New Tales of the Cthulhu Mythos by Ramsey Campbell

slight limp. Nervous as a rat, he shuffled from corner to corner, hands deep in vate room, and when Ralf entered, he essayed a pockets. He was of average height with flat downwa~nile. Ralf went over to him directly, without smiling,
    slanting snake eyes and a pachuco haircut. Bene~d leaned close to his face. 'Where is it, coconut?'
    his madras shirt he carried a butterfly switchblur Henley kept smiling. He made a small feathering and strapped to his leg under his trousers was~esture with one hand and stared remorselessly into specially modified bayonet. His face was smoot~h ~l~e flat dark good-looking, with flameporcelain,
    sun-dark and scribbled with many fine b10~bright hair, eyes. He was jawline clean as a knife, and grey glasswrinkles.
    ,[~plinter eyes that looked a little crazy from the medi-
    When he heard the scream, he stopped in his traC~ation. 'Since when did they start letting baboons in
    and his charred eyes narrowed. It was Henley. Hh:c~ere~'
    sure. Though he had known him only briefly, 'Don't loose-lip me, Easton.'
    certain that he recognized something about that 'How'd you find me, Ralf?'
    the . . .'
    a whimpering quality that he associated with 'When you didn't show last week It wasn't a scream of pain. It was fear. 'Last week? How long I been?'
    An hour later, a doctor came in - young, thin-bon~~ 'Don't you know? You been out nine days. The only
    with long intelligent hands. 'He's come around.' good thing that happened to you is that I tentwentied
    'What's wrong with him?' before Gusto or his bad boys did. They'd have left The doctor shrugged. 'No idea. It's the zaniest Ca,nothing for the hospital but a cleanup bill.'
    tonia I've ever seen. He sent off theta waves the wh~ Henley closed his eyes and shook his head. A weight time he was out - the EKG of an alert person. Yet!heavy as heat lay on the back of his neck.
    And
    there refused to respond to any form of stimulation, his e~ere memories, ugly nightmare memories, of
    darkwere dilated, his blood sugar way down. In some Winess, a maze, a black sun, a horrible whispering...
    it's all related to the wound on his left foot. That th~ 'I laid out a lot of coin to et ou this rivate box'
    g Y P ,
    ~m 1 refused to start heahn until about forty
    s' p y ' g ' -~Ralf went on. He reached into his pocket and pulled minutes ago. Fibrinogen was actually dissolving at t~ut a jangle of dog tags. 'Your brother's plates. I figured
    wound site.' they'd do more good here than they would where he's
    'But he's going to pull through, isn't he?' itrashed. I used them to convince the meds that you
    'I think so. His vital organs, nervous and lyr~nd I are kin. It was the only way of taking charge.'
    systems, are all unaffected.' 'What about Gusto?'
    Ralf released an audible sigh, ran a hand over i Ralf shook his head, contentious. 'He wants your face.
    'When can I see him?' ears, clown. He figures you ripped him. What else is
    'Now, if you like. He's remarkably alert for all ~. the stooge to think after more than a week? The best
    been through.' thing for you to do is tell me where that skeejag is so I Henley Easton was sitting up in the bed ~i :can Tighten him up.'
    60 New Tales of the Cthulhu Mythos The Star Pools 61
    Henley rubbed the back of his neck. A retinal af~ ~trian landscape - a parking lot. Henley recognized
    image of the black sun seemed to be hovering befo ~Ralf's car and watched dumb-faced as a black man
    in
    him. Everything looked dark, outlined by a soft my iduck trousers unholstered a pistol and knelt down in
    cal shine. ' No way, huckster. You'd just run it.' the back seat of an adjacent white Chevy. Then, just
    'What?' Ralf's face darkened with indignation. 'r!as swiftiy, the image splintered.
    your cover man.'
    Henley looked cool and arrogant. 'You were my br~neeR~pf laidkiad.c'allused hand on Henley's shoulder. 'You rest,
    cover man, and he was minced at Ngoc Linh.' Henley blinked, rubbed his temples. With cold objec-Ralf's emotional valence swung from