Authors: Richard Laymon
The Midnight Tour
Table of Contents
Other Leisure books by Richard Laymon:
Chapter One - SANDY’S STORY—August, 1980
Chapter Two - THE BEAST HOUSE BUS—June, 1997
Chapter Four - THE STORY ACCORDING TO PATTY
Chapter Five - SANDY’S STORY—August, 1980
Chapter Seven - SANDY’S STORY—August 1980
Chapter Nine - SANDY’S STORY—August, 1980
Chapter Eleven - SANDY’S STORY—August, 1980
Chapter Twelve - THE DAY TOUR III
Chapter Thirteen - THE SNACK STAND
Chapter Fourteen - SANDY’S STORY—August, 1980
Chapter Fifteen - A VISIT FROM CLYDE
Chapter Sixteen - SANDY’S STORY—August, 1980
Chapter Nineteen - IN HOT WATER
Chapter Twenty-Four - FRIDAY MORNING
chapter Twenty-five - SANDY’S STORY
July 1992
Chapter Twenty-Six - STAFF ENCOUNTERS
Chapter Twenty-seven - SANDY’S STORY—July, 1992
Chapter Twenty-eight - OWEN TRIES AGAIN
Chapter Twenty-nine - SANDY’S STORY—July, 1992
Chapter Thirty - PICTURE PERFECT
Chapter Thirty-one - SANDY’S STORY—July, 1992
Chapter Thirty-two - Lunch Trouble
Chapter Thirty-three - SANDY’S STORY—July,1992
Chapter Thirty-four - BIG JOHN
Chapter Thirty-five - WARREN’S PLACE
Chapter Thirty-six - SANDY’S STORY—July, 1992
Chapter Thirty-seven - SECRETS
Chapter Thirty-eight - SANDY’S STORYJuly, 1992
Chapter Thirty-nine - FLYING FISTS
Chapter Forty-Two - POOL PARTY
Chapter Forty-three - HERE THEY COME
Chapter Forty-four - SANDY’S STORY—June, 1997
Chapter Forty-five - RUDE AWAKENING
Chapter Forty-six - OWEN’S BAD NIGHT
Chapter Forty-seven - Saturday Gets Under Way
Chapter Forty-eight - A TICKET TO DIE FOR
Chapter Forty-nine - TICKETS AND BADGES
Chapter Fifty-one - FINAL WARNING
Chapter Fifty-two - THE HAUNTED PALACE
Chapter Fifty-four - “LET’S BOOK!”
Chapter Fifty-six - THE STRANGENESS OF BEASTS
Chapter Fifty-seven - THE CELLAR
Chapter Fifty-eight - THE RESCUE
Chapter Fifty-nine - THE ATTACK
Chapter Sixty - SANDY’S STORY—June, 1997
Chapter Sixty-one - A FIGHT TO THE DEATH
Chapter Sixty-two - SUNDAY MORNING
1. Tuck’s Long Distance Call
2. Visiting Hour—Owen
3. Tuck’s Long Distance Call—Part II
4. Visiting Hour—Sandy
5. Tuck’s Long Distance Call—Part III
6. Visiting Hour—Owen, Part II
7. Tuck’s Long Distance Call—Part IV
8. Sandy’s Long Distance Call
9. Visiting Hour—Owen, Part III
10. Tuck’s Long Distance Call—Part V
Chapter Sixty-three - SUNDAY NIGHT
RAVE REVIEWS FOR RICHARD LAYMON!
“I’ve always been a Laymon fan. He manages to raise serious gooseflesh.”
—Bentley Little
“Laymon is incapable of writing a disappointing book.”
—New York Review of Science Fiction
“Laymon always takes it to the max. No one writes like him and you’re going to have a good time with anything he writes.”
—Dean Koontz
“If you’ve missed Laymon, you’ve missed a treat.”
—Stephen King
“A brilliant writer.”
—Sunday Express
“I’ve read every book of Laymon’s I could get my hands on. I’m absolutely a longtime fan.”
—Jack Ketchum, author of Offspring
“One of horror’s rarest talents.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Laymon is, was, and always will be king of the hill.”
—Horror World
“Laymon is an American writer of the highest caliber.”
—Time Out
“Laymon is unique. A phenomenon. A genius of the grisly and the grotesque.”
—Joe Citro, The Blood Review
“Laymon doesn’t pull any punches. Everything he writes keeps you on the edge of your seat.”
—Painted Rock Reviews
Other
Leisure
books by Richard Laymon:
THE BEAST HOUSE
THE CELLAR
INTO THE FIRE
AFTER MIDNIGHT
THE LAKE
COME OUT TONIGHT
RESURRECTION DREAMS
ENDLESS NIGHT
BODY RIDES
BLOOD GAMES
TO WAKE THE DEAD
NO SANCTUARY
DARKNESS, TELL US
NIGHT IN THE LONESOME OCTOBER
ISLAND
THE MUSEUM OF HORRORS .(Anthology)
IN THE DARK
THE TRAVELING VAMPIRE SHOW
AMONG THE MISSING
ONE RAINY NIGHT
BITE
This book is dedicated to Ed Gorman
—
writer, publisher & friend. Ed, they don’t make them any better than you.
A LEISURE BOOK
®
July 2007
Published by
Dorchester Publishing Co., Inc.
200 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10016
If you purchased this book without a cover you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the publisher and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”
Copyright © 1998 by Richard Laymon
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the publisher, except where permitted by law.
ISBN-10: 1-4285-0323-4 ISBN-13: 978-0-8439-5753-2
The name “Leisure Books” and the stylized “L” with design are trademarks of Dorchester Publishing Co., Inc.
Printed in the United States of America.
Visit us on the web at
www.dorchesterpub.com
.
Chapter One
SANDY’S STORY—August, 1980
“Ow!” Sandy said. “Watch it with those teeth, buster. There. There, that’s better. Little monkey. Are you my little monkey? Huh, are you?”
Through the open window behind her, she suddenly heard footfalls crunching the forest mat of pine needles and twigs near her trailer home.
Fear knocked her breath out.
Eric stopped sucking, as if he sensed her alarm. He let go of her nipple, tipped back his head and looked up at her face.
“It’s all right,” she whispered.
Eric made a tiny whimper of concern.
“Shhhh.” Turning her head, Sandy looked over her shoulder.
The curtains behind her were shut. She kept them that way most of the time, even though her trailer was hidden away in a clearing and strangers rarely stumbled upon it.
You just never knew.
Watching the curtains, she could see the gloom of dusk through the thin yellow fabric. But she saw no movement, no trace of the intruder.
At least be can’t see us, either.
She wondered how she knew it was a man.
Maybe because of the heavy, sure sound of the footsteps.
He had already walked past the area directly behind her window. He kept going, and the crunching sounds faded a little.
Maybe he’s leaving.
More likely, though, he was circling the trailer—heading for the side with the door.
Just go away! Whoever you are, get out of here!
For a few seconds, she couldn’t hear him walking anymore.
Eric took her nipple into his mouth and resumed sucking.
Then the intruder climbed the stairs. The wood creaked and groaned.
Sandy turned her head and gazed at the door. It was directly across the narrow room from where she sat. It had no window.
Did I lock it?
I always lock it.
But did I?
She’d been awfully upset when she came in—hardly able to think straight.