The Return: Midnight Chapter 18

After breakfast ii-dimensionality went online to find two stores, uncomp allowe in Fel s church building, that had the amount of clay Mrs. Flowers give tongue to shed ask and that said theyd deliver. barely after that t here was the matter of driving aside from the boarding mansion and by the last l mavenly remains of where the Old Wood had been.He drove by the microscopic thicket where Shinichi of ten came like a demonic Pied Piper with the possessed children shuffling behind him the trust where Sheriff Mossberg had g star after them and hadnt come knocked appear(p). Where, later, protected by magical wards on Post-it communication channels, he and Tyrone Alpert had pul ed verboten a bare, chewed femur.Today, he figured the save way to vex past the thicket was to give-up the ghost his wheezing altercate gondola car up by stages, and it was actual y going everyplace sixty when he flew by the thicket, even managing to hit the turn perfectly. No manoeuvers fel on him, no swarms of foot-long bugs.He whispered Whoa,in relief and showed for home. He dreaded that provided simply driving through with(predicate) Fel s church service was so horrible it glued his tongue to the top of his backtalk. It looked this pretty, innocent little t accept where he had grown up as if it were one of those neighborhoods you pr everyplaceb on TV or on the Internet that had been bombed, or something. And whether it was bombs or disasterous fires, one house in four was simply rubble. A hardly a(prenominal) were half-rubble, with jurisprudence tape enclosing them, which meant that whatever had happened had happened early enough for the patrol to care or dare.Around the burned-out bits the vegetation flourished strangely a decorative bush from one house grown so as to be halfway across a neighbors grass. Vines dipping from one tree to another, to another, as if this were some ancient jungle.His home was right in the middle of a long block of houses ful of project ons and in summer, when grandchildren inevitably came to visit, thither were even more kids. compressed just hoped that that part of summer vacation was make however would Shinichi and Misao let the youngsters go home? insipid had no idea. And, if they went home, would they have dispersal the disease in their own hometowns? Where did it stop?Driving down his block, though, two-dimensionality saw nothing hideous.There were kids playing out on the former lawns, or the sidewalks, crouching over marbles, hanging out in the trees.There was no single overt thing that he could pull his finger on There was no single overt thing that he could put his finger on that was weird.He was Stilluneasy. But hed reached his house instanter, the one with a grand old oak tree shading the porch, so he had to get out. He coasted to a stop just under the tree and parked by the sidewalk. He grabbed a large laundry radical from the posteriorseat. Hed been accumulating dirty clothes fo r a couple of weeks at the boardinghouse and it hadnt seemed sensible to ask Mrs. Flowers to wash them.As he got out of the car, pul ing the bag out with him, he was just in time to con the birdsong stop.For a moment after it did, he wondered what was wrong. He knew that something was missing, cut short. It make the bideard pressure heavier. It even seemed to change the smel of the grass. accordingly he realized. Every bird, including the raucous crows that lived in the oak trees, had gone silent.All at once.Matt felt a twisting in his bel y as he looked up and almost.There were two kids in the oak tree right beside his car. His question was Stillstubbornly move to hang on to Children.Playing. Okay. His body was smarter. His hand was already in his pocket, pul ing out a pad of Post-it Notes the flimsy bits of paper that usual y halt evil magic cold.Matt hoped Meredith would remember to ask Isobels take for more amulets. He was running low, andand there were two kids playing in the old oak tree. Except they werent. They were staring at him. iodin male child was hanging upside down by his knees and the other was gobbling somethingout of a garbage bag.The hanging kid was staring at him with strangely abrupt eyes. Have you ever wondered what its like to be dead?he asked.And forthwith the head of the gobbling boy came up, thick bright red al some his mouth. Bright red channel. Andwhatever was in the garbage bag was piteous. Kicking. beat up weakly. Trying to get away.A wave of nausea washed over Matt. Acid hit his throat. He was going to puke. The gobbling kid was staring at him with stony black-as-a-pit eyes. The hanging kid was smiling.Then, as if stirred by a hot breath of wind, Matt felt the fine hairs on the approve of his neck stand up. It wasnt just the birds that had gone quiet. Everything had. No childs voice was raise in argument or song or speech.He whirled around and saw wherefore. They were staring at him.Every single kid on th e block was silently conform toing him. Then, with a chil ing precision, as he rancid back to look at the boys in the tree, al the others came toward him.Except they werent walking.They were creeping. Lizard-fashion. Thats why some of them had seemed to be playing with marbles on the sidewalk. They were al moving in the same way, bel ies close to the ground, elbows up, hands like forepaws, knees splaying to the side. nowadays he could taste bile. He looked the other way down the thoroughfare and found another group creeping. Grinning unnatural grins. It was as if person was pul ing their cheeks from behind them, pul ing them hard, so that their grins almost broke their faces in half.Matt discover something else. Suddenly theyd stopped, and while he stared at them, they stayed Still. Perfectly Still, staring back at him. But when he looked away, he saw the creeping figures out of the corner of his eye.He didnt have enough Post-it Notes for al of them.You cant run away from this. It sounded like an outside voice in his head. Telepathy. But maybe that was because Matts head had move into a roiling red cloud, floating upward.Fortunately, his body hear it and suddenly he was up on the back of his car, and had grabbed the hanging kid. For a moment he had a helpless impulse to let go of the boy. The kid Stillstared at him solely with eerie, uncanny eyes that were half rol ed back in his head. Instead of dropping him, Matt slapped a Post-It Note on the boys forehead, swinging him at the same time to sit on the back of the car.A pause and then wailing. The kid must be fourteen at least, but about thirty seconds after the toss Against Evil (pocket-size) was smacked on him he was sobbing real kid sobs.As one, the crawling kids let out a hiss. It was like a lusus naturae steam engine. Hsssssssssssssssssssssss.They began to breathe in and out very fast, as if works up to some new state. Their creeping slowed to a crawl. But they were living so hard Matt could see their sides hol ow and fil .As Matt turned to look at one group of them, they froze, except for the unnatural breathing. But he could feel the ones behind him getting closer.By now Matts warmness was pounding in his ears. He could fight a group of them but not with a group on his back. Some of them looked only when ten or eleven. Some looked almost his age.Some were girls, for Gods sake. Matt remembered what possessed girls had done the last time hed met them and felt violent revulsion.But he knew that feel up at the gobbling kid was going to make him sicker. He could hear smacking, chewing sounds and he could hear a thin little pennywhistle of helpless pain and weak struggling against the bag.He whirled quickly again, to keep off the other side of crawlers, and then made himself look up. With a quiet crackle, the garbage bag fel away when he grabbed it but the kid held on to what was in Oh my God. Hes eating a scotch A baby A He yanked the kid out of the tree and his hand aut omatical y slapped a Post-It onto the boys back. And then then, thank God, he saw the fur. It wasnt a baby. It was as well smal to be a baby, even a newborn. But it was eaten.The kid increase his bloody face to Matts, and Matt saw that it was cabbage Reece, Cole who was only thirteen and lived right next door. Matt hadnt even recognized him before.Coles mouth was wide open in horror now, and his eyes were bulging out of his head with terror and sorrow, and tears and snot were streaming down his face.He made me eat Toby,he started in a whisper that became a scream. He made me eat my guinea copper color He made me why why why did he do that? I ingest TOBYHe threw up al over Matts shoes. Blood-red vomit. soft death for the animal. Quick, Matt thought. But this was the hardest thing hed ever tried to do. How to do it a hard stomp on the creatures head? He couldnt. He had to try something else first. Matt peeled off a Post-It Note and put it, arduous not to look, on the fur. And just like that it was over. The guinea pig went slack. The spel had undone whatever had been keeping it alive up to this point.There was blood and puke on Matts hands, but he made himself turn to Cole. Cole had his eyes shut tight and little choking sounds came from him.Something in Matt snapped.You want some of this?he shouted, holding out the Post-it pad as if it were the revolver hed left with Mrs. Flowers. He whirled again, shouting, You want some? How about you?You, ride?He was recognizing faces now. You, Madison?How bout you, Bryn? Bring it on You all bring it on BRING IT Something touched his shoulder. He spun, Post-it Note ready. Then he stopped short and relief bubbled up in him like Evian water at some fancy restaurant. He was staring right into the face of Dr. Alpert, Fel s Churchs own country doctor. She had her SUV parked beside his car, in the middle of the street. Behind her, protect her back, was Tyrone, who was going to be next years quarterback at Robert E. Lee H igh. His sister, a sophomore-to-be, was trying to get out of the SUV too, but she stopped when Tyrone saw her.Jayneela he roared in a voice only the Tyre-minator could produce. You get back in and buckle up You know what Mom said You do it nowMatt found himself clutching at Dr. Alperts chocolate brown hands. He knew she was a good woman, and a good caretaker, who had adopted her daughters young children when their divorced breed had died of cancer. Maybe she would help him, too. He began babbling. Oh, God, Ive gotta get my mom out. My mom lives here alone. And I have to get her away from here.He knew he was sweating. He hoped he wasnt crying.Okay, Matt,the doctor said in her husky voice. Im getting my own family out this afternoon. Were going to stay with relatives in West Virginia. Shes welcome to come.It couldnt be this easy. Matt knew he had tears in his eyes now. He refused to blink, though, and let them come down. I dont know what to say but if you would youre an adult, you see. She wont listen to me. She entrust listen to you. This whole block is infected. This kid Cole He couldnt go on.But Dr. Alpert saw it al in a flash the animal, the boy with blood on his teeth and his mouth, Stillretching.Dr. Alpert didnt react. She just had Jayneela throw her a tract of Wet Wipes from the SUV and held the heaving kid with one hand, while vigorously rub his face clean. Go home,she told him sternly.You have to let the infected ones go,she said to Matt, with a terrible look in her eyes. Cruel as it seems, they only outstrip it on to the few whore Stillwell.Matt started to tel her about the effectiveness of the Post-it Note amulets, but she was already cal ing, Tyrone Come over here and you boys bury this poor animal. Then you be ready to move Mrs.Honeycutts things into the van. Jayneela, you do what your brother says. Im going in for a little talk with Mrs. Honeycutt right now.She didnt raise her voice much. She didnt need to. The Tyre-minator was obeying, ba cking up to Matt, watching the last of the creeping children that Matts explosion hadnt scattered.Hes quick, Matt realized. Quicker than me. Its like a game.As long as you watch them they cant move.They took turns being the watcher and handling the shovel.The earth here was hard as rock, heavy with weeds. But somehow they got a hole dug and the work helped them mental y. They buried Toby, and Matt walked around like some foot-dragging monster, trying to get the vomit off his shoes in the grass.Suddenly beside them there was the noise of a door banging open and Matt ran, ran to his mother, who was trying to heft a huge suitcase, much too heavy for her, through the door.Matt took it from her and felt himself encompassed in her hug even though she had to stand on tip-toes to do it. Matt, I cant just leave you Hel be one of those to get the town out of this pickle,Dr.Alpert said, overriding her. Hel clean it up. Now weve got to get out so we dont drag him down. Matt, just so you know, I comprehend that the McCul oughs are getting out too. Mr. and Mrs.Sulez dont seem to be going yet, and incomplete do the Gilbert-Maxwells.She said the last two words with a discrete emphasis.The Gilbert-Maxwells were Elenas aunt Judith, her husband Robert MaxWell, and Elenas little sister, Margaret. There was no real spring to mention them. But Matt knew why Dr.Alpert had. She remembered seeing Elena when this whole mess had started. Despite Elenas purification of the woods where Dr. Alpert had been standing, the doctor remembered.Il tel Meredith,Matt said, and looking her in the eyes, he nodded a little, as if to say, Il tel Elena, too.Anything else to carry?Tyrone asked. He was encumbered by a canary birdcage, with the little bird frantical y beating its fly inside, and a smal er suitcase.No, but how can I thank you?Mrs. Honeycutt said. give thanks later now, everybody in,said Dr. Alpert. We are taking off.Matt hugged his mother and gave her a little push toward the SUV, w hich had already swal owed the birdcage and smal suitcase.Good-byeeveryone was yel ing. Tyrone stuck his head out of the windowpane to say, Cal me whenever I want to helpAnd then they were gone.Matt could hardly see it was over it had happened so fast. He ran inside the open door of his house and got his other pair of running shoes, just in case Mrs. Flowers couldnt make believe the smel of the ones he was wearing.When he burst out of the house again he had to blink. Instead of the white SUV there was a different white car parked beside his. He looked around the block. No children. None at al .And the birdsong had come back.There were two men in the car. One was white and one was black and they both were around the age to be concerned fathers. Anyway they had him cut off, the way their car was parked. He had no choice but to go up to them. As soon as he did they both got out of the car, watching him as if he was as dangerous as a kitsune.The instant they did that, Matt knew hed ma de a mistake.Youre Matthew Jeffrey Honeycutt?Matt had no choice but to nod.Say yes or no, please.Yes.Matt could see inside the white car now. It was a stealth police car, one of those with lights inside, al ready to be fixed outside if the officers valued to let you in on the secret.Matthew Jeffrey Honeycutt, you are under arrest for enchant and battery upon Caroline Beula Forbes. You have the right to remain silent. If you give up this right, anything you say can and wil be used against you in a tribunal of law Didnt you see those kids?Matt was shouting. You had to have seen one or two of them Didnt that mean anything to you?Lean over and put your hands on the calculate of the car.Its going to destroy the whole town Youre helping itDo you sympathise these rights ?Do you understand what is going on in Fel s Church?There was a pause this time. And then, in perfectly even tones, one of the two said, Were from Ridgemont.