"Oh, God!" "What?" "Didn't you see that?" "There was a dead cat... hanging from that sign we just passed." "Really?" "Cool." "Don't you even think about going back there." "What color was it?" "Tiger-striped." "What difference does it make?" "Well, I thought it might be black, you know?" "Satanists out in the desert." "Marielle said the Nevada desert was full of oddballs." "I just don't know who could kill a living creature like that." "You're traveling through another dimension..." "A dimension not only of sight and sound, but of mind." "Very funny." "I can't wait to get back to Salt Lake City, at least." "Too much nature out here." "I'm starting to miss civilization." "What?" "What is it?" "A car." "Really moving', too." "Get over." "Give him the road." "It's a cop." "Why is he going so fast with his flashers off?" "Who's he gonna run them for out here?" "Well, there's us." "What's he doing?" "I don't know." "Hi." "What does he want?" "Well, I guess he wants to get back behind us again." "Well, why didn't he just pull over... and let us pass then, if that's what he wants?" "I don't know." "Why is he stopping us, Peter?" "Why?" "These asses have a quota to make." "They keep the posted limit at 55 so they can make it." "Don't pull over." "I don't have a choice, Mary." "Great." "Holy God, it's Sasquatch!" "Guess I was going a little fast, officer." "Had the hammer down a little, huh?" "Can I see your registration please, sir?" "No problem." "But the car's not mine." "It's my sister's." "We're driving it back for her to New York." "She's... she goes to school in Oregon." "Rand College." "Have you ever heard of it?" "Mar, could you get the registration?" "I think it's in the glove compartment." "I don't believe this..." "I can't find my license." "Sorry, officer, I..." "Oh, wait a minute, here it is." "OK, and, um, here's the registration." "Oh, good." "I see you're an organ donor." "Think that's wise?" "Well..." "Is there a problem, officer?" "Your name is Jackson?" "The one on the pink slip says Deirdre Finney." "That your sister?" "Right." "She's been divorced for about a year... but she kept her husband's last name." "Deirdre's a bit of a flake." "Bit of a flake, huh?" "Tak." "Can I ask you to step out of the car, Mr. Jackson?" "What for?" "Of course." "Come around back, Mr. Jackson." "Hell!" "Peter, what is it?" "Our..." "our damn license plate fell off!" "I doubt it." "Did you stop in Fallon?" "Yeah, we got gas at the Conoco there." "Why?" "They got some light-fingered kids hang out there." "I reckon your license plate is hangin' in their clubhouse right now." "You know this and it still goes on?" "Oh, Fallon is not my place." "Those are not my ways." "Gosh, no." "What should we do about that, officer?" "Well, you just take the plate off the front... and put it in the back." "That's should get you across the country." "You got a tool kit?" "These are yours." "Thanks." "I think I saw a tool kit in the trunk." "Yeah, OK." "There, behind my make-up case." "Hey." "What is this?" "Damned sister!" "Officer, I know what this looks like." "But we checked her stuff..." "But we're not customs officers!" "That... that is not our dope!" "No." "Let me have your keys." "Get in the car." "But..." "Are you deaf?" "Get in the car!" "Get in the car!" "OK, we'll get this taken care of." "In Desperation." "Get in the car, folks." "Tak." "Slow down, you'll flip us!" "What are you doing?" "Are you crazy?" "Officer, you saw our registration." "You know that isn't our car, and it's not our dope either!" "Do you think we'd be so stupid..." "Shut up, you New York deviant." "Wh... wh... what did you call me?" "I'm arresting you for possession of marijuana... with intent to sell." "You can't be serious!" "You have the right to remain silent." "If you choose to not be silent... everything you say can be held against you..." "In a court of law." "You have the right to an attorney." "I am going to kill you." "If you cannot afford an attorney..." "One will be provided for you." "Do you understand your rights... as I have explained them to you?" "Do you understand your rights?" "Just..." "Act normally." "I don't think he understands what he just said." "Do you understand your rights?" "!" "Do you or not?" "Answer me... you smart-aleck blue state unisex swingles!" "Do you or not?" "Do you or not?" "Yes!" "Yes, we understand." "Please, just watch the road." "Don't worry about me." "I got eyes in the back of my head." "You'd do well to remember that." "Up there on the horizon's the china pit." "Gotta go all the way to Peru to find a bigger one." "Yeah, we just started working her again." "They got some kind of technology... that makes even the tailings valuable." "Science, huh?" "Gosh." "Yeah, I think we're gonna be a boom town again... just like in the old days." "Officer, please don't kill us." "We'll do whatever you say." "Just don't kill us!" "Shut your quackin' yuppie pothead mouth!" "We're not potheads." "You look like potheads to me." "Yuppies killed Princess Di, you know." "Wasn't she beautiful?" "Officer..." "Shut up and walk." "Where is everybody?" "Disneyland." "Come on, walk, hay foot, straw foot." "You're Peter." "You're Mary." "So where's Paul?" "I mean, how can you sing Puff the Magic Dragon without Paul?" "Wait a minute." "Peter Jackson." "I love Lord of the Rings!" "You are useless." "You at least look healthy." "Get in there, girlfriend." "Forgot all about her." "You can never remember everything, now can you?" "I don't care if you're a Jew, a Hindu, or Mr. Magoo." "In Desperation..." "We don't care about those things much." "Peter!" "Peter!" "Let me go!" "Peter!" "Shotgun, get the shotgun!" "Shoot him, shoot him!" "Get it!" "Get it, woman!" "Pick it up, for God sakes!" "Don't do that." "Drop it, Mary." "Put it down, Mary." "Put it down." "Drop it." "Now, if you don't want to see your liver... come squirting out of your nose..." "I'd put it down, Mary." "Kill me if you're going to." "Now, why would I want to kill you... when things are just starting to get interesting?" "He killed my husband!" "He killed our little girl." "Three billion red Chinese don't give a damn." "How they hangin', old timer?" "Don't you hurt him!" "I'm warning you." "Who are you, boy?" "I'm David Carver." "I live at 248 Poplar Street in Wentworth, Ohio." "Yeah, but... who made thee?" "Canst thou say who made thee?" "Tak!" "I guess my folks did." "And God." "There's no god out here, little Dave." "Leave him alone!" "Haven't you done enough to our family?" "Even bald-headed hoppin'" " Satan... don't step his split-foot much west of Tonopah." "This is Desperation." "Only thing out here is can tah and can tak." "And don't you forget it!" "You're mine." "David, what's wrong?" "What's... what's wrong with him?" "There's nothing wrong with him." "What do you mean?" "Are you blind?" "I think your son is praying." "Well." "Hey there." "Are you a nice person?" "Well, I like to think so... but, then again, if I was Ted Bundy... do you think I'd tell you?" "I'd know." "I got a psychic streak." "Up yours!" "That's pleasant." "So what's your name, young lady?" "Cynthia Smith." "Smith?" "Oh." "Smith." "That's a likely story." "No, really, it is." "Sure." "Honest!" "OK." "Who are you?" "Me?" "Steve Ames." "A noble moniker." "So, haul your psychic streak on up here..." "Cynthia Smith..." "And let's make some miles, OK?" "Yeah, I guess you'll do." "Oh." "Well, thank you very much, cookie." "Don't call me cookie, and I won't call you cake." "Oh, my." "You gonna smoke that or gum it to death?" "Yeah, I quit." "Never hurts to keep in practice, though." "What you lookin' at, huh?" "Your T-shirt." "Yeah, right!" "I'm lookin' at your t-shirt!" "Come on, that's OK!" "We're all animals, right?" "Oh, come on, now!" "Give me a break." "I worked with Dylan back in '95 when, uh, he did Unplugged." "No way!" "Yeah, yeah way." "Yeah." "I was doin' amps and guitar tech... back in those days." "Are you a roadie?" "Well, this truck looks too small to carry a band's gear." "No, I'm workin' for this writer..." "And he's, uh, he's driving cross country... doing little speaking things, you know?" "And he does one every couple of days or so... and when he gets back to the west coast... he's gonna write a book about it." "Is he famous?" "Have you ever heard of John Edward Marinville?" "No." "Well, he's famous amongst book people, I guess." "Yeah, I pretty much stick with Dean Koontz." "Is he cool?" "Is he cool?" "Yeah... you know, once you get past the ego... which is like, the size of Tibet." "Yeah, I mean, he gets cranky every so often, but I like him... you know." "People drive across country everyday." "Why is he writing a book about it?" "Ah, well, it's like he's got this midlife crisis thing..." "You know, the guy's 60 years old." "He's been everywhere, he's done everyone, you know." "The guy rides a big Harley soft tail." "Hey, hey!" "Is his bike red and cream?" "Yeah, red and cream." "I think I saw him this morning!" "Yeah, yeah, yeah, you probably did." "Lookin' all handsome on his bike." "Handsome man, yeah!" "Yeah, and he knows it, too, believe me." "Well, he's got to be what... like, 50, 70 miles ahead of you." "Yeah, about that." "You know, I catch up to him when he has a gig..." "And I set up the sound systems for him..." "And I, you know..." "Make sure he's got the names straight, stuff like that." "And I'll have dinner with him if he wants somebody to talk to." "Not with, to." "But the guy's having the time of his life." "Yeah, he likes to play the lone wolf, huh?" "Yeah." "That's..." "that's the boss." "Lone Wolf McQuade." "A film before your time." "Come on, come on." "Go." "Water in the desert." "Thank you, Lord." "You want to come up here, sir?" "I think we need to have a talk." "Afternoon, officer." "A wise man once told me... no matter how much you squirm and dance... last two drops end up in your pants." "Sir." "Are you aware that parking your vehicle on a state road is against the law?" "And that relieving yourself in public... is also against the law?" "Well, I didn't see any crowd gathering to watch me, so..." "Sir." "Yeah." "Well, listen, you can... write me up if you have to... and I will take it with a smile and apologize... if that will improve your day." "I'm not gonna write you up, sir." "Just a warning will do this time, but..." "What?" "Something wrong?" "Holy God." "Holy God!" "You're John Edward Marinville, aren't you?" " Oh, I..." " Damn!" "I'm busted." "You got me again." "Damn!" "Glad to meet you." "I am shaking hands" "With the guy who wrote Delight!" "Yeah." "With the guy who wrote Song of the Hammer!" " Yeah." " This is..." "Wow!" "What are you doing out here?" "And on such an unsafe mode of transportation?" "I mean, they don't call them murder-cycles for nothin'... and I'm a wolf." "Are you workin' on anything new, sir?" "Yeah, a book of essays." "I thought I'd cycle across America... and get in touch with the common folk." "You know, get back to my roots." "That's amazing." "Sir, can I can I have your autograph?" "I mean, that'd... that'd..." "that'd make my whole day." "Hell, that'd make my whole year." "Yeah, that'd be fine." "Right here and?" " Yeah, yeah, yeah." " All right." "Could you just make it out to Collie Entragian... your number one fan." "Thank you." "I heard you saw some pretty hairy stuff in the 'Nam." "I was just a correspondent, officer." "Just one more ink-stained wretch." "But, I must say... that the Vietnam experience defined me." "Nobody wrote about 'Nam like you." "I heard you saved some soldiers... when some suicide gook blew up a restaurant." "Well, it was gut check time for a lot of us." "We did what we could." "Yeah, well, some people don't do anything." "Some made the bread of forgetfulness... and drank the wine of cowardice." "Tak." "Hey, you don't want to ride around like that, Mr. Marinville." "That thing gets caught up in your back wheel... you're toast." "How'd that get like that?" "It can't be." "I always check these buckles before I get on the cycle." "It's the last thing I do." "Well, they say the memory's the first thing to go." "What's that supposed to mean?" "What the hell is that?" "That's a wolf!" "Shoot it!" "Ah, that's just a wild dog." "They're not dangerous." "Ordinarily." "Tak!" "Tak ah lah!" "Tak ah wah!" "What the hell did you say to it?" "Is that some kind of Indian dialect?" "Well, it's a lot older than that." "Now, since you can't take care of yourself..." "You big baby..." "Hey." "Gosh." "Houston, we have a problem." "That's not mine." "You put that in there when I was off doing my business." "Yeah." "Blame the cop, just like in your letty New York stories." "Tak." "Why do you keep saying that?" "Why do you keep saying "tak"?" "I didn't say tak." "You said tak." "You say tomato, I say tomat-oh." "You say potato, I say potat-ah." "What the hell's the matter with you?" "Tomato..." "Tomat-oh." "Potato." "Potat-oh." "## Let's call the whole thing off ##" "My nose!" "That's not all I'll break." "My children of the desert." "Can toi." "What music they make." "Get up!" "On your feet, Lord Jim." "Upsa-daisy, you worthless piece of crap." "You've been redefined." "Watch what you're doing to me." "Shut up!" "You're in my house now!" "You're in the house of the wolf and the scorpion... and don't you forget it!" "You really did wet your pants this time." "You're a sorry excuse for a writer... and you're a sorry excuse for a man." "Your whole life is a lie... and I could just kill you right here." "Yes." "Yes." "Yes." "Yes." "Yes." "No." "No." "No." "No." "It's still showing." "I can still see it." "Cover it up more!" "More, please." "Yes." "Thank you for using Sky." "Your call is now being routed." "Have a great day." "Oh, damn it." "I was in a literary commune in Chicago." "Yeah, that's a new one on me." "Well, when you have a bunch of people... sitting around in a roach motel... smoking crystal meth, they're addicts." " Nice." " But!" "If they've been to college, they're a literary commune." "For a while, though, it wasn't bad..." "But then I realized I was getting old before my time." "So, I split." "OK, all right..." "Do me a favor." "Just don't say anything, OK?" "He's... he'll be cool about it." "But his agent made a huge stink... about picking up, wayward hitchhikers." "Hey, boss, that you?" "Steve..." "Steve, I'm..." "Johnny?" "Boss, is that..." "Trouble..." "I hear you, boss." "What's wrong?" "Boss?" "About a mile and..." "about a mile and a half..." "Boss?" "Boss?" "Boss!" "Steve..." "Boss?" "Boss?" "!" "Steve, can you..." "can you hear me?" "S..." "S..." "Shoot." "Lost him." "Miss me?" "Where you taking me?" "The old calabozo, my friend..." "Where anything you bray will be abused against you... in the court of caw." "Well, aren't you going to at least say gesundheit?" "He's in trouble isn't he?" "Said something about the cops." "Oh, God." "Bad." "Not good." "Big ego." "Big temper." "Just hope he hasn't killed anybody." "All right, brace yourself, Cynthia." "There might be blood." "Yeah, I will." "I'm a woman." "I can deal with blood." "Look, John." "What in the name of God is going on?" "What's up with the praying, David?" "I've been doing it since Bryan's accident." "Everyone thought he'd die." "Your sister died." "I'd say that's a pretty lousy bargain." "Honey, leave him alone..." "I want to know about this!" "He's praying." "That's all." "He's not hurting anybody." "Praying is great." "Without it, the crusades would've never gotten off the ground." "Do you do this all the time, son?" "Or is it special?" "I ask for help in the morning and give thanks at night." "In the middle I just take a few minutes... and try to... get open." "Sort of like a football receiver or something." "It's hard to explain." "Bryan got you going on this?" "Bryan's accident." "You remember the doctor saying... how his recovery was almost miraculous?" "I saw him, Mom." "It wasn't "almost. "" "Bryan, look out!" "Bryan!" "Bryan!" "Bryan, are you OK?" "Bryan, are you..." "Help me!" "Somebody help me!" "I think he's dying!" "Come on, please." "God, please don't let him die." "If you save him, I'll do something for you." "Anything you want, I promise." "Only don't let him die." "Please don't let him die." "God could work a miracle on your friend... but not on your baby sister?" "He couldn't save her from that cop?" "What kind of a god is that?" "I don't know what kind of god he is." "Look, leave him alone." "I want to know how you can get on your knees... and pray to a god who killed your sister!" "Lady, he's your son... and I don't mean to interfere." "But why don't you take it easy on the boy?" "I know you lost your little girl." "I lost my husband." "It's been a tough day on everyone." "Tough day." "Listen." "Maybe it's help." "No." "It's Collie." "I recognize the engine." "His name is Collie Entragian." "He's been on the force here for... about 12 years." "I'm..." "I'm the vet in these parts... and I took care of Collie's dogs." "He was a nice fellow." "Yeah, a real sweetheart." "Till this, I mean." "I'll tell you something, though." "He's bigger." "What do you mean, "he's bigger"?" "Bigger." "Taller." "A few inches at least." "That's impossible." "I know." "Look at us, would you." "Just one big happy family." "Tak." "I don't even know what I'm looking for." "His bike..." "Skid marks, or just anything out of the ordinary." " Wait, wait... what is that?" " What?" "He said something about an R.V." "Hey!" "What?" "What is it?" "Just a reflection, I guess." "Go slow." "Hello?" "Anybody home?" "Look." "This is some little girl's favorite." "See how the dress is patched?" "So why was it left in the sand?" "Yeah." "And why..." "Why are all the tires flat, you know?" "Like, not just one or two of them, but all of them." "Eeny, meeny, miney, mo." "Catch a tourist by the toe." "Don't you scream." "Don't you shout." "Time has come to take you... out." "Leave them alone!" "Haven't you done enough to us?" "In a word..." "No." "Come on out, hon." "Or this no chin, pencil neck, paper pusher... gets it right between the eyes." "Ellie, no." "And the boy goes next." "No!" "I'll be all right." "OK." "That's right, hon." "Fine as fiddlesticks." "If you want that... take me where my son won't have to see." "Oh, don't worry, hon." "I don't want "that. "" "Especially not from "you. "" "Mom, no!" "Leave her alone, you bastard!" "Leave my mother alone." "Don't worry, honey." "I'll be back." "OK?" "Make him stop." "Dad, make him stop." "Oh, God." "I'm warning you." "If you hurt her, you'll be sorry." "Maybe." "But I doubt it." "You're just a little prayboy, aren't you?" "Yes, yes, you are." "You just little prayboy in a baseball shirt." "Well, go ahead and pray." "See what good it does." "But God ain't here any more than he was... when Jesus was dying on the cross with flies in his eyes." "Tak!" "Tak!" "Ah lah!" "Him en tow!" "If you set a hand or a foot outside your cell... he'll have it off before you even know it was gone." "Leave her alone." "Son!" "I will put a stick through your mother and spin her... until she catches fire if I so desire." "And you'll not stop me." "And I'll come back for you." "Collie!" "Don't hurt her!" "Carver." "Carver." "Well, there was boy here as well as a girl." "David Carver." "Carver." "What do you got?" "Jewelry." "Earrings and rings." "You know, not Tiffany, but not cheap either." "Not the kind of stuff you'd leave behind... unless you were in a hurry." "Time for the cops, isn't it?" "Well, I'm pretty sure the boss said something... about being like a mile from the R.V." "So..." "Before we start yelling for the cops..." "You're crazy." "Cynthia!" "Why are you taking me here?" "!" "It's beautiful, isn't it?" "Oh, God." "Please, don't kill me." "Just..." "Now what?" "Well, there's a town not too far far east of here..." "Desperation." "They got some cute names out here, don't they?" "Yeah, I don't care about the name." "I just care about if they have at least one working phone... and maybe one working cop." "Yeah." "Wouldn't that be nice." "## Mother Mary ##" "## What's the story ##" "## Save my soul from Purgatory ##" "Pie." "Murder God." "That's what it really says." "Pie, I'm sorry he killed you." "Never mind." "I have something for you." "Tak ah lah!" "Tak!" "Look, David." "David, are you OK?" "Could you please turn around?" "This is a little embarrassing." "David, whatever you have in mind..." "It can't be a good idea." "It's the only idea." "Who says so, son?" "My sister..." "God." "Are you going to stop this... before you son does something he regrets?" "David, you don't have to do this." "The cop's bleeding out." "He can't last much longer." "It won't take him long... to kill my mom if decides to." "David, I don't know what you're planning..." "But I forbid it." "Sorry, Dad." "What's he doing?" "David!" "David, you don't have to do this." "You'll get stuck." "Even if you do get out," "That thing'll eat you from the feet up." "Lord, close its mouth like you did with the lions..." "When Daniel was cast into their den." "Amen." "Stop it!" "Get away from him you ugly bastard." "Here, here." "Here!" "Here!" "Hey!" "Hey, come on!" "Get over here, you mutt." "Come to me!" "Come to me!" "Come on, take another bite!" "Come this way!" "Come to me!" "David, there's no time!" "Come on, move!" "Get out of there, David!" "David, pull it!" "Get out of there!" "Come on, come on!" "David, push!" "Get out!" "Get out!" "Call the police!" "Run, run, David!" "Please help me take care of my mom... and do what I'm supposed to do." "Hello?" "Anybody home?" "Tasteful." "Operators are standing by." "Hello?" "!" "Anybody there?" "It's dead!" "It's got to be the..." "Hey, wait!" "Wait!" "Wait!" "Wait." "There are some garbage cans lined up against the wall." "The wind just knocked one down." "That's all." "I don't care." "I want to get out of here." "This place is empty, and it gives me the creeps." "There's trucks out there." "Where is everybody?" "I don't know." "But I just think... we ought to just keep..." "I know, just tell me... we're going to be laughing at each other... and feeling stupid in a few seconds." "OK?" "OK." "A few seconds." "Good enough." "Let's see what we see." "Do you hear that?" "Sounds like a kid blowing bubbles through a straw." "Do not worry, Little Nell, for I shall save you." "Dork." "Yeah." "It's just an aquarium." "No, look." "Look." "What?" "Behind the boat." "It's a hand." "My God, what happened here?" "I love you, Pie." "Please help me not to freak." "Oh!" "Oh, God!" " Oh!" " Oh, God." "Whatever happened here is over." "It's over." "It's over." "Oh, God." "OK." "All right." "OK." "The blood's dry." "It's... it's gone brown." "It's gone brown." "OK." "It's all right." "It's all right." "It's all right." "I wanna get out of here." "Yeah." "Yeah, we better..." "What's the matter with you?" "You think this is Anthropology 101?" "What is it?" "What the..." "What..." "I don't know." "Whatever." "Wait!" "I think I just..." "What?" "Never mind." "Look at its tongue." "Do you think that that did all of this?" "I don't know and I don't care." "I just wanna get out of here." "Come on." "No way!" "David, son." "If that's you, don't come in!" "That thing's right in front of the door!" "How close?" "About five feet." "And looking right at the sound of your voice." "I have a gun." "I'm gonna shoot it." "No, don't even think about it!" "I think you all better get under your bunks." "Have you ever shot a gun before, kid?" "Not a real one." "Oh, Jesus wept." "You don't even know if it's loaded!" "Or if it has a safety!" "I have to do this." "I tried the phones." "They're dead." "David, count to five, so we'll know." "Hey, you're gonna get my son killed!" "What the hell's the difference?" "If big daddy comes back here... we're all dead." "Dad, get down!" " Please." " OK, David." "One!" "Is my dad under cover?" "Yeah." " Be careful, son!" " And shoot up!" "Remember, he's gonna jump!" "OK." "Two!" "Three!" "Four." "Five!" "David!" "David!" "You OK, son?" "Please, David." "Answer me!" "David..." "David..." "David..." "It... twitched." "It was horrible." "You did a good job, pal." "An amazing job." "Yeah, it was, David." "Would you check for a key here and let us out?" "Maybe in the desk?" "Look in there." "I'm so proud of you." "Seeing Pie was the hardest." "I covered her with a jacket." "You did the best you could, my boy." "You did the best you could." "I'm scared for mom." "Look, I don't mean to rush you..." "But the sooner we get out of here..." "Where is everybody?" "Look!" "Look!" "Look!" "Lights." "Where there's lights, there's phones." "What was that?" "You wait here." "Yeah, right!" "Eat me, said the cake to Alice." "It's hot in here." "The air conditioning's off." "It smells funny." "Hey..." "Now, look, forget this." "Forget this, please." "We came here to find people, all right?" "So let's find 'em." "OK." "OK." "Let's go." "Hello?" "Anybody here?" "Hello?" "Hey." "Hey, Steve, there's somebody there." "No, no, no." "She's... dead." "No, she's not." "I can see her head moving." "No, Cynthia..." " Hey, ma'am?" " No!" "It's..." "Don't!" "Ma'am?" "Wait, wait, wait!" "Wait, wait." "A phone." "A phone." "We got a phone." "Go back." "Boss!" "Oh, my God, we thought you were dead!" "We found your bike underneath this..." "What happened to your face?" "Same thing that happened to mine." "The cop." "The market!" "It's full of..." "things!" "It's not just the market!" "Never mind that." "We got wheels." "Let's get the hell out of here." "Come on!" "Somebody's coming!" "It's Collie!" "He's coming back!" "We gotta get out of here!" "Come on, let's go!" "We gotta get that truck off the street, too!" "What?" "Make a run for the highway?" "Son, we'd never make it!" "All right." "Come on, let's go!" "Hurry up!" "Take them round the back!" "Hey, you know where we're going?" "Yeah." "All right, you're coming with me." "Let's go." "You got it?" "That damn little prayboy." "Where are they?" "Show me." "Hey!" "It's just a rope." "You're OK." "I hate narrow places." "It'll get better soon." "Gather around." "I want you all to have the full effect." "Come on over here." "Watch your step, though." "Wow, this is amazing." "Theater's been closed over twenty years now." "Few of us got tired of the hoorah... down at the Owls' Club and bought it." "Hey, Steve." "Watch." "No, no, no, no, no, no," "Old-timer." "Maybe later." "Here." "Check this out." "Who the hell are you to tell me..." "I can't have a drink out of my own liquor cabinet?" "Somebody who knows what you are." "Somebody who's been there." "And while that crazy cop is still out there somewhere..." "That is off-limits..." "You got that?" "Fine." "Well, what about these lights?" "The cop gonna see 'em out there?" "The theater's boarded up, your majesty." "No light shines through." "We're as safe here as anywhere." "I reckon." "The cop'll find us sooner or later." " You know he will." " You saw him." "Time is not on his side." "Where's... where's everybody else?" "Dead." "He killed 'em." "Yeah, some of 'em, I'm sure." "But where are the rest of 'em?" "You're not hearing me." "Anything that got into his road... he killed it." "Oh, that's nuts." "He couldn't have killed 'em all." "Well, look around, smart aleck." "How come he didn't kill you?" "I don't know." "He come for me a couple of days ago." "I had been on a ranch job... and I slept a little bit late." "Slept in my coat, actually." "I might..." "had too much to drink, too." "Now, he came right into my bedroom." "First I knew..." "Collie Entragian was dragging me out of bed... and snapping his damn handcuffs... and dragging me off to jail." "He pulled me all the way through the house... and across the yard, and into his car." "Locked me in the back of the cruiser... and hauled my ass off to jail." "He was talkin' all kinds of crazy stuff... in some other language." "And they weren't all dead..." "Then, you know... the folks in town, I mean." "He got half a dozen on the way back from my place." "Shot them down in the streets, ran over them." "The waitress... in the Desert Rose was screaming... looking over his shoulder... and she tripped." "That thump when we went over her... and him..." "Laughing." "That little bear on the dashboard... nodding his head up and down." "And him... laughing." "Some people must have escaped." "He's not human." "I know that sounds crazy, but..." "Yeah, I know what you mean." "They reopened a mine, the old China Pit." "Whatever's happening here..." "I think it came from over there." "What are you, the town historian?" "I guess..." "Guess you might say so." "In an unofficial way." "I like history." "Local history, especially." "Up until now, that is." "I found some stuff to eat." "Well, this should certainly..." "Take care of hunger in America." "It's sardines." "Not great, I guess." "Bet this boy and I'd settle... for woodchuck paté." "Pass it around, David." "Would anybody mind if I said a prayer first?" "Sort of like a Grace?" "Go for it, Davey boy." "God bless this food we're about to eat." "Bless our fellowship." "Take care of us." "Deliver us from evil." "Especially my mom." "Please let her be OK." "Please." "Amen." "Amen." "You really believe this, don't you?" "Don't you?" "Well, there's enough for everyone." "Honest." "Appears he's right, ma'am." "We were headed to Tahoe... when all the tires went flat." "And then he pulled up behind us... and gave us some story about... a crazy in the desert... who was disabling vehicles, and... and shooting folks." "And... and then he looked at Pie." "When he smiled at her..." "Your..." "Your daughter dropped her doll." "Ellen couldn't stop her from crying..." "But..." "David made her feel better." "He always could." "So how do we get out of this?" "I mean, do we just... wait for the wind to die down, or what?" "Waiting's a bad idea." "Why do you say that?" "Well, because... somebody should've gotten out of here... and nobody did." "There's something..." "Loose here... and if we hang around..." "I think it's... its apt to eat us alive." "I'm not going anywhere until I find out... what happened to my mom!" " No, David, no." " No!" "It won't do your mom any good... for you and the rest of us... to die trying to find her." "It's true, son." "It's a crock!" "That's what it is!" "None of you care about my mother." "Not even you, Dad." "You know that's not true." "If we leave, it'll be too late to save her." "I know that just like..." "I knew how to use the soap..." "To get us out of the cell." "Why don't you pray?" "I can't." "Right now, I'm too pissed." "At God?" "At Santa Claus." "Is that really how it was, Mr. Billingsley?" "All those white miners... and Chinese miners working together?" "Pretty much, I guess." "Oh, come on." "They didn't call it..." "The Chinese-American pit, did they?" "Why don't you tell us about it?" "You think you know it all..." "Mr. High and mighty!" "Why don't you tell it?" "You're the big storyteller." "I'll tell you about Vietnam." "You tell us about desperation." "Talk about it." "Every... town has a sister." "And every town has its secrets." "We're here." "We want to know about it." "Tell us about it." "Well, you'll all think I'm crazy." "After what we've seen?" "Anybody think Tom's crazy... raise their hands." "Well, about a month ago..." "An A.N.F.O. Crew uncovered... the old Rattlesnake Shaft... while they were shooting blast holes." "They dug the Rattlesnake... a good 150 years ago." "It caved in about three months later..." "And the miners..." "All but two of the Chinese... were buried alive... along with whatever they dug up... when they started working the mine again last month." "Whatever they woke up." "I think it's... a waisin." "An earth demon." "Now that the shafts are open again..." "All of those animals we're seeing..." "I think..." "They're its eyes and ears." "Now, the Chinese were treated badly... in California, but here in Nevada... they were damn near part of the community." "They were working to support their families back home... and to buy land of their own." "Nobody forced them down into the mines." "What about the two survivors?" "How'd they get out?" "Well, they just beat the cave-in." "Pure luck." "Then they left town, I guess." "And nobody tried to pin the cave-in on them?" "Now, why would they try to do that?" "Well, from my experience..." "The best scapegoats are those... who can't speak English." "You know, that's all ancient history." "But they've been finding some damn strange stuff... down in that hole... in the last couple of weeks." "Carvings and such." "I think... something came out of that mine." "Something that... never died." "And never will." "Now, I know how that sounds... but you asked for it." "I..." "I have to take a leak." "I'll be back in a minute." "Take this with you." "Thank you." "If you know he's got a bottle stashed..." "In the boy's room, why didn't you stop him?" "Because I think he needs a drink... to steady himself... and one's all he's gonna take, for now." "Did you used to drink, Mr. Marinville?" "No, David, I used to drown." "It was a way of putting out... the dreams after the war." "David?" "This god of yours performed a miracle... on your friend, right?" "Yes." "Have you stopped to ask yourself... why god would want to hurt a child... to say hello?" "I asked Reverend Martin about that." "And I asked him how to keep my promise." "What promise is that?" "That if God saved Bryan, I'd do something he wanted." "Anything he wanted, really." "And this is it?" "That something?" "You think this is for the best?" "That God is good and this is for the best?" "I don't know anymore." "It's so much harder now." "Reverend Martin says... that faith isn't just believing in God." "Believing God is sane." "I think I understood that." "But he killed my sister!" "He took my mom!" "We have to get out of here, David." "That's what I have faith in." "We have to." "What was that?" "My, God!" "It's the old man!" "David!" "Pie..." "Pie, wait up!" "Oh!" "Oh, my God!" "Shoot it, Steve!" "Blow its head off!" "I don't want to hit the old man!" "Then blow its ass off!" "It's killing him!" "John Ford said..." ""If you have a choice between truth or legend... print the legend. "" "Come on!" "There's not much time." "Hey!" "Come on!" "Somebody get it!" "Shoot it!" "Kill it!" "L..." "I can't get it!" "Somebody shoot this thing!" "Get it off me!" " Shoot him, Johnny!" " Don't hurt steve!" "Somebody shoot the damn thing!" "Thanks, boss." "Where's David?" "Where's my boy?" "David?" "David!" "You, go find David." "I'll stay with him." "David!" "David!" "Where are you?" "!" "What if the cop's got him?" "Why are you here?" "For the same reason everyone's here." "To love God and serve God." "What am I supposed to do?" "Look, dDavid." "See." "David?" "David?" "He's in there." "Oh, s-s-scared." "Oh, gosh." "Tom." "It's OK." "Please, somebody help me." "Ellen, is that you?" "Who else would it be?" "Trouble with these bodies is how fast they wear out... but you should last a while." "Come on, David." "Come on back." "Tom is dead." "Mary's gone." "You think it was the cop?" "Course it was." "I just don't know why he didn't trash us." "He's afraid of us." "And there is no "he. "" "It's a thing from the mine." "Collie Entragian is dead." "So is my mother." "David, honey, we can't give up hope." "I have a lot to tell you." "Just don't want to do it in here." "Yeah, it is pretty creepy here," "But he... it's out there some place." "No." "It's in the pit." "It took the head of the assay crew..." "That uncovered the Rattlesnake Shaft." "His name was Cary Ripton." "That's how it started." "He followed a trail of those little stone animals..." "The can tahs to tak's place." "That's its name..." "Tak." "There's a hole that goes..." "I think it goes into another dimension... or something." "Tak got into Cary Ripton... and from him it jumped to the cop." "It wears out bodies fast." "God showed you this on that editing machine?" "You dog my cats." "Listen..." "I know you're a famous writer." "You're... used to being the center of attention and all... but that doesn't give you the right... to make fun of my boy." "He's just afraid, Dad." "That's all." "That's it, I'm afraid." "I'm terrified as a matter of fact..." "But there is a certain hopeful geography... about this situation." "You said Tak the magnificent is in the mine." "That's south of here." "The highway is north of here." "The truck is right here!" "We get in the truck." "We fire it up." "We get the hell out of Dodge." "Mary's alive." "Tak's got her stored... like a spider stores flies to eat later on." "Damn it." "Is anybody here?" "Oh, God..." "Please." "Oh, god." "Oh, god." "Oh, god." "No!" "Oh, God!" "Oh, God." "Oh, god!" "Please!" "Oh, my god." "You gotta be joking." "You seriously think... we can just drive up to that open pit mine... and save the lady fair?" "We have to get out of here..." "You wanted to know about God." "I'll tell you what I know." "He works through people... and right now, he's trying to work through us." "I say we give it a try." "Who asked you?" "Listen!" "It has to be all of us." "Tak's not just a man or a woman..." "No matter what it looks like." "It's a Can Tak," "The big god, the heart of the unformed." "Only all of us can stand against it." "Can't you feel that?" "I can't feel anything." "You learn a lot of crap watching movies." "You know that kid?" "Tak's like you." "It wants us to leave." "Well, then why don't we give it what it wants?" "Well, there's Mary." "You know, I didn't bring her here... and I didn't take her up to that mine..." "If that's where she is..." "So don't give me that guilt-tripping stuff." "Now you people want to fly..." "Trans-God airways with the boy..." "Go right ahead." "I think I'll pass... and not even God can stop me." "No." "He gives us free will." "That's right, good old free will." "God bless God, huh?" "I think I'll go out and find a car with some keys in it... and resume..." "my interrupted trip." "You folks have a good day... and send me a postcard... when it's time for the reunion." "You know what?" "I have lost all my respect for you." "I've lost the respect of a man..." "Who once carried out Steven Tyler's barf bags." "Shucks." "David, tell me something." "If Tak wants us to leave... why'd he bring us here in the first place?" "It didn't." "It thinks it did, but it didn't." "This is God's will," "Not Tak's." "And if you leave now..." "You'll smell Tak on your skin..." "for the rest of your life." "Well, I better go heavy on the aftershave, huh?" "Hey..." "Anybody make it to San Jose," "I'm at the Sea Cliff." "Drinks on me." "Thought you quit drinking." "That was a mistake." "Wish I didn't run into this kid." "Johnny!" "Mr. Marinville..." "We were put on earth to love God... to serve him." "And what else are you doing tonight anyway?" "It's not... it just isn't working, kid." "It's not working." "Just shut up." "Just shut up, will you?" "Bite me." "You can't, can you?" "You can't hurt me, can you?" "Because I'm supposed to be next." "Tak ah lah." "Murder your god." "So, he says to his wife, this frog can cook... you're outta here." "Are you Mr. Marinville?" "What the hell are you doing?" "Everything blow sky high." "You got five, maybe ten second, big boy, then... boom!" "Tak." "Tak ah lah!" "Tak ah lah." "Ran like a rabbit." "Didn't warn a soul." "Fraidy boy." "Tak ah lah." "Tak a wan." "It was him..." "It..." "Tak." "That was 35 years ago in Saigon." "Why, I don't..." "So, you'd know when you saw it." "When you saw it the next time." "We can still travel, David." "Drive to highway 50, head west." "Never look back." "Free will, right?" "Yeah." "Good old free will." "Oh, God." "Eighty-seven people died in that bar." "Eighty-seven." "And I never tried to save anyone." "Not a one of them." "I only saved my own sorry ass." "And here?" "How many in this town?" "Sometimes God is cruel." "What good is he then?" "He wants us to love him... and to..." "Serve him?" "Right?" "Come here." "Come on." "You're crazy." "I like that in a person." "Where do we start?" "Mary?" "Let's go get her." "Come on." "Try the dryer, Mary." "Mi him!" "Can de lach." "Min en tow." "Tak!" "Mi him." "Can de lach." "Oh, God, it's the cop." "It's the cop!" "Come on!" "Wait!" "It's Mary!" "It's Mary!" "It almost got me!" "It was so close." "It was in Ellen." "I'm sorry, David." "I know." "It's dead." "It's lying back there dead." "No, Ellen's dead, not Tak." "It's still in the mine, isn't it?" "The pirin moh." "That's where it really is." "Wh... what is that?" "The well of the worlds." "This well..." "If it's in there, David... can we block it up somehow?" "I don't know." "Yeah, we can... we can block up that mine shaft." "And that's what we're going to do right now." "So what does this Tak want?" "It doesn't matter." "It doesn't matter?" "No, all that matters is what God wants." "No, we don't have time for that." "Let me do this." "Are you nuts?" "This is an explosive shed." "Either it works or it doesn't." "Now get back." "Everybody get back." "David, get back and pray." "Everybody get back!" "What is all that stuff?" "Ammonium nitrate." "Tim McVeigh used it in Oklahoma City." "What the hell are we doing here?" "You got a better idea?" "No." "Let's just say I got hit by a God bomb." "Never mind about God." "I'll settle for bombs." "Steven, hold on." "Dave's getting a little antsy." "Pretty soon now you're going to have to grab him." "Hold him tight." "Don't let go." "All right." "So what's the plan?" "We do what God tells us to do." "That's the plan." "Come on." "We ought to pray." "Our father who art in heaven... hallowed be thy name." "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done..." "On earth as it is in heaven." "Give us this day our daily bread... and forgive us our trespasses... as we forgive those who trespass against us." "Lead us not into temptation... but deliver us from evil." "For thine is the kingdom..." "The power, and the glory forever and ever." "I think I'm supposed to go on... from here by myself." "David, no." "That's a load of crap, Dave." "What do you mean?" "Exactly what I say." "And don't give me that "God told me to"... 'cause right now, he's not telling you anything, is he?" "All right, you can lead the way." "How about that?" "Let's go." "Let's get this over with." "Sorry, kid." "Sorry, kid." "Sorry." "Sorry." "Just got a bad back." "It's all right." "It's all right." "Too much alcohol and too much cigarettes." "Do you want me to take those bags?" "No." "Not far to go." "What do you know?" "What do I know?" "I want to get out of here before dawn." "Let's move it." "Come on." "There's something in there." "Someone help him!" "Help him!" "I can't get him!" "It's going to tear its head off!" "Kill it!" "Stop!" "Stop, please!" "He can't." "God can't take them all." "He can." "He's God." "And God is cruel." "He's no better than Tak." "Steve, get him!" "He can't take them all and leave me!" "He can't take them all and leave me!" "You want to know how cruel your god is?" "How fantastically cruel?" "Sometimes he makes us live." "Get him out of here." "There's going to be a big bang." " Boss?" " No time." "David, you find your friend Bryan." "Make him your brother." "Then keep telling yourself... there was an accident out in the desert." "A bad one." "And you're the only survivor." "That's not what happened!" "That's exactly what happened." "Now, get him out of here." "Go on." "Move it." "Come on." "Right!" "Holy God..." "You're John Edward Marinville, aren't you?" "You down there, Tak?" "Because I've come for you." "Come on, big brave American writer." "Tak ah lah!" "Stop!" "I command you to stop!" "Tak commands you to stop!" "The heart of the unformed commands you to stop!" "Donald Rumsfeld demands you stop." "Adam Sandler demands you stop." "Anne Coulter demands you stop." "Even if he can get to it, how can he set that stuff off?" "I think he knows a way." "I can give you anything if you stop." "Anything!" "Anything?" "Anything?" "Oh, man..." "Norman Mailer burned my ass... in a New York Times book review." "What more can a man want?" "You can't!" "Os pa!" "You can't." "You untalented bastard!" "Man, you said the wrong thing there." "You're useless." "You're a drunk." "You're a no good for nothing piece of crap." "No." "Don't do it." "You're a joke, and you always have been!" "See, I hate critics." "Come on!" "Run for me now!" "Come on!" "It won't die, will it?" "Lt'll just keep coming for us." "Look..." "It's going away already." "See?" "Let's get out of here." "Wait!" "Stop!" "Pull over." "What is it?" "There's an overnight bag in the backseat... if no one's stolen it." "David, I think you should come here." "Any idea how your school album... got in the backseat of my car?" "That's, um, my boss' handwriting." "Are you sure?" "Are you kidding me?" "After a month of looking over his shoulder... while he wrote "good luck" and "best wishes"" "and "could you come up to my room" in people's books?" "Yeah, I'm sure." "The Bible reference." "Do you know it?" "Sure." ""God is love. "" "What do you think, David?" "Is he love?" "Yeah." "I guess so." "I guess God's sort of everything." "That's what makes him God."