Chapter 3, March Summary

On the night of the March full moon, the winter's last blizzard is howling through Tarker's Mills. The town's residents are going about their business, including Milt Sturmfuller, the local librarian, who is at home with his wife, Donna Lee, whom he regularly abuses. The storm causes tree limbs to break, sounding like gunshots, and soon the electricity goes out, leaving the town in an eerie darkness. As the storm subsides, the town remains in the dark because the roads are too slick for linesmen to travel, and soon a loud, continuous howling is heard. Everyone in town hears it, including Constable Neary, grade school principle Ollie Parker, the Sturmfullers, and an unidentified boy in a wheelchair, but no one can tell where it's coming from.

The following day, a linesman who is repairing the downed power lines finds the body...