”The elevator came to a sudden stop, tossing both of us towards a side wall. I caught Sarah before she hit the ground, her face frozen with fear. �...Old hotel, old elevator,” I giggled, discreetly trying to conceal my own fear. The doors slowly opened. I could see the hairs on the back of Sarah’s neck stand up. She wouldn’t say it, but I could see she was terrified. I grabbed her hand and led her out into the elevator lobby. As we turned the corner, we entered a long narrow hallway.“Let’s go ask. “You’re scared, that’s what it is. You’re scared that if we go off looking for trouble, we might actually find some. And where would that leave us? All vulnerable and exposed.”We both contemplated this unappealing outcome, sinking back into our seats.“What we need is practice. We need to remember how much fun fucking is, and disconnect it from all the other shit you’ve got going on in our head.”She looked at me speculatively.“Well, how would I know where to start? You’re the one in control of. ‘I didn’t think he was handsome at all. In fact, I didn’t even notice,’ she stated with an effected air of disinterest. ‘Mmmm…really? Well, I certainly did and he most certainly was!’ In a desperate effort to change the subject Virginia asked, ‘Where shall we go shopping? Father gave me some money to buy myself something with and I would like to see if that bonnet I looked at last week is still there.’ Violet tried to suppress a smile and began to chatter on again about the various places they. Charlie's was neutral ground. That was the reason it was so quiet. Every regular knew better than to darken the door on election night if they were even tempted to think a political thought. It was the one night of the year when the televisions were off and the music was calm and soothing.Toby Hansen, the phlebotomist, was a regular and politics were the last thing on his mind."She was my last customer of the day," he began, letting his mind drift back several hours.It had been a long tiring.