THE NEW GIRL

It was at this point that Max remembered the boy they sent in.

He managed to get to his feet and go there despite the way his body shook from the harrowing experience they had just been through, and surely enough, the lad was there, with his palms pressed against his ears and tears running down his cheeks as he lay curled up on the floor.

Max was touched by the sight in that instant. He plopped to the ground near the boy and took him in his arms, holding him close. At first, their contact startled him, and he shuddered in response to this unexpected touch, but then the lad relaxed when he saw it was him.

“You're fine now. They're both dead.” Max whispered. “Are you okay?”

The lad nodded, but Max held on for a while.

“Can you stand up, or are you okay?”

Sure enough, the boy could, and then Max led him forward, only to run into Kevin, who seemed to have been coming to check on them. Kneeling before him, Kevin grabbed his arms and looked him straight in the eye, asking if he was okay.

A