One Plus Two Equals... - 5

What the hell did I do to deserve this? Auden pulled the collar of his windbreaker tighter. Not that it did a damned bit of good; the rain still trickled between it and his neck, soaking the edge of his T-shirt. He vowed he'd go shopping first chance he got for a new windbreaker, one with an attached hood so he couldn't lose it.

Peering over the edge of the roof, he sheltered the lens of the camera with one hand as he shot some more pictures. Of course with the rain, most of the people were opening umbrellas the second they stepped onto the sidewalk; that or ducking their heads to keep the rain off their faces. Still, he managed to get a few good shots. He also recognized a few faces as people from the previous night. Some of them, he was pretty sure, were just employees at the businesses inside the building, but he wasn't going to take that as gospel until his boss had checked to confirm it.

He was seriously considering calling it a night and finding something else to do when Vicario stepped out of a limo which had just pulled up to the curb. Following him were the two men Auden had recognized last night. All three of them hurried into the building.

Now do I stay here and wait until they leave or do I get nosy? He was very tempted to be nosy but he was under orders to stay away from the man for the time being. Discretion being the better part of valor, or so it was said, he obeyed orders. It paid off when half an hour later he saw another man who was a known confederate of Vicario's scurry from a cab to the front door of the building and vanish inside.

"Slowly but surely the troops gather," Auden muttered under his breath. "Now we just have to find out why and if some of the people I've been photographing are part of whatever's going down."

It seemed like hours later when he finally called a halt to what he was doing. He was wet and tired and needed food, a hot shower, and some sleep. Arriving at his condo he headed straight to the shower, taking a long one that eased the chill in his bones. Then he dealt with his hunger, fixing a thick steak with all the trimmings. Finally, he collapsed into bed and instantly fell into a deep sleep.