The Parking Garage: Hortense

Hortense, he cries, jump. Save yourself. The weight on his back shifts. This is it. Tony thinks she's leaving him here at the end of all things. But hortense does not dismount. She stands up on all fours, balancing on tony's back with a fident ease that defies gravity and reason. Her fur bristles gloriously. Genevieve hollers, top floor, stall two 56. He knows what will happen if they're caught: permanent shut down, dismemberment, tossed on the scrap heap or even thrown in the spelter.