Mind Switch Read Online Free PDF

forgot.”
    “Judy, please hail a taxi and go home.”
    Judy had no desire to argue, she was already moving to the center of Main Street, frantically signaling the closest passing cab.
    Fred realized in his present state he could not begin to catch up to either of the two men. Severe pain continued to radiate in his chest. He had never experienced broken ribs before; but he was sure that had to be contributing to his intense pain and impaired medical condition.
    His gaze automatically shifted to his right in an attempt to determine where the two men had emerged from. The modern multi-story silver and glass building directly to his right was the County Bank. As he attempted to peer inside, mirrored plate glass sides reflected back his own bruised image. Fred gradually stood up; moving to his right, he cautiously opened the bank door and slowly limped into the cavernous lobby. His hand grasped tightly around his revolver; he had no idea what to expect.
    As his eyes slowly adjusted to the bright fluorescent lighting above, he became shocked at the macabre scene in front of him. Two men directly in front of him lay motionless on the ebony, marble tile floor. Bright red blood had migrated from one of the victims to the recessed grouted areas in the tile below him. Large globules of blood, which had earlier gushed from a second victim, were just starting to coagulate. Their color was still in the process of transforming into a deepening maroon.
    To Fred’s left and right were men and women stretched out in various prone positions, all apparently frozen in place just as they had fallen. Those that were struck first, appeared to have dropped in place, unaware that their lives were about to end. Others who had an instant to recognize the horrible fate that was about to prematurely shut down their lives, had started to run and had been mowed down in mid flight. Fred could not tell if some of the victims were dead or just pretending, seeking to escape the tragic fate that had befallen the others.
    Then Fred spotted his obese neighbor and fellow poker player, Ernest James, lying on the floor. James was still, the fingers of his right hand grasped tightly around the leg of a bank desk. Fred yelled to him; getting no response, he checked for a pulse, hoping beyond hope that he could observe even a flicker of life. But he knew from the start that Ernest was gone. There was a single wound in Ernest’s chest and one in his abdomen. James’ left hand covered his left eyebrow. I guess he’s not bluffing this time, Fred thought.
    Very little blood had escaped from the body; Fred knew that Ernest must have been killed instantly, most likely from the single bullet that had pierced his heart.
    He was a great guy, but a lousy poker player, Fred thought. Hell, now I have to tell Bernice, his wife. This job sucks.
    Fred pulled out his revolver and peered over the Plexiglas above the tellers’ cages. More bodies were scattered on the floor; he heard an almost inaudible weeping from a woman dressed in a well tailored dark green plaid suit, clutching her knees.
    This had to be an attempted robbery, Fred thought. But if so, who and where are the robbers?  
    The two men that emerged from the bank weren’t carrying weapons, the best he could determine, and they certainly didn’t have a getaway vehicle nearby. Very few bank robbers use their feet as an escape vehicle. On the other hand, no one in the bank appeared to be an assailant.
    As Fred continued to glance throughout the lobby, he noticed a male about forty years old, well dressed in a neatly pressed cotton tan summer suit, weeping uncontrollably. Fred had spotted him as he first entered the bank but passed him by since he had no weapon in his hand, was obviously not a threat, and seemed to be experiencing the same strong emotions as the bank employees and customers who had been caught in the cycle of extreme violence. Fred felt he knew this man and had seen him in the community numerous times;