"That's real kind of you, Roger... but isn't it too hot for that kind of work?" "No, ma'am, Miss Sanders." " Come in for a cold drink." " Soon as I finish this bunch." "I don't know how Roger can work in this awful heat." "It's going up to 90 today." "It feels like that already." "Check the garage." "I hope nothing got flooded in the shop." "I stacked everything off the floor last night." "For heaven's sake!" "The fridge is out, too." "All the food will spoil." "Where did you meet this Mitch, anyhow?" "Mick." "And I told you, at the dealers' show." "He was browsing around." "And came all the way down here just to look for antiques?" "He has a five-day vacation he'd rather spend in the country..." "What's the matter?" "What's wrong with him coming here?" "Honey, I..." "God!" "All right, I won't butt in." "I just don't want you to be too disappointed if he doesn't come." "Maybe the bus from the airport can't get through." "My nerves are still jumping from all that thunder." "I never saw such a storm." "Something evil about it." "...and north of Statesboro are flooded out and blocked with fallen trees." "Weather forecast calls for hot weather today and tomorrow." "Oh, no!" "What now?" "Here's the latest bulletin on last night's storm." "Most of the damage, we're told, was caused..." "Do you think Roger would let me borrow his truck?" "That way I can cut through the woods and meet Mick on Route 41." "I don't know." "Why don't you ask him?" "Most of the damage caused by the storm was due to the wind... that blew almost everything over that wasn't nailed down." "Can't wait to meet this guy." "You've been yakking about him all week." "I have not." "That's just fine." "The sink is acting up." "What else can go wrong around here?" "Can I ask you a big, big favor?" "Where did you get that shirt?" "Been out robbing corpses again?" "How's your pimples?" "I have someone to pick up on Route 41." "The roads are flooded, but I can make it if I can borrow your truck." "I'll drive you there." "What's the matter, afraid I can't handle it myself?" "Ma, where's Mick gonna sleep?" "In Geri's room?" "He'll sleep on the cot in the extra room." "I promise I'll be real careful." "You can borrow to loan the truck, but... be careful with them crates." "I got a full shipment in there." "Okey-doke." "Will you pick up some ice at Henley's?" "Lord knows when the fridge will go on again." "Bad move." "I'm sorry, folks." "We're gonna have to turn around and go back to Poolerville." "There's a tree across the road up here, and it's all flooded out." "Wait a minute." "I'll get off here." "Hang on." "Sorry." "Excuse me." " Would you have any maps of the area?" " Where you going?" "Fly Creek." "It's straight ahead, about five miles." "Flooded out." "You're going to need a boat to go over there." "You probably got one somewhere." "Now, there's another way you can go." "Right through the woods, here." "It's half a mile." "But you'll need a compass to go there." "You should have one of them, too." "By the way... you wouldn't know where there's a men's room around here, would you?" "Hi, Geri." "How you been?" "I'll get you some dry clothes when we get back to the house." "You come prepared, don't you?" "I just picked up a few things." "Where did you get this?" "You like my truck?" "What kind of bait does Willie sell?" "It's my neighbor's truck." "He runs a worm farm." "A worm farm?" "People eat them?" "No, dummy." "They raise them for bait." "Tell me about your trip." "Did you have a good time on that airplane?" "I was so worried about you during that storm." "I guess I missed it." "We had clear sailing till we hit the turnoff to Fly Creek." "Then they had to let me off." "Wait a minute, how did you get here?" "I took a shortcut through the woods." "A bus could never make it through here though." "Hang on!" "I got the greatest place to show you." "It's the greatest antique store in town." "You're just gonna love it." "I promised Mama I'd stop and get some ice." "All our electricity is out." "Phones, too." " It must have been a dilly of a storm." " It sure was a dilly." "I never saw so much thunder and lightning in my life." " I'm sorry I missed it." " It was beautiful." "I like a good thunderstorm." "Makes you feel helpless." "I'll be right back." "What about the Cutters?" " They always had trouble with those floods." " They took the brunt of it." "I hear Old Wally had to come on a row boat." "I heard the whole electrical tower came down." "Lucky it didn't start a fire." "All that juice pouring into the ground." "Over 300,000 volts." "When are they going to get those lines back up?" "Before I go out of business, I hope." "They're sending men from Statesboro." "They promised to have it back by tomorrow." "In the meantime, all that electricity going into the ground." "And guess who's paying for it." "Yeah, honey." "I'd like a large egg cream, and a glass of water, please." "I've got water." "But what did you say?" "An "aik cream"?" "An egg cream." "It's just chocolate syrup, a little milk, and some seltzer water." "A chocolate soda." "That's it." "With just a little shot of milk to give it a head." "That was the worst storm we've had since I was knee-high to a duck." "We had six turkeys up there at the house, and they were out in the field." "Five of those turkeys was stripped of every feather they had." "And that old turkey gobbler didn't have a feather off of him." "Turkey hens stood up there and flapped their wings..." "How's that?" "...trying to hide themselves like five old maids..." "There was that storm we had about three years ago." "All that thunder and lightning." "It scared them tourists slap out of 10 years growth." "I haven't seen anybody rowing to get that fast off that bay." "They looked like the south end of a northbound mule." "There's a worm in my egg cream." "If you didn't like the drink, you should have said so." "I've got enough problems here without comedians." "What?" "I found it in the glass." "I didn't put it there!" "I keep this place spotless." "This has never happened before." "It happened now." "It's not a good way to win new customers." "You know what I mean?" "Why did you go and do a juvenile thing like that?" " Where you from?" " From the city, I'll bet." "I don't want your money." "I just want you to leave." "Don't you think an apology is in order?" "Apologize for what?" "For finding a worm in my egg cream?" "What business do you have in Fly Creek?" "No business." "Just pleasure." "Oh, my goodness." "I got the last piece." "I don't know what I'm gonna do with this." "It's gonna fall off here." "You're gonna have to hold it." "I can't get any wetter than I already am." "I'm sorry." "Why is everybody around here so unfriendly?" "They're very nice people, really." "It's just that they're suspicious of strangers." "The tourists come and they pollute the bay and the lagoon." "I'm not a tourist." "I'm a Libra." "Mama, this is Mick." "This is my sister, Alma." "Mick got off the bus and fell in the swamp." "He's soaked clean through, even his suitcases." "You can give him some of Daddy's old clothes." "They're upstairs in the trunk in the storage room." "They'll be kind of big, though." " Where do I put this?" " In the kitchen." "Wait till you see Mr. Beardsley's place." "He's got the greatest old stuff." "And he's real reasonable." "You can bargain with him." "Oh, my Lord." "I forgot." "The clocks have stopped." "What time do you have?" "11:20." "I arranged to meet him at his house at 11:30." " We'll have to hurry." " Wait a minute." "What about seeing the stuff in your garage?" " We'll see that when we get back." " Wait." " How you doing?" " Just fine." "We're taking the car to Beardsley's." "What about the dry clothes?" "I guess it'll just have to wait till later." "What makes you think you're better than me?" "You got nothing." "You can either work with me, or you don't work with me." "You know nothing, you never will, and you'll never know nothing." "That's right." " Don't know what you're doing." " I still got this place!" "When somebody passes away, Mr. Beardsley moves in... and he gets the greatest stuff." "Ship rope, sideboards, brass beds." " I wonder what's happening over there?" " They're always fighting." "That's Willie Grimes and his son, Roger." "They own the worm farm." "Old Willie's a sorry son of a gun." "He's always hounding Roger to do things." "I'm responsible for that truck." "I only borrowed you to loan that truck 'cause you said you'd be careful." "What's wrong?" "Them crates is all empty." "Every damn last damn one of them." "But I never left the truck except to get ice." "It's strange to me." " I didn't let them out." " lf you didn't, then who did?" "How many worms were there?" "I can tell you how many worms there was." "There was 100,000 worms." "Cost me over $300, sonny boy." "Maybe the door was loose and you forgot to close the crates." "Damn right." "He'd forget his head if it wasn't fastened." "He doesn't have his mind on business at all these days." "I'm trying to run a business, and you will not... lend my truck to nobody, no time, no more." "It's gonna take me the rest of the week to replace those worms... if I can replace those worms." "You're gonna dig deep, and I mean deep." "Down to your toenails." "I'm real sorry." "Is there anything I can do?" "We'll see you later, then." "Okay?" "Maybe we can help replace them somehow." " 100,000 worms?" " What's the matter?" "Afraid of worms?" "What, me?" "Afraid of worms?" "Yeah." "Nothing to be afraid of, long as you hold them by the tail." " Why's that?" " They bite." "Worms around here, all Glycera." "Bloodworms, and sandworms from the ocean." "But how do you know which end is the tail?" "The end opposite the one that bites you." " Does anybody else live here?" " He lives all alone." "Kind of spooky." "Where is he?" "Mr. Beardsley, is that you?" "What happened?" " Who do you suppose it is?" " I have no idea." "I think one of us ought to go get the Sheriff." "I'll stay here, okay?" "I think I better go with you." "How about a piece of jewelry?" "A pin, a bracelet, or something like that." "Why don't you show me something?" "I don't know." "Something for Julia, I expect." "Geraldine knows much more about the jewelry than I do." "Here she is now." "Sheriff Reston wants to pick up a little something for Mrs. Reston." "We were just looking for you." "This is my friend, Mick." "We've met." "We found a skeleton back at Mr. Beardsley's." "Show it to Beardsley." "He'll give you top dollar for it." "He wasn't around." "I think you ought to take a look at it." "I intend to." " Which way?" " Around the back." "It's right over here." "I don't know what you're up to." "But you sure as hell ain't gonna pull this bull in Fly Creek." "I want you the hell out of this town." "But it was right here." "We both saw it." "That's enough." "I'd expect this bull from your sister, but not you." "Your daddy was real proud of you." "If he were alive and saw you now, he'd tan your fanny." "She didn't do anything." "I'm gonna let this go, 'cause it's too hot." "I'm too busy to book this little city weasel." "I got a goddamn town to put back together again." "But if I see you even one more time... you won't even be able to call a city lawyer... 'cause all the phones are dead." ""'Cause all the phones"..." "I don't understand." "It just didn't walk away." "But whose skeleton was it?" "Could be from the Revolutionary War, for all we know." "What do you think?" "That's not all too sharp, unless you want to blend in with the Creekers." " What's a Creeker?" " Fly Creek people." "Smoking in Fly Creek is a bust." " Have you met Sheriff Reston yet?" " You mean the guy with the teeth?" "Right." "Too much." " You got a match?" " Yeah, I do." " Here, keep them." " Quigley's." "You've been there?" "Quigley's is a pisser." "I go there with some of my friends, stoned out of our gourds." "We just sit around and watch the old farts drink themselves into a stupor." " That been itching like that for long?" " No, it just started." "About Beardsley, the antique dealer..." " Does he go to Quigley's?" " Go there?" "He lives there." "Aaron Beardsley is a stone-cold alchy." "There we go." "You must like Geri a whole lot." "Come all the way down here from the city." " No, thanks." " Save it for later." " You're gonna need it." " Yeah?" "Why?" "That stuff on your leg... it's poison ivy." " Hey, Roger." " Hi, Geraldine." "Hi, Mr. Quigley, how're you?" "What're you all drinking?" "Beer's warm today." "I'm looking for..." "We're looking for Aaron Beardsley." "Has he been around?" "No." "I haven't seen Aaron since last night's storm." "He left about the time it really started coming down." "You looking for antiques?" "You're a nice looking fella." "Let me give you a tip." "Stay away from old Aaron." "He's a little steep, if you know what I mean." "I got a whole garage full of stuff, out back." "Enough to make your mouth water like a horse with his nose in a sugar bag." " Mr. Quigley..." " Just a minute." "This was worn by John Wayne." "He used this in Reap the Wild Wind..." "We'll stop by if we have time." "If you see Mr. Beardsley, you tell him we're looking for him." "He'll be around, all right." "You can rest assured of that." " I'm sorry about those worms." " Just forget it." "Geri and I are going fishing." "Do you want to come with us?" "I bet you know all the best spots." "Come on, Roger." "It'd be better if you stay away from your father for a while." " When you going to do it?" " After lunch, about an hour." "I'll just get some stuff and things over at the bait shop." " I'll meet you down by the boat." " Okay." "Great!" "And you can show me how to use the new reel I bought." "Let's go." "Everybody in Fly Creek fancies himself a latent antique dealer." "Nobody throws anything away." "You never know what the tourists want." "Guess what this tourist wants." "Tuna fish salad will have to do for now." "That looks good." "My specialty." "Do you suppose something happened to Mr. Beardsley?" "Probably not." "I bet we see him boozing it up tonight in a dark corner in Quigley's." " You really plan on going back there?" " Sure." " There was a worm in my egg cream." " What?" "Today, when I went into that luncheonette, I ordered an egg cream..." " and there was a worm in it." " What's an egg cream?" "It's like a chocolate..." "Maybe it was my fault, after all." "Maybe that had something to do with the worms in the truckload." "Do you see Roger around?" "He's probably at the dock getting the boat ready." " The skeleton!" "How did it get here?" " I don't know." "If it's the same one." "They all look alike to me." "It's Mr. Grimes." "Let's tell Sheriff Reston." "Tell him what?" "If only we knew whose bones those are." "Remember what I told you." "Do anything you can to keep Roger out on the lake." "I'll need at least half an hour." "Then I'll meet you back at the house." "You've got me scared." "Welcome to the club." "Scoot over." "I want to fish on this side." "There's nothing like fresh salt air." "And that's nothing like fresh salt air." " What is that smell anyway?" " Low tide." "You can't even swim in here." "I don't know how the fish stay alive." "Maybe they come from New York." "Maybe they do." "You're a pro at this." "What do you say?" "I don't want to waste time getting them on the hook." "I can't." "They're disgusting." "I don't understand." "Don't you handle these all the time?" "I hate it." "I'll do it." "My goodness." " Are you all right?" " The little mother bit me." "Jesus Christ!" "Are you sure it wasn't the hook?" "The thing bit right into my arm!" "They usually don't bite hard enough to penetrate the skin." "Let me see." " I never saw one bite like that." " I did." "When I was little... my daddy just started the worm farm... experimenting with ways of getting them out of the ground." "Tried electricity." "Took my train transformer and hooked it up." "Then he wet down the ground... sat back, and waited till it got dark." "Did it work?" "Got 'em of the ground, all right... like roaches up a drainpipe." "Had to pretty near cut off all of my thumb." " I never knew..." " It was no big deal." "I want to go back to shore to put something on this." " We'll all go." " No, that's okay." "You row me back." "I want to catch a nap, anyway..." "You and Roger can catch some fish for dinner." "It's okay." "Roger will take care of you." " Won't you?" " Yeah." "How about here?" "One spot's as good as another." " You want me to bait one up for you?" " Nope." " Two lines are better than one." " I'm just as happy as a bump on a log." "Here goes." "Busted!" "That's very funny." "What've you got there?" " Who is it?" " That's what I want to find out." "Did you get that out of Roger's truck?" "I don't think he'd dig that." " I'll put it back." " Okay if I come, too?" "Sure, why not?" " Maybe we ought to go for one more." " I don't mind." "It's nice, isn't it?" "Just the two of us out here alone." "He staying with you in the room tonight?" "You know better than listening to Alma." "I wish we could've done this before he come down here." "I'm enjoying it, too." "I've been thinking..." "With your daddy gone and all..." "I was thinking you need some help with the business." "Moving heavy furniture." "I'm ready." "I'm ready to tell Dad I don't want to take over no worm farm." "I got a surprise for you." "Really?" "What is it?" "I told you, it's a surprise." "What is it?" "It's him, isn't it?" "He come down here, busting his way in." "If he come near you again..." "I'm gonna bust his liver loose if he tries to touch you." " What is it?" " Is Mick here?" "I thought he was with you." "He cut his finger on a hook and he had to get it fixed." "What happened to you?" "I fell in the lake trying to pull in a fish." "Is something wrong?" "Look at me." "I'm a sight." "Mick can't see me like this." "What am I gonna do?" "You march right upstairs and wash off all that mud and filth." "You smell awful." "Lord knows what those tourists are dumping in the water these days." "I should have known." "You can't drill teeth without electricity." "Next time, I'm gonna wait for a storm before I make an appointment." "What are you doing?" "I really have to check this out." "Far out." "Just like in New York." "This is really freaky." " May I ask what you're looking for?" " X-rays." "There's three teeth missing from the top of the skull." "Hold this for a minute." "I need more light." "Bring it over here." "Anybody I know?" "Aaron Beardsley." "Come on." "What's the matter?" "What happened?" "What is it?" "What happened?" "The worms attacked Roger." "They crawled all over his face." "And he ran off into the woods, screaming." "I couldn't find him." "I'm really glad you didn't chase after him." "If Roger can see, he'll probably try to make his way home, too." "The worm farm is much closer to the lagoon." "Then we'll go to the worm farm, and we'll look for him." "All right?" "Ain't you gonna put Mr. Beardsley's skull back in the truck... before Roger gets back?" "No!" "It can't be!" "You little brat!" "You don't even care." "He was a beautiful old man." " Cut it out!" "Who said I didn't care?" " What is going on down here?" " What were you two fighting about, anyway?" " Nothing." " Young lady..." " I told her it was her turn to make dinner." "Since Geri has a guest..." "I think it would be a nice gesture if you offered to make dinner... whether it's your turn or not." "Settled." "Did you remember to tell Alma that you'd invited Roger for dinner?" "No, I forgot." "Try to think of an extra side dish." "Lord only knows when's the last time we had two hungry men around here." " I'm sorry." " It's all right." "I'm really worried about Mama." "I've never seen her this freaked out." "You try and stay with her until we get back." "I wonder what made those worms act that way." "You don't think Roger's old man is fooling around with electricity?" "What electricity?" "Good point." "I hope we find him before it gets dark." "You wait in the car." " Did you see him?" " Get back in the car." " Give me the keys." " I left them in the ignition." "What did you see?" "Talk about New York." "Two corpses in one day." "Next time you visit me, okay?" " Roger?" " No." "His father." "Is Sheriff Reston around?" "He was." " Why, Geraldine!" " Hi, Mrs. Klopp." " Did your mother get the yarn I sent her?" " Yeah." "She promised me she'd knit me a shawl." "Not for me, but for my daughter." "It's a surprise..." " Is he around?" " Who?" " Sheriff Reston." " No, he's not here." "He might be having his dinner now." "I don't know what time it is." " All the clocks stopped." " It's real important that we talk to him." " He might be over at the Casa Roma." " Thank you." "I've been thinking, what with the roads to Statesboro closed... we'll have to find you some accommodations for the evening." "Excuse me, but this is real important." "Sheriff, I know you think I'm a troublemaker." "That's about the first thing you've said that I can buy." "I don't know how to go about this." "But I think I have proof that the skeleton we found... is the remains of Aaron Beardsley." "What kind of proof?" "We found another body." "It was Mr. Grimes." " Tell him about the worms." " Worms?" "They bite." "It's just horrible." "They attacked Roger Grimes when we were out fishing." "He ran off into the woods, and we can't find him." "If you'll only come with us to the worm farm, I can prove it to you." "Listen, fella, there's a lot of spaghetti here." "May take us 10, 15 minutes to finish it." "That's a bigger head start than you deserve." "Mr. Reston, you don't..." "Let's go." "Remember, as I was saying, what with the state roads closed..." " Where are we going?" " Back to Beardsley's." "What do you expect to find here?" "What was Beardsley doing in the shop that late at night?" "He was probably working on a piece of furniture and didn't want to stop." "That's blood." "What's in there?" " I think that's where he gets his well water." " And candles?" "I don't know." "Come on." "I think Roger and his father are off the hook, as far as killing Beardsley is concerned." "Roger must have followed us here, spying on us all the time like a little kid." "Then he saw the..." "But why take the skeleton?" "That was the surprise he was telling me about on the boat." " What?" " That thing would bring $100 in an auction." "He was talking about going into the business." " Then who..." " The worms." "Attacked?" "Mick thinks that Mr. Beardsley went to the shed to get candles... when the lights went out." "He still had a matchbook in his hand when we found him." "Did you look in the shed?" "No." "I'm glad we didn't." "Shouldn't you run next door and ask about Roger?" "I feel terrible starting without him." "He probably had to work late at the worm farm." "Willie just doesn't appreciate how hard that poor boy works." "I don't understand that man." "That's Roger's seat, dear." "What's the difference?" "I thought you'd want to sit next to Mick." "I guess it doesn't make any difference." "Why isn't anybody eating?" "Mama?" "Are you all right?" "Where's Alma?" "It's all right, Mama." "Nobody's hurt." "Come on." "Could you come out here for a second?" "Alma, I want you to stay with Mama, okay?" "Listen to me for a minute." "Is there some gasoline around?" "In the shop." "Are you all right?" "They're all gone." "Why is this happening?" "I don't know." "Something is making the worms go crazy." "Just driving them right up out of the ground." "Electricity!" " There isn't any." " Yes, there is!" "The power lines that fell down are still sending juice into the ground." "That's thousands of volts, with soaking wet mud to act as a conductor." "And as soon as the light hits them, they disappear." "I'm getting plywood to cover the doors, so the worms can't get in here." "If I'm right, the only thing holding them back is the light." "Where can I get some plywood?" " There's an old rice mill." "It's all torn down." " Where is it?" " I'll show you." " No, you stay here." "Your mother looks like she's about to crack." "I'll be back before it gets dark." "Stay in the house." "Don't tell your mother about what we saw." "Keep the candles burning." "Which way?" "It's straight back about half a mile." "You come to this clearing and then there's this concrete structure." " You can't miss it." " Okay." "How will you carry it?" "I'll think of something." "Where you going?" "I'm just gonna take a shower while there's still a little light." "Okay." "Just don't go outside." " What's outside?" " Do as I say." "I hope you have better luck than I did." "There wasn't any water at all before." "You ain't got no good way to go, boy." "She's mine." "She always was mine." "Now you're coming down here and you spoil everything." "You're gonna be spoiled." "You're gonna be the worm face." "Alma, did you hear a noise?" "No, Mama." "Take some candles in to her." "Do you hear it?" "Don't scare me." "Did you leave the water running in the bathroom?" "Yeah." "Water's coming out upstairs." "I can't wait to wash my face." "Be careful, honey." "It's so dark up there." "How do you like the accommodations?" "Just fine, honey." " Do you have room service?" " Sure do." "All the bread and water you can eat." " What was that?" " Don't worry, I've got the key." "Stop doing that." "Doing what?" "That!" "I'm not doing anything." " Come on, kids, it's closing time." " Yeah." "Did you hear something?" "I don't know." "Wait a minute." "Hand me that candle." "Where's Alma?" "Upstairs." "Is the front door closed?" "But I left the back door open." "To try to get some fresh air." "Wish there was a little breeze." "There." "It's almost finished." "I know Mrs. Klopp would like it for herself... if only she wasn't allergic to wool." "Poor thing." "Anybody there?" "Mrs. Sanders... is that you?" "Oh, no!" "It's all right." "Come on, I'll help you down." "Okay, another one, come on, one more." "There you go." "It's all right." "Let me get this off you." "It's gonna be okay." "Are you all right?" "Come on." "Come with me." "How are you at climbing trees?" "Wait." "Where's my mama and Alma?" "You can't go down there." "The worms are halfway up the stairs." " We have to get out of here." " No!" " I have to help them!" " It's too late!" "They're dead!" "Come on." "No!" "Hey!" "Excuse me." "I thought you lovebirds might want to know the power's on." "Tower's repaired, everything's good as new." "Which direction is the nearest town?" "I hope they've got plenty of coffee." "I could drink five gallons right now." "Strangest thing." "Lines back up and nobody's even answering the damn telephone." "Stay right where you are." "Don't you move, all right?"