Jack noticed a large bundle of linen lying in the bed of the pickup. It looked like a body wrapped in sheets.
“Is… is this your…?”
“My wife, Miriam,” George said, putting his hand on the sheet. “I brought her here to try to save her life, but she…” His voice cracked with emotion. “But she ended up saving mine. I’m going to bring her home for a decent burial.”
“Would you mind giving us a ride?” Jack said. “I have an old RV that should still be parked a few miles away.”
George gestured to the cab. “Hop in.”
They climbed into the truck, and as George pulled back onto the road, Jack noticed the old wooden sign at the edge of town.
And it struck him just then how true it was.
About the Author
Jump in. Hang on.
Tom Pawlik is the highly imaginative, Christy Award–winning author of Vanish, Valley of the Shadow, and Beckon. His thought-provoking, edge-of-your-seat thrillers are infused with nonstop suspense that grabs you on the first page and won’t let go until the last.
Tom’s fascination with the weird, the creepy, and the unknown began at a very early age when he was introduced to a nineteenth-century storybook called Der Struwwelpeter—a collection of nightmarish morality tales by a German physician who obviously had too much time on his hands. The Mother Goose–meets–Stephen King nursery rhymes included “Daumenlutscher” (“Thumbsucker”), a disturbing yarn about a young boy who was warned that if he continued to suck his thumbs, the local tailor would chop them off with his sewing shears. Other macabre tales warned against playing with matches and being overly messy. Needless to say, Tom never played with matches, generally kept his room clean, and to this day retains the use of both his thumbs.
But the psychological damage was already done, and Tom’s warped imagination turned him to writing his own creepy stories at a rather young age. Alas, no publishers were brave enough to bring them to print, so Tom would not realize his lifelong dream of becoming a published author until the ripe old age of forty-two. Today, Tom lives in Ohio and is happily married with five children of his own… who, oddly enough, never sucked their thumbs.
Visit Tom’s website at www.tompawlik.com.
Praise for novels by Tom Pawlik
“Fans of Dean Koontz or Ted Dekker will appreciate… this debut psychological thriller.”
“[This] exciting page-turner is as unique and creative as it is suspenseful.”
“Pawlik’s book is engrossing…. The novel’s eerie events are thoroughly detailed, and the payoff is worth the time it takes to read this unique tale.”
“Vanish captured my interest from the beginning…. I would highly recommend [it] to readers across the age spectrum.”
“The creativity of debut author Tom Pawlik knows no bounds! Vanish suspends reality over a solidly scriptural base for a story that will topple readers into a dazzling truth. It might be best to read this book with the lights on, because there is a thrilling element of suspense in these pages.”
“A chilling thriller in the vein of Stephen King, Dean Koontz, and Ted Dekker. The complex plot, story line, well-developed characters, and shocking ending make Vanish a debut thriller not to miss.”
“Pawlik’s sequel to Vanish is just as thrilling as the first. The fast-paced, intriguing plot and detailed characters make the novel difficult to put down. The profound spiritual encounters will cause readers to think about their lives and faith in a unique way.”
“Extremely well-crafted, highly suspenseful, and anything but expected. The complex plot, thought-provoking premise, and creepy scenes… definitely draw the reader in quickly.”
“The suspense was excellent. Two worlds intertwine with the heart-racing plots that end in a startling conclusion.”
“Filled with twists—including a great finishing one—this is an emotional, uplifting thriller.”
Copyright
Visit Tyndale online at www.tyndale.com.
Visit Tom Pawlik’s website at www.tompawlik.com.
TYNDALE and Tyndale’s quill logo are registered trademarks of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.
Beckon
Copyright © 2012 by Tom Pawlik. All rights reserved.
Cover photograph copyright © Dan Jurak/Getty Images. All rights reserved.
Author photograph copyright © 2010 by Eric Boothe Photography. All rights reserved.
Designed by Dean H. Renninger
Edited by Sarah Mason
Published in association with the literary agency of Les Stobbe, 300 Doubleday Road, Tryon, NC 28782.
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, King James Version.
This novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons living or dead is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of either the author or the publisher.
Pawlik, Tom, date.
Beckon / Tom Pawlik.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-1-4143-3873-6 (sc)
1. College students—Fiction. 2. College teachers—Fiction. 3. Businessmen—Fiction.
4. Small cities—Fiction. I. Title.
PS3616.A9573B43 2012
813´.6—dc23 2011044280
