PERIL IN PARKSDALE

America will never forget the images on its television screens of young, frightened students being escorted out of school shortly after the massacre at Columbine High School several years ago. After years of investigations, no one has been able to determine what caused Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, two young men from nice homes and middleclass families to murder twelve of their fellow students and a beloved teacher. In this mystery novel, the author attempts to delve into the minds of two students with similar horrific designs. Detective Joe Kepper's teenage daughter becomes the victim of school violence and he hurries to Parksdale, Kansas to find the person who attacked her and left her battered body for dead. The assault on his daughter is only one of the mishaps to keep Kepper's life in a tailspin. A failed marriage and a hostile relationship with his boss add to his many problems. The Parksdale police do not welcome Kepper with open arms as he offers his assistance. He finds help from an unlikely source when a young and beautiful police woman comes to his aid. Together they discover the persons who have designs on blowing up a local high school building.

From Chapter 19 of PERIL IN PARKSDALE:

Burt Campbell was about to close up for the day. The last burial at Parksdale Cemetery was at three thirty that afternoon and the grave had been covered, the tombstone in place. He would finish up the last bit of paperwork, take a drive around to make his final check of the day, lock the gate and be on his way to Mary Campbell and supper. He looked forward to a great evening. Mary had called and said she was preparing his favorite dinner: short ribs, turnip greens, and candied yams. As he circled the cemetery, checking the road that encircled it, he was looking into each little trail that led off the main road. More than once someone would drive into one of those areas under the trees and he would miss seeing them, close the gate and get a call later that night that someone was locked inside the cemetery. He'd be pissed off, having to get up out of his warm bed and go down and unlock the gate. Sometimes he'd be surprised at who the couples were that got themselves into this embarrassing situation. At times it would be some of the town's most respected citizens who were married, but not to each other. He knew how to keep his mouth shut. He never mentioned names to his wife, but he would tell her about it. Mary didn't pester him to divulge the names of the guilty parties. She knew his was a job that required a person who could keep his mouth shut and some of these people had the power or the wealth to make things difficult for him. If he were a blabbermouth, he probably would have been replaced long ago.

As Burt passed one of those little offshoot roads, he thought he saw the rear end of a large automobile protruding. Had it been a smaller car, he might have missed it as he passed by. Oh well, here goes another of those unpleasant situations. He backed up, got out of his pickup, and slammed the door hard, He felt he owed it to his male brethren to at least give warning that someone was approaching so that he would have a chance to recover a bit and not be caught totally off-guard. Burt took his time and moved slowly toward the driver side of the car. He could discern the head and shoulders of a man in the seat but no one on the passenger side. The bastard! he thought. He could at least have the dignity to let the girl sit upright. I know damn well he heard me. I just don't want to see a woman in the act of doing that. As Burt got closer, he figured, If I got to break up an orgasm, then I'll break up an orgasm. The man kept turning his head, right and left as if he were in great pain. As Burt came abreast of the window and began to tap on it to get the couple's attention, he stared at the man and recognized him as someone he knew, another pillar of the community. Damn. He looked further to see who the female partner was and to his surprise, there wasn't one. The man was alone. He looked again at the face and saw tears coming down his cheeks. His hair was tousled and he appeared to be in great pain. He's ill! Why would a guy come all the way out here to have a heart attack? This just wasn't my night. Burt reached for the door handle. It was locked. He needed his help to get inside the car. At least he could make him comfortable before he went to get his cell phone in his pickup to dial 911. The man heard the tapping and turned his head and looked squarely into Burt's eyes. He looked even more panicky when he recognized Burt. The man reached over on the passenger seat and picked up a revolver.

"Oh, my God, don't shoot!" Burt said, raising his hands and trying to make the man aware of what he was doing. "Don't shoot! Please, don't shoot!" Burt yelled again. The man didn't seem to hear even though he was looking at Burt. His movement was slow, giving Burt the feeling that he was going to give him a chance to run, and run he did, back in the direction of his pickup. He reached the pickup, got his key out and was entering the door as he heard the sound of a gun. He quickened his movements, after fumbling, turned the key and got the engine to start. He was about to start off when it occurred to him that there was no one following him. He had heard a shot, but nothing further was happening. Keeping his motor running, Burt dialed 911 on his cell phone and spoke to the operator.

"Hello! Hello!" He screamed into the ear of the 911 operator. "This is Burt Campbell over at the town cemetery. There's a man over here with a gun. He's already fired one shot. I'm afraid he's going to do something desperate. I've got the area under observation. Please get somebody out here right away."

A Joe Kepper Mystery. XLibris Corporation, c2003. ISBN: 1-4134-4319-2 (Hard Cover) $28.79; ISBN: 1-4134-4318-4 (Soft Cover) $18.69, Library of Congress 2003099470.

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