Honestly, I don't dream about Long Island with beer and Eminem tapes anymore. This pile of papers that Elizabeth Crowe dumped on my desk sucked me in like a black hole. Now I have the Laura Smith case in front of me, the girl from Houston, and, damn, these stories give me a lump in my throat. Earl Knight, this stubborn cop, no longer seems like just a bore with lousy handwriting - I start reading his notes, and they hook me. Laura, like Isaac, was an ordinary kid, but life beat her like a boxer in the ring. This is what I fished out of police reports, school records and Earl's fragmentary notes. I hope I didn't screw it up, but honestly, this story won't let go.
Biography of Laura Smith, Houston, USA
Based on police reports, school records and eyewitness accounts, 1985-1995
Laura Smith was born on September 9, 1985, in Houston, Texas, in a working-class East End neighborhood of concrete houses, rusty picket fences, and taco stands. Her mother, Claudia Smith, 22, died in childbirth-a complication common in poor neighborhoods where hospitals are overcrowded and doctors are in great demand. Her father was unknown, unlisted in the paperwork, as if he never existed. Custody fell to Miguel Torres, 25, Claudia's cousin, a truck driver at a construction warehouse. Miguel, a Latino with a thick mustache and a penchant for listening to Mexican ballads on a cassette player, lived in a small house on the outskirts of the neighborhood where the pavement cracked and dogs yelped at night. Laura grew up in a room with faded flowered wallpaper and slept on a mattress that creaked like Miguel's old truck.
Note from David S.: Earl writes in his notes that Miguel was "a nice guy, but broke." How does he know? He probably talked to neighbors, but the reports don't specify. Reading about Laura makes my heart ache - a girl without a mother, without a father, in that seedy East End. Growing up in Brooklyn, I know what it's like to be surrounded by concrete and despair.
Laura attended Milby Elementary, three blocks from her home. Teachers remember her as quiet but bright. She loved to read - she'd steal dog-eared copies of Nancy Drew and Little House on the Prairie from the library - and dreamed of becoming a writer. In notebooks found by police after her death, Laura wrote short stories: about a girl who flies on a cloud and a cat who steals stars. Her teacher, Ms. Elena Gomez, noted in the 1993 school magazine: "Laura is the best writer in the class, but she's shy about reading out loud." Her best friends were Sylvia Rodriguez, the daughter of a burrito stand owner, and Teresa Cruz, whose father repaired cars on the corner. The three of them hung out in the school yard, making bracelets out of thread and gossiping about boys, especially Juan Martinez, who threw chalk during class.
Note from David S.: The school journal is the only source for Laura's friends, but Earl mentions Sylvia and Teresa by name in his notes. Maybe he was interviewing kids? Poor Laura, I can just imagine her sitting with those books, hiding from the world. My sister loved Nancy Drew as a child, too, always dreaming of being a detective.
Laura's life was not a bed of roses. Miguel earned little and was often away on long flights, leaving her with a neighbor, Mrs. Alvarez, an elderly Mexican woman who fed Laura bean soup and taught her how to cross-stitch. Laura's clothes were second-hand - jeans with patches, T-shirts with faded Batman and Spice Girls logos. But she didn't complain, at least that's what her neighbors say. Mrs. Alvarez recalled in a police statement (1994): "Laura was always smiling, bringing me flowers from the vacant lot - dandelions, daisies. She said she wanted to write a book about Houston, but not as it is, but beautiful." Sylvia and Teresa dragged Laura to the local market, where they bought candy for 25 cents and watched street musicians play saludas on guitars. Laura sometimes sang with them, imitating Whitney Houston, her idol, since she was also from Houston.
Note from David S.: Mrs. Alvarez's statement is from the police report, but Earl adds that Laura "sang like an angel." Where did he get that from? Maybe from her friends? Reading this gives me goosebumps - this girl trying to find joy in this drab neighborhood, and here I am in my office whining about paperwork.
Since 1993 (Laura was 8 years old), teachers noticed that she began to complain of headaches. In math classes, where she usually shone, Laura would sometimes freeze, clutching her temples, and ask to go out into the hallway. Miguel, returning from trips, gave her ibuprofen, thinking it was because of the heat - in Houston in the summer it was like an oven, 35 degrees. Sylvia recalled (in her 1995 testimony) that Laura once fell in the school yard when they were playing tag, and said: "My head is pounding like a drum." Teresa carried water from the fountain for her, but Laura only waved her off, saying that everything would pass. Miguel, busy with work, did not take her to the doctor - in the East End, a visit to the clinic cost as much as a month's salary.
Note from David S.: Sylvia's statement from the report, but no exact date - Earl writes "1995", but that's after Laura's death, so he must have interviewed her later. Poor girl, she was holding on with all her might, and the adults just gave up. I used to run around with bruises as a kid, but this is different - she was suffering.
In July 1994, Miguel Torres, Laura's caretaker, died in a Houston building supply warehouse. He was 34 years old. According to a police report, on July 12, 1994, around 2 p.m., Miguel was loading concrete blocks onto a truck when a faulty construction crane broke loose. The crane struck him in the head, causing him to die instantly from traumatic brain injury. Police describe his body as being found under rubble, his face covered in dust, with concrete fragments and a cassette tape of Mexican music that Miguel had been listening to in the cab lying nearby. A witness, worker Jorge Gonzalez, called 911, but it was too late. A police photographer captured the scene: Miguel lying in a pool of blood, wearing a work shirt and a cap with the Houston Astros logo.
Note from David S.: The report is accurate, the date is July 12, but Earl writes "summer of '94" as if he didn't check. Reading this, my eyes darken - Laura has lost her only family. What is it like to be 9 years old and alone? If I were her, I wouldn't know how to move on.
After Miguel's death, Laura was taken in by a distant relative, Anna Torres, 42, a nurse at a local clinic. Anna lived in an apartment two miles from the East End, where Laura slept on a fold-out sofa. Anna noticed that Laura had become even quieter, often sitting with a book but not reading, just staring into space. Sylvia and Teresa continued to visit, bringing X-Men comics and sharing candy, but Laura, in Sylvia's words, "seemed to have gone dark." In the school magazine (fall 1994), Miss Gomez wrote: "Laura has stopped writing stories, but she keeps a notebook with her like a talisman."
Note from David S.: Ms. Gomez's entry is from a 1994 journal, but Earl doesn't say how he found Laura's friends. He must have been going around the school asking around. It breaks my heart to think of that girl with her notebook, holding on to her dreams, and life was ruining them.
Laura continued to complain of headaches, which were getting worse. Anna, unlike Miguel, took her to a clinic in November 1994, but the doctor, Dr Roberts, said it was a "stress migraine" and prescribed paracetamol. Sylvia recalled that Laura sometimes couldn't play, sitting on a bench and whispering: "My head is buzzing like a radio." Teresa tried to cheer her up by telling her about Whitney Houston's new video on MTV, but Laura only smiled weakly. By January 1995, she was barely going to school, missing lessons due to weakness.
Note from David S.: Sylvia's statement and the clinic data are from Earl's report, but he didn't say how he got the doctor's information. Maybe Anna told him? Poor Laura, no one saw what was happening to her. I sit here in my office feeling worthless, unable to change anything.
Laura was hospitalized on January 20, 1995, at Texas Medical Center, Houston, after collapsing in the East End apartment of her relative, Anna Torres. According to the police report, Anna, a nurse, called 911 at 3:20 p.m. when she found Laura convulsing and foaming at the mouth on the living room floor. The ambulance arrived 12 minutes later, and Laura was taken to the emergency room. Neighbors gathered outside the home and told police they had noticed strange behavior in her appearance in recent weeks, which had only gotten worse on the day she was hospitalized.
A neighbour, Mrs Rosa Alvarez, 66, who lived across the street, told police: 'Laura looked like a ghost for the last couple of months. Her skin was white, almost translucent, like it was glowing, especially around her eyes. And her eyes - they were so big, the pupils were huge, like a cat's at night. She would come to me for candy, but the last few days she would just sit on the porch, stare into space and hold her head.' Mrs Alvarez added that on the day Laura was taken, her hair, usually dark and thick, looked thin, almost grey, even though she was only nine. 'I thought it was stress, she had lost Miguel, but it was not human,' she said.
Note from David S.: Transparent skin, huge pupils, graying hair on a child? That's not stress, that's something abnormal. Maybe she was poisoned with something in that neighborhood? There are chemical warehouses on every corner in the East End, who knows what got into the air. I've seen dumps stink in Brooklyn and kids cough afterwards.
Another neighbor, Jorge Gonzalez, 38, a mechanic who was standing outside the house when the ambulance took Laura away, noted: "She was light as a feather when the paramedics carried her. I saw her face - it was not a child's face, like an old woman in a child's body. Her eyes were open but empty, and her skin was gray, like asphalt after rain. And she was mumbling something while they were putting her on the stretcher, but you couldn't understand the words, as if it were a foreign language." Jorge added that a week earlier he had seen Laura stumble in the street while trying to walk, and her hands were shaking like a Parkinson's patient.
Note from David S.: Mumbling in a "foreign language"? Maybe she was delirious with pain, but that sounds creepy. I think maybe it wasn't just the disease, but something wrong with the brain, since her eyes were like that and she spoke strangely. My uncle had a stroke and looked out of his mind too, but Laura is a child, damn it.
Laura was admitted to the Texas Medical Center ICU at 3:45 p.m. The initial assessment (by Dr. William Roberts, a neurologist, and nurse Carla Mendez) revealed seizures, hypotension (80/50), tachycardia (140 beats per minute), and a low-grade fever (100.4°F). Anna Torres's medical history included a year-long history of headaches that had worsened over the past three months, weakness, and episodes of disorientation. Nurse Mendez noted in her notes: "The patient's skin is unusually pale, with a bluish tint around the eyes and lips, pupils are dilated, and response to light is slow. Hair is brittle, with patches of hair loss resembling alopecia."
Note from David S.: Blue skin and alopecia in a 9 year old? It's not a migraine, as she was previously treated. Could it be radiation? There are petrochemical plants everywhere in Houston, and Laura lived in a poor area where no one tests for air or water. I'm not a doctor, but it sounds like something serious could be poisoning her.
A computed tomography (CT) scan (Siemens Somatom, 1995) showed a large mass in the right hemisphere of the brain, with fuzzy borders and areas of calcification, not typical of gliomas. Dr. Roberts wrote: "The mass is atypical, does not correspond to standard brain tumors, possible rare pathology." On January 21, Laura had an MRI, which confirmed the presence of a mass with abnormal vascularization and necrotic areas. Doctors decided to perform a biopsy under general anesthesia (drugs: propofol, midazolam), scheduled for January 23. Laura remained conscious during the preparation, but, according to Nurse Mendez, "she looked detached, her eyes were glassy, her skin was cold as a corpse, although she had a pulse."
Note from David S.: Glassy eyes and cold skin, but alive? That's like something out of a horror movie. I googled it and it happens in severe neurological conditions, but in a child? Maybe it was something experimental, some kind of toxin? I don't believe in conspiracies, but the East End is full of warehouses where they store all sorts of things.
A biopsy performed in Operating Room 2 on 23 January revealed tissue with an irregular cellular structure. Pathologist Dr Eliza Jones noted: "The cells are polymorphic, with an abnormal mitotic index (up to 12 mitoses per field), not consistent with any known glioma. Markers (GFAP, S-100) are partially present but are inconclusive." Laura was given dexamethasone and phenytoin to control the seizures, but her condition worsened. On 3 February she had another series of seizures and then lapsed into a coma. She died at 4:22 a.m. on 5 February 1995 from respiratory failure due to an unspecified pathological process, as reported in the autopsy (Dr Jones, 6 February).
Note from David S.: Unidentified process? Doctors are still at a loss. I'm thinking maybe it was something in the environment - chemicals, radiation, whatever. Laura lived near warehouses where they store shit. Or maybe it's genetic, but then how come no one noticed it before? Hell, I'm not a doctor, but it's nagging at me.
Neighbors gathered outside Anna Torres' home after Laura's hospitalization, demanding answers. Mrs. Alvarez told police, "We saw her being taken away and everyone was crying. She was like our little angel, but it looked like her soul had been taken before she got to the hospital." Jorge Gonzalez added, "I told Anna there was something wrong with Laura, but she thought it was grief over Miguel. Now I blame myself - I should have screamed louder." Houston police found no basis for criminal charges when they closed the investigation in March 1995, but Earl Knight wrote in his notes, "Laura's odd appearance and diagnosis are not an accident. They are part of something bigger."
Note from David S.: Earl is hinting at "something more" again, but what? I'm starting to think he's right - these skin, eye, hair oddities don't look like a normal illness. Did Laura come across something toxic? Or was it something at the hospital? I don't know, but these papers give me the creeps.
And just like last time, the folder after that was filled with my colleagues' papers, piles of lab reports that looked like they'd been scribbled down on the fly between coffee and gossip. This is the case that Elizabeth Crowe is handling, investigating abnormal pathologies in children like Laura Smith and Isaac Brown, whose tissues we study like archaeologists digging through Egyptian mummies. My colleagues have tried their best, of course, throwing in Latin terms to make themselves sound smarter, but half the time they're either flirting with the techs or arguing over whose microscope is cooler. This is what I squeezed out of their papers about Laura's tissues. I hope I don't drown in all that Latin.
Tissue analysis by Laura Smith for the D.E.L.I.A. project
Based on laboratory reports from the Biomedical Institute, May 2000
Tissue specimens from Laura Smith (age 9, Houston, died February 5, 1995, specimen L) were delivered from Texas Medical Center to our institute in April 2000 for the D.E.L.I.A. project, which studies abnormal pathologies in children with unclear diagnoses. Specimens extracted during biopsy (January 23, 1995) and autopsy (February 6, 1995) represent fragments of brain tissue (two specimens: 1.2 cm and 1.8 cm) from the right hemisphere. The analysis was performed on the institute's equipment: Nikon Eclipse E400 microscope, Beckman J-6B centrifuge, Perkin-Elmer Lambda 2 spectrophotometer, using histological and immunohistochemical methods.
Histology revealed a neoplasm classified as glioma atipica, with marked deviations from standard brain tumors. The cells demonstrated proliferatio cellularis abnormis with an irregular mitotic index (up to 12 mitoses per high-power field), polymorphic nuclei and areas of focal necrosis. Immunohistochemistry (GFAP, S-100, Ki-67 markers) showed partial expression but no typical tumor markers such as IDH1 or EGFR, characteristic of gliomas. Dr. Mark T. noted in his report: "This is clearly something new, like a mutation. The cellular structure does not fit into known glioma subtypes, as if the organism tried to rebuild itself and failed."
Note from David S.: Mark is of course throwing around words like "mutation" to make everyone gasp. Dude, this isn't The X-Files. This is all just empty talk - we're staring at cells and wondering what they are. He may be right, but without evidence, it's all a bit of a stretch.
Comparison with other D.E.L.I.A. specimens shows that specimen L (Laura Smith) has many similarities with specimen I (Isaac Brown, Miami, 1997). Both show abnormal vascularization (angiogenesis aberrans) and irregular cell clusters with features of dysplasia cellularis. Laura's tissue, like Isaac's, shows nuclear hyperchromatosis and uncontrolled growth (hyperplasia accelerata), indicating a similar pathological process. Linda Hayes suggested in her notes: "Specimens L and I may be related by the same cause, possibly a genetic abnormality, but our spectrophotometer is not giving clear data." The Perkin-Elmer spectrophotometer showed atypical absorption spectra, inconsistent with known cancer processes.
Note from David S.: Linda is trying, sure, but half the time she's chatting with Joe the tech instead of calibrating the equipment. Seriously, if this is a mutation, why can't we catch it? It's like fishing in troubled waters - everything looks white and we're just shuffling papers.
The analysis revealed that cells in Laura's tissue were undergoing remodelatio organica - an attempt at tissue reorganisation that led to a systemic breakdown. A cytokine storm (tempestas cytokinica) likely accelerated the destruction of brain tissue, causing seizures and coma. Dr Elizabeth Crowe stressed: "Specimen L confirms that the D.E.L.I.A. project is dealing with a pathology not described in the literature from 1995-2000. The similarity to specimen I suggests a common cause, but there is no proof yet." Mark T added: "This is not just a tumour, it is as if Laura's body was trying to become something else and was unable to cope with the strain."
Note from David S.: Elizabeth sounds like a general, but even she doesn't know what we're looking for. And Mark's "something else" sounds like he's been reading too much sci-fi. If these are mutations, why are they so similar in Laura and Isaac? This isn't a stretch, but without more data, we're just guessing.
The results of Laura Smith's tissue analysis for the D.E.L.I.A. project indicate abnormal pathology similar to that found in specimen I (Isaac Brown). Unusual cellular structures and the absence of standard tumor markers suggest a possible mutation, but limitations of the equipment (Nikon Eclipse, Perkin-Elmer) and the lack of modern DNA sequencing methods prevent definitive conclusions. The D.E.L.I.A. project continues to look for connections between the specimens, but so far these are more questions than answers.
Note from David S.: We're sitting here with this expensive microscope that Elizabeth borrowed from the lab next door, and we still don't get it. If this is a mutation, it's like a ghost - everyone talks about it, but no one has seen it. Honestly, this is all so far-fetched that I'm starting to think we're wasting our time.
My scientist friends seem to have decided to play Frankenstein, I noticed with a grin as I pulled another stack of papers out of the folder. Judging by the documents, they staged a whole show with a meeting, a vote, and some kind of experiment, which, as always, I found out about last. Apparently, while I was here copying their scribbles, they started testing Laura Smith's tissue for mutations by mixing it with rat cells in a petri dish. Well, of course, the result is a big fat zero. That's what I fished out of their reports, full of Latin and smug phrases that Mark T. probably composed with the air of a prophet. Honestly, I'm already tired of their laboratory fairy tales.
Laura Smith's Fabric Experiment for the D.E.L.I.A. Project
Based on laboratory reports from the Biomedical Institute, June 2000
The documents show that on May 10, 2000, a meeting of the D.E.L.I.A. committee was held in the conference room of the institute to discuss further analysis of the tissues of Laura Smith (specimen L, Houston, 1995). The vote on the proposal to conduct an experiment with cell co-culture was 4 in favor, 1 against. The goal was to test the hypothesis of possible mutation activity (mutatio cellularis activa) in the tissues of specimen L, given the similarity to specimen I (Isaac Brown, Miami, 1997). The experiment was to determine whether Laura's cells were capable of causing remodelatio organica in contact with rat cells (Rattus norvegicus, line PC12).
Note from David S.: The vote was 4-1 and I didn't even know they were there. Who was this hero who was against it? I want to shake his hand - it's such a silly thing to mix cells like a cocktail and expect a miracle. This is happening right under my nose and I have no idea. Linda was probably flirting with the tech again while Mark was preaching.
Laura's brain tissue (1.2 cm and 1.8 cm fragments, biopsy January 23, 1995) preserved in paraffin were used for the experiment. The cells were extracted using enzymatic dissociation (trypsin, collagenase), placed in Petri dishes with DMEM culture medium, mixed with PC12 cells. Conditions: 37 ° C, 5% CO₂, Thermo Forma incubator. Mark T., who seems to see in these cells almost a divine revelation, wrote in the report: "We expected that Laura's cells would exhibit proliferatio cellularis abnormis, initiating a rearrangement in rat cells, as in the supposed mutation." Observation was carried out for 72 hours using a Nikon Eclipse E400 microscope, with fixation of the mitotic index and morphology.
Note from David S.: Mark is once again playing the messiah of science, and the mouse cells are probably barely alive. These PC12 rats are so dead that we feel sorry for them more than our budget. Prices have skyrocketed, and half of them die in shipping. And all for what? To stare through a microscope and see zero?
The results showed a complete lack of interaction. Laura's cells showed carcinoma in situ with polymorphic nuclei and areas of necrosis focalis as in the previous analysis, but failed to induce either proliferation or differentiation in PC12 cells. The Perkin-Elmer Lambda 2 spectrophotometer recorded unchanged absorption spectra, with no evidence of metabolic activity (activitas metabolica) above normal. Immunohistochemistry (markers Ki-67, p53) confirmed the abnormal structure of Laura's cells, but their effect on the rat cells was not detected. Linda Hayes noted, "Specimen L, like I, retains dysplasia cellularis but does not transmit it to other cells." Mark T., however, stated, "This is the devil's work to hide the truth. Laura's cells are special, but something is blocking their potential."
Note from David S.: The devil's work? Seriously, Mark? Maybe it's your Windows 98 that's glitching, not the cells. Half our computers freeze when we try to open spectrophotometer data. And the rats? They're bought for a fortune, and they die like flies. It's all a bunch of hogwash, and I'd shake the hand of the person who voted against it.
The similarity between L and I specimens is confirmed: both show abnormal vascularization (angiogenesis aberrans) and irregular cell clusters, but the experiment does not reveal mutational transmission. Elizabeth Crowe concluded: "The D.E.L.I.A. project has reached a dead end. Specimens L and I are unique, but their behavior in co-culture does not provide clues." The committee decided to suspend such tests until new equipment becomes available, which, judging by the budget, is not forthcoming.
Note from David S.: Elizabeth calls this a dead end, I call it a waste of time. Someone was against this circus, and I'll bet that smartass a beer. The reagents and mice are worth gold, and Windows is glitching so much that data is being lost. This whole experiment is a hoax.
Here's another report on a child whose life was contained in a few pages of yellowed paper. I pulled out the Eliza Johnson file, and damn, this digging around in dead children gives me the creeps. Earl Knight, that obsessive cop, has once again scribbled his notes in that handwriting that looks like it was written with chicken feet, and the dates are all mixed up - sometimes 1993, sometimes 1994. I fished this out of his notes, a couple of interviews with neighbors, and some crumpled telegram he must have found in the trash. I think Eliza is the first on the list of victims who started this whole D.E.L.I.A. mess. And yet, my head is spinning: who the hell came up with the idea to connect the deaths of children all over America? You have to be completely crazy. Seriously, who is this genius who decided that the deaths of children are an excuse for a big science show? It seems like a trick to spend the budget on expensive microscopes and coffee for Elizabeth Crowe. I sit here, rewriting, and feel like I'm digging around in a morgue. Some kind of necrophilia.
Biography of Eliza Johnson, Chicago, USA
Based on notes by Earl Knight, neighbor interviews and telegrams, 1984-93
Eliza Johnson was born on June 14, 1983, in Chicago, Illinois, on the South Side, a neighborhood of red-brick homes surrounded by abandoned hot dog stands and rusty basketball hoops. Her mother, Linda Johnson, 19, died three days after giving birth to sepsis, a common occurrence in South Side hospitals where nurses sometimes forget to wash their hands. Her father was listed as unnamed, just a dash, as if he had never existed. Eliza was taken in by her grandmother, Margery Johnson, 48, a seamstress who made shirts for Sears. Margery lived in a two-bedroom apartment on 63rd Street, where the wallpaper smelled musty and Earth, Wind & Fire was on the radio. Eliza slept on a cot in the corner, next to her grandmother's sewing machine.
Note from David S.: Margery Johnson is just like Marge from Fargo, only instead of snow and a gun she has needles and the South Side. The neighbors in the interviews are talking nonsense: one says Eliza was born in '83, another says '84. Couldn't they have asked her grandmother the year of birth? And who thought of putting these kids together in one project? The budget is probably burning, so they came up with D.E.L.I.A..
Eliza attended Englewood Elementary, a five-minute walk from her home. Her teacher, Miss Dorothy Wilson, recalled in an interview with Knight (dated 1991, but Knight writes "'92" in parentheses, another mix-up): "Eliza loved to draw with crayons - flowers, stars, strange spirals, like they were from outer space. She was quiet, but her eyes lit up when she picked up the chalk." Eliza's best friend, Tony Brown, the son of a butcher shop owner, smuggled Tootsie Rolls to her and played hide-and-seek with her behind the garbage cans. Mrs. Clara Davis, a neighbor, 60, said: "Eliza sang Diana Ross, but only when Marjorie wasn't nagging. The girl was a ray of sunshine, even in her holey sneakers."
Note from David S.: Tony says they played in '88, and Clara swears it was '89 - are they living in different realities? Or was the telegram I got that info from backdated? Knight wrote down their stories, but didn't specify who was lying. And that notebook with the patterns - was that his idea or was that really how it happened?
Margery doted on Eliza, neighbors said, but had little money. Eliza wore dresses made from old shirts and shoes with scuffed toes. Mrs. Davis recalled in an interview (telegram to Chicago police, March 1993): "Margery fed her oatmeal and beans, but Eliza never complained. Only in the last few months did she begin to turn pale and complain of a headache. I thought it was from hunger, but Margery said she was just tired." Tony Brown told Knight (the note is undated, but judging by the handwriting, it was written in a hurry): "Eliza fell one day while we were playing ball. Said her head felt 'like thunder' and her eyes were funny, like she couldn't see me."
Note from David S.: Is there "thunder in the head" of an eight-year-old? It's not fatigue, it's something more serious. Sure, Earl wrote three pages about Tony and his ball, but where are the specifics? And who is this lunatic who decided that the deaths of Eliza and the other children are an excuse to experiment? It seems like someone just wants to close out the budget year with a clear conscience.
By 1991 (or 1992, Knight is again unsure), Eliza had begun skipping school. Margery took her to see Dr. Henry Clarke, who prescribed acetaminophen and said it was "school nerves." Mrs. Davis claimed that Eliza had looked like a ghost in recent months: "Her skin was grey, her eyes were sunken, as if she hadn't slept for weeks." In February 1993 (Knight writes "March" in one entry, but this is likely a mistake), Eliza fell in the kitchen, breaking a plate of beans. Margery called an ambulance, and she was taken to Cook County Hospital.
Note from David S.: Knight is confusing February with March, and the neighbors are confusing years and facts. Is everyone just making this up as they go along? And who is the sick idiot who linked Eliza to the other kids? It seems like someone at the office just wanted to put on a science circus to justify their business trips. Poor Eliza, her life is not their plaything.
On March 10, 1993, Eliza Johnson died in hospital of an unspecified brain disorder, as Knight's notes indicate. She was the first of anyone I've written about, and seems to have started the chain that is now called "D.E.L.I.A.." Margery survived her granddaughter by only a year, dying of a heart attack in 1995, never knowing what took Eliza. Tony and Mrs. Davis still live on the South Side, but their interviews end with questions about the disease-no one understands.
Note from David S.: The chain started with Eliza, and I'm sitting here like a fool rewriting this for some sick idiot who thought it was all connected. They probably had to spend the budget, so they came up with "D.E.L.I.A.." And here I am, like a gravedigger, digging through a dead girl's life. This isn't work, it's the devil knows what.
My scientist friends are back in their lab, like alchemists looking for the Philosopher's Stone, and I'm, as always, tidying up their paperwork. I pulled out a report on Eliza Johnson's tissues from a folder, and judging by their notes, they were expecting her bones to reveal the secret to eternal life, or at the very least, to grow a monster from a test tube. I'm sitting here, copying out their Latin spells, thinking: this isn't science, it's some kind of Hollywood script. Honestly, I just want to make it to the end of the week without another crash of their ancient computer.
Eliza Johnson's tissue analysis for the D.E.L.I.A. project
Based on laboratory reports from the Biomedical Institute, July 2000
Tissue specimens from Eliza Johnson (specimen E, Chicago, born June 14, 1983, died March 10, 1993) were received from Cook County Hospital at our institution in May 2000 for the D.E.L.I.A. project, which studies abnormal pathologies in children. Specimens, removed during biopsy (February 1993) and autopsy (March 11, 1993), represent bone fragments (femur, 1.5 cm and 0.9 cm) diagnosed as osteosarcoma atipica. Analysis was performed using a Nikon Eclipse E400 microscope, Beckman J-6B centrifuge, and Perkin-Elmer Lambda 2 spectrophotometer, using histologic and immunohistochemical methods.
Histology revealed a neoplasm with features of proliferatio cellularis abnormis, with polymorphic nuclei and areas of necrosis focalis. The cells showed a high mitotic index (up to 10 mitoses per field), but without typical osteosarcoma markers (eg, ALK or MDM2). Dr. Linda Hayes wrote in the report: "Specimen E, like specimens L (Laura Smith) and I (Isaac Brown), shows an abnormal structure, but we expected more. If the previous, earlier specimen was strange, then Eliza's abnormalities should be obvious." Mark T. added: "This is not just a tumor, but something new, but it eludes us, as if someone is hiding the truth."
Note from David S.: The previous specimen? Was there another victim before Eliza? My colleagues are clearly nuts, looking for some cosmic secret in the girl's bones. And Mark and his "hiding the truth" - this is like a cheap thriller. Maybe he was promised a bonus for the sensation?
Comparison with specimens L and I showed similarities: all three showed dysplasia cellularis and irregular cell clusters, but specimen E lacked the pronounced angiogenesis aberrans characteristic of L and I. Immunohistochemistry (RUNX2, OSX, Ki-67 markers) confirmed the abnormalities, but without specific tumor markers. A spectrophotometer recorded atypical absorption spectra that did not correspond to known osteosarcomas. Dr. Elizabeth Crowe noted: "Specimen E confirms the abnormal pattern, but we did not find specific mutations (mutatio specifica), only changes in structure." Linda suggested that "the abnormalities may be due to an unknown factor, but without DNA sequencing we are at a dead end."
Note from David S.: Linda is hypothesizing again, and I'm sitting here thinking: Are doctors now reading tea leaves? If these are mutations, where are they? My colleagues are probably dreaming of a Nobel Prize, and here I am sifting through their empty tables. Surely someone up there promised them a grant for this circus.
An attempt to detect mutational activity (activitas mutativa) in Elisa's cells yielded zero results. Cells placed in DMEM culture medium supplemented with FBS serum showed no signs of uncontrolled growth or remodelatio organica. Mark T. was disappointed: "I expected Elisa's cells to show more than Laura's or Isaac's, but something was blocking their potential. It was as if nature itself was hiding the answers from us." His comment sparked a debate in the lab, but no new data emerged.
Note from David S.: Is Mark talking about "nature that hides" again? Is he Dr. Dolittle now? Seriously, these doctors think they're going to find the meaning of life by staring into a microscope. And I'm sitting here rewriting this and thinking: who needs this anyway? Probably someone up there who wants a report for show.
Eliza's tissue analysis for the D.E.L.I.A. project confirmed abnormalities in cell structure similar to L and I, but with no evidence of mutations. The equipment (Nikon Eclipse, Perkin-Elmer) is not up to the task, and as usual there is no money for sequencing. The commission postponed the tests, and I am not surprised - it's like looking for a black cat in a dark room.
Note from David S.: We're looking for a cat that doesn't exist, and our colleagues are imagining themselves to be the saviors of humanity. Do they think they're going to find a cure for cancer in these old bones? I'd bet our coffee maker breaks before they find anything useful.