folded them into a slip of paper and put it in my purse. Now all 1 had to do was stop by the bathroom on my way downstairs and grab bis toothbrush.
I was starting for the door when I noticed something on his bed. It was a button--one of those photo buttons you have made at carnivals. I moved to his bed, picked it up, and stared at the photo. Dirk and Amanda Culpepper stared back, it had obviously been taken at the carnival before everyone became zombies. My heart skipped. Dirk looked so happy. How could anybody be happy dating Amanda? I told myself it was too early in their relationship for him to know what a cow she was. Amanda's eyes burned defiance at me. It was as if she were saying, See how happy he is with me? Hell never be that happy with you.
Suddenly I felt I didn't belong there. It was like the air was being sucked from the room and I needed to get out or I'd never breathe again. I stuffed the button into my purse and hurried out.
As I stepped from the room into the corridor an icy zombie
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hand sprang from nowhere and seized me by the throat. I tried to scream, but the vise-like grip pressed against my windpipe.
"Hhhhh." The grip tightened, stilling whatever sound I was trying to make. I wriggled and writhed in an attempt to break free, but it was no use. The zombie had the strength often men.
I'd gotten careless. I knew better than to step into an empty corridor when zombies were around. I'd given my meat scraps to Sybil, and the walkie-talkie in my purse was useless since I couldn't scream. The end was near. I gasped and sputtered as my air supply dwindled. A thick fog settled over my mind, blanketing my thoughts. One thought was clear, though. In a moment I'd be dead.
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Chapter Twenty - one
As the light of life drained out of me, Amanda's face drifted up through the fog. It was the face on the button, burning defiance. The face came to life and laughed at me. "Poor, pathetic Margot. I'll miss your designated dodging." At that moment putrid zombie breath wafted up my nostrils, and the very real face of Dirk's sister came into view. She had once been a teenybopper with freckles and a close-cropped haircut she'd probably seen on one of her idols in Teen People magazine. Now she was a zombie.
And she was about to bite me.
I marshaled what strength I had left and swung with all my might. In my excitement over visiting Dirk's home I'd forgotten to give the bouquet of flowers to his mother. Good thing. The flowers now hit Dirk's sister in the face just as her teeth were about to make contact. She bit down hard, but instead of flesh she got a mouthful of thorny stems. Her jagged teeth cut through the bouquet like butter. Caarunchh!
The mouthful of flowers surprised her, and she eased her grip on my windpipe. Air and lucidity rushed in.
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I yanked away and raced down the hall.
"Weeeeeeeoooo," she cried as she staggered after me. I was at the landing when I remembered my mission: Dirk's toothbrush. I turned back and zipped up the corridor toward her. I dodged as she reached for me. After all, I was the designated dodger. I could dodge a soft rubber ball hurtling toward my head at fifty miles an hour. A slow-moving, teenybopper zombie was no match for me.
I ducked into the bathroom and slammed and latched the door behind me.
Kathump. The dead weight of Dirk's sister's body crashed into the door.
I moved to the counter. There were four toothbrushes on the rack. Finding Dirk's was going to be tough.
Kathump.
The ones that had been rinsed thoroughly after use belonged to the parents. That part was easy, but two gunky brushes remained.
Kathump.
One blue, one green. No giveaway there. I picked each up and examined it, slowly turning the brushes over in my hand.
Kathump.
Just then the walkie-talkie squealed. "Margot, we gotta go," came Baron's urgent voice. "Daddy didn't like the pot roast. He'd rather have Milton."
Kathump.
"I'll meet you at the front door. If I'm not there in thirty seconds make sure you leave it open," 1 called into the walkie.
"Ten-four."
At the tip of the green brush I spied aging flakes of red nail polish. Dirk's sister had used the polish to mark her brush.
Kathump.
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I stuffed Dirk's blue toothbrush into my purse and quickly