Ch 717 - Facing Reality

"You've misunderstood, Brian," Alex said. "I really did develop the medicine, but the recipe was stolen before I could complete testing and apply for the patent. I've told you the truth. There is something wrong with Dynamic Health."

"How could you have developed that drug?" Brian asked. "I simply don't believe you. Besides, an official decision has now been made, and there's nothing else to say. The recipe belongs to Riley Naysmith, not you. If you don't like it, then you can challenge it in the courts."

He was no longer interested in arguing with Alex. If it hadn't been for Haley, he would have ordered him to leave.

Alex was still unwilling to concede defeat. "Brian, please reconsider," he said. "I'm really worried about what's going to happen when people start using this medicine."

"Give it up," Brian said. "Nothing's going to happen."

Hillary took a jar of powder from her pocket and shook it in Alex's face. "This is the first batch of Dynamic Health produced by Quality Pharmaceuticals," she said. "Riley sent it to me, and the effects are simply amazing."

"Our cook cut her finger chopping vegetables and was bleeding heavily. After applying the powder, her wound stopped bleeding and scarred within a minute. It's nothing short of a miracle. Do you expect me to believe that she's going to suffer some kind of reaction now that she's been healed? Shame on you."

She opened the jar. "Haley still has several wounds, but after using this medicine, they'll be gone. Everyone we know is raving about this marvelous new medicine. It's going to change the world. You're just jealous! Seeing someone else have so much success is obviously driving you crazy. Everyone's using it, and yet you claim it's useless. But of course it's not useless. The evidence is everywhere."

Then she began to apply the powder to Haley's wounds, hoping that her daughter would not be permanently scarred.

"Please stop!" Alex said anxiously. "You can't put any more on her. Please listen to me. The product's not good enough, and it hasn't been fully developed yet. Please don't use it any more."

"Go away!" Hillary snapped at him. "I'm so sick of hearing your nonsense."

Alex was going to continue arguing his case, but Timothy came over and pulled him away before things got out of hand.

By then, word about the magic effects of Dynamic Health had spread. Alex walked out of the room and found that hospital patients were talking about how amazing it was.

Quality Pharmaceuticals was now producing thirty thousand units a day, and the average price of each bottle was about a thousand dollars. The price was high, and the output was fast, but it was still selling out faster than they could produce it.

That day, Quality Pharmaceutical's entire output had been ordered in advance by one businessman. With the huge profits involved, Norman planned to purchase other factories to expand production, as Riley had requested.

As Alex was about to leave the hospital, he was surprised to see Cam Fitzroy. Cam had also been admitted to the hospital and was walking back and forth in the corridor, stretching his legs. In his hand was a bottle of Dynamic Health.

In the past, the hospital had been owned by the Thorntons, and Cam must have known that, but he had come anyway.

Alex had previously predicted that Cam's old injuries would resurface. It seemed that Cam now believed him, or he wouldn't have come to the hospital for treatment. Alex stopped to watch him.

When Cam saw Alex, he came forward and held out his hand with an embarrassed smile.

"My old wound has opened up again, just like you said." Cam grimaced. "It was reopened, treated, and sutured. Then, once the stitching was done, I used this medicine. Now everything's going smoothly." He sighed. "The usual methods weren't working, so I decided to try something new."

"It doesn't matter what the treatment is, as long as it works," Alex said. "What kind of medicine is that?"

"Don't you know?" Cam replied enthusiastically. "This is the new medicine that everyone's talking about. It's called Dynamic Health, and it is absolutely amazing."

Cam then remembered Alex's attempts to manufacture Golden Health. He looked amused for a moment, and then he fell silent.

"Have you treated your wound with this?" Alex asked, frowning.

"Yes," Cam said. "I was going to ask you to treat the wound for me, but you've been very busy recently, so I decided not to trouble you with it. You were right, though. There was something wrong with the wound, so I came to the hospital and let them deal with it. The operation wasn't complicated at all, and I've only had to stay in for a few days."

Then he touched his stomach and said, "I feel much better now."

"You've been using Dynamic Health?" Alex asked again.

Cam laughed and said, "Yes! It's a wonder drug."

He knew about the dispute between Riley and Alex, but he chose to not get involved. He was in the hospital, where everything was quiet, so he didn't want to get into an argument. Besides, his nephew, Donny, was still working for Alex.

"You can't use this," Alex said. "It has problems, including some serious side effects. Not only will your wound not heal properly, but it could make the situation worse."

"Problems? What problems?" Cam asked, laughing. "I know all about what's been going on. I know that Golden Health was never produced, and I was disappointed because I really wanted to test it. You lost a lot of money, and you're angry. I understand that, and I know how hard it is to get a new business off the ground."

He shrugged. "But sometimes in life, bad things happen. You're the most talented man of your generation, and you can't let this obsession with Golden Health go on forever. The outcome's been decided, and you lost. If you keep trying to turn people against Dynamic Health, then you're only going to damage your own reputation. You won't be able to stop this medicine from taking over the world."

He patted Alex on the arm. "Let me give you some advice," he said. "You're still young and have a bright future. Life will be full of ups and downs. Being able to be both a good winner and a good loser is what will make you the best version of yourself. Move on from this."

Alex wasn't going to argue with him, so he said his goodbyes and headed out.

As he watched Alex leave, Cam took his jar of Dynamic Health and began to reapply it to his wound.

***

The next day, Alex went out early and tried to spread the word about Dynamic Health as much as he could. However, the response he received was uniformly negative. Everyone praised the magical effects of Dynamic Health and mocked him for trying to say otherwise.

Eventually, Alex had to go back to the clinic, where Maryann and Fabian were waiting for him.

Maryann made some coffee and went to greet him.

She had heard about Alex's efforts to warn people, and she didn't know what to say. So, she remained quiet and hoped he would be successful.

After Alex had drunk a cup of coffee and relaxed, he said with a smile, "I've gone everywhere today to try to warn people. I've even tried to see Brian again, but he wouldn't meet with me."

Maryann was very distressed. "Forget it, Alex," she said. "It's over. We lost a lot of money, but we can't change that. I know you're sad, and it's all my fault. I should have known Julie was up to no good." She sighed. "About the recipe, I've looked into similar cases and asked many experienced people in the industry. The conclusion's always the same. I've also studied a variety of lawsuits, but it's no good. There's nothing we can do."

"Julie's dead, and all the evidence was destroyed by the fire," Fabian said. "Without human or material evidence, it'll be impossible to prove anything. We must face reality."