The Heart Goes Last

Stan hangs around the Elvisorium playing poker and talking to the other guys. With one of the regulars out, he gets assigned an escort job that evening. He is told it involves going to dinner and a show, and if the client wants more, they send in an Elvis possibilibot.

While Stan is out exploring the town, four bald men come looking for him at the Elvisorium. Stan believes they must have been sent by Ed, and that the safest thing for him to do is remain in crowds with lots of other people. The client for his escort job is Lucinda Quant, who is in town for a broadcast convention. He meets her at her hotel and then the two take a taxi to the show. Lucinda immediately likes Stan, and they exchange small talk. They arrive at the show and there is no sign of the bald men that were looking for him earlier.

Ed has still not returned to work and Charmaine has very little to do. Aurora stays with her for the weekend and the two bond over several drinks. Aurora reveals that the reason she came to Consilience was because her face got scraped off in an accident and they offered to give her an experimental face transplant.