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“We can’t get the stabilizer out of here in time,” protested Flores. “The cart’s too heavy.”
“Yeah, but if we leave it and just run,” said Spider, “then we lose our only shot.”
They all flinched as a few bullets, fired by ravagers far down the slope, struck the billboard. They were wild shots, but it proved the closest of them were already in range. Time was boiling away.
All around them the wind howled louder than the wild men, roaring like a gale. It was as if the night itself had become so furious that it wanted to shriek as the drama entered its final, bloody act.
Dr. Morton tried to pull on the cart. “What are you idiots doing? We have to—”
“Shut up and listen,” Gutsy snapped as she hurried to the cart and grabbed a heavy bag of the stabilizer. “The Dòmi is already mixed in, right?”
“You know it is. So what?”
She reached down, tore a handful of grass out of the ground, and threw it at the doctor. He put a hand up to block it, but before he did, the wind whipped it away. Morton blinked at her, still confused.
“You said we needed a delivery system, right?”
Morton stared for a moment, and then his eyes went wide. “My God…”
Flores got it too, but he frowned. “It won’t work yet. Not against los muertos.”
“I know,” said Gutsy. “We need to let the wild men win.”
They all looked at the billboard.
“Up there,” said Benny.
“What if the wild men don’t reach you first?” asked Spider.
“Shamblers don’t climb,” said Gutsy, “and the reapers don’t have guns. They’d have to climb the ladder one at a time, and we’ll have the advantage.”
Chong shook his head. “Not against the ravagers,” he said sharply. “They’ll pick you off from the ground.”
As if to emphasize his point, another bullet struck the billboard ten feet above their heads.
“We’re out of other options,” Gutsy said determinedly. “You’re plan B. Now go, before we lose even this chance.”
Chong and Spider looked horrified. Flores was dubious and frightened. Only Morton was anxious to go.
“Let them try it,” he said quickly. “It might work.”
Flores gave him a look of utter contempt, but then he turned and shoved the cart toward the slope down to the paved road. Morton hurried after, limping and weak. Spider gave Gutsy a fierce hug and then turned, wiping tears from his eyes. He ran to catch up and threw his weight against the cumbersome cart, too. Gutsy ordered Sombra to go with Spider, and Benny told Grimm to protect Chong. Both dogs looked at each other and then ran to stand with Gutsy and Benny.
“Wait,” Gutsy said and ran over to the cart. She reached in, took two heavy bags, and tossed them to Benny before taking two more for herself. “Let’s go have some fun.”
Benny grinned. “You’re even crazier than I am.”
101
“I’LL TAKE AS MUCH AS I can carry to the top of that billboard,” Gutsy said quickly. “When the wild men get close, I’ll throw the Dòmi up into the wind.”
“You mean we’ll throw it,” Benny corrected.
She gave him a hard, steady look. “You do know what’s probably going to happen, even if I succeed, Benny. You should go help the others. You can keep them safe. You’re a better fighter.”
“And you’re smarter and maybe weirder,” he said, walking toward the ladder. “You want to go up first, or me?”
The monsters were coming. Wild howls filled the night to one side of the road, and ungodly moans tore the air everywhere else. The flatbed with the Raggedy Man was less than three hundred yards away.
