The Rat Stomp Read online

  ***

  "Did Ben say anything to you, Abbie—‘bout what happened last night?"

  "No, I haven't seen him. He stayed over with Billy."

  "He stayed there? Oh, lord, I'll bet that was a bucket of snakes. Have you heard of the 'B&B Theater'?"

  "Oh, no," I said. That was Ben and Billy's code for the dump. "Don't tell me..."

  "I could just kill him. Can you imagine, on our first date? I mean, I figured we'd go to Bryan for a movie; something like that, you know. I asked Ben where we were going, but he wouldn't say. Secretive little snot. And Gwinn, she egged Billy on, but nothing doin’. Just said, 'You'll see soon enough, girls'. I swear, talk about naïve. We just looked at each other and I thought, well, I don’t know. That's when Ben said that thing about the B&B. Figured it had something to do with the B&B cafe downtown.

  "Anyway, we were in Mrs. Hobsome's car—you know how she is about that. Likes it better than she does Billy."

  "You've got that right," I said.

  "Well, so when we headed out of town and drove off the highway on some little gravel road, I was floored. Figured they were up to something. Thought they knew about a lake in the woods we could park at, but I didn't say anything. Wish I had, now.

  "Didn't go very far, but we came over a hill and there were these fires—little ones—and I thought, well now that's pretty strange. Wouldn't you think? About like a Western movie with little campfires burning everywhere. I couldn't see anybody down there, but I thought maybe it was a secret doo-dad, something like a Klan meeting, only that couldn't be right. Not Ben.

  "Billy turned out the lights though, and it got really spooky; black as pitch. Just those little fires. I don’t know what I was thinking, just kept staring at Ben, you know, like what in the H is going on? But I didn't say anything. Figured it was a surprise.

  "And then they did the darndest thing. Billy said, 'You ready, Big Foot?', or something like that, and Ben just said, 'Yo'. I hate that, don't you? It's so corny. Anyway, they both pulled off their shoes and put on football cleats. Right there in the car. Can you imagine? On a date? Gwinn and I started giggling and trying to get them to talk, but Billy just held up his hand and said something stupid like, 'Stop, ladies. This here's men’s business'. Like for sure. Ben said, 'Let's do it, B.H.'. Well, that was the kicker, cause Billy yelled and floored the gas. It nearly scared me to death, cause the lights were still off and we were just fishtailing down the hill. I mean, I thought Billy had lost his mind! Wouldn't you? Heading straight at those fires in Mrs. Hobsome’s car. I grabbed some stuff, let me tell you. I think that's what Ben wanted," and Corrinth broke into a giggle.

  "I smelled the smoke then, and figured it out. It stank something terrible, and I was just horrified. I mean, what would've you thought? The dump? I was just scared to death, and Gwinn kept shrieking like a banshee, which didn't help any. Lord, I didn't know she could scream like that.

  "I closed my eyes, cause it was coming up fast, but Billy stomped on the brake and we skidded to a stop. He turned on the headlights, but all I could see was dust and that awful smoke. And then, honest to God, Abbie, they both threw open their doors. Piled out of that car and started running like maniacs. Absolutely nuts, cause they were jumping over burning piles of rubbish, and then... I get the shakes thinking about it. You know what those two did?"

  "I have an idea," I said, trying to suppress my grin, "but tell me anyway."

  "Well, I don't know about you, but I never in all my life saw anything so ghastly. Hundreds of them. Thousands! Black, pointy-faced little things. Humpbacked hairballs, and they started running ahead of the boys, and then... God, I can hardly say it. It was brutal. I mean, I hate rats, you know? Much as anyone. But honestly, they stomped on them. On the dead run. Stomped! Kept yelling something like, 'You can't outrun Olympians', like that was supposed to mean something to a rat, and then Stomp, there went another one. Just like that. Crunched. I'll bet it popped the eyes right out of their horrid little faces."

  "Corrinth! You're terrible!" I said, and I started giggling. She was working herself into a lather.

  "Me?" she continued. "Abbie I swear, it's true. Every last word. It was weird, like something out of, what...like Alfred Hitchcock. Squashed rats everywhere. And some were just quivering, you know? Not dead yet? Bouncing around like furry popcorn. Most were just trying to crawl off, the poor things. Thought I was going to gag. And the boys were laughing like morons. Like they'd really done something to be proud of.

  "Well, too bad, cause that's when the rot set in. I couldn't tell what was happening at first, but I heard a sound and knew something was wrong. Sort of like a rumbling noise. A far away train maybe, and I wondered if there was a railroad near. But then I realized it was us...I mean the car. I couldn't believe it. Those idiots forgot to put it in park. Rolling down the hill! Can you imagine? Me and Gwinn, heading toward the dump in Mrs. Hobsomes’s car!

  “I screamed about then—well can you blame me? When I did Gwinn nearly went through the roof. I guess she just then realized what was happening, cause the next thing I knew, she was out of there. Like a shot. She didn't even try to step on the brake; just opened the passenger door and whoosh, she was gone. I mean she just fell out, and I thought certain she'd been run over. I really thought she had, cause she screamed and then it was quiet. I couldn't do a thing to help, though. Couldn't move a stitch.

  "That big pink car rolling down the hill toward burning garbage, doors, flapping like chicken wings. And the boys! They just stood there like fools, like they couldn't believe it either. Probably thought that first mound of garbage would stop us. Didn't though. Kept right on heading for the ravine. Did you know there's a ravine out there? More like a canyon, really. I was screaming bloody murder, too, you can be sure.

  "Billy came to his senses first. I bet he could just see himself explaining this one to his mom, like, 'Sorry, Mom. Your car kind of went out of control and rolled into the dump'. Probably what he told her. Anyway, I just dug my fingers into the back of the seat and kept on screaming."

  "Did they try to get in and stop it?" I asked.

  "Some, I guess. Got knocked right on their behinds, what with those doors flapping and all. Wasn't much they could do. I figured I was a goner, over the edge, right down into that filth and blewy! Would cook, cook,right along with the rats. I just knew it. Can you imagine? On a date?

  "That's when I thought real serious about jumping out."

  "Well why didn't you?" I asked. "I think that's the first thing I'd of thought of."

  "Well of course I wanted to, but it wasn't just ambling along, you know. It was going really fast, or felt like it was. I wouldn't have cared about that, but I had on brand new silk stockings and that pretty blue evening dress and..."

  "Corrinth! You were worried about your clothes?"

  "Well, you think about rolling around in the dump in your favorite dress. It didn't matter, cause about then the car got hooked into a bunch of barbed wire. I could hear it dragging along, grating over tin and stuff. Sounded just like nails on a chalkboard and no way was I going to jump out and get tangled up in that. I just sat there and screamed.

  "That's when it really got interesting, cause stuff started flying everywhere. Boxes of stuff. Cans, boards, there were bottles breaking, a trike...a child's trike! Just stuff like that. Made a horrible racket and I was still heading right toward the edge. I would have gone over too, if it hadn't been for a pile of paint cans. The car just clobbered them, like, Crash! Some busted open and paint came down like big old glops of rain, yellow, green, blue...all over the hood and window.”

  “Oh, no…”

  "It was such a mess, but what did I care, cause I was a goner. The car kind of lurched forward and I looked right down in that black pit with those fires and I just screamed my head off. I was so scared I was shaking like a wet dog. Honest to God. And
then, just like that, it came to a halt, sort of. Right on the edge, tipping back and forth. And you might not think so, but it reminded me of a carnival horse, on a merry-go-round. Only it wasn't any fun."

  "A what?"

  "A carnival horse, you know? Going up and down, back and forth, and all different colors. Well it did, a pink horse with polka dots, bucking up and down."

  It was a colorful description, but it sounded strange to me and all I could do was shake my head.

  "Anyway, once the doors stopped flapping it got real quiet, and Abbie...I swear this is the funniest thing. I wasn't making a sound or moving a stitch, but I heard these noises, like moans and soft cries. First I thought it might be Gwinn, you know, hurt? But then there was this heavy breathing and I thought, gad! Billy and Gwinn are making out in the dump! At a time like that. I swear, that's what I thought...Oh, quit laughing, Abbie. It's not that funny."

  "It is too. Okay, I'll stop." But I still kept giggling.

  "It was just the boys in a fit of panic, though. I started to jump out but Ben told me not to move, so I didn't. Said it was too dangerous. I could tell he was really scared, so that scared me more. They had to tie off the car with the barbed wire so it wouldn't go over. And when I got out, do you know what he wanted us to do? He had the gall to say, "Stand on the back bumper.” He wanted some weight to keep the wheels down. Can you imagine? We told them what they could do with that idea, make no mistake. I wouldn't have cared if the car had just tipped up and crash... down in the ravine. Would have served them right.

  "All we could do was stand around while they pulled stuff out from under the car so they could back it out. Took forever. Gwinn and I kept warm by those filthy, smelly fires, trying not to step on a dead rat. My dress just smells awful, and Gwinn screamed every time something moved, which really got on my nerves. Such a scaredy-cat.

  "Do you know it was after two AM when we got home? Smelling like the dump? I thought Dad was going to kill me, which would have been something, huh? Die at home after all that. I bet Billy's going to be grounded forever. Serves him right, too. That was the best car for making out in the whole county, and now it's trashed, just ruined. And I never got to kiss Ben even once. Can you imagine?"