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00:00:00.260 Speaker 1 Allegiance.
00:00:17.760 Speaker 1 Chapter One: The Souls of Things.
00:00:22.840 Speaker 1 His bedroom door told Elm that someone was coming before the man even reached the
00:00:26.940 Speaker 1 top of the stairs. "Go away." "I'm coming in." "No,
00:00:33.260 Speaker 1 you aren't." Elm worked at the wire housing of the lantern with a pair of pliers. It
00:00:38.620 Speaker 1 was a mess. Whoever owned this thing before him clearly didn't understand the souls
00:00:43.300 Speaker 1 of things. He had no idea how to fix the lantern, but the pliers guided his hands.
00:00:48.800 Speaker 1 "Elm?" And the lantern guided the pliers. The doorknob wiggled, but the door didn't
00:00:54.300 Speaker 1 open. "Elm, unlock the door." The door wasn't locked. His
00:01:00.020 Speaker 1 father knew that, but sometimes he didn't want to know things like that. He didn't
00:01:05.360 Speaker 1 know what Elm was. Actually, come to think of it, Elm didn't know what he was.
00:01:11.200 Speaker 1 Maybe the pliers knew. The pliers didn't understand the question. Elm was the holder
00:01:17.080 Speaker 1 of pliers. Maybe the desk knew. But the desk wasn't paying attention and told him to
00:01:22.760 Speaker 1 ask again. "Oh, never mind." The banging on the door continued. "Do not
00:01:28.420 Speaker 1 ignore me. Open this door right now." Elm turned the brass lantern over in his
00:01:34.100 Speaker 1 hands. There was a dent on the bottom that pierced where the oil was supposed to go.
00:01:39.460 Speaker 1 What, had they thrown this thing? That wasn't how you used a lantern. "Open this
00:01:43.940 Speaker 1 door right now or I will get rid of every last piece of your
00:01:49.640 Speaker 1 junk in this house." The bedroom door swung open so suddenly that Elm's father
00:01:55.020 Speaker 1 stumbled inward. He crashed into a soggy pile of books that Elm had rescued from the
00:02:00.140 Speaker 1 storm drain last month. As if they hadn't already been through enough. "Don't give
00:02:05.040 Speaker 1 me that look. I don't know why you always make me out to be the bad guy. This isn't
00:02:10.639 Speaker 1 the end. It's a new beginning." "For who?" "For you,
00:02:16.400 Speaker 1 son." Elm spun around and faced his father. The man looked torn between screaming
00:02:22.460 Speaker 1 again or apologizing. He weaved a path through neat piles of objects, carefully
00:02:27.720 Speaker 1 placing each step. There was a path there if you knew where to look. When he finally
00:02:32.780 Speaker 1 reached Elm, he put his hands on his shoulders. They felt large and warm. The stare
00:02:37.960 Speaker 1 he leveled made Elm shrink backward in his seat. "You are getting a job."
00:02:43.820 Speaker 1 "Why can't I just sell things?" His father returned a
00:02:49.840 Speaker 1 flat look. "When is the last time you sold something?" "Okay,
00:02:55.980 Speaker 1 then I could open a repair shop." "Could you? Could you open a
00:03:01.860 Speaker 1 repair shop?" Elm felt his father's words more than he heard them. Why not just come
00:03:07.580 Speaker 1 right out and say it? He was useless. He was worse than useless, a man
00:03:13.480 Speaker 1 without a purpose, because he actually was a man now, at least that's what he'd been
00:03:18.340 Speaker 1 told at dinner. "I'm just being realistic. You just don't have what
00:03:24.300 Speaker 1 it takes. I need you to know that comes from a place of love. We
00:03:30.200 Speaker 1 just need to find something that, that, uh..." "That I won't screw up?"
00:03:36.240 Speaker 1 [sighs] "I didn't say that." Elm
00:03:42.120 Speaker 1 turned his back to his father and picked up the lantern again. He had no idea how to
00:03:46.680 Speaker 1 seal the broken lantern container. He picked up each of his tools in turn just in
00:03:50.940 Speaker 1 case they had any idea. "No, you don't get to shut me out. Not this
00:03:56.980 Speaker 1 time." "I don't wanna talk." "Too bad."
00:04:02.880 Speaker 1 His father walked right over a ragged hill of clothes towards the door. He paused
00:04:07.300 Speaker 1 before leaving the room. "Your first day is tomorrow. I traded every favor I'm owed
00:04:12.800 Speaker 1 to get you this job. You're working the yard at a sawmill. Early shift."
00:04:18.860 Speaker 1 His father didn't say the rest of the threat out loud. He simply waved a hand over
00:04:23.580 Speaker 1 the things that covered the floor, the walls, then leveled a serious gaze at Elm.
00:04:28.780 Speaker 1 "Tomorrow, 5:00 AM, the sawmill. Bring the saw by the door.
00:04:35.100 Speaker 1 Don't forget." Then he watched, unsettled as the bedroom door slowly closed in his
00:04:41.020 Speaker 1 face. It was quite perceptive for a door. Elm was done talking. In fact, he was
00:04:46.840 Speaker 1 completely done with the world outside this room. He set down his tools and put his
00:04:52.580 Speaker 1 face in his hands. But apparently, the world was not done with him.
00:04:58.840 Speaker 1 Elm walked down the street with his head bowed. Maybe if he looked at the ground,
00:05:02.740 Speaker 1 people would leave him alone. It was an old tactic, and for the most part it worked,
00:05:07.580 Speaker 1 except on a certain type of person. With any luck, that type of person wouldn't be
00:05:13.580 Speaker 1 outside at a time like this, in weather like this. It was a long walk to the
00:05:18.880 Speaker 1 sawmill. There was an electric trolley, but it wouldn't start running until 7:00 AM.
00:05:23.860 Speaker 1 A wicked breeze tried to cut through the weave of his coat, and the coat pulled
00:05:27.480 Speaker 1 tighter around him. The coat dared the wind to try that again. Elm smiled to
00:05:32.700 Speaker 1 himself. His coat had belonged to his father before him. It should have sagged on
00:05:37.580 Speaker 1 his slight frame. It should have made him look ridiculous, and yet somehow it fit
00:05:42.380 Speaker 1 him perfectly. The sound of voices nearby forced him to look up.
00:05:49.620 Speaker 1 Unfortunately, the cold had not turned away the type of person who would politely
00:05:54.560 Speaker 1 ignore him. Two young men argued with a traveling merchant parked on the side of the
00:05:59.420 Speaker 1 street. The first man was mostly eyebrows and biceps. He alternated waving his hands
00:06:05.200 Speaker 1 around in an exaggerated fashion and pointing at his friend's feet. The other man
00:06:09.776 Speaker 1 stood silently with his arms crossed. Elm started walking faster. The
00:06:15.576 Speaker 1 evil one nudged the dumb one, then pointed at Elm and said something. Elm walked
00:06:20.936 Speaker 1 even faster. They waved an annoyed dismissal at the traveling merchant, a woman with
00:06:26.556 Speaker 1 dark, wrinkled skin and dusty gray hair. She stared at them with bleary eyes. Had
00:06:32.016 Speaker 1 they woken her up just to argue? The two men jogged to catch up to Elm.
00:06:38.216 Speaker 1 It seemed impossible that his day could get any worse, but he was learning new pain
00:06:42.156 Speaker 1 by the moment. The evil one spoke first. "Hey, weirdo. Don't buy
00:06:47.796 Speaker 1 anything from that junker. She'll rip you off like she did me and Kel." The dumb one
00:06:52.816 Speaker 1 spoke next. "Yeah, we oughta kick out her wagon wheels tonight, right Luke?" "Shh.
00:06:59.036 Speaker 1 Shut up. You can't say things like that out loud, Kel." "Well, she deserves it.
00:07:04.936 Speaker 1 City junkers think they can rip off good small-town people." Luke put a friendly arm
00:07:10.696 Speaker 1 around Elm. "So where you going, Elm? Awful early." "Work." "What a
00:07:16.516 Speaker 1 coincidence. Us, too. Mind if we join you? We've gotta stick together.
00:07:22.636 Speaker 1 This place'll be overrun with foreigners before too long." Elm shriveled under the
00:07:27.876 Speaker 1 man's touch. It would be easier if they just hit him. When they were done hitting
00:07:33.016 Speaker 1 him, at least he could leave. It was so much worse when they pretended to be his
00:07:37.636 Speaker 1 friend. "Are you gonna listen to this blowhard?" Elm stopped walking. Had that voice
00:07:43.076 Speaker 1 just come from... No. He was hearing things. He looked down at
00:07:49.016 Speaker 1 Luke's shoes. "Yeah, it's me, the shoes. Ignore this walking trash heap. His feet
00:07:54.436 Speaker 1 are disgusting. I'm great, the best shoes you'll ever wear. Just take me."
00:08:01.856 Speaker 1 Everyone knew Elm was strange. He knew he was strange. Weird things
00:08:07.556 Speaker 1 happened around him. He had a kind of kinship with man-made things that was
00:08:13.376 Speaker 1 difficult to describe. But they didn't actually talk to him. This was
00:08:19.196 Speaker 1 strange, even for him. "Take me." "I don't wanna take you."
00:08:25.096 Speaker 1 Luke looked over in confusion at Elm. "What'd you say?" "He's crazy, Luke."
00:08:30.996 Speaker 1 "Did you just say you could take me?" Elm was even more surprised the
00:08:37.076 Speaker 1 second time the shoes spoke. "Yes, yes. You can take him. I'll help you.
00:08:42.956 Speaker 1 Watch." Luke fell to the ground, grasping frantically at Elm as he went down. He
00:08:48.536 Speaker 1 tried to keep him upright, but the other man face-planted on the gravel street
00:08:52.016 Speaker 1 anyway. As he scrambled to get back up, Elm realized it had looked an awful lot like
00:08:57.556 Speaker 1 he'd tripped him on purpose. And what would he say? The shoes did it?
00:09:02.496 Speaker 1 "Freak!" Elm pulled out of his grip and backpedaled all the way back to the building
00:09:07.736 Speaker 1 behind him. He put his hands up in front of him, warding off the inevitable. He
00:09:12.436 Speaker 1 looked frantically between the two men, boxing him against the wall. This is what
00:09:17.896 Speaker 1 the world outside his room held for him. Kel loomed over him, violence
00:09:23.936 Speaker 1 backlit his eyes. It was the only thing the man truly understood. "It wasn't me. It
00:09:29.836 Speaker 1 was his shoes. I don't know. They hate him or something." Kel slammed him once
00:09:35.556 Speaker 1 against the wall with a casual shove, an opening play to see if Elm would fight
00:09:40.056 Speaker 1 back. He wouldn't. It would end faster that way. Put the bruises
00:09:45.976 Speaker 1 where they won't show, Kel. He'll snitch. "No, no, I won't plea-" The first punch
00:09:50.736 Speaker 1 hit him, fast and efficient, right below the ribs. Elm buckled immediately, but Kel
00:09:56.316 Speaker 1 propped him up, like a friend helping him walk home after drinking. He kept Elm
00:10:01.156 Speaker 1 pressed against the brick wall while he hammered his guts with the other arm. Kel
00:10:06.196 Speaker 1 did his work quietly, without passion. Finally, he let Elm crumple to the
00:10:11.936 Speaker 1 ground to spew his breakfast. "You wanna go, Luke?" "Yeah, why not?"
00:10:18.296 Speaker 1 Luke rolled up his sleeves and walked over. Elm shriveled into a little ball. As
00:10:23.556 Speaker 1 long as Luke didn't kick him too hard, he could take it. He... Luke squatted down
00:10:29.016 Speaker 1 and slapped him across the face. It was hard enough to hurt, but only barely.
00:10:34.016 Speaker 1 "Didn't realize you had a spine. Leave it at home next time." Luke stood back
00:10:39.916 Speaker 1 up and looked around to make sure no one had been watching. There was no one on the
00:10:44.616 Speaker 1 street at this hour, though. Except... The junk trader they had been talking to.
00:10:50.796 Speaker 1 She looked out a little window in her wagon. The wagon was pulled into a little
00:10:54.756 Speaker 1 clearing of gravel near the road. She was parked in a place meant for merchants like
00:10:59.176 Speaker 1 her, though she was the only one there now. She lit a pipe and looked out the little
00:11:04.116 Speaker 1 window. She blew smoke and casually watched the three men. "What do we do, Luke?"
00:11:09.776 Speaker 1 "Nothing. Let's go." The two of them walked off in the
00:11:15.756 Speaker 1 direction Elm had been walking. They watched the trader as they went. Surely,
00:11:22.036 Speaker 1 surely they couldn't be going to the sawmill. Elm pulled himself up into a
00:11:28.076 Speaker 1 seated position against the wall. His guts wrenched again and he gagged, but there
00:11:32.676 Speaker 1 was nothing left to puke. He took deep breaths until he was sure he could stand
00:11:37.016 Speaker 1 again. "Excuse me. I could use some help." Elm turned to find the
00:11:43.076 Speaker 1 old trader standing in the street next to him. She was short, almost grandmotherly.
00:11:49.016 Speaker 1 That probably explained why Luke and Kel had gone out of their way to hurt him. Even
00:11:53.776 Speaker 1 they couldn't beat up someone like that. It went against whatever twisted code of
00:11:58.116 Speaker 1 ethics they operated by. Well, that's what people like Elm were good for, punching
00:12:03.676 Speaker 1 bags for all the problems they weren't allowed to punch. "I can't. I have to get to
00:12:09.376 Speaker 1 work." He chose to be hurt? What did that mean? She tapped the ash
00:12:15.440 Speaker 1 out of her pipe and put the other end back in her mouth. He took a closer look.
00:12:20.520 Speaker 1 There really was something strange about this person. "It'll only take a moment.
00:12:26.600 Speaker 1 I'm looking for someone, someone you might know." "I don't know anyone.
00:12:32.600 Speaker 1 Ask at the mayor's office when it opens." Seriously, she was asking him?
00:12:38.580 Speaker 1 He was the last person who would know anyone in this town. Still, she stood there
00:12:43.760 Speaker 1 smoking her pipe and watched him intently. What was with that look? Was she really
00:12:49.060 Speaker 1 just going to ignore the beating he'd taken? "You could have helped me."
00:12:54.840 Speaker 1 "Me? You were the one who chose to be hurt." What did that mean? He
00:13:00.840 Speaker 1 looked more closely at the stranger. "I'm looking for someone. I don't know their
00:13:06.180 Speaker 1 name. They have a knack for fixing or building things. They might be
00:13:11.700 Speaker 1 unusually skilled in a trade. Perhaps they see the world a
00:13:17.580 Speaker 1 little differently than everyone else."
00:13:21.260 Speaker 1 Elm's mouth went dry, and he took a step back. The old trader looked directly into
00:13:26.400 Speaker 1 his eyes, unblinking. "Do you know this person?" "No."
00:13:31.820 Speaker 1 "Hmm. What's your name, then?" "Elm."
00:13:38.460 Speaker 1 He really needed to get to work now. The look in his father's eyes said it all. If
00:13:44.260 Speaker 1 he couldn't keep this job, he'd lose everything, the whole collection.
00:13:50.180 Speaker 1 Where would it go? What would he do with all those things? "Don't you wonder why
00:13:55.960 Speaker 1 they can't feel what you feel, why no one else can hear their
00:14:01.420 Speaker 1 possessions, only you?" "I don't know you,
00:14:07.260 Speaker 1 and I don't know what you're talking about." Then he realized what was so odd about
00:14:12.920 Speaker 1 this person. All of her clothes were lifeless. Even the pipe was
00:14:19.000 Speaker 1 lifeless. Everyone had cherished possessions. It was natural. It was normal.
00:14:25.220 Speaker 1 To use a thing was to make it a part of your life, to give it a sort of life of its
00:14:29.900 Speaker 1 own. You would have to go out of your way to avoid giving things life.
00:14:36.420 Speaker 1 You would have to feel the souls of things like he did and then kill
00:14:42.460 Speaker 1 them somehow. He didn't wanna know a person like that. It was the worst kind
00:14:48.480 Speaker 1 of person he could imagine, his opposite in every way. Elm started
00:14:54.420 Speaker 1 running. His guts screamed in pain, but he pushed through. He had always wondered if
00:15:00.040 Speaker 1 he'd meet another person who understood the souls of things, someone who could truly
00:15:05.460 Speaker 1 understand him. He'd never imagined he would regret it. Chapter Two:
00:15:11.720 Speaker 1 The Bet. "You're late." Elm tried not to look winded, hoping he could put
00:15:17.700 Speaker 1 on a convincing facade of strength. "Sorry, I, um, I got distracted."
00:15:26.160 Speaker 1 The sawmill foreman looked like someone his father would know, unshaven, tired, and
00:15:31.720 Speaker 1 generally displeased with everyone and everything. The man scratched his ch- "You're
00:15:37.500 Speaker 1 Elias' boy then?" "Yes, I'm, I'm here for my job."
00:15:41.320 Speaker 1 [laughs] "Tough. I just had two guys walk up, and I offered the spots
00:15:47.320 Speaker 1 to them." He began to walk away, leaving Elm at the front gate.
00:15:52.300 Speaker 1 "Please."
00:15:55.740 Speaker 1 The foreman turned around and pointed. "You see that pile of rough logs? I need that
00:16:01.540 Speaker 1 turned into planks by Tuesday." Elm still wheezed to catch his breath, trying to
00:16:07.560 Speaker 1 follow what the man was saying. "What happens on Tuesday?" "I get another pile of
00:16:13.600 Speaker 1 logs that size." "Okay." Where was he going with this?
00:16:19.600 Speaker 1 "Now, you tell me how a toothpick like you can help me make
00:16:25.620 Speaker 1 that problem go away." "I, um, I'm good with tools, machines."
00:16:31.499 Speaker 1 "Walk-ons don't get machines. Too expensive. And where's your saw?
00:16:37.500 Speaker 1 Didn't you bring one?" "I..." Was he supposed to bring a saw?
00:16:42.800 Speaker 1 [sighs] "Sorry, kid, this isn't charity. Tell your old man I'll see him for cards on
00:16:48.000 Speaker 1 Saturday." Then he walked away, taking Elm's entire world with him.
00:16:54.420 Speaker 1 He couldn't. He couldn't take his things. They didn't understand. They weren't
00:17:00.460 Speaker 1 things. They were, they were... "No!" The foreman turned around and
00:17:06.500 Speaker 1 looked at Elm. Elm felt his face turn red. Say something, Elm. Say something.
00:17:12.220 Speaker 1 "Okay, let me prove it. One day. Just give me one day to prove how hard I can
00:17:18.160 Speaker 1 work." The foreman shook his head slowly, and he felt his hopes slipping
00:17:24.040 Speaker 1 away. "If you knew how many times I'd heard that empty promise." So Elm tried to
00:17:29.240 Speaker 1 give him the same stare the trader had given him, a confident, knowing,
00:17:35.060 Speaker 1 piercing stare. [sighs] "Fine, but you're gonna have to work real hard.
00:17:41.340 Speaker 1 Guy who took your spot was twice your size." Wait, did that mean it worked?
00:17:46.920 Speaker 1 "There wasn't supposed to be an opening at all, but we lost a good guy last week to
00:17:52.360 Speaker 1 an accident. I guess Gus' loss is your fortune." Then the foreman
00:17:58.420 Speaker 1 put out his hand for, for what? [clears throat] "It's a
00:18:04.220 Speaker 1 handshake, son." "Oh." Elm shook the man's hand.
00:18:08.820 Speaker 1 "I'm Wilton, and you're?" He knew this one. My
00:18:14.708 Speaker 1 name's Elm. Wilton nodded approvingly. Good name for this business.
00:18:21.088 Speaker 1 Wilton tilted his head toward a shed on the other end of the yard. Since you don't
00:18:26.608 Speaker 1 have a saw, Gus's saw is still in his old locker, I reckon. Doesn't seem right to
00:18:32.328 Speaker 1 use another man's tools, but I suppose it's easier than using your hands. For what?
00:18:39.228 Speaker 1 For, for what? For Lords above, for cutting logs. This is a sawmill.
00:18:46.008 Speaker 1 Apparently, Elm had missed something important. Eh, that happened when he was
00:18:50.528 Speaker 1 talking to people sometimes. They said things without saying things, and somehow he
00:18:54.988 Speaker 1 was supposed to understand. So he had to make up for that. Maybe if he worked
00:19:01.028 Speaker 1 really hard. Either the sawmill would keep him on and he'd get paid, which would be
00:19:06.188 Speaker 1 really weird. What would it be like to have his own money? Or his father would see
00:19:11.288 Speaker 1 how hard he'd tried and wouldn't clean out his room. Or the shed. Or the guest
00:19:17.328 Speaker 1 room. Or, okay, maybe Elm had been a little unfair to his father. You won't
00:19:23.368 Speaker 1 regret it. The job itself was fairly simple. Take a huge, uncut log from
00:19:29.308 Speaker 1 the mountain of logs, and then cut it down to the size the yard foreman had asked
00:19:33.828 Speaker 1 for. Then you dragged the smaller, but still heavy pieces into neat rows so that the
00:19:39.848 Speaker 1 workers inside could pull them in and cut them on electric saws. Simple.
00:19:45.628 Speaker 1 Simple and utterly backbreaking. There were six other men hauling and cutting in the
00:19:50.648 Speaker 1 yard like him. That was generous, actually, because they were like him in a way that
00:19:55.128 Speaker 1 an ox was like a puppy. Kel had started the same day as Elm had feared,
00:20:01.048 Speaker 1 and though Elm had always thought the bully was frighteningly strong, he still
00:20:05.268 Speaker 1 looked small compared to the older men in the crew. It was nearly lunchtime, and Elm
00:20:09.688 Speaker 1 had managed to drag almost sixteen pieces into the row of logs ready to be cut for
00:20:14.328 Speaker 1 the next day. He dragged a cut piece and buckled over, hands on knees, heaving from
00:20:19.348 Speaker 1 the effort. When he recovered, he walked over to the paper stapled to a nearby post
00:20:24.188 Speaker 1 and marked a tally next to his name. Sixteen.
00:20:29.508 Speaker 1 He looked at the other names on the sheet. They had a lot more tally marks than him,
00:20:34.108 Speaker 1 but the day was only halfway through. No one had spoken to him. That was okay. He
00:20:39.468 Speaker 1 didn't need to make friends. He was here to prove a point to his father, and that
00:20:43.528 Speaker 1 was it. He flipped up the sheet of paper to see the tallies from weeks prior, and
00:20:48.368 Speaker 1 his heart sank. Renfro, five hundred and thirteen pieces. Will B,
00:20:54.808 Speaker 1 four hundred and eighty-two. Arnie, six hundred and forty-three. Taliki, eight
00:21:00.848 Speaker 1 hundred and two. Gus, nine hundred seven pieces. This
00:21:07.688 Speaker 1 couldn't be real. There were red marks through some of the days for Renfro and Will.
00:21:12.948 Speaker 1 Had they taken days off that week? And nine hundred seven? Elm ran
00:21:18.968 Speaker 1 the numbers through his head. He thought he'd been moving at a pretty good pace, but
00:21:23.248 Speaker 1 if he really went all out for the rest of the week, he might move two hundred
00:21:28.048 Speaker 1 pieces. The person he had replaced had more than four times that amount. He
00:21:33.888 Speaker 1 was doomed. Elm trudged back to the log pile. Just a hill at this point, since it
00:21:39.808 Speaker 1 was the day before the next load arrived. He rolled over a thick log and started
00:21:44.328 Speaker 1 sawing, but his heart wasn't in it anymore. Besides, the saw seemed to pull away
00:21:49.548 Speaker 1 from him at bizarre angles or lodge itself in the log so that he'd have to use all
00:21:53.988 Speaker 1 of his strength to get it free again. It was almost like the thing wanted him to
00:21:59.588 Speaker 1 fail. He'd tried to talk to it, in the way he spoke to everything that felt alive,
00:22:05.008 Speaker 1 but it didn't respond. He felt like there was something there, though. Not
00:22:10.288 Speaker 1 everything had a soul. Most things didn't even have more than a glimmer of life to
00:22:14.988 Speaker 1 them. The trader's clothes, for instance, didn't even have that much. They were like
00:22:21.008 Speaker 1 corpses. He tried to forget the encounter. He sat down to lunch, only to realize
00:22:27.348 Speaker 1 he hadn't brought a lunch. Of course. Why would they make lunch for him?
00:22:33.267 Speaker 1 Stupid. He'd forgotten. He forgot everything. There was a reason he was
00:22:39.308 Speaker 1 useless. Lots of reasons. Why should he expect this job to go any differently?
00:22:46.008 Speaker 1 Someone sat down on the stool next to him. Elm tensed, prepared to endure a lashing
00:22:50.928 Speaker 1 from Kel, or Luke, wherever he was. They wouldn't actually hurt him here, though.
00:22:56.368 Speaker 1 Not physically, anyway. So how's life as a lumberjack? The man was probably ten
00:23:01.568 Speaker 1 years older than Elm. He wasn't muscled like the other outer yard workers, but his
00:23:06.248 Speaker 1 rough hands and bulging forearms told the story of a seasoned laborer. Elm felt his
00:23:11.748 Speaker 1 positivity fading.
00:23:15.308 Speaker 1 It hurts. Yeah. We've been taking bets on how many days you'll last. The
00:23:21.108 Speaker 1 man pushed a small loaf of bread in front of Elm. I bet three, so eat up.
00:23:27.368 Speaker 1 I don't think I can do it.
00:23:30.608 Speaker 1 You can't do three? Anyone can do three. Just, uh, keep smiling when you see Wilton.
00:23:36.168 Speaker 1 He's a big softie. I guarantee he won't fire you until the end of the week if he
00:23:40.388 Speaker 1 doesn't see you pouting like this. I'm not pouting. Hmm. Could have fooled me.
00:23:46.848 Speaker 1 Why are you talking to me? Hey, nice to meet you, too. The
00:23:52.748 Speaker 1 man got up and started to walk away.
00:23:56.888 Speaker 1 Thank you for the bread. He nodded and grinned. Just two more days, kid.
00:24:03.068 Speaker 1 It gets easier.
00:24:05.428 Speaker 1 Really?
00:24:07.548 Speaker 1 He shrugged. I don't know. Maybe. Yard workers are crazy. See you,
00:24:13.388 Speaker 1 kid.
00:24:15.192 Speaker 1 Elm watched him go sit down with another group of men with similar builds. They
00:24:19.412 Speaker 1 pointed back at Elm and, though he couldn't hear the words, they seemed upset.
00:24:23.992 Speaker 1 Apparently, giving Elm lunch had changed the betting odds. A whistle blew and
00:24:28.772 Speaker 1 everyone shuffled out of the break room. Elm sat on his stool, willing his aching
00:24:33.252 Speaker 1 legs to move, begging his broken back to bend. When he finally made it back to the
00:24:39.112 Speaker 1 outer yard, everyone else was already hard at work. Kel spared him an unfriendly
00:24:43.952 Speaker 1 smile as he dragged his pieces, two at a time, to the stockpile. Elm pulled his saw
00:24:49.532 Speaker 1 out of the locker. Gus's locker, technically. Gus's saw, too. Then
00:24:55.592 Speaker 1 he looked down at his hands, already covered in blisters that threatened to pop.
00:25:01.432 Speaker 1 I can't do it. I can't. He was going to lose it
00:25:07.412 Speaker 1 all. Maybe it was just junk to everyone else, but it was the entire world to him.
00:25:13.452 Speaker 1 In his room, with his things, that was the only place he truly felt at ease. His
00:25:19.192 Speaker 1 father loved him, but he didn't understand him. This most recent shove was just more
00:25:24.272 Speaker 1 proof. He gripped the saw tighter, thinking about how it resisted his every move.
00:25:30.212 Speaker 1 Help me, you stupid thing. The saw was inert. Let
00:25:36.052 Speaker 1 me use you.
00:25:39.272 Speaker 1 No response.
00:25:43.052 Speaker 1 I'm sorry Gus is gone. I'm not trying to replace him. I don't know what
00:25:48.752 Speaker 1 happened, but I need you to work.
00:25:52.992 Speaker 1 But the saw in his hands was simply a saw, and even though he understood the souls
00:25:57.732 Speaker 1 of things, he felt silly for talking to himself. Then he remembered Luke's shoes.
00:26:04.072 Speaker 1 They had talked to him. Maybe he could do that.
00:26:09.192 Speaker 1 Somehow. But how did you talk to a saw? Elm went back out to the yard and
00:26:15.152 Speaker 1 rolled a log away from the pile. You are going to cut this log like
00:26:21.052 Speaker 1 you mean it. The first stroke bounced off the top of the log, barely scratching the
00:26:26.352 Speaker 1 surface. Cut the log. The other men looked up from their work at him. He
00:26:32.392 Speaker 1 ignored them. He was weird. He spent his whole life being weird. Why bother hiding
00:26:37.232 Speaker 1 it? The next stroke dug into the log, then the saw caught and refused to be pulled
00:26:43.252 Speaker 1 free. Cut the log. You okay?
00:26:49.652 Speaker 1 Someone was talking to him. Renfro, maybe. It didn't matter. Elm was staring
00:26:55.252 Speaker 1 single-mindedly at the saw. Cut. He pulled the saw free
00:27:01.232 Speaker 1 and drove it back into the log. The. It started to pull off at a wild angle,
00:27:07.252 Speaker 1 as if somebody were deliberately yanking it sideways. He ignored the buck and
00:27:11.832 Speaker 1 forcibly kept it centered. Log. At last, the saw dug into the wood.
00:27:18.172 Speaker 1 He willed it to dig deeper, not just with his tired arms, but with his mind. He
00:27:23.452 Speaker 1 imagined the saw gliding effortlessly through the wood. He did his best to feel the
00:27:28.492 Speaker 1 joy of a hard day's work, wanting to go home and rest, but also wanting to get back
00:27:34.132 Speaker 1 to that simple pleasure of working with his body. That basic satisfaction of doing
00:27:40.132 Speaker 1 work that mattered to people, even though his part was small, even though each
00:27:45.572 Speaker 1 stroke of the saw was smaller still. Each stroke mattered. When he broke
00:27:51.492 Speaker 1 free of the trance, it took a moment to understand what he was looking at. Sawdust
00:27:56.352 Speaker 1 covered the ground before him. The huge log had been cut clean through in what must
00:28:01.752 Speaker 1 have only been seconds. He couldn't remember. Lords above. There were
00:28:07.632 Speaker 1 people standing around him, staring at him. Elm staggered backwards and almost
00:28:13.212 Speaker 1 dropped the saw. It was happy? It hadn't spoken to him,
00:28:19.092 Speaker 1 but he felt the satisfaction emanating from the saw like the sound of a tuning fork.
00:28:25.112 Speaker 1 It positively hummed with joy. I
00:28:30.452 Speaker 1 The other men wore expressions of awe, confusion, or in Kel's case, distrust.
00:28:37.212 Speaker 1 I, um, I sharpened it. It makes a big difference. Taliki walked over and felt the
00:28:43.012 Speaker 1 teeth of the saw, moving his hands slowly as if it might bite him. It feels
00:28:48.992 Speaker 1 normal, like any saw. Elm shrugged and started another cut.
00:28:54.992 Speaker 1 He felt the saw sink deep into the wood on the very first stroke. He quickly pulled
00:28:59.892 Speaker 1 back on it so the others wouldn't notice. With deliberate effort, he cut through the
00:29:04.012 Speaker 1 log at a slower pace. It felt like holding back a wall of water. The saw
00:29:09.892 Speaker 1 wanted to cut now. Why was he holding it back? He promised it purpose.
00:29:15.752 Speaker 1 Wasn't it supposed to cut? He could sense its confusion. He cut through the log at a
00:29:21.712 Speaker 1 fraction of the speed as the first time, although it was still significantly faster
00:29:25.992 Speaker 1 than anyone else on the crew. Then he started the final cut on his log. At times, he
00:29:31.832 Speaker 1 had to remind himself just to use two hands and to make it look like he was actually
00:29:36.392 Speaker 1 struggling, when in reality, he had to do little more than just hold the thing.
00:29:42.012 Speaker 1 Eventually, the rest of the crew went back to work, but they looked over at Elm
00:29:46.132 Speaker 1 frequently. He might be cutting faster now, but the logs were still incredibly
00:29:50.852 Speaker 1 heavy. He spent most of his afternoon shift just hauling the things around. By
00:29:56.792 Speaker 1 the time the closing whistle blew, he was ready to collapse. He should have been
00:30:01.872 Speaker 1 ready to collapse hours ago.
00:30:05.152 Speaker 1 Something had changed when they all put their equipment away. Renfro looked
00:30:09.712 Speaker 1 quizzically at the locker and then back at Elm. Then he grinned. We'll make sure to
00:30:14.772 Speaker 1 put your name on that locker tomorrow. Then the crew cleared out of the equipment
00:30:19.172 Speaker 1 shed, except for one other person. Kel stood in the doorway, blocking Elm's exit.
00:30:25.312 Speaker 1 You won't ruin this for me, Elm. Don't make me hurt you. I'm not doing
00:30:30.872 Speaker 1 anything. Kel shook his head slowly, dismissing his words. I don't know what you're
00:30:36.832 Speaker 1 doing, and I don't care. Don't come back to work tomorrow. Then he left Elm
00:30:42.792 Speaker 1 alone in the equipment shed. And just like that, his hopes withered.
00:30:48.592 Speaker 1 Things brought him joy, but people, people only brought him pain.