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The twinkling vista of the city, from South City to Crescent, was gone. The entire window was filled with an on-coming Lockheed TriStar jet. Its running lights blinked on and off, and for just a moment, an insane moment of total surprise and horror and disbelief, he could see Richards staring out at him. His face smeared with blood, his black eyes burning like the eyes of a demon.

Richards was grinning.

And giving him the finger.

“—Jesus—” was all Killian had time to get out.

…Minus 000 and COUNTING…

Heeling over slightly, the Lockheed struck the Games Building dead on, three quarters of the way up. Its tanks were still better than a quarter full. Its speed was slightly over five hundred miles an hour.

The explosion was tremendous, lighting up the night like the wrath of God, and it rained fire twenty blocks away.

Table of Contents

…Minus 100 and COUNTING… She was squinting at the thermometer

…Minus 099 and COUNTING… The drizzle had deepened into a stea

…Minus 098 and COUNTING… It was after four when Ben Richards

…Minus 097 and COUNTING… A hard, callused hand slapped his sh

…Minus 096 and COUNTING… They called the A’s for the physical

…Minus 095 and COUNTING… When the R’s went through the door u

…Minus 094 and COUNTING… He was awakened promptly at six the

…Minus 093 and COUNTING… On the fourth floor Richards’s group

…Minus 092 and COUNTING… He went through the door, one of a g

…Minus 091 and COUNTING… The doctor sitting on the other side

…Minus 090 and COUNTING… The group Richards had come in with

…Minus 089 and COUNTING… They were quartered on the fifth flo

…Minus 088 and COUNTING… The waiting room on the eighth floor

…Minus 087 and COUNTING… The inner office looked big enough t

…Minus 086 and COUNTING… The receptionist popped promptly out

…Minus 085 and COUNTING… The suite was sumptuous. Wall-t

…Minus 084 and COUNTING… With sour amusement Richards thought

…Minus 083 and COUNTING… Richards spent Saturday living throu

…Minus 082 and COUNTING… The tenth floor of the Games Buildin

…Minus 081 and COUNTING… Richards stood in the wings with a c

…Minus 080 and COUNTING… Killian was in the wings, and convul

…Minus 079 and COUNTING… The elevator opened directly onto th

…Minus 078 and COUNTING… Through a backyard; through a ragged

…Minus 077 and COUNTING… He left Molie’s at ten past midnight

…Minus 076 and COUNTING… He went to earth in the Brant Hotel,

…Minus 075 and COUNTING… When he woke up it was just after 4

…Minus 074 and COUNTING… He left his room at 5:00 P.M. and we

…Minus 073 and COUNTING… The Boston Y.M.C.A. stood on upper H

…Minus 072 and COUNTING… The fifth floor hall stank of pee.

…Minus 071 and COUNTING… It was showtime again. Richards

…Minus 070 and COUNTING… Richards walked rapidly to the bathr

…Minus 069 and COUNTING… Huge, rusted heating pipes festooned

…Minus 068 and COUNTING… He made slow, molelike progress for

…Minus 067 and COUNTING… Richards stood by the ladder, lookin

…Minus 066 and COUNTING… The boy, seven years old, black, smo

…Minus 065 and COUNTING… Dreaming sleep had just begun when h

…Minus 064 and COUNTING… The woman was very old; Richards tho

…Minus 063 and COUNTING… When he awoke, it was still dark and

…Minus 062 and COUNTING… Richards stayed in all day while Bra

…Minus 061 and COUNTING… Bradley had not dared drill any hole

…Minus 060 and COUNTING… “Step out your vehicle, sir,” the bo

…Minus 059 and COUNTING… The ride seemed much longer than an

…Minus 058 and COUNTING… “We almost got it at that first road

…Minus 057 and COUNTING… Bradley talked rapidly as he drove R

…Minus 056 and COUNTING… Two days passed. Richards playe

…Minus 055 and COUNTING… Monday was exactly the same as Sunda

…Minus 054 and COUNTING… He had a very bad dream that night,

…Minus 053 and COUNTING… It was no good in Manchester anymore

…Minus 052 and COUNTING… The drive to Portland was without in

…Minus 051 and COUNTING… She did not recognize him until she

…Minus 050 and COUNTING… He dozed a little but could not slee

…Minus