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I felt the gun twist out of h to look up and see Krissy holding the gun onup

He took off his flannel shirt and pressed it against a ound on his scalp, his hair matted with blood

She helped him to his feet They towered over me, Krissy with the Taser in her hand

I strained to move a liain, but I couldn’t organize theht in the eye

"David, if you’re still you at all, you knohy I’aze I tried to talk, tested a feords to get

"JohnJohn, I understand, and I’m sorry I don’t knohat came over me just now Really But I’m thinkin’ clear now It’s rasped the situation, with growing horror

"John," I said, eyes pleading "Please"

All I needed was for him to turn his back I had the utility knife Just hide it in my hand and, with a quick and decisive et the pistol away froirl After that, then she’d do whatever I wanted under the barrel of a gun

Everything would be fine

John took Krissy aside They whispered to each other while she kept the gun onup and down in her delicate hand

I tried to s I could feel theround my teeth so hard I felt like they would shatter

Gotta stay cool I couldn’t hear, but the girl was doing all the talking now, the bitch trying to convince John to do soreed, and came back to facethat was in Wexler was in you Maybe it still is, onna give onna put it on you, it’s nothin’ personal And on top of that, she’s gonna press the zappy thing against your skin while she does this So do not rab for her or anything, she’ll zap you and I’ll shoot you in the thigh Then I’ll come over there and kick you in the crotch repeatedly"

I showed no e now You get the Taser away froirl and i rushed into ht arm, I could flex the et it to respond

I focused everything on readying the limb for a quick, violent move A chop to the throat, make her drop the Taser

Krissy handed the pistol to John She caainst ht, she reached around her neck and took off her gold necklace, the one with the dangling cross

What the--?

She dropped the necklace overmy fist--

My stomach clenched, my hand frozen in midair

It’s poison They’ve coated it with sohthrough s and liver like acid

I thrashed away froot my hands up, but my coordination was even ht like a toddler My body convulsed, organs thrashing around inside like they were ut

I fell, hard

Hands onstopped

The seizure, or whatever the hell it was, ended abruptly I was tired, confused I blinked, trying to take inas if she had been cracked over the head with a pipe, dazed, out on her feet She bent down at the waist, breathing hard She voreasy feeling like I was rid of so unclean, like I had just passed a tapewor, sick shah to realize he’s beenout with his best friend’s mother

John stared at Krissy, terrified He turned onat me for?" I shouted "Go help her, you ass!"

John nodded, apparently convinced that I was fine Krissy was not fine Krissy was screa She went to her knees, then thrashed onto her back I scrarabbedis in her! Let me touch her, let it pass back into me and then shoother!"

"No It’s not She’s killing it"

"What?"

Krissy looked up at us with eyes that had turned bloodshot pink, sweat-soaked hair hanging down in strands There was a deep, black hatred in that stare so profound that it was like a punch in the gut

I had never seen anything approaching that look on a huence behind it was so hateful it was alien, unfeeling, unreasoning, infinitely terrible

I serve none but Korrok

A blue eye, in the darkness

He controlled you just like the cockroaches