Out in the city the rain fell heavily, with a damp, sodden purpose. Closer to, on her windows, it left the effervescent remnants of a light but insistent spray, and in the fractured glow from neon and halogen it sparkled bright as jewels. It seemed to her that rain should be a sullen thing, not this cheerful glitter frosting the glass of her hotel room. It was wholly unsuitable for brooding, though she was doing her best just the same.

Three days into her search, she was no closer to finding the nexus, and things were beginning to look hopeless. It had even crossed her mind that the old man was perhaps crazy, or at least at purposes crossed to hers, but deep down she knew it was out there. Somewhere. Whether it would permit itself to be found, she had no idea.