Memory Machine: Birthday Killings

By Bryan Kollar

Blake Stone’s upgrade to the Memory Machine is a huge improvement. Not only can it read criminals’ minds so they can never tell a lie, it also reads the minds of the people they killed!

Now Blake Stone is wanted dead more than ever. People are killing Blake’s loved ones, one by one, until he calls it quits.

How many people have to die before Blake throws in the towel?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bryan Kollar
• Release date: Oct 23, 2014
• ISBN: 9781502705938

Bryan Kollar

I am a 43 year old Pennsylvania resident who spends a lot of time in hotel rooms because of my job, installing point of sale equipment in major establishments. This job requires me to cover a full seven states, adding 1000 miles a week to my odometer. It's because of these hotel stays that I get free time to read and write.I also own a part-time computer business designing websites and repairing PCs at customers’ homes. Visit www.BryanKollar.com for more information.My interests, other than writing, are surfing the internet, movies, and dining out.If you would like to contact me, visit www.BryanKollar.com/mmachine and fill out the simple form. I’d love to hear from you!

Book preview

The Memory Machine

Birthday Killings

Copyright ©2014 Bryan Kollar

at Smashwords

Smashwords Edition

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

Original cover art by Alicia Hope, http://www.aliciahopeauthor.blogspot.com

This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Acknowledgements and Shout Outs

Once again, the biggest acknowledgement I would like give is to Juanita Salsman, my editor. I honestly believe that without her, this release would not have been possible. I went over the manuscript FIVE times, yet she found and made many corrections. Thank you Juanita!

A huge thank you to everyone I mentioned in this book. Just like book one, I know every character personally in one way or another. I had permission from family and friends to use their first and last names. As you can understand, it was hard to decide who to kill and who to keep, but hey - at least you get to see your name in print, right? I hope you enjoy seeing your name in black and white, and I also hope you like the character I chose for you (although none of my friends or family are murderers - as far as I know, anyway).

I am sorry to report that the real life Audrey Ward from book one has passed away on August 27, 2014. I am glad that she was able to finish reading it because I know it made her smile when she saw her name in print. I miss you, second princess.

Throughout this book you may notice that I have Photoshopped pictures with the likeness of the person whose character they're based on. Those photos are the actual persons named in my book, so now my readers can put a real name to a real face. This was all made possible by www.Photofunia.com. It's a free website that allowed me to create the above-mentioned pictures. Check them out, they have loads more that you can design yourself, too.

There's one image of a tombstone. That image was created using www.tombstonebuilder.com. Thanks guys!

Thank you to every business mentioned in this book! Just like knowing every character in the book personally, every single mentioned business is real as well. You'll even find coupons in the back of the book for some of them. I hope it brings them more business.

Bio

I am a 43 year old Pennsylvania resident who spends a lot of time in hotel rooms because of my job, installing point of sale equipment in major establishments. This job requires me to cover a full seven states, adding 1000 miles a week to my odometer. It's because of these hotel stays that I get free time to read and write.

I also own a part-time computer business designing websites and repairing PCs at customers’ homes. For more information please visit www.BryanKollar.com

My interests, other than writing, are surfing the internet, movies, and dining out.

If you would like to contact me, visit www.BryanKollar.com/mmachine and fill out the simple form. I’d love to hear from you!

Blurb

Blake Stone's upgrade to his invention, The Memory Machine, is a huge improvement. Not only can it show what the murderer saw at the exact time of the killing, but it also reads minds of the people they killed.

Now Blake is wanted dead more than ever! People are killing Blake's loved ones, one by one, until he calls it quits.

How many people have to die before Blake throws in the towel?

THE MEMORY MACHINE

BIRTHDAY KILLINGS

CHAPTER 1

No, you definitely didn’t tell me, Blake said. He stood firm and stared at his wife.

Yes, I did. I told you right after I hung up the phone. I know this for a fact, because I was surprised you agreed so quickly, Sally said with authority, arms folded across her chest.

Blake smiled with an evil grin. Well, there's only one way to prove it.

You’re kidding, right?

Nope. What'rya afraid I'm right again?

Sally raised her eyebrows and stared into Blake’s eyes. She knew she was in trouble. Or was she? Did she really tell Blake about her friends coming over for dinner tonight? She began to doubt herself.

No, it's just... you can't use that thing on me every time we have an argument.

Babes, this is only the second time I’ve used it on you, and besides, it's not an argument, it’s a discussion. I know I'm right, but I'll tell you what. If by some miracle I'm wrong, I'll never use my invention on you again. You have my word.

And if you’re right?

All Blake had to do was smile.

Fine.

Blake put the helmet on his annoyed-looking wife. This is ridiculous. All this just to prove a point.

Blake smiled again with confidence. Are you ready?

Whatever, Sally said smugly.

Blake entered the date and time the phone conversation took place into the back of the helmet and turned on the eighty inch projection screen TV. The electronics in the super hero helmet made a vivid high definition video come to life which now displayed the exact moment in time looking through Sally's eyes.

-=><=--=><=--=><=--

Sally spoke of their son Nathan's upcoming fifth birthday party, clothing, shoes, dieting, celebrities, ex-boyfriends, sex, and everything else young women talk about.

To Blake, the conversation seemed to go on forever. Blah Blah Blah.

Sally finally hung up the phone and heard her son call out for her. She went to Nathan's room where he was building a snap-together plastic model car, applying the flamed decals.

Hi, Mommy.

Wow, that's looking really good, sweetie.

Thank you. I'm hungry, Mommy.

Okay dear, Daddy will be starting dinner soon.

Sally kissed Nathan's forehead and headed to the garage where Blake was working on the engine of a 1967 Chevy Corvair. Hey, hun, I’ll be right back. Gotta get stuff for tomorrow’s dinner. The girls are coming over, okay?

Uh huh, okay, Blake said as he continued to clean the already perfectly clean engine while watching football on the TV in the corner of the garage. He stretched out his neck for a kiss while his eyes were focused on the game. Love you.

Love you too. I’ll be back in thirty minutes. Maybe you can start dinner too?

"Uh huh. Sure thing, Babes."

Sally headed out the door.

-=><=--=><=--=><=--

Blake removed the helmet and the screen went blank.

Sally shouted, Told ya! and stuck out her tongue.

Sorry, Babes. You win.

*****

Smoke filled the air from the solder gun as Blake worked on his new invention in the lab. He was amazed how far it had evolved and thought about the initial design years ago. Back then The Memory Machine was a blue full leather face mask and gloves that he wore in order to hide his identity and prevent an assassination. While wearing the mask and gloves, all he had to do was program his laptop with a date and time and touch the temples of the one being accused. Images of what happened at that exact moment would appear on his laptop for everyone to see, as if looking through their eyes.

He could still remember the rush he felt when he solved his first crime, the Newberry stabbing. The news spread like wildfire. The whole world saw every gory detail - every stab, every kick to the stomach, and every punch.

Since no one knew who this masked man was, he had to create a name for himself. His best friend Saleem came up with a superhero name. He was introduced as Blake Stone, on live TV, instead of who he really was, Nathan Hickling.

Several years and hundreds of court cases later, he married Judge Sally Berneathy, the only judge to ever work with him and his invention. Blake passed his real first name to their son.

Now, seven years later, people knew what he looked like without the mask. Not by choice, thanks to the damn paparazzi. He was recognized as much, if not more, than the President of the United States, who had a direct line to Blake's office.

Blake still had at least two armed guards with him at all times when he or his wife left home. Brad Williams had been with him since the beginning, but Brad's sidekick, Alan Hidy, was shot trying to protect Blake. Joe Barna was hired as his replacement.

So much had changed. Blake no longer had to worry about traveling to a courthouse every day. All the court cases were now held right here in his mansion’s own courtroom. Criminals were brought to him, but he was periodically required to travel to other countries to solve crimes. Even though the mansion was built like Fort Knox, he had eight guards on duty at all times. A little overkill, but ever since the last incident with his guard being murdered in cold blood, he didn't want to take any more chances.

Crime rate was at an all time low. People were afraid to commit any crime, big or small, knowing that if they were tried under the court system with Judge Stone, Blake would be there, using the mask on the accused to prove what really happened. Not one single person was ever able to hold back their visions as Blake extracted those memories and displayed them for the world to see.

He put down his solder gun and held up the upgraded invention for inspection, the helmet he used earlier on Sally. Damn, this looks pretty good, if I do say so myself.

His thought process was interrupted by a knock on his laboratory door.

Blake looked up as the door creaked open and Grandma Cherie Dubiac’s head appeared. Blake, dear, Sally asked me to tell you that the girls will be here soon. You've been in here all day. Why don't you take a break?

Blake put the helmet down and rubbed his tired eyes. Thanks, Gram. Tell her I’ll be right down, please. He felt a little guilty. After all, he did spend an awful lot of time in his lab, but there was so much to be done. Heck, his invention already worked just as good as the old one did. It had been tested extensively, but he couldn't wait to figure out how to incorporate a change that would alter the world once again. Even when he did figure it out, he wasn't sure where he would find a recently deceased person to try it out on.

****

Aren't those the cutest shoes? Heidi said as she walked through the front door.

Sally smiled. Oh, these old things? She chuckled.