Who should happen to wander to my table but the lovely American divorcée, Najia Baket. "Hello, darling!" the sprightly young thing says with a bounce in her step. The poor dear cannot help but radiate a desire for adventure. From her silken, crimped hair to the snifter in her hands, her vital energy is at an apex. And yet...there is a narrow vein of disappointment that runs through her tonight. The Blue Lotus is not the one she remembers. While it is still as bustling as ever, the music is hotter and the clientele shadier.

"Well, well, well. You are looking very smart, this evening, Miss Baket. Please?" I stand and pull out a seat for Najia. She gladly accepts while letting her eyes wander the periphery. I can hardly blame her; there are many wild animals on the prowl tonight. Perhaps Najia's hoping the Shadow will make another appearance. Even if he doesn't, there are an assortment of other fierce creatures a-hunting. "Look there," I gesture, a brilliant case in point. "That oily looking gentleman with the eye patch, at the roulette wheel, is Bernard Antreville." Baket's eyes roll in his direction and one of her eyebrows rises. "He's got scads of money, but no one is exactly sure how he acquired his great fortune. Dishonestly is the general concensus, though." I add a stream of cigarette smoke to the violet haze that drifts across the ceiling.

"Would you care to be my Lady Luck," I add, "and help me to relieve him of his laden pocket book?"