"It was my family." I say answering Phoenix's old question as she walks in. My family. Long gone. I miss them.
She gives me a puzzled look then remembering the question she asked me the night before. "They're beautiful." She says with a small smile on her face.
I nod while working on my car. "So you know where you can find a V8 engine mm?" I ask tiredly, anxious for an answer.
She nods. "Yep. I can help you out if you'd like." She replys happily. "Good, we can go on a raid later today." I mumble just loud enough for her to hear. I really hope she knows what she's talking about, although she seems to know a lot about cars enough to correct me.
I take a break and let her work on it for a bit. I study her and realize she's very beat down like the rest of us, but beautiful. I mean, what do you expect in a brutal world like this? She even had a nasty scar on her face. I'll probably ask about it later.
I think back to my family. When I was a cop. A road warrior. All the times I helped people and it doesn't even matter now. Even after I entered the wasteland. Everyone I helped I couldn't protect enough. I couldn't help them enough. I did the best I could but it wasn't enough, even for my family.
I wish I could go back, but it doesn't matter now. All I have is haunted memories. Lost in my thoughts I didn't notice Phoenix staring at me puzzled. "Whatcha thinkin' about?" She asks kindly, not expecting much of an answer. I didn't answer. I couldn't. I just kept silent.
She continued tweaking and modifying the car. We seem to have alot in common regarding mechanics and vehicles. I haven't met a woman so interested in mechanics and cars, let alone anyone.
It's nice to have so company. Even if we don't talk to each other. I'm not ready to open a book of my world to her or her friend. I'm not sure if they are ready either. They seem to do there own thing.
"When did you start working with cars?" I ask curiosity in my voice. "I've always loved 'em." She replys while working in my car.