Freezer Burn

Eight

When he awoke it was dark in the room except for one light that was by the door, and it was a weak light. It made a pool on the floor like dirty melted cheese.

Bill sat up in bed and pulled the sheet down. He was completely naked. He looked around for his clothes, but he couldn’t see that well, as the light didn’t extend that far.

He pulled the sheet off the bed and wrapped it around himself and wandered over to the light and discovered a chair on the other side of the door by a desk. He sat down in the chair and felt very ill. He was still hungry.

“Ah, you’re better.”

Bill jumped.

A shape glided into the room, a switch was flicked, and there was full light. The white-haired man was standing over him, and he leaned forward and touched Bill’s forehead, then touched Bill’s eyelid with his thumb, peeled it wide and looked into Bill’s eye. He switched to the other eye and did the same. When he was finished he made a kind of huffing sound, said, “You look much better, son.”

“Thank you,” Bill said, discovering his tongue to be working.

“You can speak,” said the white-haired man. “Capital. My name is Frost. John Frost. Some people call me Jack Frost but most just call me Frost. A little joke, you see. You’ve heard of Jack Frost, haven’t you?”

“Nips your nose, or something,” Bill said.

“There you are. And your name?”

“Bill.”

“Good. Bill. That’s easy to remember. Hungry, Bill?”

“I’ll say.”

Frost disappeared from the room and down a short hallway and into what served as the motor home’s dining area. Bill leaned forward in his chair and watched him move around in there by the stove. Bill stood up and securely fastened the sheet about himself and went after him.

When Frost saw him, he smiled. “I have some chicken broth here. Quite good for what ails you. And I have some thick bread and cheese. I hope that will be adequate.”

“Right now I could eat the ass out of a menstruatin’ mule,” Bill said.

Frost reddened, making him look a bit like a beardless Santa Claus. “Well,” Frost said. “Well. Certainly. A mule. Yes.”

Frost poured the broth from a steaming pan into a large cup and sat it in front of Bill, who had taken a seat at the dining table. He brought plates to the table, then the bread and cheese. He poured Bill and himself a glass of milk.

“Eat, boy, eat,” Frost said.

Bill ate. He tried to go about it nicely, but he was too starved. His lips were so swollen from the mosquito bites he found it was difficult to stick the food into his mouth, so he drank all the soup and ate a little of the cheese and bread. Frost gave him more soup. Bill soaked the bread and cheese in it and slurped it down noisily and drank another glass of milk.

Frost said, “I have some clothes you can wear. I’m a little heftier than you, but they should fit you all right. Loose is the fashion, they say.”

“Thanks,” Bill said. He studied the man carefully as he sipped his second glass of milk. He seemed genuinely kind and gentle. One of those souls you read about or see in movies, but seldom encounter. A true Good Samaritan. Bill thought this could really work out. The blonde was right. Frost was a prime sucker. Bill began to figure the angles, but soon gave it up. After all he had been through, angles were a little hard to come by.

“What you got here?” Bill asked.

“How’s that?”

“This a freak show?”

“Why yes.”

“I seen that dog fella. What exactly happened to him?”

“Conrad. Why, nothing happened to him, son. He was born that way. His parents abandoned him and he was raised in an orphanage and finally he ended up with me. My right-hand man, actually.”

“He ain’t really part dog, is he?”

“Oh, goodness no. His show name is Rex the Wonder Dog. A bit of his humor, you see. But certainly not. He’s as human as you or me.”

“I wonder, a guy like that, he ever get any pussy?”

Frost moved his mouth about for a moment, then took a deep breath. “Well, I don’t know as I can say… He likes the bearded lady, but

… Well, I just don’t know… Had enough?”

“You got any more?”

“Sure do.” Frost poured Bill another cup of soup and sat down again. “You… go to high school?”

“Yeah. I didn’t do so good, though. I think they passed me to get rid of me.”

“What’s your line of work?”

“Haven’t really got one right now.”

“Hard to get a job?”

“I guess.”

“You know, you could be at the right place.”

“How’s that?”

“Well, I think I should be straight with you, Bill. This is, as you said, a freak show, and you have… some peculiarities.”

“Peculiarities?”

Frost reached across the table and touched a hand to Bill’s face.

Bill reached up and touched himself. His face was strange to his fingers. He went down the hall, found the bathroom, went in there, and turned on the light and looked in the mirror.

A monster was looking back.