Angel ducks under an awning to keep the rain from ruining her spiked hair. Trevor, Daniel, and Luke pull their hoods up over their heads and watch as people flee for cover. The stars begin to vanish behind the dark clouds and occasionally a cloud flashes from lightning within. They watch the club across the street as customers abandon the line and flee for their cars.

A short man in a peach and manilla-striped suit steps out the tall wooden doors wiping his hands with a napkin. Behind him, a woman in a tight glittering dress stumbles out. She looks furious at first, but this is quelched by the rain soaking her big hair doo.

A black SUV stops at the end of the sidewalk and Angel watches the silver and black rims with envy. When the door swings open blue neon light spills out from inside. The short man storms toward the vehicle and the woman stumbles behind him on high heels.

“I know that woman,” Luke says.

“Right?” Daniel elbows him in the ribs. “Call her over then.”

“It’s Carmen Sturm.” Trevor stomps out his cigarette on the wet pavement.

“I told you this was the place to be.” Angel ran a fingerless leather gloved hand through her spiky black hair. Her blue eyes sparkle with greed. Just then another pair burst out the tall wooden doors. Two giant men, like silverback gorillas in suits. They are leaning on each other, and one is covered in blood. The two men climb in the Benz and the truck squats down on its axle.

Seconds later the tires squall and the vehicle lurches away as the back doors shut. Angel and her three male companions stand for several seconds just listening to the rain clatter off the pavement. The alarms from Circle Center towers blare to warn everyone to get inside for the storm.

“We need to take the subway to Broadbrook,” Angel says stepping out into the rain in her long leather coat. She pulls her hood up to cover her hair. Her knee-high black leather boots splash through a puddle as she crosses the street to the steps leading down below.

“Why are we going to Broadbrook?” Trevor walks along behind her.

“You said we were gonna catch a prize fish tonight.” Daniel chimes in. Luke grunts in agreement as they reach the steps below the street.

“We are.” Angel rolls her eyes. “That is why we are going to Broadbrook.”

“We are gonna catch Carmen Sturm?” Trevor says his face hovering too close to Angel’s face. She cringes back. When he gets excited, he raises his brow high up and his face wrinkles up from top to bottom like the wrinkles on the back of her thumb knuckle.

“Are we?” Daniel asks from behind her sounding doubtful.

She stops and turns toward Daniel, and he nearly plows into her. She focuses on his clean-shaven square jaw for a moment then lets her eyes fall to the dragon tattoo wrapping around his neck. He swallows but doesn’t say anything.

When no one else says anything, Angel turns and starts running down the stairs. She leaps over the turnstile and turns into the tunnel just as the five-p.m. train is about to shut the doors. They slip in and an old woman clutches her purse tighter on her lap.

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Angel winks at the old woman and shakes the rain off her long leather duster. She pulls down her hood and shows the old woman her snake earring pierced several times through the cartilage of her ear. She smiles as the older woman stares at all her piercings and tattoos. With a pair of lip rings, a diamond through the nostril, and dark eye shadow, she is beautiful to most yet terrifying all in one.

Other passengers avoid looking at the group of heathens as they enter the car. Angel looks out the window as they leave the lit tunnel and plunge into the darkness. She walks over to a man in construction clothes and gestures for him to move. He blushes and stands up to walk to the other end of the car where he clutches the pole.

“You think they are going to go to Middletown?” Luke sits down with Angel. Daniel and Trevor lurk close enough to overhear. They flash a glance at her that says they are thinking the same thing. “What would a supermodel be doing in Middletown? Looking for blow?” He chuckles.

Angel levels a glare at him. “Did you see the bodyguards?”

“I saw them, Angel,” Trevor answers eager to agree.

“One of them was covered in blood,” Angel says under her breath.

Daniel looks as if he is the only one pondering this deeply. The other two sit with complete stupefaction written on their faces. “So why aren’t they going to the hospital in Uptown?” Daniel draws out his question trying to digest the connection.

“They were involved in a gunfight in Uptown in the middle of the day.” Angel leads but the horses don’t drink, each sits in confusion looking at her. “They can’t go to the hospital, or they will be connected to a crime.”

Daniel's eyes light up first, “Dr. Hammonds.” He blurts out.

“Yeah Dr. Hammonds,” Luke agrees quickly but Angel can see he hasn’t made the connection. He is only emulating Daniel.

“We are going to Dr. Hammonds to wait for them there. Then we will catch our fish. While they are occupied.” Angel finishes.

“And the fish is Carmen, right?” Trevor asks raising his eyebrows and nodding at Angel with a crazy grin.

“No, freak. We are gonna take their truck and whatever else is inside. We don’t kidnap people.” Angel snaps. A few passengers glance their way and then pretend to be interested in other things.

The subway car grinds to a halt, and they have reached their stop. Soon they are walking up Broadbrook as the cold rain pelts down around them. The stars are covered now by black clouds. They find a coffee shop and slip inside across from Dr. Hammond's office.

The hostess tries to hide a snarl, but her lip won’t stop twitching. Angel glares at her and swipes her gem over the screen at the table ordering a coffee for herself. The screen glows green and the hostess half smiles and walks away to get the coffee.

Twenty minutes pass as the gang waits. Angel pulls on her lip rings with her teeth. Did they drop Carmen off somewhere to mask her ties to the controversy? She can hear her own breathing. She hasn’t touched her coffee; her nerves are tweaked enough. She sits unblinking straining her eyes to look out the window into the rainy darkness as if she might miss the expensive truck pulling in.

“You know I heard the sun climbs high in the sky in some places. All the way overhead. I heard it gets really bright and stays that way all day until eight o’clock.” Trevor tries to fill the air with some of his strange conspiracy nonsense.

“Where did you hear that?” Daniel laughs. “On the spanner?”

“Yeah,” Luke jumps in, “It would get like two hundred degrees if the sun was up that long. How would you survive to tell the story?” Luke laughs.

“Really, I heard it from a black flag captive. He said he was on a different ship and was thrown overboard. He said they stay far north in the Nevers and the sun never sets like it does here. He said it is bright all the time.” Trevor spills out.

“He probably could sense, you believe everything, as long as it's completely ridiculous.” Luke mocks.

“Shh.” Angel points as a black truck pulls in across the street. It is squatted down low and stops right in front of Dr. Hammond's office. The Shady Dr. is about to receive some cash-paying customers.