Another mysterious Midnight rule. Manfred resigned himself to waiting until the Rev was through, but he was peeved. He’d come in late, and he’d just gotten served—sadly, not by Creek, but by Madonna. His food was hot and smelled delicious, but here he sat, still and hungry.

As he listened, Manfred became interested despite himself. This was not the fire-and-brimstone message he’d been expecting, but an elaborate explanation that began with the Garden of Eden, detailing how God had created creatures that combined the features of animals and man, the were-creatures so feared today. The Rev believed that key verses had been deleted from the Bible so that bad men could repress the were-creatures, so that they would be humbled away from their pride in their superiority. The Rev believed that men only had power over the two-natured because of their vast numbers and their willingness to kill what they didn’t understand.

It was confusing but fascinating, even though Manfred’s mouth was still watering over the baked chicken and green beans with new potatoes that were cooling on his plate. The Rev certainly knew his Bible, and he knew a lot of extra scripture besides, verses that had been “left out.” Manfred now heard a few of those verses. “I’m amazed at how convincing that sounds,” he whispered to Joe on his left. To Manfred’s embarrassment and surprise, Joe seemed offended at his skepticism. Again, Manfred was at a loss.

For five more minutes the Rev rambled, and even Madonna stood behind the counter at attention during the impromptu sermon. Abruptly, the small man came to the end of what he had to say, and he concluded with “Amen!” His congregation echoed the word with varying degrees of enthusiasm. The Rev gave a decided nod, as if he were satisfied with the response. Then he stalked from the diner, his hat firmly planted on his head, his back straight as a ramrod.

“How often does he do that?” Manfred asked, hoping it was okay to inquire.

“Not often. Usually means he’s worried about something,” Joe said. “I didn’t mean to go all righteous on you, but the Rev believes what he says, and we go along with him. You don’t want to upset him.”

Manfred said, “Of course I don’t want to be rude to him . . . but you sound almost scared.”

“You would be, too, if you ever saw him angry,” Joe said, and then firmly turned the conversation in another direction. “Bobo, I saw the sheriff’s car at your place yesterday. Everything okay?”

“The sheriff said they’re satisfied with my alibi. Apparently, I’m in the clear.” Bobo didn’t look particularly happy, though. “And here’s another thing,” he said. “The gun, the one they found? It was from the shop, which I knew when they held it up. That day we found her.”