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I moved a rook into position to counter the bishop

Cilia shook her head to dislodge the black enerous portion of her drink before reinal position I sent another pawn forward

"I was not weak," she said, and moved a pawn to match mine "Shortly after my mother’s death, I went to my father’s bed I crawled in next to hiently placed the blade of a ten-inch-long butcher knife I had spent fifteen ainst his throat and assured him that if he did not leave me alone I would kill him I spoke calmly, Mr McKenzie Softly, almost in a whisper I think that’s why he didn’t believe et out of his bed I didn’t move But the knife blade did It moved about an inch across his throat

"The cut wasn’t deep, but there was a great deal of blood It spilled down his neck and onto the pillow and sheets He clutched his throat to ste ‘You’re crazy,’ he told me ‘You’re insane’ But now he believed I told him to leave me alone, to leave Robert alone He said he would He kept his proain engage me in a conversation that lasted more than thirty seconds He made it clear that I would need to fend for myself--myself and my brother It was because of my brother that I stayed in the house even after I reached my majority It’s your move, Mr McKenzie"

I was astonished Not only at the story, but also at the matter-of-fact manner in which Cilia related it She spoke about subjects that would send most people into an eer or pain Instead, it possessed a yearning, thoughtful quality, and when she spoke, she had a way of drawing out some words as if she wished she could think of better ones

I moved my rook, and Cilia swept it off the board

"Pay attention, McKenzie," she said

"Tell me about Becker"

"In due time First, allow me to tell you about my brother Robert was an alcoholic, like our father, and like our father, he was abusive and totally a woman he corrupted by any means If there was a difference between the two, it was that Father was also a long, hard hours to accumulate the that required effort Robert lived only to indulge himself

"Make no mistake, my father adored Robert At the same time, he was fearful of what Robert would do to the company he built froree in chemistry My father offered me a job in the company’s R&D department and paid me nearly twice as much as everyone else with similar credentials and years of experience A nuatherings We rarely spoke at these events, yet he would introduce hter’ That was as close as he ever ca, ‘I’m sorry’ Later, after he died, my father left his entire estate--his business and the money to run it--to me I was as surprised as anyone For a tiuilty conscience, but ti to me because he did not trust Robert I was all he had left

"Now, this is important, Mr McKenzie When I first joined the fir to develop a product that could compete with Ativan, Valium, and Xanax as a viable treata?"

"Yes GHB had been used productively in Europe as an anesthetic, as an aid to childbirth, and as a means to treat sleep disorders such as narcolepsy We were hoping to develop a superior analog And I succeeded

"As a sleep aid--and this is GHB’s prie--as a sleep aid GHB has only a short-terh sleep is deeper and more restful, people ake up after only about three hours This pattern is known as ‘the dawn effect’ However, with ht to nine hours Sonificant--while GHB can be detected in urine four to five hours after it is taken,completely metabolized into carbon dioxide and water in less than two hours

"Unfortunately, it was at about that time that GHB was banned in the United States by the FDA and later designated a Schedule I Controlled Substance because people, mostly men, used it to assist in sexual assault,was shelved"

"Why is that i allowed me to kill without detection"

"Kill who?"

"My father, to begin with"