CHAPTER EIGHT
Alan, drink in hand stood in a corner framed with shadows and watched the antics of his guests. He had an apprehensive air about him as if waiting for the signal that would turn the party into an out and out brawl. Someone had turned up the stereo to an ear-splitting volume, most of the liquor had gone, those couples who weren't dancing were nuzzling each other and one excited twosome had vanished into the bathroom. He checked his watch thinking they had been in there a very long time.
Near him, a girl whom he had never seen before was standing against the wall, her skirt raised above fat thighs. A skinny, effeminate man who bore some reputation as a poet was passing his mouth up and down her dirty legs.
Under a table a man was fast asleep, and not far from him a girl was
