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Speaker 1: Hey, this is Anny and Samantha. I'm welcome to stuff

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Speaker 1: I never told you a protection of iHeartRadio and welcome

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Speaker 1: once again to Sminty Fiction. As a reminder, this is

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Speaker 1: a once a month thing that we do. It is ongoing.

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Speaker 1: This is the second in a trilogy, in the Terminus trilogy.

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Speaker 1: It was originally called Big Things Start Small, but I

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Speaker 1: changed the name for ease. You can listen to this

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Speaker 1: without listening to all the other things. It won't make

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Speaker 1: much sense, but I can't tell you what to do.

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Speaker 1: You do what you want. Also, as always, Christina is

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Speaker 1: the one that makes these work. She makes He's amazing.

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Speaker 1: Thank you so much Christina for all the work you

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Speaker 1: put in. This is something that I wrote for Nana Raimo.

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Speaker 1: I believe this one was in twenty eleven and Nano

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Speaker 1: Raimo is national novel writing months are you. It's fifty

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Speaker 1: thousand words fifty or sixty in one month. And I

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Speaker 1: did the previous thing, Terminus, this one and then the

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Speaker 1: next one for that, and in that spirit, they are

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Speaker 1: lightly edited. I did edit some of this one, but

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Speaker 1: it's very light because I kind of like looking back

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Speaker 1: and seeing what was going on in my brain back then.

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Speaker 1: And this was when I was just first starting on SINTI,

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Speaker 1: so a lot of I was getting a lot of

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Speaker 1: different ideas. I was changing a lot of high viewed things.

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Speaker 1: So it's cool, it's cool to look back. So content

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Speaker 1: warning descriptions of violence, murder, memories of violence, non explicit

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Speaker 1: descriptions of panic and anxiety, dissociation, illness, into the world projection,

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Speaker 1: I would say, I would say it warn't so warning, honestly.

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Speaker 1: So here's where we are. Basically, the population is dying

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Speaker 1: out because of this virus that we learned at the end.

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Speaker 1: The first one was manufactured by a religious sect of

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Speaker 1: the government who believed that it was time basically that

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Speaker 1: God like punished people who they viewed had done wrong.

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Speaker 1: But of course it got out of hand. They created

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Speaker 1: a vaccine but then destroyed it all but two, and

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Speaker 1: they saved one for their grandson, Madison, who is the

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Speaker 1: main character's son, who she ran away with illegally because

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Speaker 1: in this world the birth of children is highly regulated

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Speaker 1: and controlled, and there was this whole confrontation. She met

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Speaker 1: up with a rebellion and then they weren't quite what

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Speaker 1: she thought they were. Tilda was able to broadcast this

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Speaker 1: message about what had happened through the broken network across

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Speaker 1: the US. And then they're on the run and they've

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Speaker 1: been pursued by people ever since. And in the last

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Speaker 1: chapter they were attacked by two men who basically seem

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Speaker 1: to be running their own town, and Tilda killed them

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Speaker 1: and Madison helped kill them, and so they are dealing

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Speaker 1: with the fallout of that. That is where we are

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Speaker 1: this chapter. Like most chapters, I'm so bad at length.

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Speaker 1: It got split up, so this first chapter is very introspective,

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Speaker 1: and then and the next one if you want to teaser,

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Speaker 1: there's a lot of drama and bad acting on my part.

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Speaker 1: I think come for that. If nothing else even better. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: but all right, let us get in to the fiction.

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Speaker 1: Tilda glanced behind them repeatedly, paranoid as they rode out

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Speaker 1: of Lafayette. They navigated through a maze of abandoned cars,

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Speaker 1: some with plants and trees growing out of them. Tilda

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Speaker 1: terrified to slow that she'd looked behind her and there

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Speaker 1: would be an army of righteous Ellis's and Jakes chasing

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Speaker 1: after them, vengeful and hungry for their blood. It took

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Speaker 1: a gust of cold wind for her to realize that

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Speaker 1: tears were silently streaming down her face, icy against her cheeks,

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Speaker 1: and Madison was shuddering against her, sobbing wildly. She didn't

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Speaker 1: slow down until Scout's pace faltered. Pushed to her limit,

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Speaker 1: Tilda allowed it, unsure how to approach Maddie since harsh

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Speaker 1: weeping when she felt so undone herself like coming unstuck.

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Speaker 1: The next town they came upon was in a horrible

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Speaker 1: irony called Ellistown. She pushed Scout as far as she

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Speaker 1: would go until she was down to a trot as

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Speaker 1: they passed through the dilapidated town that shared the name

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Speaker 1: of their attacker, not stopping even though Scout panted and

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Speaker 1: Tilda's throats seared with each gasping breath, air whistling as

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Speaker 1: she drug it into her lungs. Once Ellistown was sufficiently

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Speaker 1: behind them, Scout now barely able to muster an amble,

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Speaker 1: Tilda used the reins to guide her off the road

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Speaker 1: and down a short ditch and into the cover of

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Speaker 1: the trees. Coming to a stop next to a small stream,

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Speaker 1: Tilda practically fell off Scout's back, one lane crossing in

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Speaker 1: front of the other as she fought to maintain her balance.

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Speaker 1: Madison had his face pressed into Scout's mane. Tilda gave

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Speaker 1: him a moment before intoning his name, holding her hands

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Speaker 1: out for him. He ignored her at first, but then

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Speaker 1: raised tortured eyes to hers, wanting to understand. Needing safety

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Speaker 1: and comfort, he took Tilda's hands and hopped down. If

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Speaker 1: not for Tilda's grip, he would have fallen to his knees. Gingerly.

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Speaker 1: She wrapped her arms around his trembling body, and they

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Speaker 1: sunk to the forest floor, both crying quietly. Scout collapsed

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Speaker 1: heavily to her hind legs, drinking thirstily from the stream,

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Speaker 1: but all of that fell away until there was just

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Speaker 1: her son in her arms. Her son, hurt and sobbing,

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Speaker 1: she hugged him more tightly, her distress making it even

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Speaker 1: more difficult to breathe. She felt so weak and sore

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Speaker 1: and exposed. She fell back onto the snowy forest floor bonelessly,

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Speaker 1: and Madison followed, his face buried in the crook of

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Speaker 1: her neck. Laying half atop her chest. Tilda stared at

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Speaker 1: the gray sky until it filled her vision and became

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Speaker 1: her world, one hand bracing Madison's neck and the other

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Speaker 1: pressed against his back, soaked through her hair. Her skin

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Speaker 1: was painfully dry with the cold and remnants of tears.

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Speaker 1: An image flashed in her head, the look in Ellis's

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Speaker 1: eyes as he was choking the life out of her,

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Speaker 1: and she bolted upright, gasping and startling Madison. She pressed

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Speaker 1: her hand against her chest, willing the image away until

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Speaker 1: it was dregs at the frayed edges of her mind,

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Speaker 1: waiting to reform when she let her guard down. The

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Speaker 1: rifle felt heavy against her back, even though she was cold.

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Speaker 1: She was too tired to stand. She slipped off her

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Speaker 1: pack and clumsily unzipped its front pocket and pulled out

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Speaker 1: a bottle of water, desperately twisting at the cap, her

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Speaker 1: muscles screaming in protest, her fingers shaking, but to no avail.

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Speaker 1: She could have cried again with frustration. Gently, Madison popped

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Speaker 1: the bottle from her hand and twisted the cap off

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Speaker 1: for her, handing it back to Tilda. Her throat tightened

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Speaker 1: at the look on his face, but she bit her

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Speaker 1: emotions back, taking a careful swig of water, wincing as

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Speaker 1: the cold liquid blaze down her throat. Madison took a

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Speaker 1: bottle of his own sipping at it, his eyes, never

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Speaker 1: leaving Tilda, who shied away from the scrutiny. They sipped

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Speaker 1: their water, each slowly, Tilda grimacing at the contact with

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Speaker 1: the bruised tissue of her throat, contemplating and trying not to.

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Speaker 1: She had added a new layer, like a ring of

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Speaker 1: a tree formed by an earthquake. If people dissected her,

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Speaker 1: sliced her in half and could see the rings made

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Speaker 1: by her life, this event would have formed one born

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Speaker 1: of trauma. Or maybe she had lost a lair shed

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Speaker 1: it like skin she'd out groan, leaving her new skin

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Speaker 1: raw and red and painful and itchy, too tight and

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Speaker 1: too thin. But it would harden because she'd lost soft edges,

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Speaker 1: and baby skin coluses would grow in its place. She

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Speaker 1: would never be the same person. She could never go

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Speaker 1: back to what she was only a few hours earlier.

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Speaker 1: She mourned that person like a lost sister, someone she

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Speaker 1: so envied. And the fact that her son had seen

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Speaker 1: her murder two men made her feel even more exposed

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Speaker 1: and ugly, like a festering wound you wanted to look

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Speaker 1: away from but couldn't, so disgusting and vivid in its

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Speaker 1: awfulness that even when you found the will to look away,

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Speaker 1: acid bubbling in your throat and a sour taste in

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Speaker 1: your mouth. The image lingered, burnt into your retina. When

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Speaker 1: she'd shot the man in Chicago, she and Madison, she believed,

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Speaker 1: had been able to convince herself that the man had survived.

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Speaker 1: It had happened so quickly, with minimal blood and fuss.

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Speaker 1: He hadn't even made a sound. The killing of Ellis

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Speaker 1: and Jake had been a much more brutal and violent act,

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Speaker 1: long and messy, bringing to light a part of Tilda

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Speaker 1: that normally lived in the darkness, something hideous and sickening.

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Speaker 1: She'd heard them die, choking and gasping for breath, agonized.

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Speaker 1: She'd felt Ellis die, the sensation of the blade sliding

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Speaker 1: into his side tingling in her fingers, seeing the blank

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Speaker 1: emptiness left behind in Jake's eyes after he'd gone, and

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Speaker 1: Madison had. Madison lost a there too, of course he had.

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Speaker 1: He had no choice but to play a role as well,

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Speaker 1: jabbing the little pocket knife in Elis's back as he

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Speaker 1: watched the man strangle his mother. This would haunt his dreams.

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Speaker 1: He'd look at her and he'd see her stabbing Ellice,

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Speaker 1: once in the back and again in the side. He'd

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Speaker 1: always know that side of Tilda it existed, He'd never

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Speaker 1: feel safe with her as he once had. Her water finished,

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Speaker 1: Tilda looked at her gloves, shivering at the dried blood

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Speaker 1: hardening around the fingers. Gingerly, she inspected her throat, hissing

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Speaker 1: at the swollen flesh. She touched her face. It was

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Speaker 1: puffy and swollen, hot, even through her covered fingers. Madison

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Speaker 1: watched her every move, his eyes wide and bright and

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Speaker 1: blue and shining. Tilda felt a surge of rage at

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Speaker 1: Ellis and Jake for putting them in this situation, or

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Speaker 1: threatening them, for what they had planned for her, and

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Speaker 1: especially what they had planned her Madison, for ripping the

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Speaker 1: fabric of their already worn lives, but it was quickly

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Speaker 1: devetailed with grief. This world had made monsters of all

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Speaker 1: of them. Tilda knew they needed to talk about the

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Speaker 1: events that had just unfolded, but she had no idea

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Speaker 1: how to broach the topic. She was afraid of the

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Speaker 1: look she'd find in Madison's eyes, of what he'd say,

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Speaker 1: that he'd condemn her, and what could she say in response. Nevertheless,

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Speaker 1: she was an adult and his mother, and if they

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Speaker 1: were each other's anchors, the only other person in this lonely,

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Speaker 1: lonely world, she couldn't afford for their relationship to drift

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Speaker 1: apart and disintegrate, but she didn't have an inner to

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Speaker 1: do it right now, she was ground down and immaterial

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Speaker 1: and weak, unformed like smoke, and they were quickly losing

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Speaker 1: the light. Ellis was correct about that they needed to

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Speaker 1: find somewhere as much out of the way as possible

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Speaker 1: to stay for the night. Judging by Scout's countenance, she

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Speaker 1: didn't have much more left in her to get them

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Speaker 1: much farther. Tilda took a moment to gather her thoughts

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Speaker 1: and formulate the rough sketch of a plan. They'd find somewhere,

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Speaker 1: and then they'd talk. She promised herself she would not

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Speaker 1: back out. She would face what she'd done and allow

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Speaker 1: Madison to judge her actions as he saw fit. She'd

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Speaker 1: given him the tools, now she'd give him the truth

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Speaker 1: and hopefully the comfort he needed. First, they had to

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Speaker 1: get somewhere. She knew she should be hungry, but the

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Speaker 1: thought of eating made the heavy water curdling in her

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Speaker 1: stomach churn, clearing her throat painfully, she ground out in

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Speaker 1: a raspy voice filled with scratches. You hungry, Madison shook

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Speaker 1: his head, his breath catching. He broke her gaze, hunching

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Speaker 1: his shoulders and hugging himself around the waist. Tilda's heart twisted.

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Speaker 1: Replacing the empty bottle, She zipped her back and woozily

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Speaker 1: used a tree trunk to stand, going over to Scout

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Speaker 1: and rubbing her neck. You got a little more, any girl,

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Speaker 1: she murmured, rough like sandpaper, Just a little bit further.

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Speaker 1: Scout's big black eyes did not waver from her face.

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Speaker 1: She pushed herself up on her legs. Wearily, Tilda pressed

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Speaker 1: her forehead to the horse's neck, grateful, retrieving some pellets

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Speaker 1: from the stowed away pouch and feeding them to her.

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Speaker 1: Come on, Madison, The boy stood and climbed up onto

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Speaker 1: Scout's back without Tilda's help. She tried not to feel

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Speaker 1: stung by it, but she'd gone largely numb emotionally anyway.

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Speaker 1: She hoisted herself up behind him, her body throbbing like

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Speaker 1: a big, painful bruise, and she guided Scout back onto

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Speaker 1: the asphalt, ignoring the muffled fears screaming to be recognized.

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Speaker 1: She felt so alert, her heart pumping far too quickly,

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Speaker 1: everything around them in sharp detail, sickeningly in focus. Not

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00:14:02,440 --> 00:14:05,000
Speaker 1: too far ahead, they ran into a smaller highway heading

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Speaker 1: west to Seneca Hollow Route six three six. Tilda took it,

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00:14:10,200 --> 00:14:12,560
Speaker 1: deeming that getting off this road would hopefully throw off

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Speaker 1: any of Ellis and Jake's people that would surely come

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00:14:15,040 --> 00:14:19,520
Speaker 1: looking for them, thirsting for revenge. Six three six sloped

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00:14:19,560 --> 00:14:23,000
Speaker 1: downward and took a hairpin turn left, running parallel to

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00:14:23,040 --> 00:14:25,440
Speaker 1: both the highway that they'd just been on and the

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00:14:25,520 --> 00:14:30,400
Speaker 1: Roanoke River. The sun sank lower and lower on the horizon,

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00:14:30,480 --> 00:14:32,960
Speaker 1: indigo rays of light peeking over the edge. As the

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00:14:33,040 --> 00:14:36,400
Speaker 1: daylight faded, the road crossed over the river, converting to

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00:14:36,440 --> 00:14:38,800
Speaker 1: a one lane road over a muted roar of water,

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00:14:39,400 --> 00:14:41,480
Speaker 1: and on the other side was a set of train tracks,

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00:14:41,640 --> 00:14:44,880
Speaker 1: rusted and warped with time. They were obviously not still

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00:14:44,920 --> 00:14:47,360
Speaker 1: in use, like those that originated from DC, like the

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00:14:47,400 --> 00:14:50,640
Speaker 1: heads of a hydra. A little while after the railroad,

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00:14:50,760 --> 00:14:54,040
Speaker 1: Tilda spotted a mailbox reading Echo Hills Farms, an ornate

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00:14:54,040 --> 00:14:56,760
Speaker 1: pig on top of it, the wood painted a bright red.

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00:14:57,600 --> 00:15:00,440
Speaker 1: She took a gamble the night nearly gone, that there

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Speaker 1: would be a secluded farmhouse up the dirt road. Scout

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00:15:03,560 --> 00:15:05,920
Speaker 1: was reduced to a slow trot, her neck bent towards

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00:15:05,920 --> 00:15:09,160
Speaker 1: the ground as they trekked upward through rows of dead corn,

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00:15:09,320 --> 00:15:13,520
Speaker 1: bleached brown and rustling in the quiet, still air. The

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00:15:13,560 --> 00:15:16,600
Speaker 1: sun was halfway hidden behind the horizon. When two buildings,

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00:15:16,720 --> 00:15:19,440
Speaker 1: both of them large, and a silo, came into view.

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Speaker 1: Tilda felt a muted relief, but also fear people could

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00:15:23,560 --> 00:15:26,080
Speaker 1: still be living here, or perhaps people from Ellis's and

240
00:15:26,160 --> 00:15:29,800
Speaker 1: Jake's crew used this as an outpost. The farmhouse and

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00:15:29,840 --> 00:15:33,040
Speaker 1: silo made an odd silhouette against the indigo sky, stars

242
00:15:33,080 --> 00:15:36,160
Speaker 1: already prickling through the fabric of the night, the crescent

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00:15:36,200 --> 00:15:41,240
Speaker 1: moon cutting sharply overhead. Tilda pulled an exhausted Scout to

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00:15:41,280 --> 00:15:43,440
Speaker 1: a halt right outside the stairs and slid off the

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00:15:43,480 --> 00:15:47,120
Speaker 1: horse to her feet, and Madison followed without asking. Tilda

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00:15:47,200 --> 00:15:49,480
Speaker 1: muttered for him to wait with Scout and crept up

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00:15:49,520 --> 00:15:53,040
Speaker 1: the stairs, boots heavy and loud against the wood. She

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00:15:53,200 --> 00:15:55,320
Speaker 1: was on the landing of a wide porch, complete with

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00:15:55,360 --> 00:15:58,480
Speaker 1: what must have once been an ornate rocking chair. The

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00:15:58,520 --> 00:16:02,680
Speaker 1: outside wall lined with wind windows. Tilda tried to peek inside,

251
00:16:02,680 --> 00:16:05,440
Speaker 1: but could only see vague outlines and shapes through the thick,

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00:16:05,560 --> 00:16:09,880
Speaker 1: moldy satin curtains. With bated breath that burned in her throat,

253
00:16:10,040 --> 00:16:12,720
Speaker 1: she took hold of the curled gold blacquered handle and

254
00:16:12,760 --> 00:16:16,680
Speaker 1: pushed the top button. It didn't budge. Tilda's mind went

255
00:16:16,720 --> 00:16:19,680
Speaker 1: frighteningly blank. No backup plans other than the two other

256
00:16:19,760 --> 00:16:22,640
Speaker 1: buildings of this complex that were probably locked as well,

257
00:16:22,920 --> 00:16:25,160
Speaker 1: breaking in a window and letting in the cold air.

258
00:16:26,880 --> 00:16:30,400
Speaker 1: But then a memory solidified in her mind, fuzzy edges.

259
00:16:31,080 --> 00:16:33,800
Speaker 1: She looked down at the thick, burlapped covered doormat that

260
00:16:33,880 --> 00:16:38,200
Speaker 1: read home, Sweet Home, and flowery cursive. She bent down

261
00:16:38,240 --> 00:16:40,880
Speaker 1: and reached beneath it, her hand running against the small

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00:16:40,920 --> 00:16:44,040
Speaker 1: plastic rectangle she'd been hoping for but didn't imagine she'd

263
00:16:44,080 --> 00:16:48,760
Speaker 1: really find. The darkness had increased rapidly, black, overtaking the

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00:16:48,840 --> 00:16:51,840
Speaker 1: hues of blue and indigo, making it hard for Tilda's

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00:16:51,840 --> 00:16:54,840
Speaker 1: gloved hands to open the black box she'd retrieved, But

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00:16:54,920 --> 00:16:57,120
Speaker 1: eventually she found the class on the side and it

267
00:16:57,120 --> 00:17:00,840
Speaker 1: popped open. A silver metal key glint with the faint

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00:17:00,920 --> 00:17:03,840
Speaker 1: light of the moon with the shaky breath, she once

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00:17:03,880 --> 00:17:06,720
Speaker 1: again stood, the blood rushing to her head, making her dizzy.

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00:17:07,200 --> 00:17:09,159
Speaker 1: She fumbled with the key and the lock for a

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00:17:09,200 --> 00:17:11,800
Speaker 1: few seconds, at first trying to force it in the

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00:17:11,800 --> 00:17:14,600
Speaker 1: wrong way. She flipped it over and splid it home

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00:17:14,640 --> 00:17:17,720
Speaker 1: with the satisfying click and crunch of tumblers. Twisting it

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00:17:17,840 --> 00:17:23,040
Speaker 1: left and the door cracked open. Nervously, she pushed the

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00:17:23,080 --> 00:17:25,760
Speaker 1: stained glass door all the way ajar tensing at the

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00:17:25,760 --> 00:17:29,119
Speaker 1: squeaking creek of the hinges. The air inside was stale,

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00:17:29,160 --> 00:17:32,439
Speaker 1: but relatively free of odor, apart from old wood. She

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00:17:32,520 --> 00:17:34,800
Speaker 1: looked back at Madison and Scout, wondering if it was

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00:17:34,840 --> 00:17:37,200
Speaker 1: safe for them to come inside before she'd properly checked

280
00:17:37,240 --> 00:17:41,399
Speaker 1: the place out. The house was huge, so huge that

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00:17:41,440 --> 00:17:43,679
Speaker 1: it could take another hour in this darkness, so she

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00:17:43,760 --> 00:17:46,120
Speaker 1: gestured for Madison to lead the horse up the stairs

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Speaker 1: and told him to wait next to the doorway after

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00:17:48,440 --> 00:17:51,159
Speaker 1: she'd closed the colorful glass door behind them and locked it.

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00:17:51,960 --> 00:17:56,040
Speaker 1: Listen for me, she instructed, quietly, in case I find something.

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00:17:57,359 --> 00:18:00,480
Speaker 1: The house was wide open, large rooms and open spaces,

287
00:18:00,600 --> 00:18:04,280
Speaker 1: vaulted ceilings at least ten feet high. It was filled

288
00:18:04,280 --> 00:18:07,280
Speaker 1: with things that indicated a once wealthy family. There was

289
00:18:07,320 --> 00:18:09,280
Speaker 1: a black piano in the corner of the room. They

290
00:18:09,359 --> 00:18:12,800
Speaker 1: first found themselves in a multi tiered chandelier hanging from

291
00:18:12,800 --> 00:18:16,359
Speaker 1: a gold chain attached to the ceiling. The floors were chestnut,

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00:18:16,600 --> 00:18:21,439
Speaker 1: still waxy, reflecting the light of the silver moon, nice chairs,

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00:18:21,480 --> 00:18:25,000
Speaker 1: stone carvings of horses and pigs, shelves of books. The

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00:18:25,080 --> 00:18:28,280
Speaker 1: windows were tall, white framed, and spanned almost the entire

295
00:18:28,400 --> 00:18:31,600
Speaker 1: north and south facing walls. Thick red satin curtains draped

296
00:18:31,600 --> 00:18:36,120
Speaker 1: over them. She passed through that room into the next one,

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00:18:36,160 --> 00:18:39,359
Speaker 1: a rectangular dining room with a twelve person mahogany table,

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00:18:39,440 --> 00:18:42,240
Speaker 1: five chairs along each long end and two at each

299
00:18:42,280 --> 00:18:45,640
Speaker 1: respective head of the table. The chairs were hand carved,

300
00:18:46,160 --> 00:18:50,159
Speaker 1: are the very least they appeared to be. The table

301
00:18:50,280 --> 00:18:54,479
Speaker 1: was draped with a lacy white tablecloth, long scents covered

302
00:18:54,480 --> 00:18:58,800
Speaker 1: in mold. It was still set forks and knives and

303
00:18:58,840 --> 00:19:02,320
Speaker 1: plates and glasses. There was a china cabinet in the room,

304
00:19:02,400 --> 00:19:06,119
Speaker 1: filled with china blue and white fancy plate settings for

305
00:19:06,160 --> 00:19:10,639
Speaker 1: special occasions that would never be used again. Through the

306
00:19:10,680 --> 00:19:13,000
Speaker 1: wide doorway next to the cabinet was the kitchen. A

307
00:19:13,040 --> 00:19:16,040
Speaker 1: mirror of the dining room size and layout wise. A

308
00:19:16,040 --> 00:19:19,520
Speaker 1: blue speckled marbled slab occupied the island in the middle

309
00:19:19,560 --> 00:19:23,399
Speaker 1: of the kitchen. The counters stocked with colorful stainless steel appliances,

310
00:19:23,560 --> 00:19:29,000
Speaker 1: a coffee maker, blender, microwave, bamboo cutting board, three door

311
00:19:29,119 --> 00:19:32,800
Speaker 1: silver refrigerator, Pictures of a smiling family of eight held

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00:19:32,800 --> 00:19:36,960
Speaker 1: by smiley faced magnets, two parents and six kids, and

313
00:19:37,040 --> 00:19:40,679
Speaker 1: other pictures with different pairings. Thereof at school on horses

314
00:19:40,800 --> 00:19:43,480
Speaker 1: on the porch, playing in the backyard, and a school

315
00:19:43,560 --> 00:19:46,600
Speaker 1: concert or play. There were yellow post it notes that

316
00:19:46,600 --> 00:19:49,840
Speaker 1: had been washed out and crinkled with time, thin curse

317
00:19:49,920 --> 00:19:53,040
Speaker 1: of black letters, almost lost items to pick up at

318
00:19:53,040 --> 00:19:56,160
Speaker 1: the grocery store. Kyle's band practiced at five point thirty,

319
00:19:56,359 --> 00:19:59,600
Speaker 1: Jenna's dance recital at seven. Don't forget to take Purtda

320
00:19:59,600 --> 00:20:03,080
Speaker 1: on a wa Tilda open the refrigerator just to be

321
00:20:03,160 --> 00:20:09,520
Speaker 1: sure nothing All three doors nothing. She flipped through the cabinets,

322
00:20:09,560 --> 00:20:13,639
Speaker 1: finding some canned goods, beans, pumpkin vegetables that she stood

323
00:20:13,680 --> 00:20:16,760
Speaker 1: away in her bag. A side door opened to the outside,

324
00:20:16,840 --> 00:20:20,040
Speaker 1: a view of the barnhouse through glass windows. Tilda check

325
00:20:20,119 --> 00:20:22,680
Speaker 1: to make sure it was locked over The door was

326
00:20:22,720 --> 00:20:25,280
Speaker 1: a piece of stitchwork that read home is where you are.

327
00:20:26,920 --> 00:20:31,880
Speaker 1: Tilda scratched at her arm, subconsciously retracing her footsteps. Madison

328
00:20:31,960 --> 00:20:34,680
Speaker 1: watched her solemn as she passed. His blue eyes bright

329
00:20:34,840 --> 00:20:37,160
Speaker 1: pinpricks with the moonlight in the darkness of the room.

330
00:20:38,040 --> 00:20:39,679
Speaker 1: On the other side of the first story was what

331
00:20:39,720 --> 00:20:42,240
Speaker 1: Tilda supposed would have been called a reading room or

332
00:20:42,320 --> 00:20:46,800
Speaker 1: sitting room. A large rug muffled her footsteps. The walls

333
00:20:46,800 --> 00:20:49,280
Speaker 1: that weren't taken up with windows were lined with bookshelves,

334
00:20:49,359 --> 00:20:52,679
Speaker 1: most aligned with books, others lined with trinkets, small figurines,

335
00:20:52,800 --> 00:20:57,720
Speaker 1: ornamental fans, pots that once house plants. Plush armchairs with

336
00:20:57,840 --> 00:21:01,000
Speaker 1: side tee tables were arranged in an oval. There was

337
00:21:01,040 --> 00:21:03,120
Speaker 1: a cookbook and a copy of a book called Catch

338
00:21:03,119 --> 00:21:05,760
Speaker 1: twenty two on one of the tables. Another had a

339
00:21:05,760 --> 00:21:08,960
Speaker 1: bottle of liquor glass Stoppered in between two of the

340
00:21:09,040 --> 00:21:12,080
Speaker 1: chairs was a chess table. Tilda returned to the main

341
00:21:12,160 --> 00:21:14,919
Speaker 1: room and stepped up the wooden stairs, each step clunking

342
00:21:14,960 --> 00:21:18,120
Speaker 1: loudly in the vacuum of silence. Along the stairwell were

343
00:21:18,160 --> 00:21:21,879
Speaker 1: portraits of the family, old wedding photos, the children at

344
00:21:21,960 --> 00:21:25,800
Speaker 1: various ages, babies, young kids with gaps between their teeth,

345
00:21:26,359 --> 00:21:29,560
Speaker 1: soccer ball under the arm, sledding, a Christmas photo with

346
00:21:29,600 --> 00:21:32,439
Speaker 1: a decked out evergreen tree in the background, hanging with

347
00:21:32,600 --> 00:21:38,959
Speaker 1: ornaments and sparkling with lights, moments of time preserved behind glass. Upstairs,

348
00:21:39,080 --> 00:21:42,159
Speaker 1: she found a cluster of rooms. The master bedroom for

349
00:21:42,200 --> 00:21:44,880
Speaker 1: the parents, with an enormous high queen bed in its

350
00:21:44,920 --> 00:21:48,240
Speaker 1: own private bathroom, and the children's rooms, most of them

351
00:21:48,280 --> 00:21:51,240
Speaker 1: with either bunk beds or twin beds. The walls painted

352
00:21:51,280 --> 00:21:54,800
Speaker 1: with giraffes and tall grass are galaxies and stars, a

353
00:21:54,840 --> 00:21:58,520
Speaker 1: girl's room with butterflies. All the rooms were equipped with

354
00:21:58,640 --> 00:22:03,159
Speaker 1: toys and books, born games, textbook's deaths, laptops, snapshots of

355
00:22:03,240 --> 00:22:07,600
Speaker 1: various ages, each personalized and almost living, with all the

356
00:22:07,720 --> 00:22:14,200
Speaker 1: soul imbued in them. Hall closet overflowing with blankets, pillows, towels,

357
00:22:14,440 --> 00:22:17,399
Speaker 1: a bathroom with a brightly covered fish bath mat and

358
00:22:17,440 --> 00:22:21,920
Speaker 1: matching toothbrush holder and shower curtain. Tilda shuddered at all

359
00:22:22,000 --> 00:22:27,639
Speaker 1: that life gone, the bereft energy. She passed a mirror

360
00:22:27,640 --> 00:22:30,480
Speaker 1: in the hallway and shivered at the sight of herself

361
00:22:30,840 --> 00:22:35,359
Speaker 1: looking away. Immediately, even though the rooms were brimming with

362
00:22:35,400 --> 00:22:37,959
Speaker 1: the lives that had played out here. There were no

363
00:22:38,119 --> 00:22:41,720
Speaker 1: signs of anyone currently residing in this farmhouse. She'd happed

364
00:22:41,720 --> 00:22:43,399
Speaker 1: to check the silo on the barn later, but for

365
00:22:43,480 --> 00:22:45,800
Speaker 1: now she was satisfied. No one else was in this

366
00:22:45,880 --> 00:22:49,520
Speaker 1: house but them. It's clear, She called down to the

367
00:22:49,520 --> 00:22:53,240
Speaker 1: fretfully waiting Madison, her throat grating. She bent over the

368
00:22:53,320 --> 00:22:56,119
Speaker 1: wood and iron railing. I'm going to toss down some

369
00:22:56,160 --> 00:22:58,199
Speaker 1: blankets and pillows for us. We can sleep on that

370
00:22:58,240 --> 00:23:02,520
Speaker 1: big red couch. Madison nodded, leading Scout into the main

371
00:23:02,600 --> 00:23:04,679
Speaker 1: room and letting her lay down next to the fireplace.

372
00:23:06,160 --> 00:23:09,040
Speaker 1: Can I feed her? He shouted up to her timidly

373
00:23:09,080 --> 00:23:11,199
Speaker 1: as she filled her arms with the most comfortable and

374
00:23:11,240 --> 00:23:15,560
Speaker 1: warm looking comforters and pillows. Yes, just a small handful.

375
00:23:16,520 --> 00:23:20,040
Speaker 1: She returned, dropping what she'd collected over the side. They

376
00:23:20,119 --> 00:23:23,200
Speaker 1: landed on the floor near Madison with a woof. She

377
00:23:23,240 --> 00:23:25,760
Speaker 1: went back and pulled out even more, along with a

378
00:23:25,800 --> 00:23:28,080
Speaker 1: quilt she thought would be good for Scout, and toss

379
00:23:28,160 --> 00:23:31,240
Speaker 1: them over the side as well. She returned down the stairs,

380
00:23:31,240 --> 00:23:32,960
Speaker 1: doing her best to mask her a fear at the

381
00:23:32,960 --> 00:23:36,600
Speaker 1: conversation she knew she had to have with Madison. Her

382
00:23:36,640 --> 00:23:39,159
Speaker 1: stomach had settled somewhat. She didn't feel like she was

383
00:23:39,200 --> 00:23:41,080
Speaker 1: going to spit up blood from the glass yards she

384
00:23:41,119 --> 00:23:45,200
Speaker 1: felt like were lodged in her throat anymore. But her

385
00:23:45,240 --> 00:23:47,919
Speaker 1: heart was still pounding, and she couldn't shake the feeling

386
00:23:47,960 --> 00:23:51,520
Speaker 1: that they were being stalked. Could you set these blankets up, please?

387
00:23:52,200 --> 00:23:54,480
Speaker 1: That patch quilt for scout. I'm going to check the

388
00:23:54,480 --> 00:23:57,080
Speaker 1: barn real quick. It was silly, but Tilda would be

389
00:23:57,119 --> 00:23:59,480
Speaker 1: foolish not to check it out. As she passed to

390
00:23:59,480 --> 00:24:01,399
Speaker 1: go out the side door, Madison reached out for her,

391
00:24:01,480 --> 00:24:05,960
Speaker 1: almost of his own volition, but Tilda looked at him,

392
00:24:06,119 --> 00:24:09,880
Speaker 1: his eyes asking for her to stay. Something in her loosened.

393
00:24:11,840 --> 00:24:17,800
Speaker 1: We come on stuck, She'd dread that somewhere once. I'll

394
00:24:17,840 --> 00:24:21,560
Speaker 1: be all right. I'll be right back, she whispered. She

395
00:24:21,600 --> 00:24:23,639
Speaker 1: shrugged one strap of her pack off and swung it

396
00:24:23,720 --> 00:24:26,720
Speaker 1: up to her front. Digging out a flashlight, she clicked

397
00:24:26,720 --> 00:24:30,240
Speaker 1: it on a bright blue fluorescent spotlight. Dancing around. She

398
00:24:30,359 --> 00:24:33,400
Speaker 1: passed it to him a torch to supplement the silver moonlight.

399
00:24:34,640 --> 00:24:38,840
Speaker 1: Take this, she fetched one for herself as well. Madison

400
00:24:38,880 --> 00:24:41,040
Speaker 1: took it, clutching it to his chest and swallowed his

401
00:24:41,160 --> 00:24:47,719
Speaker 1: gaze searching. You're hurt, I'll just be a minute. Reluctantly,

402
00:24:47,800 --> 00:24:50,520
Speaker 1: Madison released his clutch on her jacket, and she just

403
00:24:50,640 --> 00:24:53,879
Speaker 1: as reluctantly turned away and passed back through the kitchen

404
00:24:54,080 --> 00:25:13,359
Speaker 1: and out the door. And that brings us to the

405
00:25:13,520 --> 00:25:16,760
Speaker 1: end of this portion of the fiction. I hope that

406
00:25:16,840 --> 00:25:20,040
Speaker 1: you enjoyed it. Like I said, it was definitely more introspective.

407
00:25:20,680 --> 00:25:23,440
Speaker 1: I joked in the last one where I was like, oh,

408
00:25:23,520 --> 00:25:26,280
Speaker 1: I can see where I got these names from. I

409
00:25:27,320 --> 00:25:31,439
Speaker 1: definitely did look up, as I've said before, maps, and uh,

410
00:25:31,640 --> 00:25:33,320
Speaker 1: I mean, maybe it's not there anymore, but there really

411
00:25:33,400 --> 00:25:37,200
Speaker 1: wasn't Ellis Town when I was looking it up, So

412
00:25:37,280 --> 00:25:40,520
Speaker 1: that is where that came from. And yeah, this was

413
00:25:41,560 --> 00:25:44,399
Speaker 1: this was a tough ye. I feel like when I

414
00:25:44,440 --> 00:25:46,680
Speaker 1: was rereading this, when I got a little I was like, oh,

415
00:25:46,760 --> 00:25:48,919
Speaker 1: I remember exactly where I was when I wrote this.

416
00:25:49,080 --> 00:25:53,000
Speaker 1: I remember. But it does have that when you're when

417
00:25:53,080 --> 00:25:55,280
Speaker 1: you're from the South, a lot of times you've seen

418
00:25:55,359 --> 00:25:58,760
Speaker 1: this exact place I was describing, like those big you know,

419
00:25:58,800 --> 00:26:02,360
Speaker 1: those big like habins and they have the second story

420
00:26:02,400 --> 00:26:05,159
Speaker 1: that's open and as all the bunk beds on it,

421
00:26:05,720 --> 00:26:11,680
Speaker 1: like this is what that is? Yes, I probably went

422
00:26:11,840 --> 00:26:14,760
Speaker 1: way too much into detail. That is one of the

423
00:26:14,800 --> 00:26:17,000
Speaker 1: issues I would say with Nano raimo, which you're like,

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Speaker 1: let me describe everything in depth, but it is such

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Speaker 1: a specific I know exactly what this is. Also, I

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Speaker 1: apologize to Scout the horse. I don't know how horses work.

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Speaker 1: I do know that this was not good for Scout.

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Speaker 1: But no, no harm has come from any actual horse, No, no,

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Speaker 1: But yeah, I just feel like after what happened, you

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Speaker 1: would have so much to wrestle with and with this

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Speaker 1: because they've gotten this call over the broadcast system, come

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Speaker 1: back to DC. There's a vaccine, like we can make

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00:27:05,320 --> 00:27:08,120
Speaker 1: a vaccine, but we need Madison to do it, and

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00:27:09,359 --> 00:27:11,440
Speaker 1: wrestling with that, and you're going to see a lot

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00:27:11,520 --> 00:27:13,360
Speaker 1: more of that in the next one, which is very

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00:27:13,400 --> 00:27:18,480
Speaker 1: dialogue heavy, But that's that's where they are. They're still

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00:27:18,520 --> 00:27:20,080
Speaker 1: sort of trying to figure out what they're going to

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00:27:20,160 --> 00:27:23,800
Speaker 1: do and being pursued by all these people and not

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00:27:23,840 --> 00:27:28,040
Speaker 1: feeling safe anywhere. So if you're like me and you

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00:27:28,240 --> 00:27:33,399
Speaker 1: like this, thanks for joining. If you don't like it,

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00:27:33,400 --> 00:27:38,200
Speaker 1: thanks for joining. If you have any theories or anything

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00:27:38,520 --> 00:27:40,280
Speaker 1: that you would like us to do that's in the

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00:27:40,280 --> 00:27:44,240
Speaker 1: public domain in this realm. We love doing it. It's

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00:27:44,280 --> 00:27:48,119
Speaker 1: fun for us to kind of try something different. Let

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Speaker 1: us know. You can email us at Stephanie Moms stuff

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00:27:50,680 --> 00:27:52,959
Speaker 1: at iHeartMedia dot com. You find us on Twitter at

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00:27:52,960 --> 00:27:55,199
Speaker 1: momstof podcast, or on Instagram and TikTok at stuff I've

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00:27:55,200 --> 00:27:57,280
Speaker 1: Never Told You Luso on YouTube. We have tea Pulpit

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00:27:57,320 --> 00:27:58,960
Speaker 1: store and we have a book you can get wherever

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00:27:59,000 --> 00:28:02,080
Speaker 1: you get your books. Thanks as always to our super

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00:28:02,119 --> 00:28:05,560
Speaker 1: producer Christina, our executive Christin Maya, and our contributor Joey.

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00:28:05,680 --> 00:28:08,439
Speaker 1: Thank you and thanks to you for listening. Stuff Never

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00:28:08,440 --> 00:28:09,800
Speaker 1: Told You is production of my Heart Radio. For more

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Speaker 1: podcast from my Heart Radio, you can check out the

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Speaker 1: iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever we listen to your

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Speaker 1: favorite shows