The beef was slightly chewy but tasty and she licked the dark sauce from her fingers. She picked up half a crab, put it in her mouth and lightly squeezed the shell and its contents with her teeth. The crab flesh spewed out. It was fresh, sweet and the spices were in perfect combination. She swallowed, almost wriggling with delight. With her hand she mixed rice with vegetables and curry into a little ball and scooped it into her mouth. She then cracked the crab legs with her teeth and slowly sucked the flesh out. Every bite was savoured and relished. When she had finally scooped up every grain of rice with the curry, the plate was spotless, save for the pile of crab shells. Marina got up and went to the sink to wash her hands and mouth. In the mirror, she could see that her mouth was stained red from the curry and she looked like she had just been kissed.

Marina paid and left. It was a hefty RM22.90 for the meal. Half an hour’s work, she told herself, but it was worth every morsel. She decided to go for a walk to help digest her dinner.

Round the corner, she saw a homeless woman stake her space in front of the Honda showroom. She knew that the elderly Chinese woman barely spoke and only grunted. She sat propped up by a pillow on layers of brown cardboard, and was buried in her dinner, a free meal handed out by charities every Saturday night. She looked up and smiled at Marina and nodded, her teeth covered in rice. Marina smiled and nodded back.

Before her rose the Twin Towers, glittering in the night, looking to her like twin rockets about to take off. Marina leaned against a chain-link fence next to an empty parking lot, taking in the awesome view. Then she heard footsteps and in the next instant, felt the breath on the back of her neck. It reeked of tea and cigarettes. She turned abruptly. It was one of the policemen she had seen in the restaurant, so close to her that his thick polyester trousers rubbed against her thighs. From the corner of her eye, she spotted the other one, hanging back at a small distance.

“Buat apa sini?” he snarled softly. “Pelacur pondan.”