations are normally only minor. The genetic material supplied to the next generation is essentially the same DNA from the mother and father—so a chicken would still beget a chicken.”

  “Yes, that’s true,” agreed Rick. “The DNA is indeed purely and exclusively supplied by the two parents. However the process of meiosis takes the genetic alleles from both the paternal and maternal germ cells and converts that DNA through a series of divisions and re-combinations into a random mixture of that material in the offspring.”

  Drew, the Anthropology major, looked perplexed.

  “Wouldn’t the same genetic material, albeit mixed up a little, still produce the same species in the next generation, Professor Ross?”

  “Technically, Drew,” Rick continued, “it’s the genes within the nucleus of each cell that determines the structure and function of the organism. These genes are specific sequences—or strings—of nucleotides found on the chromosomes, which collectively comprise the DNA supplied to the organism. Since these fundamental building blocks, the nucleotides, are constantly being shuffled and randomly re-dealt during the process of meiosis, the resulting order and placement of these strings can change significantly from the originating germ cell of the parent to the resulting gamete cells, which are subsequently passed on to the offspring during sexual reproduction.”

  “So you’re saying these mutations are sufficient to create an entire new life form?” asked Matt.

  “Well it depends, I suppose, on how you define an ‘entire new life form,’” Rick explained. “How many of you, for instance, sometimes think your brother or sister is an entirely new life form, quite distinct from yourselves?”

  A few students chuckled.

  “If you accept that life in all its magnificent forms evolved over time from this amazing process of genetic mutation,” Rick continued, “and that land-dwelling creatures may have emerged from the ocean on the putative legs of primordial sea creatures, then how much of a stretch does it take to see that chickens evolved from subtly different forms of life?”

  “So you’re saying then, Dr. Ross, that the egg came first, and that through the process of meiosis, it created a chicken?” asked Drew.

  “Drew,” Rick continued, teasing his students for a little longer, “did you know that some species of snake have tiny spurs on their body which are thought to be ves
tiges of legs from their ancestors? At what specific point would you say the lizard offspring suddenly became a snake? Or conversely, at what precise moment did a fish’s fins evolve into legs? At some point in this process, another type of creature would have to evolve into a form we would say has now become a chicken.”

  “But it wouldn’t be so much a discrete event, as a series of subtle changes over time, would it, Professor?” Rachel asked.

  “Yes, of course. But in each case, the newly mutated egg would pre-determine the form of its hatchling.”

  As he scanned the room, Rick could see a few lights going on among his students, while others were still putting together the pieces. This looks like a good time to take them to the next stage, he thought.

  “There may not, in fact, be a simple and clear answer here, but it certainly makes for an interesting segue into our next subject of cloning,” Rick suggested. “At least insofar as asexual reproduction appearing to bypass entirely this powerful evolutionary force of genetic mutation.”

  “How so?” asked Jade, the other philosophy major in the class.

  “Let’s have one of our biology students provide us with a brief overview of the cloning process,” asked Rick.

  Lauren decided to take up the challenge and raised her hand.

  “Yes, Lauren?”

  “Cloning involves removing the DNA from the nucleus of a living organism’s somatic cell, and inserting it into an egg whose DNA has been removed, and then stimulating that egg to develop and produce new young in the normal manner.”

  “Why,” Rick responded, “must the donor DNA come from a somatic cell?”

  “Because the other cells,” Lauren continued, “the germ cells, only supply half the genetic material needed to create a viable new organism. Only the soma cells have both the paternal and maternal sets of forty-six chromosomes, which must be combined to produce offspring. The germ cells only supply one or the other of these halves and thus require sexual union to combine with the other half.”