Scott had been certain she’d bite, now it was time to start reeling her in. ‘And Patrice?’ ‘She’s staying with her friend Jessica. I can ca...ll her tomorrow, but your offer is very generous, I’m sure she’ll accept.’ ‘Excellent. Angelique here, will show you to the Servant’s Wing and get you settled in, after that, come down and join me for dinner. I invite the girls to join my family from time to time, especially if they’ve pleased me. Do you accept?’ ‘Actually, I’m ravenous. I haven’t eaten all. Is a tree. As I slowed down for bend near to where the building was, I saw that there were two bicycles parked alongside the side wall nearest to me. I thought it might be worth a look so I parked the car a bit further down the lane and walked back to the building. I didn't know what to expect. I walked round to the back of the building where the main entrance was – the double doors had long since gone. To my surprise, I found my two cousins, George and Paul, the two sons of Uncle George, both. He said that was fine and our conversation turned to other things. We ordered pizza and settled in for an evening of 420, beer and pizza. Ok before you judge, the smoke was theirs, I knew Todd's father and he knew Todd sometime drank at my house, as long as he didn't drive home. Since Todd was Tim's ride, I figured there was no harm. We watched a few On-Demand movies, and played a game of Phase 10. As the beer ran out, I discussed sleeping arrangements. Todd and Tim BOTH said they were sleeping. “Ahh, ahh, ahh!” The sounds of triumph came from a raspy, dry throat.The four-inch-long roach was the first creature he’d seen in several days. He held it carefully, but firmly, in his hands, not wanting to kill it prematurely.“Ahh, my beauty,” the raspy voice said, the sound grating against his own ears. “My gift to you, my beauty...”Fumbling in an animal-skin pouch, dirty, cracked fingers with black and broken nails fished out a long, smooth stick, whittled thin, like a toothpick sharply.