"You could find help--come back for me."
"No, Ann," he said gently. "We have to face it. There is no help. And I
won't leave you alone."
She stared at him for a long moment. He saw, peering closely, that her
eyes were liquid with tears. "Are you sorry you came?" he asked, not
knowing until the words were out what he was saying. "Would you go
back?"
She seemed to gather strength for her reply, drawing from a worn, thin
body a surprising vigor. Her eyes shone. "Never!" she cried.
He lay beside her on the ground near the fire and folded her into his
arms. "Nor I," he said.
When, some time later, the fire began to die, the two figures bundled
together before it did not stir. The fire slowly darkened, its orange
glow turning to gray ash, and then to black, obscuring the last feeble
flicker....
15