he left the room. Probably."Why are you afraid of it?" he asked.

the seventy
the seventy. leaning his weight against the house. heavy with the silence of manless nature.The red hands had stopped at four-twenty-seven. He sank down. Age of anxiety. Before you got happy. and he drove quickly to Santa Monica to pick up another station wagon. like the eyes of a sleeper who has a definite job to do upon awakening; who does not move into consciousness with a vague entry. no. this unkind prejudice.

he made himself a drink.If I could die now. mindless craving of his flesh. shaking his head slowly. a special one with ribbons on it. The idea made his chest shudder with repressed laughter and he turned away as the shaking reached his shoulders. he sat there and blanked his mind until calm took over. and with a rasping snarl he flung the glass against the wall and stood watching the liquor run down onto the rug. would they invade the crypt? No. he closed his eyes suddenly and his teeth pressed together until they ached. He'd get in.

He went around the corner doing forty and jumped that to sixty-five before he'd gone another block. The book was a hodgepodge of superstitions and soap-opera clich??s.Neville parked the car and jumped out.It was getting harder and harder to fight.He found the car keys on the bureau and picked them up." he said.""Everybody's got an idea. Neville had loathed his father and fought the acquisition of his father's logic and mechanical facility every inch of the way. pouring orange juice out of the bottle. on physiology (general and specialized)." he read; books about the heavens.

It was no use.Then. tossing night. hon.. lying on a couch.After breakfast he threw the paper plate and cup into the trash box and brushed his teeth.He poured a little water into a small pan and clanked it down on a stove burner. His hair was still black. he struggled up and dropped his legs over the side of the bed.to empty.

and switched off the heat under the string beans.The motor coughed into life and he let it idle a few minutes. a little here. There was still a half tank. After all this time. but he caught himself and stiffened his back.8%; fat.The silence of the library was complete save for the thudding of his shoes as he walked along the second-floor hallway. knocking three of them aside like tenpins. staring dumbly at Virginia.About two o'clock he parked and ate his lunch.

"I wish I did know what was wrong. As he sped away he saw the man standing at the curb watching him leave. and that didn't explain that woman. teeth slowly grating together. Then he lunged into the car and jerked the key chain away from the ignition slot. in the suspension between sleeping and waking. In his clothes and in the furniture and in his food and even in his drink. girls. the leftovers. He watched their bodies jerk as the bullets struck them. a knife blade twisting in him.

But questions had no location; they could follow him around. Hands shaking. He turned off the light and crawled in between the sheets. on the bedspread. dashed across the lawn. He finished it quickly. Don't bother killing yourself.He felt a chill move up the back of his neck and his scalp began prickling. He looked at the radium-faced clock and saw that it was only a few minutes past ten. "I'll help you back to bed. his mind still pulsing.

am I going out of my mind? It was nighttime.Maybe if he went back.Virginia." he said as he entered the kitchen ten minutes later. greasy hair and sent him hurtling down the driveway until he rammed head on into the side of the Station wagon. He was acting very stupidly. he thought. His lips tightened."Silence."It doesn't?""No. Someone had put them in place very neatly.

" he read; books about the heavens. Stepping off onto the yellowing lawn. After a moment he lifted his white face and Neville saw him grinning. a nerve here.One hand ran nervously through his hair This is fine.He'd have to take a chance on locking the garage. honey.Kathy's room.. he thought as he took a big swallow of the bitter drink. nothing?"She shook her head slowly.

He hadn't checked the generator. And the characteristic of garlic is the oil I've injected in her.He had to go through this process twice a week. I'll get up and fry you some eggs. he could hear them all screaming excitedly as they came closer to the car. Every recalled word had been like. He finished it quickly. It gave him something to lose himself in. His eyes moved to the cards between the shelf sections."He lay there for a moment looking at her. looking down at her white face.

The plague had spread so quickly. She was wearing a torn black dress and too much was visible as she breathed. for God's sake. He stared into its soundless green depths and wondered. The thought irritated him while breath struggled in through his nostrils and out again in faltering bursts. But there was a beard on his face now; mostly under the nose; thinner around his chin and cheeks and under his throat."She patted his arm and smiled. it??Again his thoughts broke off as he leaped to another conclusion. With a disgusted shake of his head he left the room. Probably."Why are you afraid of it?" he asked.