move. Some of the bastards got to me. The girls ran away. Went up the ladder. I don’t blame them. There was just too many of the bastards. And some of them, they could climb. Yeah. Couldn’t believe that. Never seen it before. They tried to get up the ladder. Your friend, he pulled them down.’
Harry grunted in pain and his eyelids flickered. Ella tried to focus on the boy, not what had happened to him. She stared into his eyes so she wouldn’t have to look at the rest of him. She had caught a glimpse, though, just enough to see that his legs were missing.
‘Are
you
all right, Harry?’ she asked and immediately felt stupid. Of course he wasn’t all right.
‘
Are you all right, Harry?
’ he replied in his slightly sneery way. He couldn’t help himself.
‘You’re bleeding a lot.’
‘
You’re bleeding a lot
.’ His voice was feeble.
‘I hope you don’t die, but I don’t know what to do.’
‘
I don’t know what to do …
’ Harry paused, looked like he was going to cry. ‘Just hold my hand,’ he said.
Ella held his hand. It felt cold and was trembling. After a while it stopped trembling and Harry smiled.
‘Thank you,’ he said. ‘I’m glad you weren’t hurt.’
‘That was a good shot, Harry. You fixed that bloody father all right.’
‘
Fixed that bloody father
… Didn’t I just? BOOM!’ Harry laughed.
‘I think that was the last one,’ said Ella. ‘The grown-ups have all gone.’
‘
The grown-ups have all gone
,’ said Harry. This time not in a sneery way, but in a happy way, like it was a good thing. Which it was.
‘They’re someone else’s problem now,’ he added, and then he closed his eyes and didn’t say anything else, and his hand went stiff and Ella knew he was dead without having to check.
Harry was all right in the end.
She made her way across the barn. Not looking. Not looking. Too many bodies. Wanting to be sick. Wondering how she was even still moving. She found Scarface sprawled on his back, arms flung wide. His bandage had come off and there was a thin trail of blood where the father had dragged him. She pressed her ear to his chest like she’d done before. And, like before, she heard a faint beating. She put her hands on either side of his damp head and shook him. His face looked worse than ever. Like an old toy the dogs had left behind. Mangled and chewed out of shape. He was a thing. But he was an
alive
thing.
And he was all Ella had.
‘Come on,’ she said, shaking him harder. ‘You’re not dead. You can’t just lie there. You’re too big for me to move. We have to get away from here. I need you to look after me. You’re only an ugly old grown-up, an ugly old thing, but you looked after me before and you have to do it again. I’ll look after you, I’ll help make you well, we’ll look after each other – how about that? You need to wake up, though, you need to listen to me: I won’t let you die. I can’t have anyone else die, even if you are just a freak, a sicko, one of them, even if you can’t talk and you’re nouse as a friend. You’re just an ugly old hunter, a munter, a face-ache, but you’re
my
hunter. You’re
my
Face-Ache.’
A tear rolled down her face and fell on to Scarface, and she sniffed and wiped her nose. She hit his chest with her fists.
‘I don’t even know if you can hear me, but if you
can
hear me you can understand me, and if you could talk I don’t know what you’d say. I don’t know you, I don’t know who you are, so what would you say to me? You’d probably tell me to shut up and not be such a little girl. Well, I don’t mind what you think. I wouldn’t mind whatever you said as long as you’d just wake up and help me. Wake up, Face-Ache! Wake up!’
But he didn’t wake up.
It was no use. He was just lying there, slowly bleeding to death. Ella couldn’t help him. She couldn’t move him. All she could try to do was help herself.
She forced herself to stand up, turned her back on him and headed
Harry grunted in pain and his eyelids flickered. Ella tried to focus on the boy, not what had happened to him. She stared into his eyes so she wouldn’t have to look at the rest of him. She had caught a glimpse, though, just enough to see that his legs were missing.
‘Are
you
all right, Harry?’ she asked and immediately felt stupid. Of course he wasn’t all right.
‘
Are you all right, Harry?
’ he replied in his slightly sneery way. He couldn’t help himself.
‘You’re bleeding a lot.’
‘
You’re bleeding a lot
.’ His voice was feeble.
‘I hope you don’t die, but I don’t know what to do.’
‘
I don’t know what to do …
’ Harry paused, looked like he was going to cry. ‘Just hold my hand,’ he said.
Ella held his hand. It felt cold and was trembling. After a while it stopped trembling and Harry smiled.
‘Thank you,’ he said. ‘I’m glad you weren’t hurt.’
‘That was a good shot, Harry. You fixed that bloody father all right.’
‘
Fixed that bloody father
… Didn’t I just? BOOM!’ Harry laughed.
‘I think that was the last one,’ said Ella. ‘The grown-ups have all gone.’
‘
The grown-ups have all gone
,’ said Harry. This time not in a sneery way, but in a happy way, like it was a good thing. Which it was.
‘They’re someone else’s problem now,’ he added, and then he closed his eyes and didn’t say anything else, and his hand went stiff and Ella knew he was dead without having to check.
Harry was all right in the end.
She made her way across the barn. Not looking. Not looking. Too many bodies. Wanting to be sick. Wondering how she was even still moving. She found Scarface sprawled on his back, arms flung wide. His bandage had come off and there was a thin trail of blood where the father had dragged him. She pressed her ear to his chest like she’d done before. And, like before, she heard a faint beating. She put her hands on either side of his damp head and shook him. His face looked worse than ever. Like an old toy the dogs had left behind. Mangled and chewed out of shape. He was a thing. But he was an
alive
thing.
And he was all Ella had.
‘Come on,’ she said, shaking him harder. ‘You’re not dead. You can’t just lie there. You’re too big for me to move. We have to get away from here. I need you to look after me. You’re only an ugly old grown-up, an ugly old thing, but you looked after me before and you have to do it again. I’ll look after you, I’ll help make you well, we’ll look after each other – how about that? You need to wake up, though, you need to listen to me: I won’t let you die. I can’t have anyone else die, even if you are just a freak, a sicko, one of them, even if you can’t talk and you’re nouse as a friend. You’re just an ugly old hunter, a munter, a face-ache, but you’re
my
hunter. You’re
my
Face-Ache.’
A tear rolled down her face and fell on to Scarface, and she sniffed and wiped her nose. She hit his chest with her fists.
‘I don’t even know if you can hear me, but if you
can
hear me you can understand me, and if you could talk I don’t know what you’d say. I don’t know you, I don’t know who you are, so what would you say to me? You’d probably tell me to shut up and not be such a little girl. Well, I don’t mind what you think. I wouldn’t mind whatever you said as long as you’d just wake up and help me. Wake up, Face-Ache! Wake up!’
But he didn’t wake up.
It was no use. He was just lying there, slowly bleeding to death. Ella couldn’t help him. She couldn’t move him. All she could try to do was help herself.
She forced herself to stand up, turned her back on him and headed
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