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You’ve heard about Rebecca Ryh school in less than three months, ranked fifth in her class, and already accepted at Brown University, where she was planning to study law and follow in her father’s footsteps She’d been riding since she was old enough to walk; that’s how she was able to bridle that postarounds She was a real American hero—at least, that’s what all the papers and news sites say Even mine

If you’ll allow a reporter her brief moment of sentiment, I’d like to tell you about the Rebecca that I met, if only for a moment, in the words and the faces of her parents

Rebecca Ryirl She was petulant She was sulky She hated being asked to sit for her sisters on a Friday night, especially when there was a new Byron Bloo She liked to read trashy roht fro with the horses She stayed hoet ready for college and partially to be with the horses Because of that decision, she died, and her sisters lived She couldn’t save her grandparents or the men orked the ranch, but she saved her sisters, and in the end, what more could anyone have asked of her?

I told her parents she was dead That, if nothing else, qualifies me to say this:

Rebecca, you will be deeply ia Mason, March 17, 2040

Thirteen

The funeral services for Rebecca Ryrandparents were held a week after the convention at the fa or to allow faional authorities to downgrade the ranch froal to enter unarmed, but now at least nonmilitary personnel could enter unescorted The area would return to its original Level 7 designation if it could go three years without signs of further contamination Until then, even the kids would need to carry weapons at all times

Most public opinion held that it wouldn’tto drop; no family would choose to stay in a holorified hobby—that claimed the life of one of their children They said the ranch would be long deserted by the time that happened

I wish I could say that attitude was confined to the conservative fringe, but it wasn’t Within six hours of Rebecca’s death, half the children’s safety advocacy groups were claislation that wouldclasses or family farms; they wanted it shut down, shut do, and shut down hard It wasn’t a surprise to anyone but the Rymans, I think: Peter and E to the hter, and so they’d never considered what a boon her death would be to certain organizations Americans for the Children was the worst Its “Real and entirely sleazy, although its attempts to use pictures of Jeanne and Aal teaes of Rebecca with her horses—and of posta to dise thee

In the chaos and noise surrounding the outbreak at the ranch, it wasn’t really a surprise that Senator Ry mate barely made anyone’s radar, save for the hardcore politicos who couldn’t care less that people were dead and h I htly disappointed when it was announced that Governor Tate would accoood, balanced ticket; it would carrySenator Ryedy at the ranch had already put him twenty points up on his opponent in the early polls The Democratic candidate, Governor Frances Blackburn, was a solid politician with an excellent record of service, but she couldn’t coe heroine who sacrificed herself to save her sisters This early in the race, people weren’t voting for the candidate They were voting for his daughter And she inning

My team and I offered to head back to California until after the services While our contract with the senator said “constant access,” there’s a difference between honest reporting and playing the ghoul Let the local news filrade the equip says “crash course in working as a tea with amy mother on her home turf Shaun can seem like a minor natural disaster sometimes, but Mom’s always a seven point five on the Richter scale

That plan was scotched on the drawing board by Senator Ryman, who took me aside the day after the convention and inforreat deal to everyone if ould attend—and cover—the funeral Rebecca loved our coverage of the elections, and given his position as the Republican Party candidate, he knew there would be reporters trying to get in to report on the funeral This way, he’d know the press was reputable

What was I supposed to say? Buffy can order most of what she needs online, and they have Laundroht have been a sticking point was Rick, since he was still s out of the hotel that had been the base ca , and he’d done it without a e of Senator Ryman’s acceptance speech was top-notch, especially after we had cut it with the video feed of the assault on the ranch Our viewer nuhteen percent since the convention, and they’re still cli Rick to the teaedy, and well