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"Listen," the woman said, and tilted her head "Hear that?"

They could both hear the sound of the heavy rain that had started to fall, and in the distance some rumbles of thunder

"The door isn't locked You can sih," she told him, "but it's nasty weather outside, and I'd be worried about you, about where you would sleep and what you'd find to eat

"Why don't you wait untilyou'll have a nice dinner and a warm bed"

"I need TV"

"Well, I can't provide that, I'm afraid But I do have a meatloaf in the oven"

He scowled "Do you have ketchup?" he asked She nodded "And ice cream for dessert"

"Do you have cards?"

"Cards?"

"You knoith A's and K's and Q's"

"Oh Yes, I do, actually Do you know soarudgingly "I'll stay tonight We can play war"

13

"Is it a Horde?" Littlest asked Thin Elderly in an apprehensive voice She was trying hard to appear courageous and mature The tere inside the house, huddled in the hallway between the bedrooms The rain had stopped and there was a moon now; it illuminated the faded wallpaper, with its sentiardens It was dreaht, but the pair had not yet begun their work because of the sound of an approaching Sinisteed

Thin Elderly was listening attentively "No," he said "It's alone"

Bravely, Littlest One made a tiny fist and held it up "Shall I punch at it?"

"No It's ht it We have to huddle here and watch it do its dae," Thin Elderly explained "It'll probably choose only one: the wos"

"What's that?" Littlest juht there by the !"

"Hot breath Exhalations," Thin Elderly whispered "It's how they get in They breathe the you asked about"

The sound was increasingly terrible, first a snorting and heavy breathing, then a pawing against the wall of the house Littlest thought she could even feel the heat of it and smell the acrid wet-smoke scent

"Make yourself as small as possible," Thin Elderly instructed "Don't bother dissolving It won't bother us It won't even notice us It'll enter, probably through this wall right here, where we hear the breaths Then it'll choose its victiallop away Try not to be frightened But be s trampled"

"I don't want it to choose the boy," Littlest whispered in her tiniest voice "He's not as strong as the woman He cried in his bed before he slept"

Thin Elderly put his fingers gently over her ether they withdrew into their very sainst each other silently while the beast entered, breathing itself an opening though the wall, searing the wallpaper, which peeled back with burned edges, and charring the plaster beneath The noise beca--thumps and pounds and whinnies--but the woman and the boy continued to sleep It was a sound that huhtened sense of hearing, perceived only a h

Littlest, peeking, terrified, through her fingers, could see the eyes, bloodshot and angry, and s its head The beast filled the hallway, and its shadow against the wall in the er She trembled But Thin Elderly was correct; it had no interest in her It whipped its ropeyof its head, as if in decision-uest room and toward the bed where the little boy, in his striped paja evenly, one arm curled around a pillow

The Sinisteed leaned its ine releasing stea emanation of breath that enveloped the boy's head Sssssssssss! It lasted only a second Then the creature shook its head, whinnied triuh the wall, which repaired itself instantly, into the night

"Your first infliction," Thin Elderly told Littlest One "A, how quickly it happens, isn't it? You would have ave him a nervous smile

"Did you blink?" he asked

Littlest shook her head "No," she said, "but I had ht I was scared"

"Well," he told her, "there's really notThat hiss Noe athered so to bestow on hi

The boy had sat upright in the bed and was crying out "Don't! Don't!" He turned his head from side to side, an odd repetition of what the beast had done His eyes were closed but he continued to call out in panic "Don't let hiet me!"