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12

THEY TURNED MERCY STOOD by a bed of flowers between the back of the church and the table where they sat She alking slowly toward the sound of their voices, with her hands spread out before her

Si got clumsily to his feet, hurried to her as best he could, and took her hand She slipped an ar like the world&039;s oldest wedding couple

"Auntie told you to take your coffee inside!" he said

"Finished o," Mercy said "It&039;s a bitter brew and I hate it Besides - I wanted to hear the palaver" She raised a treer and pointed it in Roland&039;s direction "I wanted to hear his voice It&039;s fair and light, so it is"

"I cry your pardon, Auntie," Si said, looking at the ancient woman a little fearfully "She was never one to mind, and the years have lanced at Roland He nodded, almost imperceptibly "Let her come forward and join us," she said

Si led her over to the table, scolding all the while Mercy only looked over his shoulder with her sightless eyes, her otten her seated, Aunt Talitha leaned forward on her forear to say, old sister-sai, or were you just beating your gums?"

"I hear what I hear My ears are as sharp as they ever were, Tali-tha - sharper!"

Roland&039;s hand dropped to his belt for aa cartridge in his fingers He tossed it to Susannah, who caught it "Do you, sai?" he asked

"Well enough," she said, turning in his direction, "to know that you just threw so To your wo ser? A biscuit?"

"Close enough," he said, s "You hear as well as you say Now tell us what you meant"

"There is anothera different course Either way, a different course was run by soo, anyways I used to hear it leaving the city and going out into the waste lands beyond"

"Dungheap!" one of the albino twins ejaculated "Nothing goes to the waste lands! Nothing can live there!"

She turned her face to him "Is a train alive, Till Tudbury?" she asked "Does a ?"

Well, Eddie thought of saying, there was this bear

He thought it over a little ht be better to keep his silence

"We would have heard it," the other tas insisting hotly "A noise like the one Si always tells of - "

"This one didn&039;t ," she ad noise like the one you hear so has struck so out from the city, I heard it" She thrust out her chin and added: "I did hear the bang once, too Fro Charlie Wind came and almost blew the steeple off the church Must have been two hundred wheels from here Maybe two hundred and fifty"

"Bulldink!" the twin cried "You been chewing the weed!"

"I&039;ll chew on you, Bill Tudbury, if you don&039;t shut up your honkin You&039;ve no business sayin bulldink to a lady, either Why - "

"Stop it, Mercy!" Si hissed, but Eddie was barely listening to this exchange of rural pleasantries What the blind woman had said made sense to him Of course there would be no sonic boom, not from a train which started its run in Lud; he couldn&039;t reht it was sohbor-hood of six hundred and fiftyfro up to that speed, and by the time it reached it, it would be out of earshot unless the listening conditions happened to be just right, as Mercy clai Charlie Wind - whatever that was - had come

And there were possibilities here Blaine the Mono was no Land Rover, but maybe maybe

"You haven&039;t heard the sound of this other train for seven or eight years, sai?" Roland asked "Are you sure it wasn&039;t er?"

"Couldn&039;t have been," she said, "for the last time was the year old Bill Muffin took blood-sick Poor Bill!"

"That&039;s alone," Aunt Talitha said, and her voice was queerly gentle

"Why did you never say you heard such a thing?" Si asked He looked at the gunslinger "You can&039;t believe everything she says, lord - always longing to be in the e is ullion!" she cried, and slapped his arm "I didn&039;t say because I didn&039;t want to o&039;ertop the story you&039;re so proud of, but now that it matters what I heard, I&039;m bound to tell!"

"I believe you, sai," Roland said, "but are you sure you haven&039;t heard the sounds of the ine it&039;s finally reached the end of its path"

"I wonder," Roland said "Indeed, I wonder very , suddenly far away froht, and shivered

13

HALF AN HOUR LATER they were in the town square again, Susannah in her wheelchair, Jake adjusting the straps of his pack while Oy sat at his heel, watching him attentively Only the town elders had attended the dinner-party in the little Eden behind the Church of the Blood Everlast-ing, it seemed, because when they returned to the square, another dozen people aiting They glanced at Susannah and looked a bit longer at Jake (his youth apparentlyto them than her dark skin), but it was clearly Roland they had co eyes were full of ancient awe

He&039;s a living reht They look at hiious people would look at one of the saints - Peter or Paul or Matthew - if he decided to drop by the Saturday night bean supper and tell the around the Sea of Galilee with Jesus the Carpenter

The ritual which had ended the meal was now repeated, only this ti participated They shuffled forward in a line, shaking hands with Eddie and Susannah, kissing Jake on the cheek or forehead, then kneeling in front of Roland for his touch and his blessing Mercy threw her arainst his stoed her back and thanked her for her news

"Will ye not stay the night with us, gunslinger? Sunset co since you and yours spent the night beneath a roof, I&039;ll warrant"

"It has been, but it&039;s best we go on Thankee-sai"

"Will ye coer?"

"Yes," Roland said, but Eddie did not need to look into his strange friend&039;s face to know the chances were sed hi on Si&039;s sunburned shoulder "Fare ye well"