Psychs

By A. H. Amin

It started with a feeling, followed by a realization, then ended up into a future. All that started by the tragic event of his birth and revealed by a near death, and ever since, he had never been alone.

Sequential events started to occur in two cities, Dubai and Abu Dhabi, escalating into chaos. At that point, he finds himself in an enigma hes not aware of the cause. Using his miraculous gift, which gives him knowledge and guards him, he will be placed in that chaos to try and figure out the truth, and for that, he is being marked.

In these perilous times, he can only hope for a miracle other than the one he has.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse UK
• Release date: Jan 15, 2013
• ISBN: 9781481781527

A. H. Amin

A. H. Amin was born in Iraq, and he had lived most of his life in Kuwait. At the age of twenty-three, he started to participate in writing scripts for low-production movies. At twenty-four, he started with the first book of the Psych series, entitled Psychs. Now, he continues to write the series with the second one, entitled The Remnant, just around the corner.

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© 2013 by A. H. Amin. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 01/09/2013

ISBN: 978-1-4817-8151-0 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4817-8152-7 (e)

This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

CONTENTS

Prologue

Chapter 1: First Side of the Story

Chapter 2: What Can One See?

Chapter 3: The Second Side of the Story

Chapter 4: Acquaints

Chapter 5: Favor

Chapter 6: I am Shark

Chapter 7: Between Ethics and Duty

Chapter 8: Ironic

Chapter 9: Wrong Place, Little Time

Chapter 10: Finding Crumbs to Follow

Chapter 11: Animism

Chapter 12: Counseling

Chapter 13: A New Threat

Chapter 14: Obscure

Chapter 15: Hitchhike

Chapter 16: Truth be Told

Chapter 17: Debriefing

Chapter 18: What a Good Show Takes

Chapter 19: Predator

Chapter 20: Adjust

Chapter 21: Two of a Kind

Chapter 22: The Alibi Man

Chapter 23: Once an Adam

Chapter 24: Last Breath

Epilogue

action-packed tale of beyond-the-grave good vs. evil.

—Kirkus Indie

This is a very well written book and an extremely interesting story.

This is definitely a FIVE STAR BOOK.

A Whow! to the end.

—Amazon

"Psychs has truly the most unique style I have read so far in a novel.

It’s a mixture of a first-person account from Hassan’s point of view during a modern timeline and an omnipresent third-person view of events that are occurring ten years into the future."

—Barnes & Noble

Psychs is a wonderful thriller! Its action and suspense kept me glue to my seat, and I would definitely recommend it!

—Goodreads

I dedicate this book to the ones who helped me in shaping it.

My parents, who never stopped believing in me, and my younger brother who was the first person to read my book.

My older sister, brother-in-law and my College Professors who I annoyed with so many medical questions.

My older brother; he inspired me to create the character.

My editor, she helped smoothen the rough edges of my book, and my dear friend, who called me from a video store, thinking that my idea of this book was a movie.

I thank you all

A. H. Amin

Good and Evil has no passport; it wears many skins, speaks in different tongues, and exists everywhere, even in the same person

Prologue

I’ve never been alone. Since I was only a child I felt a presence and it always frightened me.

‘It’s just a phase’ I heard my step-father say once when I was in my bedroom trying really hard to force myself to sleep.

‘It’ll pass. Don’t worry honey’

But it never did. I’m not scared anymore though, I got past that. But the feeling of someone watching me still irritates me, even when I was with other people, or in public. I always felt an extra presence.

Spotting out of the corner of my eye something in places where it’s impossible that anyone or anything could be. Within time I learned to be less reactive to it. The last thing I wanted was to spend my life in an asylum, or be questioned by other people or even my own friends and family.

I was seventeen when I found out why I felt that, and when I did, I knew my life would never be the same again.

The lesson was learned. No matter who you are, it’s not always who you’ll become.

Chapter 1: First Side of

the Story

A tense day started. At the police department everyone was waiting for the meeting to start. It was unlikely because nothing before had ever occurred in the same manner; a robbery that turned into something else.

They managed to cover up what had happened, and they managed to deal with it in the most efficient way that a situation such as that could be handled. Consequently, no-one would know other than them and the people who are involved, making it hard to obtain a straight version of the story.

Half an hour ago, Solomon, a lieutenant at the department, was examining the surveillance tapes retrieved from the scene and preparing a presentation for his superiors. An hour should have been enough to prepare a presentation if it hadn’t been for what Solomon had witnessed on those tapes.

The event took place at the International Bank of Abu Dhabi. It happened in the afternoon, when everyone is at work and the streets are empty except for the cabs. One can say if a tree fell down at that time, it won’t bother to make a noise.

After waiting for a long time, all the people related to the gathering were in place.

‘Can we start please?’ the Chief Director spoke the first words.

‘Solomon?’

Solomon responded to his superior and stood up. In his hand he held a remote for the projector. On the table was the remote for the screen for when he planned to view the surveillance tapes he had retrieved. He clicked the remote and an image of a convicted felon appeared.

‘These are the people who started all this. We identified them through their wallets and they carried Turkish IDs’

Solomon kept clicking on and on, defining each one of them and the weapons that they were carrying came up.

‘Some carried a 9mm or a SOCOM as a side arm, and they all had old fashioned AKs. Their passports showed that they entered the country two weeks ago, and there’s a ticket for today’s flight on Lufthansa.’

An officer drew his eyes from the screen and looked at Solomon.

‘They couldn’t have smuggled these of course, they must have a weapons dealer here’ the officer pointed out. He was one of the sergeants under Solomon’s command, who went by the name Nabil, and also his most intelligent operator and occasionally his driver.

‘That’s right’ Solomon nodded.

‘We got the call from one of the hostages. His name was David Tenkilsten. He was shot afterwards and if wasn’t for him they may have taken their flight…’

‘. . . they entered through the security entrance with the help of one of the security guards; he said that he was threatened by them. They have his family too, but we still can’t seem to locate them’

‘Well until you do. You are to keep him in custody ‘the Director said.

Solomon was convinced that he had nothing to do with it. He saw the burglars roughing him a couple of times on the retrieved surveillance video, but still; he was the one to let them in, that’s what matters to his superiors, and until his family are found, he was to be put in a cell.

‘I understand that a robbery took place that then turned into a homicide… ‘the chief director said.

‘. . . but I also understand that there was more than killing to it… am I right?’

The Director eyed Solomon and waited for an answer which he was sure that he would get from the screen.

‘Yes sir, I’m afraid there was more to it…’

Solomon clicked on the remote and the screen showed an upper and a lower level of the bank. The upper level showed the hostages and three masked men. The lower level showed four masked men, three holding firearms and one is crouching slightly.

‘Solomon… ‘the Chief said with a hint of confusion. ‘. . . I’m seeing seven; you just showed us six pictures of them’

‘I know sir, there are seven, but one is not with them, he’s someone else, the one with the white and black mask over there’ Solomon pointed with a laser pen.

The Chief Director eyed the image facing him.

What in god’s name??This guy is sneaking? The director thought. He noticed a knife being held by the crouching figure with the distinctive mask. Come to think of it; he noticed that he was now hiding behind a column.

What am I going to witness?

‘Shall I start, sir?’ Solomon said, noticing the curiosity on their faces.

‘Please’ answered the director, Solomon did so and all the attendants fell silent.

The video shows:-

In the upper level, one was standing near the stairs and two were arguing over a dead body.

The lower level, one was near the stairs listening and the other two were standing still facing toward the noise. The figure with the distinctive mask was hiding behind a column. He was looking at something, looked like he was waiting for something, then, he nodded and suddenly he moved so quickly towards the nearest to him. He got the first one.

The second and third burglars were now alerted.

He went for the second nearest to him, and face to face now he grabbed him and used his knife and aimed towards his . . .

Suddenly, the tension was broken by an officer barging in. Solomon pressed pause.

‘Sir… . ‘The officer said.

‘There’s a women who want to see you regarding the robbery… She says that she’s from Interpol’.

Interpol? Solomon thought, and looked to Nabil, and they both communicated the same thoughts between them.

So it happened someplace else too.

‘Let her in’

A woman entered the hall looking tense and displeased. She had been calling and no-one had answered her, telling her to wait while what they are really doing was ignoring her. They were ordered not to let anything get out of the office, therefore trying to make her wait and pretending to forget about her was their first choice of how to deal with her.

‘Since when does Interpol have to beg for a piece of information about international thieves?!’ She said rapidly.

The Chief looked at her, unhappy with her reaction and her seriousness, but of course, she wanted to prove a point and to make sure they start to take her seriously.

‘We didn’t want this information to get out at all. Besides; they won’t be going anywhere’

‘Do you have them in custody right now?’

The Chief hesitated before he answered, then he said.

‘Yes, but they are at the morgue’

The Interpol lady’s face went blank.

‘Is it the department’s policy to kill everyone without trying to catch and question them?’ she finally said.

‘Weren’t you able to detain them?’

‘Is it your policy to assume we killed them?’

‘Well… ‘Solomon said.

‘We were just watching how before you came in. If you want to know how, we can show you. Just have a seat ma’am’

Solomon pointed to an empty seat.

‘I think I’ll stand up thank you very much’ she replied firmly.

Solomon rewound and played the tape from the beginning.

Chapter 2: What Can One See?

It was Thursday, my favorite day of the week. Just finished school and couldn’t wait to get home and recharge for a football match this afternoon.

I was going to have lunch on my way home, and as I walked, I felt as always that someone was walking with me; no one was around of course.

I started to walk faster until I was ten metres away from a fast food court that I always went too.

And suddenly, for the first time, the feeling was gone. I stood still, looked around and found no one as usual, but this time, I was sure there’s no one, then, I saw her, a woman behind a glass window.

She was terrified, I was confused; she looked and dressed strangely, I didn’t notice it at the time, not at the first glimpse anyway.

She pointed to a building and I followed where she indicated. A fourteen storey building. It had a window with one of the biggest English football club’s flag, Manchester United, that surely belonged to a huge fan. Another had a smiley face that says ‘any problems?’, and… one, a young woman was peering through it, halfway out.

I looked at the women behind the glass and looked back again. ‘HELP! Anyone, please, help!!’

A woman on the eighth floor was screaming her lungs out, and her hands I finally noticed, were red in color, a red liquid that didn’t belong to her. Someone with her needs help.

I ran, holding the phone to my ear, and when I reached the building’s hall I had finished describing the location to the police. It was the eighth floor, I reminded myself. I pressed the eighth level’s pad and hoped it was not too late.

I reached the eighth floor. No one could hear her in the hall, I thought, since there’s no one outside. I was hardly able to hear her from where I was, I had to check the doors one by one, and I found it after my fifth attempt, apartment number 817, a number that has stayed in my mind until this very day.

When I reached for the handle, the feeling came back to me again; that someone was with me, then I felt a chill running down through my spine. I felt that I should not go inside; my instincts said I should pull back.

I have to, something bad may have happened in there.

With that thought I opened the door.

First thing I saw was the living room I took two steps when suddenly, the door slammed.

The breeze from the opened window in her room, I explained to myself. I walked towards her voice that was coming from the corridor. I walked fast and after a couple of paces, my footsteps started to sound different. I looked down and saw a red viscous liquid, blood. I could even smell it, a prominent, strong odor, too strong; I could even feel the metallic taste in the back of my tongue.

It came from the left. I almost turned to see the source, but suddenly, something came from behind me and stood in front of me.

It came literally from behind me and emerged from my chest. A person went through me. My blood ran cold and my heart started to pump its way through my throat. A hazy looking man, I could almost see through him, was pointing anxiously, to my right. I took a step back when suddenly; a bat hit my forehead. I went down, feeling dizzy, and started to crawl on my back.

The blurry ghost figure was multiplying and all of them were gesturing for me to run. Then a skinny man pushed through them holding a bat. He looked at me, not noticing the others in the room.

‘So you’re the one taking them away from me?’

The guy with the bat said to me, his eyes were red and he was babbling more than talking. He was stoned.

‘If I can’t have them, then neither can you. You’re not taking my wife and my daughters from me’

One of the ghosts, the woman who I saw behind the glass was next to the others. She was crying in fear and was yelling something, but I couldn’t hear her or any of them. One of the translucent figures tried to tackle the guy, but only passed through him like an unfelt breeze.

I was very scared now from what I was seeing. What in god’s name are they??

One came near my face and I read his lips.

‘Run!!!’

But I was frightened to death when I suddenly saw the guy raising his bat

‘No! Please! Please!’

I begged for my life and the guy’s reply was this

‘Don’t beg for anything, you know you deserve this’ a reply that made no sense whatsoever, no logic could condemn me of that, but that didn’t apply to him.

He swung his first blow and my sight went blurry. I couldn’t hear a thing, the woman’s scream was gone and I thought I lost all feelings and sense. Until the second blow came and with it my world turned black.

I woke up and realized I was in an ambulance.

‘He’s awake… ‘, one of the two paramedics said.

‘Hang on young man… we’re almost there’

‘Get them off me!!! Help!! Help!’

I was scared at what I was seeing. These things I saw are watching me very closely with their faces almost stuck to mine, a tremendously frightening scene, a nightmare one can’t wake from.

‘Keep them off me!!’

I started rattling and struggling, like a fish brought on land.

‘Hold him’ one of them said.

I felt a pinch but I kept acting like a fish until my body started to respond less.

‘Poor kid…’

That was the last thing I heard when I closed my eyes, and the last thing I saw was those eight strange figures I had seen back in number 817.

I woke up in a hospital. I tried to get up but couldn’t because I was strapped to the bed. My father, my step father, was asleep next to my bed on a chair that looked rather uncomfortable.

‘Father… ‘Father!’

My father looked at me, then his eyes widened.

‘Son, Are you alright?’

He jumped in his chair placing his hand on my shoulder.

‘What happened?’ I asked, wanting to make sure what I saw was not a dream.

‘Someone attacked you with a bat… you would have died if wasn’t for the woman who came and saved you’

‘What woman?’

‘The one you called the police for. After you passed out, she came and stopped him’

‘Where is she?’

My father said nothing.

‘He killed her and her daughters’ a man said to me, standing at the opposite side of my father, at the room’s door steps.

‘We came in just in time to save you’

Poor woman, I couldn’t save her, neither her daughters. I remembered the sticky floor and the smell of the salty rust, they died before I came.

‘He was a jealous husband and they were divorced. So it was a crime of jealousy’

‘Why am I tied up?’ I said.

‘You were a danger to yourself; you were shouting, kicking and screaming on the way here’

‘What happened son?’ my father asked.

‘I saw something’ and suddenly I saw them again

Two of them were shushing me when I noticed them and I looked at them in fear.

‘What is it?’

I pointed to my father towards the corner of the room.

‘There’s nothing there, son… are you sure you’re okay?’

‘Father, get them away’ and suddenly they went through the wall.

‘There’s nothing there’ my father said.

‘They’re gone now’ I looked at my father and he was shocked at what I had just said.

‘Father, I’m telling you there were two people in here’

‘Sir, may I have a word?’ the officer said to my father and went out.

‘Son, I’ll be back in a minute, you’ll be fine, there’s no one here but us, your mother is coming tomorrow from your grandmother’s house. I’ll be back, okay?’

He went out and I was alone on the bed, tied up. I closed my eyes; I didn’t want to see anything, no more ghosts. My mind was in chaos. I’m seeing things, I almost got killed, I was in pain and everyone thinks I’m crazy now. I sobbed silently.

‘Son, listen… ‘my father came back and I opened my eyes. He looked at me in a sympathetic way.

‘. . . you just had a… . ‘My father paused ‘Very bad day… me and Mister Solomon want to help you’ I didn’t like the sound of that, I thought.

‘He’s going to help you… he’ll take you to see a couple of doctors’

‘I’m not crazy!’

‘Son… I know you’re not… your stressed, and you had a trauma

‘But father…’

‘Hassan! You’re seeing people who aren’t there!’

I couldn’t reply to that

‘Don’t worry son. It’ll be okay… time heals all wounds, physical and mental… . I’m doing this for your own good’

‘Father?’

‘Yes son?’

‘What happened to that guy, the one who attacked me?’

‘He won’t bother you anymore… they got him, just relax son’

The day after came, they took me to a mental hospital; I was scared at the Idea that I’m labeled as mentally unstable. I had that feeling of someone watching me now, and for the first time I knew what the things stalking me were.

‘Hello Mr. Hassan… nice to have you here’ a woman in reception said. Her name tag says Mrs. Judith, Chief Nurse.

‘Dr. Eta, your doctor, is not on duty right now, so why don’t we show you where will you be staying?’

She led the way to a room with a single bed and a window.

‘Just relax and tomorrow the doctor will see you’

I went inside and sat on the bed. My father told me that my mother couldn’t find an empty seat so she’s going to have to fly tomorrow. She must have been worried sick about me. After that I thought of the woman I wasn’t able to save. I thought of her losing her two daughters and how grateful I am to her.

You would have died if wasn’t for the woman who came and saved you.

I thought about that guy, the murderer, and wondered where he was and what was he doing right now.

Suddenly, I felt the presence again and started thinking of the ghosts I had seen earlier. I recalled the events in my mind. If I remembered correctly; they wore military clothes, except… her

I walked to the door and looked through its window and made sure no one could see what I was about to do. I stood in the middle of the room and looked around.

‘I know you’re here. Whatever you are, I want you to come out’

I remembered what they did; I remember them warning me about him. I also remembered them trying to conceal themselves when I looked at them in the hospital.

They don’t want to hurt me . . . at least they can’t.

This gave me the courage to try to summon them.

Otherwise they would have stopped that guy, I remembered the one who tried to stop him but he only got past by moving through him.

‘Please I’m not scared anymore’ I tried again, I stood for half an hour. They won’t show themselves, I thought.

I went to my new bed, it was 5 pm and I was not tired. I lay on the bed and closed my eyes, enough to see through my eyelashes, and waited.

Will they show up? I thought, am I really imagining them? Am I crazy? No . . . I saw the first one before I was attacked, it’s not a psychological trauma; I really saw them.

Suddenly I felt someone coming from my left side of the bed. Slowly she started to appear. It was her. I didn’t open my eyes, I kept watching her. She sat on the bed next to me, and looked at me.

I inhaled a big amount of air; I had held my breath the moment she appeared. This made my lungs expand, and forced my chest to move accordingly.

She backed up and looked at me, she thought that I was waking up and she didn’t want to scare me again. She stood still and I kept my eyes almost closed. I had to act… I didn’t want to scare her off, this is my chance.

While my eyes were closed, I raised my hands, gestured to her. She backed away.

‘Wait, don’t go’

I opened my eyes and said it again with my hand and with my lips.

‘Don’t go! Stay’

She did, and suddenly more appeared. Eight, I counted six men and two women. I wondered why I was seeing military ghosts.

Why me. Why am I the one who see’s these ghosts? I can’t talk to them and they don’t talk to me, we cannot understand each other. What do I do now? Why me of all people, what am I going to do now with my life? I couldn’t think of an answer at that time.

Chapter 3: The Second Side

of the Story

At 7:58 am in the morning, four hours before the event at the International bank of Abu Dhabi, a man was lying down on his bed looking at the ceiling waiting for the alarm to hit 8 a.m. Every day he wakes up at 4:50 am to do his ‘meditation’, as he referred to it. He prays and refreshes himself, then stays in bed and just rests his eyes.

The clock reached 8 am and the alarm clock played the piano. He got up and took his watch from where it hung on the neck of a wooden horse placed on the table next to him.

He stayed on the bed in an upright position, until the first movement of the sonata was done. He stopped his symphonic alarm clock, got up, went to the sink and splashed his face with water to wake himself up.

His apartment had two rooms and one living room; two rooms are bedrooms and the other he has turned into a fitness room. He went towards the latter. He entered and found Sergeant Joseph, his mentor waiting for him, together with the other seven ghosts.

‘I’m just going to do some stretching’ Hassan said to them.

‘Suits you’ Sergeant Joseph replied in sign language.

Half an hour later he went to the door to pick his daily newspaper as always. He had heard the paper guy come hours ago, his eyes were shut but not his ears. As usual something bad had happened. No-one writes about normal people, good news is always pushed back away from the first pages.

Maybe once in a while, in order not to make themselves look like they are always the bearers of bad news or pessimistic publishers, maybe then some good news appears in the papers.

‘Now that’s a doozy, 10 years in prison!’ Jack said. He is the ghost who is the most superstitious. He noticed the article that was placed on the first page.

[Two men were found dead, one is a known terrorist and an arms dealer, the other, a U.S. soldier]. Though it had been a while since he had heard such a thing, as usual, he didn’t see the news in full. Not that he doesn’t care, he just doesn’t like the idea of people profiting from other’s misery, even though in a way, he does that every day.

Unlike Dubai, Abu Dhabi, being an island, only expands in length, whereas Dubai, a desert, is growing on all sides. This fact made Abu Dhabi an economical city. The best entertainment and sightseeing, other than Abu Dhabi and Marina Mall, is the Corniche; internationally known because of the Red Bull flying events they hold almost annually.

It draws a border around Abu Dhabi and Hassan was walking along it. He always enjoyed the view and as he walked, Sergeant Mason and Emma, the female ghost, glided along with him. In the end, they reached Hassan’s favorite spot near the park, sat on a bench facing the beach and waited.

‘Hope nothing big happens’ The sergeant said

Hassan smiled and kept looking at the beach.

‘What? I’m not good enough to look at?’ Mason said.

With Hassan not being able to reply in public it was the best time to mess with him. Mason wanted to keep himself entertained until the others get back.

An hour ago the ghosts had split into four groups, two in each formation. One group stayed with Hassan, the other went to inspect the city.

‘Still not talking to me?’ Sergeant Mason kept humoring himself at Hassan’s expense. He reached his hands and it went through Hassan’s face.

‘Stop it!’ the female spirit said.

‘Okay, I’ll stop . . . for now’ he said to her.

‘How much time left for them?’

Hassan looked at his watch, and then extended all his ten fingers three times.

‘Thirty minutes?!’ Mason complained.

‘That’s a lot of time to go without me messing with you . . .’

Hassan plugged in his earphones to hear some music, keeping himself occupied with some old classics from his younger days, when suddenly.

‘Heads up’

Emma pointed; two ghosts appeared and stood in front of him. Hassan placed his right foot on his left and also crossed his arms. To them it meant that, I’m listening.

Rod, one of the two new arrivals spoke in signs, and as soon as he did, Hassan stood and followed him.

Hassan walked quickly and jogged a little, until finally he stood in front of the head office tower of the National Bank of Abu Dhabi.

‘Three on the first floor, one on the second, one is cutting all communications in the building and the last is with a hostage getting the money from a safe, a security guard’ Joseph Said.

‘Where should I go?’ Hassan asked

Rod led the way and he followed.

‘Every entrance is closed. The best way is through there’

Sergeant Rod pointed him to the building next door.

‘Me and Joseph saw that the best way is from that apartment to that office’

An office which was under constructions and had an A.C. ventilation opening that could lead to almost everywhere in the building if someone had the right directions.

‘Are you sure you can do this?’ the female spirit said.

‘It’s not my first jump you know’ he gave her an assuring wink.

He reached the fifth floor, following Rod to the place where he and Joseph planned his infiltration tactics.

‘Check status’ Hassan said with his left hand to Rod, who was behind his left shoulder, and with his right, he communicated with Emma.

‘Let everyone assemble . . . ‘he said ‘. . . please’ she complied, passed through the building’s wall and did what she was asked for.

Hassan reached for the door.

‘Clear’ Rod said.

Hassan picked the lock, exactly as a certain ghost had taught him long ago. Then he entered