I have been struggling with what Adam wants in the story, his specific desire. As David Mamet might say, what does he want?
The working hypothesis has been, Adam wants to save his sister. This raises the question, how do we know when he has saved her, does he get a prize? “Save” isn’t concrete enough to carry the audience through the various twists and turns of the story to the end.
I have thought of linking it to a location. If he gets her to a specific location has he saved her, perhaps, but it still seems a little nebulous.
His desire simply isn’t primal enough, it’s not a matter of life and death.
What is he saving her from, prohibition? He’s actually saving her from the physical manifestation of prohibition, drug eating insects.
We’ll know Adam has saved Christine if she is alive or dead at the end of the story.
Adam’s desire is to save Christine from becoming carrion.