Free It's Alive! by Richard Woodley

hung up the phone and walked with the doctor to the main entrance.
    “Lieutenant, I so much wish we knew what this infant looked like.”
    “Don’t worry, doctor. You see it, and you’ll know.”

    Frank sat on the living-room floor, with newspapers spread all around him. In spite of his better judgment, he had been unable to resist reading everything about the case, and had bought every paper that carried a story. Oddly, there was little new information. Police were trying to pass off the latest killings as the work of a wolf-like dog.
    If only it was. He would not let Lenore see any of the stories.
    He cradled the telephone on his shoulder as he scanned the pages. “Hi, Chris, how you doing? . . . Yes, Mom’s home . . . I’m very busy now. I’ll tell you all about everything later.”
    “Dad, why can’t I go to school? Why can’t I go out, or have any of my friends come over. And most of all, why can’t I come home?”
    “I can’t tell you right now. But everything’s going to be okay. Mom’s fine. You’ll just have to trust me. Do you trust me?”
    “I always do, Dad, but—”
    “You’ll have to stay with Charley for the rest of the week. You wouldn’t mind that, would you?”
    “Well, I like Charley, I really do. And he’s lots of fun. But I want to see Mom and the baby.”
    “The baby’s . . . not home yet.”
    “Is it sick?”
    “Yeah, that’s right. The baby’s sick and everything here is a mess. Mom needs quiet and rest. It’s easier all around if you stay where you are. You don’t need to go to school—isn’t that what you always say? So just catch up on your reading or build some models or something.”
    “Will you tell Charley to let me watch TV? He says kids watch it too much, or something. Will you tell him it’s okay?”
    “Let me talk to him.”
    “Okay.”
    “Hi, Frank.”
    “Charley, we’ve got a real problem, and—”
    “I know. I understand. I’ll see to everything. Maybe I’ll take Chris fishing up at the lake for a couple days. Good idea?”
    “Terrific.”
    “All set then. You give Lenore my love.”
    “Right, Charley. Listen, nobody ever had a better friend.”
    “That goes both ways, Frank. Talk to you in a couple days.”
    Frank sat back on the floor and rubbed his eyes. Lenore’s nurse, wearing a white uniform, walked by, carrying a tray with two pill bottles, a pitcher of water, a glass, and a folded towel.
    “Is there anything I can get you, Mr. Davis?”
    “No thanks. How is she?”
    “Resting nicely, as usual.”
    “Then does she need those pills? She says she’d rather not have them.”
    “I’m only following doctor’s instructions, Mr. Davis. You know, you really should try some of these tranquilizers yourself. Dr. Norten said you—”
    “Just take care of your patient, Nurse Gray.” He quickly shook his head and rubbed his eyes. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap at you. It’s just that I’m better off left alone.”
    “I understand, Mr. Davis. You just stay right down here and relax. I’ll see to your wife.”

    Upstairs, Nurse Gray pushed the door open quietly, and, seeing that Lenore was awake, put the tray down on the bed beside her.
    “How are you feeling, Mrs. Davis?”
    “Fine. More pills?”
    “To relax you. Dr. Norten’s prescription.”
    “Okay, I guess.” She swallowed one pill from each bottle, and drank some water.
    “Would it help you to talk about anything, Mrs. Davis? Anything that happened?”
    “No . . . I don’t think so.”
    “Sometimes it helps, you know, to talk to somebody in a professional capacity.”
    “I don’t remember much, which is just as well.”
    “Try, Mrs. Davis, it’ll do you good. Are you sure you didn’t see it? Even get one little look?”
    “No, I’m sure. I told everyone, I passed out. I guess I did. I don’t remember anything.”
    “Perhaps you’re trying to freeze it out of your mind. It must have been awful. Some people say it has teeth and claws. Did you know