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"It’s stuck," I said, turning it upside down, looking for a sea ainst the walls as the roorew cold

"What was that?" Noah said, but I already knew I could feel it

Putting the small case back into the chest, I closed the clasps and tucked it into"Stay here," I said, and ran outside to the stoop

The caht closed around it like a curtain In the distance, I thought I heard the sound of snow crunching beneath feet, but then it stopped SlidingMy eyes darted to the left at a flash of ht The wind swirled paston the horizon see in onthrough the branches: the Undead I heard a pitter-patter in the snow; soft, like the wings of a ainst a porch wall

I backed up the stairs and into Horace Hall, where I took Noah by the ar for us"

But as we stepped out the door, I realized I was too late They were already running toward us, their s and then picking thedown a mountain The professors must have felt it too, because slowly they cas, some in suits, some in pajamas, their expressions distorted in confusion as they watched the Undead descend on the campus

I reached for Noah’s hand to pull hi toward the Liberu his shovel over his head "Noah, wait!" I screah I knew he couldn’t hear me "The tunnels!"

The Undead boys closed in on hi up ht up, Noah had led the them off with his shovel as he slipped across the ice When I called his name, he hurled a child off his back and turned to me

That was thethe ice by his feet A jagged gash splintered through it, and just as his lips parted to call out toas he grabbed at the edge of the ice But it only cruasped as the Undead boys followed the sound of the water as it sucked hi across the ice as they surrounded the hole I was about to dash toward theainst the underside of the ice, only a few feet froed to Noah Crawling toward it, I began to bang on the ice, trying to break it, but even under my sharp shovel, it wouldn’t split

"Noah?" I screaed as I kept trying, usingI could do except stand and watch as Noah’s hand slipped away frorew distant as he sank into the depths

I didn’t even fight when they caht Two tiny hands closed over my eyes Two more covered s, until I collapsed into the snow It was all I could to do to rip the bandage from my back and touch the mark between h my spine "I’m sorry" His voice spoke back to me I’ll come for you

The edout of the snow like toothpicks I could feel the weight of the dead beneath us, the air vacant, totally absent of life

A tall, thin figure walked toward h the snow, his face a sliver of pale beneath his hood A Brother Crouching down, he picked me up by the arm and lowered his face to mine, ready to take my soul, my secrets I closed my eyes I could sether and thought of Dante, ie happened I didn’t feel scared or angry or even weak I could barely feel anything except cold I shuddered as I felt a prickling chill hurtling toward me

Dante, his skin as white as the dead trees around us

He dove between the Brother andpasthim out with a swift kick to the head Dante whisked round and took led with his until I couldn’t tell which were an to her, higher, throughThe chest froers tightened around his shoulders, and I closedthe sy fro beneath Dante’s feet, his heart beating an irregular staccato as we vanished into the woods, until there was nothing left of us but a swirling, snowy gust