If You're Really Listening...

Randy keyed some buttons on his IPod that he hadn't tried before. This novel techno-path led him through four screens and menus before displaying a Ouija Board feature. He used the digital entry into the supernatural medium to contact his Uncle Frank, who'd died a few years previous. Curiosity about the undead led to fascination and Randy left a message on the ethereal plane for Frank to respond to. A sort of "knock three times if you're really listening" sort of thing. Dead Uncle Frank manifested himself to Randy in the sauna at the gym and told Randy to get a pen and paper. Randy towelled off, borrowed writing implements from the gym's front desk employees and wrote down a phone number. Over the following weekend, Randy called the number dead Uncle Frank gave him. A cigarette-ruined male voice answered on the other end and, after explaining that he was expecting Randy's call, asked Randy if he was ready to accept his destiny. Three years later, Randy was the owner of a cigar shop in St. George, Utah. His employees were reliable but could be sensitive to the criticisms that came their way as the natural result of being tobacco proprietors in a heavily religious Mormon town. Randy entertained dreams of taking the profits from his enterprise and donating it to the local high school so the administrators could proceed with a plan to expand the auditorium. Randy wouldn't have many stipulations for the expansion project, itself, but requested that they name the auditorium after his dead Uncle.