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file:///E|/Funny%20&%20Weird%20Shit/75%20-%20Stephen%20King%20Books/Stephen%20King%20-%20Pet%20Sematary.htmwonderful, deadly ability to translate symbols into conclusions that were either fine and noble or blacklyterrifying. If all those animals had died and been buried, then Church could die(any time!)and be- buried; and if that could happen to Church, it could happen to her mother, her father, her babybrother. To herself. Death was a vague idea; the Pet Sematary was real.In the texture of those rude markers were truths which even a child’s hands could feel.It would be easy to lie at this point, the way he had lied earlier about the life expectancy of tomcats. Buta lie would be remembered later and perhaps finally totted up on the report card all children hand in tothemselves on their parents. His own mother had told him such a lie, an innocuous one about womenfinding babies in the dewy grass when they really wanted them, and as innocuous as the lie had been,Louis had never forgiven his mother for telling it—or himself for believing it.“Honey,” he said, “it happens. It’s a part of life.”“It’s a bad part!” she cried. “It’s a really bad part!”There was no answer for this. She wept. Eventually her tears would stop. It was a necessary first step onthe way to. making an uneasy peace with a truth that was never going to go away.He held his daughter and listened to church bells on Sunday morning, floating across the Septemberfields; and it was some time after her tears had stopped before he realized that, like Church, she hadgone to sleep.He put her up in her bed and then, came downstairs to the kitchen, where Rachel was beating cake battertoo hard. He mentioned his surprise that Ellie should just cork off like that in the middle of the morning;it wasn’t like her.“No,” Rachel said, setting the bowl down on the counter with a decisive thump. “It isn’t, but I think shewas awake most of last night. I heard her tossing around, and Church cried to go out around three. Heonly does that when she’s restless.”“Why would she . . . ?”“Oh, you know why!” Rachel said, angrily. “That damned pet cemetery is why! It really upset her, Lou.It was the first cemetery of any kind for her, and it just . . . upset her. I don’t think I’ll write your friendJud Crandall any thank-you notes for that little hike.”file:///E|/Funny%20&%20Weird%20Shit/75%20-%20Ste...%20Books/Stephen%20King%20-%20Pet%20Sematary.htm (34 of 333)7/28/2005 9:21:49 PM