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Blood flowed freely now froh a throat choked with blood and while tears streamed down his face, he said, "I aht’s take?" Crow asked as he gassed up one of the hayride’s utility ATVs Coop was sitting on the top step of the porch out in front of the souvenir shop "Terry told me they were supposed to bus in soht the whole senior class froh school," Coop said He was Terry’s brother-in-law and though he was hardly the sharpest nail in the tool kit, Crow liked hie, which is what Terry’ll like to hear Though I guess you’d be happy to know that three of the girls carinned as he screwed on the cap "We aionna come out here and see what you’ve done to the place?"
The Pine Deep Haunted Hayride was the largest and most profitable such attraction in the country Terry had a staff of over a hundred teenagers and adults, he charged a frightening fee for tickets, had an a froers, and he carted the cash to the bank more or less in a wheelbarrow Every year the place made newspapers all up and down the East Coast, and every year the , and New York did special segments on it Yet, he never went to his own hayride, not even to inspect it in daylight hours
"Not a chance You know Terry"
Five years ago he’d paid Crow a fat piece of change to design it and had kept hi the receipts and signing the paychecks of the staff, Terry otherwise ignored the hayride Weird, Crow ht ry amusement that Pine Deep was probably the only town in America where a healthy dis-interest in the e Very, very weird
"I was over there for dinner the other night," Coop uess at what he said?"
"Shit, I can tell you his exact words He dropped into an approximation of Terry’s voice and said, "That hayride’s just a cash cow for me"
"Yep"
"He says that about fifty tiraveyard," Crow said, straddling the ATV "I wanted to boost the smoke machine a bit and maybe repaint the blood on the crypt walls"
"Well, don’tthese kids heart attacks"
Crow shook his head "My idea of the absolutely perfect version of this hayride is one where the tourists have to take out insurance beforehand and get CPR afterward Then I’ll be happy" He started the ATV and gunned the engine
"Hell, you’re h!" Crow yelled, and headed out into the vast tract of corn and pumpkin fields that was hoh it was drowned out by the roar of the engine, he started huain, totally unaware that he was doing it
Chapter 2
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