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"No," she whispered It wasn't over yet She pushed herself back up Again she had to set hair from her face She looked around, but it was impossible to see more than two feet in front of her

She forced herself to run again She had to find the village If nothing else, she had to at least find somewhere to ride out this storm Besides the fountain cave there were others scattered around the island,the shore If she found one of those she could hide until this storm ended

Even as she considered this, Samantha saw a dark shape up ahead It didn't look like any tree she had ever seen Upon closer inspection, she saw her salvation: a house! It didn't look like Miss Brigha as it had somewhere for her to dry off

She felt around until she located a door Pulling open the door, the smell of mold assaulted her nostrils Not only mold, but other fore dump How could that be?

Sa white She bent down and retrieved a bone The bone had been worn co had bitten into it She located more of these bones, as well as rusty chains She also stepped in what smelled like feces

Pryde's house This had to be it She had never really considered where Mr Pryde had lived; she had assumed he had slept outside like an animal From what little she could see and from what she could smell, he hadn't lived much better than an animal

A stream of water hit her in the face She could barely h the roof This wouldn't be ht this, the walls creaked The entire house would probably collapse on her soon

But what other choice did she have? She stu to find a dry corner where sheelse, so solid and metal that prompted her to cry out She bent down and felt a thickA trapdoor!

Sa As expected, a door opened She felt around with her sore foot until she found a stair This must be a cellar That should keep her safe from the storm, provided the house didn't collapse on the cellar and trap her inside Given the alternatives, she decided to take the chance