academia. I assured him that he would be given any and every piece of
equipment he wanted.’
‘You had such a lab?’ Waller asked.
‘Not at the time,’ Raymond admitted. ‘Once I had agreement from him, I
approached an international biotechnology giant, which will go nameless
until you agree to join our group. With some difficulty I sold them on
the idea of creatively marketing this phenomenon.’
‘And how is that done?’ Waller asked.
Raymond moved forward in his chair and locked eyes with Waller. ‘For a
price we create an immunological double for a client,’ he said. ‘As you
can well imagine, it is a significant price but not unreasonable for the
peace of mind it affords. But how we really make money is that the
client must pay a yearly tuition to maintain his double.’
‘Sort of like an initiation fee and then dues,’ Waller said.
‘That’s another way to look at it,’ Raymond agreed.
‘How do I benefit?’ Waller asked.
‘Myriad ways,’ Raymond said. ‘I’ve constructed the business like a
merchandizing pyramid. For every client you recruit, you get a
percentage, not only of the initial price but each year from the
tuition. On top of that, we will encourage you to recruit other
physicians like yourself with collapsing patient bases but who still
have a number of wealthy, health-conscious, cash-paying patients. With
every successful physician recruitment, you get percentages from each of
his recruitment efforts. For instance, if you choose to join, Dr.
Levitz, who recommended you, will receive percentages from all your
successes. You don’t have to be an accountant to understand that with a
little effort you could be earning a substantial income. And as an added
incentive, we can offer the payments offshore so they will accrue
tax-free.’
‘Why all the secrecy?’ Waller asked.
‘For obvious reasons as far as the offshore accounts are concerned,’
Raymond said. ‘As for the whole program, there have been ethical issues
that have been overlooked. Consequently, the biotechnology company that
is making this all possible is paranoid about bad publicity. Frankly,
the use of animals for transplantation offends some people, and we
certainly do not want to be forced to deal with animal-rights zealots.
Besides, this is an expensive operation and can be made available to
only a few highly select people. That violates the concept of equality.’
‘May I ask how many clients have taken advantage of this plan?’
‘Laymen or physicians?’ Raymond asked.
‘Laymen,’ Waller said.
‘Around one hundred,’ Raymond said.
‘Has anybody had to utilize the resource?’
‘As a matter of fact, four have,’ Raymond said. ‘Two kidneys and two
livers have been transplanted. All are doing superbly without medication
and without any signs of rejection. And, I might add, there is a
substantial additional charge for the harvest and transplantation, and
the involved physicians get the same percentages of these fees.’
‘How many physicians are involved?’ Waller asked.
‘Fewer than fifty,’ Raymond said. ‘We started slowly on recruitment, but
it is now speeding up.’
‘How long has this program been going on?’ Waller asked.
‘About six years,’ Raymond said. ‘It’s been a significant outlay of
capital and a lot of effort, but it is now beginning to pay off
handsomely. I should remind you that you will be getting in at a
relatively early date, so the pyramid structure will benefit you
greatly.’
‘It sounds interesting,’ Waller said. ‘God knows I could use some
additional income with my falling patient base. I’ve got to do something
before I lose this office.’
‘It would be a pity,’ Raymond agreed.
‘Can I think about it for a day or so?’ Waller asked.
Raymond stood up. Experience told him he’d made another score. ‘By all
means,’ he said graciously. ‘I’d also invite you to call Dr. Levitz.
He’d recommended you highly, and he’s extraordinarily satisfied with the
arrangements.’
Five minutes later Raymond exited onto the sidewalk and turned south
down Park Avenue. His walk had an extra bounce to it. With the blue sky,
the clear air, and the hint of spring, he felt on top of the world,
especially with the pleasurable rush of adrenaline that a successful
recruitment always gave him. Even the unpleasantness of the previous