Those thirty runners were joined by twenty individual runners for the 10k, so fifty of us started the race and at least forty would advance to regiona...s. Jock talked to me right before the race and told me I couldn’t let up just because it was a short field. There would be more competition for these forty slots than for the top forty in a field of a hundred. I took his warning to heart and ran a solid thirty-six for the first time this season. Our top five runners were in the top fifteen places. Then I heard smashing. Laughter and clapping hit my ears next. Voices of many men filled the inner bulkheads of the ship, which had been lined with some kind of insulation material to soundproof the steel. We finally arrived in a large, dark space, only dimly illuminated with candle light. Extending downward from the ceiling, into the center was a large platform, complete with hooks, loops, ropes and hanging satin cloth. A lone man was spread out in the middle of it. His hands and legs. "Don't you worry we will take car of her, she will earn her keep andwe will inform you when you may come and pick her up" my father lookeddirectly at her but never spoke he just started the engine and drove off. "get in the house you dirty little slut you stink I can see your going tobe some trouble, I always know the ones who are going to be trouble as soonas I see them" she chucked my case at me and dragged me into the houseby my arm, I could see my fathers car fad away into the distance. I. . she was talking to my voices ... and I’ll be damned if they didn’t talk back.And they shook her hand. I will admit it looked odd ... her hand was in an invisible clasp and moving up and down ... just like it would in a physical hand shake. I am hurt ... they didn’t shake my hand when they started talking to me.I pouted.The bloody mess ... Wendy ... Wendy Austin ... her ... the cringing ... wait. She’s sitting normally ... and paying more attention to the road than I am.She shrieked! Instead.