Strong Medicine (55 page)

midmorning. Soon after that, Sam summoned a senior management conference

for 4:30 p.m.

Now, as Celia approached the president's suite, she could hear through a

doorway open to the corridor the sound of boisterous male laughter. At this

moment, she thought it seemed incongruous.

As she entered the outer office, one of Sam's two secretaries looked up and

smiled. "Hello, Mrs. Jordan."

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::Sounds like a party, Maggie," Celia said.

In a way, it is." The secretary smiled again and motioned to another open

doorway. "Why don't you go in? There's some news I think Mr. Hawthorne

would like to tell you himself"

Celia entered a room in which the air was heavy with cigar smoke. Sam was

there; so were Vincent Lord, Seth Feingold, Bill Ingram, and several vice

presidents, including Glen Nicholson, a company veteran who ran

manufacturing, a Dr. Starbut from safety evaluation, and Julian Hammond, a

youngish MBA in charge of public affairs. All were puffing at cigars,

Ingram with some uncertainty; Celia bad never seen him smoke before.

:'Hey, here's Celia!" someone called out. "Sam, give her a cigar!"

'No, no!" Sam said. "I've something different for the ladies." Beaming, he

went around to the far side of his desk, behind which was a small pile of

chocolate boxes-Turtles. He handed one to Celia.

"In honor of my grandson who"-Sam consulted his watch-"is now twenty

minutes old."

For the moment, her seriousness evaporated. "Sam, that's wonderful news!

Congratulations!"

"Thank you, Celia. I know it's usually fathers who do the cigar-

and-chocolates routine, but I decided to begin a new tradition to include

grandfathers."

"A damn good tradition!" Nicholson, the manufacturing chief, said, and

Celia added, "The Turtles were thoughtful-they're my favorites." She

noticed that Bill Ingram, looking slightly pale, had stopped smoking his

cigar.

She asked, "Is everything okay with Juliet?"

"Absolutely," Sam said happily. "I had a call from Lilian at the hospital

just a few minutes before you all came, which is how I got the good

news-'mother and a seven-pound baby boy, both doing well.' "

:'I'll go to see Juliet myself," Celia said. "Probably tomorrow."

'Fine! I'll tell her to expect you. I'll be leaving for the hospital myself

right after this meeting." It was clear that Sam was on a euphoric high.

Dr. Starbut asked, "Why don't we postpone?"

"No," Sam said, "we may as well get this over with." Then, glancing at the

others, "I assume it won't take long."

Vincent Lord said, "No reason why it should."

Celia had a sudden sinking feeling, a conviction that all of this

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was going wrong, that the juxtaposition of the Montayne issue and Sam's

grandchild was the worst thing that could have happened at this time.

Sam's happy state, which others here were sharing, would eclipse their

seriousness of purpose.

Preceded by Sam, they moved to an office conference area, arranging

thems.:4ves in chairs around a table. Sam was at the head. Without

preliminaries, clearly wishing not to waste time, he began.

"Celia, I sent a copy of your memo, late this morning, to everyone who's

here. A copy went also to Xav Rivkin, who was about to leave on a two-day

trip to Washington, which he offered to postpone so he could be with us;

however, I assured him that would not be necessary." Sam moved his gaze

around the table. "Has everyone read what Celia wrote?"

There were affirmative nods and murmurs.

Sam acknowledged, "Good."

Celia, having drafted it carefully, was glad her memorandum had been

read. In it she had referred to the Australian court proceedings

concerning Montayne, setting out the facts that she had discovered during

her reading of the trial transcript and that had not appeared in the

summary version circulated through the company earlier. She also

described the recent French and Spanish incidents which had resulted in

accusations against Montayne, accusations receiving publicity in

France-Soir and probably elsewhere. Finally, she explained the reasoning

of Gironde-Chimie and the French company's conviction that all three

allegations about Montayne were unjustifi~A and need not cause alarm.

What Celia did not do in her memorandum was offer any conclusions of her

own, leaving those for this meeting, after hearing what others had to

say.

"Let me state right away, Celia," Sam said, "that you were absolutely

correct in bringing these matters to our attention. They are important

because others will hear of them and we must be ready to tell our side

of the story-the true side-when Montayne goes on sale three weeks From

now." He looked questioningly at Celia. "I'm sure that was your

objective. Right?"

The query was unexpected and she answered awkwardly, "Well, that is part

of it . . ."

Sam, still in a hurry, nodded and went on. "Let's clear up something

else. Vince, why wasn't I told of those Gironde-Chimie reports Celia

referred to?"

The research director's face muscles twitched. "Because, Sam, if

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I sent you every query that comes in concerning all of our products, in

the first place I wouldn't be doing my job of assessing what's important

scientifically and what isn't, and in the second you'd have a stack of

paper on your desk so high you'd get no other work done."

The explanation appeared to satisfy Sam because he instructed, "Give us

your opinion of those reports."

"They're both self-canceling," Lord declared. "They show, with a

thoroughness that satisfies me entirely, that Gironde-Chimie's conclusion

about the non-involvement of Montayne in either incident is correct

scientifically."

"And the case in Australia? Do those extra points Celia raised have any

bearing on the earlier conclusion?"

Celia thought: We're sitting here, all of us, speaking casually of

"incidents" and "cases" and "conclusions" when what it's really

about--even if Montayne is not involved-is babies who'll be "vegetables"

throughout their lives, unable to walk or even move their limbs or use

their brains in any normal way. Are we really so indifferent, or is it

fear that stops us from using the real, unpalatable words? Perhaps, too,

we're relieved those babies are in distant places, and we shall never see

them . . . unlike Sam's grandson, close at hand, whose birth we're

celebrating with chocolates and cigars.

Lord was answering Sam's question, his displeasure with Celia only thinly

veiled. "Those 'extra points,' as you choose to dignify them, change

nothing whatsoever. In fact, I fail to see the slightest reason for

bringing them up."

There was an audible murmur of relief around the table.

")"ile we're here, though, and for the record," Lord continued,

I Ive prepared a commentary, from a scientific viewpoint, of the three

incidents- Australian, French and Spanish." He hesitated. "I know we're

in a hurry . . ."

Sam asked, "How long will it take?"

"I promise to be no more than ten minutes."

Sam glanced at his watch. "Okay, but limit it to that."

This is all wrongl Celia's mind was pleading, silently and frantically.

This entire issue is too vital, too important to be hurried in this way.

But she checked her racing thoughts, concentrating instead on Vincent

Lord's words.

The research director was at once authoritative, convincing, reassuring.

Examining the backgrounds of the three defective babies and their

parents, one by one, he pointed out how any one of many

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causes may disrupt a normal pregnancy, causing damage to a fetus. In

particular, "an unregulated mix of chemicals in the human body, especially

drugs and alcohol together," could have disastrous effects, of which

examples were tragic and frequent.

In all the ca&~,s under review, Lord argued, there were so many adverse

possibilities, some of them compelling, that it became unreasonable and

non-scientific to blame Montayne, especially when the worldwide record of

Montayne was so immaculate and other probabilities so strong. He used the

words "hysteria" and "probable fraud" in describing attempts to pin

responsibility on the drug, plus the accompanying publicity.

The other men listened gravely and seemed to be impressed. As perhaps they

-2re right to be, Celia thought. She wished she could be as unequivocal and

confident as Vince. She truly wanted to be, and recognized that Lord's

qualifications to make the judgments he had were far greater than her own.

Yet she, who until only yesterday had been one of Montayne's strongest

supporters, simply wasn't sure.

Lord concluded eloquently. "With any new drug that is introduced, there are

always claims that it is doing harm, that adverse side effects exist,

outweighing benefits. Such claims may be responsible and based on genuine

concern by qualified professionals, or they may be irresponsible, made by

unqualified people, based on nothing.

"Yet each submission, both in the public interest, and to protect companies

like ours which cannot afford to produce a dangerous drug, must bc examined

carefully, unemotionally, scientifically. For -make no rnistake!-no

complaint, no criticism concerning any pharmaceutical product can be

totally ignored.

"What must be determined, of course, is whether an adverse reaction in

someone who has taken a particular drug is from that drug or from some

other source, remembering thert are many sources where adverse happenings

can originate.

"Well, I am satisfied that the most careful examinations have been done in

the instances we are discussing. The charges have been examined and the bad

effects described did not, it has been found, originate with Montayne.

"Finally, there is one more fact it is essential to remember: If a drug

should be falsely blamed for an adverse effect it has not caused, and

because of that false accusation be withheld from general use, then

countless people would be deprived of its therapeutic

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benefits. In my opinion they should not be so deprived of the benefits of

Montayne."

It was an impressive conclusion, as Celia admitted to herself.

Sam clearly expressed the feeling of others when he said, "Thank you,

Vince. I think you've made us all feel better." He eased his chair back

from the table. "I don't believe we need any formal resolution. I am

satisfied that it is perfectly safe to continue full speed ahead with

Montayne, and I presume everyone else agrees."

There were nods of assent from the other men.

"Well," Sam said, "I guess that's everything. Now, if you'll all excuse me

. . ."

"I'm sorry," Celia said, "but I'm afraid that isn't everything."

Heads turned toward her.

Sam said impatiently, "What is it?"

"I'd like to ask Vince a question."

"Well . . . if you must."

Celia looked (town at notes she had made. "Vince, you stated that Montayne