Jud went to the door where Larry waited. Jud opened it. He flashed his light up its narrow stairway, to the door high overhead. “This’ll be good,” he whispered. “We can sit on the stairs.”
They stepped inside. Jud put his flashlight away. He pulled the door toward him until only a crack remained. Eye close to the crack, he could see the shape of Roy lying on the dark corridor floor.
Jud switched the automatic to his right hand. With his left, he removed Roy’s knife from the pocket of his parka. He patted the parka, feeling the good weight of his spare ammo clips.
“Judge?” Larry whispered. “Will we actually let the beast have him?”
“Shhh.” 2.
Donna wanted to turn around, wanted to go back to Beast House and wait there for the men to finish. As she was about to make the turn, however, car headlights flashed on her rearview mirror. The car drew quickly closer. Donna thought she could see a light rack on its roof. She checked her speedometer. No, she wasn’t speeding.
Sandy looked back. “Uh-oh,” she said.
“Yeah.”
“Are you gonna pull over?”
“Not unless he wants me to.”
“Why’s he so close?”
“He hasn’t got manners.”
The police car stayed on their tail all the way to the Welcome Inn. It followed them through the entrance, then angled left and parked beside the restaurant.
Sandy made an exaggerated, “Whew!”
“I guess he was just hungry,” Donna said. She pulled into the parking space of Cabin 12. “Let’s give him a minute to get inside.”
“Then what?”
“We’ll go back for Jud and Larry.”
“Jud said half an hour.”
“We’ll be a little early.”
She backed up and headed out of the parking lot. With a glance at the police car, she saw it was empty. The policeman was nowhere in sight. She turned left.
“If we’re early,” Sandy said, “can we go in?”
“Are you out of your tree?”
“Maybe we can help Larry and Jud.”
“They’ll be fine without our help.”
“I’m not scared of the beast.”
“Well, you
“We can take Jud’s rifle in with us.”
“Bullets can’t hurt it. Weren’t you listening on the tour?”
“Sure.”
“Maggie said her husband shot it.”
“Hunh-uh. She only said she heard shots. He probably just missed.”
“Well regardless, we’re not going anywhere near that house.”
The town seemed empty as Donna drove through it. A few cars sat in front of closed stores, as if deserted by drivers seeking shelter from the darkness. Street lights cast their glow on barren corners. The traffic light blinked a steady yellow caution.
Donna swung left across the road and pulled into a parking space in front of Arty’s Hardware. The headlights glared off the display window. She shut them off. “Can you see the house?” she asked.
Sandy peered out the side window. “Just the front yard.”
Donna, looking out the far side of the car, could see little except the front of the fence and the ticket booth. “I guess I’ll get out,” she said.
“Me too.”
“Okay.”
They shut the doors silently and met in front of the car. Their tennis shoes were quiet on the sidewalk. At the corner of the hardware store, they came to the wrought-iron fence.
Between the wall and the fence, a narrow walkway ran to the rear of the hardware store. A low picket gate blocked entry. Donna opened it, and they stepped into the gap. Close to the store wall, she felt well hidden from the street.
Sandy took hold of her hand.
Across the lawn, Beast House stood silent. Its board siding, washed by moonlight, looked as pale and dead as driftwood. Where overhangs and balconies dropped shadows, the black made caverns deep into the house.
Donna looked at the dark bay windows. She lifted her eyes to Lilly Thorn’s bedroom windows, then along the bone-gray wall to Maggie’s window, the one Larry had used for his escape so many years ago. In her mind, she could see the wax figure just inside, struggling to raise the window.
“What time is it?” Sandy whispered.
Donna tipped the face of her wristwatch to catch the moonlight. “Eleven-twenty.”
“They’re late.”
“That’s all right.”
“What if they don’t come out?” 3.
“Fuckin’ shit!” Jud heard panic in Roy’s voice. “Holy fuckin’ shit, there’s someone coming! Guys? Damn it, you guys!”
Jud knelt, leaving space above him for Larry to see through the crack. Shifting the pistol to his left hand, he wiped his sweaty palm on a leg of his jeans. Then he pulled out his flashlight.
“Guys!” As if giving up on them, he muttered in a low voice, “Oh Jesus.”
Jud heard a stair creak.
“Hey, who are you? Huh? Can you help me? There’s these two guys, they tied me up. I mean, I’m not trespassing. I been kidnapped. Can you give me a…oh shit.
Jud heard soft, brittle laughter.
“Oh God.” Roy was starting to cry. “Oh God, sweet Jesus!” He sobbed. “Oh Jesus, get it away! Get it away!”
Behind Jud, Larry moaned in horror.
Roy shrieked as the beast sprang. Its pounce seemed to knock out his wind, cutting his outcry short.
Jud shoved the door open. He aimed his flashlight. Flicked it on. The white, snarling thing on Roy’s back snapped its head around to look. Bleeding flesh hung from its teeth.
Behind him, Larry screamed.
Before he could raise his automatic, Larry shoved him. He tumbled into the corridor. Larry, still screaming, leaped over him. Jud raised his flashlight. He shined it into the slitted eyes of the beast as Larry rushed it. He saw Larry swing. Saw the machete flash. Heard the thud of it and saw the white, hairless head tumble into the darkness. Blood spouted from the neck stump. The torso flopped onto Roy’s back. Jud heard the muffled thumps of the head dropping from one stair to the next.
“I killed it,” Larry whispered.
Jud got to his knees.
“I killed it. Dead!” Larry swung the machete down like an ax, chopping into the dead creature’s back. “Dead!” He hacked it again. “Dead dead dead!” After each word, he struck.
“Larry,” Jud said softly, standing up.
“I killed it!”
“Larry, we’re done in here. Let’s get out…” Behind him, Jud heard a savage snarl. He whirled. His flashlight reached up the attic staircase. The door at the top stood open. He dropped his beam to the massive, white back of a creature plunging down the stairs.
He snapped the trigger. His Colt roared, flashing as it bucked. A howl tore his ears. The beast took him
