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Benny felt a e pride and relief--it had been an insane plan, and it had taken longer than Benny had expected--but it orking He should have trusted that Lilah would get it done

But … To in his plan explained how his brother had returned from apparent death and had come here to save them And it was clear fro look he’d shared with Lilah, that he had known that the zo in on the camp How had he known? Had he met the Lost Girl and, after all of his atteht of storms and blood?

Benny turned to find his brother, and there Toht in the thick of it Several zoms separated him from Charlie Several bounty hunters tried to rush Tom at the same time that half a dozen zoms closed in on him, and it was in that moment that Benny finally saw, and understood, the kind of man Tom Imura was

His whole body was a blur of coordinated rabbed Tom by the shoulder and spun him around, but Tom turned into the pull, and his left hand shot out hiplike speed Big Jim clutched a ruin of a throat and fell away, but before he even had time to fall, Tom slashed up and wide, then left and across, and two zoms seemed to fly apart Joker Brills pulled a pistol and snapped off a shot, but To before the barrel was properly aiun ars froo across the chest in a double cut that left a deep red X across his torso Tom whirled and cut, whirled and cut, and his attackers--both the living and the dead--fell before hi all of this fro, and there was a slack expression, somewhere between shock and awe, on his heavy features

Then a powerful hand cla As he went down he twisted around and saw the Motor City Ha at him with black and lifeless eyes as he pulled Benny toward his bloody mouth

Benny screaain, but the Ha pain Then Nix stamped down on the Haainst the zoer The Hammer’s head jerked back, and he collapsed down, dead forever this tiasped as Nix hauled him to his feet

"Here!" Lilah said She knelt by the Hammer’s side and pulled from his belt the heavy ht it with his swollen hand

He yelped and cursed, but he ed to close his fist around it Maybe it’s only sprained, he told hi rushed at hirab for Nix, and four zoered toward Lilah

"You and your brother are a pain in an, but Benny didn’t want to hear it He used the pipe to batter aside the knife and then rang the club off of Vin’s forehead Vin’s eyes lost focus, and Benny closed the deal with an overhand swing that put Vin down Benny didn’t know or care if he’d killed the man or not He needed to help Nix and Lilah, but as he turned, he saw Nixwith each step Her bullets punched into Joey Duk with such force that it s of a deh and he pitched backward into the arms of three zoms---a nun and two men in business suits The an to feast

Nix stared at the fallen un she held

"God …," shelost, and for aJoey had somehow broken her But then a zom reached for her, and Nix calmly, coldly, turned and shot it between the eyes

Another body fell past Benny, and he turned to see Lilah dispatch the last of the four zoms who had rushed her Her face ran with rainwater, and she was grinning Grinning

That is one spooky girl, Benny thought Froh, she was "lost" in more ways than one He wondered if there was any roadmap that would lead her toward some kind of normal life Or was she too far out in the wilderness of her own experience for that?

"Benny!"

Tom’s voice shook hi toward hi toin on the with his bloody sword, and Benny turned toward the path the children had taken It was the only path clear of the dead Lilah had said it was the best one for their escape, because it was elevated--part of an ancient rock wall that had long ago collapsed, and unlike all of the other paths, it didn’t directly connect with the forest It had been their planned escape route, but in all of the turmoil, Benny had become confused

"RUN!" To out of the shadows and galloped at full speed along the path, sensing the direction of safety Benny began backing up, but he was still looking at the ca in now, and only eight bounty hunters After all they’d done, after all the harm they had caused, Benny felt a flicker of co Too Back in Sunset Hollohatever that was

But there was no saving thesethe path without a flicker of hesitation Toht up with Benny, he too turned and looked back for a moment

"We can’t save them," Tom said

"No," whispered Benny, but his reply was lost in the rain

"Go catch up with the girls," Tom said "I’ll hold this trail until you’re well clear Leave Apache for me, because when I leave, I’ll be in a hurry"

Benny ran down the road and whistled for the horse, and Apache stopped, turned reluctantly, and trotted back to him Benny tied the reins in a loose pull knot to a stunted tree

"Tom, how did you … I rin "Remember when you threw that bottle of cadaverine to me with the cap loose, and I spilled it all over ht in the ht away The cadaverine gave me a couple of seconds, and I rolled under a car I was stuck there for hours I didn’t knohere you were … or if you were alive"

"Geez How bad are you hurt? I saw a lot of blood …"

"I took so theunshots and screa

"Family reunion later, kiddo Haul ass"

Benny did just that He turned and followed Nix and the Lost Girl out of the ca to the dead

But as he rounded the bend in the path, Benny skidded to a stop Nix and Lilah stood on either side the road, and fifty yards beyond theirl and the other children Standing like a monster from some old fairy tale--covered with mud and blood, fierce and terrible--was Charlie Pink-eye

He held the pistol at arer steady He was breathing hard, and his red eye leaked tears of blood There were deep gashes on his cheeks, and his shirt was torn open to reveal a body that was crammed with muscles and crisscrossed by scar tissue