Page 65 of Defending Love
We’re almost ready to submit the proposal for human testing. The results with the lab rats were promising. Much like humans, a rat’s amygdala processes emotions, fear, and aggression. LC and RC took a great deal of time indoctrinating the rats to associate a stimulus with fear. Some were made to fear loud noises. Some were frightened by bright or flashing lights. They even had some rats subject to fear of their feeder.
Utilizing automated segmentation techniques, their team utilized software algorithms to identify the activity of the amygdala, assessing true fear. After the first dose of C16H21NO21, when exposed to fear-triggering stimulus, the activity of the amygdala was reduced by over fifty percent.
Consecutive doses showed increased inactivity; however, not at the same rate.
The question I posed to our team was if the C16H21NO21 was the causative factor or if the repeated exposure to the stimulus was the reason for the decreased fear production.
* * *
Holy shit.
This was the early testing on what we now label Propanolol. The date was at least three years before Sinclair acquired the research.
I flipped through the pages, seeing more notes in the same handwriting.
Each entry began with a date and E.O.
The man Mom said was in the picture was Dr. Eric Olsen. I put his name into a search.
An announcement from Indianapolis University was one of the first articles to appear.
* * *
We at Indianapolis University are saddened by the unexpected death of our distinguished and beloved professor emeritus Dr. Eric Olsen. His research with our university will forever be remembered. Originally from Detroit, Michigan, Dr. Olsen left behind a wife, Elizabeth (Weaver) Olsen, a daughter, Brenda Marie Olsen Carpenter (David), and three grandchildren. Donations in his name are being accepted.
* * *
“Whatever you’re reading must be interesting.”
I gasped, bringing my hands to my chest. “Oh, you scared me.”
In reality, Eli wasn’t scary. He could be seen as intimidating, but that wasn’t what I saw. The new rule-breaking side to my bodyguard was on full display. His crisp suit was gone, replaced by a black t-shirt that didn’t completely cover the tattoos on his muscular arms, and low hanging blue jeans that hugged his sexy, firm ass.
Eli’s gaze lingered, taking me in as his lips quirked into a sexy grin. “Did you forget about me already?”
“No,” I said with a sigh. “I just…” I wasn’t sure if it was important. “…found something in one of the journals from Dad’s safe.”
“What did you find?”
“Research notes about early testing on Propanolol, years before Sinclair acquired the research. There was a man in one of Dad’s pictures who I didn’t recognize. Mom said his name was Eric Olsen. The notes all begin with the date and the initials E.O.”
“Why would your dad have those?”
I shrugged. “Honestly, I don’t know. In the notes, Dr. Olsen discusses early trials, failures and successes when the research was started at the university. He names researchers by initials: LC and RC.” I had an idea. “Maybe Dr. Carpenter brought the notes to Sinclair when he came to work for us.”
“How would Dr. Carpenter get Dr. Olsen’s notes?”
“Oh,” I said, standing. “Mom said Dr. Carpenter was married to Dr. Olsen’s daughter, Brenda.”
Eli’s brow furrowed. “I don’t know if that’s connected to what happened to your father.”
My phone on the desk vibrated. Eli came closer as I picked it up.
“It’s Damien.”
He shook his head. “Don’t answer.”
“I have to answer. He’ll worry.”
