Her dream honeymoon in Australia took a nasty turn when death came calling on the very same road where her father was killed two years earlier. Coincidence or suspicious? Dr. Tess had to find out.
This is book 3 of the Doctor Tess series and is a standalone medical thriller of 30,000 words (120 pages). It is also a sweet romance. Book 1 is "Sudden Death". Book 2 is "Young Blood".
The Story Starts...
Unexpectedly, and without being invited, something in the on-board movie took Dr. Jayson Riggings back to that frightening day when he was 14 years old.
He and his school mate Malcolm were visiting Malcolm's grandfather. The man, only in his fifties, had been diagnosed with Huntington's Disease which meant all he had to look forward to was a slow one-way trip to a tragic death.
The diagnosis had devastated the man and he was having a hard time getting back on the saddle, with the battle made worse by the fact he'd been recently laid off from his job. He'd been with the company for 23 years but now his chosen career had collapsed too. He'd had two big hits in the same month, and his family was trying to keep close to help him climb out of the deep hole he'd been pushed into.
It was Friday the 13th and Malcolm's mother was unduly superstitious so she made her son go visit Grandfather after school. Jayson went with him.
As they walked the two blocks to the dear old fellow's house, Malcolm told Jayson his grandfather was tight with his money. He didn't waste water, he recycled as much stuff as he could and he turned the light off every time he left a room.
"Yes, my grandparents are like that too," said Jayson.
Malcolm called out "Howdy Granddad" but there was no response.
"He might be having an afternoon sleep," said Jayson. "You go inside and I'll go around the back to see if he's in the garden."
Out the back, there were two overgrown garden beds and an old window-less shed. The wooden door was ajar, just a little.
"Hello?"
No reply.
No sign of Malcolm's grandfather in the garden either.
Jayson could see through the gap in the doorway. It was dark inside the shed.
He gingerly pushed the door open. As he did, the rusty hinge creaked.
To his right, he saw a small cone of light from a tiny lamp, pointing down at a workbench.
A light was on?
In the middle of the day?
A shiver of fear jolted through Jayson's mind and body.
"Hello?"
Again, no reply.
By taking another step forward, into the darkness, 14 year old Jayson could see there was a big workbench in the center of the shed. It was covered with bits of wood and metal and all manner of dusty tools lying around waiting for the next job.
"Granddad?"
Again no reply.
Something wasn't right.
Something was very wrong.
With his heart pounding, Jayson slowly edged forward as his eyes began to adjust to the darkness. Behind the door, just one step away, was Malcolm's grandfather. Lying on the ground. Still. There was a pool of dried blood under his head and a shotgun nearby.
Police would later confirm the fingerprints on the trigger belonged to the victim.
***
Thirty-two thousand feet above the Pacific Ocean, Jayson shuddered at the memory, then shook his head several times in an effort to banish the darkness of that haunting experience.
Then he looked at the beautiful young woman sitting next to him on the plane, sleeping peacefully as they jetted south on flight QF16. She was now his wife.
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By Pat Wilpenter, author of inspirational fiction and writer of good clean reads. Tags: medical thriller books, medical thrillers and mysteries, medical thrillers books, medical thrillers christian, medical thrillers, medical thrillers books, medical thrillers kindle books, medical thrillers kindle, medical thrillers kindle books, medical thrillers kindle books, medical thrillers kindle ebook 内容引用
