LTROI

Chapter 2

3 JULY 1983

Oskar woke up with a start from a bad dream.

In his dream, Eli had been smothering him with a pillow. He would kick and thrash desperately to get free, but she always came back and put the pillow back over his head, her eyes vacant, her face impassive. He struggled and struggled, unable to breathe, as she held its softness tightly over his face, sealing off his mouth and nose . . . .

Disclaimer:
The following is adapted from the novel Let the Right One In by John A. Linqvist and the film bearing the same name. The characters in this work are those of Mr. Linqvist and no copyright protection is asserted to this work.

Chapter 1

2 JULY 1983

“Want to play again?”

“Okay. One more. But it’s getting kinda late.”

Eli picked up the wooden sticks, then dumped them out to start a fresh game. She glanced at Oskar and smiled.

“Your hair is getting long. We really ought to cut it.”

CHAPTER 7

“Well, we knew it might rain, huh?” Oskar declared as he felt the first, light spatters strike his face.

Eli stopped walking, craned her head up, and looked at the dark, cloudy sky. She, too, felt the raindrops, and she paused to enjoy the sensation. A gust of wind blew the warm, June air across the trail.

She opened her mouth and extended her tongue, trying to catch some drops. Oskar looked at her, grinned, and did the same.

CHAPTER 15

Back and forth.
Back and forth.

Eli paced from one side of the shed to the other. Then she sat down for awhile. Then she stood up and paced some more. Then she cracked open the door a little and peeked out. Then repeated the whole thing again.

Hungry. So hungry. Like itching inside my veins. It was maddening.

CHAPTER 14

GONE AWRY

Oskar stood, shivering, and stared at the mausoleum’s open doorway. Beyond the building’s roofline, the brightening of the eastern sky heralded the approaching dawn. Before him the pickup truck idled softly, vainly awaiting its driver’s return.

He felt stunned by an enormous weight, precipitously dropped upon him. In less than a minute, his life had been irretrievably altered. He tried to gather his panicked thoughts.

CHAPTER 13

Oskar vomited into the toilet. Most of his dinner came out the first time, and a little more on the second round. Then he endured some dry heaves before he finally felt better.

He remained kneeling for a few moments in front of the bowl in his underwear, shivering. Fever is getting higher, he thought. He stood and looked at himself in the vanity as he shook three Tylenol out of the bottle and put it back on the sink. You don’t look so hot. Should go lie down.

CHAPTER 12

Oskar stuck his hands a little deeper into the pockets of his parka, hoping to slow the penetration of cold through his gloves and into his fingers. It didn’t help much, but it made him feel better. He hustled along the final curve of Horsensgatan before it connected with 63.

He wished it hadn’t snowed so early and so heavily so he could have kept riding his bike. Naturally, everything had to be difficult; even the weather was piling on to make his life miserable.

Chapter 11

Running through the woods
Run with me Oskar run fast like deer
I hold your hand we must hurry, hurry
I know you don’t understand
but trust me don’t stop

You are what I need
But not here in the dark woods,
not in the darkness
It must be there, I see it now I can hear it
Where the silver coldness comes down
Where darkness becomes light
That’s where I must be with you,