White Noise

by Don DeLillo

“It’s time for a major dialogue. You know it, I know it. You’ll tell me all about Dylar. If not for my sake, then for your little girl’s. She’s been worried—worried sick. Besides, you have no more room to maneuver. We’ve backed you against the wall. Denise and I. I found the concealed bottle, removed a tablet, had it analyzed by an expert. Those little white disks are superbly engineered. Laser technology, advanced plastics. Dylar is almost as ingenious as the microorganisms that ate the billowing cloud. Who would have believed in the existence of a little white pill that works as a pressure pump in the human body to provide medication safely and effectively, and self-destructs as well? I am struck by the beauty of this. We know something else, something crucially damaging to your case. We know Dylar is not available to the general public. This fact alone justifies our demands for an explanation. There’s really very little left for you to say. Just tell us the nature of the drug. As you well know, I don’t have the temperament to hound people. But Denise is a different kind of person. I’ve been doing all I can to restrain her. If you don’t tell me what I want to know, I’ll unleash your little girl. She’ll come at you with everything she has. She won’t waste time trying to make you feel guilty. Denise believes in a frontal attack. She’ll hammer you right into the ground. You know I’m right, Babette.”