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“Arrow Leg Close the door They’re outside… in the woods” Dianne spoke haltingly as she struggled to re was slick and heavy with blood and she ground her teeth together as she rolled over, handing her rifle to Mark as she kicked the door shut with her right leg Mark furiously scrabbled with the latches before turning and sprinting for the kitchen, calling out for Tina in a loud stage whisper
“Dianne, what the—holy hell, what happened to you?!” Tina ran into the foyer and stared at Dianne lying on the floor for a few seconds before ju into action She reached down and helped Dianne up and onto the nearby bench, then knelt down to exa?”
Dianne waved Tina off, shaking her head “No time They’re outside They shot out the cameras with arrows as a distraction”
“They shot thereide
“They’ve got to be trying so else Where are Jacob and Josie?”
“In the kitchen with Jason Sarah’s watching out the back door, but—” A screah Tina’s words, chilling Dianne to the bone and et all about her pain Before she or Dianne could react, though, there was the sound of several gunshots followed by Sarah’s panicked shouting
“They’re on the back porch! They’re co in!”
Dianne lunged for her rifle, toppling from the bench in the process, while Tina snatched at the pistol on her waistband and charged back toward the kitchen and living room “Get them downstairs, hurry!” Tina shouted at Jason, as already up and out of his seat at the dining roo roo fro to stop theany farther
As Jason started to squeeze the trigger on his rifle to put h the back door, Tina swatted at the rifle, forcing it down to the ground as she shouted at hilancing at Jacob and Josie ere cowering in their chairs frounshots, then relented He threw his rifle over his shoulder and grabbed at both Jacob and Josie as Tina threw open the door to the basement
While the base thrown open by Tina, the back door to the house suddenly exploded inward, showering the living rooht and an overwhel it i roo on
While Dianne was stuck in the front of the house in severe pain, trying to hobble around through the s room from the opposite side of the kitchen, she was too late to be of any use With blood dripping steadily onto the wood floor as she pulled herself forward, she too was blinded by the flash and the ringing in her ears kept her fro into the living roo out one or reat and the reasShe had no idea how many invaders were about to pour into her house, and didn’t even know if she could aieneral direction of the back door
Several seconds later, the battle for the Waters’ hoh the back door, theirand dining roo the feet out fro them with zip-ties
“Is that all of the froh the back door As Dianne’s vision slowly returned to her she looked in his direction, realizing with no small amount of horror that he was the saas station coroup
He was of average height and build and sported a thick beard and a short-cropped haircut that gave him a scruffy but militant appearance He wore thick tan canvas pants, the same red t-shirt she had seen on hireen jacket, also ht bit of exposed skin she could see harbored thick layers of dirt, grease and grime and both he and his men smelled like they had never showered—even before the apocalypse Unlike the others, though, he didn’t carry a rifle, but he did have an oversized holster strapped to his leg containing a large, silver revolver whose barrel was sticking out through the bottom
“How many were there supposed to be, Michael?” One of the men turned to the hed