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"You’re kiddingall pity

"Please, Sara," said A her?" Sara scanned the others "She can go to hell"

Hollis took her by the shoulders to make her look at hioing to need her"

"What for?"

"To help us get out of here Not just you and hed and broke away She crouched beside Alicia, passing her eyes quickly over her without expression, then looked up "I’ this with an audience Amy, you stay The rest of you, a little space, please"

The group backed away Caleb took Peter aside

"Dad? Okay?"

He wasn’t sure what to say His anger had faded, but not his doubt He glanced past his son’s shoulder Sara waswith her fingertips

"Yeah"

"Everybody understands"

Caleb said nothing more; neither did anyone else A few more minutes went by before Sara rose and went to them

"She’s broken up pretty badly" Her tone was indifferent; she was doing a job, that was all "I can’t really tell the full extent And in her case, things will probably happen differently A couple of the gunshot wounds have closed up already, but I don’t knohat’s happening inside She’s got a broken back, and about six other fractures I can detect"

"Will she live?" Amy asked

"If she were anyone else, she’d be dead already I can sew her up and set her leg She needs to be i "Your guess is as good as mine"

Caleb and Chase returned with a stretcher; they carried Alicia inside All the survivors had been brought out of the shelter and had gathered in the staging area Jenny and Hannah were roup with buckets of water and ladles Here and there, a person was sobbing; others were talking quietly or just gazing into space

"So what now?" Chase asked