Dead Men Talking

Marlene stepped back and stumbled down a few steps, catching herself with the oak handrail. Curiosity overcame her and she stepped back up to the body. It was or had been a man. Or at least it appeared to be a man. One could never be certain in this day and age of gender identity crisis. But this person had a blonde crew cut and what Marlene guessed was two days growth of reddish stubble. He had fallen on his side with one arm extended. Marlene wasn't sure what to do next. She bent close to the body. Its chest wasn't rising or falling. A small stream of pinkish fluid dribbled from the slack lips. She could barely see the edge of a grey looking tooth. Marlene remembered the purse sized CPR kits her friend Meather's child Milly had sold last year to raise money for the Girl Scouts. Marlene wished she had purchased one. "I declare you dead," Marlene said outloud, ending the CPR delimma. "Now, who are you, and why are you in my closet?"
Marlene poked the body with her toe. The man rolled onto his back. As he flopped, the hand on his extended right arm clutched convulsively and then fell open. A small grey card fluttered down the stairwell, lighting on the bottom landing. Something black stuck to the palm. Marlene hurried down the steps, picked up the card and returned to the top landing. She looked at the card. It was an Annie Bloom's Baker's Dozen book card, with three entries. . .

(For those of you unfamiliar - Annie Bloom's is the independant book store in Marlene's new community. They give you a business sized card with lines to record your book purchase values. When you have filled 12 lines, you are credited with the average value of your 12 entries to apply to your 13th purchase.) http://www.annieblooms.com/NASApp/store/IndexJsp