"The darkest thing?" Anna muttered,

Jack gnawed on a giant lobster. "I think the darkest thing is when the boss whips me hard with a belt."

Eric's mouth twitched. Was this really the darkest experience this fellow had encountered?

Anna put down her lobster. "We haven't seen much of the world, but I think the darkest thing is those deceitful men. I know what they're thinking when they look at me."

She concluded, "Human hearts are the darkest things in this world."

One sage spoke up. "What is