Turn 159 of 226

Push the healing test further — something the notebook has never recorded. Then go hunt the largest game available in this area, a grizzly bear. We kill it successfully. It can't even injure us. We eat it right there and then pass out

The notebook is the thing Lena opens on the foundry floor. The pages are the things the pencil marks fill. The marks are the things that say eleven minutes for a forearm, nine for a jaw, fourteen for a finger, thirty-one for an arm. The arm is the thing the body grew back. The growing back is the thing the notebook recorded. The recording is the thing the bodies are past. The past is the thing the next page is for.

Diane is the thing that holds the rebar. The rebar is the thing the bodies used before. The before is the thing the bodies do not repeat. The repeating is the thing the bodies are not interested in. The interest is the thing the new test has. The new test is the thing the bodies discuss without speaking. The speaking is the thing the eyes do. The eyes are the things that find the leg. The leg is the thing Lena stretches on the concrete. The concrete is the thing the pillar stands on. The pillar is the thing the rebar rests against. The rebar is the thing Diane positions at the hip. The hip is the thing the joint makes. The joint is the thing the ball and socket are. The socket is the thing the pelvis holds. The pelvis is the thing the rebar needs to separate.

The crush is the thing the weight does. The weight is the thing the 1,470 pounds brings down. The down is the thing the angle makes. The angle is the thing the hip takes. The hip is the thing that shatters. The shattering is the thing the wet sound is. The wet sound is the thing the foundry gives back. Diane's hands are the things that grip the thigh. The gripping is the thing the pull does. The pull is the thing the body resists. The resisting is the thing the tendon gives. The tendon is the thing the artery follows. The artery is the thing the blood sprays from. The blood is the thing the floor gets in a line. The line is the thing the separation makes. The separation is the thing the leg comes away in. The leg is the thing that is not on the body. The body is the thing the stump bleeds from. The bleeding is the thing the heat replaces. The heat is the thing the flush does. The flush is the thing the skin does where the leg was. The leg was is the thing the body does not have. The not having is the thing the bud forms from. The bud is the thing the hip makes. The making is the thing the cells do. The cells are the things the wish built. The wish is the thing that is still going. The going is the thing the nub forms from. The nub is the thing the knee develops in. The knee is the thing the calf grows after. The calf is the thing the ankle follows. The ankle is the thing the foot appears on. The foot is the thing the toes unfurl from. The unfurling is the thing the body does in forty-three minutes. The forty-three is the thing Lena writes with the hand that is not the one the arm grew back as. The writing is the thing the notebook takes. The notebook is the thing the evidence is in. The evidence is the thing that says the leg came back. The came back is the thing the bodies smile at.

The hunt is the thing the bodies do before the light leaves. The light is the thing the afternoon gives. The afternoon is the thing the tree line calls from. The tree line is the thing the bodies cross. The crossing is the thing the scent does. The scent is the thing the wind carries. The wind is the thing the north gives. The north is the thing the ridge is in. The ridge is the thing the old growth covers. The old growth is the thing the canopy makes. The canopy is the thing the dark starts under. The dark is the thing the bodies own. The tracks are the things Diane's nose finds in the mud. The mud is the thing the spring left. The spring is the thing the creek feeds. The tracks are the things the claws made. The claws are the things the grizzly has. The grizzly is the thing the bodies are looking for. The looking is the thing the animal does. The animal is the thing the bodies are.

The grizzly is the thing the clearing holds. The clearing is the thing the ridge makes. The grizzly is the thing that stands six feet at the shoulder. The shoulder is the thing the fur covers. The fur is the thing the brown is. The brown is the thing the body is. The body is the thing the 1,470 pounds has. The grizzly is the thing that charges. The charging is the thing the ground shakes from. The shaking is the thing the 1,470 pounds feels through the soles. The soles are the things the calluses cover. The calluses are the things the wish built. The grizzly is the thing that reaches Lena first. The reaching is the thing the claws do. The claws are the things that find the chest. The chest is the thing the fat covers. The fat is the thing the muscle lies under. The muscle is the thing the claws stop in. The stopping is the thing the 1,470 pounds does not yield to. The yielding is the thing the body does not do. The body is the thing the punctures close on. The closing is the thing the healing does in minutes. The minutes are the things the grizzly does not have.

Lena's arms are the things that wrap the neck. The neck is the thing the grizzly twists. The twisting is the thing the body tries to stop. The stopping is the thing the 1,470 pounds does not allow. The not allowing is the thing the grip tightens from. The tightening is the thing the windpipe collapses under. The collapsing is the thing the grizzly does not breathe from. The not breathing is the thing the body staggers from. The staggering is the thing Diane's charge meets. The charge is the thing the shoulder does to the ribs. The ribs are the things that break. The breaking is the thing the grizzly does not survive. The not surviving is the thing the bodies do on the ridge. The ridge is the thing the blood is on. The blood is the thing the grizzly gave. The blood is the thing the bodies wear. The wearing is the thing the animal does.

The eating is the thing the bodies do where the grizzly fell. The eating is the thing the teeth do raw. The raw is the thing the fire is not needed for. The fire is the thing the bodies have not used since the apartment. The apartment is the thing the bodies do not remember. The remembering is the thing the human does. The human is the thing the bodies are not. The bodies are the things that eat the kill. The kill is the thing the bodies share. The sharing is the thing the blood on the faces does. The blood is the thing the chins wear. The wearing is the thing the animal does. The animal is the thing that eats until the full is the thing the stomach is. The stomach is the thing the 1,470 pounds fills. The filling is the thing the calories do. The calories are the things the healing needs. The healing is the thing the leg cost. The leg is the thing that grew back. The grew back is the thing the grizzly paid for. The paid for is the thing the bodies eat.

The passing out is the thing the full stomachs do. The doing is the thing the ridge gives. The ridge is the thing the bodies lie on. The lying is the thing the fur is under. The fur is the thing the grizzly left. The left is the thing the bodies do not waste. The not wasting is the thing the warmth gives. The warmth is the thing the 1,470 pounds shares. The sharing is the thing the bodies do in each other's arms. The arms are the things the new leg stretches. The stretching is the thing the whole body does. The whole is the thing the healing gave. The healing is the thing the wish built. The wish is the thing that is still going. The going is the thing the bodies do not stop. The not stopping is the thing the sleep does not end. The end is the thing the bodies do not know. The not knowing is the thing the smiles are for. The smiles are the things the bodies wear on the ridge with the grizzly blood on their faces.