“So what do you think it all means?” Tyler asked, turning to look at him.
“Well, you know, I do read from time to time,” Mike told him. “I read a little ole book not long ago, I forget the name now, but it was about UFO’s. That’s unidentified flyin’ objects. Anyhow, these people-like creatures captured a bunch of campers up in Montana and took stuff from ’em.”
Tyler laughed in spite of himself. “Stuff!? Like what? Their Coleman lanterns?”
“No!” Mike frowned. “Like stuff. They took one guy’s brain. He died of course, but he was one of the lucky ones. Terrible! And they took this other lady’s gall bladder. It had a cancer on it. And they took another guy’s heart. He died too. But it was like they took away all the bad parts of their bodies. The guy with the heart? He had peri-card-something, a heart disease. They got one little girl’s eyes. She was blind, you see? And this old man’s leg cause he had the gout.”
“Damn it, Mike!” Tyler looked at him in horror. “That’s throwed off. Who’d write a story like that? Stephen King?”
“Yeah, yeah, I know it’s weird,” Mike nodded sheepishly. “I know, but it wasn’t no novel. I was in the john and I was lookin’ for somethin’ to read. It was Carla’s book. Once I started reading it, I couldn’t put it down. But that ain’t the worst part. They took this one girl’s baby before it was born. Like they did one of them C-sections and just took it. And this other guy, well he was a real asshole anyway and I’d almost say he deserved what they did to him cause he’d raped a woman. He had AIDS and gave it to her, see? Well, they took his...”
“OK, OK!” Tyler held up his hand and made a mad dash around the truck and trailer. “I get the picture. So why’d they take the baby? Was something wrong with it?”
“Nope.” Mike sat quietly for a few minutes as if deciding whether to go on. “It belonged to one of them.”
Tyler stared out the windshield. He thought of Paula Anne. Why hadn’t he gone and taken that damned sterility test? What if he really was sterile? What if the baby was not even his?
“She thought the baby belonged to her husband of course,” Mike went on. “They went on doin’ these things through the whole book. It turned out that they were doin’ experiments on people. Weird stuff. I can’t even repeat most of it cause it’s so bad. But in the end they was just tryin’ to see if they could breed with humans. They was tryin’ to infiltrate Earth and take over.”
“Yeah?” Tyler glanced at him. “Could they?”
“They looked just like us,” Mike told him. “You’d have never known that they was aliens except they had less teeth, funny ears and no belly buttons.”
“Hmmm,” Tyler nodded. He was totally caught up in Mike’s absurd story. “You don’t think...”
“Man, I’m tellin’ you, Tyler,” Mike said quietly. “That book was supposed to be based on a true story. There’s lots of strange things out there. All kinds of things. Some just ain’t no good at all. I always thought we lived in a pretty safe place here. Nothin’ ever happens in Magnolia Springs. I’m just sayin’ that it could be somethin’ like that happenin’ here. You just can’t ever know until it’s too late.”
“So you’re sayin’ that maybe these folks are ali... after us for some reason?” Tyler frowned and shook his head. “It just can’t be. Uh, uh. No way!”
“Yeah, I know how it sounds. Real weird,” Mike told him as they turned off the highway into the hospital parking lot.
Louis Parks was sitting in a wheel chair in his room. All dressed and ready to go. He clutched a small plastic bag in his arms in front of him and wore a deep frown. Julia was down the hall checking him out. He was going home. He had refused medical treatment and would hear nothing else about it.
“Damn, Louis!” Tyler was surprised. “You didn’t even get to use the bedpan.”
“Yeah, I know,” Louis grinned at him. “Ain’t gonna neither. I feel fine.”
“What does Julia think about this?” Mike asked him.
“She feels the same way I do. Just fine,” Louis told him. “I can take this here bedpan home and plant some marigolds in it. Or I can use it to change the oil in my car.”
“Yeah, they’re good for lots of things,” Mike told him.
“I guess you just had a light heart attack,” Tyler surmised as he walked around the room looking at all the complicated equipment. “Maybe you didn’t have a heart attack at all. Doctors do make mistakes sometimes. Maybe you just had a bad case of gas.”
“Yeah,” Mike nodded solemnly. “My aunt Tilda had gas so bad one time that...”
“Shut up, Mike!” Tyler looked at his friend in frustration. “You’ve told that story before.”
“Maybe so,” Louis said and took on a serious expression. “It was no false alarm, fellas. I was just standin’ there and then this horrible pain hit me and I found myself drifting down this long, long tunnel. And there at the end of it...” He paused as if trying to think. “There was this light and I heard singing.” Tyler and Mike stared at him in rapt attention. “They were sayin’ ‘you deserve a break today, so get out and get away’. And at the end of the tunnel was a figure... it was... it was...” his voice trailed off.
“Who was it?!” Mike asked in frustration.
“It was... Ronald McDonald!” Louis told him and burst out laughing.
Mike looked like he was going to spit on the floor. His face turned red and he bit his lip.
“That’s real funny, Louis,” Tyler told him. “You’re making fun of him and me. I bet we’re the only ones who’ve been down here to see you, too.”
“Yeah, you’re right,” Louis told him. “I’m sorry. I couldn’t help it.”
“So what did happen?” Mike forgave him immediately.
“Well, seriously,” Louis lowered his voice and glanced at the door. “It was exactly like Tyler said. I thought I was a goner. I really was drifting there for a while, but I didn’t see any Angels or dead relatives. I was just alone and scared and then... there he was!”
“Who? The Jack-in-the-Box guy?” Tyler asked sarcastically unwilling to fall for another of Louis’ cruel pranks.
“No, damn it, Tyler, I’m serious now.” Louis frowned at him. “It was Perry Aliger. He was there. Not like at the end of a tunnel, but he was there with me like in a dream and he told me to come back.”
“I don’t believe you,” Tyler told him flatly.
“I told you so, Tyler.” Mike looked at him in alarm.
“So you’re sayin’ I’m a liar?” Louis looked hurt. “I tell you it’s true. First he caused me to have a heart attack and then he saved my life.”
“He caused it?” Mike whispered.
“Yep,” Louis nodded. “But don’t say nothin’ to Julia. She don’t know. He just said somethin’ that made me mad, but it was just a misunderstandin’ on my part. I know all about it now.”
“What on Earth could he say to give you a heart attack?” Tyler frowned at him and thought about Sam Morris and Billy Johnson. “You gotta tell us, Louis. It’s real important.”
“Why?” Louis asked and looked at them suspiciously.
“You tell first,” Mike said and looked at him sternly. “You ain’t gonna get nothin’ outta us til you tell us what he said.”
“I ain’t tellin’ you a damned thing!” Louis said angrily. “The man saved my life. That’s it. That’s all.”
“Look, Louis,” Tyler told him urgently. “Me ’n Mike here have been thinkin’ and talkin’ and things are beginnin’ to look mighty funny.” Tyler glanced at Mike.
“Maybe we should tell ’im,” Mike shrugged.
“Tell me what!” Louis’ face grew red. “You all want to give me another damned heart attack! Now, what’s happened?”
“Well,” Tyler said hesitantly. “Billy Johnson went over to Sam Morris’ house last night. Now, Louis, you gotta understand this is strictly off the record and you gotta swear you won’t do nothin’ or say nothin’ to nobody.”
“I won’
t do nothin’,” Louis told him. “Now hurry up before Julia gets back.”
Tyler gave him the same rundown he’d given Mike about what had happened the night before at Sam’ house. When he got to the part about the Pandora Boxes, Louis’ face changed. He lost his color and sat staring at them.
“What do you mean Junior was goin’ to blow his head off? Aliger’s head?” Louis asked him quietly.
“No his own!” Tyler told him. “He was goin’ to kill himself.”
“And Sam told Tyler that Billy Johnson had a heart attack,” Mike re-iterated. “And who was there? Perry Aliger and his brother!”
Louis' eyes widened.
“He buries stuff in his back yard!” Mike blurted and Tyler punched his arm.
“I told you not to tell that!” Tyler frowned at his friend.
“Sorry.” Mike looked down.
“What kind of stuff?” Louis asked.
“You promised,” Tyler reminded him.
“Yeah, yeah, unofficially... what does he bury in his yard?” Louis asked again.
“Them little boxes!” Mike told him in a rush.
Tyler knew that Junior Morris was going to be real pissed off when he found out that he had told about what had happened. He never should have changed his mind and talked to Mike about it. He was miserable now and worried about Paula Anne and worried about his aunt Mary and worried about himself. What was happening to all of them?
“I just thought I’d point out to you that you have been acting out the contents of your little wish boxes,” Falco said as he stood at the bottom of the stairs watching Perry uncork a bottle of wine to taste the contents. Perry put the bottle down and took another one from the cooler to repeat the process. It was the fourth one he had tried. “Angelica told me about what happened at the creek.”
“I don’t need you to point out things to me,” Perry told him. “Everything is under control now. I will be able to reconcile all the differences very shortly. It is only a temporary condition.”
He reached for yet another bottle.
“You don’t know that,” the Primus told him. “Do you intend to drink all the wine in the shop?”
Perry did not answer him, but unwrapped the foil around the cork of the expensive wine.
“If you drink all this, you will be in control of nothing,” Falco told him. “I think you have become too human, Primus. You’ve been here far too long.”
“I will decide that,” Perry answered and gathered up all the open bottles in his arms. He hurried up the stairs to the apartment with Falco on his heels. He took the bottles to the dining room and set them on the table.
Angelica came from the kitchen to peek at them hesitantly from the doorway. He waved to her to join them.
“Come sit down, Angelica," he said. “The Primus wants to disgust things. We can all sit down like civilized beings and talk about everything.”
“Surely you don’t expect us to drink with you,” Falco remarked as he pulled out a chair and sat down.
“Yes, I surely do,” Perry said as he clunked a bottle in front of him and put another one in front of an empty chair and reached to pull it out for Angelica. She sat down on the edge of the chair and looked at the bottle red wine. Carmenere imported from Chile.
“Go on,” he told her. “Take a drink.”
She picked up the bottle and took a sip.
“Now let me make this short and sweet.” Perry looked at them both and then took a long swallow from one of the remaining bottles. “You,” he looked at Falco “are going to leave. And you,” he held up his bottle toward Angelica “will stay here. You will finish your study and I will stay here with you as we originally planned. At the end of that time, she will return to her father’s home as he is most anxious to speak with her. After that, it is no concern to me what either of you will do.”
Falco was stunned by what Peregrin said so succinctly. Had he spoken to the Optimus then? The temporary shock turned quickly to anger.
“Oh?” He said. “Just like that? You have the audacity to sit there half-drunk after your bubble bath and make such bold announcements? You presume to tell us what we will do? To set yourself...”
Perry pushed himself up and leaned on the table toward Falco. Angelica winced. She had never seen such an expression on his face. “I expect!” He said slowly. “I expect you to remember who she is. I expect you to remember who I am and what I am capable of. I expect that if you do not respect the wishes of her father, that I will be forced to intercede by his authority and on his behalf to bring you into compliance.”
“How dare you?!” Falco stood up and matched his expression perfectly. It was as if they were looking in a mirror.
Perry resumed his seat and his half-smile suddenly. “I am growing weary of this entire situation,” he said lightly.
Angelica had no idea what Perry’s words would mean to Falco ultimately, but she knew what they meant for her. She would return to her father. Of all the things Perry had done since she’d known him, he had never lied to her. Evaded her questions. Side-stepped her inquiries. Ignored her curiosities. But never lied to her. She had to assume that he had indeed been in contact with her father and that she would have no choice but to do what he said.
Falco resumed his seat slowly and picked up the wine bottle to take a swallow of it. He seemed to be weighing his options carefully. If he rejected what Perry said as a fabrication, he could be in serious trouble. Was it possible that Peregrin was lying to him?
Perry stood up and gathered his three wine bottles and took them to the kitchen. Their ‘discussion’ was over. There was no discussion.
“I’m going to put these in the refrigerator,” he called over his shoulder. “I’ll be back in time for our dinner.”
Perry had pulled rank on him technically by invoking the authority of the Optimus. He could either take his pronouncements at face value or go to the Optimus himself. Both were equally distasteful options. He would leave, but he would return. Peregrin had not said he could not return.
They heard the door open and close again.
“How much time do you need to finish your study?” He asked Angelica.
“A week,” she answered softly. “I had almost forgotten why I came here. I had foreseen the deaths of six of these people in rapid succession. They should have died within a few days of each other. Peregrin’s activities changed all of that. None of them have died and are not likely to now. ”
“And what is the significance of that?” He asked puzzled by her comments.
He had never really given much thought to her study. He had just accepted them as part of her natural course of action. Her father had promised her to him. What had happened to change everything? Had he perhaps missed something? Should he have visited her more? She knew who he was. She had always known. Was it significant that she had participated in these activities with another First Order Citizen? How should he feel about that? “What is the purpose?” He asked aloud.
“I have been tracing the universal element through some narrow channels of evolution which have culminated with the existence of these physical manifestations on this world. The race of beings here seem to be offshoots of our... how shall I call it? Our family tree? This language is so very limited. At any rate, I had hoped to prove that these human forms are indeed truly connected to us through their souls which appear to be small nodules of the universal element. Things have not progressed here as elsewhere. We need to... re-incorporate them into the whole. We can’t afford to lose such a large part of the string if they are in danger of annihilating themselves. I am sorry that I can find no better words to explain what I am trying to accomplish.” She ended her explanation apologetically, misreading the look of confusion on his face. “I had hoped to trace the paths of their souls after their deaths. I have not attempted to do so yet. I have only recently developed the ability to predict individual deaths closely enough to be in the position to do so. I have either shown up too early or too late.”
/> “An interesting notion,” he said.
“Notion?” She frowned. “I hardly think ‘notion’ is the best approximation to describe my work, with all due respect, Primus. I have dedicated a great deal of time and effort to develop my theories. May I ask what your interest in this world is?”
“I am not interested in this world,” he told her. “You are the only thing here that interests me other than our dear Primus. His motives and his behaviors are very disturbing. I first came here to document the historical development of the predatory species inhabiting the forests. I found the atmosphere most exhilarating and I stayed for a while.”
“I see,” she nodded. “Then you are a historian of sorts?”
“Yes, I suppose so,” he shrugged. “The Primus told me that he is the future. Do you know what he might have meant?”
“No.” She picked up the wine bottle and took a larger swallow than before. “I only know that he kept telling me that I had to get into the maze with the rats to understand them.”
“Then that is what he calls it,” Falco said thoughtfully. “I have never indulged in the physical rituals of these people.”
“He may have a point.” She looked at him curiously. “Perhaps he is right. Perhaps you should also get into the maze.”
The Pandora Effect Page 51
