Heaven's Library

A random and vicious skirmish during the routine movement of two groups of prisoners results in the untimely death of decent and hardworking Prison Officer, William Stanley. As he settles into his new life in the hereafter and with the help of the somewhat detached Archangel Gordon, he is forced to consider his separation from those he loved on Earth and how he might intervene in the life of Benny the shiv, the "most unutterably disagreeable human being" that he had ever met. As he finds his way around the huge and endless realm of Heaven's Library he arrives at a decision that may bring comfort to his loved ones and a kind of justice to his killer. This short story is an extract written by the central character, Bob Hazzard, in the novel "Martha's Vineyard" by the same author.