Their reassurance sounded sincere. "We not whip lovely breasts. Soldiers like breasts very much." Corey had lost count of the times the thong had cut ...t her skin. She had forgotten to ask how many blows she must receive. But what did it matter? What did anything matter now? She looked up the columns of her bare arms to the shining chrome by which she was held helpless for this undeserved punishment. The metal bands were deep in her wrists, compelling her toes to lift her to their limit. She was. You caught right on. And soon we were waltzing and spinning through the room. Song after song, then the other side of the record too. Then another record. We had to cooperate to change the record and the effort made us laugh and you carried on. Making me hit myself in the face and causing me to drop the record (which I explained were delicate – not like CDs). You dragged me all over the room. You made me laugh from the bottom of my soul – laughter like I hadn’t made for years – not since – not. . look, dinner smells amazing. Can we start eating?" Alan said trying to break the tension.Ava glared at Gary. "Fine."The family ate in silence for a while. Gary felt Sally eying him. He looked up for a moment and her piercing blue eyes were on him."So Gary ... it's a shame Ginger couldn't make it to dinner tonight," Sally blurted out.Gary grunted and continued to pretend to enjoy his meal."Yeah I guess she had to go to work early tonight didn't she?" Danny added.Gary threw his fork down. "Yeah. Except his skin cells under the dead woman's fingernails. That was the wooden stake that could be driven through his heart.Denny said he'd take care of the arrest warrant, and let me know when Wally could be interrogated. He asked if it could be expedited. This case had no bearing on the trial in question, and could be pursued independently from the appeals process. If the prosecution could be put together quickly, it might be finished before the appeal was. If he was found guilty of Karla's.