Shadows Present

The briefcase was unusually heavy today. Jaz knew without opening it that there was something in the case that was completely unrelated to money. She knew it wasn't dangerous; her sixth sense was sniffing out danger from half a mile away. Besides, bombs and the like were usually lighter. She knew this from experience.

When she got back to her three-room New York flat, she threw her keys and shades on the couch and sat in a soft leather armchair. She turned the dials on the case, unlocking it, and threw the top open. Inside lay neat rows of bills; almost half the dead man's debt. Each of the bills was crisp, and the money was tied into $100 bundles.

A smile tickled the corners of Jaz's mouth and she set the case down on the coffee table before her. She rooted carefully through the bills, counting them while looking for the source of the weight. When she found it, Jaz grew dangerously close to laughing.

It was a gun.

Not just any gun. This was a special gun, a gun Jaz thought she had lost almost three years ago. Her smile turned quickly into a frown, however, and she stood up quickly, the gun sitting comfortably in her hands, aiming at the man behind her.

"Whoa!" the man cried.

"What do you want? Who are you?" Jaz tossed her head, throwing hair into her eyes to cover them from the stranger.

"Um, sorry, didn't mean to intrude..." The man's eyes were shifting all across the room, taking in the keys on the couch, the heavy shades, and the briefcase. His curiosity was not lost on Jaz and she waved him towards the door with the gun point.

"Get going!"

The man moved slowly, suddenly intent on Jaz's face and not at all concerned with the gun pointed at his head.

"Maintenance," he said calmly. "Do I know you?"

Jaz stared straight at him for a moment, then laughed flatly. "Doubt it. You know many people with a gun license that actually talk to 'maintenance men'?" Her voice was harsh.

"My bad!" The man shrugged, holding back a laugh, and turned to leave.

Jaz lowered her gun slowly, shaking. How had the man gotten in without her noticing? Had he been here the whole time?

Suddenly the man whipped around. "Oh, by the way, Hawk. Might want to go to a different bank this time. The old one's getting suspicious."

"How do you--"

"Shh. I wasn't here." The man winked, and just like that, he was gone.