Final Notice, page 23
Trudi filled Vince in on what he missed, and they tried to think if there was anything they could do. Ambulances had been arriving and departing through a cordoned off area at the side of the building and by now, a crowd of anxious family, friends and others had gathered outside the school. They saw Qasim drive by, slowly, looking for a place to park. He disappeared around the corner and they waited for him to return. Qasim got the same answer from the officer at the entrance as they – and everyone else – had received, so they had to wait, although he was told that immediate family members would be admitted soon. Qasim had heard a pretty similar report on the news about the shooting, and he was one of the lucky ones because he had heard from Rasha and she was OK. Trudi asked Qasim if Jack needed to be picked up but Qasim had made arrangements on the way over.
Not long afterward, another officer with a bullhorn made an announcement that immediate family members would now be admitted. They were asked to show ID and specify who within the school they were related to. A civilian woman was standing there as well with a checklist to verify and keep tabs on who was entering. As Qasim lined up to enter the school to get Rasha, Trudi told him they would wait for them to come out.
After what seemed liked hours (and it had been almost an hour), Rasha and Qasim emerged. He was holding her, and she was sobbing. When she saw Trudi, she threw her arms around her, sobbing all the while. Qasim went over to Vince and told him that a teacher and five students had been killed and a number wounded. He then said, it might have been much worse except that Rasha was walking down the hall to that very classroom, heard the shooting, slammed the door from the outside and locked it, preventing the shooter from leaving. A policeman shot the killer as he was attempting to shoot the lock out.
Rasha was a hero. The police and school officials had been very complimentary about her quick thinking, and the officer who shot the killer said that the shooter was in the act of shooting the door down and didn’t see him at the window. It also allowed him to take extra care that no children were in the line of fire. But Rasha’s heroic act was no consolation to her. She knew these children and she was on her way to teach them French. She also knew the teacher, Valerie Rice, whose classroom she was about to enter, and she knew that one teacher was dead. Although it hadn’t been confirmed, it was logical that Valerie was the victim. To her, it was all too reminiscent of Syria. Rasha stopped sobbing and urgently grabbed Qasim to tell him that she wanted to get Jack and go home. They said their goodbyes and the Melho’s departed.
Vince and Trudi drove home, and Vince kept thinking about the heroic role that Rasha had played. Trudi was shocked and filled with awe and anger. She also asked out loud the question that just hit her, “What if the shooter had arrived a few minutes later?” Rather than spark a conversation, they rode the rest of the way home in silence. When they got home, Vince went in and turned on the evening news. Trudi came in with two glasses of wine. They watched the local news channel and saw the same reporter they had seen earlier. His report now included a lot more detail:
“We have more details from the International School at Glendale shooting this afternoon. The shooter, Harland Wimpey, 28 years old, had ties with white supremacist groups. An initial search of his apartment turned up literature and rantings against immigrants and Muslims. The International School has a sizeable number of students from the Middle East. Wimpey also had a veritable arsenal of weapons and ammunition.
“One teacher and five children, aged between 8 and 10, have been killed. Their identities have not yet been released. A security guard was also killed and according to witnesses, Wimpey seemed to look for the guard first. After killing him, he entered the first classroom down the hall, shooting into the classroom as he entered. It appears that a part-time teacher, Rasha Melho, may have saved many more children by locking Wimpey into the classroom. Her action diverted his attention and during his effort to escape by shooting down the door, a Glendale police officer, responding to a 911 call, was able to gun Wimpey down.
“This appears to be a hate crime and begs some questions. Why, with California’s relatively strict gun laws, can someone like Wimpey gain access to so many weapons, including banned assault rifles? Second, how effective is the strategy of having armed guards at schools? It certainly wasn’t effective this time.
“We’ll be back at 8 o’clock with more details.”
Vince muted the TV and looked over at Trudi who was staring at the screen. She said, “I keep thinking about Rasha and what if … ?”
Vince nodded. “I know. And I keep thinking how she escaped Syria and spent all that time going through the vetting process, only to be thrown right back into it over here in the ‘land of opportunity.’ ”
“How could anyone shoot children?”
“Because they’re chicken-shit cowards. He has the perfect last name, doesn’t he - Wimpy! I think terrorists should be called ‘cowardists.’ They prey on the innocent. Wherever they come from, they are cowards and that’s what they should be called.” Vince was angry and agitated and Trudi could see it.
“How about sushi for dinner? I’ll get it and you can relax.” But then she saw blood on his right hand. “What did you do to your hand?”
Vince looked at it and explained that it was the itching and he must have scratched it too hard. It was a reminder that the rabies was still active, and it was depressing. Depressing for both of them, so the subject was dropped.
Trudi called in their order for their usual White Dragon rolls and seaweed salad at Ichima Sushi while Vince unmuted the TV. He was asleep when Trudi looked in on him on her way out. Vince woke when he heard her return with their dinner and was surprised that he’d dozed off.
“I must have dozed off while you were gone.”
Trudi laughed. “You were gone before I was gone.”
“Hmm. It’s been a stressful day.”
“That it has!”
After dinner she called Rasha and got a busy signal. After a few more times she called Qasim’s cell and he answered straight away, explaining that the media had been hounding Rasha for a statement and they finally took the phone off the hook. He handed his phone to Rasha. She told Trudi that she was having a hard time dealing with what happened. The school would be closed tomorrow so Trudi asked if she could come over and stay with her, which would allow Qasim to work while she could help Rasha with Jack. Rasha welcomed her offer enthusiastically and they agreed that Trudi would come over at 10:00 and they could talk, have lunch and entertain Jack.
Vince was asleep before the 8 o’clock news so Trudi watched it alone. There wasn’t much new. They gave the identity of the slain teacher, a 25-year-old woman (as Rasha had correctly surmised) and added that in addition to the five children killed, there were eight others wounded, none in critical condition. There were a number of witnesses interviewed who praised Rasha’s actions and Trudi was bursting with pride at her friend’s bravery and quick thinking. Then the NRA spokesman, Dwayne LaPlant, was asked about the failure of the presence of a guard to prevent yet another school shooting: “The NRA has advocated armed guards as a way to stop these attacks, so what do you say about the failure today with respect to that suggestion? Will you continue lobbying for armed guards at schools?”
“This wasn’t a failure,” retorted LaPlant. “In fact, the killing of the guard alerted school officials, who were able to call 911, even before the shooter began shooting the children. And our suggestion of armed guards was only part of what we recommended. We suggested that every teacher should be armed and trained. And until that happens, shooters will always go for the guards first.”
The reporter, shaking her head in disbelief responded, “Guards, teachers, who else?”
“California should revisit its gun laws. Allow concealed carry and maybe shooters won’t be able to carry out crimes so effortlessly. As you know, we have lobbied hard to initiate a countrywide concealed carry permit plan so that anyone’s concealed carry license will be valid in all states. So, California won’t have a choice.”
“Good night, Mr. LaPlant. We’re out of time,” said the reporter, still in a state of disbelief at what she’d just heard.
Trudi was also in shocked and enraged! Not only did LaPlant not even acknowledge any sorrow for the victims, but he blatantly stood there and advocated that more people should have guns. She sat there hoping to doze off, but her anger and grief prevented it. She grieved for those children, for the parents of those children, for the families of the slain teacher and the guard, and for all those who lost someone they loved that day. And she grieved for Rasha, who had already been through more than anyone should endure, only to come to this country, where she realized it wasn’t much different than the chaos she left. And it was only then that she remembered her doctor’s appointment earlier that day. Seemed like days ago. Was there a concerned look on the doctor’s face when she said they would get back to her with her exam results?
***
CHAPTER 26 – TURNING POINTS
Montgomery, Alabama. McAdam had arrived at 7:00 AM for his blood test, having made sure he fasted from 7:00 PM the night before. His reward for the fasting and early start was a great cup of coffee and a world-class blueberry muffin at Café Louisa. The coffee was dark, strong and very round, and the blueberry muffin was still warm and chock full of big juicy blueberries.
He read the current issue of The Montgomery Advertiser and noted an overnight shooting at a crap game. The homicide rate was up over last year. Turning to the Editorial page, he smiled and was almost overcome with pride as the newspaper’s Opinion piece that day was in support of his “Stand for Reason.” The Advertiser had a long reputation for its social conscience, attacking the Ku Klux Klan and, in 2008, endorsing the presidential candidacy of Senator Barack Obama. Pointing out that our political process had strayed far from the vision of the Founding Fathers, especially in the last decade, the paper hailed McAdam as a beacon of hope to get our government working again, to represent the people of our country as opposed to political party dogma ... or worse yet, purely personal gain. McAdam squirmed a little bit reading parts of it, but he knew, or certainly rationalized, that his past improprieties were for re-elections, as opposed to personal gain.
As he finished his muffin and downed the last of his coffee, his watch started to vibrate, and his iPhone signaled a message: “Final Notice!” Assuming it to be related to the ineptness of Doc Turner and himself with the setup, he wasn’t alarmed. He pressed a button on his watch and saw that it was 8:05 and Turner might be in. He called and Turner answered, saying that he was just about to call him. He was equally confused and suggested that McAdam come in and they could call VitalTech and get it straightened out.
When McAdam arrived, Doc Turner had the VT2 instructions laid out on his desk, poring over the instructions. He had McAdam open his VT2 app on his iPhone and they checked the settings. Neither of them could see the problem so they took up Patsy Carter’s offer and called her on Turner’s office speakerphone. She was in and after some self-deprecating banter from Turner, on behalf of himself and McAdam regarding their technical skills, she asked for the serial number, talking them through the process of finding it. They could hear her tapping on a keyboard and then her acknowledgement at finding his account. Turner quipped that at least they had done that correctly and they all chuckled.
Sitting in her office, Patsy checked the setup and settings first, before looking at any clinical data. All seemed to be in order. She noted that the Final Notice function was set for 20 days and she opted for the tried and true software fix of changing a setting and then going back to the original. She changed it to 10 days and watched as the Final Notice was deleted. McAdam commented over the speakerphone that his VT2 buzzed and the “Final Notice” had disappeared. Both he and Turner breathed a sigh of relief. But then Patsy reset it for 20 days and they all watched with concern as the Final Notice re- appeared. McAdam and Turner asked what just happened as the VT2 buzzed again. Patsy asked them to hold on a bit longer as she needed to check something else.
‘Something else’ was the data that the VT2 was collecting. She could see that there was almost no history as the watch had just been set up yesterday; but the VT2 had been put through and passed many tests with just 24 hours of history. She asked if she could call back within a few minutes and hung up to look at the detailed data coming through. Like an autopilot system on a plane that senses minute changes in speed, altitude, winds and other conditions, much more acutely than a pilot can, the VT2 blood analysis sensed changes that are impossible to track unless someone’s blood is being analyzed in real time, or at least hourly, using sophisticated algorithms. And what it was showing was that Senator John McAdam’s blood analysis was on a downward trajectory that predicted his death in 20 days.
Patsy didn’t like the position she had just been put into. She had decided to pursue a non-patient-facing career for a reason, and she loved the mix of technology and medicine that VitalTech offered. But she was now dealing with a real person, and that was different. She called Dr. Turner’s office and asked to be put through to Dr. Turner, but not on the speakerphone. Turner answered and sensed from the receptionist’s request that this might be a tough call. And it was.
Doc Turner was different, and he practiced medicine on a very personal level. Most of the time that was good, but as Doc Turner aged, so had many of his patients and the news he had for them, as he now had for John McAdam, was not good. In addition, the cause of McAdam’s impending death had not even been diagnosed yet. Turner explained what Patsy Carter had told him in plain talk, but with a wealth of caring and empathy. He explained that while the technology behind the VT2 was sound, it was often unable to provide a specific diagnosis. The morning’s blood test might answer that question but even then, it would be a snapshot in time and further tests may be required. Doc Turner said he would call the lab and get them to rush through the results and then they could discuss next steps.
McAdam asked, “Do you believe that the Final Notice is accurate and that I’ll be dead in 20 days?”
“Based on what Doctor Carter told me, this thing has been infallible, so we have to treat it seriously. But let’s see the blood tests first before we discuss the color of your headstone. Can you get in here tomorrow morning at 8? I should have the tests by then.”
McAdam thought about tomorrow and his meeting in the afternoon was almost a worse thought than death. “Sure. See you at 8. And thanks.”
***
Kansas City, Missouri. Special Agent Zoe Brouet had been reviewing the recent additions for the VT2 beta tests, which she had filtered by gun users. She was coping with the accelerated pace of the test ramp-up as her boss, Eric Hawke, had given her the resources to follow up with potential problems. As she was viewing the list, she saw a notification on her screen announcing a new Final Notice. When she clicked on it, she almost gasped when she saw Senator John McAdam’s name. She had been watching with interest the publicity that had been surrounding him recently and was impressed and curious about his breaking ranks. She also saw that she had received an earlier Notice for him today, then a removal, and then this new Notice. That hadn’t happened before and rather than call VitalTech, she decided to call McAdam’s listed physician, Dr. Angus Turner.
As she dialed, she clicked on McAdam’s file and reviewed the short questionnaire that was completed for each beta Test user. She was immediately put through to Dr. Turner. He explained the mixed-up signals and confirmed that he didn’t see McAdam as a risk to carry out a crime as a result of receiving his Notice. If anything, he thought McAdam was more at risk of being killed than killing, given the waves he was making in Washington. He was only half joking. Zoe took it all in, accepted Turner’s prognosis, and asked that he get in touch with her immediately if anything changed. Turner told her that he’d be seeing the Senator in the morning after his blood tests came back.
***
Pasadena, California. Rasha and Qasim finally accepted that the media would not go away until they had a chance to hail the hero in the International School shooting. Rasha phoned Trudi and asked for her help and support to get through it. Initially there were a relatively small number of publications, TV and on-line sites wanting to talk to her. Some wanted in-person video interviews, some were OK with telephone, and some with Skype. They wanted to interview a local heroine but what they didn’t know was Rasha’s whole story, and that would become a game changer.
As Rasha and Trudi discussed the upcoming interviews, it was clear that Rasha did not want Jack to be mentioned in any of the coverage. Not his picture, not his name, not his age. She arranged for extra day care time and Trudi volunteered to take him and pick him up to minimize the chance of anyone seeing him. Rasha asked for Trudi’s advice on how to handle the interviews and what to say and not say. Trudi gave her some advice, but she was not experienced in giving interviews either, although she had certainly seen and read many. If she had more experience, she might have realized that the press wasn’t as interested in what was known about the shooting as much as what was inside Rasha’s head, both during and after the shooting.
Trudi had just returned from dropping off Jack when the local TV station crew arrived for the first interview. Trudi recognized the reporter from the news program she had just watched. Her name was Cara Houston. She seemed very nice and did her best to put Rasha at ease, although that was a tall order. She explained how the interview would work and that it was not a live feed, so if at any time Rasha wanted to stop for a minute, it was OK. It was during this warm up period of making Rasha comfortable and getting to know each other, that Ms. Houston learned about some of Rasha’s background and recognized that this interview would be different than she had envisioned it. Also, that it would be longer. She excused herself and went outside to call the station to explain and to see if they could fit in a longer segment. It was approved.
