L EVI RETURNED HOME to fill a small suitcase with
clothing and personal grooming items. He’d also hoped
to find a note from K.S. explaining what had gone
wrong, or right, with his mission at 5th and Grover.
Instead, he was perplexed to find only the following:
The sun always shines, even when the clouds block it
out. Even in the dead of night. Stay awake. You’ll know
what to do. Things will be different soon. Efharisto, K.S.
There was a tone of finality in the message. The way
it was written, it felt like a conclusion to all of the
others. K.S. had never been this poetic before. Were
events really nearing their end? He placed the note in
his pocket and gave a final glance around the
apartment, trying not to forget any essential items, and
then locked and door and exited. Standing on the
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stoop, he peered across the street to the place he’d first
encountered Dev. The memory still spooked him.
“Don’t worry, pal,” he told himself. “We won.”
He set off with his suitcase in one hand and the
lamp’s bag in the other. As he often did, Levi took a
shortcut through the park and once more found it
completely empty. He figured either peace had come to
the city at last, or something serious was brewing
underground. He hoped for the former, but feared the
latter. He passed a horse-mounted cop on his way
through the park and received a cold, suspicious stare.
The policeman continued watching Levi with
unfriendly eyes as he crossed to the other side, then
followed him a bit longer before finally turning back.
Levi looked over his shoulder to see that the cop was
now busy ogling someone new. A desperate wind
howled under gray skies and Levi couldn’t wait to get
indoors and into the warmth of the apartment
building.
When he finally got there he saw Violet outside,
sitting on a brick ledge that protected a patch of urban
flowers. She offered him a weak smile and then
returned to a distant gaze, focused on something
across the street. Levi turned around to see what she
was staring at and found a group of pretty college girls
eating on a bistro patio, chatting and laughing. He
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gave Violet a final once-over and decided against
saying anything before heading inside with his luggage.
Russell called Levi into his office and told him that
the wind had blown some trash cans around, which
had damaged a few ground-floor windows; they would
need to be checked. He was also informed that graffiti
had been found near the rear door of the property and
the trim would need to be repainted as a result. The
word graffiti alerted Levi and a swell of old memories,
bad memories, flooded his mind.
He hurried out to the rear door, which was protected
by a rather advanced alarm system. After disarming
the system by entering a code into the panel box, the
door buzzed and Levi opened it, stepping out onto a
concrete landing that led to a narrow street which runs
behind the building. He didn’t see any graffiti at first so
he moved back away from the door. He inspected
everything closely and found only a three-inch stroke
of black paint.
Black paint. It had to be that. That’s just wonderful.
Levi didn’t allow himself to think about Dev again.
Why bother… that’s over with. Both he and K.S. were
pretty silent these days. It seemed to him that the war
was over weeks ago. Or was this the calm before the
storm? Levi rejected that thought immediately. It’s just
a little splash of paint. Good grief, anyone could’ve put
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that there. Even a child! Levi laughed at himself and
headed for the utility closet, amused by these crazy,
irrational thoughts.
• • •
Jenny filled a glass of water in the office break room.
She reflected on the lack of calls coming in and the fact
that a third of the employees hadn’t shown up for
work. She glanced at a calendar on the wall, thinking
maybe it was a holiday and she’d just forgotten. Nope.
She sipped the water with an uneasy feeling in her
stomach. The mood in the air seemed different than
usual. The nine am meeting they had every morning,
without fail, had been cancelled too.
She was out the door as soon as the digital clock on
her desk ticked over to four-thirty. She hurried
through the empty lobby and through a revolving door
into the street. The sidewalks were less busy as well,
except for an increased number of police cruisers —
one of which promptly rolled by, the officer engaging
her with suspicious eyes. She smiled and waved at
him.
Jenny stuck out her arm to hail a cab but found that
there were too few of them as well. Actually, none. No
cabs? Right away Jenny regretted wearing such
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uncomfortable shoes. She strolled for a block, in the
direction of her apartment, until a sign stole her
attention. It was a boxing gym, just a block from her
office. She’d never noticed it. There was movement
inside the gym so she crossed the street and entered.
The place stank of sweat and old leather. A couple
guys banged on heavy bags, one skipped rope in the
corner, two more sparring loudly in the ring. The
canvas ring thundered whenever one of them stepped
forward and planted his weight. The smashing thud of
the gloves against muscle and bone made her wince.
An older bald man wearing gold and silver chains
approached Jenny as she perused some photos on the
wall. Gus offered her an uncertain smile as he
approached and she became aware of him.
“Thinkin’ of signing up?” he asked, more as a tease.
“Or maybe your son. No, wait… you’re too young to
have a son old enough to train.”
“No, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t even be in here really.”
His eyes narrowed. Not many women dressed like
her came inside his gym to poke around. “You from the
government?” he asked.
“What — no. No, I work at a legal firm about a block
over. I was just on my way home when I noticed this
place. Not sure why I hadn’t noticed it before.”
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He followed her gaze up the wall, lined with pictures
of past champions from the gym.
“So you’re a boxing fan, huh?” he asked.
“This is going to sound silly but… it’s just, I have a
friend. A close friend. He used to box. I don’t even
know why I came in but the sign reminded me of him. I
know it’s stupid.”
She started for the door and the man asked her,
“Your friend… was he any good?”
Jenny smiled and turned around. “He was good,
yes.”
“Did he train at this gym?” the man asked.
“I don’t know, really. But his picture’s not up there
on your wall so probably not.”
“Your friend — what’s his name?”
Jenny was embarrassed to say. “You probably
wouldn’t remember him. That’s okay.”
“Lady,” he said, “I’ve been in this game for fifty-two
years. If your friend boxed in this city, I’d probably
know the name.”
“Levi,” she said quietly. “His name is Levi.”
The man’s countenance changed. He took a step
closer to her, the way one unknowingly gawks at a
celebrity. “Levi the Leveler?” he asked in a whisper.
Jenny nodded and saw memories filling the old
man’s eyes.
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“You know, that was a shame what happened to him.
He was just about to set the world on fire, and then…
well, it was a shame. I offer my condolences.”
“What?” Jenny said. “He’s not dead.”
The man seemed surprised. “I heard he died in
prison recently. You’re telling me The Leveler is still
around?”
“He’s very much alive,” she affirmed. “Very… much
alive.”
The man seemed relieved. “Well, that’s great. That’s
just great to hear, miss. Guy was a legend around
here. Best overhand right in the business. He did a few
rounds at my gym for press day before the Martinez
fight. Almost ruined one of my heavy bags. Knocked it
clean off the hook.”
Jenny’s eyes moved to the men wailing on the bags
and thought it hard to imagine anyone sending one
over the beam from which it was hung.
“Thing weighs a hundred-twenty pounds. The Leveler
cracked that sucker so hard the room shook. There’s
video of it somewhere. Probably online.”
She nodded. The reason she’d stopped there in the
first place began to materialize in her mind. It occurred
to her that she had never truly seen this part of his
life. Sure, she watched him fight once — as a distant
celebrity — but not as someone she actually knew.
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Now that she knew the man personally, it felt surreal
to be standing in a place where Levi, on any day of the
week, could walk in and receive star treatment. But no,
he was back at her apartment building, fixing pipes
and laying down caulk. Jenny kept that to herself, but
the idea was somehow absurd, even unjust. She
politely excused herself and set off for home.
• • •
Carl the “conspiracy theorist” passed Levi on his way
down the hallway. He stopped with a forty-ounce cup
of soda in one hand and took a hit off the straw while
waiting for an invitation to speak. Levi finished re-
sealing a window and did his best to acknowledge him
with a half-smile that said I’d love to talk but I’m busy.
Carl misread the look.
“So,” he said, “you been watching the news?”
Levi shrugged and shook his head “not really.”
“You’re probably better off. Seriously man, they don’t
even know what’s going on. Everything is online.
People are less afraid to talk online.”
Levi sighed and gave up on his current chore and
said, “So what are they saying online, Carl?”
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“Oh, just what’s obvious to anyone with a brain.
Marshall Law within twenty-four hours. The world as
we know it coming to an end.”
“Is that all?” Levi asked. “I thought it would be
important.”
Carl offered a sarcastic laugh. “I don’t even know
why you’re working today. Crap’s about to go down.
Why do you think the streets are so quiet?”
“I don’t know, Carl, maybe too many people reading
stuff on the internet?”
“Don’t be caught unawares, Levi. I like you… you
remind me of this boxer from years ago. I don’t recall
his name but you share a resemblance. Anyhoo, I’d
advise you to stay home tonight. Things are going to
get sticky.”
Levi had made a habit of ignoring everything Carl
said to him in conversation, but he had noticed how
quiet the streets were. Not to mention the police acting
very on-alert today. Something felt off, and he didn’t
have an explanation. Carl raised an eyebrow
suspiciously, then swigged noisily from his straw and
moseyed off toward the elevator. Levi opened the
window he’d just replaced and saw nothing but a
windy, overcast day. And relatively empty streets.
He checked his watch and saw that it was nearly five
o’clock. Time to punch out. Levi made his way down to
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the lobby and Violet passed him coming in the front
entrance. She gave him a quick glance and he
motioned for her to come to him, which she did. “Stay
close tonight,” he said.
“Why?” she asked.
“I don’t know. Just… try to stay close, okay?”
She gave him a “Yes , Mr. Crazy” look and proceeded
to the stairs. He watched her go, wondering if
something really was about to happen. Something
dreadful. Something he was unprepared to deal with.
“Hey, champ,” came a sweet voice from behind.
Levi turned and saw Jenny walking in from the
street, holding her shoes.
“Jenny,” he said, slight excitement in his voice. “You
know, shoes are meant to be walked in.”
“Not heels. They’re just meant to turn heads. Totally
useless for walking.”
“I see,” he said. “So listen, I got my car fixed. Well, to
be honest, Russell floated me an advance on my
paycheck, so…”
He let that sentence linger, not wishing to end it.
“Oh,” she said. “Sure. Great. Okay, well I guess
you’re a free man now. No more having to live among
us temperamental females.”
“I want to stay with you tonight.”
Jenny lifted her eyes, surprised to hear those words.
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“I mean…” he stammered, “I ran into Carl. I know, I
know. But he said something might be going down. It’s
probably stupid gossip but you never know, right? Just
in case, it might be a good idea for us to stay close
tonight.”
“Sure,” she replied, and then realized it had come
out far too quickly. Jenny wasn’t the best at hiding her
thoughts, or enthusiasm. “I’m making quiche.”
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