Two Options

The coffee machine at City Hall was old and slow. It made a sound like Dolores's radiator. Councillor Ray Bishop was standing in front of it, watching a paper cup fill very slowly, when a woman in a pale blue nurse's uniform stopped beside him.

She had come straight from the care home and was going back to work at eleven. She had a green pen in the pocket of her uniform.

"Excuse me, Councillor," she said. "I'm sorry to bother you. My name is Lina. I'm with the residents' group. I won't take long."

Bishop looked at her, then at the uniform, then at his slow cup of coffee.

"You were sitting next to the young woman who spoke," he said. "Grace."

"Yes."

"That was a good speech." He sighed. "Ms. Lina, I have twenty-five minutes, and I'm going to spend them drinking this terrible coffee. You have until it's full. That's about four minutes. This machine is very slow."

"Then I'll be quick," said Lina.