indignation,~tivity, every rift and flaw in the opposite wall, every
fury and then to remorse with unnatural swiftneipore on Ralf's face, stood out sharp as glass. For a
'Yeah. Well, budroe, you'll be on your way to a famemoment he had felt as if he was leaning outside
reunion if you don't gratify Gusto. He wants those t~imself, teetering on the brink of a nightmare cliff
kilos.' ~that mawed beyond the particled world. Now he was
'And he can have them. I'm in this for the payoff I'~imself again, and it was difficult to imagine that not going to run it.' ~hat he had seen was real. But he couldn't take the
'Fine. Then tell me where I can cop.' chance -
'Forget it. Only I know where it's hidden. We ~ 'Hold on, Mike. There's a roofer waiting for you in a together or not at all.' !white Chevy wheelside of your car.'
'Sure, and just how long before you're mobile? I co~~ 'Huh?'
be so much fish chow by then.' 'Call it a case of the dread. Fever jitters. But stay 'We go tomorrow.' isharp.'
'You think you'll be all right? These meds don't ev~ 'Yeah. Sure.'
know what's wrong with you.' When Ralf left, Henley leaned back and closed his Henley nodded, but his eyes were glazed over, h~yes. A cold magnetic brilliance was running along the face distracted. The afterimage of the black sun h~urface of his skin, and he seemed to sense that eerie
expanded so that it covered everything like a ~hispering he had heard in his nightmare, sensed it film.
Ralf's face was a reflection in a dark rn~r~e way the deaf hear sounds through the small bones wormed
with far-off, unaccountable lights. The ro0~f their heads. Somewhere deep within himself the suddenly
seemed foreshortened, and Henley was st~ightmare was continuing, an evil pushing out into ing through
mistings of shadow. A blue light wh0~he world. He had a feeling that if he let himself he source seemed
to be somewhere behind the bed s~uld fall towards it, that it was pulling him fused his vision, and movements other than wt~a~ ! He stared at the wall directly opposite, tried to root knew were there attracted his attention. Anot~rnself in its cracks, but it was beginning to shimmer. scene was superimposed on the room. It was a ped~e was certain that it was starting all over again.
62 New Tales of the Cthulhu Mythos The Star Pools 63
Then, just as he was reaching for the call switch The man rubbed the side of his head and looked up solidified. He was suddenly warm, and the sunli ~th a scowl. 'Gusto wants his scag, plain-brain.
What
slanting through the blinds was reassuring, yello~ ou expect - CIA?'
wine ~: 'Yeah, well you tell Gusto it's his soon as I cop it. My After a moment's thought, he reached out, and t~uch ~as laid up or he d have had ~t by now.
time he pressed the buzzer. When the nurse arriv~'He wants it right away, marshmallow.'
he was sitting at the edge of the bed, wearing, ~'Sure, sure. Everybody's double-time. You think I'd hoped, his most alert and gracio,u,s smile. 'Would still be in the country .if I was runnin.g it? Come on!'
mind getting my clothes, please? I m signing out. He pulled the man to his feet, pushed him back a pace, and retrieved the Walther. 'Tell him he can have it Ralf left the hospital through the service garage emerged at Twelth Street and Seventh Avenue. car was
parked in the Wavefly Building's lot, ant approached it the long way. When he got to the con
~omorrow,' he said, backing up to his car. 'Same drop.' Ralf threw the gun under the seat, slid behind the wheel, and drove off.
For nine days, since Henley turned up at St Vinof
the lot, he froze. There was a white Chevy park :ent's in a coma, he'd kept on the move, not daring to
near his car. ~~turn to his fiat. He knew Gusto would kill him. The Without hesitation he circled the lot ~[~nan had a notorious temper. But handling the hit man gave him some confidence, and he decided to get back
approached the Chevy from behind. When he ~ig~ . .
his apartment He c~rcled the block slowly
fury and then to remorse with unnatural swiftneipore on Ralf's face, stood out sharp as glass. For a
'Yeah. Well, budroe, you'll be on your way to a famemoment he had felt as if he was leaning outside
reunion if you don't gratify Gusto. He wants those t~imself, teetering on the brink of a nightmare cliff
kilos.' ~that mawed beyond the particled world. Now he was
'And he can have them. I'm in this for the payoff I'~imself again, and it was difficult to imagine that not going to run it.' ~hat he had seen was real. But he couldn't take the
'Fine. Then tell me where I can cop.' chance -
'Forget it. Only I know where it's hidden. We ~ 'Hold on, Mike. There's a roofer waiting for you in a together or not at all.' !white Chevy wheelside of your car.'
'Sure, and just how long before you're mobile? I co~~ 'Huh?'
be so much fish chow by then.' 'Call it a case of the dread. Fever jitters. But stay 'We go tomorrow.' isharp.'
'You think you'll be all right? These meds don't ev~ 'Yeah. Sure.'
know what's wrong with you.' When Ralf left, Henley leaned back and closed his Henley nodded, but his eyes were glazed over, h~yes. A cold magnetic brilliance was running along the face distracted. The afterimage of the black sun h~urface of his skin, and he seemed to sense that eerie
expanded so that it covered everything like a ~hispering he had heard in his nightmare, sensed it film.
Ralf's face was a reflection in a dark rn~r~e way the deaf hear sounds through the small bones wormed
with far-off, unaccountable lights. The ro0~f their heads. Somewhere deep within himself the suddenly
seemed foreshortened, and Henley was st~ightmare was continuing, an evil pushing out into ing through
mistings of shadow. A blue light wh0~he world. He had a feeling that if he let himself he source seemed
to be somewhere behind the bed s~uld fall towards it, that it was pulling him fused his vision, and movements other than wt~a~ ! He stared at the wall directly opposite, tried to root knew were there attracted his attention. Anot~rnself in its cracks, but it was beginning to shimmer. scene was superimposed on the room. It was a ped~e was certain that it was starting all over again.
62 New Tales of the Cthulhu Mythos The Star Pools 63
Then, just as he was reaching for the call switch The man rubbed the side of his head and looked up solidified. He was suddenly warm, and the sunli ~th a scowl. 'Gusto wants his scag, plain-brain.
What
slanting through the blinds was reassuring, yello~ ou expect - CIA?'
wine ~: 'Yeah, well you tell Gusto it's his soon as I cop it. My After a moment's thought, he reached out, and t~uch ~as laid up or he d have had ~t by now.
time he pressed the buzzer. When the nurse arriv~'He wants it right away, marshmallow.'
he was sitting at the edge of the bed, wearing, ~'Sure, sure. Everybody's double-time. You think I'd hoped, his most alert and gracio,u,s smile. 'Would still be in the country .if I was runnin.g it? Come on!'
mind getting my clothes, please? I m signing out. He pulled the man to his feet, pushed him back a pace, and retrieved the Walther. 'Tell him he can have it Ralf left the hospital through the service garage emerged at Twelth Street and Seventh Avenue. car was
parked in the Wavefly Building's lot, ant approached it the long way. When he got to the con
~omorrow,' he said, backing up to his car. 'Same drop.' Ralf threw the gun under the seat, slid behind the wheel, and drove off.
For nine days, since Henley turned up at St Vinof
the lot, he froze. There was a white Chevy park :ent's in a coma, he'd kept on the move, not daring to
near his car. ~~turn to his fiat. He knew Gusto would kill him. The Without hesitation he circled the lot ~[~nan had a notorious temper. But handling the hit man gave him some confidence, and he decided to get back
approached the Chevy from behind. When he ~ig~ . .
his apartment He c~rcled the block slowly
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