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Kenny can’t believe what he’s hearing. “Is he trying to get himself killed?”
Ellis, standing in front of Kenny with his hands in his pockets, shrugs helplessly. “No, he’s just got it in his head that it has to be done and that means he has to do it.”
They walked away from the bar while Ellis was telling Kenny about Boyd’s plan, and now they’re standing in the middle of the road between the bar and the farm, flanked by trees on both sides. “There’s so many ways it could go wrong. What if it doesn’t work? What if it does work, and that pisses them off?”
Ellis shakes his head. “He just keeps saying he’ll run. He’s getting everybody ready to open their doors for him. Problem is, he’s not as fast as he used to be.” When Ellis was a kid, his dad was the strongest and fastest and bravest person he could imagine. In a lot of ways, he still is, but in a lot of other ways, Ellis has seen the toll this place has taken on him.
Kenny’s thinking about the time Boyd collapsed in the diner, and his mind is swimming with images of Boyd tripping and being overrun, Boyd being cut off from any exit. He presses his hands together to stop that train of thought from going any further, a habit he’s picked up ever since…he shakes his head, sharply. If Boyd dies, the town won’t survive it. It’s not worth the risk. “We have to tell him it’s a terrible idea.”
Ellis hesitates. His hands are still in his pockets, his shoulders hunched forward, and there’s a serious look in his dark eyes. “It’s maybe not a terrible idea.”
Kenny starts to protest, but Ellis holds up his hand, a gesture incredibly reminiscent of his father. “Look, I don’t like crazy plans either, but if we’re gonna go down in those tunnels, we need some way to fight back.” It’s broad daylight, but Ellis lowers his voice anyway and darts a glance toward the forest. “As long as they don’t see us coming, someone should be able to stab one and then get the fuck out of there in plenty of time. It just can’t be Dad.” He takes a deep breath. “It should be me.”
“No way,” says Kenny, immediately.
“Why not?” Ellis is well-aware that he’s outclassed by the monsters, all of them are, but he knows he’s got the speed and the nerve to carry out his dad’s plan. Stabbing a monster and then running would be easier than trying to save Roger and Patty from those lumbering dolls, easier than jumping out the second-story window of Colony House when it was invaded, easier than holding his mother’s body in the street. He’s not a fighter, never has been, but his flight instincts are well-honed. “I’m faster, I’m--”
“And you got stabbed, what, a week ago?”
Ellis’s hand goes to his ribs, automatically covering the spot where he has a nasty scar under his shirt. “Over two weeks ago, and it’s fine now. Healed fast.”
Kenny shakes his head. “No way,” he says again. “You can’t do that to your dad. You can’t do that to Fatima.”
“I’m not trying to get myself killed.”
“But what if you do?” Kenny’s voice rises. Ellis was barely conscious for it, but Kenny remembers the chaos and panic of that night in the clinic, Fatima frantic in her desperation, Boyd more afraid than Kenny had ever seen him. He doesn’t want to watch that happen again. Boyd is already counting the bullets in the sheriff’s station--if he loses Ellis, now? Kenny won’t be able to pick up those pieces.
Ellis’s shoulders tense, going up to his ears like he’s ready to argue. Then he deflates, his whole posture slumping, and looks up at the sky with his eyes screwed shut. “No, you’re right. You’re right. I can’t do that to her. Not right now.”
“Yeah,” says Kenny, relieved. “Also, Boyd would never agree to it.”
Ellis scratches the back of his head. “Probably not.” He pauses. “But I still think someone’s got to try.”
His eyes flick back to Kenny’s face, cautious and intense.
A pit settles in Kenny’s stomach. If Ellis shouldn’t take the risk, and Boyd shouldn’t either, then who’s left? Ice is spreading slowly down his spine. But he hears himself say, “I’ll do it.”
Ellis, for his part, doesn’t miss the way the blood drains out of Kenny’s face. He wants to go back to his own plan A. But Kenny’s right. He has to think about his wife. After what Fatima just went through, Ellis can’t be taking risks. They’ve made promises to each other--he doesn’t want to leave her alone.
And Kenny’s brave, and athletic, and a lot tougher than Ellis used to give him credit for. If Ellis can’t do it himself, there’s nobody else in town he’d trust enough. He knows his dad would feel the same.
“Dad’s still not going to like it,” Ellis says. “But I think, if we talk to him together…”
Kenny nods rapidly, pushing down a flicker of some ugly feeling. It’s just a fact, after all: Boyd would never let Ellis take a risk like this, but he might let Kenny. Kenny’s the deputy. This is his job. “Yeah. No, yeah. It should be me. I can do it.” He’s adjusting to the idea. Stab, run. It’s easy, right?
Besides, Kenny’s missed some of the worst nights the town has had these past few weeks. He was safe in the town when Colony House was invaded. He was safe in the settlement and couldn’t do anything to help his mom. It’s his turn.
“And if anyone deserves to make those motherfuckers bleed it’s you,” Ellis adds fiercely.
“They don’t have blood,” Kenny says, but yeah, he does want to drive a stake through the heart of one of the monsters. He wants to see it collapse at his feet.
“You know what I mean.”
“C’mon,” Kenny says, squaring his shoulders. Now that his mind’s made up, he wants night to fall as quickly as possible. “Let’s go talk to Boyd.”
They start to walk back towards the sheriff’s station, silent at first, both of them with their hands shoved in their pockets. After a moment, Kenny clears his throat. “You’ve seen these totem things in action. Do you think it’s going to…work?”
Ellis doesn’t answer right away. When Kenny looks over at him, he has a faraway look in his eyes, and his expression is tense. “Those dolls are really awful,” he says finally. “If it worked on them…yeah, I do think it’ll work.”
Kenny swallows, remembering Roger’s sewn-shut mouth. It has to work, because how much worse can things possibly get?
They round the corner, pass the bar. Ellis can see Jade through the window, still poring over the jumble of junk that’s the best plan they have. “And we’ll be watching you the whole time,” he says to Kenny. “If it doesn’t work--”
“If it doesn’t work, you keep the fucking door shut.”
The vehemence in his voice startles Ellis. Kenny has his jaw set, his eyes forward, like a soldier.
“Man, we’re not just going to watch if they--”
“Yes, you are, that’s the whole point of this.” Kenny stops walking, turning to face Ellis. “Look, if things go bad enough that I can’t get away, there’s not going to be anything you can do, either. We can’t afford to lose more than one person on this, especially not you or Boyd.”
Ellis’s chest feels tight. “I don’t want us to lose anyone on this.”
Kenny’s hand shoots out and grabs Ellis’s forearm. “Seriously, Ellis.”
Ellis holds his gaze. He really hates this. He doesn’t want to promise a damn thing. But Kenny looks deadly serious, almost desperate. “Okay,” Ellis finally. “Okay, I’ll keep the door shut. I’ll try to get Dad to keep the door shut.”
“Good,” says Kenny, squeezing Ellis’s arm and then releasing.
“If I think there’s nothing we can do,” Ellis adds, because he can’t not. He doesn’t care if Kenny wants to be alone out there. That’s not how Ellis does things--not until there’s nothing else to be done. He’d left Roger, after all. He knows hopeless when he sees it.
But God, he doesn’t want to see it tonight.
Kenny exhales, shakes his head a little, but doesn’t say anything else. They walk the rest of the way to the sheriff’s station, side by side, in silence.