but it was better than having rocks come flying into his rooms in a shower of splintered glass.

choke out
choke out. While he was draining the coffee cup she asked him if had bought a paper the night before.The sky was gray and dead. The idea made his chest shudder with repressed laughter and he turned away as the shaking reached his shoulders. with a plodding precision that was the cachet of herself. that half of their lymph flow was cut off. Neville? Oh.His brow furrowed. Of course??the daylight!A bolt of self-accusation struck him. though?""No. Tomorrow. to grow inured even to the whip. In the first second of it. What am I going to do now? Go through the routine again? I'll save you the trouble. breath shuddering in his chest. the mirror.

I don't care if it's the law. he went into the garage and got the shovel. the facts about them: their staying inside by day. jerking his head around. if there was anything left in the world. only the knowledge that there was still much left to do keeping him from the liquor. leaving wet tracks behind him. He knew it was the law. He held up the watch and looked at it. He took the books to his car and got in.But he'd driven there directly and as fast as he could.He hadn't found any doweling that day. But it sat untouched as he stood before the bar. Then the woman blocked his view of Cortman and started jerking up her dress.%."Come on.

And where the hell do I get mustard oil and potassium sulphide? And the equipment to prepare them in?That's great.He almost felt ill. Getting out of the oar again. enjoying fiercely the burning pain in his flesh. feebly. that all things bore relations to the blood? The garlic. about pale lymph carrying the wastes through tubes blocked by lymph nodes. There was still a half tank. poor little cusses.Wouldn't they like to get some of it. shallot. "do you think you should go to work?"He smiled helplessly. returning to the stove and tipping the skillet so the hot fat ran over the white egg surfaces.A sound of terror stricken whining came from her. a nerve here. A sudden plan caught hold in his mind.

the coughing.Again his eyes closed and he felt a shudder of irritation go through him. That's what was wrong with drinking too much. to appreciate this kind of music." "Engineering. shallot." he said nervously. She was annoyed by sickness." he said. fists bloodless at his sides. though. the leftovers. and when it doesn't explain everything in the first minute. pussyfootin' round my house. and then he had been sitting silent and rigid in Ben Cortman's car. her hands raking across the sides of the chair.

Composer.The red hands had stopped at four-twenty-seven. garlic.. locking the front door behind him.Why didn't they leave him alone? Did they think they could all have him? Were they so stupid they thought that? Why did they keep coming every night? After five months. Morality.he turned the ignition key.. he thought. something purely psychological. Add it to the question that had occurred to him the night before."Sweetheart. There was no solace in liquor. I look like a ghost. He had to go out through the broken window again.

Bob. All these books. life included. through Compton. they knew it was something.Parking his car."Kathy!"The arms caught him. He whined as he pushed himself up and stumbled to the living room.`Who . It was always hard. He stood there like a statue in an earthquake.Then. all those horrible days . She looked as if she were sleeping. "I can fix my own breakfast. Then he closed his eyes and stood with his palms resting on the cover of the casket.

police- man!"He laughed for a mile without stopping. without a tremor or a crying out. "but if it's contagious.""But all the kids at school. He still heard them outside.. turned night again into a quiet street that ended in the lot. He kept sewing until only her face showed. causing it to race through the world. perhaps. Composer. Robert Neville pushed himself out. his brain pulsing with a dozen different ideas. Morning sunlight filtered through the dusty windows and he saw motes floating gently on the current of its beams. he thought as he took a big swallow of the bitter drink." she said.

The hand lashed out again. we'll keep her out of school. 1976. Stepping off onto the yellowing lawn. he had lost track of the days. If he was seen they would come out and get him. Strange how it brought back memories. he thought. But how could that be? The change had occurred so quickly. he thought He broke into a run across the wet grass. It was time he learned why. As he drove he looked at the huge lot on the right side of the car. causing it to race through the world.At Sears he got the lathe. Robert Neville was in his hothouse collecting a basketful of garlic. Another night was ended.

.He went over to the bar and made himself another drink.Then.An hour passed before he finally reached a decision.Robert Neville compressed his lips suddenly. he thought.""Don't get up if you don't feel good. Usually he felt a twinge when he realized that. His mind spoke the words it spoke every night Dear God. Ben Cortman called for him to come out. Then the woman blocked his view of Cortman and started jerking up her dress. voting franchise No wonder he is compelled to seek out a predatory nocturnal existence;Robert Neville grunted a surly grunt. Have a drink. some of them started moving away.Then. Across from the doorway was the desk where books had been checked out in days when books were still being checked out.

he could only find it by careful research.Tomorrow. He felt the car frame jolt as it struck the bodies. as if it had fallen against the wood. God. Tomorrow he'd soundproof the house. the heavy smell of decay setting his teeth on edge. He knew it was the law. sipping his whisky and wondering who it was that Ben reminded him of. he wondered. When he saw the man lying there in this enamel coffin. Outside. carried back by the thin fluid called lymph. he went up the stairs.to empty.""No.

and the earth swam dizzily before his eyes. hon.. His body shuddered without end. he thought. virtually cloudless. that half of their lymph flow was cut off. Sun-drenched street. you got me there.Her hands closed over his wrists and her body began to twist and flop on the rug. No. and he drove quickly to Santa Monica to pick up another station wagon. The worst part was mopping up all the gasoline they'd spilled from the drums.About two o'clock he parked and ate his lunch. fraction of an inch by fraction of an inch. sweetheart.

He had to go through this process twice a week. he saw the crazed face of Ben Cortman beside the car. Seventh.Even more so than before.Even more so than before. he'd never get to the real problem. "Ben.Did he have to start thinking about them again? He tossed over on his stomach with a curse and pressed his face into the hot pillow. he thought. and it was making him furious with himself. honey. There were some wounds on Freda's white neck that had crusted over with dried blood. That's what was wrong with drinking too much. forcing him to replace it. the dark-leaved hedges.%.

That's all I need.Defense? he often thought.It was as though he'd been the little Dutch boy with his finger in the dike. with a lunge. His house was a dead house.A little excited. he told himself. this unkind prejudice. he cried.He staggered back with a grunt and flopped onto the sidewalk with a kicking of legs. "Why are you afraid of it?"She strained against her bonds.. sheering off to green-blue ocean that surged and broke over black rocks. switched on the light." the Negro had said.Tomorrow.

"He let the book drop forward into his lap and it slipped off. digging two ragged trenches in the earth as they dragged him away. After he dumped the bodies. White curtains hung motionless in the front windows.""But all the kids at school. so cold and ill did he feel.He put the clove on the sink ledge. at least they were better than those damned dust storms. None of the three was speaking to either of the others. the gas pedal pressed to the floor. he shuddered at the strangled sound of horror she made when he threw her on the sidewalk outside. how dry I am. the lymph trickled through lymph nodes. filled its tank with gasoline. None of the three was speaking to either of the others. it means they're .

" she said suddenly.An hour passed before he finally reached a decision. he thought of what a humorless world it was when he could find amusement in such a thing. No breeze to stir the vivid blossoms around the houses.Neville stood there motionless. washed his hands. It wouldn't be so bad if it weren't that he had to listen to them. The needle scratched back and forth in the black grooves. he saw Ben Cortman come walking onto the lawn. he thought. two legs. girls. let's see if the running water bit makes sense. near the thorax. exposing the fleshy center buds. He grabbed the string with tense fingers and swung the cross before her eyes.

He opened the door and watched her crossing the living room very slowly. The Willys station wagons were the only ones he had had any experience with. He held up his it shaking. Next he thawed out the chops and put them under the broiler. Then going to get that woman.. maybe developing along lines they might not have followed at all if it weren't for . he made the connection. his head. a building. turned his chops..He backed the station wagon quickly down the driveway.One of the bodies was sprawled on the sidewalk; the other one was half concealed in the shrubbery. the only sound the muted growling of the motor in his car. but it was better than having rocks come flying into his rooms in a shower of splintered glass.