After being caught in the act, Scarlett Jennings didn't show a shred of guilt or make any move to let go. Instead, she said, "I'm holding onto you to keep us from getting separated in the crowd."
Samuel Chalmers glanced at the moderately busy but far from crowded street ahead and lightly curled his lips. "Mm," he replied.
The pair walked steadily forward, leaving behind the din of the crowd, and arrived at the base of an old apartment building. The only sounds around were the noisy squabbles coming from inside.
There were parents sternly questioning their kids about what 3+6 equals, children wailing as they fought over toys, and quarrels between mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law, as well as between spouses.
The cacophony was almost surreal in its intensity.
Scarlett Jennings followed the address given by Caius Carew to reach a door on the second-floor landing. From inside came the sharp voice of a woman berating someone,