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“Baptists Baptists don’t drink”

“Ah” Rio looks deflated “You’re the first person I’ve

told”

“Not your friend with the unusual name?”

“Jenou? No, I” Rio sighs and begins to roll her trouser leg down over the new bandage “I feel likeNever mind Thanks for the—”

“I’ve noticed the men never want to talk about it About the war, you know, not fornication, they’ll talk about fornication any day But ask them about the war and they’ll flirt or talk about baseball Everyone complains, of course—”

“Of course,” Rio interjects, nodding

“But they never talk about what it was like before they et hurt and end up here with me”

“My father is the sa up he never talked about his war, not really He just said to find a good sergeant and stick close, which was good advice, but I don’t really knohat it was like for him in the first war”

“Men,” Frangie says

“Soldiers,” Rio counters

“Just because ht or smart, does it?”

Rio frowns “I don’t know I just know” She’s silent for a long tiear away “When souess I just don’t want to talk about it”

“You ad seduced, but you can’t talk about the war?”

“I guess that doesn’t make sense, does it? Maybe I’you know I inity before e But at the time” She trails off