all.”
“I spent twelve years in this marvelous berg,” said Larry. “You’d be amazed at the variety of activities available to you.”
“What sort of things?” asked Sandy.
“The most popular sport, by far, is sitting at the corner of Front and Division to watch the traffic light change.”
“Oh boy.”
“Do you have a place to stay?” Jud asked.
Donna nodded. “We’ve got a room at the Welcome Inn.”
“Why, isn’t that a joyful coincidence!” Larry proclaimed. “So do we! Do all of us play bridge?”
“Never touch the stuff,” Jud said.
“Don’t
“Besides, we’ve already got plans for tonight.”
“Oh.”
“We have some business to take care of,” he told Donna.
“Are you just in town for today?” she asked.
“We may be around for a few days. It’s hard to say, at this point. Depends on how things go.”
“What sort of business are you in?”
“We’re with…” He suddenly knew that he didn’t want to lie. Not to this woman. The need to retain a cover wasn’t as great as usual, and not worth the loss. “I’d rather not go into it,” he said.
“Oh. Fine. I’m sorry if I pried.”
“No, don’t…”
“I’d be happy to tell you our business.”
“Larry!”
“We’re going to…”
“Don’t!”
“Kill the beast.”
“What?” Donna asked.
“Wow!” cried Sandy.
“The beast. The monster of Beast House. Judgment Rucker and I are going to lay it low!”
“Are you?” Donna asked, turning to Jud.
“Do you believe there is a beast?” he asked.
“Something killed all those people, I guess.”
“Or some
“The killer of Tom Bagley was
“What was it?” asked Sandy.
“We’ll show you its cadaver,” Larry said, “and you may decide for yourself.”
“What’s a cadaver?”
“It’s a corpse, honey.”
“Oh, gross.”
“What we plan to do,” Jud said, “is find out what—or who—killed the people in that house. Then we’ll deal with it.” He smiled at her. “Bet you didn’t realize you were riding with a couple of lunatics. Are you still up to a Bloody Mary?”
“Now I may need two.” 2.
“Excuse me,” Donna said. She scooted back her chair. “If the drinks come while I’m gone, don’t wait on me.”
“I’ll come, too,” said the girl.
Jud watched them walk across the crowded dining room. Then he leaned close to Larry. In a low voice, he said, “You screwed up real good, back there. If one more person finds out what we’re doing in this town, it’s all over. I keep my advance, drive back to San Francisco, and that’s the end of it.”
“
“One more person.”
“Oh, all right. If you must be that way.”
“I must.”
Nobody spoke of Beast House during cocktails or lunch. As they were finishing, Larry told of a footpath that led down a gorge to a beach.
After lunch, they all went to the motel office and registered for another night. Then the two groups split up, giving Donna and Sandy a chance to put on their swimsuits. Jud relaxed on his bed, ankles crossed, hands folded behind his head. He fell asleep.
“There they are!” Larry announced, waking him. The nervous man left the window and inspected himself in a mirror over the dressing table. “How do I look?”
Jud glanced at the red-flowered shirt and white shorts. “Where’s your Panama hat?”
“I could hardly pack everything on such short notice.”
They left their cabin. Larry rushed ahead to meet the two women, but Jud hung back to have a long look at Donna. She wore a blue shirt with sleeves rolled up her forearms. Below the hanging shirttails, her legs were slim and dark. No trace of a swimsuit was visible.
“I do hope you’re not
“You’ll have to wait and see.”
“Oh please, give us a peek. Just a teensy one.”
“Nope.”
“Oh please.”
Sandy lunged forward laughing, and swung her denim handbag at Larry. He spun away, ducking. The bag whunked his back. “Cruel midget!” he cried out.
The girl started to swing again.
“That’s enough, honey.”
“But he’s weird,” Sandy gasped, laughing.
“Is he always this way?” Donna asked Jud.
“I only met him last night.”
“Is that true?”
“Judgment never lies,” Larry said.
They got into Jud’s Chrysler, and Larry gave directions that took them down Front Street past the Chevron station, past Sarah’s Diner, and down two more blocks of shops. Beast House loomed ahead, on the left. The talking and laughter abruptly stopped, but nobody mentioned the house.
Larry broke the silence. “Turn right on this dirt road.”
Jud made the turn.
“Is that where Axel’s mother lives?” Sandy asked, pointing to the brick house.
“That’s the place,” said Donna.
Jud looked at the brick house to his left and saw that it had no windows. “Strange,” he muttered.
“Indeed,” said Larry. He asked Donna, “How do you know Axel?”
“He gave us a ride into town last night.”
“There’s a weird duck.”
“He’s retarded,” Sandy explained.
“Who wouldn’t be, with a mother like Maggie Kutch?”
“What?” asked Sandy.
“Axel’s mother is Maggie Kutch, the owner of Beast House, the tour guide.”
“Her?”
“Yes indeed.”
“Did she remarry after the killings?” Donna asked. “Keep to the right, Judge. No, she did have visitors,
