Transition: Chapter 34 (Sturdivant)

He’s not really looking down the alley. He’s stumbled a couple of times over miscellaneous debris, and it has occurred to him that he really doesn’t want to trip and fall again, so he’s paying more attention to where he’s placing his feet than to where he’s going. And anyway, the light from Cohonsett Avenue is behind him, and there’s no light coming from the other end of the alley, and his vision is still a little blurry from the recent insults to his nose, so he might not have seen the group of people walking toward him even if he had been looking in their direction.

But his ears are still working just fine, and so he does hear somebody say something behind him, he’s not sure if it’s Stevie or Eddie, but one of them clearly says it, in an awed whisper: The Crazies!

He stops so abruptly that Stevie and Eddie plow right into him, nearly knocking him over. They back off with hurried apologies, but he doesn’t seem to care, or even notice. His radar is completely locked on to the people strolling toward him.

“Holy shit, will you get a load a this,” he says, in a nearly reverent whisper. His eyes widen. He actually begins to drool in anticipation. It’s been a bad night, even by his standards, but finally, his luck is changing. He plants himself squarely in the middle of the alley, and waits, as the white-robed figures approach.

At first, he thinks there are just three of them: a short, bald guy with two chicks hanging onto his arms. The girls look scared. Well, he thinks, they should be scared. He grins and licks a few drops of blood from his teeth. It tastes good. And, miraculously, his hand has stopped hurting. And his nose. He feels wondrously alive, his head clear, his senses tingling.

But then he sees one more person, someone is emerging from the darkness, hurrying to catch up to the others. For a moment he thinks that the dim light is playing tricks on his eyes, it’s some kind of weird shadow, or maybe his vision is still a little fuzzy. Nobody could be that big. The guy is a fuckin’ dinosaur, bigger ‘n cousin Wendell, even.

Well, let’s see, he thinks. Stevie and Eddie can handle the two girls – maybe – and I can mop up the street with baldy, but the big dude changes the equation. Whole new ball game.

Guess it’s gonna come down to how bad these guys want to fight, and how tough they are.

Or maybe they don’t believe in fighting, maybe they’re into some kinda peace-and-love shit.

Well, then, I’ll pound some fuckin’ peace-and-love into them. No problem.

But what if they’re into Kung Fu? What if the little bald dude is the next Bruce Lee?

Well, I guess, he thinks, we’re gonna find out.

And we’re gonna find out real, real soon.