"The rabbit-hole went straight on like a tunnel for some way... and then dipped suddenly down." "So suddenly that Alice had not a moment to think about stopping herself... before she found herself falling down... what seemed to be a very deep well." "Either the well was very deep, or she fell very slowly... for she had plenty of time as she went down to look about her... and to wonder what was gonna happen next..." "You bend so that you don't break" "You give but then you can't take" "Those wise eyes of yours" "Those big skies of yours" "My sweet honey rose" "Strange dark flower rose" "Jeliza-Rose" "One, two, three, four..." "No, that..." "You must be Titania." "Hi, Titania." "It's me, Jeliza-Rose." "And this is Mustique." "I'm just as excited as anything." "Cos today, we're all going on a great trip." "Sexual ambush in the new wild west" "God is a camera, baby, show us more breast" "For every name in a star on that dirty boulevard" "Ten thousand others got shot through the heart" "The Isles of the Dutchman, it's calling" "His perfume and money is the smell of sin" "Miss September gave it up to Robin Hood" "The day Vincent Van Gogh came to Hollywood" "And here's my impression of it all" "What's in Denmark?" "When you ever been there, anyway?" "It's just something stupid you've got in your head." "Jutland." "Jutland." "Jutland." "It's called Jutland." " It's where we're headed." " The Viking land of marsh and fjords... and weird light." "I see dark banks... decorated by the most beautiful flies." "Where do you get all of these crappy ideas, anyway?" "Oh, I'm just thinking of a place without a phone." "Nobody could hound me then." "They won't find me, or you or Jeliza-Rose." "Fuck that, Noah, I ain't going." " So don't even bother trying." "Stupid." " Whatever you want." "Guess me and Jeliza-Rose will make the trip." "How's that?" "You know what, Noah... you and that little shit-critter can leave whenever you want." "I don't care." "When you're done with daddy come upstairs and do my legs, okay?" "Okay, mama." "Thanks, sweetheart." "Did you know... that King Harold... he promised to marry the Norse Queen, Gunhilda... and enticed her to Jutland." "Then on her arrival she got drowned in a bog instead." "Not very nice, is it?" "No, not very nice." "No." "Think she deserved it?" "No." "I guess she didn't." "Thank you, sweetie." "Yeah... time for... for daddy to... go on a little vacation." "I say poor me." "Danish folk greet the May sunrise." "Daddy... is Jutland like the Prairies?" "It's your daddy's fault you're the way you are, not mine." "Because I loved you." "Lip-smacking little junkie baby." "Irritable and hyperactive, you was." "Just twitching and spasms and convulsions." "Your daddy blew smoke in your face to keep you quiet, you know that?" "I think it would damage you, but don't blame me..." "I breast-fed you forever." "Jeliza-Rose, you know I love you, don't you?" "I'm sorry, baby." "I'm gonna do something real nice for you real soon some day, I promise." " Sure, mama." " Baby... and I want you..." "What the fuck are you doing?" "How many times have I told you to stay away from my chocolate, you little bitch?" "Oh, honey." "I don't want you to leave me, Jeliza-Rose." "I can't get by without you, Jeliza-Rose." "Down, down, down." "Would the fall never come to an end?" ""I wonder how many miles I've fallen by this time?"" "Alice said aloud." ""I must be getting somewhere near the centre of the earth. "" "Jeliza-Rose, wake up." "Wake up." "Listen." "You should know this before I forget." "The bog waters... they have weird powers." "They leave these bodies... in bogs for thousands of years and they don't decay." "They just..." "Well, they may get a little shrunk and stuff." "Honey, listen to me now." "Come here, try to understand this." "Lookee here." "There he is, look, see him... that man was murdered two thousand years ago." "You're looking at somebody deader than dirt." "Who killed him?" "Well, I don't know." "Let's just hope we're in that kind of shape in two thousand years." "Look at him." "He's just... he's just lying there... waiting to come back to life." "Okay." "That's what I wanted to tell you." "Goodnight, baby." "Straight to sleep now, or else your mum... and all the bog men in the world will come chasing after you." " Dad!" " What?" "Daddy... could you leave the light on tonight, please?" "Sure, baby." "You got it." "It was the methadone that killed her." "Should have kept her on the junk." "I should have just cut her dose and kept her on it." "Now she's dead and..." "I don't have a car." "Please don't be sad." "Now we can eat all her choc bars." "Look... here they are." "No, no one's gonna take you from me, sweetie." "That's not happening here." "Huh?" "Now, we're leaving." "Okay?" "We're gonna go off to the prairies." " Okay?" " We can go to Jutland." "Wouldn't that be wonderful." "All right, is there anything you wanna say?" " Mum's dead all right." " Maybe we should... give Queen Gunhilda a real send-off... will all the things she loved, yeah." "There'd be horses on there and..." " Yeah." " Some of these." " Plates of gold." "Come on, honey." " These too." "Okay." "Yeah, that's it." "What else did she love on there?" " Shoes." " Oh yeah, she loved shoes, that's it." "That's it." "Lay her to rest on a... a Viking ship." "Yeah... set her on fire." "Adrift the great misty fjords at dawn." "No, no, sweetie, sweetie!" " Maybe it's a bad idea." " Come on now." "You might burn up the whole building and everyone else." "Yeah, you're right." "Let's go." "Don't stare, it's bad luck." "Come on." "Not it." "No, no, come on." "Let's do this damn thing." "Gotta monitor the information as it develops." "The bog men... they'll be looking for me when they find mum." "Probably already found her." "I'm not gonna be safe until we get to Grandma's house." "Think mum will keep falling until she falls right through the earth?" "Got to get rid of the squirrels in the attic because they're chewing the wiring." "They make a terrible racket in the morning." "One bit me once." "Me and my cousin, we beat it dead with a bat." "But not before that sucker tried climbing my pant leg... all crazy mad, getting itself tangled in my hair." "Sinking it's big yellow teeth into my scalp... tearing at everything." "Nothing." "Nothing." "Well, Noah isn't even worth a headline any more." "Yeah, I'm a nobody." "Shall I read some more?" "Yeah, sweetie, that would be nice." "Read." ""Well!" Thought Alice to herself." "Your grandma, she liked the squirrels." "She said the place didn't feel so lonesome that way." "Jeez." "Oh, mama, where are you when I need you?" "Wish I'd met grandma." "She was a wonderful woman, your grandma, but..." "Queen Gunhilda said "Fuck that." "Fuck that. " she said." "Really!" "I wanted to take you, all right." " We're going there now, right?" " Sure we are." " I told you." "Hey..." " We are, aren't we?" "Sweetie, this is just the first stage." "You and me... we're on our travels, honey." "We're going across the ocean to Jutland." "You and me, okay?" "Jeliza-Rose." "Was that you making those air biscuits?" "Cutting air muffins?" "Oh man, that's nasty." "It isn't me!" "You should move to China." "Over there, the louder the burp, the better the meal." "A powerful air biscuits delivered with grace would get you free dessert." "That's gross!" "There you go again." "It's a regular art form with you." "Put a plug in it, please." "Don't." "It's you!" "You're doing it." "Stop it!" "Stop." "Serve you right." "For the love of Mike." " Awfully kind of you." " No problem." "Come on, sweetie." "Watch it now." "Watch your step." "Wow." "Is that it?" "Yeah." "Go on." "Go on through." "Place needs a little work." "Wants a new well." "No problem." "Look." "Yard needs some tending." "Damn weeds..." "they get the better of everything." "Nails coming up on the porch." "We can hammer them back down." "Yeah, your grandma, had this boy mow and weed." "I suppose that fella's all grown-up by now." "Hey, ma!" "I'm home!" "Home at last!" "Go on in." "Go on." "Go on." "Vandals." "Where's my room?" "Up with the Gods." "Mustique..." "Sateen Lips..." "Baby Blonde... and Glitter Gal." "Hi, guys." "I'm dying." "I can't go on." "I must go on." "You will survive." "A complete recovery is expected." "Thank you, thank you, doctor." "You've given me hope." "I shall live." "Oh, doctor." "Doctor." "Now, you don't go short-changing daddy, will you, sweetheart?" "I won't." "Don't you worry." "Oh, time for daddy's vacation." "Not too long this time, daddy." "Oh no." "Just a little vacation." "Daddy's going deep sea diving." "Going to the place where dreams are made." "Thanks, honey." "And daddy... daddy's gonna stroll down that... far subterranean shore... all littered with flotsam of hopes and dreams." "Oh, I see them." "Relics of ancient times... lonely cenotaphs... standing along that melancholy tideland." "What are you saying?" "I don't understand what you're saying." "Come back." "You'll get in trouble." "You shouldn't be in there." "People don't like squirrels in the attic." "I'm not telling you a secret because you wouldn't like it." "He's in the room." "Are you ready, Mustique?" "I was born ready." "Good, because this could get pretty dangerous." "Bring Sateen Lips with us." "She can help." " I don't wanna go." " Shut up, you baby." "Why can't Baby Blonde, or Glitter Gal do it instead?" "Keep complaining and me and Jeliza-Rose will cut off all your hair!" "Please don't." "I'll behave." "You better." "I'm sure he's here somewhere." "Maybe he's magic." "Maybe he's really a fairy." "Don't be silly." "Only lightning bugs are like fairies." "Squirrel butts don't glow." "He's in the wall." "He's right here." "He's gone through to the next room!" "Don't go in there." "I'm scared." "What did I tell you?" "Safe as houses." "I'm still scared." "That squirrel can't hide from me!" "We're going in... right, Jeliza-Rose?" "Right." "But I'm still scared, Jeliza-Rose." "If we're not back in an hour, then come after us... because it means... we're being pulverized." "It's like a cave." "It's grandma's stuff!" "Yeah... that's what it is." "Let's taka a look at those boxes." "No." "Scared!" "What's so spooky about boxes?" "It's the treasure chest that's spooky." "Bet there's slippers... and gold in it." "Or a dead thing." "It's just old clothes." "See." "I bet she was beautiful." " She was old!" " She was my grandma!" "She was old and ugly with boxes of squirrel-chewed junk!" "You're lying." "Shut up or we're leaving." "That's what happened." "We've turned into squirrels." "There's Jeliza-Rose." "She's looking for us." "Boom boom boom boom I'm gonna shoot you right down" "Daddy?" "Right offa your feet" "Take you home with me" "I had a bad dream." "Boom boom boom boom" "I love to see you strut" "Still on vacation, daddy?" "When you talking to me" "That baby talk" "I like it like that" "Whoa, yeah!" "Talk that talk" "Walk that walk" "Morning." "I'm hungry." "This is Radio Jeliza-Rose." "Are you receiving me?" "Over." "This is Radio Jeliza-Rose." "Am I coming in loud and clear?" "Over." "Won't talk to you too." "It's not nice, you know." "You wouldn't like it too." "Get off!" "Die, die, die!" "It's clear." "All clear." "Now... we mustn't sing or talk... or we'll spook the fairies..." "and they won't come." "I have to see them." "Probably they won't be out till tonight anyway." "Lift me up sweet Jesus" "Nail me by his crooked cross" "Oh what a glorious day" "A ghost." "She was killed in this very bus." "All burned bad." "That's why her face is covered up." "Maybe she's a queen..." "and she got strangled." "She's Queen Gunhilda." "She didn't want to stay dead any more." "We have to go home." "We have to go tell daddy." "Right now!" "We saw a ghost!" "We saw a ghost." "She was looking for something." "Get on with it, you little bitch." "I'm dying." "My tongue is filling my head." "I'm really dying this time." "This is not a vacation." "Dear, you're already dead." "You're a ghost." "A spook." "So beautiful too." "I'm a vision." "Dear... promise me something, Jeliza-Rose." "If I ever end up looking like Glitter Gal... promise you'll just kill me." "I couldn't." "I could never." "Oh, yes you could." "You're a vision." "You're a sensation." "We're very proud of you." "You're our beauty queen... and it's only right you look your best for the seance." "Now... hold hands." "Mustique, you too." "Ridiculous." "Everyone close your eyes." "The ghost is sending us a message." "A psychic message." "She wants something." "Like what?" "A gift." "I could draw a picture, of you and me." "Or give her Glitter Gal." "Shut up, Mustique." "Then what?" "Something only a dead person uses." "The radio." "It's dead." "The dead can listen to ghost voices." "And ghost music too." "Except... daddy likes listening to music." "First, we make an altar." "Jeliza-Rose, this is not going to work." "Shut up, Mustique." "Bog men are stirring." "Let's go." "Ghosts and monsters are fast runners, remember?" "No, they aren't." "Dead things are slow." "You have to be alive to run." "They get you..." "when you're not expecting them." "What are you doing?" "What have you been messing with here?" " Are you mute, vandal?" " I'm scared." "Ooh, vandal's scared." "I'm not a vandal." "I'm Jeliza-Rose." "Jeliza-Rose." "Well... a vandal by any other name." "You understand?" "Children." "This is for me?" "It's a gift." "Something useful." "Any bees?" "Go mess elsewhere." "One sting and I'm paralyzed..." "most likely dead." "But you are dead." "What a thing to say!" "What kind of a child are you?" " What I meant to say was..." " Well, you should say what you mean!" " I do." " No, you don't!" "Meaning what you say is something quite different." "You might just as well have said..." ""I see what I eat" is the same as "I eat what I see"." "Which it isn't." "If you see a bee or you hear a bee, you'll say so, right?" "If I'm stung and die, it'll be your fault." "Stung in my own garden." "Blinded by a bee." "Revenge for destroying my daddy's hives, I say." "Poured gas on them." "Set them ablaze." "See my daddy, he loved his bees, and they loved him, I'm sure." "They is jealous creatures, though." "Hated my mama." "Pure evil." "My mama's heart... just stopped." "And we never ate apple pie again." "She was changed forever." "Now... there isn't a bee alive that doesn't want me murdered." "And this... this is revenge!" "A dead peeper." "Dreadful, isn't it?" "Who's this?" " This for me too?" " It's Mustique." "She's my friend." "Well, you should consider the company you keep, I think." "You take it." "You be going now." "You're not a real ghost, anyhow." "Not yet." "Maybe we'll meet again." "I'll most probably come by here tomorrow... around noon." "Well, you can leave your friend behind, she's trouble." "Okay." "Children!" "She doesn't hate me." "She doesn't!" "Daddy!" "She doesn't hate me!" "She's not a ghost at all." "Daddy, I think she could be my new friend." "She invited me to a picnic." "The only thing is... she just wants me to go." "She doesn't like Mustique... and I don't think she'd like the others." "I'm going on my own." "Sleep... dear little ones, sleep." "You dream... of trains... of Eskimo pies... and old men dancing with bears." "Lift me up sweet Jesus" "Lay me on His crooked cross" "Oh what a glorious day" "Have me down on my knees and pray" "Lift me up sweet Jesus" "Lay me on His crooked cross" "Kill a rabbit yourself, Dickens." "I'm too busy today." "Now, do you think you're the only person with things to do?" "No, Dell, I can't!" "Lord, I don't know why I is getting such cross." "I can't kill rabbits, Dell." "Because they've got big eyes." "And they're watching me." " Why can't you kill them?" " Because I can't." "You know I can't." "You hear me?" "If you do that to rabbits I feel bad." "I don't do that." "Well, I put food in my tummy already." "Am I a maid?" "Am I a wife?" "Do I make the sky turn blue?" "Dickens, feed yourself, you're no child." "But my tummy is empty, Dell!" "You didn't even leave me a crumb." "You tummy will get his food, Dickens, but not for lunch." "No lunch." "I'll fill him at dinner, he'll get his rabbit then." "Mama needs reading to before I kill for you." "Boy!" "She's gonna kill you, rabbit." "Better hide." "Gonna eat you for dinner." "Better hide." "Gonna eat you for dinner." "It was such a wonderful time." "They invited me into their little stone house." "They really did." "And we danced and played games and sang songs." "Her name is Dell." "And she had the radio fixed." "And I danced with Dickens." "It was wonderful, Mustique." "Well, I wouldn't know, would I?" "I wasn't there." "I know, Mustique." "I'm sorry you couldn't come too." "I wanted you to." " I really did." " You hypnotized us!" "I had to." "So you wouldn't stop me going." "There..." "What is that stink?" "What died in here?" "You quit cutting muffins!" "Poo in the yard, because that's where you do it!" "What are you eating?" "You're fat." "Your belly is poking." "You're a real stinker." "And don't say it's me, because it's you." "And you know it!" "You don't have to eat if you don't want to, daddy." "Maybe I'll bring back some food from Dell." "A butter tart... or maybe a little piece of her chicken." "Go away, bog man." "Leave me alone!" "Go away, bog man!" "No, no, don't be mad." "I'm wrong again." "I'm sorry." "The old lady isn't here any more." "I know that." "I'm going now." "She isn't here any more." "Wait!" "Dickens!" "Dickens!" "Don't be scared." "Dell is my friend." "We ate a picnic too!" "Come back!" "I'm Dell's best friend!" "Dickens?" "Come out." "I can see you." "If I run too fast..." "I faint like a girl." "I'm a girl." "I don't faint like a girl." "I'm Jeliza-Rose." "My daddy wrote a song about me because I'm special." "How come you know my name?" "Dell told me." "She's my best friend." "She's my sister." "Who was that in the chair?" "Was that your mama?" "My daddy." "He's pretty too... with pretty hair." "I made him pretty." "The old lady lived there." "See, the door was open, so, she could have been there too." "But she wasn't, but maybe she was." "Yeah, I'm always getting into trouble that way... when I'm wrong." "Wait." "What happened to your head?" "They cut inside my head, they did." "They cut my brain... so I'm not epileptic no more only sometimes." "Like this." "Do you have a pool?" "No." "I can't swim." "Because I'll get a seizure and sink like a stone." "I don't swim except in the tub." " And I don't drive cars." " Yeah, me either." "See, I can't drive to save my life." "Not even if I'm bloody... or my arm's chopped off." "If you drive you'll go..." "Yeah, yeah, that's what'll happen, all right." "Uh-oh." "Careful, you'll drown if you don't keep swimming?" "Oh, I'm drowning!" "I am." "Save me!" "Save me!" "I need to go get Lisa." " Lisa?" " Yeah, Lisa!" "And see, then I don't have to swim anyway." "Lisa's my submarine." "If you wanna see it, I don't know..." "Maybe tomorrow you can." "I want to see it." "I like submarines." "Thing is... thing is, you gotta hold my hand, okay?" "Real tight, okay?" "Okay." "Because that way we don't get lost from each other." " All right." " Okay." "That way... it's the ocean!" "This it!" "She's Lisa!" "She's Lisa." "Vessels underwater have girl names." "Boats on top do too." "Well, some do." "What's this supposed to be?" "A periscope?" "Yeah." "Dive!" "Dive!" "What's this junk?" "It ain't junk, it's bait!" "You see this?" "Shark attack!" " A shark did this?" " A monster shark." "Because I hunt them all over the South Pacific in my submarine." "And I set bait." "They're mostly pennies, but I got a million." "I set the bait like this." "And then the monster shark, he comes down the tracks... his jaws are gnashing... he mashes everything in his way, that shark." "When I find bigger bait, I hide in the submarine and wait." "The only way to stop that monster is to blow him up." "Rocks and spears don't work, believe me." "I'm lucky I'm alive." "I need to be home." "I need to be home." " Dickens." " You too." " Don't get in my submarine without me." " I won't." "Bye." "Bye, friend." "Don't drown." "Come visit me tomorrow." "We'll sail away... under the seas." "You love, Dickens?" "No I don't." "You want to kiss the cut on his head and hold hands." "But, he's a sissy." "He's a shark hunter." "He has a submarine too." "Except it's a fake." "He's gonna be rich and buy a real one." "He has more pennies than you." "Hey, wait for me." "That monster shark might be about." "Don't worry." "Dickens the sea captain will save us." "He's sailing under the seas now." "He's diving deep to the place where dreams are made." ""He walks a lonely shore all littered with dreams and hopes... "" "Dickens, my brave sea captain." "Avast ye, you scurvy..." "I'll have you keelhauled." "I'll have you strung to the yard arm and sent to Davey Jones's locker!" " Have mercy on my soul!" " Mutiny." "Looks like the pirate took the captain prisoner." " Mercy." " Those who die will be the lucky ones!" "I'm sorry." "I'm sorry." "Wait a minute, he looks more like a farmer." "He's not really a captain..." " or a prisoner or anything." " Go on in, Dickens." " Stay in your room till I call you out." " Okay, Dell, okay." "Afternoon, Miss Munro." "Hello, Patrick." "Is it afternoon?" "My, how the day flies, you know." ""My, how the day flies you know. "" "I do appreciate all you do for me, Patrick." "You are such a kind young man." " Well, I always try..." " I know." "I know." "Now, Patrick... these deliveries..." "they is all paid for, ain't they?" "Sure." "Thank you." "Are you... are you go... will you..." "I will." "I will... but not here." "Not in the yard... not by the tomatoes." "It's a zoo room." "It stinks of disinfectant." "Miss Munro." "What are they doing?" "She's touching his boy-thing." "It's gone all angry and red!" "She's kissing it!" "She's sucking his blood!" " He's trying to call for help." " She's a vampire." "You're next." "Oh, shit." "Why'd you stop, Miss Mun..." "We're safe." "We escaped." "I thought she was gonna be my friend." "Say... isn't that the rabbit hole you found?" "It looks bigger than before." "Maybe I could crawl in." "I want to look in." "Show me." "Okay." "All right." "Mustique!" "I'm falling very slowly, dear." "The sides of the holes are filled with cupboards and book-shelves." "Can you hear me?" "No, don't listen to her!" "She's gone, Jeliza-Rose." "It's too dangerous to rescue Mustique." "You have to face up to it." "Take that!" "She's not dead yet." "You just wanna take her place." "You're all traitors." "You don't have hearts." "You're just heads!" " And you too!" " No, no." "Jeliza-Rose, please." "I want to help save Mustique." "I truly do." "Because of my eyes, I can sense things in the dark." "You're better than those other two." "I'm sorry Mustique was so mean to you." "I'm almost a ghost." "That's why Dell didn't see me." "I really think I am... don't you?" "I really can't say, Jeliza-Rose." "I don't know about those things." "Come in, Mustique." "Are you there?" "Can you hear me?" "This is radio Jeliza-Rose." "Am I loud and clear?" "Come in, please." "Over." "Dickens?" "Thought you was a squirrel." "He's spoiled." "He's cutting muffins, is all." "I guess that's what it is..." "I guess." "Whatever it is." "Your daddy sleeps a lot." " My mama does too." " Is she a ghost?" "No, not any more." "Not really." "She's just a dozer." "She isn't as pretty as your daddy." "Her hair isn't nice like his is." "It's only fake." "See." "That's funny." "You fooled me because I didn't know." "It's not supposed to be funny." "It was Mustique's idea." "Dickens... will you help me save my friend?" "She may be dying." "She's farther than the ocean, I think." "I probably can't do it." "But you're the captain!" "Yeah, I am." "Because I've got my own submarine." "Can we feed the shark?" "I'd like to do that." "If you want you can help me too." "We can lure it." "Meaner than death." "Okay, I'll help you." "Then you'll rescue my friend?" "Yeah." "What'll happen?" "The end of the world." "The monster shark will die?" "The monster shark never dies." "Bad dog." "You watered all the fish and seaweeds." "Bad dog!" " You're the bad dog." " No, you're the bad dog." " You're a bad dog!" " You're a bad dog for looking." "We better go." "If the monster shark catches us here, we're doomed." "Monster shark!" "Monster shark." "Gonna kill you." "It's gonna eat you." "The bus!" "We can hide there." "No, that's a bad place." "It's wrong there." "No." "Come on!" "Can't go there." "You use the bus for shark bait and it tips over and burns up." "And then you get in trouble." "And Officer Waller said "You can't drive a bus on the tracks, Dickens... you should know that." "That'll get you sent away, Dickens. "" "So I can't go there with you." "I can't go there with you." "Captain, you're acting wei..." " silly" " Can't go." "Sometimes you just worry about it too much." "Just pretend it never happened, okay?" "I better go home now and eat, I think." "Maybe we can find some food together." "We shouldn't play no more today." "You have to save my friend." "You said you'd do that." "I don't know, because I make mistakes if I try some things." "But you have to." "You promised." "What is your friend?" "A head." " A doll's head." " Does she bite?" "No." "Her mouth is like this." "She doesn't have teeth." "All right." "Okay." "Wait!" "I got her." "It has to be her." " It has to be." " Yeah, it has to be!" "No, it's weird." "It's not a head at all, it's not like what you said." "And that's all that's down there, okay?" "There's nothing but dirt and more dirt." "She's dead." "I can feel something coming." "It's the monster shark!" "He's coming for the bait!" " Look out!" " Wait!" "Where are you going?" "Dickens!" "Dickens!" "Dickens!" "Damn you." "Trouble-maker!" "Vandal!" "Hold on, Jeliza-Rose." "We're coming." "Come on, hurry up." "Is she dead?" "I can't be sure." "Look, she's breathing." "She's weak." "And must be pretty hungry, pretty thirsty too." "What's that?" "Smells like disinfectant." " Look, I try to be good, okay." " Dickens..." "And I'll get the boy." "Where are you going, Jeliza-Rose?" "Don't go downstairs." "Dell's there." "Don't go, Jeliza-Rose." "I wish Mustique were here." "Don't cry." "Mustique's gone forever." "Don't go downstairs." "I'm afraid." " You're always crying." " Baby." " I'm not a baby." " You act like one." "Cry baby." "Cry, cry baby, cry baby." "Maybe you two want to come with me?" "Well, you're coming anyhow." "Please don't go, Jeliza-Rose." "What is that terrible smell?" "I told you... disinfectant." "What can she be doing down there?" "I don't know." "We'll find out." "To meet again like this..." "I won't let you go though." "Not again." "No more running away." "I love you so much." "There's so much damage done already." "But I'll save what's left." "Oh, I will." "Put this there." " Who welcomed you down here, child?" " Not me, Dell, I didn't!" "Not me." "Wigs and blush, they won't cut it, child." "You can stay and watch if you must, but you be quiet or else." "Now I want to chill him." "What a mess." "This isn't fun." "This is a sad man." "This a sad, sad man." "Now..." "Sinister apples." "Sinister, sinister apples." "I'm tired, I'm tired, tired, tired." "See the skin has to be peeled." "And then the fat trimmed... and the bones, they get sprinkled with powdered Borax... then the shaping of the wire begins... and the mending, the sewing, the varnishing..." "Rose." "Rose." "Arise, Rose... and behold Noah." " Is he all better now?" " Course he's better, course he is." "Are you gonna give him something?" "A gift for his new life." " Like what?" " Oh, I don't know." "You have to choose." "It has to be something dear to you, though." " No, not me!" " No, not me." " No, don't." "Oh, please." "Please!" " Don't, Jeliza-Rose..." "I'm scared." "Not me!" "Jeliza-Rose, I'm your friend." "Jeliza-Rose!" " Goodbye." " No." "Have a nice trip." "Jeliza-Rose, get me out." " We're so afraid!" " Somebody save me." "Help!" "Can anyone hear me?" "Help!" "You brought Noah back to me." "So we'll share him now." "But you're his." "You understand, child?" "Go to the porch, draw in, it's the fumes." "It's unhealthy for your lungs." "Go on, get!" "It's a new day." "We'll get your house in order." "An untidy home means an untidy person." "Monster!" "You nasty thing!" "Nasty thing." "Come on, things to do." "Come on." "Up." "Up!" "Dickens." " Gotta clean, clean, clean." " Clean, clean, clean." "Wash me in the blood of Jesus" "And clean the tarnished soul" "He will heal me Make me whole" "Wipe it!" "Rise and shine" "Rise and shine" "We'll rise and shine with Jesus In my new home in the sky" "With loaves and fish He'll feed us" "His pierced hands will lead us" "And we'll rise and shine with Jesus in the sky" "Now when we get to heaven" "That sin'll be all compared" "And angel's wings we're given as we climb them golden stairs" "I'm gonna strip off and put on a pure white robe" "Scrub clean my sinful soul" "So wash me in the blood" "Wash me in the blood of Jesus" "Now... seal your eyes and mouth, extend your arms and hold your breath." "Do your panties." "Beer braised rabbit with carrots and onions and potatoes." "A jar of lemonade and butter tarts for dessert." "Fruits of Eden all for the children of Noah." "Jeliza-Rose... this is where you belong..." "Jeliza... this is where you belong." "You're part... you're part of the family now, you hear me?" "We cannot have any strangers here." "They'd take daddy away from us." "Do you hear me?" "Dear Lord..." "I hold up a hand to Death." "I keep that troublesome stranger away." " That is my calling." " Hallelujah." "When you love something, it doesn't have to die or go in the ground." "Nothing has to change, for I am the keeper of the silent souls." "Amen." "Amen." "Now, eat." "Stuff yourselves." "Yeah." "He's good." "I waited for you for so long." "And now... after all these years, to have you here..." "I love gravy." " You won't be leaving me again." " Lemonade." "You'll be staying put for a long while." "He looks like a burrito." "Sleep of the just." "Did you ever know the old lady?" "Rose, you ever know your grandma?" "She died when I wasn't even born yet." "You missed a saint." "I owe her my life." "She tended my sorry body after that bee darn near killed me." "Nasty, nasty bees." "Nasty... buzzy bees." "Course I..." "I can see more than most, even with my eyes closed." "Yes." "I can see birds and... rabbits and... curious little girls hiding behind bushes." "I can see everything you can imagine." "Course... curious little girls hiding behind bushes... sometimes see more than they should." "Best minding one's own business, you hear me?" "Otherwise, Rose, bad things might happen." "Bad, bad things might happen under the sun." "You smell awful." "You reek of the devil, Rose!" "You're dead." "You finished making that trap, Dickens?" "Dickens!" "Nasty." "Diseased." "Come on, hurry up now, Dickens." "Nasty." "Sateen Lips?" "Baby Blonde?" " Are you there?" " Yeah, hallelujah." "Behold brothers and sisters, she's been washed in the blood of Jesus." "A full recovery is expected." "I've never been so happy." "I'm alive!" "Jeliza-Rose, you know I love you, don't you?" "Honey, I'm sorry." "I'll do something nice for you soon." " I promise, baby." " Hallelujah." "She's born again." " Jesus is giving her a new brain." " Have some chocolate." "Wash me in the blood" "Rise and shine, dear." "Mustique's alive!" "She's okay and happy." "Just a dream." "Trust me." " I know everything." " Stop it." "Stop pretending you're her." "I have no idea what you're talking about." "It's not just a dream!" "That's what you get!" "You're a bad dog!" "Hi, Jeliza-Rose." "I better go because I didn't knock and that's rude." "So I'll go, okay?" "I didn't knock, so I'll go, okay?" "Don't go!" "Don't go." "I've got good news." "Mustique's all right!" "She's in the hospital but she's got a body... and she's gonna get a real brain too!" "I'd like a new brain sometimes." "Because I think a new one is shiny!" "Yeah." "She was happy." "I guess she isn't a doll any more." "She must be pretty." "She's beautiful." "She's fabulous, dear." "And we're gonna make you fabulous too, darling." "That one." "Scarlet Surrender is best." "Now, sit still..." " or you'll make me do it wrong." " I won't move a muscle." "As I don't have muscles anyway, so I won't move them." "Puff your lips." "Get ready." "There." "I think you're nice." "It's silly." "You got red on me." "Silly kisser." "The old lady who lived here was a silly kisser too." "She kissed me." "That was when I was little." "She was my grandma." "She never kissed me... because I didn't get born yet." "Sometimes she did this in my mouth... and that was fun." "It was a snake, I think... or a goldfish dancing." "Some days I'd be here all day kissing with her." "She's a nice lady." "Except she's dead." "Dickens... she was your girlfriend." "You were her boyfriend." "No..." "I was her cutie..." "I was her little cutie." "But she... she did fall down the steps and die." "I ran down when she did that." "Because I was just little, I didn't know what to do." "I was scared." " She's nice lady." " Dickens... you're a little cutie." "You're a little cutie too." "Silly kissers!" "Silly kissers!" "Silly..." "A bomb!" "They're exploding the ground!" "It's bigger than firecrackers and bullets." " I love firecrackers." " Me too." "I really do." "It's the boom hole!" "It's the edge of the world." "It's the Hundred Year Ocean." "I got a secret." "If I say, you can't tell, okay?" "Because if Dell knows she'll wallop me good and I'll be in trouble forever." "What is it?" "It's a giant atom bomb." "And the end of the whole world." "Yeah, like a big tidal wave that goes whoosh!" "And everything gets cleaned away like chemicals... and the Baby Jesus returns forever and ever." "Amen." "I wanna see." "I don't know." "Maybe tomorrow when Dell drives to town." "If you show me... you can keep the arm." "Is it a boy or a girl?" "Because a girl is nice, I think." " It's a boy." " How can you tell?" " No, that doesn't mean it's a boy." " Yes, it does." "It's a thingy." "You got a thingy." "I know." "No, that's wrong." "I don't have that." "I don't have that." "Dickens." "I'd like to see your secret." "I don't know." "You're my boyfriend." "My cutie." "You're my dear sweet Captain... and I'm Mrs Captain." "I don't understand that." "I better go home, I think." "Dickens has a girlfriend." "He's your boyfriend." "He's my husband." "And I..." "I..." "I..." "I'm his wife." "He's dreamboat." "He's a sunny cloud." "Kiss me." " You're a girl." " Kiss me and I'll be a boy." " Girls don't kiss girls that way." " Please." "Oh baby." "You're disgusting." "That was fun." "That was great." " You're my best friend." " And you're mine too." "And I love Dickens!" "He's the sweet prince." "He's the great king." "He's apply juice and jerky!" "We're a happy family." "And Dell will marry daddy and look after us all." "And we'll explore the Hundred Years Ocean." "It's a dream come true." "It's Christmas!" "And what do we have here?" "I think a baby is in me from kissing." "I think it's Mustique." "I think she's come back." "Tell Dickens." "Tell him about the baby." "Then he'll let you see his special secret." "Maybe he's alone." "But maybe Dell's still there." "Let's go." "Let's go see Dickens special secret in his room." "My sweet honey rose" "Strange dark flower rose" "Jeliza-Rose" "Hello?" "It's us." "It's Jeliza-Rose." "It's a real nice day for a tea party." "Me and Glitter Gal are here..." "in case you're not too busy." "Jeliza-Rose." "See what happens when you're small and hungry all the time?" "You're nasty." "You deserve it." "Maybe I am nasty, but at least I'm alive." "Get out while you can, or she'll close a trap on you too!" "Shut up." "Shut up!" "It's not fair!" "I didn't know you were there." "You scared me good!" "No, no, it was an accident." "You just got spooked, that's all." " It was all them ugly dead things and all." " No, that's not right." "No, that's not right." "Because Dell makes them alive again and that's what she does!" "And she's Jesus how she makes them alive again!" "You scared me good, I didn't know you was there!" "I think I fainted." "I'm sorry." "Don't do that again or I'll die, okay?" "Okay." "All right." "I'm sorry." "I think I'm sorry too." "Think so." "Dickens..." "Glitter Gal wants to tell you something." "That baby sounds like a strange thing." "We can build a castle..." "and Dell will marry my daddy." "But... you have to show me your special secret first." "No, I can't build a castle." "I don't know how." "I don't know how." "No." "Dickens... if you show me your secret..." "I'll love you forever." "I'll show you, okay?" "Just once only." "But if I don't unpack this bag before Dell gets back, I won't eat tonight." "So you wait, okay?" "You wait." "Don't touch nothing." "This is Dell's place." "All right." "I'll wait for my cutie." "You're my kisser." "What do you wanna see his special secret for?" "You're better off not knowing." "Look what happens." "I was curious." "You know what Dell's gonna do to me?" "We have to help him." "You do it." "I don't wanna get in trouble." "That's it, that's it." "I'm free, I'm free!" "We can't wake mama, so we can't talk like this... unless we talk like this first." "Because we're ghosts." " We're quiet ghosts." " Nice." "Your house is the witch's cave." "We're disappearing and we won't get caught." "Yeah, that's a good idea, I think." "Because Dell will wallop me for having company." "It's Halloween." "My room!" "My room, my room." "You better get on the bed so you don't crush nothing important, okay?" "Okay." " Is there candy in it?" " No." "It's my special secret." "It's the eight wonder." "The great wave." "The end of the world!" "Dynamite." " How do you explode them?" " Like a firecracker, I think." "Like a war bomb!" "Boom!" "Kaboom!" "And everything gets cleaned away." "The end of the world." "Blown to bits." "So I'll keep them." "Yeah, I'll keep them until I'm an old man... and then I'll kill that shark..." "and I'll be a hero..." "I'm pretty sure." "And I'll help you." "That way we can be on TV." "Because you love me." "I'm your wife forever." "That's baby's asleep, I think." "It's snoring." "She's growing." "She's coming tonight... or tomorrow." "I bet she's pretty." "I bet she's pretty, I bet she's pretty like you." "Where's that place?" "The whole bottom of the ocean." "There are whole cities there, with people and dogs." "There are castles there..." "and farms and husbands and wives... and babies, and ghosts... and silly kissers too." "And kissers that do this..." " It's mama, I think." " Is she awake?" "I don't know." "Because that never happens, but maybe it happens." "If mama quit dozing I'll go see if she wants soup." "Dickens, I'm scared." "Me too." "If we go together, we're safe." "Yeah, all right." "Mama?" "It's damn bad." "Dell says someday mama will wake." "And she says someday there'll be a pill or a story or something... and that'll make her eyes come alive again." "Because if she gets buried she'll be gone for good." "That's my gift." "And that's daddy's map!" "No, no, they're Dell's." "It's all hers." "Her place is with mama." "It's daddy." "And that's Dell." "She was beautiful once." "Not a pirate or a ghost." "She had two good eyes and she loved your daddy." "They were kissers." "Young kissers." "Dell and my daddy were young kissers." "No." "They do it like we do it." "No, no..." "They do it like we do it." "I'm Dell... and you're my daddy..." "and we're married... and our baby's coming." "Filth!" "Evil!" "Rotten!" "Rotten!" "No, Dell!" "Doing that in here!" "Dickens, bringing that nasty..." " nastiness into our home!" " No, Dell, no." "This is my room, mama's..." "I'm sorry, Dell, I'm sorry." "Like father like daughter!" "Spy!" "Watching in the bushes, you vile nasty child!" " I didn't do anything!" " Liar!" "Dell..." "Spy... with your little spies!" "No!" "You'll starve now, you hear me?" "No more food for you!" "No more you!" "Dell, no, Dell!" "Now." "Who have we here?" "It's Mustique!" "A troublesome creature." " She's mine!" "I hate you!" " I don't think so." "No, no, no." "Now look at what you done." "Look at what you done now!" "All right." "All right, my boy." " Dell's here." "Dell's got..." " Leave him alone!" " Leave him!" "Witch!" " Get off me!" "Leave him!" "Mama." "I've got your hat, you witch!" "Now you'll get stung by bees and die." "You'll die." "And get out in the earth and die!" "Mama." "You're gonna die now!" "I didn't do anything!" "I didn't!" "I didn't do anything!" "She's got them all, daddy." "I'm next." "When she finds the squirrel gone she'll destroy me for sure." "Probably she'll hang my head in her living room!" "You're dreaming yourself far away, daddy." "Further than the Hundred Years Ocean." "Beyond Jutland... deep, deep, deep..." "in the place where dreams are made." "We'll be a happy family." "We'll build a castle of crooked branches... and flattened pennies." "Eat meat... and butter tarts... and drink lemonade... from gold-plated paper cups." "I'll dream myself there too." "If I shut my eyes and try hard enough... maybe I'll wake inside your dream." "The end of the world." "Dickens!" "You killed it!" "You killed the monster shark, Dickens!" "I love you." "Little girl." "Are you hurt?" "Are you okay, little girl?" "I'm hungry is all." "Well, here..." "I have something." "Are you traveling alone or with someone?" "Don't know." "I guess Dickens will come and get me." "I'm pretty sure he will." "So your parents weren't on the train?" "You're all alone like me then." "It happened so fast." "So fast." "We're two of the lucky ones..." "thank God." "Very, very lucky." "Dickens?" "Dickens?" "Dickens?" " You stay far." " Dickens?" "Mess elsewhere." "Dickens?" "Where are you, boy?" "Dickens?" "My captain." "It's okay." "It's okay." "We're safe now." "We'll take care of each other, how's that?" "And I'll make sure you get where you're going." "They're beautiful." "Aren't they?" "They're my friends, you know." "They have names."