HIS OTHER SON by MAYNARD SIMS Read Free Book Online Page A

be.”
                Randolph
Stock looked at him neutrally. “As I’m sure you are aware, I’m a very rich man,
and I’m well aware that your church isn’t a charitable institution. So far the
nursing care for my wife has cost in excess of four hundred thousand dollars.
I’m quite prepared to double that figure to have my son restored to me.”
                “Admirable,”
Brother Simon said. “But, my dear Mr. Stock, while your donations towards our
church have been gratefully accepted, Dr Romodon had
instructed me to tell you that he feels we can no longer impinge on your
generosity.”
                “You
mean this is going to cost me nothing?”
                Brother
Simon laughed. He had an irritating laugh, like a car that refuses to start. “Forgive
me, I have unintentionally misled you. There will be a cost. We have a number
of overheads that have to be met, and I’m sure you’ll agree that four hundred
thousand dollars is a small sum to pay to see your beloved wife now on the path
to a complete recovery.”
                “How
can I believe you?”
                A
frown creased Brother Simon’s brow but was soon absorbed by a layer of fat.
“But surely you have seen for yourself that she is slowly recovering. The
sisters have been most diligent in informing me of any change in your wife’s
condition, however slight. And I must tell you that Dr Romodon has been told of the improvement and he too is delighted.”
                “Granted
she does seem stronger, but Dr Cooperman…”
                Brother
Simon raised his hand. “Please, Mr. Stock. Dr Cooperman is a man of science,
and where science and faith meet there is always bound to be conflict. Science
is the arrogance of ignorance. Anything that cannot be explained away under
laboratory conditions is treated with scepticism. Why only the other evening I
was watching a television program where a team of scientists were trying to
explain away the phenomena of spontaneous human combustion, by giving very
plausible rational explanations, but ultimately declaring that there was no
such thing. I must say, I could have been swayed by their argument had I not
witnessed the self-immolation of a holy man in Tibet. He caught fire and burned
to cinders within an hour, and there was no outside cause of ignition, in fact
he was sitting in the middle of a deserted temple. Only Dr Romodon and I were present to witness the occurrence, but I swear on everything that is
holy that the man simply caught fire spontaneously. So you see , you shouldn’t believe everything Dr Cooperman tells you.”
                Randolph
Stock sat unmoved. He firmly believed that seeing was
believing .
                Brother
Simon smiled. “I see I haven’t convinced you. You must try to rid your mind of
all preconceived ideas of illness and death. There is a phrase they use in the
west; it’s all in the mind. Well our philosophy supports this. So much that happens to the physical body is dictated by the mind
and the spirit. Let me give you a demonstration. Quite crude, I’m
afraid, but it might help convince you.” He made a small beckoning gesture and
one of the hooded figures came from behind his chair to stand next to him.
                “Take
off your hood, sister, if you would,” Brother Simon said.
                The
hood was thrown back and Randolph Stock stared up into the face of an
extraordinarily pretty young girl. She couldn’t have been any older than Paula,
his granddaughter. She had a pale European face, with a finely chiselled nose
and expressive green eyes. The only off key feature about her was that her head
was completely shaved. With hair, Stock decided, she would have been stunning
to look at.
                Brother
Simon was watching Stock intently. “Please would you roll back the sleeve of
your robe,