Mine. Now he calls it mine. Eddiefelt a small chill.

“I thought we were going to Susannah andJake.” But he took the revolver and belted it on willingly enough.

Roland nodded. “But I believe we have alittle work to do first, against those who killed Callahan and then tried tokill Jake.” His face didn’t change as he spoke, but both Eddie Dean and JohnCullum felt a chill. For a moment it was almost impossible to look at thegunslinger.

So came—although they did not knowit, which was likely more mercy than such as they deserved—the deathsentence of Flaherty, the taheen Lamla, and their ka-tet.

Eight

Oh my God, Eddie tried to say, butno sound came out.

He had seen brightness growing ahead ofthem as they drove north along Turtleback Lane, following the one workingtaillight of Cullum’s truck. At first he thought it might be the carriage-lampsguarding some rich man’s driveway, then perhaps floodlights. But the glow keptstrengthening, a blue-golden brilliance to their left, where the ridge slopeddown to the lake. As they approached the source of the light (Cullum’s pickupnow barely crawling), Eddie gasped and pointed as a circle of radiance brokefree of the main body and flew toward them, changing colors as it came: blue togold to red, red to green to gold and back to blue. In the center of it wassomething that looked like an insect with four wings. Then, as it soared abovethe bed of Cullum’s truck and into the dark woods on the east side of the road,it looked toward them and Eddie saw the insect had a human face.

“What… dear God, Roland, what—”

“Taheen,” Roland said, and said no more. Inthe growing brilliance his face was calm and tired.

More circles of light broke free of themain body and streamed across the road in cometary splendor. Eddie saw fliesand tiny jeweled hummingbirds and what appeared to be winged frogs. Beyondthem…

The taillight of Cullum’s truck flashedbright, but Eddie was so busy goggling that he would have rear-ended the manhad Roland not spoken to him sharply. Eddie threw the Galaxie into Park withoutbothering to either set the emergency brake or turn off the engine. Then he gotout and walked toward the blacktop driveway that descended the steep woodedslope. His eyes were huge in the delicate light, his mouth hung open. Cullumjoined him and stood looking down. The driveway was flanked by two signs: CARALAUGHS on the left and 19 on the right.

“Somethin, ain’t it?” Cullum asked quietly.

You got that right, Eddietried to reply, and still no words would come out of his mouth, only abreathless wheeze.

Most of the light was coming from the woodsto the east of the road and to the left of the Cara Laughs driveway. Here thetrees—mostly pines, spruces, and birches bent from a late-winter icestorm—were spread far apart, and hundreds of figures walked solemnlyamong them as though in a rustic ballroom, their bare feet scuffing through theleaves. Some were pretty clearly Children of Roderick, and as roont as Chevinof Chayven. Their skins were covered with the sores of radiation sickness andvery few had more than a straggle of hair, but the light in which they walkedgave them a beauty that was almost too great to look upon. Eddie saw a one-eyedwoman carrying what appeared to be a dead child. She looked at him with anexpression of sorrow and her mouth moved, but Eddie could hear nothing. Heraised his fist to his forehead and bent his leg. Then he touched the corner ofone eye and pointed to her. I see you, the gesture said… or so he hoped.I see you very well. The woman bearing the dead or sleeping childreturned the gesture, and then passed from sight.

Overhead, thunder cracked sharply andlightning flashed down into the center of the glow. An ancient fir tree, itslusty trunk girdled with moss, took the bolt and split apart down its center,falling half one way and half the other. The inside was on fire. And a greatgust of sparks—not fire, not this, but something with the etherealquality of swamplight—went twisting up toward the hanging swags of theclouds. In those sparks Eddie saw tiny dancing bodies, and for a moment hecouldn’t breathe. It was like watching a squadron of Tinker Bells, there andthen gone.

“Look at em,” John said reverently.“Walk-ins! Gorry, there’s hundreds! I wish my friend Donnie was here tosee.”

Eddie thought he was probably right:hundreds of men, women, and children were walking through the woods below them,walking through the light, appearing and disappearing and then appearing again.As he watched, he felt a cold drop of water splash his neck, followed by asecond and a third. The wind swooped down through the trees, provoking anotherupward gush of those fairy-like creatures and turning the tree that had beenhalved by lightning into a pair of vast crackling torches.

“Come on,” Roland said, grabbing Eddie’sarm. “It’s going to come a downpour and this’ll go out like a candle. If we’restill on this side when it does, we’ll be stuck here.”

“Where—” Eddie began, and then hesaw. Near the foot of the driveway, where the forest cover gave way to a tumbleof rocks falling down to the lake, was the core of the glow, for the time beingtoo bright to look at. Roland dragged him in that direction. John Cullumremained hypnotized for a moment longer by the walk-ins, then tried to followthem.

“No!” Roland called over his shoulder. Therain was falling harder now, the drops cold on his skin and the size of coins.“You have your work, John! Fare you well!”

“And you, boys!” John called back. Hestopped and raised his hand in a wave. A bolt of electricity cut across thesky, momentarily lighting his face in brilliant blue and deepest black. “Andyou!”

“Eddie, we’re going to run into the core ofthe light,” Roland said. “It’s not a door of the old people but of the Prim—thatis magic, do ye ken. It’ll take us to the place we want, if weconcentrate hard enough.”

“Where—”

“There’s no time! Jake’s told me where, bytouch! Only hold my hand and keep your mind blank! I can take us!”

Eddie wanted to ask him if he wasabsolutely sure of that, but there was no time. Roland broke into a run. Eddiejoined him. They sprinted down the slope and into the light. Eddie felt itbreathing over his skin like a million small mouths. Their boots crackled inthe deep leaf cover. To his right was the burning tree. He could smell the sapand the sizzle of its cooking bark. Now they closed in on the core of thelight. At first Eddie could see Kezar Lake through it and then he felt anenormous force grip him and pull him forward through the cold rain and intothat brilliant murmuring glare. For just a moment he glimpsed the shape of adoorway. Then he redoubled his grip on Roland’s hand and closed his eyes. Theleaf-littered ground ran out beneath his feet and they were flying.

Chapter VII:

Reunion

One

Flaherty stood at the New York/Fedic door,which had been scarred by several gunshots but otherwise stood whole againstthem, an impassable barrier which the shitting kid had somehow passed. Lamlastood silent beside him, waiting for Flaherty’s rage to exhaust itself. Theothers also waited, maintaining the same prudent silence.

Finally the blows Flaherty had been rainingon the door began to slow. He administered one final overhand smash, and Lamlawinced as blood flew from the hume’s knuckles.

“What?” Flaherty asked, catching hisgrimace. “What? Do you have something to say?”

Lamla cared not at all for the whitecircles around Flaherty’s eyes and the hard red roses in Flaherty’s cheeks.Least of all for the way Flaherty’s hand had risen to the butt of the Glockautomatic hanging beneath his armpit. “No,” he said. “No, sai.”