Prologue

The summer storm reached the old house as the fourth member of the gang stepped up on the porch. A clap of thunder, as loud as a mortar blast, rumbled across the metal roof. A bolt of lightning sliced the skies and struck a spruce tree, toppling half of the tree on the roof of the house. The man jumped as if he'd been shot and scuttled inside like a scared rabbit.
    Another streak of lightning revealed three other men lounging on the delapidated furniture. One of them laughed uproariously. "I believe the old house is getting to you boss. We'd better can some of this noise---it's better than what we've been using to scare people away."