My notes on Paula's Story

I didn't expect this story to be so long.

In the primary outlining and original drafting of Paula's story, I just had it be a story about her life adapting. That's all it was going to be. The story was meant to be short, like Michael's and Edith's, and an introduction to the "outside world."



I don't know what happened really. I remember talking about how difficult it was to pin down back in the beginning when I first started. This story kept going. I thought I would find an ending, and I actually wrote an ending several times. I had it ending with Brandon stepping up to take his rightful spot, which meant showing one of the rank fights. And also, all the side characters that we met (Angel, Kyrene, Maria, Mike- who we sort of met) were basically his posse, all leaders themselves.

But that ending didn't feel right. So I tested out continuing the story. And before long Alex wandered in there and asked to see Paula (because in my head they knew each other once- Alex is actually one very old character for me). What the hell do you tell a character who asks to meet another? "Hi, that's crazy. Thanks for making me insane."

Oddly, it worked out. I didn't plan that second part at all. After writing a lot, the plot became clear. And it's still not what I was intending. Mostly there, but with lots of room for improvement.


So, let's talk about clues, shall we?

First up, the most recent ones that I can remember.


Most everyone got distracted by Alex in this shot. I didn't want it to be too obvious, but I did want it to be there as an easter egg. Which was probably rather unfair of me since I didn't have many hidden easter egs this time around.


The other issue could also be that the picture was just too dark. On one computer monitor, I can't see them but one the two others I tried, I could see them. Jimmy and Kyrene are hanging out in the back, behind Paula and Alex.

There were other clues in that second part since they took off. First off, the distance covered. Alex had them nearly out of the city in a day while carrying her. That must have made me seem crazy. But I don't imagine Alex carried her. Kyrene probably did with her power.

All of Alex's suspicious behavior on the trip-- he knew Jimmy was right behind them. That's why he insisted that they leave the way they went in at the Labs and how he knew for sure that the Stranger wouldn't be getting back up again. Maybe that was a little dig even at Jimmy since Alex was already doing his dirty work dragging Paula off. He wasn't about to kill a man in front of her too so he left that for Jimmy and Kyrene.



Henri's power. He has a Fridge attached to a battery and electric lamps with no cords. Hints of his power. Paula has a memory of a man being electrified on the morning Henri gets up and makes bacon. Her mother also doesn't like bacon or cooked meats very much. As in-- at all. Maybe I'll get to that story someday as soon as I figure it out.


Jimmy's super side story and the tipping point. Jimmy is generally a quiet man, so he surprised me by speaking not once, but twice, to get his own posts. And in those posts, I found him watching Paula. Not just how Alex behaved around her, but he was watching her each time he encountered her in the second part. Possibly trying to decide if he could go through with it?

The tipping point happened to be the most confusing part. When he finds her in the old apartment. It is his old apartment, and her walking through it, violating his past that way is what causes the next part, where Alex appears at her door and puts her to sleep. Kudos to the people who got that intention from the muddled mess I made of it.

Jimmy has his own story somewhere in my head. He's a hard character to get to speak sometimes.




The Ending:

The ending kept shifting the closer I got to it. Every time I thought I nailed a piece down, the ending shifted.

At one point, the ending was going to be that Cheryl didn't make it. This was the original ending. I kept seeing Henri, Brandon, and Jimmy coming to tell Paula. The act of the three of them doing anything together would have been a sign. The truth is the three of them are always working together, but rarely seen in the same room working together. (Unless you count meal times where Brandon and Jimmy are passively working against Henri.)

I even wrote this scene out. Partially. It's in one of my notebooks. I don't think I ever typed it out. It seemed like the way to go. You know, you get a thought in your head and you think, "Well it can't end the other way, or that'll be too happy." So I was determined not to let Cheryl live.

But then one afternoon as I sat writing, Paula said, "This isn't supposed to happen. This isn't the way a story like mine is supposed to end." And I could feel the joy and grief behind the words. The strangest thing was seeing it taking place by Pat's house and with Jimmy in the background.

So Cheryl got spared, and I have yet to find out what she'll do in Wildlands. (Though can you imagine what she'll say if she ever meets Alex? I can already hear her in my head. "You let go of that?")



That ends Paula's story. No more crazy long stories I hope. I'd prefer to do them short and sweet! I'm intent on taking a month off, and then the first story I want to do will be a Rita story. That's the plan at least. See you here in a month! (Otherwise, I have a lot of reading to catch up on. So I'll be seeing you all at your blogs. *goes stalking*)


Edit to add: Oh, I did forget one thing, and while going through my files, I stumbled over it again.

Laura noticed this on Stephan's profile. Someone has a little crush. And just to add fuel to the Jimmy and Paula rumor:


The full picture.



Just a chance animation (as pretty much all the animations were in this shot except Jimmy and Paula's hug), but funny because it's something I somewhat see in my own head. I think Stephan might be a tiny bit jealous/worried. Read more!

Paula's Story Epilogue

"We're going to go see Pat first, aren't we?"

Brandon is a step ahead of Stephan and me, walking brusquely through the grass with fists at his side. He looks back at me, his clear blue eyes catching the light. There is something different about him. Maybe it's just that I haven't seen him in a couple of months. "Yes. I need to ask her something."

He continues on ahead of us, and I catch Stephan's eye. He pats at his pocket with a wide grin. "I knew we would. I brought some coins to get us a bottle or two to take back."

"A bottle or two? Won't we already have our hands full with the other stuff we came here to get?"


Stephan waves his hand. "There's always room for Pat's booze. I'll leave behind some things if I have to. Anyone else would understand."

I shake my head, but I still laugh. Over the past couple of months working with Stephan here and at the other villages he helps, I've learned that he's rather typically irrelevant but in a good way. He tries to let loose frequently, but he lacks the focus to follow through. Like the night he said he was determined to get me drunk. That didn't work out at all. We both ended up falling asleep against each other on the floor.


Brandon doesn't even waste time going into the bar. He walks around back to the garden and I wonder if he's already caught some of her thoughts and knew she was there. Stephan and I stay back at the fence as Brandon slips through and walks to the other side of the garden where Pat kneels on the ground caring for the fruit plants she uses to make her famous booze.

Stephan and I glance at each other, trying not to watch, but unable to turn away really. I look at my hands, oil and grime from the machines we have to constantly fix and upgrade worked in so deep that no amount of water or soap removes it. And I see Pat stand up to face Brandon, her eyes only on him. I assume he's talking, but I can't hear him, not with the leaves of the nearby plants rustling in the wind.


Quietly, I ask Stephan, "What do you think he needs to ask her?"

He gives a slight shrug with his shoulders. "To come home I'd guess."

That surprises me. "Why hasn't he just asked her before?"

"What makes you think he hasn't?" Stephan grins at me again.


Brandon and Pat still stand apart, her with her arms crossed and her shovel held onto tightly as she looks away from him. If I've noticed the changes, I'm sure she's noticed them too, and probably even more than me. Brandon has changed. He's finally accepting his place as the next leader, and maybe this is just one more step he needs to do.

It makes me think of Alex inexplicably. Brandon said he had word that Alex and Odessa made it home. Supposedly for his bravery helping to dispatch Killer, feared and loathed across the Lost Territory, Alex has earned extra respect. Which he may be too guilty or humble to accept.

I shove strands of hair out of my face, just as I hear a whistle. At first it passes through my ears as I watch Brandon and Pat, but Stephan gives me a gentle shove and points towards the front of the bar, the direction we came from.


Two people walk through the tall grass. The bright sun shines in my eyes and I can only glimpse their silhouettes at first, one man and a woman. I recognize the man though. With his smooth movements, even the whistle somehow, though I don't know when he's ever whistled near me. It's Jimmy walking up with a woman who stands up to his shoulder and is hardly thicker than his arm. Her hair is short, spiky, and dark. She freezes next to him, and I see him raise a hand to her shoulder as she lifts two hands to her mouth.

My own eyes start to sting and I nearly bite the inside of my lip so hard that I swear I taste some blood.

Stephan still stands behind me. "Are you okay?"

But the words don't register. My eyes stay on the frail form standing next to sturdy Jimmy. The only thing I can think is that it can't possibly be. I want to run, but if it isn't her, if it's just some woman with Jimmy, who never ever walks around with a woman on his arm, but if this one time it is some woman with him for once on his arm, my heart will break all over again. I'll never recover. It would be too cruel. Could Jimmy be that cruel?


"Paula, what is it?" Stephan reaches a hand forward and grips my shoulder, his fingers surprisingly strong. His voice carries enough that I see Brandon turn. Pat looks in my direction.

I shake my head and blink. "I think-- it's my mom."

"What? You mean-- your mom?" His voice lowers, and for a moment there's only the breeze between the two of us and then his hand's on my shoulder shoving me forward. "Well, go on."

My feet are heavy. I can't move forward, not until she starts towards me and then I'm sure it's her. Those skinny arms and legs, that short spiky hair, it doesn't look like her, but it is her. We meet in the grass at the side of the bar in front of the windows covered with the heavy curtains. She holds me close, her smile and tears in my hair. There isn't much to hold onto with her. My own tears fall onto her bony shoulders.


This isn't supposed to happen. This isn't the way a story like mine is supposed to end.

She pulls back and I can't think. We're still close, hands on each other as if the other might disappear. I want to know how, but I can't ask. Jimmy stands off to the side rubbing the back of his neck. Behind me, I hear foot steps on the grass. Brandon and Pat, with Stephan behind, have all stepped forward and are watching with large eyes. It's Brandon who asks, his eyes falling on Jimmy.

"How?"

"Aaron." Jimmy looks at me again. "I asked him to. I figured I owed you."

I don't know what to say. Mom pulls me close again and I close my eyes and I remember. That night at Henri's when Aaron showed up. I was in my room while they talked, and Mom's name came up. Did Jimmy know that Henri had already asked Aaron to do the same for him? Did Mom even know?

Mom shoves at her tears as she smiles at Brandon. "You must be Brandon."

That's all she says before he smiles and steps over to her to give her a hug, folding her into my new life.

**********************************

Okay, done for real for now.

More on Stephan. Also, inspired by Van's Profiles of Naroni Characters, I've done two more 10 facts. One for Pat and one for Brandon. Mostly in preparation for what I'm sure will be one of the next stories told.

But first, a break. I don't know what I'm going to do without having an update to prepare every week. D: I don't even play the game. What'll be my excuse for disappearing every Thursday and Friday now?

Well we're through with the story, but next week, I'll post up the notes, my intentions, and the things I didn't intend. As well as my finally official announcement.
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Chapter 44 End

"Alex?"

Alex stands in the hall with a hand on the back of his neck. When he sees me, I can see the guilt shade his normally bright face. We haven't had a chance to talk the entire trip. He was so busy tending to his daughter, holding her close and comforting her. I couldn't get in between that. She hardly spoke a word, but whispered in his ear. The only time I heard her voice was the time she laughed when I tripped over a root which made me laugh. The one bright spot in a dismal journey.

But now Alex looks tired. He closes his eyes and looks away from me. "I am sorry."

I step over to him and stand in front of him. He could easily look over my head, but he doesn't. "You did what you had to. Besides, Jimmy's made it clear that it was his idea anyway. He told Henri and Brandon."

Alex nods, still looking as if he were about to sit down on the ground. "Still."


I'm not quite sure what to do. He does look over my head then, and it hurts that he can't even look at me. But I don't really know what to say or to do. "So what now?"

"We will go home."

Brandon had warned me that Alex would end up leaving after this. That he was probably only in the Southlands because he was acting as a spy for Killer and needing help, not for training and relations building as he had originally said. "He has a life he'll probably have to get back to. I just thought you should know."


But even though I know, it does hurt a little. "I'll probably never see you again."

That does make him look down at me in surprise as if he hadn't expected that I would miss him. But how could I not after everything? Even if this adventure was not one of our high points.

He smiles, his lips tight, the bags under his green eyes looking even larger. "You might."

"I know, 'you never know,' right?" In the time it takes for me to roll my eyes, Alex has stepped forward and is hugging me tightly.




My face burried in his chest, I turn my head so that I can take a breath just as my arms reach up and hold onto him back. I close my eyes, and we stay that way locked together for a few blissful minutes. And then there's the sound of a soft throat clearing and cough down the hall. I open my eyes and it's Jimmy walking past without stopping to gawk. He goes to his room and shuts the door quietly, a soft reminder of the rest of the world.


We break apart, and I turn to head towards my room, but Alex gently stops me and plants one last kiss on the top of my head and a soft apology whispered into my hair. I can't speak to ask him to take it back or to absolve him. I just nod and we part. He slips back into his room with his daughter, and I go back to my room that I'm sharing with Kyrene.

I lie down on the bed and shut my eyes. My brain is still buzzing, thoughts whirling quickly like a tornado. But it's over. I'm almost back where I started from though I'd like to think I'm a little bit wiser and possibly with a somewhat newer understanding of the people around me who were such mysteries before.




"Mary was... a friend. She was probably your age when we met her. Also human. But, ah, she didn't make it."

"Killer?"

Brandon nodded, the muscles in his face pinching tightly at some memory. "She was important to both of us."


Epilogue -->
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Chapter 43 Return

"There they are. Alex, stay back."

Alex glances at Jimmy with a furrowed brow. Kyrene smoothly glides between Jimmy and Alex, gently tugging him and his daughter, Odessa, away. His eyes land on me for a moment before they glance past me, and then he goes with Kyrene, away from us.


I hesitate and turn to look in the direction Alex's eyes last faced and there I see them, both walking towards us, huge shadows coming from the village. Both of them broad shouldered with shadows covering their faces.

Jimmy grabs my arm and pulls me with him towards them. "You're okay, right?"

I glance from his arm up to his face as I follow along.

Jimmy gives me a soft shake. "You're fine, right? And you went willingly."


He emphasizes the last part, and it clicks. That's probably why Alex asked me even if he might have known that Jimmy wouldn't let him take me back. Technically, I did go willingly, and that's the thought I hold onto. My agreeing to go and help Alex save his daughter.

I nod. "I'm fine."

"Tell them that."

My short legs struggle to keep up with Jimmy's long ones. Kyrene and Alex are far enough behind us that I can't see them. It's just the four of us. Brandon pads over to me and wraps his arms around me just as Jimmy releases me and faces Henri. The tiny glimpse of Henri I catch before being enveloped in Brandon's hug doesn't look happy.

Brandon pulls back leaving his hands on my shoulders, "Are you okay, kid?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Jimmy stands in front of Henri quietly speaking so that even a few feet from them, I can't hear them. Henri stands in front of him with his arms crossed and his brows furrowed, the lines around his eyes deepened. The air is almost charged with the anger that nearly burns off him, but Jimmy faces him without cowering in the slightest.



Another faint tickle of memory-- is it really memory?-- plays in the forefront of my mind refusing to fully reveal itself to me. But the delicate memory is shoved away when Brandon blocks my view of them by stepping in front of me.


"Really?"

I nod, though I can feel my eyes stinging. "He got Killer."

That makes Brandon pause. His dark brows mimic Henri's making him look very much like him for a second but for his blue eyes shining in concern in a way Henri's would never.

There's a movement on the dirt path near the village, and I glance up surprised to see the young man, Stephan, that we met while on our way into the village. Our eyes meet and he returns my look with a smile of overfilled relief. He walks over to me right away, past Henri and Jimmy like they're just regular people.

"You're okay."


I glance from Stephan to Brandon, surprised that he hasn't said anything about the stranger. Brandon doesn't even look bothered. He looks from me to Stephan before he introduces us.

"I know you've met already. Stephan is Kyrene's little brother." Brandon nods towards Kyrene who still stands a way off with Alex. "He sent the message to me and Henri that you were here."


Stephan shrugs. "Kyrene told me to. It wasn't a big deal. She said they would be looking for you. Why is she standing all the way over there?"

Brandon and I lock eyes before I finally find my own voice. "Jimmy was sure Henri or Brandon might kill Alex."


Stephan looks from Brandon to me with a curt little nod and a lopsided smile as if he could completely understand. "Right. Well, the inn has room for all of you tonight. Hard to say no to the leader of the Southlands, but still. No bloodshed please. My reputation is on the line here."



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Chapter 42 Escape

The telepath hides in the corner of the room, hunkering down behind some barrels with her eyes on Jimmy.

Jimmy doesn't move at first. He stands staring at the body for another moment before he looks up and at me. "C'mon. We still need to get out of here." If he sees the telepath, he doesn't say anything. He doesn't even look at her. Without Killer, she's harmless. It's hard to imagine that she'd have anything left to fight for without him.

Kyrene stands in front of the door and glances back at us. "They're calming down. Still, there's a big group out there. We don't know what's been done to their heads."

There's a knock at the door that makes me jump. Even Kyrene gives a small flinch. But Jimmy stands still, staring at the door as he puts a hand on my shoulder.

"It's me! 'Nameless,'" the voice says with a chuckle. "I'll get you out."

Kyrene turns back to Jimmy with sharp eyes, and Jimmy nods. "It's him," he says. She opens the door and lets in the man offering help.


The sight of him is familiar though I cant place him or his name and if feels like I should know his name. But Jimmy trusts him. And Alex seems to as well. He scoops his daughter up into his arms and stands next to us ready to head out. Kyrene takes the rear and we walk back outside, past the crowds, without even an eye falling on us.

Once we're in the tunnels leading to the surface, the man with no name thanks Jimmy and Alex both. "Killer was like a parasite. Once he latches on, there is no easy removal."




The night air is cold even though I'm close to the fire. My body won't stop shaking and I'm not sure if it's the temperature or just because of what I've seen. This was different from that other time when I was standing on the balcony and watching the violence from three stories up. Back then I was still more Neutral than whatever I am now. I'm not a Wildlander, but maybe I'm adapting. To a point.

Alex sleeps nearby, his arm over his daughter. Kyrene also sleeps nearby the fire across from me. All of them have perfected sleeping quickly in odd places. My body still aches and I can't stop the shuddering.

Jimmy stands up on the edge of the darkness and the light. He leans against a tree with his arms crossed and his back to us. He's the first one to keep watch. Kyrene had tried to talk him out of it, but he'd refused. There hadn't been much discussion about it. Kyrene only nodded to him and gave a shrug to us because she did try. No one had bothered him after that.

He glances back at us before he takes a step into the woods. I'm sure he doesn't notice that I'm awake, but with him it's hard to tell what he notices with one of his looks. I stand up, my muscles burning and aching as I stretch them, and follow him over to that dark patch of woods away from the others. I don't know what I'm hoping to accomplish, and I feel foolish for doing it, but I softly call out to him.

"Jimmy?" Some part of me knows it's stupid, but it has to be done.


He's not far away when he pauses, lifting a hand to the bark of a tree next to him, but he doesn't look back at me. I wasn't honestly expecting that he'd stop, so it surprises me and the first thing that comes to my mind feels like it was ages ago, even though it was really only days.

"I'm sorry about the apartment." I stumble over the words and pause to get my breath not sure that he even knows what I'm talking about. Maybe I'm wrong, but he seemed so upset about my being in that apartment that it had to mean something to him.

"I just wanted to be alone and..." My voice trails off as the words disappear. I've never been one to have trouble finding words, but Jimmy doesn't make it easy.

He turns around and I can feel his eyes on me more than I can see them in the dark. He clears his throat and speaks quietly as if uncomfortable. "Paula, I need to pee. Would you just wait over there or turn or something?"

I bring my hand up to my mouth to stifle a nervous laugh and turn around, taking a few steps away from him. Jimmy seems like the last person to be concerned about doing his business in front of someone like me.

After a moment, the leaves behind me rustle and I turn to watch Jimmy step through into the half light of the campfire. At first we don't say anything. I don't move, and he stands near me though not exactly next to me without looking at me.

"You do realize," he says with a pause before glancing at me, "this was all my fault."


His mouth is in a straight line. I'm still not quite sure what happened yet. We haven't spoken about it at all. Maybe that's part of why I am standing here now in front of him in the dark when I should be sleeping.

I look down at the ground, a pebble under my toes bothering me. "Alex never said anything."

"He probably blames himself too."

"He gave me a chance to go back."

"You think I would've let him?"

The quiet between us prickles at me and I run a hand up my arm. "Who's Mary?"


Jimmy glances at me sharply then. He shakes his head. "Ask Brandon if he wants to share. When he's done being pissed at me."

There is something else there, and I'm not sure what. Between the two brothers, Jimmy is the one with the rank and power. He's the future leader and all. But I can still sense something other than a brotherly concern. "You say that like it matters if he gets pissed at you."

That makes the hint of a smile appear on his lips. "Oh yeah. 'Course it does. I'm just thinking about my future."

Perhaps it's just the air, but I find my hand rubbing at the back of my neck, massaging down the hairs. "What do you mean?"


"He's the next leader. Not me."

My mouth drops open slightly at that. I have to fight my mouth closed and work to swallow. But it makes sense hearing it from Jimmy. Brandon cares about people. He understands them better. He can't read minds on purpose, but still, catching thoughts gives him an advantage over whatever Jimmy does. Jimmy's mind is completely isolated, while Brandon's is a part of any group he's with. Who else would be better for the job than Brandon?

"If he hasn't decided to step up after this, I don't know what else I can do."



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***********************

I feel like I should keep quiet, but I will link to the entries from right after Paula got to Henri's. The first breakfast where Jimmy talks to Brandon about accepting his rank. And after breakfast where Brandon talks to Paula honestly about his rank.

Also, I have to say here that Qui totally called this way back in chapter 4. (See end comments. =o again!) I didn't even know then that Brandon was the one to actually be the leader. That chapter wasn't meant to be a hint, it was just a character and world building chapter.
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Chapter 41 Showdown

Without even a backwards glance at the rest of us, Jimmy leaps at the other man called Killer. Their bodies connect with a sickening thud.



The telepath hops back into the corner of the room with her eyes on the vicious fight in front of her. Her fingers slide up to her mouth as her eyes go wide and from my position not too far away I can almost hear her knees knocking together. This fight makes Alex's fight in the city look amateur.


Jimmy moves too fast for my eyes to really track. He's not much more than a blur. Killer tries to grab hold of him a few times, but Jimmy won't stay still long enough to be held. Each time Killer gets him, Jimmy slips out of his grip and delivers another blow. This is Jimmy cutting loose, really loose. This is probably him using his power, whatever it is, fighting with everything he's got. Jimmy manages to pull out a knife from somewhere on his person that's so smooth it looks as if it just appears in his hands. But his knife never cuts Killer's skin though Jimmy gives him no room to maneuver and keeps driving him around the room.


Beside me there's a soft grunt. I turn and Kyrene is struggling to keep the door closed. She holds it shut using her power, the exertion making beads of sweat appear on her brow.

"Kyrene?" My voice echos in the room, shaking with each reverberation back to me.

"The people-- the telepath is calling them. Alex, help."

But Alex has his hands full. I hear him speaking in a low voice to her with words I hardly understand. "Odessa," he says to her as he pats her and tries to pry her from his neck, but she won't let go. She cries when he tries to pull her off. Each loud whump from the fight and each grunt make her tighten her hold on Alex's neck until she's hanging off his neck and trying to climb up him into his arms.


There is a silence from the corner of the room where the telepath stands just past the fight. The woman with the clear eyes is watching Jimmy and the man closely with wide eyes though she stands at full height. She can't even be my age. She's so tiny, and with her short hair cut it makes her look no older than 13 or 14, but she's dangerous. Her age doesn't prevent her from calling all the people in the underground city on us. Her age doesn't matter.

Jimmy manages to swipe his knife along Killer's chest in a wide arc. The telepath winces. But no blood drips from Killer's chest, and I wonder if Jimmy actually missed. The fight isn't going well. These two could easily be at it forever.

I bite my lip hard. The bag we traveled with is still in my hands, not incredibly heavy, but enough. There is no thought to it when I toss the bag at her to distract her. She looks up at me, surprised, just as I'd hoped, and turned away from the fight and the door. I hope it's enough of a distraction, but something tells me that it isn't.


I've never attacked anyone before, and I'm sure that I won't be able to hit her hard enough to actually knock her out. Her mouth opens in a gasp as she raises a hand to defend herself. I throw my fists out hitting her in the arms and shoulders, each thump of my fist against her flesh making me sick. I'm not hurting her, I know I'm not, but she's at least too distracted to cause trouble. Unless she causes some trouble for me.

My arms get tired, but I still keep hitting her across the arms, driving her back towards the wall. I have no idea how much time passes, but I stop. We all stop as a quiet seems to fall across the entire room.


Near the center of the room, Jimmy has him. Some lucky shot must have sent Killer to the ground, and now he's completely at Jimmy's mercy. With the large knife that the man had been using, Jimmy slices him from hip to hip, sinking the large knife in deep enough that the blade disappears into the soft flesh of his belly.

I gasp, my hand rising to my mouth. Past them, Kyrene does the same, lifting her hand to her mouth though she doesn't make a sound, and Alex grabs his daughter. The girl next to me gasps and hides behind one of the columns, seeming less of a danger now.

Killer doesn't move. Jimmy stands over him. He spits on him. "That's for Mary."



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