32
It might have been hours later, it might have only been minutes. Scott wasn’t sure. He was sitting in the hallway in almost complete darkness, leaning with his back against his bedroom door. The house was still largely silent, but the noise outside had increased again. There’d been more traffic on the road, pretty much all of it heading out of Thussock now. He’d seen some of it from the kitchen window. It had looked almost exclusively military.
‘You there, Scott?’
He sat up fast, not sure if he’d imagined Michelle’s voice. He moved towards the living room, crawling through empty beer cans. ‘I’m here.’
‘Let me out, love.’
‘You know I can’t.’
‘But I’m scared in here.’
‘And I’m scared out here. This is the only way to be sure, you know it is.’
‘My face hurts. I think you broke my n
