In the meantime Adrian finished what was left of the cigarette before tossing the remains onto the ground. He stomped on the struggling embers, pressing it down into the damp soil; grey smoke spewing past the sides of his boot. He could dimly hear the sounds of an approaching stranger, but he was too lost in his own head to really pay attention to it. Not to say that his body, on some instinctual level, didn't do so for him. Without realizing it, Adrian slid his hand quietly into the pocket of his coat, fingers gripping around cold metal; he had a penchant for taking items outside of the laboratory. It wasn't until he was addressed that he took the time to turn his green eyes on the newest intruder in his life.
“Hey there, can I borrow a cigarette?” the man asked, his accent sounding American.
Not really wanting to answer him – partly because the question was trivial – Adrian took his time in looking the other man over. He was taller than Adrian by about three inches and, despite the same starched coat covering him, Adrian could tell this man had an average, if not athletic build. The way he held himself suggested he had confidence, and he certainly had the looks to back it up. His hair reminded Adrian of the smoke from his cigarettes and his eyes – a clear ocean blue – told Adrian to be on guard. This man may have been older than him by a few years, but it was hard to tell. Caucasians did not tend to cling to youth quite as easily as he had done – no one had ever guessed his age correctly.
“So, can I?” the man asked once more when they were but a few feet apart.
Adrian failed to answer him in words, but passed the man a cigarette. If he was to say something, it would likely be an insult: one does not borrow a cigarette after all. Adrian felt it was better to keep his acerbic, perhaps racist, comments to himself.
“Thank you.”
The man didn’t waste any time in lighting the cigarette and breathing in the toxic gases; something that the two scientists should have known better than to do. Adrian eyed the other man warily, feeling somewhat imprisoned by his presence. It was as though this man had purposefully positioned himself between Adrian and the route back into the building. Adrian shifted to where he’d originally been facing and where the other man was currently looking: past the chain link fence and into the city beyond.
“You’re new here,” Adrian said after some silence; his voice a natural, deep baritone.
The man nodded his head slowly. “That’s right. I take it you actually work here?”
“Yes.”
“For how long?”
“Two years.”
“Just after you graduated then?”
Adrian smirked to himself. “No.”
“Oh…”
Another uncomfortable moment of silent rushed in.
“So,” the man said. “What department are you in?”
“Cytopathology.”
“Is that so? Does that mean you’ve had personal contact with the latest specimens?”
Two green eyes flicked across to the older gentleman. He wasn’t sure he trusted this stranger’s questions, let alone how interested he seemed in the answer. There had been a lot of controversy surrounding reporters and the government lately, reports of the dead returning to life, people going missing… Adrian had experienced some strange happenings himself, but knew it was far safer for him to play dumb than to reveal whatever little he knew. Adrian had been in Harper Rock for little over two years, so he knew to be wary of new faces. He decided it was better to say nothing and feigned checking a watch he didn’t own just for an excuse to leave.
“I should get back to work actually,” Adrian told him.
The man gave a wave after Adrian had slipped around him; Adrian smiled vacantly and headed toward the building. After an hour at his desk, he’d forgotten all about the strange man and little more than an hour after that he was ready to finish up for the night. With hands dug deep into the pockets of his over coat and head down to avoid much of the icy air, Adrian marched out into the streets in the direction of home. There was little need to pause and smell the roses – such things would be sleeping in this hour – and he certainly didn’t want to draw attention to himself. Being still rather early and with clubs, bars and restaurants receiving their regular influx of custom, Adrian felt fairly safe walking on his own. It was only when he reached the quieter backstreets that he started to worry and pick up the pace.
Adrian was light and nimble on his feet, but every step was too careful, making him flinch at the slightest sound. When a sharp clang echoed out of the alleyway across the street, it tore his attention away from the path ahead. It was probably nothing, just a cat knocking over a garbage can, but the distraction had cost him. Adrian was plucked from the open streets with such powerful arms that it made him feel like a mouse to an owl. One arm tightened around his throat, trapping his windpipe between bicep and forearm; the wool of his attacker’s jumper scratched like metal on his skin. Even if he were the type to shout or scream, he couldn’t, he could barely catch his breath.
Tension sang along his spine, but Adrian remained calm – as calm as he could, considering. The pressure lifted as his aggressor shifted to run a hand along Adrian’s sides and over his pockets; like he was searching for something. Although he’d never been mugged before, this did not feel like such an incident. The attacker – most definitely a man judging by the size and strength of him – moved with purpose and as he focused on looking for that specific something, Adrian did his best to absorb what little information was available to him.
Despite the veiling darkness, it became immediately obvious that he’d been dragged into an alleyway. On one side of the building a ladder leading to a fire escape hung loosely in the air as if awaiting the next daring plunge to freedom, below, a row of trash bins lined the slick wall that made up the rest of what was visible. On the other side, graffiti stained the old brickwork of a building. The air brought new scents; the vinegary scent of cologne and the char and tang of tobacco. Adrian frowned, and then came the sound of footsteps, quick and somewhat clumsy, edging closer and closer to the alley’s narrow mouth. This could be really good or really, really bad…
