"Paula, you're being hysterical again."
"Shut up! I know what I'm hearing, Peter. There's something out there, and it's coming this way."
"For the last time, we're safe here. It's a perfect place for us to spend the winter—plenty of food nearby, a quiet area."
"I hope so. You remember what happened to Donna and Derek. That was right here in this neighborhood."
"Who could forget? But Derek always was a risk taker, and look where it got him."
"This place isn't exactly glamorous. It's really crowded!"
"No, but glamor comes with a lot of problems, remember?"
"Yes—wait! There's that sound again—and it's getting louder!"
"Oh, for—fine! I'll check, but you'll feel ridiculous when nothing is... ."
"Peter? Was that you?"
"Peter? This isn't funny!"
"Ok, I'm coming to join you, Peter, but I swear, if you jump out at me, I'll—oh, shit! Peter! What's that sticking out of your—"
"Paula...they got me Paula...Get out of here! Go! Save yourself!"
"No! I won't leave you—I won't let them chase us out again!"
"You...can't help me...nothing can. Please. You must save yourself—for our little ones."
"But—"
"GO! Save yourself... ."
"Noooo! Wait! What's happening! Where are you going? What's taking you away from me? Stop, you bastards! You slaughter my partner, then you just take him away? Murderers!"
"It was the damnedest thing, Hal. We figured out pretty quick why the sewer was backed up. After we got that big fella, I headed out to the truck while Doug packed up the tools. I wrote up the invoice, then came back to assure the homeowner that everything was fine. She just bought this place and had a lot of questions, so we talked for awhile. When Doug didn't come back up, I figured he was down here vaping. There must have been a second one. Looks like it bit him, then squeezed the life right out of him."
"Strange for it not to eat its prey. Have you located the second one?"
"Nah, it probably slithered back into the sewer."
"I'll call the office and report the incident. Go see if you can distract the homeowner while I figure out how the boss wants to handle this. And, Bob—don't say anything about the other one. Everybody thinks it's a myth, so it's better if we downplay this. The whole state would freak out if they knew snakes are more common than rats in the sewers.
