James Axler – Watersleep

A sec man named Kelly had told Ryan that Green­glades ville had once been a paradise, with working television and air-conditioning and some of the best food a man could ever hope to see before him on a plate. The restored attractions were a hobby, some­thing to show off to visitors. Boss Larry was a regular techno brain, a genius with electronics who loved wine, women and song.

Until the drugs ate away at his brain.

That was none of Ryan’s business. In one day, two tops, his party would be on their way, and Larry Zapp, baron of Greenglades ville, could snort until his fat head exploded.

But nothing was ever that simple in Deathlands, and Ryan was forced to become actively involved when Traven expressed a more than passing interest in Dean. Larry himself had warned Ryan to keep the boy away from Traven.

“Adam likes him, Ryan. Oh, yes. Precious. His precious, Ryan. Boy that young. Pretty. What he wants most,” Larry had said in a dreem-induced haze.

It was at that moment that Ryan Cawdor had made the conscious decision that Adam Traven was going to have to die. Not because the sick twist was a con­trol freak and a master manipulator into dominance and submission with a taste for young boys. No, a man’s vices were his own.

Where Adam Traven had gone wrong was bringing Dean’s name into it.

After earlier skirmishes, the final battle had come inside the tall observation tower that overlooked Boss Larry’s domain.

Larry had proved true blue in the end, when he had willed his 450-pound body to topple forward and crush the slender, effeminate Traven beneath his mag­nificent bulk in a violent showdown. By the time Ryan dragged Traven out, the self-styled cult leader was nearly smothered to death. His skinny body was slick with blood from the eight rounds he’d pumped into Larry from underneath, but the huge boss hadn’t budged.

After pulling Traven free, Ryan helped the self pro­claimed “master” along to judgment day with some well-placed bullets from his blaster.

Larry Zapp had been the genius behind Greenglades ville. With his passing, Ryan expected Greenglades Theme Park to have fallen into complete dis­repair.

“What kind of name is ‘Larry’ for a baron, any­way?” Ryan mused aloud.

“Could’ve been worse. He could’ve been Boss Moe. Or Boss Curly,” Mildred said with a wide smile. Then she laughed aloud. “Or God help us all, Boss Shemp.”

Everyone in the room looked at her blankly.

“I must admit, madam, that your reference is ar­cane even to one as learned as I,” Doc said. “Who is this Boss Shemp?”

“Forget it,” Mildred said, wiping a tear of laughter from one eye. “Too silly to try and explain. Seeing is believing when it comes to the Stooges. Mama never could understand why I thought they were so funny—of course, most women didn’t care for their unique brand of comedic talent. Maybe we’ll find one of their old comedy vids some day and I can show you.”

“They were…clowns?” J.B. asked blankly, look­ing at Mildred for confirmation.

“No, they were stooges,” Mildred replied, and lightly rapped J.B. on the top of the head with the palm of her right hand. “Now spread out, you mugs! I’ll be right behind you when I’m done in here.”

“Sometimes, Millie, I don’t understand you at all,” J.B. muttered, walking past the still-giggling woman until he faced the steel sec doors at the end of the control room. The small man raised his weapon in a combat-ready stance and turned back at Ryan for the nod.

“You up for this?” J.B. asked.

“Feeling better all the time,” Ryan replied as he unholstered his own blaster. “Everybody stay alert. I doubt there’s anything out there, but this is no time to get sloppy.”

“Dad?”

Ryan turned to Dean. “What?”

“I used to always open the sec doors, remember?”

Ryan looked at J.B. “Fine by me.”

“Okay, son. Go ahead.”

The green lever that was present in almost all of the gateways was in the down position, showing the doors were locked shut. Dean grabbed the lever and slowly began to lift it upward. A sharp intake of hy­draulics hissed obligingly, and the door began to open smoothly. When the door was two feet off the ground, Dean dropped to his knees and carefully peered out.