September 11, 2001 The day that changed our lives. Mark Maddox, a recent Colorado business graduate, anticipating a new career with a large and prestigious company in New York City, arrives for his first day on the job, only to find the promised position of management intern has been withdrawn due to an unexpected cutback. He decides to at least look for another job in the big city rather than return home. After much searching, the best posting is for an assistant to the president of a small pharmaceutical company in Brooklyn. Mr. Hill, the president, is an older, highly formal executive who has been at the helm of the company for thirty years. Mark soon finds the work interesting, but challenging. He meets Dr. Berger, the company medical director, whose key interest is The Alpha Project: formulating a breakthrough drug potentially aimed at the cure for the deadly HIV/AIDS virus. During his introduction to the company, Mark meets Meredith Nelson, the girl in the mailroom. She captivates him with her beautiful eyes and smile, and he is eager to soon get to know her. With an offer from Dr. Berger to rent an apartment over his garage at a great price, things have a way of looking up. But what Mark does not know is Dr. Berger's ultimate plan to complete his work in the Alpha Project by injecting Mark with a live dose of HIV as final proof of his new drug's effectiveness.