Fallout (Crank 3)

her dig through her medicine

cabinet. Finally she finds the bottle.

This is a good antiseptic, too.

That’s why it stings so much.

The smell is almost enough

to knock me over. Hang on.

Sting? It’s liquid fire, welding

my skin together. “Holy crap!”

But it lasts only a few seconds.

And I’ve felt worse pain.

Darla looks at me with sympathetic

eyes. But then she says, Okay,

now that you’re going to live, will

you please tell me what happened?

IF I TELL

Things could go

from bad to worse.

It’s been stable here,

few real surprises. But

if I tell,

the status quo will be

ruptured. The system

isn’t famous for

equitable fixes.

Things could

go from worse to

unbearable. But if I don’t

tell, Erica will get away

with her disgusting act

and Ashante will