Blood Brothers (44 page)

Karl’s laugh had not been affected by the trauma he had experienced, and it broke forth now in rich peals that echoed across the water. A moment later, the brothers were laughing together.

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FTERWORD

Wherever possible, the details of this book are nonfiction. The streets in the rich(er) part of Hinsdale, Illinois do wind. There really were still mammoths on Wrangel Island at the time the Egyptians built the first pyramids. And if you’re in Oslo during summer, Lekter’n is a fun place to grab a meal. For those readers curious about which parts of key plot elements are fact and which are fiction, read on.

Neurostim:
Neurostim itself is fiction, of course, but it is based on real drugs. The mental effects of Neurostim are generally similar to (but stronger than) drugs often referred to as nootropics or cognitive enhancers. These drugs help improve memory, reaction time, alertness, focus, and—in the case of some new drugs—even the ability to think and solve problems. If you’d like to know more, there are plenty of scholarly articles on this topic with catchy titles like “The Neurobiology of Modafinil as an Enhancer of Cognitive Performance and a Potential Treatment for Substance Use Disorders.”

The increased strength caused by Neurostim is similar to the phenomenon of “hysterical strength”—small people lifting cars to save babies and so forth. Scientists have not been able to find a biological mechanism that explains hysterical strength, though it is likely related to the effects of adrenaline. A drug that stimulated adrenaline production in the body and also blocked pain (as methamphetamine and PCP do) would produce results like Neurostim.

Berserkers:
Berserkers were real, and the descriptions of them and of
berserkergang
in this book are drawn straight from Norse sagas and other historical sources. No one knows what triggered
berserkergang
, but the most popular theory is that the berserkers took some sort of drug. The main problem with this theory is that no plant native to modern Norway causes effects similar to
berserkergang
. But if the plant used by the berserkers became extinct a thousand years ago (coincidentally around the time berserkers disappeared from history), that would solve the riddle.

Seeds and Elephants:
Gunnar’s novel method for getting the berserker seeds to sprout was inspired by the work of Professor Stanley Temple. In 1973, the tambalacoque trees of Mauritius were almost extinct, and the thirteen remaining trees were all reportedly over three hundred years old. Although the trees regularly produced fruit, their seeds would not sprout. Botanists tried everything they could think of, to no avail. Then Professor Temple realized that dodos had also lived on Mauritius and became extinct about three centuries ago, around the time the youngest tambalacoque sprouted. Professor Temple therefore hypothesized that dodos ate tambalacoque fruit and that the dodo digestive system did something to make the seeds sprout. He force-fed tambalacoque fruit to wild turkeys, and several of the seeds that came out of the turkeys sprouted. The tambalacoque was thus saved from following the dodo into oblivion.

Norwegian names:
Non-Scandinavians sometimes wonder why Norwegians seem to randomly decorate letters. For instance, “a” sometimes gets a little halo and is written “å” or “o” turns into “ø.” The reason is that these are actually different letters: the Norwegian alphabet has 29 letters rather than the 26 we’re used to in English. As a result, Norwegians sometimes need to change their names slightly when they move to English-speaking countries. For example, Karl and Gunnar’s last name would have been Bjørnsen in Norway, but they changed it to Bjornsen when they came to America because the letter ø doesn’t exist in English.

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CKNOWLEDGMENTS

I owe a deep debt to many people for their help with this book. First and foremost, I owe my beloved wife, Anette. For untold hundreds of hours spent encouraging, brainstorming, plotting, editing, reediting, and editing again, thank you. Without you, this book would not have been possible.

I am also deeply grateful to the busy professionals who generously contributed their expertise to ensure the accuracy of this book. Gene Barnett, PhD, took time away from his job as vice president of regulatory/clinical affairs at Nascent Pharmaceuticals to provide invaluable advice on FDA procedures and drug trials. I also greatly appreciate the input I received from Professor Mari Golub, PhD, of the University of California, regarding neurotoxicology and primate drug testing. Laurelea Williams and Arnold Schuler, crack auditors in the California Department of Justice, brought years of forensic-accounting experience to the passages dealing with financial fraud.
Og til familien Kjeldaas: mange tusen takk for deres hjelp med de norsk delene of boken.

If the devil is in the details, then editors and test readers are every author’s exorcists. Thank you to all the people who helped me spot typos, mistakes, and plot holes. Janyre Tromp and Dave Lindstedt provided dozens of suggestions and corrections that substantially improved this book. Michael and Gail Pyle and fellow DAG Karen Bovarnick also provided detailed and thoughtful feedback.

Last, but certainly not least, thank you to superagent Sue Brower and associate publisher Amy Hosford for giving this book new life.

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BOUT THE
A
UTHOR

Bestselling author Rick Acker is supervising deputy attorney general in the California Department of Justice. Most recently, he and his team won a string of unprecedented recoveries against the Wall Street players who triggered the Great Recession. Acker has authored several legal thrillers, including
When the Devil Whistles
, which award-winning author Colleen Coble described as “a legal thriller you won’t want to miss.” He spends most of his free time with his wife and children. You can learn more about Acker and his books at
www.rickacker.com
.