The premise of this story is that two men, Al and Max, come into a diner in a remote town looking for a man by the name of Ole Andreson.  As the story unfolds, the two men prove to be hired assassins and they tie up the cook and waiter in the back room, leaving the main person up front so that it would not look suspicious.  When Ole Andreson fails to show up the two men leave, and Nick (the waiter) goes to Andreson’s apartment to tell him what has just taken place in the diner and that armed men are after him.  Andreson does not seem worried at all, he just shrugs off the news like it happens every day.  The tone of this short story is anxious as the suspense of the impending murder builds up, only to have the anxiety washed away when Andreson doesn’t show up.  Hwever, the suspense returns when there is no closure and the author keeps the reader wondering if Andreson will end up dead or be able to find a way around his troubles. Hemingway’s story raises the question “is truth absolute or relative?” and he makes the reader think about whether suspense and fear are actually harder to take than the reality of an evil deed.