Everwild

But the force of her expulsion from Mary's body had rattled her and made her weak--weak enough for Milos to grab her. They were both back in Everlost now. She was looking at him--not a fleshie, but Milos himself--and his expression was stone.

"You have made life very interesting, haven't you?"

Allie tried to pull free, but she was too weak now.

"You're not going anywhere but with me," Milos told her. "In case you forgot, you made me a promise, and you're going to keep it." Then he pulled her out of Graceland, and she didn't have the strength to resist.

CHAPTER 37 Sky Refugees

Joh

"You go first," said Joh

"No, you go first," echoed Charlie.

"No, you go first!"

"No, you!"

How they got here was a mixture of failure, triumph, and luck.

While Mary Hightower had made her way to Graceland for her momentous meeting with the Chocolate Ogre, her children attacked the train.

Joh

Joh

Ten minutes into the battle, however, Joh

"Keep them back!" he ordered. "Don't let them near the train." But there were simply too many of them. Joh

"Take coins," he told the others. "Everyone, take coins and put them into their hands. Do it!" But that backfired miserably, because every kid who grabbed a coin from the bucket couldn't resist the urge to grasp the coin themselves, and vanish. They were losing more of their own than the enemy.

It was over in less than twenty minutes. Their entire fighting force was backed up against the train, hands in the air, and the train itself had been captured. It took four Afterlights to hold Joh

"The Sniffer told us all about you, Joh

Joh

"C'mon!" he said to Charlie, and they both ran.

Mary's forces had captured the Chocolate Ogre's army and they had taken his train--but there was still one more means of transportation available for someone with the nerve to take it.

The Hindenburg was not too difficult to find, as it was taller than anything around it. There were still dozens of Mary's Afterlights holding it down with ropes, keeping it from being torn away by the brutal wind.

"There's a whole bunch of them, and only two of us," Charlie said. "I don't like those odds." But Joh

They wasted no time. Joh

"Let's go!" Joh

The airship's nose lifted higher as it caught more of the Everlost wind. Some Afterlights still dangled from the ropes, but they had the good sense to let go, and the zeppelin took to the sky, twisting and turning out of control, at the mercy of the wind. It was just the two of them in the giant craft. They hadn't been able to save the train, or Nick's army, but at least they saved the bucket of coins.

"Can you fly this thing?" Joh

"No," he answered, "but I got plenty of time to learn, doncha think?"

They fumbled their way through corridors until finally finding the bridge, and that's when they realized there was a problem.

There was a bar across the door, and that bar was held in place by a huge padlock. "Where's the key?" asked Charlie. "There's got to be a key."

Joh

"D'ya think we could break it?" asked Charlie. "Those fists of yours can do it, right?"

And although Joh

The airship rose into the clouds, slowly spi

"This was a bad idea," said Charlie.

"Shut up," said Joh

So now Joh

"You go first," said Joh

"No, you go first," echoed Charlie.

"No, you go first!"

"No, you!"

But neither one was willing to take a coin. Instead they both stared at each other as the Hindenburg drifted across the sky, each wondering who would be the first to blink.

CHAPTER 38 Last Train Out of Memphis

Milos raced as fast as he could with Allie, staying away from the living, just in case Allie found strength enough to skinjack and escape. He had no idea whether Mary's force had captured the train. If they hadn't, Allie would be a bargaining chip. If they had, Allie would be a valuable prisoner.