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The man opened his mouth to speak, but no words ca," Jiht I really could use some sleep"
Chapter THIRTY
There would come a time, many years later, when Peter would recall the events surrounding the girl’s arrival as a series of dancelikefor brief periods into wider orbits, only to be drawn back again under the influence of soravity
When he’d coirl-soto seal off the wound and Caleb with the soaked compress in his hands-he’d felt not horror or surprise but a blast of pure recognition Here was the girl of the carousel; here was the girl of the hallway and the irl of the kiss and the closing door
The kiss In the long hours on the catwalk, standing the Mercy for Theo, Peter’s ain, to the puzzle of its , the kind of kiss it was Not a kiss like Sara’s, that night under the lights; not the kiss of a friend or even, strictly speaking, the chaste kiss of a child, though there had been so childlike about it: its furtive haste and eun, and the girl’s abrupt reversal, stepping back into the hallway before he could say a word and sealing the door in his face It was all of these and none, and it wasn’t until he’d co there that he understood what it was: a proirl who hadn’t any A kiss that said: I’ll find you
Now, hidden behind a stand of junipers at the base of the Sanctuary wall, Alicia and Peter watched Sanjay depart Ji odd about his ht, a directionless lassitude, as if he didn’t quite knohere to go or what to do with hiuard in the shade of the porch
Alicia shook her head "I don’t think we’re going to be able to talk our way past them"
"Come on," he said
He led her around to the rear of the building, a protected alleyway running between the Infir and its ere all bricked in, but behind a pile of empty crates was ato the base alone and he was still young enough to take enjoy, she’d let hi theoff the sides of the tube, then her voice froes of the door, he eased hi the bulkhead down over his head-a sudden, enveloping blackness; it had been part of the thrill, he recalled, to ride the chute in darkness-and let go
A quick, rattling plunge; he landed on his feet The room was as he recalled, full of crates and other supplies and to his right the old walk-in freezer with its wall of jars, and at the center the wide table, with its scale and tools and guttered candles Alicia was standing at the base of the stairs that led to the Infir her head upward into the shaft of light that fell froed, at the top, in full view of the porch Getting past the ould be the tricky part
Peter ascended first Near the top he peeked out, lifting his eyes over the final step The angle rong, he was too low, but he could hear theaway He turned back to Alicia, signaling his intentions, then quickly rose and moved furtively across the rooirl ake and sitting up That was the first thing he saw Her bloody clothing was gone, replaced by a thin gown that revealed the white swath of her dressing Sara, positioned on the edge of the narrow cot, was facing away; the girl’s wrist was in her hand
The girl’s eyes flicked up then,his own A burst of panicked movement: she yanked her hand away and scra his presence behind her, vaulted to her feet and spun to face him
"Flyers, Peter" Her whole body seemed clenched; she spoke in a hoarse whisper "How the hell did you get in here?"
"Through the baseirl had pulled herself into a ball, her knees defensively compressed to her chest to forown dran over her legs, which she was gripping with her hands
"What happened?" Alicia said "That shoulder was torn to shreds a few hours ago"
Only then did Sara’s posture relax She huffed a weary sigh and dropped onto one of the adjacent cots
"I ht as well tell you As far as I can see, she’s perfectly okay The wound is practically healed"
"How can that be?"
Sara shook her head "I can’t explain it I don’t think she wants anyone to know, though Sanjay was just in here with Jimmy Anybody coed "Maybe she’ll talk to you I can’t get a word out of her"
Peter heard this exchange only distantly; it see He hadat hile of her hair; he had the sense ofinto the presence of a skittish ani her
"Peter" This was Sara "What are youdoing?"
"You followed me Didn’t you?"
A tiny nod, almost imperceptible Yes I followed you
He lifted his face Sara was standing at the foot of the bed, staring at him
"She saved me," Peter explained "At the ave his eyes to the girl again "That’s right, isn’t it? You protected me You sent them away"
Yes I sent theling to assemble the story in his one The sht it was all over Then sheclimbed on top of me"
"She climbed on top of you"
He nodded "Yes, onit right, but that’s how it happened Next thing I knew, the sone She led me to a hallway and showed ot out"
For a e"
"Peter, why didn’t you tell anyone?"
He shrugged, at a loss He had no defense, at least not a good one "I should have I wasn’t even sure the whole thing had actually happened And once I didn’t say anything, it became harder and harder to actually do it"
"What if Sanjay finds out?"
The girl had inched her face above the barricade of her knees; she appeared to be studying hi of wildness was still there, an animal jitteriness in the way she moved and held herself But in the few minutes since they had entered the ward, a shift had occurred, a perceptible lessening of fear
"He’s not going to," Peter said
"Oh my God," a voice behind them said "It’s true"
They all turned to see Michael standing at the curtain
"Circuit, how did you get in here?" Alicia hissed "And keep your voice down"
"Sa down the alley" Michael irl He was clutching so in his hand "Seriously, who is that?"
"We don’t know," Sara said "She’s a Walker"