My Naughty Stopover with Valentina in 1890s Paris
Train screeches into Gare de Lyon. 1895. Dust swirls on the platform. I grab my leather valise, heavy with papers for cousin Siméon’s journal. Hôtel du Nord across the street. Impersonal haven. No one knows me here beyond a night. Check-in quick. Clerk slides brass key: room 312. Elevator creaks up, gears grinding like bones. […]