Superstition by Charlie H. Johnson, Jr.

by Charlie H. Johnson, Jr.
(Templeton, CA)

Brief plot information:

Carlos, a psychic detective from New York City, is drawn into the case of a middle-aged Scottsdale woman seeking the identity of her missing father. In touch with the dead, Carlos soon learns that the case is far more complicated. His investigation leads him to Superstition Mountain in Arizona and into real and psychic dangers that a series of dreams warn him about. Staying in a beautiful home in Scottsdale that he calls the “Palace,” Carlos gets a taste of “the good life” unlike his flat in New York. His hostess shows him a series of old photos that offer a path into events at Superstition in 1942 and trigger premonitions of violence threatening Carlos’ life. Several hiking trips into Superstition to “The Massacre Grounds” put Carlos in danger of rattlesnakes, a Native-American Thunder God, and mysterious snipers. Treasure seekers, a sinister Native-American factotum, a scary plane trip, a nighttime visit to a cemetery, spirits wanting their deaths expiated, and a newspaper reporter all become critical factors in Carlos’ search. In discovering the identities he seeks, he also finds that the dead can have a power over the living that cannot be resisted. To resolve the mystery, Carlos must remake the past, and restore lives shattered by meaningless death.