I'd had more than enough of this time. The girl Susan had gone mad right in front of us, and we'd damn near all drowned getting across.
"I think we ought to get back as soon's we can," I said to Bud when we stopped to rest on the other side.
"We got to deliver the boy."
"It's too disrupted down this way. I figured on people here, some civilization."
"Somethin' got 'em."
"The bomb."
"Got to find cells for the man in the box."
"He's near dead."
"Too many gone already. Should save one if we can."
"We got to look after our own."
Bud shrugged, and I could see I wasn't going to get far with him. So I said to Angel, "The boy's not worth running such risks. Or this corpse."