From: cybill@pacbell.net   
      
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   CHAPTER 9   
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   NEW MILFORD HOSPITAL MORGUE   
   NEW MILFORD, CT   
   MAY 29, 1997   
   THURSDAY - 9:00 AM   
      
   I pulled off my cap and protective glasses having completed the   
   autopsy on victim number three, Mark Johnson.   
      
   I sat down at the small desk in the office and booted up the   
   computer. While it woke from its slumber, I pulled out the files on   
   Rebecca Stowe and my friend Christina Fuller from my briefcase. I   
   reviewed the autopsy findings and compared the victims. The only   
   thing that seemed remotely interesting was their stomach contents.   
   All three victims had eaten bread within a few hours of dying. That   
   connection however, wasn't uncommon. All American's eat bread   
   on a regular basis, and often with every meal. No wonder obesity   
   was an epidemic in this country.   
      
   I pulled out the toxicology reports from Rebecca and Christina.   
   Mark's wouldn't be back until later on tonight. Everything looked   
   normal. Rebecca had been taking Loestrin, a birth control pill, and   
   Christina and been on Deprovera. A standard headache medication   
   was found in both, antacids in Christina's, and a small trace of   
   THC in Rebecca's.   
      
   Looked as though Rebecca liked to have the occasional joint of   
   Marijuana. She was a college student. That wasn't unusual. They   
   both showed traces of ginseng; probably iced tea drinkers.   
   Although, a closer look revealed that the levels of ginseng   
   compound were a lot higher in Christina's results than in   
   Rebecca's. Much too high for a couple glasses of iced tea. What   
   caught my attention though was the substance called yohimbine.   
   I'd never heard of that before.   
      
   The computer was finally booted up. I was glad to see that New   
   Milford Hospital wasn't that behind in technology and had a high-   
   speed Internet connection.  I immediately began a search for   
   information on the organic make-up of ginseng.   
      
   I reviewed the information and found nothing extraordinary except   
   that it was considered an aphrodisiac. However, that theory had   
   been debunked a hundred times over. There was no scientific   
   evidence to support that theory. I then did some research on   
   yohimbine. It was one of the other substances that showed up in   
   both Rebecca and Christina. Yohimbine and a human hormone   
   called LH.   
      
   Yohimbine was an alkaloid. It could be found in Rubaceae and   
   related trees. These were generally found in Africa, which didn't   
   make sense.  This substance was most likely imported. That could   
   be a lead. If we could track down the importers, distributors, and   
   subsequently, the buyers of this substance, it might be significant.   
   I   
   continued to read about yohimbine but stopped when something in   
   the last paragraph caught my eye.   
      
   There was evidence that human pheromones elicited changes in the   
   hormone levels of other humans. No conclusive proof that human   
   pheromones altered hormone levels in other humans was available   
   prior to 1996. However, in 1992, a scientist named 'Kohl' first   
   presented evidence in a journal article called, 'Luteinizing hormone   
   (LH), the link between sex and the sense of smell.'   
      
   The report also continued with the interesting information that   
   male axillary extracts effected pulsatile secretion of luteinizing   
   hormone [LH], which in turn, affected the mood of female   
   recipients.   
      
   In short, what all that mumbo jumbo meant was that these victims   
   all had elevated levels of ginseng, the alkaloid, yohimbine, and the   
   hormone, LH, in their systems. That was simply too weird. If I'd   
   learned one thing from Mulder, it was that there was no such thing   
   as coincidences.   
      
   'Now why would both women have high levels of this in their   
   system?' If Mark Johnson turned up with the same things, we could   
   be on to something. I didn't remember Christina being an avid   
   health food eater. Although Rebecca's levels were much smaller, I   
   wondered if she could have been into ginseng tea. Nothing added   
   up.   
      
   I picked up my cell phone and hit the speed dial.   
      
   "Mulder," he said cheerfully.   
      
   "Why are you so happy?" I asked, rubbing the knots out of my   
   neck. Leaning over a dead body and the recent sexcapades with   
   Mulder had done nothing for the tension in my muscles.   
      
   "Well, two hours ago I had a hot little redhead's heels digging into   
   the small of my back. That's a pretty good reason to be happy." He   
   laughed and waited for my comeback.   
      
   Oh, that reminded me of my own battle with the counter and I   
   stretched. My back was still sore. "Is that right?"   
      
   "It was so right, Scully," he said like a lovesick puppy.   
      
   I giggled before I could contain it.   
      
   "What was that I just heard? Was that a giggle? My Scully   
   giggles?" he teased.   
      
   'His Scully? Since when?' I wondered. I had to turn this   
   conversation around to a more work-related and safe topic.   
      
   "Mulder, I found something interesting in both Rebecca and   
   Christina's toxicology findings."   
      
   "Oh yeah, what did you find? Don't take the smile off my face.   
   Give me some good news."   
      
   "Well, it seems that both women had ginseng and a substance   
   called yohimbine in their system, which is a alkaloid found in   
   African trees in the Rubaceae family. There is also a pheromone   
   called LH that has been known to alter a female's moods, and   
   excite males."   
      
   "Ginseng, yohimbine, and a pheromone?"   
      
   "Yeah."   
      
   "I'm going to start drinking Green Tea with Ginseng from now on,   
   how about you?" he joked.   
      
   "Mulder, be serious. Something is affecting these people and if this   
   isn't it, I'm at a loss for what it could be," I said.   
      
   "Ginseng is used in hundreds of things. It's also been cleared by   
   the   
   Food and Drug Administration long ago. It's a standard herb you   
   can get in any health food store. How could that possibly turn   
   someone into a murderer?"   
      
   I sighed completely frustrated. "I don't know. I only know that both   
   women had larger amounts than can be explained by a couple   
   glasses of iced tea. Maybe they were taking supplements?"   
      
   "That's possible."   
      
   "The most likely explanation is that this combination of   
   pheromone, alkaloid and herb is producing some unusual mood   
   levels. In some people, that turns out to be a good thing. In the   
   case   
   of our perps, it's turned out to be a bad thing. I'll know more when   
   I get the tox screen from Mark Johnson. So what have you found?   
   Anything?"   
      
   "Actually, I've got the list of residents and have compared it to   
   the   
   hospital employees. There are only a few people that commute to   
   New Milford from Kent." His tone sounded confident.   
      
   "Lay it on me, partner," I requested.   
      
   "I thought I did that earlier," he said in a perfectly calm tone.   
      
   "Mulder, be serious. What did you find out?"   
      
   "Alright, I'm sorry, Scully. Well, the other four employees, besides   
   Bernie Schultz, all have ironclad alibis during Christina's time of   
   death. Three of them were doctors, and the other a nurse. They   
   were all working at the hospital at the time."   
      
   "And where was Bernie?"   
      
   "According to the employees I spoke to earlier, he left after a   
   staff   
   lunch that day. He claimed he wasn't feeling well."   
      
   "Sounds pretty suspicious to me. I think we should have Sheriff   
   Hartley bring him in."   
      
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)