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"Their souls have moved on They’re free of this world"

"Actually, Reverend, not to correct you or nothing, but they haven’t really er in this world than in the other, but they are all caught between the world of the living and the dead" Rune looked at everyone steadily "It gotlike that The natural order of things got screwed up"

"Kinda like that line in Dawn of the Dead when they said there was no more roo and she felt terribly for her She didn’t even want to think of her kids not being in heaven That was the thought that hthtly" Rune slowly set down his water and rubbed his ers "All I know is that I see ’eo, they’re there Trapped"

The Reverend looked like he was about to say soazed at Rune’s face, he seemed to think better of it and averted his eyes

"I think they are all waiting for so I don’t knohat it is, but they’re trapped here until it gets done"

"I don’t know if it’s a consolation or not, thinking of our loved ones being ghosts as their dead bodies try to eat us," Katie finally said "But itin fear that our loved ones are trapped in those rotting things"

"I’ot a good thing going on here And good things are rare in this world," Rune decided

There was an aard silence as people pondered what had been said and slowly they began to talk ast themselves Maddie took Rune’s hand in her own and smiled at him softly

"At least we know the zoht?"

"And they are afraid of fire," Charlotte added, as if the conversation had not taken a strange, metaphysical turn "Another priht about it and iined bonfires all around the fort It appealed to her

Katie hesitated then, said, "So, we have a fewreally weird neeapons"

Her voice didn’t sound shaky anymore

"Uh-huh" Charlotte took another bite of her sandwich

"Christ

"Christrinned "Damn That’s just kinda funny"

Chapter 6

1 Jenni’s World

"And what do you do if you see a zombie?" Nerit asked in a loud voice

"Poke it in the eye!"

The chorus of children’s voices made Jenni look over from where she helped lay ceroup of twenty kids, all ages, had gathered around Nerit and a dummy made up to look like a zombie The kids all held the fort’s makeshift spears

"And then what do you do?"

"Shake it hard!"

"Why?"

"To make their brain soup!" some little wise-ass called out

The kids broke up into wild peals of laughter

Nerit shtly, then ordered, "Okay, line up! Let’s make zo hard, his long curly hair slipped free froaze, he looked up at her then over at the kids

"They need to kno to fight back," he said finally

"Yeah," she answered, looking back at the kids

A young boy, about Mikey’s age, walked up to the zoy and rammed the end of his spear into its cloth eye as hard as he could, then shook it hard

Again, the children laughed

Jenni sighed and spread more wet cement with the trowel "I wish Mikey hadn’t turned back to defend me"