The Dark Tower

“And what’s—”

Eddie got no further. John raised a gnarledhand to stop him. Eddie tried to imagine a Texas Instruments calculator in thathand and discovered he could, and quite easily. Weird.

“Gimme a chance, youngster, and I’ll tellyou.”

Eddie sat back, making a zipping motionacross his lips.

“Keep the rose safe, that’s first. Keep thewritah safe, that’s second. But beyond that, me and this guy Deepneauand this other guy Carver are s’posed to build up one of the world’s mostpowerful corporations. We trade in real estate, we work with… uh…” He pulledout the battered green pad, consulted it quickly, and put it away. “We workwith ‘software developers,’ whatever they are, because they’re go

Eddie was nodding approval. He hadn’t toldJohn that last, the old guy had come up with it on his own.

“We’re the Three Toothless Musketeers, theOld Farts of the Apocalypse, and we’re supposed to keep those two outfits fromgettin what they want, by fair means or foul. Dirty tricks most definitelyallowed.” John gri

“Good,” Roland said. He started to get up.“I think it’s time we—”

Eddie raised a hand to stop him. Yes, hewanted to get to Susa

“My friend wants to get moving and so doI,” Eddie said. “We’ve got miles to go yet.”

“I know that. It’s on your face, son. Likea scar.”

Eddie was fascinated by the idea of dutyand ka as something that left a mark, something that might look like decorationto one eye and disfigurement to another. Outside, thunder cracked and lightningflashed.

“But why would you do this?” Eddie asked.“I have to know that. Why would you take all this on for two men you just met?”

John thought it over. He touched the crosshe wore now and would wear until his death in the year of 1989—the crossgiven to Roland by an old woman in a forgotten town. He would touch it justthat way in the years ahead when contemplating some big decision (the biggestmight have been the one to sever Tet’s co

If he had regrets toward the end (otherthan about some of the tricks, which were filthy indeed and cost more than oneman his life), it was that he never got a chance to visit the world on theother side, which he glimpsed one stormy evening on Turtleback Lane in the townof Lovell. From time to time Roland’s sigul sent him dreams of a field filledwith roses, and a sooty-black tower. Sometimes he was visited by terriblevisions of two crimson eyes, floating unattached to any body and relentlesslysca

Yet for all that he wished he could havewalked out, just once, into that other land: the one beyond the door.

Now he said: “You boys want all the rightthings. I can’t put it any clearer than that. I believe you.” He hesitated. “Ibelieve in you. What I see in your eyes is true.”

Eddie thought he was done, and then Cullumgri

“Also it ‘pears to me you’re offerin thekeys to one humongous great engine.” Engyne. “Who wouldn’t want to turnit on, and see what it does?”

“Are you scared?” Roland asked.

John Cullum considered the question, the

Roland nodded. “Good,” he said.

Seven

They drove back up to Turtleback Lane inCullum’s car beneath a black, boiling sky. Although this was the height of thesummer season and most of the cottages on Kezar were probably occupied, theysaw not a single car moving in either direction. All the boats on the lake hadlong since run for cover.

“Said I had somethin else for ya,” Johnsaid, and went to the back of his truck, where there was a steel lockboxsnugged up against the cab. Now the wind had begun to blow. It swirled hisscanty fluff of white hair around his head. He ran a combination, popped apadlock, and swung back the lockbox’s lid. From inside he brought out two dustybags the wanderers knew well. One looked almost new compared to the other,which was the scuffed no-color of desert dust and laced its long length withrawhide.

“Our gu

John offered them a smile that augured wellfor his future as a dirty trickster: bemused on the surface, sly beneath. “Nicesurprise, ain’t it? Thought so m’self. I went back to get a look at Chip’sstore—what ‘us left of it—while there was still a lot of confusion.People ru

“This would have been while we werevisiting with Calvin Tower and Aaron Deepneau in their rented cabin,” Eddiesaid. “After you went back home, supposedly to pack for Vermont. Is thatright?” He was stroking the side of his bag. He knew that smooth surface verywell; hadn’t he shot the deer it had come from and scraped off the hair withRoland’s knife and stitched the hide himself, with Susa

“Yuh,” Cullum said, and when the oldfellow’s smile sweetened, Eddie’s last doubts about him departed. They hadfound the right man for this world. Say true and thank Gan big-big.

“Strap on your gun, Eddie,” Roland said,holding out the revolver with the worn sandalwood grips.