On an entirely normal, beautiful fall day in Chester’s Mill, Maine, the town is inexplicably and suddenly sealed off from the rest of the world by an invisible force field.
Авторы: King Stephen Edwin
She bent to look into the gap between the couch and the wall.
[Before she could, the other woman began to make a gagging noise. She wrapped her arms around herself in an effort to stop a shivering fit, but was unsuccessful. Her smell changed, and Horace knew she was going to yark. He watched closely. Sometimes peopleyark had good things in it.
‘Andi?’ Julia asked. ‘Are you okay?’
Stupid question, Horace thought. Can’t you smell her? But that was a stupid question, too. Julia could hardly smell herself when she was sweaty.
‘Yes. No. I shouldn’t have eaten that raisin bun. I’m going to—’ She hurried out of the room. To add to the smells coming from the piss-and-scat place, Horace assumed. Julia followed. For a moment Horace debated squeezing back under the table, but he smelled worry on Julia and hurried at her heels instead.
He had forgotten all about the deadvoice.
3
‘Rusty,’ called Claire McClatchey from the car. It was early, but she answered on the first ring, and he wasn’t surprised. No one in Chester’s Mill was getting much sleep these days, at least not without pharmacological assistance.
She promised to have Joe and his friends at the house by eight thirty at the latest, would pick them up herself, if necessary. Lowering her voice, she said, T think Joe is crushing on the Calvert girl.’
‘He’d be a fool not to,’ Rusty said.
‘Will you have to take them out there?’
‘Yes, but not into a high radiation zone. I promise you that, Mrs McClatchey.’
‘Claire. If I’m going to allow my son to go with you to an area where the animals apparently commit suicide, I think we should be on a |first-name basis.’
‘You get Benny and Norrie to your house and I promise to take care of them on the field trip. That work for you?’
Claire said it did. Five minutes after hanging up on her, Rusty was turning off an eerily deserted Motton Road and onto Drummond Lane, a short street lined with Eastchester s nicest homes. The nicest of the nice was the one with BURPEE on the mailbox. Rusty was soon in the Burpee kitchen, drinking coffee (hot; the Burpee generator was still working) with Romeo and his wife, Michela. Both of them looked pale and grim. Rommie was dressed, Michela still in her housecoat.
‘You t’ink dat guy Barbie really killed Bren?’ Rommie asked. ‘Because if he did, my friend, I’m gonna kill him myself
Michela put a hand on his arm. ‘You ain’t that dumb, honey’
‘I don’t think so,’ Rusty said. ‘I think he was framed. But if you tell people I said that, we could all be in trouble.’
‘Rommie always loved that woman.’ Michela was smiling, but there was frost in her voice. ‘More than me, I sometimes think.’
Rommie neither confirmed nor denied this—seemed, in fact, not to hear it at all. He leaned toward Rusty, his brown eyes intent. ‘What you talking ’bout, doc? Framed how?’
‘Nothing I want to go into now. I’m here on other business. And I’m afraid this is also secret.’
‘Then I don’t want to hear it,’ Michela said. She left the room, taking her coffee cup with her.
‘Ain’t gonna be no lovin from dat woman tonight,’ Rommie said.
‘I’m sorry’
Rommie shrugged. ‘I got ‘nother one, crosstown. Misha knows, although she don’t let on. Tell me what your other bi’ness is, doc’
‘Some kids think they may have found what’s generating the Dome. They’re young but smart. I trust them. They had a Geiger counter, and they got a radiation spike out on Black Ridge Road. Not into the danger zone, but they didn’t get all that close.’
‘Close to what? What’d they see?’
‘A flashing purple light. You know where the old orchard is?’
‘Hell, yeah. The McCoy place. I used to take girls parkin dere. You can see the whole town. I had dis ole Willys…’ He looked momentarily wistful. ‘Well, never mind. Just a flashin light?’
‘They also came across a lot of dead animals—some deer, a bear. Looked to the kids like they committed suicide.’
Rommie regarded him gravely. ‘I’m going wit you.’
‘That’s fine… up to a point. One of us has got to go all the way, and that should be me. But I need a radiation suit.’
‘What you got in mind, doc?’
Rusty told him. When he had finished, Rommie produced a package of Winstons and offered the pack across the table.
‘My favorite OPs,’ Rusty said, and took one. ‘So what do you think?’
‘Oh, I can help you,’ Rommie said, lighting them up. ‘I got everthin in dat store of mine, as everyone in dis town well know.’ He pointed his cigarette at Rusty. ‘But you ain’t gonna want any pictures of yourself in the paper, because gonna look damn funny, you.’
‘Not worried about dat, me,’ Rusty said. ‘Newspaper burned down last night.’
