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Their situation was dire, but at least they wouldn’t starve Better to think about what to do next on a full stomach He sank his teeth into an apple It was flavorless, hard as a chunk of ice He polished it off in a frenzy, ja he could use to carry food back to the others In the corner he found a bucket full of copper wire He dumped the wire on the floor, filled the bucket with apples and potatoes, and returned to the street

He was instantly aware of sohter The moon? But there was no moon A prickle of alarm danced over his skin, then he heard the sound He turned his face away fro The sound was coines

He dropped the pail and raced up the block toward the cafe A line of vehicles was roaring toward hi, then a series of pops Jets of sno up around hih the door of the cafe just as a phalanx of guns opened fire, exploding the s Get down! he yelled, Get down!, but everybody already had He dove over the counter, landing on top of Lore, as holding her hands over her head The blaze of the vehicles’ headlights filled the roo pumped into the tiny room

"Michael! Where are you?"

His voice came from under one of the banquettes: "Who are they? What do they want?"

The question was rhetorical: whoever they were, they wanted to kill theain: "They’re with ot Lore!"

A pause in the shooting; then they opened fire again

"Can anybody see anything?"

"Three vehicles straight outside," Hollis called "More down the street!"

"Maybe we should surrender!" Michael yelled

"I don’t think these are the sort of people you surrender to!"

The roo pummeled Peter had only his pistol; he’d left his rifle by the door They’d never make it to the back, and the doors and ere boarded up, anyway The cafe was a death trap

"What do you want to do?" Hollis called

"Can Tifty move on his own?"

"I’m okay!"

Flattened to the floor, Peter swiveled his face to Lore "What do you have?"

She showed him her knife "Just this"

He aio on three! Soun!"

It arrived fro on top of theuns outside had fallen silent again Nobody out there was in any hurry

"Shooting our way out of here isn’t much of a plan," Lore said

"I’d be happy to hear a better one"

Peter was rising to his knees when Lore stopped him with a hand "Listen," she whispered

He heard footsteps crunching snow, followed by a tinkle of glass underfoot He raised a finger to his lips How ht suddenly It was their only chance There was no way to coo on his own He pointed to Lore, gesturing toward the far end of the counter, away fro the floor Peter holstered his pistol and compressed his body to a crouch When Lore was in position she looked at him, her face set, and nodded

"Help me," she moaned

Peter leapt to the top of the bar As the nearest man turned, Peter drew his pistol and fired at the backlit shape and sailed down upon the secondto the floor Peter’s pistol clattered away A ; the ood thirty pounds on him, but surprise was on Peter’s side A se a forearm around his adversary’s neck, Peter pulled hiun free of its holster, and shoved thesilver hair

"Tell them to hold fire!"

Fro directly at Michael, hidden beneath one of the tables His eyes grew very wide "Peter-"

"Ithe barrel deeper "Yell it, so everyone can hear"

The h not with pain The h

"Stand down!" a new voice said-a woman’s "Everybody cease fire!"

The secondon the floor with her back braced against one of the booths, her right arm held across her chest to clutch her wounded shoulder