'Of course, it didn't have to he a friend,' Masen said, dreamily watching his cigarette smoke drift off into the morning. 'There are all sorts of possibilities. She gets the car up there, and someone she knows slightly happens to be there, and the guy or gal offers Mrs.

Trenton and your son a ride back into town. Or maybe Camber runs them home himself. Or his wife. Is be. married?'

'Yes. Nice woman.'

'Could have been him, her, anyone. People are always willing to help a lady in distress.'

'Yeah,' Vic said, and lit a cigarette of his own.

'But none of that matters either, because the question always remains the same: Where's the fucking car? Because the situation's the same. Woman and kid on their own. She has to get groceries, go to the dry cleaner's, go to the post office, dozens of little errands. If the husband was only going to be gone a few days, a week, even, she might try to get along without a car. But ten days or two weeks? Jesus, that's a long haul in a town that's only got one goddam cab. Rental car people are happy to deliver in a situation like that. She could have gotten Hertz or Avis or National to deliver the car here or out to Camber's. So where's the rental car? I keep coming back to that. There should have been a vehicle in this yard. Dig?'

'I don't think it's important,' Vic said.

'And probably it's not. We'll find some simple explanation and say Oy vay, how could we be so stupid? But it fascinates me strangely

... it was the needle valve? You're sure of that?'

'Postitive.'

Masen shook his head. 'Why would she need all that rigamarole about loaners or rental cars anyway? That's a fifteen-minute fix for

somebody with the tools and the know-how. Drive in, drive out. So where's -'

'- her goddam car?' Vic finished wearily. 'Me world was coming and going in waves now.

'Why don't you go upstairs and lie down?' Masen said. 'You looked wiped out.'

'No, I want to be awake if something happens--.'

'And if something does, somebody will he here to wake you up.

The FBI's coming with a trace-back system to hook up on your phone. Those people are noisy enough to wake the dead -so don't worry.'

Vic was too tired to feel much more than a dull dread. 'Do you think that trace-back shit is really necessary?'

'Better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it,'

Masen said, and pitched his cigarette. 'Get a little rest and you'll be able to cope better, Vic. Go on.'

'All right.'

He went slowly upstairs. The bed had been stripped to the mattress. He had done it himself. He put two pillows on his side, took off his shoes, and lay down. The morning sun shone fiercely in through the window. I won't sleep, he thought, but I'll rest. I'll try to, anyway. Fifteen minutes ... maybe half an hour ...

But by the time the phone woke him up, that day's burning noon had come.

Charity Camber had her morning coffee and then called Alva Thornton in Castle Rock. This time Alva himself answered.

He knew that she had chatted with Bessie the night before. 'Nope,'

Alva said. 'I ain't seed hide nor hair of Joe since last Thursday or

so, Charity. He brought over a tractor tire he fixed for me. Never said nothing about feeding Cujo, although I'd've been happy to.'

'Alva, could you run up to the house and check on Cujo) Brett saw him Monday morning before we left for my sister's, and he thought he looked sick. And I just don't know who Joe would have gotten to feed him.' After the way of country people, she added: 'No hurry.'

'I'll take a run up and check,' Alva said. 'Let me get those damn cacklers fed and watered and I'm gone.'

That would be fine, Alva,' Charity said gratefully, and gave him her sister's number. 'Thanks so much.'

They talked a little more, mostly about the weather. The constant heat had Alva worried about his chickens. Then she hung up.

Brett looked up from his cereal when she came into the kitchen.

Jim junior was very carefully making rings on the table with his orange juice glass and talking a mile a minute. He had decided sometime during the last forty-eight hours that Brett Camber was a dose relation to Jesus Christ.

'Well?' Brett asked.

'You were right. Dad didn't ask Alva to feed him.' She saw the disappointment and worry on Brett's face and went on: 'But he's going up to check on Cujo this morning, as soon as he's got his chickens tended to. I left the number this time. He said he'd call back one way or the other.'

'Thanks, Mom.'

Jim clattered back from the table as Holly called him to come upstairs and get dressed. 'Wanna come up with me, Brett?'

Brett smiled. 'I'll wait for you, slugger.'

'Okay.' Jim ran out trumpeting, 'Mom! Brett said he'd wait! Brett's gonna wait for me to get dressed!'

A thunder, as of elephants, on the stairs.

'He's a nice kid,' Brett said casually.

'I thought,' Charity said, 'that we might go home a little early. If that's all right with you.'

Brett's face brightened, and in spite of all the decisions she had come to, that brightness made her feel a Iittle sad. 'When?' he asked.

'How does tomorrow sound? She had been intending to suggest Friday.

'Great! But' - he Iooked at her closely -'are you done visiting, Mom? I mean, she's your sister.'

Charity thought of the credit cards, and of the Wurlitzer jukebox Holly's husband had been able to afford but did not know how to fix. Those were the things that had impressed Brett, and she supposed they had impressed her as well in some way. Perhaps she had seen them through Brett's eyes a little ... through Joe's eyes.

And enough was enough.

'Yes,' she said. 'I guess I've done my visiting. I'll tell Holly this morning.'

'Okay, Mom.' He looked at her a little shyly. 'I wouldn't mind coming back, you know. I do like them. And he's a neat little kid.

Maybe he can come up to Maine sometime.'