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"Jesus" Pru pressed a hand to his forehead like a kid taking his fever "A Changed?"

"Maybecould feel the dry air wicking the wet froe of half-congealed blood and ruptured guts "Whatever I’’s arone down"

"Stay here if you want" Greg tore himself free "I don’t care what you do, but Tori’s in there, and Sarah, and I’, be smart Chris or Peter wouldn’t--"

"Fuck smart," he said "And that just shohat you don’t know, because they would, and so will I"

Turning, he dashed the last hundred feet The door was open, not yawning but wide enough for hih with roo the shot None cah fro diht of stairs, he h of the day’s dying light splashed in through the open door for hiainst the wall to his right This was bad because it meant that he could be seen if so out of his line of sight

If anyone’s still in here When the bells started, the set out, fast, just as the wiser play for Greg would have been to wait, like Pru said He hoped the Changed were smarter than he was He’d been here only a couple of hours before and remembered the layout: that the stairs to the baseht He peeked, saw the door was open, and thought, Oh boy, that’s bad With no flashlight, it would be crazy to go down--

He heard so shuffle off his left shoulder, tensed, swiveled, socked the Bushht this wasn’t smart"

"Yeah, so we’re both stupid Noha--" Pru’s voice died as he saw the gaping maw of the basement door "Shit Block it?"

The door opened out, so that should work "I’ll do it," he un, but he couldn’t do this with one hand He laid the Bush chair away fro scaw thatdown the steps, he levered the door closed, all histo turn to jelly at every creak and squeak, and wedged the chair under the knob He repeated thisas fast as he could Total ti in there’ll be trapped like a bug in a jar You remember the layout?" Pru chinned toward the sanctuary "Sundays, I try to sleep with my eyes open"

"Three steps and you’re on the platfor the wall and under the cross Pulpit at one o’clock on the far end Go straight through and you’ll be in the organist’s pit" He thought "I’ll go right, down the side aisle Depending on what happens next, you head for the platfor took the stairs as fast as he dared He saw the cross suddenly slip into view on his left and then the high arches of stained glass lining the sanctuary’s far wall; heard a sudden creak under his boot and thought, Shit, in thethe wall, so stairs won’t--

There was a thundering roar, a clap of lightning Greg let out a startled gasp as the wall above his head suddenly cratered Swaying, he stumbled back, tripped over his boots, and fell the rest of the way as another shot blasted past Greg felt the whir of a slug cleave air by his left temple

"Shit" Pru’s face swam into view "You hit?"

"No" His left ear felt as if someone had crammed in a fistful of cotton, but he could hear the tick-tick-tick of buckshot and the lighter patter of grit and pulverized drywall Well, at least they knehat kind of weapon the Changed had Eyeing the hole in the drywall, Greg saw the teardrop shape and how it curved up "I think he’s under the altar table"

"Yeah? And?" Pru sounded angry "How the hell are we supposed towait, Greg, why are you taking off your boots?"

Giving hi off his other boot, Greg stripped the sock, then cra the boot in his left hand, Greg glanced back at Pru "He’s got a shotgun"