Suicide Serial (13 page)

“Your wife and kids are around here somewhere, and your friend, too. I’ll page them to come on up and see you.”

“Thanks,” Jake said, jamming crackers into his mouth, spraying crumbs all over the sheets.

He heard the page go out fron the loudspeaker in the hallway. Within a few minutes, his family and Stacey came running into the room.

“Welcome back to the land of the living, partner!” Stacey said lightheartedly.

His wife ran over to him, embracing him in a bear hug that he wasn’t sure would ever end. The kids jumped up on the bed, hugging his legs and shouting, “Daddy! You’re awake!”

Jake smiled and laughed, happy that he was alive and that everyone was safe.

“I’m guessing we got Henry?”

“I had no choice, Jake. I had to shoot him. He had already hit you and was just wildly firing his gun in all directions. He went down and the rescue guys had another van there to pick you up before the fire completely burnt the church to the ground.”

Jake nodded slightly and stared at nothing for a moment, before replying, “What about the school? All the kids ok?”

“Yeah, there was no bomb at the school. Everyone got evacuated while the bomb squad checked it out. Henry was just bluffing and trying to distract us, and it worked.”

“What a nightmare, Stacey,” Heather said, holding both of the children beside her.

“Thank God it’s over,” Stacey said, taking a seat in the ugly green visitor’s chair beside the bed. “I don’t like to think about how it might have ended.”

Jake took another sip of water and looked out the window. He thought back to rushing into the burning building after Henry and then feeling so helpless to do anything. Henry Engel had made him feel like that twice, and it wasn’t something he ever wanted to experience again.

During times like these he sometimes considered switching to selling life insurance instead of being a homicide detective.

“Hey! What happened to that old guy, Herbert, after he whacked Henry with the shovel?” asked Jake. “Is he ok? That guy really saved our bacon. I owe him and you my life.”

Stacey laughed and said, “Oh him, he came by to visit you earlier today but you were still out. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone so happy. The chief told the mayor what he had done and they’re giving him a key to the city! I didn’t even know they still did that sort of stuff anymore.”

Jake closed his eyes and tried to imagine Herbert, wearing his pants hitched up past his belly button with suspenders, shuffling slowly across the stage to receive his key at City Hall.

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M. Boyd

OTHER EBOOKS BY M.BOYD-

Z.N.A. -
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006HPEDLO

Paul Anderson is having a very bad day.
So is everybody else.
The experimental Z.N.A. virus has been turned loose on the world, and humanity's chances of survival are slim to none. As the bodies of the dead are reanimated into fast, insatiable zombies, Paul must band together with a handful of other survivors to stay alive.
When he discovers that the survivors have all developed strange new abilities, Paul and his friends must fight to discover the secret of the virus and stop the madman who created it.