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"Dobermans?" Tessa asked

At the laundry Sam had told her that her sister was one of one into any details about the others Now he quickly told her about Parkins

"Not her own dogs," Tessa agreed "She was savaged by whatever killed Are"

This was the first that Harry Talbot had heard about the e Sam had to explain about that and about how he and Tessa had e expression settled on Harry’s preed face To Tessa, he said, "Uh … you didn’t see these things at the lih the crack under the door"

Harry started to speak, stopped, and sat in thoughtful silence

He knows soht More than we do

For some reason Harry was not ready to share what he knew, for he returned his scrutiny to the notebook on his lap and said, "Two days after Paula Parkins died, there was one body taken to Callan’s, around nine-thirty at night"

"That would be September eleventh?" Sam asked

"Yes"

"There’s no record of a death certificate issued that day"

"Nothing about it in the paper, either"

"Go on"

Harry said, "September fifteenth--"

"Steve Heinz, Laura Dalcoe He supposedly killed her, then took his own life," Sam said "Lovers’ quarrel, we’re to believe"

"Another quick crehteenth, two more bodies delivered to Callan’s shortly after one in the o to bed"

"No public record of those, either," Sam said

"Two more out-of-towners who drove off the interstate for a visit or just dinner?" Tessa wondered "Oron the county road along the edge of town?"

"Could even have been locals," Harry said "I mean, there’re always a few people around who haven’t lived here a long time, newcomers who rent instead of own their houses, don’t have many ties to the community, so if you wanted to cover their murders, you couldaway suddenly, for a new job, whatever, and their neighbors hbors weren’t already "converted" and participating in the cover-up, Saht

"Then September twenty-third," Harry said "That would have been your sister’s body, Tessa"

"Yes"

"By then I knew I had to tell someone what I’d seen Someone in authority But who? I didn’t trust anyone local because I’d watched the cops bring in some of those bodies that were never reported in the newspaper County Sheriff He’d believe Watkins before he’d believe me, wouldn’t he? Hell, everyone thinks a cripple is a little strange anyway--strange in the head, I mean--they equate physical disabilities with mental disabilities at least a little, at least subconsciously So they’d be predisposed not to believe me And admittedly it is a wild story, all these bodies, secret cremations… " He paused His face clouded "The fact that I’m a decorated veteran wouldn’t have o, ancient history for soainst me in a way Post-Vietnam stress syndrome, they’d call it Poor old Harry finally went crackers--don’t you see?--fro matter-of-factly, without much emotion But the words he had just spoken were like a piece of glass held against the surface of a rippled pool, revealing realms below--in his case, realms of pain, loneliness, and alienation

Now emotion not only entered his voice but, a few tiot to say, part of the reason I didn’t try to tell anyone what I’d seen was because … I was afraid I didn’t knohat the hell was going on I couldn’t be sure how big the stakes were I didn’t know if they’d silence ht You’d think that having lost so, but that’s not the way it is, not at all Life’s probably more precious to me than to men who’re whole and healthy This broken body slowed me down so much that I’ve spent the last twenty years out of the whirl of activity in which most of you exist, and I’ve had time to really see the world, the beauty and intricacy of it In the end my disabilities have led me to appreciate and love life more So I was afraid they’d come for me, kill me, and I hesitated to tell anyone what I’d seen God help otten in touch with the Bureau sooner, ht have been saved Maybe … your sister would’ve been saved"

"Don’t even think of that," Tessa said at once "If you’d done anything differently, no doubt you’d be ashes now, scraped out of the bottom of Callan’s furnace and thrown in the sea My sister’s fate was sealed You couldn’t unseal it"

Harry nodded, then switched off the penlight, plunging the roo through the information in his notebook Saenerosity of spirit had brought tears to Harry’s eyes and that he did not want the to consult the notebook for details, "one body was brought to Callan’s at ten-fifteen at night Weird, too, because it didn’t come in either an aht by Loman Watkins--"

"Chief of police," Sam said for Tessa’s benefit

"--but he was in his private car, out of uniform," Harry said "They took the body out of his trunk It rapped in a blanket The blinds weren’t shut at their s that night, either, and I was able to get in tight with the scope I didn’t recognize the body, but I did recognize the condition of it--the same as Armes"

"Torn?" Sam asked