Shadbolt put the rod into the closet while Lois put the bowl on the drainer and dropped the container into the trash. She headed for the stairs.
"Ms Lane?"
She stopped and turned.
"Moyne told me that the alien did speak," Shadbolt said. "In the first few days."
"Why did he stop?"
"Because every time he tried to communicate in any way, they belted him with the rod. By the time I came, he'd stopped trying."
"Thank you," Lois said in a tight, strained voice. She hurried up the stairs before Shadbolt could see the tears that had flooded her eyes.
Thanks!
Corrina.
