"I . . . don't know," Duke said. "You're kind of a wild card, babe. Guess . . . we could try it?"

He didn't really want to try it. As much as he also didn't want to pass out from the pain again.

(He'd managed so far to avoid doing that in front of them, or in a way that made it obvious he had passed out rather than just laid down for a nap or something. And yes, he knew that wasn't the best way to handle things, but he couldn't quite make himself do it any other way just yet.)