The second story, linked to the first, was initially promising. While a mysterious adventurer is dying, his family spends the entire novel trying to decide whether or not to pull the plug. The characters quickly deteriorate into absurd cardboard cut-outs dangling from the conveyor-belt plot as the decision is postponed until it becomes ridiculous. The large chunks of dialogue employed to continue the narrative and reveal the theme were the final disappointment before an impromptu twist left me with the feeling that the author never knew where his story was going.