Joe was exhausted, mind wandering. At the end of his rope. He didn't see any way of continuing. His parents were sending the police after him. On his remaining fumes of gas he drove into a dark corner of town. He found a lonely alleyway inhabited by drunks and homeless. They didn't seem to be a threat. Joe crawled in the back seat, locked the doors and fell asleep. [Go to her Joe. Don't be afraid. Accept the babe as your own. "Go to her." "Go to her." "But how? Where? Tell me where."] Suddenly, Joe startled out of a deep sleep, terrified. At first he didn't know the reason. Then he became aware of a loud, repeated banging on the window. He struggled to open his eyes, trying to wake up from a leaden sleep. The pounding continued. Joe's mouth refused to make a sound. Slowly he managed to sit up. He rubbed his eyes. Pressed against the glass was a bearded, dirty face.
"Wh...what do you want?" Joe managed to stammer. The face didn't answer, but a dirty hand pounded on the window again. "Go away," Joe said. More pounding. "Stop hitting my window!" Joe ordered. The face ignored him. Joe didn't know what to do. He felt trapped. He couldn't get over the front seat and drive away, and he was afraid to open the door. The man pounding on his window was obviously drunk.
At last a tall figure appeared in the shadowy darkness behind the drunk. The man gently put a hand on the drunk's shoulder. "Come now, Slick. What's going on? What's all the banging about?" He moved the drunk to one side and peered into Joe's car.
Brother Holloway/Glubwart immediately recognized Joe from the bus stop and from his study of the Mary case files. Brother Holloway/Glubwart was not happy. The Underworld had worked hard to eliminate Joe from Mary's life. He was too supportive, too likely to turn her toward the Enemy. That stupid Demondra! She would pay for this failure! We gave her a body to tempt any young human male, and what does she do? Can't even snag a gem with the oldest temptation in the book. A sudden chill ran down Glubwart's back -- how did the brat find us? I took care to cover our tracks. The Enemy must have led him here. Glubwart's brain teemed with calculations -- how to handle this unexpected situation?
Glubwart tried to pull himself together. "Don't mind Slick, young man," he called through the closed window. "He's harmless. -- It just so happens, you parked your car on his bed. He considers this his spot."
With "Slick" moved safely out of the way, Joe felt brave enough to open the door and get out.
"Can I help you, young man? Pardon me, but this is not the place for a young man like yourself."
"I'm looking for a girl," Joe said. Joe had not noticed Glubwart at the bus stop. He had been focused on Mary.
"Aren't we all?" Brother Holloway/Glubwart joked. "--Pardon me -- that's a common, silly joke around here."
"A particular girl -- Mary Parker," Joe said.
Brother Holloway/Glubwart's mind worked frantically. [I can't afford to deny she is here. The best I can do is stall, hope he will go away.] "...Mary Parker...let me think. I can't recall that name right away."
"I've been going to all the shelters in town. That's why I stopped here," Joe said. "May I talk to the residents?"
[He might remember me from the bus station; better come clean.] "Let me introduce myself. I'm Brother Holloway, operator of this progressive establishment. Mary Parker...Mary Parker...Of course! Now I remember. I brought her here myself."
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