129

The singing and swinging continued until the music stopped. Then there was a round hand of applause for Frederico, Aung and Elisabeth who bowed for the congregation as if they had just completed a theatre show.

Frederico wished everybody a prosperous week until next Sunday, when he hoped to see everybody back in his church.

"And for those who want some coffee or chocolate before leaving for home, we will shortly be serving some goodies over there," Frederico added, pointing to the back of the building.

"Well, that's always a winner with me," Ante said with a smile. "Coffee and chocolate! Why not?"

People were moving about in the church, some leaving, but most staying on for the refreshments. Bjorn noticed again how Olga seemed to dislike Ane, staying clear of her as much as possible. But Ane did not seem to notice or care that Olga had a dislike of her, and passed her by with a friendly nod on her way over to Jan and Pedro, apparently eager to have a quick word with the two of them.

However, Bjorn had no time to think about this as he bumped into Georgio, one of the carpenters he had been talking to at the Casino Friday night.

"So you're here!" Georgio commented. "In uniform and all. That's kind of cute, isn't it?"
"What you mean?" Bjorn asked.
"An army soldier in the empire. It's a bit of a contradiction isn't it?"
"With me working for the state, you mean?" Bjorn answered, vaguely getting Georgio's point.
"Exactly!" Georgio said with a nod. "But never mind that. Did you like the show?"
"Yeah I did. It's not quite my thing, all this hallelujah and stuff. But I liked it, I have to admit."

Bjorn noted how Aung and Elisabeth were putting coffee and chocolate out on a table and suggested to Georgio that they get some for themselves.

"So how are things progressing over at the apartment building you're working on?" Bjorn added, more to be polite than out of any great curiosity.
"Very well, I'd say. We're pretty much finished. Another week at the most, and we'll be heading back to Venice."
"You're looking forward to that, I bet."
"Sure! Will be nice to get back home."

Bjorn and Georgio picked up a piece of chocolate and a Styrofoam cup with steaming hot coffee, then retreated from the crowd before continuing their small talk.

"You can come and have a look at what we've been doing if you please," Georgio said, taking a bite of his chocolate.
"In the apartments, you mean?"
"Yeah."
"Well, that's very generous of you. You're going over there now?"
"I am. I got a few things I'd like to do in order to get ready for a full day of work tomorrow. You and your friend can come with me if you please. I've got my car parked over by the vicarage."
"That's great. I'm sure Ante will love that... I'll just have to check with him, though."