JК
Bag of Bones :: Кинг Стивен
Страница: 384 из 425She’d gotten into me, had snuck in by way of the basement like a burglar… and already I was thinking that even if the tub was empty and the water-pump temporarily dead, there was always the lake. All of them! the voice cried again. All of them, sugar! Of course—only all of them would do. Until then there would be no rest for Sara Laughs. “I’ll help you to rest,” I said. “That I promise.” The last of the water swirled away… but there was always the lake, always the lake if I changed my mind. I left the bathroom and looked in on Ki again. She hadn’t moved, the sensation that Sara was in here with me had gone, Bunter’s bell was quiet… and yet I felt uneasy, unwilling to leave her alone. I had to, though, if I was to finish my work, and I would do well not to linger. County and State cops would be along eventually, storm or no storm, downed trees or no downed trees.
Yes, but… I stepped into the hall and looked uneasily around. Thunder boomed, but it was losing some of its urgency. So was the wind. What wasn’t fading was the sense of something watching me, something that was not-Sara. I stood where I was a moment or two longer, trying to tell myself it was just the sizzle of my overcooked nerves, then walked down the hall to the entry. I opened the door to the stoop… then looked around again sharply, as if expecting to see someone or something lurking behind the far end of the bookcase. A Shape, perhaps. Something that still wanted its dust-catcher. But I was the only Shape left, at least in this part of the world, and the only movement I saw was ripple-shadows thrown by the rain rolling down the windows. It was still coming down hard enough to redrench me as I crossed my stoop to the driveway, but I paid no attention. I had just been with a little girl when she drowned, had damned near drowned myself not so long ago, and the rain wasn’t going to stop me from doing what I had to do. I picked up the fallen branch which had dented the roof of my car, tossed it aside, and opened the Chevy’s rear door. The things I’d bought at Slips ’n Greens were still sitting on the back seat, still tucked into the cloth carry-handle bag Lila Proulx had given me. The trowel and the pruning knife were visible, but the third item was in a plastic sack. nt this one in a special bag? Lila had asked me. Always sa]b, never sorry.
And later, as I was leaving, she had spoken of Kenny’s dog Blueberry chasing seagulls and had given out with a big, hearty laugh. Her eyes hadn’t laughed, though. Maybe that’s how you tell the Martians from the Earthlings—the Martians can never laugh with their eyes. I saw Rommie and George’s present lying on the front seat: the Stenomask I’d at first mistaken for Devore’s oxygen mask.
Yes, but… I stepped into the hall and looked uneasily around. Thunder boomed, but it was losing some of its urgency. So was the wind. What wasn’t fading was the sense of something watching me, something that was not-Sara. I stood where I was a moment or two longer, trying to tell myself it was just the sizzle of my overcooked nerves, then walked down the hall to the entry. I opened the door to the stoop… then looked around again sharply, as if expecting to see someone or something lurking behind the far end of the bookcase. A Shape, perhaps. Something that still wanted its dust-catcher. But I was the only Shape left, at least in this part of the world, and the only movement I saw was ripple-shadows thrown by the rain rolling down the windows. It was still coming down hard enough to redrench me as I crossed my stoop to the driveway, but I paid no attention. I had just been with a little girl when she drowned, had damned near drowned myself not so long ago, and the rain wasn’t going to stop me from doing what I had to do. I picked up the fallen branch which had dented the roof of my car, tossed it aside, and opened the Chevy’s rear door. The things I’d bought at Slips ’n Greens were still sitting on the back seat, still tucked into the cloth carry-handle bag Lila Proulx had given me. The trowel and the pruning knife were visible, but the third item was in a plastic sack. nt this one in a special bag? Lila had asked me. Always sa]b, never sorry.
And later, as I was leaving, she had spoken of Kenny’s dog Blueberry chasing seagulls and had given out with a big, hearty laugh. Her eyes hadn’t laughed, though. Maybe that’s how you tell the Martians from the Earthlings—the Martians can never laugh with their eyes. I saw Rommie and George’s present lying on the front seat: the Stenomask I’d at first mistaken for Devore’s oxygen mask.