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"I’ll take care of it," Bowen calls

The guns are moved aside and Bowen leans in He pauses as uncertainty and fear dance across his face, but then he drops the tent flap behind hi at my side He takes a small bottle out of his jacket

"About your arms, the burns," he says, his voice hardly more than a whisper "I had to shock you I didn’t knohat else to do to stop her--the beast--fro the tent floor

Fro my throat out with her teeth, I think "I’m alive," I answer, voice as quiet as his "My arle beat of oes all the way to my stomach and makes me feel like I have the flu Bowen holds the bottle out I take it and open er to his lips

"Aloe vera," heat the tent flap

"For the burns?" I whisper He presses his finger to his lips again and nods "Did you steal it?" I mouth, silent

The corner of Bowen’s mouth lifts, and he says softly, "For militia use only Not for Fecs Took oo onto h h The fire in my arive the bottle back to Bowen He tucks it into his jacket once roan Out loud Feet scuffle outside the tent, rifles clatter to life, and then the tent flap is flung wide The glossy black barrel of a gun jabs into the tent and hovers above my nose

"You need me to shoot it, Bowen?" Tommy asks

"Chill, To about his ars the tip of his rifle over the burned flesh on my arm

I whimper and jerk away Liquid oozes froun toward rabs it

"Just leave the kid alone," Bowen snaps He shoves Toun out of the tent

"Whoa,… syru I can’t quite make out

Bowen shakes his head and crawls to my feet Without a word, he pushes the hem of my jeans up around my knees and attaches the cuffs tohiether, the cuffs clicking against each other as they lock into place

"I’ to cuff your arers I colare at him "Thanks," I whisper He nods and tosses a wafer onto the floor besidethe sting of tears to my eyes All I want is to be back in my house, the way it used to be, inside a thirteen-year-old body, with Jonah doing his homework in the music roo dinner, and Moe

I glare at the wafer, feeling so sorry for myself I’m tempted to chuck it out of the tent and start the slow process of starving rowls, feels concave, so I shove it into my mouth It dissolves into the flavor of roast ribs and sweet potatoes and trickles down ive in to the food-induced lethargy that steals the last bit of energy froer fro on outside the tent

"Hey, guys I’et sohts "The kid’s restrained again, and I gave him his ration"

"Maybe you should double his dose," To beasts"

"It was a joke, Bowen Don’t worry We’ll keep the camp safe from the kid," Tommy says

"Yeah About that Don’t let anyone in the tent, all right? And do not leave your posts"

"You think he’s on the verge of turning?" To like that," Bowen says, his voice fading as sleep settles over--huit fillmy eyes I am so starved for affection it hurts But I’ ersotten, my eyes shoot open Dark surrounds ht settles on ainstmy chest The bottom of my shirt is lifted, and cold metal touches my stomach In one swift slice, the T-shirt is cut fro on asps