Status: NaNoWriMo Novel
The Outlier
Chapter One
January 23rd, 2020
“I’d like to call this hearing to order.”
The murmurs in the courtroom died down as people settled in their seats and gave their attention to the five council members at the front of the room; a wrinkled old man with greying hair by the name of Charles Fitch, who sat directly next to the CEO of AFMA Marcus Bennett, a bald middle-aged man named Leo Garde, a soft-faced woman by the name of Angela Stevens, and Jorden Tyson who was the newest member of the council.
“Would the defendant please state his name for the record?” Fitch asked.
A young man with light brown hair stood and cleared his throat. “My name is Dr. Vincent Walsh.”
“Dr. Walsh, you are on trial today for your questionable practices at the Association for Medical Advancement. Is this correct?”
Vincent nodded. “Yes, sir.”
“Dr. Walsh,” added Garde. “It says here that you conducted some unworldly experiments during your time at AFMA. Care to explain your side of the story?”
“Yes, Mr. Garde, I would.”
Vincent stood, adjusting his suit coat as he did so. “With the tests and experiments I conducted at AFMA, we have had an 82% initial success rate. Judging by the stat-”
“82, Dr. Walsh?” Fitch interrupted. “Doesn’t that seem a little high?”
“No, sir,” he continued.
“Are you counting subject number 12866?” Garde added.
Vincent looked down at the table in front of him. “Anita Nash. Yes, I am counting her in my numbers. But as I was saying, judging by the statistics, my practices are completely justified.”
“Dr. Walsh, four people died.” sneered Stevens. “Yet you have the audacity to call your practices ‘justified?’ Is that what you told the families?”
As Vincent went to respond, Mr. Fitch interrupted again.
“Dr. Walsh, most of your test subjects were young adults, sometimes children. Upon this reflection, do you still believe your actions were correct?”
“Sir, all of these patients came to us willingly. They all had parental consent if they were under 18, and they all knew the risks of the procedures.”
Angela cleared her throat and folded her hands in front of her. “Does this include subject 12865?”
“Yes, Rasha understood the risks. She decided at the last minute that she did not want to undergo the procedure.”
“But this did not stop you, did it, Dr. Walsh?”
“Ms. Stevens, I assure you, I had every intention of stopping the tests. Once she had made it clear that she was not okay with the tests-”
“You conducted the experiment anyway!” Garde interrupted. “You can’t sit in front of us and preach about your morales when clearly you have none!”
“Sir, Marcus Bennett was the one responsible for the procedure. He came bursting through the door and demanded that we continue.”
Marcus leaned back in his chair, shrugging his shoulders as he did so. “I do not recall even being at the procedure, let alone torturing that poor girl.”
“You came storming into the lab and pulled the switch! Even after we explained what was going on!”
“Dr. Walsh, please control your temper!” Fitch exclaimed.
Vincent cleared his throat and adjusted his suit one more time. “My apologies.”
“Now, Dr. Walsh,” Stevens asked quietly. “Regarding subject 12866-”
“Anita,” Vincent added coldly.
“-what exactly was your relationship with her?”
Vincent paused for a moment. “I guess I don’t understand what you’re asking.”
“Well, I’m merely stating the fact that the two of you were very close. And I’m sure I’m not the only member on the council that is wondering to what degree your closeness reached.”
“What Ms. Stevens is suggesting, Dr. Walsh,” Garde added. “Is that your relationship went further than simply doctor and patient.”
“This is ridiculous! Anita Nash was only 16 years old when I met her! I would never-”
Vincent sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “Yes, we were friends. We spoke often and I kept tabs on her to make sure she was doing okay after the procedure. Nothing more.”
“And was subject 12866 doing ‘okay’ after the procedure?” Stevens asked without looking up from her notepad.
“Anita was doing fine to my knowledge. But-”
Fitch leaned forward in his chair. “If patient 12866 was not successful-”
“Her name was Anita Nash!” Vincent shouted, slamming his fist down on the table. “And it was a successful test! She deserved to be recognized!”
“Anita Nash is an outlier and should not have been counted in your reports!” Fitch exploded, his face red and slightly puffy with anger. “You have been reckless and irresponsible in your practices!”
Fitch sighed and leaned back in his chair, rubbing sweat off his brow. “This hearing is adjourned while the council decides on appropriate action.”
“Sorry, sir,” Tyson added quickly, speaking for the first time since the trial began. “I just have one more question.”
Fitch gave a loose, dismissive hand wave, signaling Tyson to go on.
Tyson nodded and cleared his throat. “Dr. Walsh, would you say that any of the negative effects of your procedures could have been preventable?”
Vincent relaxed his shoulders and gave a small sigh. “At the time, no. But with the data we have collected from patients like Rasha and Anita, we can improve on our tests and prevent a lot of these things to happen again.”
Tyson nodded, smiling slightly. “Thank you, Dr. Walsh. I have no further questions.”
Fitch nodded sternly, packing up his things as he addressed the court. “Court is adjourned.”
“I’d like to call this hearing to order.”
The murmurs in the courtroom died down as people settled in their seats and gave their attention to the five council members at the front of the room; a wrinkled old man with greying hair by the name of Charles Fitch, who sat directly next to the CEO of AFMA Marcus Bennett, a bald middle-aged man named Leo Garde, a soft-faced woman by the name of Angela Stevens, and Jorden Tyson who was the newest member of the council.
“Would the defendant please state his name for the record?” Fitch asked.
A young man with light brown hair stood and cleared his throat. “My name is Dr. Vincent Walsh.”
“Dr. Walsh, you are on trial today for your questionable practices at the Association for Medical Advancement. Is this correct?”
Vincent nodded. “Yes, sir.”
“Dr. Walsh,” added Garde. “It says here that you conducted some unworldly experiments during your time at AFMA. Care to explain your side of the story?”
“Yes, Mr. Garde, I would.”
Vincent stood, adjusting his suit coat as he did so. “With the tests and experiments I conducted at AFMA, we have had an 82% initial success rate. Judging by the stat-”
“82, Dr. Walsh?” Fitch interrupted. “Doesn’t that seem a little high?”
“No, sir,” he continued.
“Are you counting subject number 12866?” Garde added.
Vincent looked down at the table in front of him. “Anita Nash. Yes, I am counting her in my numbers. But as I was saying, judging by the statistics, my practices are completely justified.”
“Dr. Walsh, four people died.” sneered Stevens. “Yet you have the audacity to call your practices ‘justified?’ Is that what you told the families?”
As Vincent went to respond, Mr. Fitch interrupted again.
“Dr. Walsh, most of your test subjects were young adults, sometimes children. Upon this reflection, do you still believe your actions were correct?”
“Sir, all of these patients came to us willingly. They all had parental consent if they were under 18, and they all knew the risks of the procedures.”
Angela cleared her throat and folded her hands in front of her. “Does this include subject 12865?”
“Yes, Rasha understood the risks. She decided at the last minute that she did not want to undergo the procedure.”
“But this did not stop you, did it, Dr. Walsh?”
“Ms. Stevens, I assure you, I had every intention of stopping the tests. Once she had made it clear that she was not okay with the tests-”
“You conducted the experiment anyway!” Garde interrupted. “You can’t sit in front of us and preach about your morales when clearly you have none!”
“Sir, Marcus Bennett was the one responsible for the procedure. He came bursting through the door and demanded that we continue.”
Marcus leaned back in his chair, shrugging his shoulders as he did so. “I do not recall even being at the procedure, let alone torturing that poor girl.”
“You came storming into the lab and pulled the switch! Even after we explained what was going on!”
“Dr. Walsh, please control your temper!” Fitch exclaimed.
Vincent cleared his throat and adjusted his suit one more time. “My apologies.”
“Now, Dr. Walsh,” Stevens asked quietly. “Regarding subject 12866-”
“Anita,” Vincent added coldly.
“-what exactly was your relationship with her?”
Vincent paused for a moment. “I guess I don’t understand what you’re asking.”
“Well, I’m merely stating the fact that the two of you were very close. And I’m sure I’m not the only member on the council that is wondering to what degree your closeness reached.”
“What Ms. Stevens is suggesting, Dr. Walsh,” Garde added. “Is that your relationship went further than simply doctor and patient.”
“This is ridiculous! Anita Nash was only 16 years old when I met her! I would never-”
Vincent sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “Yes, we were friends. We spoke often and I kept tabs on her to make sure she was doing okay after the procedure. Nothing more.”
“And was subject 12866 doing ‘okay’ after the procedure?” Stevens asked without looking up from her notepad.
“Anita was doing fine to my knowledge. But-”
Fitch leaned forward in his chair. “If patient 12866 was not successful-”
“Her name was Anita Nash!” Vincent shouted, slamming his fist down on the table. “And it was a successful test! She deserved to be recognized!”
“Anita Nash is an outlier and should not have been counted in your reports!” Fitch exploded, his face red and slightly puffy with anger. “You have been reckless and irresponsible in your practices!”
Fitch sighed and leaned back in his chair, rubbing sweat off his brow. “This hearing is adjourned while the council decides on appropriate action.”
“Sorry, sir,” Tyson added quickly, speaking for the first time since the trial began. “I just have one more question.”
Fitch gave a loose, dismissive hand wave, signaling Tyson to go on.
Tyson nodded and cleared his throat. “Dr. Walsh, would you say that any of the negative effects of your procedures could have been preventable?”
Vincent relaxed his shoulders and gave a small sigh. “At the time, no. But with the data we have collected from patients like Rasha and Anita, we can improve on our tests and prevent a lot of these things to happen again.”
Tyson nodded, smiling slightly. “Thank you, Dr. Walsh. I have no further questions.”
Fitch nodded sternly, packing up his things as he addressed the court. “Court is adjourned.”