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The Forest of Hands and Teeth Chapter 18 Summary

How It All Goes Down

  • Mary doesn't tattle on Beth, but she still watches her like a hawk.
  • That night, the gang gets to a wide space in the path with a trunk smack dab in the middle.
  • There are letters in the top of it: XVIII. A light bulb appears over Mary's head as she remembers the letters Gabby wrote on the window: XIV.
  • Nobody knows what they mean, and nobody cares either, except the Marymeister.
  • Harry smashes the lock with an ax, and they grab the gear inside and decide to camp in the clearing.
  • Mary thinks about Gabby and what she looked like on her last night as a human.
  • More creepy Mary dreams: Cass and Jacob are on the other side of the fence, and Mary doesn't know who is with the zombies. Cass screams.
  • Mary wakes up, and Cass is still screaming…
  • Uh oh—Gabby's making a beeline for their fence. She doesn't break it down, though, and ends up just being big time scary for a bit.
  • The crew starts back down the path, leaving most of the zombie horde behind.
  • Except Gabby, who keeps up with them and creeps them out at every turn.
  • They figure that if she's still alive, it means the village is completely dead (or walking dead, anyhow).
  • Cass drops back and sobs away while Mary walks with Jacob.
  • He asks why Gabby is a super-zombie. Mary doesn't know, but she still thinks the Sisters caused it somehow.
  • They have to go through another gate to move on down the path. This one has XIX written above it.
  • Mary still wonders what in the world these letters are supposed to mean, and sneaks a glance at Gabby the super-zombie. She wishes she could talk with her.
  • Mary opens the gate, but Cass swoops in and tells her she's crazy because no one knows what's out there.
  • Nope, Mary answers, but it's the only way.
  • Everyone heads through the gate, including Beth who is starting to look like a sunken-eyed skeleton.
  • The other side of the gate has the letters XVIII on it, and suddenly there's a fork in the path (not a silver one, silly).
  • They decide to take the path furthest away from Gabrielle, who is smashing herself against the fence behind them.
  • They randomly make more decisions when the path splits again and again.
  • Then Harry stops. "It's a dead end," (18.43) he says. Bummer.