Cougar leans forward as he works to catch his breath and shake the rest of the nightmare. "Wait," he says, dredging up the single word from under the pile of his will to not do this. He knows there isn't anyone else around that can listen to him and Jake gets irritated when Cougar takes on this guilt.

And a stranger is out of the question.

"If you mean that, I will talk to you," he says firmly.