“I don’t think so; as long as it stays dark in here, we’ll be okay. Once it’s over we either make a run for it or duck into a hiding spot at the end of the ride.”
Black lights flickered on and off, momentarily illuminating the inhabitants of the Ghost Ship—skeletons, murderous-looking pirates, giant rats feasting on dead sailors—the usual. Denny paid no attention. He was desperately trying to remember where the exit from this ride would put them but it was no use; his fear was too overwhelming. From behind, Crawford’s group was getting rowdier. It sounded like they were getting in and out of the car. The sound of breaking glass to their left. The lights flickered on another exhibit and it was covered with the glistening remains of a bottle thrown at it. Denny swallowed hard. They were really fired up, probably drunk, no telling what they would do if they came across Denny and Billy.
“Boo!”
The voice from behind made Denny jump in his seat. It was one of them right behind their car! The smell of alcohol blasted Denny as the voice erupted in laughter. “Hey Dale, I think these two just shit their pants!” Drunken laughter filled the air around them. The ride was almost over. Denny could see a patch of light up ahead. As they got closer, he could clearly see the people exiting the cars! They’d be spotted for sure.
“Billy, we have to get off the car,” he hissed.
“We can’t, what if there are wires and stuff around here, we can’t see a thing.”
“It’s better than the alternative; they’ll see us for sure. They’ll chase us, Billy; you know they’ll catch us.” Denny’s hand instinctively went to his face and traced the scar that Dale had given him. He grabbed Billy’s arm. “Let’s go.” He waited for the next flash of black light, and then leaped into the inky blackness. A second later he heard Billy thud down next to him. They were between exhibits in complete darkness. They stayed crouched down as the next car went by. The smell of booze was unmistakable, even cutting through the smell of must and grease that filled the inside of the Ghost Ship.
They both lay still in the darkness, hoping against hope that none of Crawford’s gang would decide to get out of their car. Denny almost jumped up and ran when he felt something scurry across his leg. It must have been a rat! And not a baby one by the feel of it. He swallowed hard, trying not to freak out.
Dale’s car was passing them now, just a few feet away.
“Hey, gimmee that bottle!” Dale yelled, his words slurring slightly. “Hey, what the fuck? It’s empty!” The bottle shattered against the wall behind Denny and his legs were showered with the shards of broken glass.
At least it will scare the rat away, he thought, still keeping his tenuous grasp on composure. Soon their car moved into the patch of light at the exit and Denny watched them get off the ride.
“That sucked!” one of the gang yelled.
“What kind of Ghost Ship was that? That bullshit wouldn’t scare my grandmother!” They all laughed and shoved each other as they moved out of Denny’s line of sight.
“Let’s give them a minute to move on,” Billy whispered, “and then we’ll get out of here. They’re really stewed tonight, maybe we should just head home.”
Denny was crushed. As much as he feared Crawford and his gang, it would kill him to leave the carnival. He waited all year for it. To him, nothing matched the endless onslaught of sights, sounds and smells of the carnival. Except maybe a Red Sox game at Fenway. As scared as he was, he had hoped Billy would give him the courage to stick it out. But he knew Billy was right: if Crawford caught them tonight, there was no telling what the result would be. He sighed deeply as he got to his feet. “You’re right, Billy. Let’s go.”
They walked sideways with their backs against the wall to avoid getting too close to the rails that carried the cars. Who knew what kind of shoddy electrical wiring might be lying around on the floor? They finally reached the end of the tunnel. Although they could clearly see everyone getting off the ride just in front of them, they remained hidden in the shadows. Just as they were about to step into the lighted exit, hushed voices made them shrink back into the darkness. It was Crawford and his gang waiting outside the ride! They must have seen us and they’re just waiting for us to walk right into them, Denny thought. Denny felt fear taking over as he strained to make out what they were saying. Their conspiratorial tones made it difficult to make out and Denny was only able to catch snatches of the conversation when the cars stopped to let riders out. Then the next few words would be lost as the next car made its way to the unloading area.
“…Dad says he killed ’em all…”
“…already got Cummings real good…”
“…his kid and his little faggot friend…”
Denny edged closer, not wanting to hear but knowing he must. He inched as close to the exit as he could without being seen.
“We’re going out there tonight to finish this once and for all. Cummings was just a warning. His geek kid and O’Brien I’ll deal with later. Tonight is Greymore’s last night as a killer. My dad can’t do anything official because the Butcher always seems to have either Cummings or that priest as an alibi. But we don’t have to be cops to throw a little party for that freak.” The maniacal laughter that followed was worse than the actual words. It was worse than the rat running over his leg. Much worse.
Dale’s crew finally headed out, apparently on their way to Greymore’s house. Denny quickly relayed what he had overheard to Billy.
“We’ve gotta get to Greymore first. Denny, they might kill him. Chief Crawford will find a way to justify it, just like last time.”
“Either that or they’ll just make him disappear. Then they won’t need a cover story. Let’s go.”
They made their way quickly through the sparse crowds, turning their heads constantly to see if they were being chased. Before they reached the exit, they ran squarely into a man who stepped from behind one of the trailers. Denny and Billy bounced off the giant and fell in a pile of arms and legs. The man towered over them, then reached down and offered them each a hand. He yanked them to their feet effortlessly.
“We’re sorry, mister,” Denny muttered. “We weren’t looking where we were going.”
An ugly smile crossed his face and he spoke with an accent Denny couldn’t place. “No apologies necessary, boys. Now, how about you each hand over two bits and I’ll bring you in to see an unadvertised attraction? It’s a creature, of sorts, I bought while on the northern circuit, way up in Maine. I’m not saying it’s a werewolf, but I’m not saying it ain’t. But we have to keep it quiet, a lot of people are looking for this thing, and if certain people found out I had it, I might just disappear right along with it.”
Denny looked at Billy with no idea what the man was talking about. “Sorry, mister, we really have to go.”
The man looked crushed. “That’s too bad. I like to find a couple of kids at each stop and let them see it. Just in case I do disappear, others will know. Maybe it doesn’t matter in the end, but it makes me feel better, helps me sleep. You would be the first here in Haven.”
Despite the urgent need to get away from Crawford and warn Paul, Denny was oddly drawn to see what the man was hiding. Billy, however, remained focused.