A Murder of Crows
Authors: David Rotenberg
Praise for
The Placebo Effect
“This novel heats up and never stops.”
âThe Globe and Mail
“The success of his epic novel
Shanghai
, which was published in 2008, demonstrated that Rotenberg could break away from convention without loosening his hold on the imagination of his readers. Rotenberg blends the best of [his previous] books in his latest effort,
The Placebo Effect
.”
âNational Post
“The Placebo Effect . . .
is a thoughtful, challenging novel masquerading as a . . . thriller.”
âQuill & Quire
“A moody speculative-fiction thriller.”
âThe Winnipeg Free Press
Praise for
Shanghai
“
Shanghai
is heart pounding and brutal. It puts you right into the thick of the city, its people, its passions.”
âJurgen Gothe, NUVO
magazine
“Rotenberg's Shanghai . . . is a place full of effective, unexpected entertainment.
âPublishers Weekly
“
Shanghai
is jam-packed with story and adventure.”
â
Maclean's
Praise for the Zhong Fong series
“Rotenberg has a real talent for characterization and place, taking readers right into the urban heart of Shanghai, with its eighteen million people and conflicts between tradition and modernization.”
âThe Globe and Mail
“Rotenberg's take on the street life, bureaucracy, and sheer mass of Shanghai cleverly captures a wonderful, baffling city.”
âToronto Star
“This delightful series . . . gets better with each new novel.”
âThe Chronicle Herald,
Halifax
“A fascinating journey into a remarkable culture.”
âOttawa Citizen
“Readers will be clamouring for more Rotenberg.”
âBooklist
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Chapter 1: Thoughts at T Minus 12 Days, 4 Hours and 16 Seconds
Chapter 2: A Bounty of GiftsâBefore
Chapter 3: A Vagary of VegasâT Equals 1 Month Plus
Chapter 4: An Island of HicksâT Equals 1 Month Plus
Chapter 5: More Vagaries of VegasâT Equals 1 Month Plus
Chapter 6: A Dream of Seth'sâT Equals 1 Month Plus
Chapter 7: An Approach of GraduationsâT Equals 1 Month Plus
Chapter 8: A Beginning of BetrayalsâEighteen Months Earlier
Chapter 9: A Friendship of Eddie'sâT Equals 1 Month Plus
Chapter 10: A Book of ActingâT Equals 1 Month Plus
Chapter 11: A Searching of DeckerâT Equals 1 Month Plus
Chapter 12: An Advance of African TripsâT Equals 1 Month Plus
Chapter 13: A Murder of CrowsâT Minus 12 Days, 4 Hours and 8 Seconds
Chapter 14: A Singularity of TurdâT Equals 1 Month Plus
Chapter 15: A Differential of Town and GownâT Equals 1 Month Plus
Chapter 16: An Extremis of ProfessorsâT Equals 1 Month Plus
Chapter 17: A Void of CaringâT Equals 1 Month Plus
Chapter 18: A Dream of South Africa and NamibiaâT Equals 1 Month Plus to T Minus 21 Days
Chapter 19: A Crossing of BordersâT Minus 16 Days
Chapter 20: A Drunkenness of Cops: Garreth SeniorâT Minus 16 Days
Chapter 21: A Plotting of Crazy EddiesâT Minus 16 Days
Chapter 22: A Tentativeness of ApproachâT Minus 14 Days
Chapter 23: A Crash of RhinosâT Minus 12 Days
Chapter 24: A Fury of BlastsâT Minus 12 Days
Chapter 25: A Collection of CluesâT Minus 12 Days
Chapter 26: An Interview of a JanitorâT Minus 12 Days
Chapter 27: A Mass of MediaâT Minus 12 Days to T Minus 8 Days
Chapter 28: A Mélange of Thoughts and ActionsâT Minus 8 Days
Chapter 29: A Glory of Travels in NamibiaâT Minus 21 Days to T Minus 7 Days
Chapter 30: A Solitaire of MooseâT Minus 7 Days
Chapter 31: A Hill of AntsâT Minus 7 Days
Chapter 32: A Snippet of an Airplane ConversationâT Minus 7 Days
Chapter 33: A Privacy of ThoughtsâT Minus 6 Days
Chapter 34: A Confusion of RiddlesâT Minus 6 Days
Chapter 35: A Reading of MindsâT Minus 6 Days
Chapter 36: A Folder of FilesâT Minus 6 Days
Chapter 37: A Pile of JunkâT Minus 6 Days
Chapter 38: A Statue of ScrapâT Minus 6 Days
Chapter 39: A Student AffairâT Minus 6 Days
Chapter 40: A Smugness of Small MindsâT Minus 6 Days to T Minus 5 Days
Chapter 41: A Joust of JournalsâT Minus 5 Days
Chapter 42: The Sanctity of Chapel HouseâT Minus 5 Days
Chapter 43: A Voyage of DreamsâT Minus 5 Days
Chapter 44: A Celebration of Ground One ThousandâT Minus 5 Days
Chapter 45: A World of WondersâT Minus 4 Days
Chapter 46: A Tale of Two PadsâT Minus 4 Days
Chapter 47: A Tale of Two MenâBefore
Chapter 48: A Reality of TV ShowsâT Minus 4 Days
Chapter 49: A Leverage of PromptorâT Minus 3 Days
Chapter 50: A Bibble of EddieâT Minus 3 Days
Chapter 51: A Collision of Library Books and Red MudâT Minus 3 Days
Chapter 52: A Mixing of The Grey-Haired Man and FuneralsâT Minus 2 Days
Chapter 53: A Killing of a SupervisorâT Minus 2 Days
Chapter 54: A Cacophony of OutsidersâT Minus 2 Days
Chapter 55: A Calling to OrderâT Minus 2 Days
Chapter 56: Scorpions and the Southern SkyâT Minus 2 Days
Chapter 57: An Agreement of TradeâT Minus 1 Day
Chapter 58: A Vision from on HighâT Minus 1 Day
Chapter 59: An Arrival of a Lonely ManâT Minus 1 Day
Chapter 60: Another Agreement of TradeâT Minus 1 Day
Chapter 61: A Scream of ViolasâT Minus 1 Day
Chapter 62: An Ocean of GriefâT Minus 1 Day
Chapter 63: A Response to PressâAfter
Chapter 64: An Object out of PlaceâAfter
Chapter 65: The Leaving of a DreamerâAfter
Chapter 66: A Paucity of Good-ByesâAfter
Chapter 67: A Scheming of Crazy EddieâAfter
Chapter 68: A Meeting of Old AcquaintancesâAfter
Chapter 69: A Stifle of Mr. Ira CharendoffâAfter
Chapter 70: A Mother of ManhuntsâAfter
Chapter 71: A Reverie of Mr. Walter JonesâAfter
Chapter 72: A Solitaire of Ms. Yslan HicksâAfter
Chapter 73: A Wakening of a Leavenworth Convict: Yslan's Third Gifted SynaestheteâAfter
Chapter 74: A Spinning of Ms. Viola TrippingâAfter
Chapter 75: A Conspiracy of Mr. Leonard HarrisonâAfter
Chapter 76: A Dream of Seth RobertsâBeneath
Chapter 77: A Solitude of Mr. Decker RobertsâBeyond
I'd like to thank three doctors who are helping me through some pretty trying times:
Dr. Laurence Klotz, who goes the extra yard for me
Dr. Kasra Khorasani, who helps me keep my mind from going into overdrive
Dr. Ken Lipinski, who offers consultation and words of wisdom whenever I ask
To the three of you, this one's here because of your help.
And as always there would be no books without Susan, Joey and Beth.
The gods themselves cannot recall their gifts.
âA
LFRED
, L
ORD
T
ENNYSON
For fear of nightmares
Humanity will abandon dreaming.
Just watch 'em.
â
GRAFFITI ON
C
ANAL
S
TREET SUBWAY WALL CIRCA
1979
THOUGHTS AT T MINUS 12 DAYS, 4 HOURS AND 16 SECONDS
This is a foolish country. And this town with its obsessively symmetrical old church is ridiculous.
These people believe they will live forever. They hide death behind walls and bury it in places with names like Pleasant Valley and Peaceful Rest. We in the East know that death is neither pleasant nor restful.
Perhaps we spend too much time thinking about our deathsâbut death is real. It is the only certainty. And to refuse to confront a certainty is a foolishness. A foolishness that all these Americans will be forced to abandon when we force them to understand that Judgement awaits everyoneâeveryone.
Look at all these kids and their parents. Look at them. So self-satisfied. So convinced they are specialâthe chosen ones. And they all love America. Well, why not? America is going to make most of these privileged kids rich. While backed by their military might this horror of a country makes the rest of the world its slaves. And these science profs up there on the stage invented much of the military prowess of this country while these students all around me are preparing to take their places.
All are soldiers of the oppressor.
But there will be justiceâeven here, on this pampered campus in upper New York State there will be justice. It will come. As surely as putting potassium permanganate together with glycerin will cause a massive explosionâit will come.
A BOUNTY OF GIFTSâBEFORE
LEONARD HARRISON, HEAD OF THE NSA, A TOMMY LEE JONES
without the snarkâor the smileâwas hiding something.
He's always hiding something
, Special Agent Yslan Hicks thought, but she wasn't going to be drawn into guessing what the hell it was. So she leaned back in her chairâand waited.
Finally he reached into his briefcase and pulled out her latest report and dropped it on her desk.
“Something wrong with it?” she asked.
“No. It's perfectâlike all your workâperfect . . . as far as it goes.”
“Meaning what?” Then she quickly added, “sir.”
“Meaning that you've accurately stated what we know about the synaesthetes we've been tracking.”
She nodded for him to complete his thought.
He didn't.
So she prompted, “Yes?”
“But we don't know very much do we, Special Agent Hicks? After six years of tracking and investigating and spending millions of dollars, what do we really know?”
“Names, addresses, abilitiesâ”
“And which ones are of no use to us.”
“Yes. Silly synaesthetes.”
“Knowing the smell of colours hardly helps us keep the homeland safe.”
“We agreed on that long ago and removed them from our database.”
“Leaving us with . . . our special synaesthetes.”
Yslan thought about that for a second, then said, “If they actually are synaesthetes.”
“Agreed. But we had to call them something.”
“Why not just call them what they areâgifted. Call them the Gifted.”
“Semantics.” He was suddenly angry. He was bright, diligent and incredibly detailed in his analysis, but when those qualities failed to solve a problem he seemed to somehow fall and his anger bloomed. As it did now. “Go through them one at a time for me,” he said, pointing at the file.