kicked. The man gasped and fell. Loyce brought the rock down. Theman screamed and tried to roll away. "_Stop!_ For God's sake listen--"
He struck again. A hideous crunching sound. The man's voice cut off anddissolved in a bubbling wail. Loyce scrambled up and back. The otherswere there, now. All around him. He ran, awkwardly, down the sidewalk,up a driveway. None of them followed him. They had stopped and werebending over the inert body of the man with the book, the bright-eyedman who had come after him.
Had he made a mistake?
But it was too late to worry about that. He had to get out--away fromthem. Out of Pikeville, beyond the crack of darkness, the rent betweentheir world and his.
* * * * *
"Ed!" Janet Loyce backed away nervously. "What is it? What--"
Ed Loyce slammed the door behind him and came into the living room."Pull down the shades. Quick."
Janet moved toward the window. "But--"
"Do as I say. Who else is here besides you?"
"Nobody. Just the twins. They're upstairs in their room. What'shappened? You look so strange. Why are you home?"
Ed locked the front door. He prowled around the house, into the kitchen.From the drawer under the sink he slid out the big butcher knife and ranhis finger along it. Sharp. Plenty sharp. He returned to the livingroom.
"Listen to me," he said. "I don't have much time. They know I escapedand they'll be looking for me."
"Escaped?" Janet's face twisted with bewilderment and fear. "Who?"
"The town has been taken over. They're in control. I've got it prettywell figured out. They started at the top, at the City Hall and policedepartment. What they did with the _real_ humans they--"
"What are you talking about?"
"We've been invaded. From some other universe, some other dimension.They're insects. Mimicry. And more. Power to control minds. Your mind."
"My mind?"
"Their entrance is _here_, in Pikeville. They've taken over all of you.The whole town--except me. We're up against an incredibly powerfulenemy, but they have their limitations. That's our hope. They'relimited! They can make mistakes!"
Janet shook her head. "I don't understand, Ed. You must be insane."
"Insane? No. Just lucky. If I hadn't been down in the basement I'd belike all the rest of you." Loyce peered out the window. "But I can'tstand here talking. Get your coat."
"My coat?"
"We're getting out of here. Out of Pikeville. We've got to get help.Fight this thing. They _can_ be beaten. They're not infallible. It'sgoing to be close--but we may make it if we hurry. Come on!" He grabbedher arm roughly. "Get your coat and call the twins. We're all leaving.Don't stop to pack. There's no time for that."
White-faced, his wife moved toward the closet and got down her coat."Where are we going?"
Ed pulled open the desk drawer and spilled the contents out onto thefloor. He grabbed up a road map and spread it open. "They'll have thehighway covered, of course. But there's a back road. To Oak Grove. I gotonto it once. It's practically abandoned. Maybe they'll forget aboutit."
"The old Ranch Road? Good Lord--it's completely closed. Nobody'ssupposed to drive over it."
"I know." Ed thrust the map grimly into his coat. "That's our bestchance. Now call down the twins and let's get going. Your car is full ofgas, isn't it?"
Janet was dazed.
"The Chevy? I had it filled up yesterday afternoon." Janet moved towardthe stairs. "Ed, I--"
"Call the twins!" Ed unlocked the front door and peered out. Nothingstirred. No sign of life. All right so far.
"Come on downstairs," Janet called in a wavering voice. "We're--goingout for awhile."
"Now?" Tommy's voice came.
"Hurry up," Ed barked. "Get down here, both of you."
Tommy appeared at the top of the stairs. "I was doing my home work.We're starting fractions. Miss Parker says if we don't get this done--"
"You can forget about fractions." Ed grabbed his son as he came down thestairs and propelled him toward the door. "Where's Jim?"
"He's coming."
Jim started slowly down the stairs. "What's up, Dad?"
"We're going for a ride."
"A ride? Where?"
Ed turned to Janet. "We'll leave the lights on. And the TV set. Go turnit on." He pushed her toward the set. "So they'll think we're still--"
He heard the buzz. And dropped instantly, the long butcher knife out.Sickened, he saw it coming down the stairs at him, wings a blur ofmotion as it aimed itself. It still bore a vague resemblance to Jimmy.It was small, a baby one. A brief glimpse--the thing hurtling at him,cold, multi-lensed inhuman eyes. Wings, body still clothed in yellowT-shirt and jeans, the mimic outline still stamped on it. A strangehalf-turn of its body as it reached him. What was it doing?
A stinger.
Loyce stabbed wildly at it. It retreated, buzzing frantically. Loycerolled and crawled toward the door. Tommy and Janet stood still asstatues, faces blank. Watching without expression. Loyce stabbed again.This time the knife connected. The thing shrieked and faltered. Itbounced against the wall and fluttered down.
Something lapped through his mind. A wall of force, energy, an alienmind probing into him. He was suddenly paralyzed. The mind entered hisown, touched against him briefly, shockingly. An utterly alien presence,settling over him--and then it flickered out as the thing collapsed in abroken heap on the rug.
It was dead. He turned it over with his foot. It was an insect, a fly ofsome kind. Yellow T-shirt, jeans. His son Jimmy.... He closed his mindtight. It was too late to think about that. Savagely he scooped up hisknife and headed toward the door. Janet and Tommy stood stone-still,neither of them moving.
The car was out. He'd never get through. They'd be waiting for him. Itwas ten miles on foot. Ten long miles over rough ground, gulleys andopen fields and hills of uncut forest. He'd have to go alone.
Loyce opened the door. For a brief second he looked back at his wife andson. Then he slammed the door behind him and raced down the porch steps.
A moment later he was on his way, hurrying swiftly through the darknesstoward the edge of town.
* * * * *
The early morning sunlight was blinding. Loyce halted, gasping forbreath, swaying back and forth. Sweat ran down in his eyes. His clothingwas torn, shredded by the brush and thorns through which he had crawled.Ten miles--on his hands and knees. Crawling, creeping through the night.His shoes were mud-caked. He was scratched and limping, utterlyexhausted.
But ahead of him lay Oak Grove.
He took a deep breath and started down the hill. Twice he stumbled andfell, picking himself up and trudging on. His ears rang. Everythingreceded and wavered. But he was there. He had got out, away fromPikeville.
A farmer in a field gaped at him. From a house a young woman watched inwonder. Loyce reached the road and turned onto it. Ahead of him was agasoline station and a drive-in. A couple of trucks, some chickenspecking in the dirt, a dog tied with a string.
The white-clad attendant watched suspiciously as he dragged himself upto the station. "Thank God." He caught hold of the wall. "I didn't thinkI was going to make it. They followed me most of the way. I could hearthem buzzing. Buzzing and flitting around behind me."
"What happened?" the attendant demanded. "You in a wreck? A hold-up?"
Loyce shook his head wearily. "They have the whole town. The City Halland the police station. They hung a man from the lamppost. That was thefirst thing I saw. They've got all the roads blocked. I saw themhovering over the cars coming in. About four this morning I got beyondthem. I knew it right away. I could feel them leave. And then the suncame up."
The attendant licked his lip nervously. "You're out of your head. Ibetter get a doctor."
"Get me into Oak Grove," Loyce gasped. He sank down on the gravel."We've got to get started--cleaning them out. Got to get started rightaway."
* * * * *
Th
ey kept a tape recorder going all the time he talked. When he hadfinished the Commissioner snapped off the recorder and got to his feet.He stood for a moment, deep in thought. Finally he got out hiscigarettes and lit up slowly, a frown on his beefy face.
"You don't believe me," Loyce said.
The Commissioner offered him a cigarette. Loyce pushed it impatientlyaway. "Suit yourself." The Commissioner moved over to the window andstood for a time looking out at the town of Oak Grove. "I believe you,"he
The Hanging Stranger Page 3
