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To which Tom said about four syllables, all of them chipped from ice: Leave me alone

Twenty minutes later, Mellie clumped back down the way she’d come But when Tom turned Cindi a look, she could tell: for the first tinizing who she was

"It wasn’t my idea," she said "She invited herself"

"I know that" Too, Cindi I’d like it if you didn’t"

"Sure" A lump pushed into her throat To There was only Tom and his monster, the black fist around his heart that, soht squeeze so hard it would crush hi hi It was a place to start

But nowthis

"And you’re absolutely sure he never ave her and then Luke, seated beside Cindi at a rough-hewn kitchen table, the stink-eye They’d -abandoned farmstead: a motley collection that included an old two-story far barn, cow barn, silo, and a clutch of tus hemmed on all sides by wide pastures and distant knolls where they mounted a few lookouts Only Weller and Mellie slept in the house, along with anyone as ill or hurt At the moment--bad news, bad, bad, bad--that was To at all?"

"No," Cindi fibbed, her right leg ju the table rock, a really bad habit that used to drive herthat her"Is he going to be all right?"

"I’m sure he’ll be fine andplease" Mellie laid a hand on Cindi’s wrist The other rapped around a stea "Coffee’s not so easy to come by these days that I want to waste a drop"

"Sorry" Cindi clahs "There was a whole lot of blood He was pretty cut up"

"Not all the blood’s Tom’s It probably looks worse than it is"

"Well, I hope so" Luke was so pale his eyes looked ser paint "Because any worse and he should be dead Did To after theet ahead of ourselves, all right?" Mellie was very good at sliding around questions "I think thewe can do now to help Tom is--" She looked around at the sound of heavy footsteps "Well?"

"We’re doing okay," Weller said, but his tone was brusque, preoccupied Always a little gruray stubble over Weller’s cheeks and chin only made hiht Weller would be a lot nicer once theout in the tower, the blacker Weller looked On the other hand, considering the rustylooking bandage plastered over the right side of Weller’s neck and that shoulderwell, she’d be an &uurouch, too, if some Chucky snacked on her

"Okay, as in?" Mellie pro for a counter where a Coleh a cardboard box "You kids, go back to your racks Best thing for Tom is we let hiht Luke would argue, but he only nodded and scraped back his chair "Just tell him ere here, okay?" he said to Weller

"Can we co?" Cindi asked

"Let’s see what toave Cindi’s are it to ht to you?" Cindi glanced at Luke, but his expression was lost in the dark She turned her attention back to following the yellow cone of their flashlight as they crunched over snow The moon wouldn’t rise for hours yet, which suited her just fine Every tireen cyclops and the night sky as an eyelid taking a whole month to slowly open and close

"No," Luke said "But I can’t figure what freaks me out more-- that there are Chuckies close by and they haven’t found us yet, or To about the a couple uards? Yeah It’s almost like"

Cindi waited, then said, "Like Mellie’s not worried enough"

"Uh-huh" Pause "Maybe she doesn’t want us to panic My dad was like that He alorried we couldn’t hack it, so he’d say things were fine, or think of so to distract us stupid little kids"

"Is that the only thing bothering you?"

"No," Luke said, and sighed "They’re not saying it, but Toot lucky He really should be dead"

A screw of fear "But he’s not He made it back"

"Believe me, Cindi, I’m just as happy about that I don’t think I could stand it ifBut if Toot killed, then what? It’d be just you and er"

"Weller would still be here So would Mellie" She wasn’t thrilled with either, but they were better than nothing

"Come on Weller joined up with us when Toet other kids She was never gone for long"