The Sphinx Club was a bump and grind joint that had the strange distinction of elevating the neighborhood. A block down the road the Strip got sketchy, but the Sphinx Club projected something resembling class. From outside it looked like a miniature casino, its entrance flanked by two golden sphinxes and bathed in soft spotlights at night. Inside, the decor was tasteful-minimal in red and brown and gold. There were Egyptian touches, but not enough to be kitschy.

"I'm going to pull himself out of the truck," Danny said, black smoke roiling and sheathing his body. "Don't do anythin' too fun till I get back, yeah?" That said, he moved exceptionally quickly across the lot.

Silence hung over the cathedral, the deep dark quiet that creeps up some time between midnight and dawn. The fluorescents in the sublevels had long since cycled into low power mode, and shadows gathered in doorways. Sebastián's footsteps sounded strangely soft on the industrial carpeting, even though he was almost trotting just to keep up with Usman. The security guard was very tall and very brisk.

The wake, as it was, proceeded into the early evening hours on a slow, measured pace. Gerry was kept busy behind the bar by what had turned out to be a heavy-drinking crowd. With the exception of the cute Latina at the bar he’d poured mainly straight hard stuff and pulled at the taps, so it was light, if somewhat constant work. The usual alchemy of a busy day bartending wasn’t happening.

As for the crowd, they were an odd bunch, he had to admit. Half of them seemed to resent the other half and there were some, like the Latina, who seemed a shade uncomfortable with either group. The Irishman, whom Gerry decided he liked very much, had served as a sort of universal solvent which allowed the disparate elements to mix and mingle without tension.

Tina hesitated outside the training area where Danny was practicing his martial arts wondering if she should just turn back. She missed her classes with Danny and their Thursday night tour of the city's restaurants and was hoping she could mend any hard feelings he might have over her abrupt departure but was afraid she may have burned more than one bridge with the team. Finally deciding to take a chance Heatwave quietly slipped into the room so as not to disturb him and watched from the sidelines until there was a break in his routine.

Gerry stepped back and considered his stock from the customer side of the bar. The Merchant was a small bar by Hudson City standards; old school décor, lots of dark wood and brass, scents of mahogany and pipe smoke. It was nothing at all like J/T, where Gerry last worked. No, the Merchant wasn’t trendy in any sense of the word and that went doubly for its stock of liquor.

Even after he swung off his bike it felt like he was still riding. The wind off the ocean was up today and it was blustery enough to keep his hair pinned back as he walked towards the Windmill’s surf-side entranceway. Stone took a deep breath of the salty air before pushing open the door.

The staff working behind the counter looked up at the door chime and immediately went back to what they were doing. A tall guy, young, Stone thought his name might be Josh, asked him, “The usual?” to which Stone simply replied with a nod. He was a well-known quantity now, at least here. He’d brought just about everybody on the team here at one point or another and it was also his favorite place to go and think, but that’s not why he was there today.

Dear Soldier Boy,

 As I was going up the stair, I met a man who wasn't there. He wasn't there again today! How can I make him stay away?

Sincerely,
O. Gnash

Soldier Boy Sez...

I'm not really sure what the fuck you're talking about, but if you keep going on like that you shouldn't have any trouble keeping people away from you, you damned freak.

 It was no bigger than a golf ball, but Soldier Boy had seen the damned things explode. When the timer ran out, a little more than a minute from now, the explosion would bring the entire museum down on him. If that were the only problem, he could deal with it, but trapped in the basement with him was an entire class of seven year olds and their teacher on a field trip.

“Can’t you do anything?” the teacher asked. Her voice trembled and her eyes were wide with terror. She was actually doing a fair job of holding herself together, but just barely.