Set Voland--a homeless young man who attacked a child in the midst of hallucinations--has been caught by the police and sent to a psychiatric hospital. There, he's stricken by a meeting with a Shining White Being who will completely overturn his lif...
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"Strategy is the art of making use of time and space.
I'm more concerned about the latter than the former.
Space we can recover, lost time never."
Napoleone Bonaparte
SOUND: "Exsultate, jubilate", Mozart, Julia Lezhneva
Dee stopped before Cafe Palermo. He stood on the other side of the street, but he was still rather visible. Cautiously, he bent down and pretended to fix the strings of his right shoe—a classic Church in black leather—perfectly polished as it was meant to be. Out of the corner of his eyes, he checked the surroundings, looking for some place where he could lie in wait. He spotted a lingerie shop, the entrance of a private building, a pet shop and the bench at the bus stop.
He wasn't prepared for a tail and his classy outfit would've stood out in all places, however he noticed that one of the girls from the lingerie shop was staring at him. John's advice about enjoying his time in New York came to mind and, since he had already plunged himself into a highly improbable situation, he decided to catch the opportunity. He walked with firm steps toward the girl, and bestowed upon her the most charming of all his smiles while crossing the threshold of the glass door. She blushed. Pleased at her positive reaction, he introduced himself.
"I beg your pardon for my boldness." He showed off his British accent, calm and impeccable like a lord from a romance novel. To enhance his courtesy, he brought his right hand to his chest and bowed his head. "Meeting your eyes, I couldn't resist the temptation to come and make your acquaintance."
For a moment, the woman was left speechless. She just stared at him, as bewildered as somebody who had seen her favorite fictional character come to life. Her lips were slightly parted and a joyous glint danced in her eyes. To bring her back to the current century, Dee took off one of his black gloves and offered his right hand. Woken up from her daydream, the girl grabbed it.
"My name is David Green," he continued in a low voice, holding steadily onto her. "But you can call me Dee."
"Angéline Bernard, very... pleased... to meet you," she stuttered in a lovely French accent.
"I'm in New York for business and my stay is meant to be rather short, but I won't be able to forgive myself if I miss the chance to invite you out for dinner," he offered, with all the confidence and grace he could muster.
Slowly, he let go of her silky hand and, with the tip of his finger, adjusted the simple and elegant Armani glasses resting over his straight nose. He took the chance to cast a side-glance towards the door. He had been careful to stand in a place where he could face the cafe, so there was no chance he would lose sight of his real target.
