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"So that’s the plan," Benny said brightly, trying to lighten theof Badasses"

"Language," said To-I? Oh, please"

"Why caloomily "Why not just rub us all doith steak sauce and send us running into a herd of zoet you killed," said Tom

"Oh, of course not Our safely is clearly your first concern"

To to be out there for ood way to learn woodcraft"

"Woodcraft?" asked Benny "What, likeelbowed hi in the wild Hunting, fishing, setting traps, finding herbs That sort of stuff"

"How do you know that?"

"Because," Chong said with raised eyebrohen you open those things called ‘books,’ there are words as well as pictures Sometimes the words tell you stuff"

"Bitezom" To To out in McGoran Field is hardly the sa in the Rot and Ruin," chided Tom "Lilah already kno to do that So do I Benny and Nix learned a little ere out in the Ruin, but they don’t know enough"

"And I don’t know any," concluded Chong He sighed "And I guess I don’t really need any You knohat my parents think about your trip"

"You don’t have to couess not"

"The thing is," said Toht you in the Scouts was all well and good, but it’s old world That’s the probleht, and it’s the problem with a lot of the books they ood in themselves, but they aren’t part of this world It’s important to know the past, but your survival depends on knowing the present I ate recently?"

"Not since a feeeks after First Night," said Nix "He got here around the saain"

Toe is all based on ca in vacation spots and national parks as they were before the dead rose He has no idea what it’s like out there in the wild"

"The wild," echoed Chong, and looked a little pale Of his friends, Chong was the smartest and most well-read, but he was by far the least physical Benny had to bully hi preferred to be the goalie

"When do we start?" Nix asked with enough enthusiasht," said Tom He narrowed his eyes at Benny "And that means we are up, washed, dressed, packed, and at the fence by first light … not hiding under your pillow pretending that I haven’t been calling you to get up for two hours"

Benny ht it

"Dress for hiking," Tom told them all He pulled a slip of paper out of his pocket and handed it to Chong "Here’s a list of what you’ll need"

Chong’s eyes flicked down the list "There’s not a lot of stuff here, Tom"

"You won’t want to carry a lot"

"No … I e and hunt Nature provides, if you kno to ask"

"No tents?"

"You’ll learn to build a basic shelter All you need is a sleeping bag We’ll be roughing it"

"No toilet paper?"

Benny grinned "That’s what ‘roughing it’ rass or soft leaves," explained To"

"Early man didn’t have toilet paper," said Benny "I’ll bet it even says so in one of your books"

"Earlysaid icily, "but we did evolve"

Tohed "Go pack"

15

THE HARDEST PART WAS SAYING GOOD-BYE

Benny didn’t have a lot of close friends in town, but there was Morgie Nix had already said good-bye to him Noas Benny’s turn

He walked, hands in pockets, through the streets of town, looking at the fas and houses There was Lafferty’s General Store, where Benny and his gang drank sodas and opened packs of Zo on the wooden steps with several packs on their laps, laughing, showing one another cool cards Heroes of First Night Bounty Hunters Famous Zoms Maybe even one of the ultrarare Chase Cards

Benny turned onto Morgie’s street and saw the Mitchell house at the end of the block, perpetually in the shadow of twohis fishing pole His tackle box stood open beside hiie looked up frostone path "Hey," he said

"Hey"

Morgie bent over the rod and carefully threaded catgut through the guides It was an old rod, ie It had belonged to his father

"Guess this is it, huh?" Morgie said in a voice that was flat and dead

"We ie was already shaking his head

"Don’t lie, Benny"