'Probably an overnight break-in, ' she thought.Crime in the Controlled Areas was light, by standards of the past, since those convicted were expelled ...rom the Controlled Areas and required (or forced) to live outside, where CA services were not available. For those who lived peaceably in the CAs, there was a reasonably efficient system of social welfare to protect those who could not or would not live productive lives. None of those lived particularly satisfactory lives, nor did they suffer. " Having spoken, my uncle got up and left the house. I looked after him in bewilderment. His words made sense but he didn't. Something in his attitude toward me had changed, a very subtle adjustment that took me from being a girl to a woman in his eyes.For the rest of the day people came in and out of the house for one reason or another, and I was the unwilling focus of their attention. Uncle Eddie dropped by but he avoided me. He and my father talked for a while about the wedding arrangements,. The farmers had oxen to pulltheir plows and I saw pigs, cows, chickens, geese, ducks, dogs, and cats.The people were dressed in home spun clothes in traditional 12th CenturyEnglish style. I seemed much taller than most of the men but I saw oneman my height or a little taller.I knew poor nutrition played a large part in how tall people grow but itis not the only factor. But how I was dressed did cause some to stares atus as we traveled. The road we traveled on was dirt and very muddy. She gave me a little smile and said, "The last time I had sex was 14th February 1989, two weeks before my Roger passed on." She grinned at the look of astonishment on my face. "Well, let's face it Luce, I'm an outsider, and I had a business to run, and there's never exactly been a ready supply of attractive, eligible, middle-aged men in this inbred shithole of a town."I'd never heard Gran swear before, and I'd never heard her talk so frankly about her feelings. We were both lost in our thoughts.