Borderland (36 page)

"Mom?"
Cal appeared in the doorway. He was frowning. "I wish you'd stop talking
to yourself. It's scary."

Scary?
Myra thought. Cal, you don't know what scary is. You've never met the dead
Drusilla and you've never been licked by Gil Schwarz.

"I'm
sorry," she said. "Are the girls still in your room?"

"Yeah.
You're scaring them, too."

"Okay.
I'm sorry. I'll be quiet. I guess I'm still a little shaken up."

"I
know you are," Cal said. "But I don't know how to help you."

Myra
took a deep breath and forced herself to breathe out slowly. "You are
helping me, honey. You're watching the girls and keeping them occupied. Have
you got all your stuff packed?"

He
nodded. "But the girls are a little freaked out. Christa is still crying.
She doesn't want us to go."

A twinge
of guilt made Myra turn away from him. "She and Andy will be just fine
with Nolan."

"I
know that," Cal said. "But I just want to make sure I understand
something. Why exactly are we leaving today? Because of that Schwarz guy?"

"Isn't
that reason enough?" Myra said to the wall.

"I
guess," Cal said. "Did I tell you he was the same guy Dad got into it
with when I backed the Lincoln into his truck?"

"No."
Myra turned to face him. "That was Gil Schwarz?"

"Yeah.
I never saw him that much around town. Not like the other old guys. They
probably kept him locked up or something."

"If
they didn't, they should have," Myra said. "The man is sick."
She whirled and resumed pacing again. The thought of Gil Schwarz made her skin
crawl. "Where the hell is Nolan? He's been gone for hours. It's almost
dark outside."

"Maybe
he had to wait for the sheriff," Cal offered. "He did shoot the
guy."

"He
should've killed him," Myra muttered.

Cal
shook his head. "Nolan lost his badge for killing a guy. Vic said he
weirded out and went a little nuts after some kid shot him in the back."

Myra's
steps halted. "A kid?"

"A
girl," Cal told her. "Ten years old, Vic said. She was on drugs.
Nolan was trying to arrest her big brother. Anyway, after he got fired from the
police department he went to a psychiatrist for a while. Vic said it was a long
time before Nolan stopped being paranoid."

Myra
opened her mouth to ask what else he knew about Nolan, but before she could
speak, Christa entered the room and. said, "Nolan's friend Al is here. He
just came up the drive."

"Al?"
Myra left the room and headed down the hall toward the stairs. Had something
happened to Nolan? Had Al been sent to tell her? No—how would Al know? He
couldn't. But her heart still pounded as she crossed the living room and
unlocked the door.

"Nolan
sent me," Al said in greeting. "He thought you might want some
company. Sorry I'm so late gettin' over here, but my old horse out there threw
a shoe." He smiled at Myra's confused expression. "I had a blowout.
If I didn't know better, I'd swear someone shot out my tire. Can I come
in?"

"I'm
sorry," Myra said, stepping back. "Please do. You say Nolan sent
you?"

"Called
me a few hours ago. I didn't have a damn spare in the pickup. Can you believe
that? I couldn't either, me being in the business I am." He entered the
living mom and raised a hand to Cal. "How you doin', bright boy? Got
everything under control around here?"

Cal's
smile was crooked. "Truthfully…no."

Al
laughed and plopped his big self down on the sofa. Myra watched, waiting to see
if Vic's repair work on the legs would hold. When no collapse occurred, she sat
down in a nearby chair and listened with half an ear to Al and her son's
continuing banter. So the thoughtful Nolan had sent his friend out here. Why?
Was he afraid Myra would have a breakdown of some kind and run off on the
girls?

She
jumped when the phone in the kitchen rang. Cal looked at her. "Nolan told
me to try and fix it. It was so simple I felt stupid for not trying before. You
want me to get it?"

"No."
Myra quickly left her seat to answer. It was Nolan.

"I
knew Cal could fix it," he said after her hello.

"Where
are you?" Myra asked.

"In
the fucking Twilight Zone. Is Al there with you?"

"Yes,
he just got here. Nolan, where are you? Is everything all right?"

"No.
Everything in Denke is wrong, Myra. You wouldn't believe how wrong it is. I've
just heard the wildest story imaginable, but something in my gut tells me the
whole thing is true. The man who tried to rape you today killed your husband.
These guys killed Darwin, too—or at least they caused his stroke by trying to
kill him in his car. They've been giving Vic dope and now he's off in New
Mexico trying to sell a kilo of coke for them. These fucking old men are a
bunch of modem murdering highwaymen who—"

"Who
told you this?" Myra interrupted.

"Ed
Kisner, the ex-lawman. I'm in his shop. He's in the bathroom right now. He says
this has been going on since the middle of the nineteenth century, even before
the time of that Bible we found. Ed's ready to stop it. He wants me to help him
break into Jinx's diner and get some documents out of the back room that can
prove everything. It should take about an hour to—"

"They
killed Patrick? Myra said in slowly dawning horror. "And Darwin? Nolan,
I'm going. I'm leaving. I'll take the girls with me and call you later."

"You
stay right there, dammit," Nolan said harshly. "I'll be back in an
hour. Don't you dare run out on me."

"I'm
not running out on you. I'm getting out of here and going somewhere safe."

"You'll
be safe with Al until I get there," Nolan argued. "Just stay there
and wait for me."

Myra's
eyes filled with tears. "I can't. This is just too much. Ghosts and madmen
and a town full of murderers listed in a Bible. I have to get us all out of
here."

Nolan's
voice lowered and became more intense. "Myra, please. I'll go out of my
goddamned mind if I don't know where you are. Do you understand?"

"What
about my mind?" she responded. "I can't take any more of this, Nolan.
I can't. I've been talking to myself and scaring the children.”

"An
hour," Nolan said. "That's all I'm asking. Don't make me beg you,
dammit. Will you please just hold on and let me take care of things?"

Myra
said nothing for a long moment. Her throat was hitching. Finally she whispered,
"All right."

"You
won't go? You'll wait for me?"

She
closed her eyes and pressed a hand to her heated forehead. "I'll wait for
you. I'll see you in an hour, Nolan. Goodbye."

After
hanging up the phone she went to the kitchen sink and washed her face with icy water.
When a chill rippled down her spine and raised her flesh she swerved around and
gritted her teeth. "Get away from me. I'm in on the secret now, Drusilla.
I know all about it, so just leave me alone. We're going. Just what you
wanted."

She
turned and stalked out of the room. As she passed through the living room
doorway she said, "Cal, go upstairs and start bringing your things down.
We're leaving now and taking the girls with us."

Cal
frowned. "Who was that?"

"Nolan.
He's still in town. He's found out some horrible things about the people in
Denke. Al, would you mind helping me with my things?"

"Not
at all. Where you headed?"

"Away,"
Myra said.

"I've
been there," Al said. "It's pretty nice this time of year. Mind if I
use your phone first?"

"Go
right ahead." Myra pointed to the kitchen then turned and went upstairs.
She stopped in Cal's room and instructed Christa to go and pack some clothes
for Andy and her. Christa's eyes lit up. "We're going with you?"

"For
the time being," Myra said. "Hurry, honey."

Once in
her own room, Al came in and tapped her on the shoulder. "Not being nosy
or anything, but does Wulf know you're pullin' up stakes?"

Myra's
lips parted, ready with a lie. Then she shook her head. "No. But I'll call
him once we're somewhere safe. I'm taking the girls because Vic is…presently
unable to take care of…” Myra's voice drifted off as she saw Cal standing in
the doorway to her bedroom. His face was white. He was staring at Al and making
an angry gesture with his fingers.

Myra
frowned and mouthed, "What?" causing Al to turn around.

The big
man smiled. "I think he's trying to tell you somethin' behind my back. Is
that it, bright boy?"

"That's
right," Cal said his jaw hard. "He's one of 'em, Mom. He called Denke
just now. I heard him on the phone." Myra blinked. "You. . . you . .
."

Al
nodded at her speechlessness. "I didn't actually get hold of anyone.
They're all at some dance. I did leave a message though and the message said to
come out here as quick as they could."

"But
you live—"

"Across
the border, right." Al stuck his hands in his pockets and rearranged his
genitals. "Like Darwin, I never did like bein' told what to do and when to
do it. I paid my way out of doin' the Denke thing with the salvage yard. Just
lately I changed my mind and decided to sell the place and come on back—if
Jinx'll have me. After this I think he'll have me."

Myra's
mouth was still open. "What about your son, the doctor? What about
Arkansas?"

Al
chuckled. "That was a good one, wasn't it? Sucked in old Wulf, just
bigger'n shit. Had to find out what you folks were up to and stay on top of
things, didn't I?" He winked at Myra then. "Did Cousin Gil get a
little before Wulf pounced on him?"

Cal
stepped forward. "You lousy lying bastard. You stay away from my
mother."

Al
laughed and sent one large arm out to catch Myra as she made to move past him.
"Don't go skittish on me."

Myra
shrieked and ducked out from beneath his hand. She ran down the stairs, with Al
fast behind her and Cal behind him, shouting himself hoarse. Downstairs, the
two little girls began to shriek. Myra ran for the living room and saw that the
front door was open. She burst through the screen door and immediately felt the
bottom of her jaw catch fire. Her hands flew up to her face and were soon covered
with blood. She watched with shock-rounded eyes as Al crumpled to the floor
directly behind her, a red oozing hole in his left breast.

"Mom,
get down!" Cal screamed.

Myra
dropped to a crouch on the doorsill and heard wood splinter high and to the
right of her head. She flattened and tried to back herself inside, but Al was
in the way. She pulled herself forward instead and cringed as three more rapid
shots plowed through wood all around her. Blood from her jaw streamed warm and
thick down her neck as she struggled across the porch toward the nearest patch
of darkness. Finally she glanced out toward the direction of the shots. Hallway
down the drive she saw a small dark car that looked exactly like the Aston
Martin driven by Cal's grandmother.

She came
up in her surprise, and when the next shot was fired she jerked with a violent
spasm and suddenly found herself rushing through frigid darkness. As she went
limp she felt someone take her hand. Inside the house, Cal began to scream.

CHAPTER 33

Vic
glanced over to Jinx as they drove through the desert in the darkness. The dash
lights cast an eerie glow over the old man's features, revealing what Vic
thought to be the true monster behind the mask. He sucked in a deep breath and
forced his eyes away.

"Damn,
Vic," Jinx said finally. "We must've driven thirty miles already. How
the hell you know where you're goin'?"

"Our
man showed me a map when I took the sample of coke to him. Most drug dealers
are paranoid, Jinx. They like quiet, out-of-the-way places for making their
deals."

"He
wants the whole kilo, does he? Liked that sample pretty good?"

"He
liked it."

"Good.
That's real good."

After
six more miles, Vic found an outcropping of rock that looked like a good landmark.
He pulled off the road and parked by the rock. Beside him, Jinx swore softly.

"Shit
its dark out here at night. Lots of stars and a little bitty sliver of moon, is
all. Can't see a damned thing."

Vic got
out of the car. Jinx hadn't looked in the trunk. The old fart never even
approached it since Vic returned to the motel with the news that they might be
able to sell the entire kilo to the Las Vegas connection. The greed was
literally lighting up the old man's eyes. It made Vic sick.

"Where
the hell is he?" Jinx asked from inside the car. "S'posed to be here,
wasn't he?"