ure.

TAVIA

HATCH

He looks worried, though. They go back inside and shut the door against the storm.

265 EXTERIOR: THE ANDERSON HOUSE ON LOWER MAIN AFTERNOON.

The Sno-Cat pulls up in front. The picket fence is totally buried. The WEE FOLKS DAY-CARE CENTER sign is lying on top of a ten-foot drift.

266 INTERIOR: THE SNO-CAT AFTERNOON.

MIKE

(to the others) Just be a minute.

He opens the door on his side and gets out.

267 EXTERIOR: OUTSIDE THE ANDERSON HOUSE, WITH MIKE AFTERNOON.

He slogs around the front of the Sno-Cat, bent over against the SNOW and WIND, and almost runs headlong into KIRK FREEMAN. Once more, they SHOUT over the WIND to be heard.

MIKE Get back in and stay warm; I'll be fine!

KIRK Buddy system, remember?

He points into the Sno-Cat at HENRY and SONNY.

KIRK

We buddy up in there; they buddy up out here; we all buddy up together in the market.

STORM OF THE CENTURY 251

MIKE

Okay . . . come on.

I!

They start slogging up what used to be a path to a porch wallowing under the drifts like a slowly sinking boat.

268 INTERIOR: CAT WITHERS, CLOSE-UP.

She sitting on a folding chair and looks pretty vacant. She's got a mug of something in one hand and a sweater pulled over her shoulders. She's still bombed on shock and tranquilizers.

In the background, children sing:

CHILDREN AND SANDRA BEALS "I'm a little teapot, short and stout. ..."

CAT reacts to this, but doesn't overreact; she may not remember the song. THE CAMERA PULLS BACK to show us the DAY-CARE KIDS. They are being monitored by ROBBIE and SANDRA BEALS buddy system. SANDRA is leading the singing and trying to look vivacious. ROBBIE sits on another wooden chair, looking almost as lost as CAT.

The KIDS are being teapots as they sing, they make handles of their arms and tug their noses to show they know where their spouts are.

252 STEPHEN KING

Around them at this end of the common room, which is between the stairs and the wall, is a litter of makeshift amusements: books, paste, magazines with lots of cutout pictures and scraps, a few toys.

Beyond them is a closed door with a plaque on it that reads CUSTODIAN.

CHILDREN AND SANDRA

"Here is my handle, here is my spout."

FERD ANDREWS comes down the stairs and stands next to ROBBIE.

ROBBIE I hate that song.

FERD

Why?

ROBBIE

I just hate it. How's Jack Carver?

FERD

Quieted down some. It's just good the women got the kid away from him before he cracked.

(nods at BUSTER)

There ought to be a search party made up to look for Angela and them others. If Alton Hatcher won't lead it, you could.

ROBBIE

And if the search party didn't come back, what then? Send out another one?

FERD

Well ... we can't just sit here . . .

ROBBIE

Sure we can. And that's just what we're going to do. Sit here and wait out the storm. Pardon me, Ferd. I need a coffee.

Giving FERD a contemptuous look, ROBBIE gets to his feet and heads upstairs. FERD goes after him.

FERD

I was just thinkin' we ought to do somethin', Robbie . . .

i I

STORM OF THE CENTURY 253 THE CAMERA returns to CAT. Her eyes flicker. She sees:

269 INSERT: LINOGE'S CANE.

It SWINGS toward THE CAMERA, silver wolfs head seeming to SNARL.

270 INTERIOR: RESUME KIDS' PLAY AREA AFTERNOON.

CAT drops her mug and puts her hands over her face, beginning to SOB. The KIDS stop singing and turn to look at her. PIPPA and HEIDI start to sniffle in sympathy.

FRANK BRIGHT

What's wrong with Katrina Withers?

SANDRA

Nothing, Frankie . . . she's just tired . . . You kids, pick up a little, okay? Mr. Anderson'll be bringing back some new things to play with, I think, so just . . .

DON

I'm not gonna pick up! My dad'll give me a doughnut!

He dashes for the stairs.

SANDRA

Don! Don Beals! You come back and help the others

RALPHIE We don't need him. Monkeys can't pick up.

The others SNICKER that's a pretty good one. And when RALPHIE starts picking up the litter, the rest join in. SANDRA goes over and begins comforting CAT.

271 INTERIOR: ISOLATE ON RALPHIE.

He works his way a little apart from the others, picking up magazines. He's moving toward the door marked CUSTODIAN, and when it COMES OPEN, he looks up.

254 STEPHEN KING

LINOGE (voice) Ralphie! Hey, big boy!

The others do not hear, but RALPHIE does.

272 INTERIOR: WEE FOLKS DAY-CARE CENTER, WITH MIKE AND KIRK.

KIRK has an armload of games and those kid puzzles with the great big pieces. MIKE has the Slip-Stix and a few other simple crafts.

KIRK

That it?

MIKE Yep, should do. Let's . . .

Something catches his eye. It's a scatter of alphabet blocks on a low worktable. MIKE kneels beside it, looks thoughtfully at the blocks, then begins to pull some of them together into a line.

KIRK

(over to have a look) What you doing?

MIKE has used six of the blocks to spell out "LINOGE." He looks at them, then swaps them around to make "NILOGE." No, that's nonsense. Next comes "GONILE."

KIRK

Go Nile. Sounds like an ad for a vacation in Egypt.

273 INTERIOR: THE KIDS' PLAY AREA.

SANDRA is busy with CAT, and the other kids have grouped together around some baskets in the corner, where they stow the toys, books, and magazines. They are having a good time. No one notices RALPHIE as he gets up and walks hesitatingly toward the half-open door of the custodian's closet. |K

LINOGE (voice) Got something for you, big boy a present!

RALPHIE reaches for the door . . . then hesitates.

*

STORM OF THE CENTURY 255

LINOGE (voice)

(teasing) Not afraid, are you?

RALPHIE reaches for the door again, this time more decisively.

274 INTERIOR: WEE FOLKS DAY-CARE, WITH MIKE AND KIRK.

KIRK is interested now. He moves the blocks himself, making "LINOGE" into "LONIEG." And suddenly, MIKE sees it. His eyes WIDEN WITH HORROR.

MIKE

Jesus and the disciples in the country of the Gadarenes. Book of Mark. Oh my God.

KIRK

Huh?

MIKE

They met a man with an unclean spirit; that's what it says in the Gospel. A man with demons inside of him. He lived among the tombs, and no man could bind him, not even with chains. Jesus cast the demons into a herd of pigs that ran into the ocean and drowned themselves. But before he cast them out, Jesus asked their names. And the thing inside said

KIRK is watching him with increasing fright as MIKE manipulates the blocks.

MIKE "Our name is Legion, for we are many."

Now the blocks that spelled "LINOGE" spell "LEGION." MIKE and KIRK stare at each other, wide-eyed.

275 INTERIOR: OUTSIDE THE CUSTODIAN'S CLOSET.

RALPHIE opens the door and looks up at ANDRE LINOGE. In one hand, LINOGE grips his wolf's head cane. The other is behind his back. LINOGE is smiling.

256 STEPHEN KING

LINOGE It's a present for the fairy-saddle boy. Come and see.

RALPHIE enters the custodian's closet. The door swings shut.

THIS ENDS PART TWO.

\t

lift

PART 3 The Reckoning

Act 1

1 EXTERIOR: THE ISLAND MARKET AFTERNOON.

The snow is falling as hard as ever. The porch is almost completely buried beneath one huge, dunelike drift from floor to roof overhang. Parked in front is the big Sno-Cat MIKE and the others took out on the reprovisioning expedition. From its side door to the door of the market, a notch almost like a tunnel has been dug. The four men MIKE ANDERSON, SONNY BRAUTIGAN, HENRY BRIGHT, and KIRK FREEMAN are just entering.

2 INTERIOR: THE MARKET, BY THE CASH REGISTERS AFTERNOON.

The men make their way in, gasping and shedding snow. SONNY and HENRY have shovels. We can see their BREATH in the air, and the place is very dim.

SONNY

Gennie's out.

(MIKE nods) How long, do you think?

MIKE

Hard to tell. Since morning, anyway, from the way it feels. Snow probably piled up and blocked the exhaust.

He goes to the cash registers, bends beneath one, and begins to toss out big cardboard cartons.

257

258 STEPHEN KING

MIKE

Sonny, Henry. You're Meat Patrol. Get the big cuts of beef, plus the turkeys and chicken. The best stuffs back in the freezer.

HENRY

Will it still be all right, do you think?

MIKE

Are you kidding? It won't even be thawed yet. Come on, let's go. Dark's gonna come early.

SONNY and HENRY start up toward the cooler and the freezer beyond. KIRK comes over to the checkout and takes one of the cartons.

MIKE

We'll stick to the canned goods, this trip. All of us'll come back for bread, potatoes, and vegetables. And milk. Little kids have to have milk.

KIRK

You gonna tell 'em about what the guy's name spells when you move the blocks around?

MIKE What good would it do?

KIRK I dunno. God, Mike, that gave me a chill.

MIKE

Me, too. And for the time being, maybe we better just . . . keep the chill to ourselves. We've still got at least one more night to get through.

KIRK But

MIKE Come on. Canned goods. Let's load up.,

I

STORM OF THE CENTURY 259

He starts up the aisle containing the overturned card table, and after a moment or two's consideration, KIRK follows.

3 EXTERIOR: THE TOWN HALL AFTERNOON.

We can barely see it in all the snow, but at regular intervals we can hear the BLARE OF A HORN.

4 EXTERIOR: THE PARKING LOT AFTERNOON.

The Island Services vehicle is idling here, not too far from the town hall's side door. It's not going to go anywhere not even a four-wheel drive can move in five feet of snow but the lights are on and we can see one man standing outside and another inside. The one behind the wheel is HATCH. The one outside, wearing his V.F.D. parka and peering anxiously into the snow, is FERD ANDREWS. The window between them is open. Snow is blowing into the cab of the truck, but at this point, neither man cares.

FERD cups his hands around his mouth and hollers into the SHRIEKING WIND as loud as he can.

FERD

Angle Carver! Billy Timmons!

HATCH

Any sign? Any at all?

FERD No! Wouldn't I tell you? Keep blowin' that thing!

HATCH continues to lay on the horn in long, measured beats. FERD peers anxiously into the snow, then turns and yanks open the door.

FERD

You watch and let me honk your eyes're better.

They change places.

HATCH

(squinting into the snow) George Kirby! Janie Kingsbury! Where are you guys?

260 STEPHEN KING

FERD keeps blowing the horn in long, measured BLASTS.

5 INTERIOR: THE TOWN HALL'S MAKESHIFT DAY-CARE AREA AFTERNOON.

SOUND, MUFFLED: THE HORN CONTINUES.

The KIDS have finished picking up and don't really know what to do with themselves now. No one has noticed that RALPHIE ANDERSON isn't among them. SANDRA has gotten CAT quieted down and now looks restless herself. CAT sees this and offers SANDRA a wan smile and a pat on the arm.

CAT I'm okay. Go on up. Find your husband and little boy.

SANDRA But ... the kids . . .

CAT gets up and approaches them. SANDRA watches apprehensively. This is the young woman who beat her boyfriend to death not long ago.

CAT

Who wants to play Giant Step?

HEIDI

Yeah!