The Uninvited

and One Nights theme with tiny halogenstars recessed into the ceiling. StephanieMulligan is already seated at a cornertable in a booth. I count seven othercustomers, all of them men. Five aresitting alone, the other two are together.All of them are looking at her, someopenly, others furtively. Men tend to dothis around her. Stephanie is slim and inher early thirties, with blonde hair. Herface is narrow and symmetrical and she iswearing an Azure blue dress and anunusual white necklace – bold and jagged– which looks familiar: I have to drag myeyes away from it. Or perhaps it’s herneck that preoccupies me, that has alwayspreoccupied me. Her skin is very pale, asthough she never goes out in the sun. Itseems to glow.