A teenage girl by the name of Ayla Meadows is held against her will and experimented on by a crazed scientist. Although she manages to escape the horrors with the help of a sheriff and his group, she is forever haunted by the memories of her torture...
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"When he died, all things soft and beautiful and bright would be buried with him." - Madeline Miller.
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The hours leading up to the sunset meeting are tense. Carl refuses to leave Ayla's side out of fear of what could happen to her if she's alone. This leads the pair to become stuck to each other like glue as they avoid Shane. They do not dare to go somewhere as remote as their field, instead deciding to hide out in the farmhouse where there is always an adult near.
Finally, after what seems like years, people begin to pile into the living room to wait for the meeting to start. The room is quiet and tense - most people not even daring to look at each other, never mind make small talk. Ayla and Carl make their way towards the gathering of people but are stopped by Lori. "Not you two." She says when she notices them. "You wait upstairs with Beth and Jimmy."
Ayla is outraged by the decision but it's Carl who speaks. "What?" He exclaims. "Mum, no. We want to have our say too."
Lori gives him a look. "You're too young." And when Carl begins to protest she cuts him off. "Don't argue with me. Go. Now."
Obviously, the pair don't listen.
They walk away from the room and stomp up the stairs loudly before sneaking back down as quiet as possible, wincing every time a step creaks. They creep behind a wall and spend the entire meeting hiding behind it as they eavesdrop carefully.
They listen as Dale pleads with the group to spare Randall's life. That they cannot kill him as it is not right nor fair. He begs someone, anyone, to agree with him but none do. Ayla's heart breaks. The man is so passionate about what he believes in that she begins to find herself agreeing with him.
She thought she had already made her mind up earlier when she and Carl visited Randall. The girl believed him to be manipulative and evil but she realises she may have been wrong. Although Dale may hold the morals of the old world and many people would think him idiotic for that, Ayla does not. He is correct when he says that the group would be just as bad as the people they are afraid of if they do this and Ayla is frustrated that no one else can see that. Yes, she can understand the uneasiness that would come with keeping Randall alive. The constant unsafe feeling it may bring. But they haven't even given him a chance. The group took her in during her time of need and it was the best thing that ever happened to her. Why should she refuse someone else the chance to experience it too?
Unfortunately, her opinion doesn't matter anyway due to her age, and the meeting ends with the decision that Randall will be executed.
As Dale tearfully storms out the room, Ayla turns to Carl in frustration. "He's right." She says furiously. "They can't just kill a boy who has done nothing wrong."
