Tell Them This When I Die

Neptune & Uranus

Adam wakes facedown in his pillow, sixteen hours after he fell asleep. His hair is messy; his clothes are still on. He opens his eyes slowly, the room dark. Because he works night shift so often, the blinds in his room are never open, but the clock on his nightstand reads five-forty-nine in the evening. Adam works at seven—today is briefing night, and tomorrow, Saturday, is buyer night.

He sits up carefully, trying not to anger his headache anymore. How is it possible that he slept so late into the evening? If he was tired, he should've slept until ten, maybe eleven—not five-thirty in the evening. He shuffles around for his phone, for anything that will bring back his memory of whatever last night. He has numerous missed calls from Sarah, open webpages of cab numbers and Nyx—

Adam freezes. No. No. That had not happened. That could not have happened.

In a panic to get to the window, he trips on the blanket that's fallen from the bed. He slams his head into the wall, groaning. He recovers quickly and pulls aside the blinds, inviting in evening light.

His car isn't on the street where it always is. Because he left it at the parking lot of Nyx.

Adam rushes to change. He wants a shower, but there's no time. If any cop drives past the parking lot at Nyx and sees Adam's car there before Nyx even opens for the night, he'd be done. He'd be cafeteria gossip and Wilkes would finally have what he needs to take Adam off of the Nyx case.

The cab pulls up to the front of Adam's building nearly right after he called. He gets in and calls the business line for Nyx. He presses four for guest services.

"Nyx, nightclub, restaurant and bar services. This is guest services. What can I do for you this evening?"

Adam clears his throat. "Hi," he says, "I was at the restaurant last night, and I took a cab home. I have my car there in the parking lot, and I know it's secure. Where should I go to get it back?"

"We can get that sorted out for you," the woman replies. "Unfortunately, Nyx is entirely closed right now, but guest services around the back is opening up again at six, in a few minutes. If you come 'round the back, I'll happily get that worked out for you then. We just ask that you bring valid photo ID."

He hangs up the phone and taps his finger against the seat for the remaining drive. When the cab pulls up to Nyx, he pays the driver and steps out at quarter after six.

The place looks different in the setting sun. That gleaming black crystal-like look of the building is dulled slightly, making it look less dangerous. The top floor has tinted windows from the outside, so Adam doesn't know if she's home. He doesn't want her down there. Doesn't want to speak to her. He just needs to get his car so he can go to work, organize the details of this buy, and have Eris in jail and Nyx shut down by Sunday.

Adam pushes open the door to guest services just as Nyx opens again. That was something that had stumped Adam and his coworkers about Nyx—the restaurant was open for lunch from twelve until four, but the whole building shut down for two hours before opening again at six. When Adam had questioned Eris about it during an interrogation once, thinking that's when Nyx got their deliveries, she'd simply explained that Nyx provides different atmosphere during the day and night, and the staff needed time to prepare as such. It'd been a bullshit answer then, and it was a bullshit system now.

"Hello!" a chirpy woman is saying the moment Adam walks in. "What can I do for you?"

"I left my car here last night," Adam says. "The silver Mazda—here's the key." Adam lifts his car keys to eye level.

"You...have the key, sir?"

Adam holds the keys a little higher, as if in answer.

The woman's face is clouded. "Sorry, sir, but we require patrons who take company cabs to leave the keys here in order to ensure they don't drive home. We have a specific list with names and photos of those who left their keys and therefore their cars. If your keys aren't here, and your name isn't on the list, I'm afraid I can't let you into the lot."