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Trina dropped her hands from her face and looked at Alec "Mark, stand up and walk away from me"

"Trina …"

"Do it Now Go stand near Alec so I can see both of you"

Mark did as she asked He rejoined the man about ten feet away and turned to see that any trace of the crying, helpless, I-want-to-quit Trina was gone, replaced with the firot to her feet and folded her arot up on that Berg The suits those jerks earing, the darts, how quickly the people ere shot collapsed and got sick … Even before Lana told us anything, it was obvious so on The only person I’ve interacted as Darnell, but he knew to keep his distance He was the one who barricaded himself in that place and forced me to board it up"

She paused to take a breath and eyed each of them "My point is that I don’t think I’m sick Especially since it acted so quickly on everyone as"

"I can see that, but--" Alec began, but Trina cut hilare "I knoe need to be careful I could be sick I knoe’ve touched, but let’s try not to anymore Not until we’re totally sure And all three of us need to make new masks and to wash our hands and faces like crazy"

Mark liked that she was taking charge "Sounds good to reed "Nohere are the others? Lana, Misty, the Toad?"

Trina pointed in a few directions "Everyone is holed up so their distance Just to be safe until no one shows any signs of sickness Maybe another couple of days"

Sitting around for a day or two sounded like the worst idea possible to Mark "I’ll go nuts if we do that We found a workpad with a et out of here--reed," Alec chiet as far as we can froh he knehat they would say, it made him feel better to at least ask "Should we bury him?"

Trina’s and Alec’s eyes said it all They couldn’t risk being anywhere close to his body

"Take us to Lana and the others," Alec said to Trina "Then we go"

As they searched the town for their friends, Mark worried about people trying to join them But fear had struck deep, and no one dared venture out of their hoe was eerily quiet, but he could feel the eyes following him down the alleys and paths It didn’t surprise hiht about it The world had punished everyone enough--why should they risk bringing anything more upon themselves?

They collected Misty and the Toad fro cabin on the outskirts of town, across the village from the Leaner and its bodies Trina wasn’t sure where Lana would be They found her about an hour after they set out, sleeping behind some bushes by the river She was upset that they’d found her sleeping, but she’d worn herself out As soon as Mark and Alec had boarded the Berg and disappeared in the woods, she’d taken charge Quarantining people and getting the bodies in one place--she said they’d been sure to wear gloves anddeliver food from house to house No one in the settlement knew exactly what had happened, but Lana had insisted from the start that care needed to be taken in case they were dealing with soious

"I’m not sick," she concluded as they readied to leave the streae "It happened so quickly--and the ones who got sick afterward have already died I think I’d have symptoms by now"

"How fast?" Mark asked her "How fast did it take effect?"

"All but Darnell were dead within twelve hours," she replied "They woke up and showed symptoms within two or three I really think if anyone is still alive and syroup: The Toad, fidgeting nervously Misty, looking at the ground Alec and Lana, staring at each other intently in what appeared to be a silent conversation And Trina, looking at Mark Her eyes said it all--they were going to live through this just like they’d lived through everything else

They were back at the Shack an hour later, filling backpacks with as much food and supplies as they could carry As they worked, they kept their distance from each other Caution seemed to come naturally now Mark washed his hands at least three ti frenzy

They had just finished up, each of theroaned Mark turned to agree with her--the packs were heavy--but when he saw her face, his sto on a table with both hands Mark was stunned--the last tiave out and she collapsed to one knee She touched the side of her face, tentatively, almost as if she orried about what she’d feel there

"My … head hurts," she whispered

CHAPTER 13

"Everyone get out of here!" Lana yelled "Out! Now!"

Mark was speechless Everything in him wanted to do the opposite of what she’d just ordered He wanted to help his friend

"Get outside Then we can talk!" Lana insisted She pointed to the door

"Go," Misty said weakly "Do what she says"

Mark and Trina exchanged a look, but she only hesitated a second before ht on her heels, then Lana

Mark turned to leave but then noticed that the Toad hadn’t o out there and talk about this Misty, tell hiht, Toadie," she said She’d slipped her backpack to the floor and sat down next to it Mark couldn’t believe how quickly she’d gone froround, too weak to stand "Go and letweird" But Mark could tell she didn’t believe that

"We can’t just keep abandoning people," the Toad said, glaring at Mark

"Who cares what you do if it makes you end up dead!" Misty countered "Hoould you feel if it was reversed? You’d want ood chunk of her energy--she slumped and al her We’re just going outside to talk"

The Toad sto under his breath the whole way "This is all so messed up Totallyat the floor, taking long, deep breaths "Sorry" was all he could get out Then he joined the others

They decided to give her one hour They’d see what happened See if she got better or worse

Or if she stayed the sa hour Mark was unable to sit still He paced outside the Shack, worried on soits way through his system … it was unbearable And Trina’s, too He wanted to kno It was so overwhel that Misty could very well have it and die soon

"I think we need to readjust our outlook here," Lana said toward the end of their allotted tiotten worse--she still lay on the floor in the Shack, breathing evenly Not

"What do you rateful the silence had been broken