Walmart Security's Journal: Episode Nine: The Two Madnesses

Walmart Security
Chapter 9: The Two Madnesses

Robert sat nearby on one of the visitor chairs, his face decorated lightly with bandages. The chair was but a silhouette against the fulgent morning sun.

"I dreamt," he said, his eyes narrowing, "of thousands of unchained rabid monkeys." Robert sunk lower into the well-cushioned chair.

"Doing what?" I replied.

"Chasing me down like an animal! My dreams were terrible, Peter." The vertically opposed nurse entered the room. "Oh, and they were singing."

I squinted. "Singing?"

"Barbra Streisand, I think," said Robert; his alarmed eyes reflected his distress.

The nurse, of course, was willing to express her opinion. "Wow, son. Sounds to me like you took a trip to hell."

Perhaps he did, I thought, or perhaps he was one of many visitors to the nefarious underground facilities of the Three Pointed Conspiracy. I scrutinized every word emitted to me by Robert, desperately searching for inconsistencies or errors in continuity. If my young assistant were indeed a member of the Conspiracy, I would reveal him to the world. Every word of every story, however, could be designed specifically to lead me further astray. It was imperative that I not allow Robert to influence my quest for the truth.

Of course, there also existed the matter of my dreams. They were like clouds beneath a night sky, simultaneously obfuscating and revealing the truth. I decided to drive once again with Robert to Houston. The truth, I concluded, if it existed, almost certainly was to be discovered there.

For the moment, however, I would be dedicating my attention to more important events. After all, the Jasper community would soon begin preparing for the annual Motorized Shopping Cart Rally.