“What happened?” he asked.
“Monica stabbed you.”
“Oh...I know that. What happened to you?”
“Just a minor cut. I’m fine.” Tears suddenly glistened in her eyes. “Vein didn’t make it, though.”
“Monica stabbed Vein?”
“The beast killed her.”
“Oh, my God.”
“She...always hoped they were real. Always wanted to meet one face to face. They say you’ve gotta be careful what you wish for.”
Groggy and confused, Owen shook his head. “I don’t...How was she killed?”
“We took on the beast. The four of us. Lynn, Dana, me and Vein. And we killed it, too.”
“You mean Clyde? You killed Clyde?”
She shook her head, her pale hair swaying across her brow.
“You really were out of it. After Clyde, a real beast came along. That’s how Monica got away from us. We couldn’t keep her prisoner and fight the beast, so we let her go. She ran off through the Kutch tunnel and that’s the last anyone’s seen of her.”
3. Tuck’s Long Distance Call—Part II
“We think Clyde didn’t call the police—he called Agnes, instead. So then she came to his rescue with a Tommy-gun.”
4. Visiting Hour—Sandy
“Okay, honey, quit beating around the bush and tell me who did it?”
“I’m not your honey, Cochran.”
“Oh, excuse meeee, Officer Chaney.”
“I’ll get out of bed and wreck you.”
Flushing, Cochran said, “I’m simply trying to determine the truth.”
“The truth is... I’m pretty sure it was both of them. Clyde and the beast.”
“Which of them abducted you in the attic?”
“I don’t know.”
“Which dragged you into the tunnel?”
“I’m not sure, but Clyde must’ve been the one who unlocked it.”
“Which handcuffed you?”
“That must’ve been Clyde, too.”
“Which was responsible for your injuries?”
“I smelled the cigarette smoke, but...not always. I think it was probably both of them.”
“Taking turns?”
“Something like that. Maybe.”
“Who ate those people?”
“I don’t know.”
“Either of ‘em eat you?”
“Watch it.”
“And which of them do you think committed the sexual assaults on you?”
Eve studied Cochran, her eyes narrow. Finally, she answered, “Both.”
“Which did you prefer?”
She leaped out of bed. Cochran made it halfway across the hospital room before she got close enough to shove him. Stumbling out of control, he almost made it through the doorway. But his right shoulder collided with the frame and he cried out in pain.
As he flopped on the floor, Sandy called out, “Is there a doctor in the house?”
5. Tuck’s Long Distance Call—Part III
“Well, we think Clyde must’ve been having a relationship with Agnes ... No, I’m not kidding. Just before she opened fire, she yelled out for him to hit the deck. And Eve said she called him ‘honey’ or ‘darling’ or something like that. Sounds like they were lovers...I know, I know...Well, she was filthy rich. Maybe Clyde was hoping for a big inheritance. Or maybe he was just really into this whole beast thing. If you ask me, Clyde and the beast and Agnes were probably having a menagerie a tois...No, not menage, menagerie... Well, I don’t find it that amusing, either. I know a lot of people were killed.”
6. Visiting Hour—Owen, Part II
“What’re you going to do now?” Owen asked.
Beneath her tight T-shirt, Darke shrugged her shoulders.
“I guess I’ll stay right here till they kick me out.”
“What then?”
“Hang around town, I guess, and wait for them to release you. They say it’ll probably be a few more days.”
She’s going to wait for me!
“Do you have a place to stay?” Owen asked.
“Lynn said I can stay at her house.”
Owen remembered hiding in the bushes with John...spying on the three women...and he remembered the third spy, the one they’d heard but never seen.
What happened to John? Is be still hanging around near the house, or...?
“I’ve got a room at the Welcome Inn,” Owen said. “That’s where my stuff is. And my rental car. If you’d rather stay there, I could call and...you know, extend my stay.”
“I have a better idea,” Darke said. “If you’d like, I’ll go to the room and pick up your things. I can take them with me over to Lynn’s. That way, you won’t have to pay for all those nights at the motel.”
“Well...I’m just not sure you should stay at Lynn’s house.”
“Why not?”
He couldn’t tell her about the mysterious prowler hiding in the bushes.
“Maybe it isn’t safe,” he said.
“It’ll be fine. Dana’ll be there, too. I think the three of us can handle just about anything. I mean, we killed the beast, didn’t we? With a little help from Vein,” she added, and tears again filled her eyes.
7. Tuck’s Long Distance Call—Part IV
“Well, Warren was hanging around outside. You know how he wouldn’t step foot in Beast House because of getting jumped that time? Speaking of which, I hear it wasn’t teenagers. Thanks for the honesty, Janice...Oh, little birdies...You should be...Oh, because he was waiting for the tour to end. He and Dana happen to be madly in love. They can’t stand to be apart.”
Tuck grinned at Dana and Warren, who were sitting across from each other at the kitchen table. Blushing, Dana watched Warren’s face turn scarlet.
“Anyway,” Tuck continued, “he was out near the street and he heard Agnes’s machine gun. Or felt it under his feet. So he figured shit was happening down in the tunnel. Fearing for the life of his true love, he cast paranoia to the winds and ran to her rescue...No, Dana did, but Warren busted the door open for us.”
“Hey,” Dana protested. “Warren distracted it. That’s what saved me. Tell her.”
“Dana says to tell you Warren saved her by distracting the beast.” Tuck listened, nodding, then smiled at Warren. “Janice says she always knew you were a secret hero.”
Warren blushed again. “Tell her thanks.”
“He says thanks.”
8. Sandy’s Long Distance Call
Smiling at the sound of his voice, Sandy asked, “Am I speaking to the one and only Blaze O. Glory?...Yep, it’s me. How’ve you been?...Yeah, I’ve been missing you, too...A very long time...Five years ... Well, I had to go looking for my son...No, nothing like that. I’m sure he just ran off on his own. He’s always had sort of a wild streak... No, I’m afraid not. But I’m sure he’s probably getting along just fine, wherever he is...The reason I called, I had a little accident. I’m going to be off my job for a couple of weeks, and wondered if you’d like to have a house guest...I don’t know about modeling, I’m pretty banged up...Well, we’ll see...I can probably be there day after tomorrow...That’ll be great, Blaze.” Her throat tightened, and she felt tears well up in her eyes. “I’m really looking forward to seeing you again, too.”