Page 53 of Lucky Night

I don’t know. It sounds like—wait! We can googleit.

She moves to the sofa and shakes out the duvet. Her phone tumbles to the ground. The stranger turns from the television at the sound, and his wild little eyes widen.

Matkapuhelin!he says.Joo!

And as she bends to pick it up he’s right there on top of her. Christ he moves fast. What’s he going to do, snatch it away from her?

Hey, Nick says, again trying to insert himself between Jenny and the behemoth. Calm down, okay? If you need to make a call we can…no, don’t take it from her, don’t—can you chill, please?

It’s okay, she’s saying to the man, it’s okay.

Nick is pushing the guy’s hands away as gently as possible, but he keeps reaching for the phone. They’re both talking at him and backing away, the man is babbling and following them, not angry, not forcing himself on them, and yet he’s so very fucking large it’s hard not to feel threatened.

Give us a minute, Jenny says to him, justone minute,okay? And we’ll…look! I’m going to google it, I’m opening Google Translate—translate,yeah?—and we’ll use it to talk.

She types swiftly. Here. Here itis!

Don’t give him the phone, Jenny. We might not get it back.

I won’t, I’m just showing him the…look! Look! She points at the screen, where there’s a microphone symbol. Talk, okay? She taps the icon, then nods, touches her lips and makes a little exploding star with her fingers:go ahead, say something.

The man unleashes a torrent of sound.

Whoa, whoa! Okay. She taps the screen again. Waits.

It’s Finnish, she says.

Joo! Joo!The man lets loose another flood of words as he reaches for the phone.

Easy there, pal. He’s from Finland? How does he not speak English?

He probably does, he’s just too upset to…okay, can you…she holds up a hand, which somehow shuts the guy up. She taps the microphone and speaks. Slow down, okay?

A text box pops up, reflecting what the microphone captured:

low down oak.

Oh no, she says, that’s not—

Matala tammi,says a deep voice from her phone.

The huge Finn looks perplexed.

Jenny clears out the translation and tries again, enunciating carefully: Slow. Down.

Hidasta,the phone says.

Hidasta,she repeats, nodding at the man.Hidasta!Now. She taps the microphone. What’s your name?

Mikä sinun nimesi on?the phone says.

The Finn blurts out a string of sounds. They wait while the app translates.

Give me the phone,the voice from the phone says.I will find a way out.

Jenny looks to Nick, baffled.

He taps the microphone. How will you do that?

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