9. June 1, 2016
Cherry
“Good morning.” Cherry greeted God as she placed his breakfast down in front of him.
“Morning.” He always ate his breakfast on his penthouse patio. He said it helped him focus for the day. As he closed the folder he’d been looking at, he gestured to the seat across from him. “Have a few minutes?”
“Certainly,” she said as she sat down.
He put the folder off to the side of his plate on top of a stack of folders that she’d given him yesterday to review.
“I reviewed the files Waters gave me. There are seven here. All are acceptable. However, he flagged Kent ‘Ka-Bar’ Leech as unlikely to leave the military. Up to us if we want to extend the invite to Tribe. My impulse is not.”
“Agreed.”
“What about the woman? She would make a second sibling in the crew.”
“Waters’ sister, Sarah, would be invaluable. I know we want no ties for the team, but both Sarah Miller’s and Sawyer Newton’s skills are better than any others we’ve found who have no family.”
“Sawyer is reckless. Selfish. A clown. He’ll hold his brother back.”
“Maybe at first, but Kash is far too good at what he does to let it interfere. Despite his personality, I’m confident that Sawyer will be an asset.
There are one or two better options, athletically, but his instincts and improvisational skills match his twin’s cerebral gymnastics.
Besides, I don’t think Kash will open the offer without him as part of the deal. ”
“And we need Kash.” He sighed and contemplated the stack of folders. “We’re short a medic.”
“Not anymore.”
She handed him a file with all the details on the proposed hire. She wasn’t sure how God would react. It wouldn’t take long for him to read the report since it was in Waters’ succinct style—choppy and essentials only.
Aidan Ciarán Parker. Born 1979. Age: thirty-seven.
Irish. Resident of Galway. Emigrated to the United States age ten (1989).
Entered Harvard Medical School (1998). Earned a bachelor’s degree in biology.
Completed his degree in three years: took overloads and summer courses (2001).
Graduated number three in his class. Entered medical school (2001).
Graduated number two in his class (2007).
Completed his surgical residency and trauma fellowship, Massachusetts General Hospital (2007-2008).
Licensed trauma surgeon at Johns Hopkins (2008-2014).
A lawsuit for malpractice was filed against his surgical team (2014).
Three women died post-surgery. Investigation documented overload of work hours (thirty-six straight hours on shift; twenty-two hours surgery without a break) as all three accidents occurred within that time period.
(See autopsy: reported excessive doses of prescribed medications in their systems.)
Lawsuit dropped, and a settlement agreed upon by the three families when Parker assumed full responsibility for his team, publicly and financially. The team was allowed to return to full duties. Parker lost his license to practice.
That same year, four months earlier, on a trip around the Cliffs of Moher, Parker’s family encountered mechanical difficulties on their private yacht during a sudden storm.
Parker could not attend the trip because of obligations surrounding the lawsuit.
Parker’s younger sister and her boyfriend’s bodies remain lost at sea.
Parents found trapped and drowned below deck.
What happened to the man’s family was a hard hit after the lawsuits.
She remembered reading about his lauded time at Harvard, the flawless reviews of his time at Massachusetts General, and his quick rise to lead on the trauma team at Johns Hopkins. None of it sounded like a man that had been negligent.
What had sounded like him was his acceptance of the blame for what was likely someone else’s fault during those thirty-six hours. As the lead surgeon, he would have seen it as his responsibility, whether he made the actual mistakes or his team members did.
There were pages and pages of his recommendations of staff for promotions and jobs, and even letters refuting complaints regarding staff, including some not on his team.
He made more rounds than any other doctor, and he was always willing to go above and beyond for patients.
Patients raved about him in reviews, and when the scandal hit that he was being accused of malpractice, a flood of previous and current patients rushed to send letters defending him, all citing how he prescribed narcotics in moderation.
Even patients who had asked for medications, and he had refused them.
He was an excellent surgeon. Something was rotten in the state of Dublin, to paraphrase Hamlet, but they had not dug further. Yet. Perhaps she could set the new computer guy, Kash Newton, Sawyer’s twin brother, onto it when he accepted Tribe’s offer .
It was the add-on page from Waters that would likely give God pause.
On multiple occasions, I witnessed Aidan Parker taking medication.
One night while he was out surfing, I entered his beach shack and searched the premises.
No prescriptions or over-the-counter medications found, except for what appeared to be a supply of white, circular tablets.
Research identified them as oxycodone. Based on the number found, and the number of times I observed him taking the medication, it is my belief he is a functional addict.
A comprehensive database search shows no prescription for this medication.
He has no medical records showing them as being prescribed at any time.
At no time have I observed him unable to function, whether surfing, driving, or out in public.
Despite the revocation of his license and the presumed functional addiction to narcotics, it is my belief that Aidan Parker would be an exceptional addition to the Tribe team as a medic.
My recommendation is to offer Aidan Parker the package, but tell him that we are aware of his substance use and will monitor him.
If he proves unable to function on the team, we will issue him the final edict and completely erase him as a violation of his contract.
God grunted when he closed the folder and added it to the pile. “What does your gut tell you?”
“That it’s inconsequential.”
“I agree with Waters’ and your assessments. He’s an acceptable risk. My hunch is that the report”—he pointed to the folder—“has a lot of missing information that can only be collected from Parker himself. Information he’s unlikely to give to us, even if pressed.”
God paused and looked toward the wall, but from experience, Cherry knew his true focus was elsewhere. “I get the sense that total erasure will mean little to him. He might even welcome it. Other methods of persuasion may be necessary, but don’t be surprised if those fail too.”
“Understood.” She changed the subject. “Do we have a location on Waters?”
“Nicaragua. Went for Ildefanso Colonel first. He sensed the man was about to make his move out of Black Site 66 and didn’t want to miss him. Retrieving the others will be much easier.”
“I’ll begin processing their erasures in the meantime. One way or the other, they’ll disappear by the same methods.”