Red Dragon

Dolarhyde talks about the infrared film with Reba. When Reba needs a ride home, Dolarhyde offers. She refuses and, when she is standing outside in the rain, Dolarhyde watches her. He pulls up in his van, asking her to ride with him “for [his] pleasure” (294). She appreciates how differently he approaches her in comparison to most people, so she accepts. At her house, she invites him inside for a drink. This excites him. They talk about his film project at the zoo, and they make “small talk” (299). She notices Dolarhyde’s sudden silence when she mentions speech therapy. She praises his speech and, to his surprise, asks to touch his face. His thoughts are filled with sudden violence, but he allows her to feel his face. He feels a sudden urge to leave and, after he does so, Reba notices the “traces of him” (300) that linger behind. She appreciates that she “had not felt one ion of sympathy from him” (301). After years of navigating the world as a blind woman, she has developed a healthy mistrust of men.