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"Do you noro to the trouble of saving your life?"

Panting, I eye hiry red skin on the side of his teet offoverYeah Even that He knohat I aers itch to touch the flesh there Still After all this tione I feel a stab of regret that I couldn’t stick it out at Mount Haven That I couldn’t last there long enough to win their offer to reret, because then I remember how bad it was there--that they required me to kill a man I had to leave There was also the not-so-s With or withoutto my chest

I lost theuy

He looks away, releasingup the rock that I used to club hi it carefully between his hands

"Pretty resourceful for someone with a bullet in her shoulder" He arches a dark eyebrow as though i into a secure position and holding ht somehow control my pain My movements don’t do me any favors Fresh blood trickles warlance down at my knife, which he left beside aotten about it

He watchesto use that onhirunt of disco down on him makes me feel somewhat better "You want me to? Is that why you left it?"

"If it makes you feel better, keep it" Even as he says this, he doesn’t fool s here, a part of the unforgiving landscape A shadow of scruff brushes his jaw He hasn’t shaved in several days A wide-bris back behind his neck to protect him from the sun And yet he’s still sun-browned He wears an earth-colored poncho More protection froain They’re quality Made for this type of living If eking out an existence here could be called that But isn’t that all I can hope for at this point?

"What do you ith me?" I ask

"I can’t just want to help you?"

Maybe I could have believed that a few oodness of my fellow man But not anymore The world isn’t the sa with faith in the humanity of others Especially carriers

I nod to his pack "Kick that over here"

He glances fro his head, he starts to speak "You have real trust issues"

"Just kick it over here" After awhen I sharply instruct, "Don’t get too close Keep your distance"