The stingy abandoned parking garage in the basement of an old, condemned hotel in the shadiest part of New York proper looked ready to crumble around the men who stood outside of the high end black Escalade. Legs spread apart, they gave the appearance of looking relaxed to anyone looking from far away, but when taking a closer look, you could see they each held a black hand gun in one hand, fingers near the trigger, their other hand grasping the wrist in a standard guardsman position. Aside from the identical black suits they wore, they gave an air of military training. Asian, with dark observing eyes and black hair cropped close, they waited.

As the other vehicle pulled into the concrete structure, they seemed to roll their shoulders and adjust their fingers to rest on the gun’s triggers now. When a short rap sounded on the passenger’s window, one of them opened the door, chauffeur like. Another man, the same dark hair, but styled in a classic business fashion, stepped out and adjusted the cuffs and tails of his expensive charcoal silk suit and checked his Rolex watch.

On time, as usual.

Chang wouldn’t admit it, but he appreciated the man’s punctuality.

The black town car rolled up and parked about a hundred feet from where Chang stood. A large muscular man stepped out of the front passenger’s seat and walked to open the rear door. The man who exited the car was tall and lean and impressive. Chang would never admit it out loud, and hated it, but the man made him nervous. It wasn’t just about the way he looked, aside from his height he was a nondescript individual just by looking at him. But each time Chang had to do business with him in person, it made Chang’s skin crawl. Something about the man made his whole body feel out of sync. His body would break out in a light sweat that would wet his suit and have him aching to tear at the buttons at his collar and tug at his expensive tie. Add the usual headache that had him taking two ibuprofens before each visit and he was convinced he was having a heart attack each time the damn man showed his face at one of these meetings. Normally, Chang didn’t agree to meet face to face. He preferred to use a third man, or do business via phone. He was a busy man, after all.

Bain was busier.

At first, Chang played the game like he always did, answering a series of messages left for him from some distributors and other contacts he had spread throughout the city. Until Bain grew bored and irritated and sent his…muscle. Chang smirked at the thought of the creature that visited him that night a month ago, red eyes and wings on a giant that looked like it could have once been a man, before he went berserk. He still had nightmares about the demon. Which, come to think of it, was the first time that he’d experienced the feeling of cardiac distress. As the thought hit him, he determined that after this was all over with, he was taking a damned vacation.

After the other man adjusted, Bain, re-buttoned his suit jacket, he spread his hands out, palms out, as he spoke, “Chang,” he said. “You disappoint me.”

The sweat on Chang’s brow worsened. How the asshole knew he didn’t have the package, was beyond him. But it didn’t surprise him. “Our man had it in their possession,” he said, quick to give the good news first. “It was a successful recovery.”

Bain rested his hands in front of him, the fingers of one wrapped around the wrist of the other, a relaxed look, almost bored. Chang knew that bored meant disappointed.

“Then where is my statue?” The man asked in a doubtful tone.

“Someone stole it. Someone else. Along with our asset,” Change answered, hopeful that Bain would understand that the situation being out of his hands.

The lean, high cheeks, under flawless pale skin, the color one acquired when they never spent time in the sun, clenched and worked as his fingers tightened, knuckles whitening. “Who?” He ground out. “Who stole from me?”

“We aren’t sure,” Chang stammered, nearly choking on his own tongue when the man unclasped his hands and motioned as if he would take a step towards him. “We don’t know who took them. Just that there were three of them, and they attacked the asset and took them both in their vehicle. My men followed them, though. We know their location.”

This seemed to placate the other man from the infinitesimal tension that seemed to leak out from his shoulders, even just the minuscule amount.

For a long silent minute, Bain was quiet, just staring at Chang, pinning him with his Champaign gold gaze. Finally, he asked, “Where?”