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"Then leave it alone Please All I know is that once the gates were open, they just poured in"

Peter glanced at Michael Here was so they hadn’t known, a new piece of the puzzle

"Why were the gates open?"

"I don’t think anyone ever figured that out," said Hollis "Whoever gave the order, they must have died in the attack And I’ve never heard anything about some woman If she was there, I didn’t see her Or these trucks of yours" He took a heavy breath "The fact is, Sara’s gone If I allowed o crazy I’m sorry to say it, believe me I won’t pretend I’veto do is accept reality You too, Michael"

"She wasto be my wife" Hollis looked at Michael’s shocked face "You didn’t know that, did you?"

"Flyers, Hollis No, I didn’t"

"We were going to tell you when you got to Kerrville She wanted to wait for you I’m sorry, Circuit"

No one seemed to knohat to say next As the silence stretched, Peter looked around the roo This little shack, with its stove and herbs and snug feeling of home-Hollis had ether

"That’s all I’ve got," said Hollis "That will have to satisfy you"

"I can’t accept it Look at this place It’s like you’re waiting for her to co "Let it go, cuz"

"Maybe you’re right Maybe Sara’s dead But what if she’s still out there?"

"Then she was taken up I’ to you, don’t make me think about this"

"I have to We all loved her, too, Hollis We were a fa to the sink

"Just take us to Tifty That’s all I’"

Hollis spoke with his back to them "He’s not what you think I owe that man"

"For what? A job in a brothel?"

His head was bowed, his hands clutching the edge of the sink, as if he’d taken a blow "Jesus, Peter You never change"

"You didn’t do anything wrong You did what you had to And you got Caleb out"

"Caleb" Fro to visit"

"You should see for yourself He owes you his life, and it’s a good one"

Hollis turned to face theain The tide had turned; Peter could see it in the man’s eyes A small flame of hope had been lit

"What about you, Michael? I knohat Peter thinks"

"Those were ot killed If there’s payback, I want it And if there’s a chance "

"It’s a big continent"

"It alas Never bothered me any"

Hollis looked at Lore "So what’s your opinion?"

The woood with the cards Tell aze to Michael, then back at Hollis "This isn’t a question of odds Of all the men in the world, that wo for you Staying alive any way she can until you find her That’s all that matters"

Everybody waited for what Hollis would next say

"You’re a real ballbuster, you know that?"

Lore grinned "Famous for it"

Another silence fell Then:

"Let s"

Chapter 44

The first snow fell on Alicia’s third night scouting the fringes of the city, fat flakes spiraling from an inky sky A clean, wintry cold had settled onto the earth The air felt hard and pure It h her body like a series of ss She would have liked to set a fire, but it ht be seen She warmed her hands with her breath, stamped her feet on the frozen earth when she felt sensation receding There was so suitable about it, this shock of cold; it had the taste of battle