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Morgie caile Even with a head injury, he was able to see how things were between Benny and Nix Benny braced hied by what had happened He nodded thoughtfully, and went hoo Gameland was still out there, and now they knehere However, if Benny thought that hearing Lilah’s story would change the people in town or spark them to action, he was disappointed They were shocked, they were sympathetic … but they said that it was too far away That it wasn’t their concern That it was too dangerous to mount a raid on it After a couple of days they even stopped talking about it

"It’s just like everything beyond the fence," Benny co on a different planet"

"To them it is," said Nix "My mom told the then, either"

Nothing would be done, and that was the ugliest truth

But when he said this to Toed the subject Each day, however, he spent at least an hour in his workroo bullets, and he had maps pinned to the walls

Benny, Nix, and Toht or the dreadful things each of them had been forced to do No They talked about the jumbo jet Tom had seen it too He’d watched it fly out of the east and then turn slowly over the mountains and fly back

"What do you think is out there?" Benny asked Nix one night after Tom went to bed "Out where the jet went?"

"I don’t know It won’t be… different So that isn’t here"

"Here isn’t that bad Not now that Charlie’s gone"

Her green eyes were full of shadows "‘Here,’ Benny, they accept that Ga about it" She shook her head "Here isn’t enough, Benny Not for me Not anyo find where the jet came from, Benny had expected To there was a stack of maps on the kitchen table There was one for every state

On the fifteenth day since the camp, Tom told Benny that he had one o with hed

"I don’t know if I can," he said

Tom sat doith him at the table "Please," he said "Just this last one, and then I’m done I … can’t do it alone"

Benny studied his brother for a long time and then nodded

"Okay," he said "But after this, I’m done, too"

Nix ith them, but only for the first part of the trip She was harder than before, less apt to sone, and Benny hoped that with tihness, he kneould re in her book of zombie lore She practiced with Benny every day with the wooden swords When she trained, her beautiful face was set and gri the sword, she wasn’t seeing hi the faces of the men ould have put her into a pit with zoms

"Give her time," Tom said one day after practice

"I plan on it," said Benny, and Tom smiled "All the ti in late Septe with his own sadness and loss Benny and Nix followed behind, vigilant of the world around the in each other’s company Even if neither of them was ready to say so

They found the way station where Brother David and the two young women lived Over lunch Benny and Toed long looks, their faces sometimes sad at the news of pain and death, and sometimes hopeful as they considered a future without Charlie Pink-eye and the Motor City Ha here?"

"No," she said "Toave hi, Benny I understand about what he does … what you do About the family business About the need for closure"

Benny touched her face "Nix, I--"

"Benny Imura," she said with a rare flicker of a s like ‘I love you’ and you choose here, in a way station out in the Rot and Ruin to do it, so help ile quality about her slimmer of the old Nix woven into the complexity of this new Nix He loved both versions, but he valued his butt and had no doubts that she could kick it coreat enthusias so stupid," he said

She cocked an eyebrow at hi stomped and humiliated?"

He could, and she proved it

Benny and To The sun broke through the clouds as they cut through a grove of trees that were heavy with apples Tom picked a few, and they ate theht-iron gate of a con over the gate read: SUNSET HOLLOW

Outside of the gate there was trash and old bones and a few burned shells of cars The outer walls were pocked with bullet scars To the right of the gate someone had used white paint to write: "This Area Cleared Keep Gates Closed Keep Out" Below that were the initials TI

Benny pointed "You wrote that?"

"Years ago," Toates were closed, and a thick chain had been threaded through the bars and locked with a heavy padlock The chain and the lock looked new and gleamed with oil

"What is this place?" Benny asked

Tom tucked his hands into his back pockets and looked up at the sign "This is what they used to call a gated coates were supposed to keep unwanted people out and keep the people inside safe"

"Did it work? I ht?"

"No"

"Did all the people die?"

"Most of theot away"

"Why is it locked?"

"For the sa into his right front jeans pocket for a key He showed it to Benny and then opened the lock, pushed the gates open, and then restrung the chain and clicked the lock closed with the keyhole on the inside now

They walked along the road The houses were all weather daed, and the streets were pasted with the dusty rearden was overgrown, but there were no zombies in them So withered garlands of flowers

"Your job’s here?" Benny asked

"Yes," said Tom His voice was soft and distant

"Is it like the other one? Like Harold Simmons?"

"Sort of"

"That was … hard," said Benny

"Yes, it was"

"Toames Y’know, Kill the Zoined it"