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"I reckon you need her more than she needs you"

"Bullshit!"

"Not bullshit," she says, shaking her head and flicking ash into a sink filled with dirty plates and cups "I doubt she needs you at all"

Stupid woman

"Did you not hear me? She&039;s five years old I don&039;t even know if she can fight-"

"Of course she can fight We can all fight It&039;s instinctive"

"Okay, but what about food? What about keeping warets hurt?"

"She&039;ll survive"

"She&039;ll survive?! For Christ&039;s sake, Carol, she can&039;t even tie her own fucking shoelaces!"

Keith folds up hiscaught in the crossfire of our conversation I shake my head in disbelief and follow hi in the real world," Carol shouts after , so I don&039;t

We&039;re back in the van and ready toup The rain has eased, but the ground is still covered with puddles of dirty black rainwater that hide the potholes and debris and make it even more difficult to follow the roads than it was in the dark last night Keith es to avoid most of the obstructions, but when he oversteers to avoid an overturned trash can, one of the rear wheels clips soo a fewand hiss of air as a tire blows out

"Shit!" Keith curses, thu the wheel in frustration

"Got a spare?" I ask

"No idea"

He stops in the biggest patch of dry land we can find, and I get out Paul follows es to find the jack and other tools The spare&039;s underneath He starts to get it out While I&039; I walk over to the other side of the road to where the contents of someone&039;s front room have been strewn across the paveutter, and an expensive-looking rain-soaked sofa hangs precariously out of the broken bayBefore all this happened we each lived in relative privacy in individual brick-built boxes, e did and hoe did it hidden from view of the rest of the world by our walls, doors, and s Strange how the physical worlds of so many people are now as dilapidated and ruined as their emotional state There&039;s no privacy any we do is in full view and exposed There&039;s no longer any-

"McCoyne!" Carol shouts atway!"

I spin around quickly, but it&039;s too late Christ knohere he caht toward me He&039;s six foot tall and just as wide, and I can tell fro eyes that he&039;s a Brute like those I saw back at the cull site Does he not knoe&039;re on the same side?

"Wait," I try to say to him, "we&039;re-"

His bulk belies his rerabbed hold of my arm He spins me around, then throws me over and sla when he drops down onto s with a violent cough I try to shout for help, but there&039;s no noise co idiot," I hear Paul say I e to turnthe Brute with part of the jack from the van The Brute doesn&039;t react, barely even notices that he&039;s being hit He bears down on me, a bizarre mix of terror and excitee to squeak "I&039;ether, Paul and Carol pull hi him back, drop him on his backside, then scatter like they&039;ve just lit the fuse on a stick of dyna back until I hit the wall of the house behind rowl and looks at each of us in turn Then, painfully slowly, realization seeain Paul moves toward him with the jack, ready to attack Carol pulls hiravate him," she hisses "Just drop it and walk away He doesn&039;t knohat he&039;s doing"

Paul does as he&039;s told, dropping the heavy round Carol stands motionless as the Brute looks her up and down, her back pressed up against the van Then he slowly turns and slopes away He&039;s barelyelse catches his eye and he breaks into a slow, loping run

"What the hell was that all about?" I ask as I pickidea," Paul answers as he returns his attention to changing the tire I watch the Brute until he&039;s disappeared from view Did he think I was one of the tied? Are the Brutes really like us, or was he reacting to a difference between us?