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  The short, thin man cleared his throat and Zed looked up. He saw Christine and smiled.

  Christine was a little shocked at the sight of him. She had been at City Hall the day the Regulations were voted into law, but she had been near the back. She hadn’t gotten a clear look at Zed. The last time she had seen him up close had been when he was knocking on doors a couple of years ago. Then he had been subservient, odd but polite. Now he looked like a man transformed. He wore a blue turtleneck tight enough to show off his muscular physique. He looked tired, which was understandable, Christine supposed, but he also had a charismatic glow about him. He oozed confidence.

  “Hi,” Christine said, holding out her hand. “I’m Christine Hinkle.”

  Zed took her hand, and his smile grew even wider. “Yes. You’re a doctor, right?”

  Christine nodded.

  “We are going to need you, I promise you that. Not many doctors in town.” Zed held her hand a moment too long before finally releasing it. “But we can talk about that later. What brings you by today?”

  “Well, first of all, thank you for what you did for our town.”

  Zed waved her thanks away. “My pleasure. It’s my town too, you know.”

  Christine smiled. “Yes, of course. The reason I came down here is that I think I might have something useful.”

  Zed tilted his head. “Oh? What’s that?”

  “The first night those creatures attacked, my husband managed to shoot a couple of them. Five, actually.”

  Zed laughed out loud. “Good Lord! That’s incredible. Did you hear that, Jack?”

  “I did,” the short, thin man said. “That’s mighty impressive.”

  “Absolutely,” Zed said. “Tell your husband I said that’s some great shooting.”

  “I will. The thing is we still have the bodies.”

  The smile fell from Zed’s face. “What do you mean?”

  “The creatures' bodies. You know Maria’s Pizzeria downtown? They recently closed, but their walk-in freezer is still functional. We’ve been keeping them there.”

  Zed folded his hands. “Why on earth would you do that?”

  Christine paused. This wasn’t the reaction she had been expecting. “We were attacked by a species never seen before. We have to study them.”

  Zed chuckled and leaned back in his chair. “Doctor Hinkle, I understand your impulse, and I think your heart is in the right place. You are a person of science, and thank God for that. We are going to need you. But in this case, your instinct is incorrect.”

  “We need to learn everything we can about these creatures. Studying their anatomy could be the key to stopping them if they ever get through your barrier.”

  “Let me explain, doctor,” Zed said. “I haven’t put up a barrier. I’ve managed to make us invisible to these creatures, these… let’s call them the Unfeathered. There is nothing stopping the Unfeathered from coming into town except that they can’t tell it exists. If I’ve done my job, and I think I have, they will feel a slight discomfort, a natural aversion to this place.”

  Christine’s eyes narrowed. That wasn’t quite how he had explained it that day at City Hall. Truth be told, he hadn’t explained it much at all. He had just said that he could stop them.

  “The only way the Unfeathered will come into the town,” Zed continued, “is if they have a reason stronger than the natural aversion I’ve put in place. The most likely reason would be a person going out of town. Once they have attacked a person, they will keep on attacking and, if the person fled back to town, the Unfeathered would follow. Hence the Regulations. What might be some other reasons? We don’t know.”

  “That’s why we need to study them. There is so much we don’t know.”

  “Or maybe having those bodies, the bodies of their fallen brothers, could draw them here.”

  “That’s a big leap,” Christine said. “We have no reason to think that.”

  Zed sighed. “Doctor Hinkle, we’ve put this town back on track. Keeping those bodies is too big a risk. We have to burn them immediately.”

  “Maybe we should let the town know we have them. Let the people decide.”

  Zed pulled out a pocket watch and opened it. Christine saw a symbol on the watch—a broken clock. “That won’t be necessary. Jack, can you send someone over to Maria’s to pick up the bodies right away?”

  Jack nodded. “I’ll send Russ over there. He’s got that pickup.”

  “Good,” Zed said. He looked up at Christine, that glowing, confident smile back on his face. “Doctor, I appreciate you bringing this to me. I hope you trust that I know what I’m doing. My friends and I have a little saying: trust is a must. It’s truer now than ever before.”

  Christine didn’t know what to say, so she nodded.

  “Goodbye, doctor. We’ll talk soon. I have big plans for you. We need your help to keep this town running.”

  Christine turned to go. As she left, she heard Zed call after her, “And say hello to your husband for me. I have big plans for him, too.”

  CHAPTER SIX: SEVEN NIGHTS IN ROOK MOUNTAIN

  Night One

  “He’s killed you all,” Zed said.

  Frank looked at the five pieces of wood on the table. The pieces that had been a box until he unlocked it and it fell apart. He turned to Christine.

  “No, it’s okay,” Frank said. “There was nothing in the box. That couldn’t be what was keeping the Unfeathered away.”

  Zed twisted his face into a grimace. “It wasn’t what was in the box. It was the box itself.”

  Christine looked at Zed. The gun hung from her hand. “You can fix it, right? You can fix the box?”

  Zed picked up one of the pieces of wood and turned it over in his hand. “No,” he said. “I can’t. Whatever power it had is gone.”

  Frank looked at Christine. “Listen, it’s all going to be okay.”

  “No, you listen,” Christine said.

  Frank listened, and he heard it in the distance. The sound of them coming. The sound of singing.

  “The Birdies,” Zed said. “Isn’t that what you call them, doctor?”

  Christine didn’t answer.

  “First they’ll come in the night for people who happen to be outside,” Zed said. “But then they will grow bolder. It won’t be long before your homes aren’t enough to protect you. Then they’ll start attacking in the daytime.” He turned the piece of wood in his hand over and over.

  Frank looked down and saw that his hand was shaking.

  Zed set the piece of wood on the desk. “I’m leaving.” He held out his hand to Frank. “Give me the knife. I need it where I am going.”

  Frank hesitated. His instinct was to give the man what he asked for. On the other hand, Frank’s instincts had given him nothing but trouble so far. “No way.”

  Zed stood up. “That’s what I figured. I suggest you two stay here for the night. It’s going to be ugly out there.”

  He marched across the room, giving Frank and Christine a final frown as he slipped through the open door. There was a flash of blue light as he shut the door behind him.

  Christine put her hands to her head. “Frank, what have you done?”

  “I know. I’m sorry. I thought he was lying.”

  “Everything Will and I have been working for, everything Jake was working for, it’s all ruined. We—” She looked up, startled. “We have to go.”

  “What? No, we have to stay inside.”

  “It’s Trevor. He’s at Carl’s. They were going to camp out in Carl’s backyard.”

  Frank gave a quick nod. “Let’s go.”

  She ran out the door. He started to follow her, then stopped. He remembered Jake’s message to Sally Badwater. “If Frank comes, tell him to bring the Cassandra lock.”

  Frank swept the Cassandra lock off the table, stuffed it into his pocket, and followed Christine.

  “We’ll take my car,” Christine said. “I’m closer. But I want to have my hands free if any of those bastards
come at us. You’re driving.”

  Frank glanced at the gun in her hand. “Maybe I should be the one doing the shooting.”

  Christine gave him a hard look. “When’s the last time you shot a gun? A decade ago? Besides, I’ve always been a better shot than you or your brother.”

  Frank didn’t say anything. She tossed him the keys. He got into the driver’s side.

  “Carl lives over on Locust Avenue,” Christine said. “You remember where that is?”

  “Yeah.” Frank gripped the wheel.

  “What is it? Time’s a bit of a factor here, man.”

  Frank cleared his throat. He turned toward her. “I’m sorry, Christine. For everything. For killing Brett. For leaving you and Jake to deal with all this bullshit. For opening that box.”

  Christine's expression didn’t change. “You don’t have to apologize. You're family. And even though that was a dumbass move in there, it certainly proved you aren’t on the side of the Zed Heads.”

  “Zed Heads?” Frank smiled.

  “That’s what we call Zed’s disciples. Let’s get going.”

  Frank pulled out and hit the gas hard.

  Christine said, “We should have told you the score that first night. We’ve learned to be a little paranoid.”

  Frank shrugged. “I understand. You do what you have to and it changes you. I know that.”

  “Anyway, if we get through this night, you're staying with us.”

  “Good. I get the feeling I’m not exactly welcome at the Hansens’.”

  Christine grinned. “I got that impression as well when they called me. Turn on State Street. It’s faster.”

  Frank pulled a hard left onto State Street. “What did you mean earlier when you said I’d messed up what you and Will were working for?”

  Christine looked up, her eyes scanning the sky. “Did you see how scared Zed was of that knife? We think the things with the broken clock symbol can hurt him.”

  Frank glanced at Christine. Her eyes were still glued to the sky. “You gonna give me some more details or don’t you trust me yet?”

  “You help me get my son and I’ll give you more details than you ever wanted to know. Locust is the next turn.”

  The singing was getting louder.

  “You see them?” Christine asked. “They’re high, but they're there. They leave a little white glow behind them when they fly, freaky little bastards.”

  “Christine, do you think Jake’s still alive?”

  Christine finally took her eyes off the sky and looked at him. “I know he is.”

  Two minutes later, they pulled into Carl’s driveway. Christine knocked on the door. When Carl’s father answered, she said five words. “Send Trevor out. They’re back.”

  Night Two

  Will handed Frank the shotgun. “You sure about this?”

  Frank took the gun. Between that and the pistol stored away in his shoulder holster, he was ready. “I’m sure. It’s my fault we’re in this damn mess.” He glanced at the open gun cabinet. “You were never an NRA type guy in the Before.”

  Will shoved another box into his backpack, then zipped it shut. “I was a lot of things in the Before. In this town, with those things out there and the Zed Heads in charge, I thought I could use some firearms. There never was a shortage of them here.”

  “You know, I’m a little surprised. A guy like Zed takes power, I would think the first thing he’d do is round up everybody’s weapons.”

  Will smiled. “Yeah, I thought that too. But having a gun makes people around here feel a little more comfortable, a little more free. The Zed Heads are all about making you feel free even if you aren’t.” He threw the backpack into his truck. “Besides, if you have a gun and you aren’t afraid to wave it around they have a much better excuse to shoot you.”

  They climbed in Will’s truck and rolled out of the garage. The sun was almost down, but the singing hadn’t started yet.

  “I’ve been meaning to ask you something,” Will said. “When you held the knife with the broken clock, did you feel anything?”

  “What do you mean?”

  Will shrugged. “When I pick up the objects… it’s hard to explain, but my mind sort of goes empty. I lose track of where I am. Sometimes I get little intuitions about what the objects are for, but mostly I just go blank. It doesn’t happen to Christine or the others. I was wondering if you might have felt it.”

  “Drifting,” Frank said. “You’re talking about drifting. It didn’t happen to me when I held the knife, but it does happen to me. I don’t know why.”

  “You ask me, it’s creepy. Like I’m losing myself a little.”

  Frank knew exactly what he meant, but talking about it made him uncomfortable. “You don’t have to come with me tonight,” Frank said.

  “Yeah I do.” He grinned at Frank. “I won the coin toss.”

  Frank chuckled. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen Christine so disappointed.”

  “She really likes to shoot stuff.”

  They drove in silence through the neighborhood before turning onto the highway that led to the edge of town.

  After they got home on Monday night, Will and Christine had told Frank all about their theories on the items with the broken clock symbol. How Jake had discovered the first one. How they had started finding more of them. Jake had been so sure he could take Zed down if they could find a couple more items.

  Will pulled off the road and onto a long driveway. Frank shifted in his seat nervously. “You sure about this? We could probably get along without them.”

  “Maybe,” Will said. “But I’d rather have three more guns by our side. The Unfeathered killed Ty’s brother Kurt eight years ago. However mad they are at you, they are madder at the Birdies. Besides… this is going to be hilarious.”

  The car rolled to a stop in front of Ty Hansen’s cabin. Three men, Ty, Gus, and Gus’s brother Teddy, were all standing in the driveway. Each was heavily armed.

  Will rolled down the window. “You boys ready?”

  Gus spit on the ground. “I’m ready.” He nodded toward Frank. “I ain’t too pleased with this one, but I’m ready.”

  Ty smiled. His swollen nose gave his face an even more menacing look. His neck was a mess of deep purple bruises from where the chain had dug into his throat. He climbed into the back seat right behind Frank.

  Ty reached up and clapped Frank on the shoulder. “You got a nice jab, man. That nut shot was a little cheap, but I’ll let it slide.”

  Frank turned in his seat to look back at the man. “Yeah, look, I’m really sorry about last night. I should have handled things differently.”

  Ty bobbed his head back and forth for a minute as if weighing what Frank had said. “Well, I guess you could have taken me out faster with a good blow to the head. But don’t be too hard on yourself. Breaking my nose was a nice way to go. Messed me up for the rest of the fight. I could hardly see anything.”

  Will had told Frank that Ty wouldn’t be mad at him, that Ty Hansen brawled for fun and would respect Frank for besting him. Frank didn’t believe it would be quite so easy.

  “You didn’t have to take my truck, though. That was low.”

  “Don’t be a sore loser,” Will said. “You got the truck back.”

  Ty nodded. “It was worth it for a good fight. Next time we’ll do it at your place. I won’t knock, though. I’ll come in through the window.”

  Frank wasn’t sure if it was because the broken nose was muddling the inflection, but he had no idea whether or not Ty was joking.

  “What’s the plan?” Teddy asked. He was a few years younger than Gus and thin as a twig. It was a hard thinness, though; the man was all long limbs and lean muscle.

  Will said, “I figured we would start down by Fifth Avenue Baptist. See if we can’t draw a few out down there. Then maybe work our way up to State Street.”

  Frank looked toward the back seat. “You guys all killed these things before?”

  “Yep, nearl
y every weekend,” Gus said. “We liked to put a little animal out across the town line and then shoot the bastards for target practice.”

  “Guess I’m the only virgin then,” Frank said. “Any tips?”

  Ty smiled. “Aim for the head. As far as I can tell, they don’t have nuts so your usual technique probably won’t work.”

  Night Three

  The sun wasn’t down yet, but it was getting close. Trevor sat in the living room, staring at the sky through the picture window. How long would it be until they came again? How long until the singing started?

  He didn’t remember much about the first time the Unfeathered had come, the time before the Regulations. He had only been four years old. What he did remember was images, bits and pieces like snippets from a movie he had fallen asleep while watching.

  He remembered lying in bed, listening to the song. He remembered his mother’s hand covering his eyes. He remembered that scared look on his parents’ faces. He remembered long beaks covered in blood.

  Trevor took a deep breath. That was a long time ago. Things were different—he was different. He wasn’t a little boy anymore. So why did he still feel so afraid?

  There had been a town meeting that afternoon for all the adults. Everyone at school had been talking about it. Afterward, Will said it had been the usual type of meeting - lots of talking and no deciding. Mom hadn’t been at the meeting. She had been at the clinic all day with those who’d been injured. The town had been lucky so far. Six injuries and only one death. Folks in Rook Mountain knew enough to get inside and lock the windows when they heard that particular song.

  School had been weird. The teachers tried to keep a brave face, and they upped the talk about how the Beyond students were the future of Rook Mountain and all that. But Trevor knew there were only two questions on everyone’s minds: How had the birds gotten into town and where was Zed?

  Uncle Frank was already gone for the night—he’d left to hunt the Unfeathered with the Hansens again. Trevor had asked if he could go, but both Uncle Frank and Will had given him a look that said he might as well not ask again.