With Faber still speaking in his ear, Montag returns to work and gives Beatty a book, which is promptly incinerated. After a lengthy discussion with Beatty, an alarm comes into the station, and the firemen rush to destroy the next house. When the firemen stop in front of the unfortunate house, Montag is surprised to see his own home.
Promptly, Beatty orders Montag to destroy his home and places him under arrest. Montag takes a perverse pleasure in destroying the home, especially the television, and in the following moments, he also kills Beatty with his flamethrower. The Mechanical Hound attacks Montag before he can escape, but he destroys it with fire before the Hound can destroy him.
Montag runs to Faber's home for protection but quickly realizes that he is endangering Faber. Thus, he stops at the home of Black, a fellow fireman, and hides the books inside the house to incriminate him. Montag then reaches Faber's home, and Faber tells him to escape down the river because another Mechanical Hound is on the search for him.
After helping Faber rid all trace of him, Montag races toward the river in hopes of escaping the search. By the time the Mechanical Hound reaches the river, Montag's trail is lost. He safely floats down the river toward a group of social outcasts and criminals like himself.
