THE STERADIAN TRAIL: BOOK #0 OF THE INFINITY CYCLE Read Online Free PDF Page B
Author: M.N. KRISH
passed for a nippy winter wind in Madras. Banerjee led Joshua to her while the other cops stood back at a respectful distance.
‘Good evening, Ma’am. I suppose this piece of property belongs to your government,’ Banerjee said and handed over Joshua’s passport to her.
‘Thank you,’ the woman said and turned to Joshua. ‘Hello Dr Ezekiel,’ she said, extending her hand. ‘Thelma Paterson, consul general, United States.’
Joshua shook hands, still mystified.
The consul general turned towards Banerjee. ‘Thank you so much. Your department has been most helpful. Please give my regards to the commissioner. I’ll personally write to him as well.’
Banerjee took leave of her and walked up to the other cops. Soon Joshua could see all of them trooping out of the parking lot. Only a few guards from the consul general’s own security detail remained. They stood in a ring a few yards away, well out of earshot.
‘You’re probably wondering what this is all about, Dr Ezekiel,’ the consul general said to Joshua in a whisper, instinctively looking around.
‘ Wondering would be putting it a little too mildly,’ said Joshua.
‘I understand,’ she said. ‘Let me get to the point then. Does the name Jeffrey Williams ring a bell?’
Joshua flinched. The laptop nearly slid off the shoulder and his face clouded over in a second. The name sure did ring a bell. An alarm bell. But he collected himself quickly. ‘Jeffrey?’ he said. ‘Yeah, sure, I know him. What about him?’
‘Well, he’s dead.’
It hit Joshua like a kick in the gut. ‘Eh . . . what?’ he gasped.
‘Yeah, Jeffrey Williams is dead. . . . Killed or murdered is more like it.’ The consul general eyed Joshua for his reaction and continued: ‘Someone shot him.’
A vague fear took over Joshua. ‘I hope you don’t think . . .’
‘Of course not, Professor. That’s not where I’m coming from.’
‘Then?’
‘It so happens that just before he died, Mr Williams called 911. He seems to have mentioned your name.’
‘Mentioned my name? Are you sure?’
‘That’s what it looks like. At least that’s what I was told. Apparently it was all a bit incoherent, so no one is sure what he said exactly, but all the speech recognition software keep spitting out your name with high probability. The cops suspect that it might be a warning for you. In other words, you too may be, may be, at risk if you returned home. Again, no need to get alarmed. They’re not saying that is what it is for sure; it’s only a vague suspicion. But they feel it would be better if you stayed put here for some more time till things cleared up a bit.’
The blood drained out of Joshua’s face.
Thelma Paterson continued: ‘They’re also trying to alert your wife and daughter as a precautionary measure. The message should reach them anytime now.’
‘They’re not even in the country,’ Joshua said. His wife and daughter had gone to Israel on a kibbutz adventure. They had planned to return to Boston a day after Joshua.
‘I know, Professor. They’re going to track them down through our consular offices in Israel. There is no specific threat to them – their names didn’t even crop up – but no one wants to take any chances. They’re going to reach them in Israel and ask them to sit tight where they are till the coast is clear.’
Joshua heaved a sigh of relief. ‘So what exactly do you want me to do now?’ he asked helplessly. It seemed like he had no choice but heed her advice. Consul’s counsel. How very poetic.
‘Could you postpone your trip back to the US and return to your hotel? You can be a guest of the government if you choose. The cops are working hard to solve the case. Once they give the all clear, you can return home with your family. . . . We’re all very sorry for the inconvenience, but like I said, no one’s willing to take any chances. That’s why we had to stop you so rudely. You are too precious an asset for us . . . our
‘Good evening, Ma’am. I suppose this piece of property belongs to your government,’ Banerjee said and handed over Joshua’s passport to her.
‘Thank you,’ the woman said and turned to Joshua. ‘Hello Dr Ezekiel,’ she said, extending her hand. ‘Thelma Paterson, consul general, United States.’
Joshua shook hands, still mystified.
The consul general turned towards Banerjee. ‘Thank you so much. Your department has been most helpful. Please give my regards to the commissioner. I’ll personally write to him as well.’
Banerjee took leave of her and walked up to the other cops. Soon Joshua could see all of them trooping out of the parking lot. Only a few guards from the consul general’s own security detail remained. They stood in a ring a few yards away, well out of earshot.
‘You’re probably wondering what this is all about, Dr Ezekiel,’ the consul general said to Joshua in a whisper, instinctively looking around.
‘ Wondering would be putting it a little too mildly,’ said Joshua.
‘I understand,’ she said. ‘Let me get to the point then. Does the name Jeffrey Williams ring a bell?’
Joshua flinched. The laptop nearly slid off the shoulder and his face clouded over in a second. The name sure did ring a bell. An alarm bell. But he collected himself quickly. ‘Jeffrey?’ he said. ‘Yeah, sure, I know him. What about him?’
‘Well, he’s dead.’
It hit Joshua like a kick in the gut. ‘Eh . . . what?’ he gasped.
‘Yeah, Jeffrey Williams is dead. . . . Killed or murdered is more like it.’ The consul general eyed Joshua for his reaction and continued: ‘Someone shot him.’
A vague fear took over Joshua. ‘I hope you don’t think . . .’
‘Of course not, Professor. That’s not where I’m coming from.’
‘Then?’
‘It so happens that just before he died, Mr Williams called 911. He seems to have mentioned your name.’
‘Mentioned my name? Are you sure?’
‘That’s what it looks like. At least that’s what I was told. Apparently it was all a bit incoherent, so no one is sure what he said exactly, but all the speech recognition software keep spitting out your name with high probability. The cops suspect that it might be a warning for you. In other words, you too may be, may be, at risk if you returned home. Again, no need to get alarmed. They’re not saying that is what it is for sure; it’s only a vague suspicion. But they feel it would be better if you stayed put here for some more time till things cleared up a bit.’
The blood drained out of Joshua’s face.
Thelma Paterson continued: ‘They’re also trying to alert your wife and daughter as a precautionary measure. The message should reach them anytime now.’
‘They’re not even in the country,’ Joshua said. His wife and daughter had gone to Israel on a kibbutz adventure. They had planned to return to Boston a day after Joshua.
‘I know, Professor. They’re going to track them down through our consular offices in Israel. There is no specific threat to them – their names didn’t even crop up – but no one wants to take any chances. They’re going to reach them in Israel and ask them to sit tight where they are till the coast is clear.’
Joshua heaved a sigh of relief. ‘So what exactly do you want me to do now?’ he asked helplessly. It seemed like he had no choice but heed her advice. Consul’s counsel. How very poetic.
‘Could you postpone your trip back to the US and return to your hotel? You can be a guest of the government if you choose. The cops are working hard to solve the case. Once they give the all clear, you can return home with your family. . . . We’re all very sorry for the inconvenience, but like I said, no one’s willing to take any chances. That’s why we had to stop you so rudely. You are too precious an asset for us . . . our