The longer the day wore on, the less he could remember the feeling of his wife’s lips on his cheek, as she kissed him goodbye. Right now, it was still morning, and Tam already felt like a different man, compared to the one that had left home early this morning. Was he really just a man, a father and a husband? As soon as he entered the alienage, heard the sounds and smelt the smell of too many creatures living closely together, it felt as if that other part of him disappeared. He glanced at Cicero standing next to him, appreciating the agile lines of her slim body. She was also a part of this other life, a little piece of the puzzle that confused him and secretly delighted him all at once. Perhaps she was a small flickering light in the grey dullness that was his job, but Tam did not think like that. Partly because Cicero was a woman with a heavy mace, but mostly because Tam did not think in poetic terms like that.
The view from the abandoned home made it possible for them to look out onto the street and the back entry to the alienage, while remaining in relative secrecy. It was still early, and few people were out on the streets. None of them looked up. Looking up in the alienage could mean seeing folks like him and Cicero after all. It was not good for your health. A lot of things were bad for one’s health in the alienage, Tam Hinsmann was just one of them…