“Any kind of fact?” she repeated, somewhat incredulously, as if she were challenging me. “Any kind of fact. Let’s take a very concrete example. Unless I’m mistaken, you’re in room 621A, right?” “Absolutely.” “And me, I’m in room 623. And the room before yours is 621. I walked the entire floor to make sure: there is no room 622. That’s a fact. Why, in the Hôtel de Verbier, is there a room 621A instead of room 622? That, that’s a plot line. And the start of a novel.” She smiled. She was beginning to enjoy the game. “Yes, but there could be a rational explanation. Some hotels skip room 13 out of
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