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Mark took a quick look around and realized their prospects were gri roo his weapon when he could Several of thehie of people also ca to the kitchen--and they ca instead of attacking More infected stood between Mark and the door, blocking any escape And each one of them looked ready to kill or be killed

Mark held his arms up to protect Trina and Deedee, backed up and pressed theainst the wall by the stairs The first person to reach hi his head instead of hair He leaped into the air, co sound froray wall and then he was gone in a cloud of mist that washed over Mark

Mark’s entire body went cold The sound hadn’t coured out how to use the Transvice

The thought had barely forht shot past hiroup by the door

"Alec!" Mark yelled "So the other Transvice!"

The fear that prickled Mark’s skin was like nothing he’d ever felt, even after all the hellacious things they’d experienced since that day when all went dark in the subtrans Aaround with a weapon that could vaporize a huht vanish before he even realized what had happened

They had to get out of there

Even with their diseasedextraordinary was happening Panic rippled through the group, and every last person turned and ran for the front door Screams and hysterical cries for help filled the air The hallas a surging river of arether, straining toward the front of the house More shots rang out froue Transvice;He spun around and lifted Deedee into his arrabbed Trina’s shoulder and heaved her off the wall, pushed her away frohting He was surrounded by a mass of people--toobay s--the few in the house that were still intact He picked up a la it into a ht ar her elboith his left hand Without slowing, he sprinted straight for the opening; then he let go of Trina and dove, turning his body at the last second so that his back went first He hugged the girl tightly to his body, trying his best to protect her as he thuainst the hard-packed dirt of what had once been a flower bed The fall knocked the wind out of hiht sky and he saw Alec’s head poke out of the house

"You really have lost yourTrina climb out thebefore he’d finished the short sentence

He jumped down after Trina landed safely Then they were both helping Mark to his feet and Trina took Deedee back into her arms So; others were strea out the front door Screa each other outside

"I’ve had enough of this party," Alec gru his breath, and the four of the toward the street that would lead the Alec tried to take Deedee fro the strain of carrying the burden As for the little girl, her cries had been replaced at some point by silence There weren’t even any tears on her face

Mark looked behind hi away rando people to their wispy deaths He finally noticed the group running away down the street and fired off a couple of shots They ca into the paveave up, returned to killing closer quarry

Mark and his friends kept running When they passed the house full of sht of Trina and Deedee and the future He didn’t stop

CHAPTER 60

Finally they saw the Berg once again It rose up in the distance, uessed one of the beat-up old things could look Though each one of theht be their last, they didn’t slon, and soon the big hunk of scarred metal loomed above their heads

Mark didn’t kno in the world Trina had done it with Deedee in her arms the entire time But she’d refused to let anyone else help

"You … okay?" he asked her between deep breaths

She collapsed to the ground, spilling the girl next to her as gently as she could Trina looked up at hinition in her eyes "I’ us"

Mark knelt next to her, the pain creeping back into his heart now that the craziness of escaping was over "Trina, do you really not remember me?"

"You seem … faet the girl--she’s iet her to people who matter Before we’re all too insane to try"

Mark felt so turn in his sto way she’d said those last feords …

He knew that there was so with her And couldn’t he say the sa e door of the Berg lurched intoMark an excuse not to respond He watched as it lowered to the ground

Alec spoke loudly over the grinding gears and hydraulics "Let’s get theure out what to do with ourselves We ht be like those kooks we just ran away froirl," Mark said, so quietly he wondered if his friend even heard him

"What do you mean?" the man replied

"The scar on her aro Think about it Trina’s right She’s i"

Trina had perked up at the stateorously Mark’s heart sank a little bit more She just wasn’t quite there

Alec let out one of his infarunts "Well, unless you wanna swap bodies with her, I reckon it won’t do you a bit of good, noill it?"

"But maybe it could help others If they don’t already have a treatet on board before some of them crazies catch up to us"

And blast us with iving him a hard time about it

Alec headed for the ra Mark to deal with the two girls Mark reached for Trina’s hand

"Come on It’ll be nice and safe on board And there’s food, somewhere to rest Don’t worry You … can trust

Deedee stood up, her face still set in stone, and took Mark’s hand before Trina could The little girl looked at hi in her eyes almost made hiot to her feet

"I just hope the boogie ," she said in a distant, haunted voice Then she started walking toward the rahed and followed, Deedee in tow

The next few hours passed quietly as the sun sped toward the horizon and darkness fell on the land outside the Berg Alec flew the ship to the neighborhood where they’d parked before--it still seemed deserted Then they ate and prepared bunks for Trina and Deedee to get soht her with a line of drool on her chin at one point As he wiped it off, sadness once again welled up in his heart