Chasing Shadows: A Strange Air Paranormal Mystery (The Strange Air Book 2) by Erick Mertz

Author:Erick Mertz [Mertz, Erick]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Longbranch Productions
Published: 2022-08-17T16:00:00+00:00

The next morning Melville received a phone call. It was still early, quarter to 8:00 and there was no one else in the office. He had wanted to take advantage of the quiet to clean up some paperwork.

Hurrying to close the door before answering, he caught it on the fifth ring.

“This is Sheriff Melville.”

“Almost thought you wouldn’t answer.” It was Jeff Frazier.

“Take me for a guy that has a choice?”

Jeff laughed out loud. Unlike during the previous call, the room around him was silent.

“You talk to your guy for me, Jeff?”

“Indeed I did, yeah. The resident’s name is Billy Ray Nunnelly.”

Melville rolled the name around in his memory but it didn’t ring a bell. He must have been thrown in the clink before his time.

“What did Billy say?”

“Billy is what you might call a character,” Jeff said. “He said he’d let you look at the room if you would talk to his parole officer.”

Melville stiffened.

“I can hear the worry in your silence, Auggie.”

“Don’t make promises I can’t keep.”

“I told Billy that it wasn’t that kind of a favor.”

“Good,” Melville said.

“We were thinking about Monday? Maybe around lunch time? Most of the guys who work, work that day. Easier to show you around with only a few stragglers around.”

Melville was aware of what kind of ruckus the arrival of a police car would stir up.

“Will Billy be there?”

“He’ll be here. He’s an old timer.”

“Monday at lunch sounds good to me,” Melville said.

“Good thing.”

“I’ll check with the guy I’m coming out with, but I’m sure we can work on your schedule.”

Then a pause followed.

“I’m trusting in you on this, Auggie.”

“I appreciate that.”

“And so is Billy, for that matter.”

“I understand.”

“OK then,” Jeff concluded. “I’ll look forward to seeing you then.”

Melville thanked Jeff and hung up. Billy Ray Nunnally. Would this amount to just another name in the ever growing line?

He got up from his desk and slipped out of the office for the records room. Mrs. Melton had arrived. She stood at her desk, waiting till the last possible moment to unlock the front doors. Flicking on the lights, Melville navigated his way through the sea of paperwork to the right file: Nunnally, William Ray. Born August of 1931 in Watford City, North Dakota. The first thing that jumped out was Nunnally’s birthday. It was a few days before his mother’s. The last conviction on his record, one which he served twelve years of a nineteen year sentence, was for robbery and manslaughter connected to a botched attempt at knocking over the Donny Green Golf Course. Melville poured over the police report for a few moments before deciding that there was nothing other than the twist of fate that brought Nunnally to Room 42.

Melville returned the file. He closed the drawer with a loud bang then took a big step back, hands against his hips, staring into space for a long moment.

Another name rising from obscurity to connect with the past. By the end of this expedition, however long it took, however deep it ranged, Melville understood there would be more.

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