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"That’s irl" Mark reluctantly slid his ar over to look into her eyes "This is going to be really scary, okay? But then it’ll be over Stay close to--"

"I’ll be fine," she said, cutting him off A sudden fire burned in her eyes that o"

Mark felt a small smile on his lips "Perfect Let’s do it"

He took her hand and put it in Trina’s and squeezed therabbed his Transvice and positioned it firht behind et confirmation that they understood Trina see back into her eyes "Right behind er, then turned to face the foot of the stairs, where Alec maintained his position

Mark had taken two steps toward Alec, Deedee and Trina right on his heels, when theto their left suddenly exploded inward, a chunk of brick crashing to the floor in a shower of glass Deedee screa into Mark’s back Mark lurched forward but caught himself before he fell He pointed his Transvice at the broken here aalong the walls

Mark fired a burst fro a hole in the wall that sent up a strange cloud of dust He tried again and this tiray mass, then whiffed out of existence Two more people appeared where the man had been, but Mark could tell the strip of as too sh He turned away and ain toward the staircase, where Alec stood firm He took a shot at someone above even as Mark looked at him

"Got no choice but tohis eyes off the door "More of these psychos are probably arriving by the h he had no clue how they were going to get their group of four through the horde of Flare-infected irls in between us"

"Exactly I’ll go first, you take up the rear this tih these wackos"

Mark nodded and took a step back Trina seen that she reuided her to stand right beside Alec The irl, then started up the stairs Trina folloith Deedee in tow Mark went up backward, just in case soet into the base above

"Get out of our way!" Alec yelled "I start shooting in three seconds!"

The roar of activity increased, a cacophony of shouts and whistles and jeers and laughing Mark abandoned the idea of guarding their rear and looked up to see five or six faces packed together at the door, waiting for thery for violence He felt such a burgeoning fear in his chest that it was hard to breathe But he knew that if they could just get outside so chance

"Time’s up!" Alec roared Then he let out three quick blasts from his Transvice Tomen and a ed forward, screah the door in a ot off another couple of shots, but then it was tooand leaping and clawing

Alec fell backward into Trina and Deedee, who crashed into Mark The entire group tus And the infected caainst a step, then the wall, then the floor All while feet kicked and hands slapped and elbows jabbed at hi, pain-filledstilled, Trina and Alec were on his chest and Deedee was on his legs, squiret up Alec aardly tried to lift his Transvice to get off a shot but was suddenly tackled by a man who jumped fro hirabbed her and pulled her into a fierce hug, leaping out of the fray just as more people rained down from above Soon they were on top of Mark, a dozen orto rip hi on sheer desperation He twisted his body and tried to spin out of theit left and right to get people away fro voice, "Stop it! Everyone stop and listen to h the air and the cries and shouts and grunts co the stairs from top to bottom went silent All e--he scra at Trina, almost transfixed His back hit the wall across fro Deedee in her arht, Alec had freed hiical, hypnotic power The silence in the base of the occupants

"You all need to listen to me," she said more quietly There was a wildness in her eyes "I’m one of you now These o so they can do that"

This set off a chorus of hout the crowd Mark watched in sick fascination as they got to their feet, frantically whispering to each other, see to obey The people were bloody and filthy, but they started to act in an organized fashion Soon they were lined up on both sides of the stairs, leaving a clear path up the middle Mark could tell that those at the top were co the word It was all done with so like reverence

Trina turned toward Mark "Lead us up"

She still showed no sign of recognition in her eyes, and it stung in his heart once again He had no idea as going on or how she’d gotten this sea ofto waste the opportunity He jumped to his feet and held his Transvice at the ready, without overtly showing it as a threat He looked at Alec, who see his eyes He nodded at Mark to go first

Mark walked forward to the stairs and turned to Trina and Deedee "Let’s go up, then Co in his life that he believed less

They came to hi the little girl’s shoulders Alec ru back and forth at the lines of people on both sides of the stairs And the way he looked at theht for sure it was sohter than Mark’s