Caleb walked through the Quarter at twenty-two-fifteen.
The streets were emptier than they had been on Day 17. Two-thirds of the noodle stalls were dark. Yui's was closed. The boot fixer's window had a hand-lettered sign that said the shop would reopen tomorrow. The kerosene smell from Vance's yard cut across the back alley two streets up. Caleb did not stop.
He took the long route to the safe house.
He passed the freight rail spur he had walked the day before. The cargo lifters were back in service. A train moved south at the end of the spur with three flatbeds of containers Caleb did not recognize. The Hacker had restored normal traffic at fifteen-hundred.
He reached the safe house at twenty-two-forty-seven.
The kitchen light was on.
The front-room light was off.
The mother had locked the front door for the night. She was at the kitchen window when Caleb came up the walk. She unlocked the door before he could knock.
She said: "Come in. There's tea."
He came in.
