Page 46 - Like No Business I Know

Reformulation

arrived at Urospector 3.0, after burning through several hundred
thousand dollars in seed money. It’s a small compact kit with several
packets of our product and an instruction sheet showing what can
result from mixing the powder—it’s water-soluble—and using it for
urinalysis.”
The reformulator nodded and picked at something on his face.
The other bowler failed to convert the spare, laying down a gutter
ball.
“We are very close to shipping this product. A couple of law-
enforcement agencies tested it and we have their endorsement. I have
been taking orders. Urospector 3.0 has many advantages over current
testing systems: I won’t give you a sales pitch, but it’s a natural. Then,
last week, disaster struck: we found out that a member of our testing
team had falsified his results. He was supposed to run our product
against all the preservatives and additives commonly found in
commercially prepared and packaged foods. There are thousands,
and he simply slacked off and reported finding no false positives. He
has been fired, but we can’t go to market. The sad fact is that almost
every prohibited intoxicant we’d want to identify produces a color
identical to one when we expose our product to those legal
alimentary synthetics. That’s it, in a nutshell.”
The reformulator nodded, not in comprehension but
acknowledgment of his bowling partner’s completion of the frame
and impatiently questioning glance. He stood.
“I’ll give it some thought.”
He sauntered down to the bowling area, wiped his hands again and
took his ball from the return.
“I can’t keep still anymore!” cried Cary. “How much money did
you give that bum? Is he a chemist in disguise? Do you expect him to
reformulate our product?”
“That’s not what he reformulates. Appearances are deceiving. The
man is a genius, a legend in my line of work. But he likes his privacy.
Nobody can eavesdrop in here with the noise and gloom. Now keep
your voice down: he’s trying to concentrate.”
“On what? Making a strike?”
And the reformulator did, hitting the pocket. Then he returned to
his clients. Phil looked up at the score. No question who was winning
the line; not even close.

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