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ONCE THEY WERE IN the s pace he&039;d round Jake didn&039;t think it was because of the darkness; Gasher see, just as advertised Jake believed it was because his captor was satisfied that Roland had been squashed to jelly by the deadfall trap

Jake hiun to wonder

If Roland had spotted the tripwires - a far more subtle trap than the one which followed - was it really likely that he hadthe fountain? Jake supposed it was possible, but it didn&039;t ht it more likely that Roland had tripped the fountain on purpose, to lull Gasher and perhaps slow hih this maze under the streets - the total darkness would defeat even the gunslinger&039;s tracking abilities - but it cheered his heart to think that Roland ht not have died in an atteht, left, then left again As Jake&039;s other senses sharp-ened in an atteue perception of other tunnels around hirow loud for a moment, then fade as the stone foundations of the city drew close around theainst his skin, so footfalls echoed briefly as they passed the intersecting tunnels from which these stenchy breaths blew, and once Jake nearly brained hi He slapped at it with one hand and felt soe valve-wheel After that he waved his hands as he trotted along in an atteuided hiuided his oxen They ot enough of his breath back to first huly tuneful tenor voice

"Bibble-ti-tibble-ti-ting-ting-ting,

I&039;ll get a job and buy yer a ring,

When I get ly tits,

Ribble-ti-tibble-ti-ting-ting-ting!

O ribble-ti-tibble,

I just wanter fiddle,

Fiddle around with your ting-ting-ting!"

There were five or sixso," Jake puffed He hoped he sounded more out of breath than he actually was He didn&039;t know if it would do hie seeht his elbon in the center of Jake&039;s back, alh water running sluggishly through the tunnel they were traversing "Yon better know soht outcher back" He paused, then added: "There&039;s haunts down here, boy They live inside the fuckin in keeps e!"

Jake thought hard, not wanting to earn another love-tap fro he&039;d learned in suht He opened histo the echoes bounce back a water, and ancient thudding irl&039;s a corker, she&039;s a New Yorker,

I buy her everything to keep her in style,

She got a pair of hips

Just like two battleships,

Oh boy, that&039;s how irl&039;s a dilly, she co to keep her in style,

She&039;s got a pair of eyes

Just like two pizza pies,

Oh boy, that&039;s how - "

Gasher reached out, seized Jake&039;s ears as if they were jug-handles, and yanked hiht ahead of yer," he said "With a voice like yours, squint, it&039;d be doin the world a mercy to letcher fall in, so it would, but Tick-Tock wouldn&039;t approve at all, so I reckon ye&039;re safe for a little longer" Gasher&039;s hands left Jake&039;s ears, which burned like fire, and fastened on the back of his shirt "Now lean forward until you feel the ladder on the t&039;other side Andus both down!"

Jake leaned cautiously forward, hands outstretched, terrified of fall-ing into a pit he couldn&039;t see As he groped for the ladder, he beca past his face, and a faint blush of rose-colored light fro and closed over it The bite-wounds on his left hand broke open again, and he felt war across his palm

"Got it?" Gasher asked

"Yes"

"Then clio of his shirt, and Jake could i with a kick in the ass Jake stepped across the faintly gli his hurt hand as little as possible This tis were clear of moss and oil, and hardly rusted at all The shaft was very long and as Jake went down, hurrying to keep Gasher fro on his hands with his thick-soled boots, he found hi a movie he&039;d once seen on TV - Journey to the Center of the Earth

The throb of er The ht, but his ears told him these were in better shape than the ones above And when he finally reached the bottom, he found the floor was dry The new horizontal shaft was square, about six feet high, and sleeved with riveted stainless steel It stretched away for as far as Jake could see in both directions, straight as a string He knew instinctively, without even thinking about it, that this tunnel (which had to be at least seventy feet under Lud) also followed the path of the Beah he couldn&039;t have said why - the train they had co for lay directly above it

Narrow ventilation grilles ran along the sides of the walls just below the shaft&039;s ceiling; it was froled froray beards, but rille was a yellow arroith a symbol that looked a bit like a lower-case t The arrows pointed in the direction Jake and Gasher were heading

The rose-colored light was co of the shaft in parallel rows Some - about one in every three - were dark, and others sputtered fitfully, but at least half of theht, amazed How about that?