Karma and Crime: a Karma Mystery (Karma Mysteries Book 1) by Burroughs J. Paul

Author:Burroughs, J. Paul
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Per Bastet Publications
Published: 2020-04-07T04:00:00+00:00

12

Lud-dup . . . lud-dup . . . lud-dup. . . .

In the darkness of sleep, Lanyon could hear the distinctive sound, repeated over and over. What am I hearing? His subconscious mind raged with the question.

Lud . . . dup . . . lud . . . dup. . . .

The pattern was slowing now. In the midst of sleep, he began to try and discover what he was hearing. It sounded so familiar. Even as he questioned what was happening, the repetition slowed. Several seconds before the second sound could be heard.

Lud. . .. . .. . .. . .. . ..dup. . .. . .

There was something so vaguely familiar about the sound -- something he had once heard in a movie on television. Moments passed and suddenly he knew.

A movie with Vincent Price. A movie about death. God! What I'm hearing is a beating heart!

And then the beating stopped completely. Assured that he'd reasoned out the answer to the nagging question, he allowed himself to drift back into dreamless sleep.

And then without warning, he was in the Twilight Zone. As he rose into an awakened state, he realized he was hearing the music from the old television show on his cell phone. The music had been an offbeat birthday present months earlier.

Damn it, Marilyn, I know the present was a joke, but it's not all that funny when it wakes you up from sleep, he fumed. He sat up and turned on the night light. He looked to the alarm clock. It was only 3:15. He had a full day of teaching ahead of him and being awakened at this ungodly hour was going to make a tough day only worse.

He reached for the cell phone, looking for caller ID. The number was unfamiliar. If this was some sort of joke or, worse, some sort of marketing call, the person on the other end of the line was going to get an earful.

"Yes?" he replied making sure there was annoyance in his voice.

"Are you Lanyon Stevenson?" It was a man's voice.

"Listen, if this is some sort of marketing--"

The voice on the other end of the line cut him off. "Are you the son of Robert Stevenson of Columbia, Missouri?"

It took him a full moment to comprehend what had just been asked. "Bob Stevenson is my father. However, I have no idea where he's living. We've not been in touch for several years."

"Your name was listed as next of kin."

The words made no sense. Still recovering from sleep, he struggled to continue the conversation. "Did you say next of kin? I don't understand."

"I'm Dr. Louis Mayer, a resident here at Landmark Hospital in Columbia. I'm so sorry to break such tragic news, but a short while ago, your father passed away."

"My . . . dad . . . died?"

"You did say you were Lanyon Stevenson, did you not?" asked the man.

"Yes . . . yes, I am. Forgive me, but as I said, I haven't had contact with my father for a number of years.

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