Welcome to Anderson. It's quiet here and that's how we like it. Except....

Madge Duffy sliced her husband's throat last week. Thought she killed him, but then John walked out of the morgue none the worse for wear.

The new preacher's calling it a "miracle," but I don't know. It isn't right.

I think there might be other people coming back, too.

Like Deputy Haws, for one. He's got a bullet hole in his one good shirt and he won't talk about it.

You know Peg Culler down at the diner...the one with the little girl on life support? Well, she's talking about pulling the plug, and nobody ever thought she'd do that, not in a million years. She thinks it might be the only way to get her back.

Then there's that gang of kids that hangs around the reservoir...not one of them can look you in the eye without breaking into a cold sweat. They're keeping a secret, and it's got them all on edge.

Something's going on in this town of ours, something that makes your skin crawl and your teeth grind in the night. I don't know what it is, but I know this:

It scares me.

Fourth Edition