She pulls out her cell phone and dials a number and waits for an answer. “Hey. Sorry I didn’t call earlier. Been busy. It’s all going according ...o plan.” Tinsel waits a moment then says, “Yes. I’m sure it’ll work. Trust me. Love you.” She hangs up the phone and walks down the block.Her old neighborhood hasn’t changed too much. She walks by old Mr. Brown’s orchard. He is using a spade to clear some obtrusive grass from the entrance. She stops and crouches down across from the old man. “Hey, Mr.. While Shea was growing up, her parents had never told her anything about sex. This caused her to blush as the boys went into greater, rumored detail. Even though she had learned about sex in health class and her girlfriends had brought it up from time to time, Shea had never truly understood why so many people were obsessed with the topic. She found it repulsive, especially since one guy had tried to stick his hand up her skirt a year ago. The boys sitting in front of Shea continued to talk. ”At least something good came out of this “exercise” today.Now that everything in the restaurant was in order, I started walking over to where the other kids said they went to hang out. I didn’t get very far before Avery came rushing up to me, looking worried.“Have you seen them go this way,” she asked in a complete panic.“Who? Your brothers?” I asked.“God, no. My little brothers are off in their small slices of heaven. Both are having sensory overload with the number of activities I saw in. They asked me how I did it.I could say little more than comment that I never let a wife awaken with a body full of pain from a previous day's whipping. A minor thing to say perhaps, but every journey begins with a first step. The idea of not whipping a wife seemed like a completely new concept to some of the Council members.Michal was captivated as she gazed out the window. The Pacific shoreline of South America was falling away slowly to the east. Unconsciously she left her arm on our common.