The Beast of 1977 (Book 1)

Dressed in his slightly tattered grey winter coat, a Cleveland Browns knit hat and a Band-Aid in the center of his forehead, Isaac stepped inside and gladly shook Levin's hand.

"Hi, Isaac," Levin warmly greeted.

Rubbing his cold hands together, Isaac smiled back, "How ya doin', man"

"Well, why don't you have a seat?" Jeremiah said as he sat himself down behind his compact desk.

Isaac took off his coat and hat and laid them on the leather couch behind him. He then tried to caress some warmth into his arms. He was wearing a green Izod sweater and a faded pair of blue jeans, and even in all of his layers the young man still felt like a six foot tall ice pick.

"Can I bum a smoke off of you, my man?" Isaac anxiously asked.

"Sure." Levin strangely eyed Isaac as he opened a drawer within his desk and took out a pack of Marlboro's.

Isaac secured the cigarette from the doctor and waited until Levin whipped out a lighter to ignite the tip.

"I wasn't aware that you smoked." Levin curiously grinned.

Isaac sat down in the chair in front of the desk and stated, "I don't smoke in front of my father and kid. But anywhere else, I'm game."

"I understand." Levin nonchalantly waved his hand. "Everyone here seems to frown upon anyone who smokes anymore." He hopelessly sighed. "So, how are you doing these days?"

Gradually coming down from his cold fit, Isaac explained in between puffs, "Not bad. Been looking for a job. And I got engaged the other night."

"Congratulations!" Levin lit up. "When is the wedding?"

"My lady says she wants a spring wedding, so, I figure it'll be sometime around April or May."

"Super, just super," Levin graciously smiled.

Isaac stared pensively at the doctor while taking a long drag on his cigarette. He wasn't accustomed to being around such a young looking professional man. In a way, it put him at ease, it made him feel as though he didn't have to live up to a lofty, generational expectation that seemingly everyone over the age of forty had already set for him.

Studying Jeremiah with a keen eye, Isaac cunningly grinned, "You sure you're a psychiatrist and not some college kid trying to get extra credit from his professor or something?"

Levin just sat back. "I'm actually five years older than you. I received my bachelors from Ohio State when I turned twenty-three. I hope that meets your standards." He cracked a smile.

"Man, you must've been real smart back in high school. If it hadn't been for me smoking since the eighth grade I probably would've joined the football team. And who knows, maybe the NFL."

"My dad once told me that smoking was the poetry of liars. It hides the true you behind a façade of so called lethargy."

Isaac screwed up his face and giggled, "Your dad sounds like mine. I swear, that man can recite just about every verse out of the bible, and ninety-nine percent of the time I don't have a damn clue as to what he's talkin' about."

Jeremiah joined in on the humor while unhinging his tie. "I have an uncle who happens to be a rabbit in Utica, New York. Till this day the man still gets me to recite verses out of the Tanakh."

"Does he have that real deep Jewish accent? You know, like he's gagging on something whenever he talks?" Isaac smirked.

"Yep, that's my uncle Jerome alright." Levin lightheartedly chuckled.

"Don't get me wrong, I love my dad to death, but you get tired of always hearing bible verses night and day. You would think after hearing it for twenty years that I'd have the whole bible memorized by now." Isaac joked while squashing the butt of his cigarette out in the glass ashtray on the desk.

"So tell me, how do you and your father get along?"

"We're cool, I guess." Isaac exhaled.

"Just cool," Jeremiah queried.

I mean, besides what happened back in November, me and him see

back at that house? Doctor Sanyupta never went

"No, I mean me trying

Levin panted. "What

the time. I swung at 'em, next

"It was that

ever seen my father? The man isn't

"How did you feel when your father brought you

pissed at a lot of things at the time. But when I finally came to and

his desk and said, "Doctor Sanyupta mentioned that your mother

"Yeah, she died six years ago from a brain

her passing brought

got along. If anything changed after my mom's death, it had to be that

"You keep mentioning

trying to do. Sanyupta did the same thing. So before you try and go back in time with me, understand, I

"Really,"

Hell, I

to jot something

suffered from blackouts before. Have you seen a doctor about them? Are any of these blackouts

just so he can tell me to take some Anacin. If it weren't for the state paying for this visit I wouldn't

to the root of these blackouts, Isaac, especially since they

squirmed about in his seat like an impatient five year old at that moment. He tried to

night, I remember talking to my dad. Then I went and made some popcorn and watched some TV. After that, everything went dark. When I woke

see." Levin murmured, still scribbling away on his

"No, not really," Isaac shrugged. "And then there was yesterday. I remember waking up, eating breakfast, talking to Lynn on the phone and then my dad taking me down to his job to see if I could get on. Then, we

mention that you would see...another person in

before he turned his head and exhaled as if he were too ashamed to hear anything more come from the

Isaac, "it's just you and me in here. The only other person that knows about this is Sanyupta. I'm not trying to pry, I just want to make

he were

its face. It just comes out of nowhere, and then it just leaves. It never speaks. It just walks around. I don't know if it's

it'll start to come together for you. I mean, I heard when they first brought you to Ashlanview that you were a...for lack of a better term, a wreck. But after only

himself as if he were recalling something funny before he said, "I

Levin sat back and took off his glasses. "Uh, yeah," he modestly answered. "I'll admit that it's not exactly what

mean to say is that you've never heard a colored person sat that he

"I thought you people didn't like to be called colored." Levin haphazardly jibed while apparently waiting for a smile to make its way

the joke, he was just awestruck at the sheer boldness

and a woman who believed that she was a ghost, even though she was

Isaac dropped his head and said, "Those cats weren't my friends. And as far as what happened back in November, let's just say, for now...I got caught up in something

were you beaten up that night?

silence. He was

"I just can't even begin to imagine the utter pain and agony that you went

is that...I wasn't beaten up. And you're damn right,

about to throw another barrage of inquiries at Isaac, he paused to examine the young man who suddenly took on the eerie appearance of someone who wasn't even in the same

seat, slumping closer and closer to the floor like he was about

"I miss my mom." The young

"I beg your pardon?" Sitting up,

Sometimes she could be just like my dad, spitting bible verses left and right, but for a long time, she was my best friend. I was the one that pulled away from her. I got to that age when I thought I was too cool. Couldn't nobody tell me shit. I'll never forget the day before they took her to the hospital, she and I argued because I wasn't doing my homework. That was the last time I spoke to her before

sorts of trouble, Isaac. This so called ghost that you see, this mythical creature that you think you are,

about a second chance. When I was laid up in Ashlandview, I got a chance to do a lot of thinking. I got a son. I look at a lot of brotha's out there now, fuckin' up, doin' things they're not supposed to be doin'. I swore that I'd be different. I want my son to look up to me like I look up to my dad. I want my fiancé to have a man that she can depend on. I swore to God and even my own mother that I would be different.

The more Isaac spoke, something inside of him began to twist and turn, much like a stomach ache, but on a less gut