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"Yeah," said Kowi "Tell him to come see me I want to be sure he’s okay with all this If he is, we can start planning to else today after thisout forHe obviously didn’t care she was sht, so I’ll see you later" I held my hand out for a fist bump and Kowi joined in Peter tried but fu before releasing hi," I shouted over o take a walk," I said, patting ?" yelled Peter

"Nowhere!" I said, lying my butt off "I’ll see you at lunch"

"Okay Later" Peter left going in the opposite direction

I practicedwhere I’d first seen Bodo with Nina I was going to give the harmonica inpterodactyls over tothat despite my best efforts, I still sounded like a herd of pachyder where I’d seen Bodo working with Nina a couple ti around near the banks and so for fish; but there were no big hawks that I could see I wasn’t sure what I’d expected, really A part of me had hoped to see her and another part didn’t really want that Maybe if she wasn’t here itfor a way to come home

I took my shirt off and wrapped it around my uninjured forearm Just in case Nina did come, I didn’t want her to tear h, but I figured it was better than nothing

I pulled the harmonica out of my pocket and stared at it for a few seconds It was the first time I’d really examined it since Winky had handed it to me Bodo had always kept it in his pocket, so I’d never really gotten a good look at it I turned it over, noticing a scrolling design on both sides It was like flowers and thorns ether with some stylized leaves

The instrument was heavy, much more so than the few toy harmonicas I’d had in my lifeti on one side caught ht it up closer to my face to see what it was, and was al at Bodo had etched a small heart with my name next to it into the metal

My heart squeezed uncoot sore with unshed tears I couldn’t look at it anymore or think about what it meant, so I lifted the instrument to my lips and blew on it

One clear note came out and echoed eerily across the swaators even flinched No hawks appeared on the horizon I stared up into the sky, looking for a tiny brown shape that ot closer, but there was nothing above hed At least the rain had finally let up

I blew on the har to make a tune out of a few of the insult to injury, I was reain that I have zero musical talent, even on an instrument that had only ten holes to blow into and no place to put fingers

I looked down again at my name and the heart scratched into thethe feel of its uneven surface under er Bodo had done this with his own hand at some point I wondered when Was it before he told me he loved me or after? Did he do it after I knew about Nina or before? What does it even o find him so I can tell him back

It was that simple for me I couldn’t have Bodo out there in the world so how I felt If he was dead, well, then he already knew, and I was going to have to be okay with that But until I knew that he kne I felt, I wasn’t going to rest

Lunch was filled with talk of setting up our defenses Paci and Fohi had designated themselves as leaders of the defense tea the other two call the shots I got the i boobytraps for canners

"Okay, so we need to map out the traps and make sure everyone knohere they are," said Paci

"Yeah If anyone we like goes into any of theonna feel like crap," said Fohi

I frowned "Are they going to be death traps? I thought you were just digging so"

Fohi smiled "Yeah … holes with sharpened sticks in the bottom, maybe" He snickered

I flinched at his bloodlust "Geez, Fohi Lighten up a little, would ya?"

He frowned at hten up on us?"

Jereht" His voice went up an octave "Excuse me, indian boys? Do you mind if we come into your swaonna be more like, ‘Hello, assholes Here’s a bullet for your face Now give h "Yeah, okay, so they’re not nice guys I’etting killed, you’re gonna feel bad Just like Fohi said"

Fohi jue h to fall into a trap we tell theet BAM Darinner"

"What if soht?"

"Darard" Fohi nodded his head

"What if soets where a trap is because they’re panicking?"

"Hopefully they’ll both get killed," said Jeremy

Fohi looked a little worried

Rob held up his hands "Okay, so it’s not perfect We’ll do whatever we can to ht in any traps But maybe Bryn has a point Not all of our traps have to be deadly Soht at oing to be able to execute hi for my answer

I stared back at him "Why is this all on ed "Just seemed like you didn’t do all that ith the canners you already killed Now you’re talking about having to killthe …"