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When he ran out of arrows, he wrenched the wooden picnic table out of its decade-old rut in the ground and held it in front of him with one arm like a shield Volley after volley of arrows bounced o the tabletop and fell to the ground at his feet He just stooped, plucked, and red; arm like a shield Volley after volley of arrows bounced o the tabletop and fell to the ground at his feet He just stooped, plucked, and red; stooped, plucked, and red
The others had to get s with such force that the air around him sent the arrows back in the direction they had co Outcasts several at a tiain, her rakes spiraling like a samurai's swords
Arriane yanked Luce's old tire swing fro arrows into the fence, while Gabbe raced around, picking the out any Outcast who got too close, s sweetly as the arrows bit their skin
Daniel had commandeered the Prices' rusted iron horseshoes from under the porch He pitched the three of them senseless with one horseshoe as it ricocheted o their skulls Then he would pounce on them, slip the starshots from their bows, and drive the arrows into their hearts with his bare hands
At the edge of the deck, Luce caught sight of her father's storage shed and motioned for the other three to follow They rolled over the railing to the grass below and, ducking, hurried to the shed
They were almost at the entrance when Luce heard a quick whiz in the air Callie cried out in pain
"Callie!" Luce whirled around
But her friend was still there She was rubbing her shoulder where the arrow had grazed her, but otherwise, she was unhars!"
Luce reached out to touch her "How did you ?"
Callie shook her head
"Get down!" Shelby shouted
Luce dropped to her knees, tugging the others doith her and pulling the the dirty shadows of Luce's dad's tools, laer, and old sporting equiplistened and her lip was quivering
"I can't believe this is happening," she whispered, grabbing hold of Luce's arm "You don't kno sorry I am It's all my fault"
"It's not your fault," Luce said quickly Of course Shelby hadn't knoho Phil really was What he really wanted fro Luce knehat it was like to carry around guilt for doing so you didn't understand She wouldn't have wished it on anyone Least of all Shelby
"Where is he?" Shelby asked "I could kill that sorry-ass freak"
"No" Luce held Shelby back "You're not going out there You could get killed"
"I don't get it," Callie said "Why would anyone want to hurt you?"
That hen Miles stepped toward the entrance to the shed, into a bea one of Luce's father's kayaks over his head
"Nobody's going to hurt Luce," he said as he stepped outside with it
Right into the battle
"Miles!" Luce screamed "Come back--"
She rose to her feet to take o after hi the kayak right into one of the Outcasts
It was Phil
His blank eyes gaped and he cried out, falling to the grass as the kayak struck hiround
For an instant Miles looked proud of himself--and Luce felt a little bit proud too But then a short Outcast girl stepped forward, cocked her head like a dog listening to a silent whistle, raised her silver bow, and aimed point-blank at Miles's chest
"No mercy," she said tonelessly
Miles was defenseless against this strange girl, who looked like she had no understanding of mercy, not even for the nicest, most innocent kid in the world
"Stop!" Luce cried out, her heart pounding in her ears as she ran out of the shed She could sense the battle going on around her, but all she could see was that arrow, poised to enter Miles's chest Poised to kill yet another of her friends
The Outcast girl's head canted on her neck Her vacant eyes turned on Luce, then widened slightly, like, just as Arriane had said, she really could see the burning of Luce's soul
"Don't shoot him" Luce held out her hands in surrender "I'm the one you want"
Chapter Nineteen
THE TRUCE IS BROKEN
The Outcast girl lowered her bow When the arrow relaxed along its bowstring, the stringHer face was as calht, with clear, dewy skin, pale lips, and dimples even in the absence of a smile