Now is the time to strike!’ ‘Shut up a second,’ I said to my instinct. ‘Excuse me,’ Elena said, quizzically. ‘I’m sorry, not you, Elena....�� I thought further. This would be the gentlemanly thing to do for her. She is seeking a strong hand to grasp hers and lead her through. Why not? ‘Thank you, Alphonse. I don’t think I could handle being alone in that house again.’ ‘It’s no trouble, Elena. Anything I can do to help you during this time, let it be done.’ ‘So, when can you come over? Tonight,. The walls, floor, and ceiling were made of rock. A single fluorescent tube at the top lit up the whole room. The room was about the size of my parents' bedroom, which was about double the size of the average teenager's bedroom. A desk stood at one corner of the room and on this desk was a cash register. Sitting on a chair by the desk was Mark. He had his white robe on, but neither his hood nor his mask was on. The cash register was open and Mark was counting cash. The way his fingers so quickly. I took an aspirin and made myself a hot cup of black coffee. Taking the newspaper, I stepped out into the balcony and lay in one of the tanning beds. After a while, I heard footsteps and looked up to see that Maya had woken up and come looking for me. She looked very cute with her sleepy look and dishevelled hair. She was wearing hot pants and white tshirt. “Morning”, she yawned.“Good morning, darlin”“I’m hungry”“For… Food or dick??” I mischeviously asked.“First food, later dick” she naughtily. "You're a total tease."Tyler looked back at her. "What do you mean?" Stringing him along like that." She lowered her voice. "I don't supposeyou've told him you're a lesbian." I'm... so what? He and I are just friends," Tyler lied. He repeatedmentally that Ben was just a target for info-brokering. Nothing morethan that..."There are no 'just friends' for girls like us in a place like Beta,Violet," Renee said gruffly. "He wants to get under that itty-bittyskirt of yours. I'm surprised he hasn't.