The Land of the Dead: Book Four of the Oz Chronicles by R.W. Ridley Page A

come get us,” she said.
    “Waiting sounds good,” April said. Her Throwaway mimic repeated what she said.
    I gave the matter some thought. Finally I said, “I agree with Lou.”
    She smiled.
    “Of course you do,” Gordy said. “She’s your girlfriend.”
    Lou looked terrified by his statement. I let out a sound that was either a laugh or a bark. Even I didn’t know what to call it. “Shut up,” I insisted.
    “Whatever,” he said. “I can tell you one thing, I’m not walking through this place by myself. You all are going with me.”
    “We’ll go in threes,” I said.
    “Fine, I get the gorillas,” Gordy said.
    “You go with Ariabod and April,” I said. “Ajax will go with Tyrone and Wes. Kimball is with me and Lou.”
    Gordy scowled at April. “Do me a favor and don’t yap the whole time.”
    “Fine,” she said. “As long as you aren’t a stupid jerk-face the whole time.”
    “Oh, my God. I so hope you piss the gorilla off and he snaps you in half,” Gordy groaned.
    “Okay,” I said. “April’s with me. Lou, you go with Gordy.”
    She looked surprised, but didn’t argue. She nodded and stood next to Gordy. April stuck her tongue out at him before moving next to me.
    “Everyone happy now?” I asked.
    “What about us?” Tall Boy asked.
    “Oh,” I said. I had almost forgotten about them. In fact, I realized that from the moment we first met it was very easy to forget that the Throwaways were there. “You guys should watch the front the door.”
    He scanned his group. None of them said a word, but they seemed to be having a conversation. He turned to me. “We feel that three is sufficient to watch the door. The rest of us would like to explore please.”
    I nodded. “Okay, fine. You pick who goes where.”
    “Me?”
    “You’re the leader, aren’t you?”
    He thought about the question. “Throwaways do not have leaders.”
    “Well, you do in this story. I dub you the leader of the Throwaways.”
    He smiled. “I will go with the fat man’s group.”
    Wes rolled his eyes and shook his head. “Name’s Wes.”
    The mimic huddled closer to April. “And I’m guessing she… I guess she’s a she… she’s going with us.”
    April tried to subtly put distance between her and the mimic, but it was pointless. The mimic matched her step for step. “Ewww,” she finally said. “It’s called personal space. Try it.”
    Gordy spoke up quickly, “Half-eye will go with us.” He wanted to make sure he wasn’t put in a group with No-face.
    Lou shook her head. “We really have to give you guys names.”
    “Okay,” Wes said. “We’ve grouped ourselves up. Who goes where?”
    “How many floors are in this place anyway?” Gordy asked.
    “Five, counting the basement,” Lou said.
    “Crap, there’s a basement?” Wes said. “Never good in a place like this.”
    I nodded and sighed deeply. “We’ll take the basement. Wes, you guys take the third and fourth floor. Lou…”
    “Main floor and second,” she said.
    I nodded and smiled.
    ***
     
    The basement was a maze of rooms and hallways. Kimball led our small group, and I brought up the rear. The mimic grabbed onto April’s arm the second we started to descend the staircase. April was so scared she didn’t care. In fact, she seemed to welcome it.
    We passed down a long stone hallway and rounded a corner that took us to a room labeled with a brass name plate that read “Halloween Room.” We paused. I closed my eyes and shook off the chill that was inching up my spine. “Go,” I said to Kimball.
    He did without looking back, traveling beyond the beam of the flashlight. April, Mimic, and I stood in the doorway. What we were waiting for, I don’t know, but Kimball stepped back into the light and barked. I walked into the room, turned back to April and said, “Nothing to be afraid of.”
    “You’re such a liar,” she said. She grabbed Mimic’s hand and took one cautious step inside.
    I scanned the flashlight around the