Walkers by Graham Masterton

Author:Graham Masterton [Masterton, Graham]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Horror, General, Fiction
ISBN: 9780812522099
Google: K2DZGwAACAAJ
Amazon: 0812522095
Publisher: Tom Doherty Assoc Llc
Published: 1989-01-02T06:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWELVE

Henry sat up in bed, licking his lips because they were dry. The sun fell in zig-zag patterns across the rumpled comforter, and on to the framed print of Fragrance of Love by Christine Nasser. He washed his face all over with his hands, surprised at how thick and coarse his skin felt, as if it were a latex mask of himself that he was wearing over his real face.

He went to the bathroom and stared at himself in the mirror. He was still the same Henry from yesterday evening, the same man who had sat staring at a bottle of vodka and defying himself not to pick it up and turn the screw cap and give himself all the courage and confidence that lay distilled within it. But during the night, he had found a different courage and a different confidence. During the night he had penetrated the nightmares of Lemuel F Shapiro, and fought against the worst that his imagination could offer. During the night he had faced the Devil.

He showered, soaping himself slowly and evenly. Then, wrapped in a towel, he walked through to the kitchen to make himself some coffee. Just as he was spooning it into the filter paper, the door buzzer went, like a disconcerted wasp. He went to the door and called out, ‘Who is it?’

‘Lieutenant Ortega. Do you mind if I come in?’

Henry drew back the security chain and unlocked the door. Lieutenant Ortega looked more summery today, in a pale blue seersucker coat and a dark blue pair of permanent-press pants. He wore mirror-lensed sunglasses, and a folded handkerchief in his breast pocket, both of which were tell-tale signs of his age.

‘I was passing close by, on my way to headquarters. I thought I would drop by to see how you were.’

‘Oh, yes?’ asked Henry, a little suspiciously. He let Salvador pass by him, into the living-room, and closed the front door. ‘You’ll have to excuse the way I’m dressed.’

Salvador’s eyes darted around the room, as if he were checking for clues that would tell him how Henry had spent yesterday evening. Henry said, ‘I’m making some coffee. Do you want to join me?’

‘Sure, that would be nice.’

Henry went back to his bedroom, and dressed quickly in a short-sleeved shirt and banana-yellow slacks. He came back into the living-room, combing his hair. ‘Did the coroner get the chance to look at that creature you dug out of the beach yesterday?’ he asked.

‘They’re starting on tests this morning, so I understand.’’

‘Do they have any idea what it is?’

Salvador lifted his head slightly. ‘Why did you ask it like that?’

‘Why did I ask it like what?’

‘You asked me, do they have any idea what it is, as though you yourself knew.’

Henry pulled a face. ‘Did I? I didn’t mean to.’

‘There was an intonation in your voice,’ Salvador persisted.

Henry paused by the kitchen door. He said nothing. But Salvador sat where he could watch him as he made the coffee, his legs crossed, and Henry could tell by the expression on his face that he was still expecting an answer.

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