The city of Toronto flickered in the night, its buildings and streets bright to hold back the encroaching darkness.  It was a cool night, and many in the waterfront area of Toronto pulled coats tighter around themselves.  The area near to the ferries had some attractions to pull people out into the cool night air.  It was not as busy as it had been during the daytime, though it was still a little too busy for some people to bother with a vehicle or taxi.  One of these stepped onto the sidewalk in front of the Harbour Castle hotel from the main entrance.  The person had a slightly bemused look on their face as they glanced at the name.    With a faint smirk, the man turned and began to walk away from the hotel.<br/><br/>He took his time walking, glancing around at the various buildings, looking up at the skyscrapers he could see.  A local nearby happened to notice this and nudged his friend, then indicated the person from across the street.  "Tourist,” he whispered.<br/><br/>As the friend glanced over and chuckled, the local noted that the person looked over at the two of them.  For a second, he was convinced the person had heard them.  Not possible though, as the guy was across the street and he had spoken low.  With a shrug to throw off the feeling, he turned back to his friend and continued their discussion.<br/><br/>The tourist continued to walk towards his destination which was a block or two away according to the concierge.  As he walked, a hunched over form on the edge of a shadow, took note of him, sizing him up.  The form thought the tourist didn't look too tough with his slightly pale face.  Probably late twenties, early thirties.  Cocky and vulnerable.  The tourist wasn't broad shouldered, no, but he wasn't skinny.  Skinny would have been easier, yeah, but it didn't matter.  His hair was shoulder length, if not longer.  Perfect to grab in a fight to use as leverage.  The figure watching him slipped into a shadow at the edge of an alleyway.  The shadow was due to a broken light, specifically broken for just this occasion.<br/><br/>As the tourist neared the shadow, the form moved in front of him, blocking his passage.  The nearest light glinted off the blade of the knife held in the hand of the man confronting the tourist.  "You.  In here,” the knife wielder said, motioning towards the shadowed alley next to them.<br/><br/>With a slight nod, the tourist backed up slowly into the alleyway.  The knife wielder followed him, his eyes locked on his prey, his lips in a tight grin.  Easy-peasy, one two threesy.  He hoped this plucked hen had something of worth.  It was the start to a good night, after all.<br/><br/>After the mugger slipped into the alleyway, the street that the two had been on was empty.  Anyone who might have stumbled onto the street wouldn't have been able to make out the forms in the shadowed alley.  All they could have discerned was a whispered demand, followed quickly by the sounds of a struggle.  If they had stayed for a second more, they would have then heard a sudden cry of pain, and then silence.<br/><br/>After a minute or so, Anthony Wallace, new arrival to Toronto, stepped from the alleyway, wiping his mouth, his lips slightly red before he cleaned them off with a handkerchief from his long coat's pocket.  Of course, Anthony had not been concerned when he saw the mugger sizing him up.  The mugger had made his own decision.  With a shake of his head, he glanced back at the alley.<em>Well, too bad for him</em>, he thought briefly.<br/><br/>Anthony briefly considered the knife held in his other hand that the unfortunate mugger had tried to rob him with.  Crude, but effective.  In one motion, Anthony turned to nearby wall and stuck the knife into a crack between two blocks of the building.  He then pressed on the handle, bending the blade for a moment before it suddenly snapped, leaving its point in the wall.  Anthony then wiped the handle down, using a clean part of the handkerchief.  Not likely to be needed, but just in case, he thought.  He tossed the broken knife back into the alleyway.  It landed on the prone form of the mugger, laid out in the shadows, a dark shape against the wall.  No need to leave him completely unprotected, after all.<br/><br/>Anthony turned back in the direction he had been walking before he had been accosted.  After a couple of blocks, he saw his destination.  As he neared the Harbor Sixty Steakhouse, he glanced over himself in the reflection from a window, unbuttoning his dark woolen long coat to check his clothing.<br/><br/>He wore a pair of black dress pants paired with a thick, white, cotton shirt, buttoned up to the throat, leaving the collar open.  His dark brown eyes, bordering on black in color, were focused on making certain that nothing had stained his clothing, checking the collar of the coat and shirt very closely.  Satisfied, he turned and walked to the door of the restaurant.<br/><br/>Anthony was shown to a table in the gallery immediately.  The person he was meeting was already present.  Of the five tables for two in the gallery, three were already occupied by other couples, either talking quietly, eating their meals, or looking out the windows next to each table.  As Anthony approached the third table in, the center one, the person waiting at the table stood.  He smiled at Anthony and held his hand out.  Anthony had prepared for this by letting his blood flow freely through his body, so he didn't even pause to take the man's hand and shake it.<br/><br/>"Mr. Wallace, good to meet you.  I'm Vincent.  I've the papers ready for your signature, if you'd like to do so now.  Then, I can leave you to your meal.”<br/><br/>Anthony nodded to the man as he moved to sit in the seat left vacant, taking a quick sip of the water waiting for him.  He swished the water quickly through his mouth and swallowed it.  The flat, uninteresting, and, above all, stale taste was barely tolerable.  He indicated the restaurant as he spoke.  "Have you already dined?” he asked.<br/><br/>The man continued to smile as he shook his head.  "I'm sorry to say that my expense account won't cover such an extravagant meal,” he said with a laugh.  "We are, of course, covering your bill here, so feel free to order what you'd like.”<br/><br/>Anthony gave the man a brief smile that quickly faded as he leaned back in his chair.  "Very well then, I will try to be reasonable.”  He glanced up at the waiter and ordered a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon.  The waiter left, giving the two some privacy.<br/><br/>Anthony continued to lean back in his seat as Vincent pulled out a leather bound binder.  He opened it and held it to Anthony, who took it and looked over the papers inside.  The wording was as expected.  Anthony had done this enough times to know what to look for.<br/><br/>"These forms finalize the sale of the...goods,” the man said as Anthony flipped through the pages.  The pause and sudden circumspection made Anthony's eyebrows raise slightly.  "Just sign on the bottom of the last page,” Vincent continued.  "The next document is the form opening up your accounts with the bank, as well as all the standard disclaimers and costs.  Sign on the last page there as well.”<br/><br/>With a slight flourish to his signature that he had never been able to discard, Anthony signed his name to the two documents.  With that, the wealth he had set aside for this day was made current and modern.  The preparations for this moment had been tedious, and drawn out over decades, but they were necessary.  Living since the previous century's first decade had illustrated the needs of preparation.<br/><br/>The man set a packet down onto the table, in the center.  Anthony knew it would contain copies of all the documents, as well as a small amount of cash as set forth in the agreement.  It would also have an account book and new credit cards issued by the bank.<br/><br/>He handed the binder back to the man who reviewed the documents closely.  A gleam of greed and satisfaction passed over Victor's face for a moment.  Anthony could sense him counting his commission in his head. Well, no matter.  The man had served his purpose.  Vincent stood and held his hand out to Anthony, his smile returning.  Anthony stayed seated and shook the man's offered hand once more.<br/><br/>"Again, thank you for your business, Mr. Wallace.”  The handshake was confident, the words sincere, and the smile was...disingenuous.  The man reached into his jacket pocket and pulled a small card out.  "Please, if there is anything I can do for you, don't hesitate to call me.”<br/><br/>Anthony took the offered card and nodded once in response, though he did not smile back.  “I will, thank you for your help. Have a good evening.”<br/><br/>"You as well, Mr. Wallace.”  With that, Victor left.<br/><br/>For a long moment, Anthony considered the card the man had left.  He glanced out the window next to his table as he tapped on the tablecloth with his fingers.  Finally, after several seconds, he shook his head.  He tore the card in half and then the halves in half again, dropping the pieces into his water glass.<br/><br/>He reached for the packet of financial documents and then pulled a breast wallet from the inside of his long coat.  He opened the packet and transferred the cash from the packet into the wallet, then placed the cards into the places he assumed they went.  He briefly thumbed through the copies, before he pulled out the account book.   He returned the wallet to his coat with the account book.<br/><br/>After Anthony finished this, the waiter returned with the glass of wine.  He placed it on the table and then turned to Anthony, inquiring if he was ready to order.<br/><br/>Anthony thought for a moment.  “I don't suppose you have steak au poivre?”<br/><br/>The waiter paused, and then shook his head.  "I'm sorry, I don't believe so sir.  I can check if you'd like.”<br/><br/>Anthony shook his head.  "No, no need.  I will look to see if there is something else," he said as he reached for the menu that he had not opened yet.  "Thank you."<br/><br/>The waiter nodded, said he would be back in a few minutes, and then turned to walk away.  Anthony nodded absently in acknowledgement.  He lifted the wine glass and swirled the deep red liquid around the inside of the glass.  He considered the swirling liquid for several seconds, before turning back to the menu, realizing he wasn't hungry for food at the moment.  No, he wanted something else.<br/><br/>