S1, E18 The Strangers

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Episode Transcript

(00:30):
This is Ed Falco on the air,reading The Strangers, a novel
in 19 episodes.
One of the pack, the Grey,attacks Severn and Red in the
cave.
To defend Severn, Redmetamorphoses into a beast and
she fights and kills the Greybefore changing back into her

(00:53):
human form.
Only now she can also speak.
These changes are dramatic andexhausting and at the end of the
episode, Severn has left Red torecover on the cave ledge and
gone back down to the cavefloor.
That's where we pick up.
Episode 18.
In the quiet of the massivechamber, Severn located a dry

(01:16):
spot and sat down in thedarkness.
He tried to think.
and found that he was nearlyincapable of it.
Or, rather, his mind was so busyreviewing and calculating and
analyzing in a realm just belowthe level of conscious thought
that there was no room left forsimple calculations.
For example, questions like, forinstance, What was he supposed

(01:38):
to do next?
He sat in the dark and the quietand stared at a tall, limestone
encrusted stalagmite.
It occurred to him that he wasresting and that he needed rest.
A good bit of time passed inthat quiet space, with Severn
nearly motionless in the dark,half thinking, half dreaming,
seeing again everything that hadhappened, going over again every

(02:02):
impossible thing that had turnedout actually to be possible, and
wondering what incredible thingmight happen next.
In that whispering dark, Severnlost track of time.
He didn't move again until heheard Tommy shout something and
Vi shout back.
He knew they had to be closebecause the configuration of the

(02:24):
cave muted sound from outside.
He calculated they had startedthe climb up the boulders.
Matthew and A'isha would be withthem.
He didn't know what he wouldsay.
He couldn't figure out where tobegin.
Someplace in the back of hismind a quiet battle was being
fought with telling them thetruth on one side and lying on

(02:45):
the other.
He wouldn't abandon Red.
Once the others knew, he didn'tknow how they'd respond.
He picked himself up and foundthe gray where it was sprawled
on the chamber floor with a holein its chest and his ripped out
heart near its feet.
He tried to shape how he wouldtell it, all that had happened.

(03:08):
And then he wondered for thefirst time, why the Grey was
alone?
Why did the Grey come to thecave by itself?
The pack travelled together,they attacked together.
It appeared to Severn thateverything they did was
coordinated.
Where was the rest of the pack?

(03:29):
Severn was entertaining thesequestions when Matthew startled
him.
What?
Matthew's voice drifted off asif he couldn't make enough sense
of what he was seeing to pose acoherent question.
What?
He said again, and then heturned a flashlight beam on
Severn in the gray.
Severn turned to find Matthewand A'isha side by side at the

(03:51):
entrance to the chamber.
A moment later Tommy and Vijoined them.
It's dead, Severn said, andstepped back from the gray.
He almost said, I killed it, butstopped himself.
We can see that, A'isha said.
Vi pushed past the others andhurried to Severn, with Tommy
close behind her.
You're hurt, she said.

(04:12):
Tommy took Severn by theshoulders and held him at arm's
length, examining him.
Overhead, one of the kryptonbulbs flashed on, casting its
light throughout the chamber.
We need to get some antibioticsand bandages on you, Tommy said.
Vy's attention had fallen to thegrey.
Did you do this?
she asked.

(04:32):
She was looking at the rippedout heart.
They all were.
Behind them, Matthew wasexploring the chamber, looking
from place to place as ifsearching for clues to what had
happened.
A'isha repeated Vy's question.
Did you, she asked Severn?
Did you cut its heart out?
That thing's heart was rippedout, Matthew said, still

(04:54):
exploring the cave.
That's the only wound.
He rejoined the others gatheredaround Severn in the gray.
Where's Red?
The others all looked to Severn,the same question in their eyes.
Red's okay, he said.
Give me a minute, he said.
It's hard to explain.
Matthew was shaking his head asif he was reviewing theory after

(05:17):
theory and instantly discardingeach one.
Where's the rest of the pack, hesaid.
They don't travel alone.
What killed this thing?
You didn't, Sev.
Look at you.
You're not even armed.
Quickly, he snatched the bowieknife from Severn's side, found
the blade pristine and tossed itto the ground.
What the hell happened?
Again, Severn said, give me aminute.

(05:40):
He looked over the grey andwondered about its lack of a
sex.
How did these things reproduce,he asked, as much to give
himself another moment to thinkas that of genuine curiosity.
Matthew brushed past him andwith the toe of his boot found
and pushed back a flap of skinbetween the grey's legs.
A long thick penis spilled out.

(06:02):
When I killed mine it fell outlike that before they dragged it
away.
Makes sense, Severn said.
More efficient for fighting.
No one responded.
They were all facing Severn,looking at him as if he was the
teacher at the head of the classand they were waiting for him to
speak.
Behind them, the black and thechocolate entered the chamber on

(06:24):
all fours, with the two baysfollowing.
Only Severn saw them.
The others didn't turn to facethe pack until the smell reached
them.
Matthew looked to Severn as ifhoping Severn might have an
idea.
Severn was watching the pack,the black and the chocolate
together, the two bays together,the Roan missing.

(06:47):
He recalled the buck kill, thetwo bays attacking as a team,
the roan and the grey attackingas a team.
The dog he killed must have beenthe roan, and she must have been
the grey's mate.
I killed its mate, Severn said.
That's why it came alone.
He said the words aloud, but hewas talking to himself.

(07:09):
Vi had pressed herself close toSevern on one side, Tommy was on
his other side.
Tommy said, They're just lookingat us, dude.
And as soon as he said it, thedogs backed up, turned, and left
the chamber.
Matthew took a quick steptowards Severn.
You know something you're nottelling us.

(07:30):
For Severn, the pieces of thecomplicated puzzle were snapping
together, clicking solidly inplace.
I didn't a moment ago, he said,but now Severn, Vyse, said, What
do you know?
It's about mating, Severn said,and he looked down at the grey
and its sex sprawling betweenits legs.
All this, he said to Matthew,why they didn't kill you and

(07:53):
A'isha?
Why they didn't kill me, Red?
It's about mates and mating.
They could have killed Red, butthey brought her to me.
The grey came to kill me becauseI killed its mate.
A'isha said, Are you okay,Severn?
I am, Severn said.

(08:14):
And he quit talking while hetried to figure out how to put
the words together to explainwhat he was thinking.
'They brought red to you, A'ishasaid.
'Why?
'Listen, Severn said to A'isha.
He ran his hands through hishair, trying to straighten
himself out, as if if he madehimself more presentable they'd
believe him.
'They didn't kill Matthew whenthey could have, because he

(08:36):
proved himself to be dangerousby killing one of them.
And then they didn't kill you.
To Tommy and Vi, he said,'Theydidn't kill us the first time in
the woods, because of you, henodded to Vi.
They came back for me the nextnight because I was the older
and presumably the weaker male,he said, talking to Matthew

(08:56):
again.
If they had killed me, they'dhave left Vi for Tommy.
When I killed one of theminstead, when they saw I too was
dangerous, they let me live.
In the next morning, theybrought me Red.
Fai said, They didn't bring youanyone, Severn.
They were about to breakfast onRed when we saved her.

(09:19):
Matthew said, No, that nevermade any sense.
They don't kill birds.
They made it look like we weresaving her, Severn said.
It was a bruise.
They brought her to me, for me.
Why?
A'isha shouted, and thenimmediately took a step back and
lowered her voice.
What does being dangerous haveto do with anything?
What is all this about mating?

(09:40):
What are you talking about?
They're hunters, Severn said.
The pack, they're hunters.
The rest of the earth'screatures are defenseless
against them.
They want dangerous prey tohunt.
That's what we are to them.
Prey.
And mating?
I asked.

(10:00):
Matthew answered.
They're breeding us, thebastards.
They want us to survive.
They want us to reproduce untilthey have a big enough stock.
They don't want to hunt us toextinction.
That was exactly Severn'sconclusion.
But the blood drained from hisface on hearing Matthew say it

(10:21):
aloud.
Matthew looked to A'isha.
They herded us here, he said.
We were headed to New York.
They pushed us here.
They wanted us all to find eachother.
Vi said, Are you saying they'renot going to kill us?
She looked to Severn.
Matthew said, Let's find out.

(10:42):
He pushed Vi's Severn, picked upthe Grey's bloody heart in his
hand, and jammed it back intothe creature's chest.
He looked up to Severn and said,I need to know.
He grabbed the Grey by the feet.
They're still out there.
I can smell them.
They're waiting.
A'isha said, What the hell areyou thinking, Matthew?
Matthew took off his weapons oneby one and tossed them to the

(11:04):
ground.
I'm tired of being half crazywith fear, he said.
He looked to Severn.
I want to know.
Severn went around to the Grey'shead and knelt to lift it by the
arms.
Vi put her hand on Severn'sshoulder to stop him.
You're being stupid, she said.
You can't just go out thereunarmed, dragging one of the
pack.

(11:25):
If Severn's right, Matthew said,there's nothing to fear.
They'll take the grey and leave.
There was a new gentleness inhis voice as he addressed Fi.
It was as if some other Matthewhad suddenly emerged out of the
shell of the old one.
A'isha touched Matthew'sshoulder.
She seemed to have heard thechange in his voice too, and she

(11:46):
touched him as if she werewelcoming him back.
Do you think he's right?
she asked.
It adds up, Matthew said.
It explains a lot.
A'isha took up her weapons anddropped them alongside
Matthew's.
Maybe you two should stay here,she said to Tommy and Vi.
With Red.

(12:06):
Tommy said to Vi, You go staywith Red.
We shouldn't leave her alone.
He said it without looking at Vias he crouched beside Severn and
took hold of one of the Grey'sarms.
Ba'ai looked up to the ledge andthen back to A'isha and Matthew
at the Grey's feet and Tommy andSevern at its head.
She's got her people, she said.

(12:26):
She'll find someone to take careof her.
She looked around the chamber asif searching for some new idea,
some other possibility, and thenshe turned her gaze to Tommy and
said, OK, let's go.
For all the bulk and muscle andsize of the Grey, it was
surprisingly light.
They lifted it easily andcarried it out to the ledge.

(12:49):
It was dusk, the day's lightfading over the pond woods and
the stream and the surroundingfields and hills.
A flock of sparrows swirled inthe darkening sky over the
treetops, dipping and spoopingand finally disappearing as they
lighted somewhere in the quietwoods.
Severn and the others laid thegrazed body on the ledge and
stood over it, searching for thepack whose smell lingered in the

(13:12):
air.
Vi had stayed back in the mouthof the cave.
She alone was armed.
Where are they?
she said.
The chocolate in the black, asif answering Vi's questions,
leapt up to the ledge fromsomewhere out of sight below,
and the bays lighted besidethem, dropping from the hills
above.

(13:32):
They landed in front of thegrey, blocking it from view,
facing Severn and the others.
The chocolate was the biggest ofthe pack.
Almost a full head taller thanthe others.
It let its gaze linger first onSevern and then on Tommy, before
it turned and knelt to the Grey,examining the bloody hole in its
chest.

(13:53):
It reached into the wound,removed the severed heart, and
held it in its hands.
It looked the heart overcarefully, before it placed it
back in the Grey's chest.
It appeared to be consideringthe evidence of the Grey's
death.
It appeared to be thinking.
When it lifted itself up againto its full height, its lips

(14:14):
pulled back in a snarl.
It took a step toward Vi andissued a low, guttural, growl
like caw that was clearlydirected beyond Severn and the
others and into the cave.
Vi said, Should I shoot the damnthing, Severn?
What should I do?
Severn didn't answer.

(14:34):
The possibility was occurring tohim that he might be wrong about
everything, but he knew forcertain that if Vi fired, she'd
be wasting her ammunition.
The pack had proved that much.
Matthew looked like he was aboutto say something when Red
stepped out of the cave'sshadows dressed in Vi's clothes.
She stood beside Vi, close,pressing shoulder to shoulder.

(14:57):
The chocolate took a step backat the sight of Red.
It observed her a long moment,then turned, knelt to the grey,
lifted it in its arms, and leaptfrom the ledge with the rest of
the pack following.
Severn watched the dogs as theydisappeared into the woods and
reappeared again in the fieldsbeyond.

(15:18):
They walked four abreast, thechocolate carrying the grey.
They never slowed or cast aglance back behind them.
Matthew and A'isha stood on oneside of Severn and Tommy and Vi
on the other.
They watched the pack in silenceuntil it disappeared into the
shadows of the oncoming night.

(15:38):
When they turned around, theyfound the mouth of the cave
empty, and Red, nowhere insight.
Matthew turned to Severn.
Tell us what the hell is goingon, he said.
Tell us who killed the Grey.
Red killed it.
Severn leaned back against theslab of rock, slid down, wrapped
his arms around his legs, andrecounted the events of the last

(16:01):
several hours.
The others made a circle aroundhim as they listened.
They looked like kids at acampfire listening to a
storyteller.
The last of the light drainedfrom the sky and a full moon
rose above the trees.
When Severn was done with thetelling, the others watched him
a while with uniformly blankexpressions as if they were all

(16:22):
struggling to make sense of whatthey had been told.
Vi was the first to speak.
The Grey came here to kill you,she asked, because you killed
its mate?
Severn nodded.
Vi was repeating what he hadalready told her, looking for
confirmation.
It was acting on its own, forrevenge, he said, trying to

(16:44):
further explain his thinking.
It was acting against the pact'swishes.
That's all that makes sense.
And Red saved you, Vi said?
Red?
She seemed unable to put intowords what she'd just been told.
Think of it as metamorphosis,Severn said.
Like a caterpillar to abutterfly, only much, much

(17:06):
faster.
Tommy looked out over the ledgeand toward the long moon shadows
of trees cast over the fields.
Doody said, too weird, but shesaved you, if I repeat it.
As if she needed to beabsolutely clear on the point.
She killed the Grey to save you?
Severn said, That's whathappened, Vi.

(17:28):
And the pack, they're done withus?
They gonna let us live?
That's what I think, Severnsaid.
Vi picked herself up andconsidered the assault rifle
dangling over her chest.
She took it off and laid it onthe ground.
I'm going in to see Red.
She looked weak.
Good, Severn said.

(17:49):
He thought that Red was probablywondering once again what would
become of her.
And that Vi going to her wouldbe reassuring.
He couldn't figure out a way tosay any of that though, and so
he just repeated himself andsaid, good.
A'isha said to Vi, I'll comewith you.
Severn handed A'isha hisflashlight.
Don't need it out here, he said,glancing up at the moon.

(18:12):
Before the girls disappearedinto the cave, Matthew asked
Severn, are you sure Red is safeto be around?
A'isha and Vi stopped and waitedfor Severn to answer.
I'm certain of it, Severnanswered.
A'isha said to Matthew, I trusthim.
One more thing Severn said.

(18:34):
She can speak.
Red can speak now.
How?
Bai asked.
She can speak, like us?
Exactly, Severn answered.
And she walks like us too.
It's a kind of evolution, Ithink.
Eventually, they're all, all thestrangers.
They'll all be exactly like us.

(18:55):
This is too weird, Tommy said.
Look, Vi said, all I know isthat she saved your life.
She took A'isha by the hand andthey walked off together into
the shadows of the cave.
Tommy stood and stretched.
He shook his wiry body from headto foot as if trying hard to

(19:15):
rattle himself back into hiseveryday blitheness about
things.
Too weird, he repeated, and thenadded, asking Severn, you really
think it's over with the dogs?
Just like that.
Severn did his best to bereassuring.
I think we're okay for the timebeing, he said.

(19:36):
The strangers present no threatto us.
The packs?
They're going to let us be untilwe're around in larger numbers.
He looked out at the pine woodsas if reviewing his thoughts one
more time.
When he turned back to Tommy, hesaid, I do.
I think we'll be all right.
And then, So there'll be nodoubt, he said.

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I think it's all over with thedogs.
Matthew agreed.
What Severn said, it makessense.
Tommy scratched the back of hisneck as if he were still
thinking things over.
Too weird, he said again.
And then he shrugged.
Let me see what's going on withthe girls.
He glanced at Vi's assaultrifle.

(20:20):
Won't miss lugging guns around.
He nodded to Severn.
And then he started for thecave.
Matthew and Severn watched Tommyuntil he was outta sight, and
then Matthew as if picking up aconversation that had been
ongoing said she can speak, butshe's not us.
She's not human.
Severn let his head fall backagainst the rock wall behind

(20:43):
him.
He gazed at the moons still lowin the sky over the pine trees.
A breeze had come up as if outof the night itself.
He had rusted the tree tops andswayed the tall grass in the
moonlit fields.
He agreed with Matthew that Redwasn't human, but he didn't
believe that they needed to fearher, which is what Matthew was

(21:05):
really saying.
No, she's not us, Severn said.
She's not human.
He looked at Matthew.
But she's with us, he said.
She saved my life.
She came back.
Because of me.
For me.
Matthew shifted around and satalongside Severn.

(21:26):
He didn't say anything, but hewas listening carefully.
Red doesn't understand herselfwhat happened to her, Severn
said.
She believed that her people hadalready undergone the change,
the metamorphosis, generationsago.
That that was done with forthem.
He turned sideways to faceMatthew.
They believe that they're human,he said.

(21:48):
They've become human, theybelieve.
And that's it.
They're human forever,generation after generation.
So how does she explain whathappened?
She doesn't, Severn said.
She doesn't know what happened.
All she says is, I became and Ibecame again.
As if she's amazed herself.

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She doesn't know.
But you, Matthew said.
You think you know, don't you?
Severn nodded.
She said twice now, when I askedher about the packs.
She said, quote, they are alwayswith us.
He paused as if working throughhis thinking one more time.

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They're always with them, hesaid, because they are them.
The dogs, the packs, they're theearth form, the original form of
the strangers.
The birds, millenniums back,before they evolved to who they
are now.
Always, wherever they go,whatever species they become,

(22:53):
some tiny percentage of them,one in many millions, reverts to
their original form.
One in many millions, Matthewasked.
Why do you He stopped abruptlyas if a thought had just
occurred to him.
That's why they put her out, heasked.
That's what they do when one ofthem is going to revert?

(23:14):
They put them out for the packsto find, Severn said.
The dogs, every one of them, hasthe same brilliant green eyes
that Red has.
She told me that she'd neverseen another of her kind with
green eyes.
And she didn't even know hereyes had turned green until I
told her.
She thought her eyes were brown.
She didn't know they hadchanged.

(23:37):
Why so few?
Matthew asked again.
Why one in millions?
What makes you say that?
Because that's what Red told me.
There are never very many ofthem.
So, let me see if I understandall this, Matthew said.
The strangers, the birds, theystarted out on all fours as wild
creatures, and they evolved tobeings that walk upright, over

(24:00):
millennia, to highly civilizedbeings capable of space travel.
And these highly civilizedbeings have the capability to
metamorphose into other species.
Or at some point, Severninterrupted, biologically
engineered themselves to havethat capability.
Then they find a planet, Matthewwent on, full of savages like

(24:20):
us.
And a few hundred million ofthem metamorphose into the new
species and travel over manyyears and multiple generations,
and when they arrive, knowingeverything there is to know
about the planet, they eliminatethe savages and take it over.
But they can't entirely engineerout the beasts they started as.

(24:42):
And always a few of them revertand form packs.
Why don't the packs attack thebirds?
Probably a symbiotic thing.
If they attacked, the strangerswould have no choice but to kill
them before they revert insteadof letting them run free.
And their speech and the waythey walk?

(25:03):
Some changes, apparently, Severnguessed, are held off until
they've lived on the new planetfor a time.
Matthew was shaking his head asif he was having problems
believing what Severn wastelling him.
How would the pack know where tofind a stranger who was put out
like that if there was only afew of them with so much ground
to cover?
Severn made a face thatdismissed the question.

(25:25):
I don't know what the mechanismis, he said.
They know somehow.
The strangers know to put themout.
The pack knows to find them.
And Red just happened to beavailable to give to you.
Looks like that, Severn said.
It solved their problem.
They didn't want to kill me.
They needed a mate for me.
They knew about Red.

(25:48):
Again, Matthew was shaking hishead.
If Red was due to revert, tochange into one of them, how
does she work as a mate for ahuman?
Matthew had come quickly to themost troubling piece of the
puzzle.
My best guess, Severn said, isthat creatures like Red can
serially metamorphose.
They can change at will to othercreatures.

(26:10):
What I just saw happen in thecave would suggest that.
But maybe it's the work of thepack to teach them how to do it.
How to change.
And if they didn't teach her,they hoped she might remain in
human form.
If that's true, Matthew saidquickly, then the pack should
have the ability too.
They should all be able tochange at will.

(26:32):
Maybe, Severn said.
And maybe not all of them.
If the dogs can change, Matthewsaid, following his own
reasoning and disregardingSevern's objection, why don't
they?
Why would they stay dogs?
Because they like it, Severnsaid.
It was a question he had noproblem answering.
They like killing.

(26:53):
I've seen them.
They revel in it.
They're warriors.
Matthew's expressions suggestedthat he agreed with Severn and
that he was angry.
I've seen them too, he said,raising his voice.
I've seen them take one of myfriends apart piece by piece and
devour him.
Suddenly there were tears in hiseyes and he roughly brushed them
away.

(27:14):
I see it every damn night.
He pulled himself to his feetand brushed dirt from the seat
of his pants.
If you're thinking of lettingRed stay with us, he said, if
you're thinking of being withher, do it.
I'm gonna have a huge problemwith that.
It's wrong.
She may look like us, but she'sone of them.
She's one of the pack.

(27:36):
He paused, watching Severn'seyes, and then repeated himself.
It's wrong, Severn.
You being with her, letting herstay with us.
It's wrong.
You might be right, Severn said.
He picked himself up, exceptthat she changed, on her own, to
save me.
And she changed again, to comeback to me.
You didn't see it, he added.

(27:58):
It was terrible.
The changing is terrible.
It looks to me like it nearlykilled her.
How could we ever trust her,Matthew said.
She ripped that dog's heart out.
Maybe she liked doing it.
How can you even know she didthese things for you?
She told me, Severn said.
She said it.
For you.

(28:19):
To you.
She changed for me.
She came back to me.
Behind him, Severn and Matthewheard the others approaching.
Vi was talking about Sage.
And Tommy reminded her that Sageshould be buried soon.
Matthew said, lowering hisvoice, What are you thinking,
Severn?

(28:39):
She's one of the pack.
She's one of them.
When Tommy and Vi appeared outof the shadows of the cave, Red
and A'isha were behind them.
The four stopped and lookedconcerned at the sight of
Matthew and Severn.
Vi said, What's wrong?
You guys arguing?
Having a discussion, Severnsaid.

(29:00):
Red, alongside A'isha, couldn'tfigure out what to do with their
hands.
Red, alongside A'isha, couldn'tfigure out what to do with their
hands.
She folded them in front of her,put them on her hips, and
finally pushed her fingertipsinto the pockets of Vi's jeans,
which were so tied on her shecouldn't button the waist.
The unbuttoned edges of thejeans poked out into the fabric
of the blouse she was wearinguntucked.
Vi's sneakers apparently didn'twork at all because she was

(29:23):
wearing a pair of Tommy's, whichwere too big, but laced tight
over multiple pairs of sweatsocks they were serving the
purpose.
She seemed to be leaning towardsSevern, as if she wanted to go
to him but was unsure.
Her eyes went from Severn toMatthew and then down to her
feet before she picked up herhead again as if it required
some mustering of courage andreturned her gaze to Severn.

(29:48):
A'isha said, if there's nodanger from the packs anymore,
we're tired of sleeping incaves.
Joint decision, Vi said.
We all voted to go back to thefarmhouse and sleep there.
All of us, Matthew said, hiseyes on red.
When no one answeredimmediately, Severn said, Yes,
of course, all of us.

(30:09):
He thought about it for a secondand decided it was best to push
the issue.
Why, Matthew, he asked.
What were you thinking?
Matthew looked like there was awar going on behind his eyes.
He pushed off his glasses, letthem dangle over his chest
attached by the croquis, andwent about cleaning them with
the edge of his shirt.

(30:29):
Finally, he said calmly, I thinkA'isha and I will stay here in
the cave.
Vi went to Red and looped an armaround her elbow.
She saved Severn's life.
She's one of us.
She squeezed Red's arm.
You're with us now, right?
Red answered softly.
I am with you.
Yes.

(30:51):
She looked to Matthew andrepeated herself.
I am with you now.
You may be with us, Matthewsaid.
And in his voice responding toRed, there was a surprising
kindness, even gentleness.
But you are not one of us.
He went to A'isha and put hisarm around her.
We'll spend the night here, hesaid to Severn.

(31:12):
And then he walked away into thecave without looking back or
waiting for A'isha.
Before she followed Matthew backinto the cave, A'isha covered
her eyes with her hand andpinched the bridge of her nose.
She hesitated before she turnedand disappeared into the
darkness without so much as aglance at any of the others.
Tommy said softly, that's justwrong.

(31:35):
Em went to Red and stoodalongside her.
The bright circle of the moonhovered over the shadowy fields
beyond the ledge and Severngazed up at it before turning
back to the others.
To Tami, he said, Let's go getSage.
We need to bury her.
To Vi, he said, Take Red back tothe farmhouse.
We'll meet up with you.

(31:57):
Uh uh.
Vi said, I'm not ready to gowalking through the woods alone.
We can wait.
Red was still speaking softlybut clearly, just slightly more
than a whisper.
To The krypton lightsilluminated the inner chamber of
the cave.
Matthew and A'isha were out ofsight, but occasionally sounds
drifted down from the ledge asTommy and Severn went about

(32:19):
wrapping Sage's body in ablanket they found inside
Severn's beat up dumpster.
When they emerged from the cavewith Sage and Tommy's arms, Red
and Vi were waiting there wherethey had left them, both gazing
out over the ledge.
Red upright with her armscrossed under her breasts.
Vi crouched beside her, armswrapped around her knees.

(32:41):
Severn went to Red and stoodclose to her, his arm touching
her arm.
Below them an owl hooted, and afew seconds later rose from the
pine forest and flew across thefields and out of sight.
Severn said to no one inparticular, Thou's a barn owl.
Red said, Beautiful, yes.

(33:01):
Behind them, Tommy said, Uh,guys, Sage is getting seriously
heavy.
Severn offered to take Sage, butTommy refused.
I'll carry her, he said, till weget through the woods.
You can take her from there.
Vi watched Red.
She looked worried, as if shestill hadn't adjusted to hearing

(33:22):
Red speak.
Severn took Vi by the elbow andhelped her up.
Are you alright, he asked.
Sure, Vi answered.
I'm fine.
That was episode 18 of TheStrangers.

(33:43):
New episodes will be availabletwice a week on Mondays and
Fridays until the novel iscompleted.
If you want to read ahead, aninexpensive digital edition of
The Strangers is available fromAmazon, Barnes Noble, and other
online bookstores.
This podcast is an experiment inalternatives to traditional
publishing.

(34:03):
If you'd like to support it,please and more like it in the
future, please consider becominga subscriber or supporter.
If enough listeners choose to doso, that will go a long way to
help ensuring the podcast'ssuccess and continuation.
In any event, I'm Ed Falco, Iwrote The Strangers, and I hope
you'll come back for the finalepisode.