I grabbed my beer and tilted it back as I thought up a story. "I just hit it off with her. She is going there to see some friends and invited me along on her nickel." Each word felt like a ten-pound weight being placed on my chest. "It's no big deal. I just don't know how long we'll be gone."

He picked up a rag and began wiping the bar. "That's cool, bring back a souvenir for me," he said in a flat monotone.

"I'm sorry Henry."

"For what, not calling? Don't worry about it."

I shook my head slowly. "I'm just sorry." He raised his eyebrows as he kept wiping as though he didn't know how to respond. "I'm gonna get out of here man. How much do I owe you?"

"You don't owe me anything, but think about what I told you," he said, pointing to the dance floor. "And have a good time."

I forced a smile as I got up to leave. I walked away from the back bar as quickly as my three legs would allow and climbed the short section of stairs to a side platform overlooking the dance floor. Each step I took away from Henry was a step toward Zurich. It felt like I could go out the front door, make a right and walk all the way there.

Poppy wasn't hard to find. She danced at the edge of the dance floor in erotic serpentine movements holding her arms above her head to exaggerate the effect. Several people, men and women, looked on mesmerized as she swayed to the gothic rhythms of the band. I watched as she danced. Everything that was happening, all these changes in my life were because of her. The spell over her was broken when the music stopped. She looked right up at me as though she'd known I was watching her. She smiled widely showing her teeth. I motioned for her to meet me by the stairs.

"I love this music," she said, throwing her arms around my neck. "There's a place almost exactly like this in Paris. I'll show you."

"Sounds fun. Are you ready to go?"

She nodded rapidly. "Did you get your business taken care of?"

"Yes. Everything's finished here. I'm ready to leave in the morning."

Antonio stopped in front of the church but stayed in the car as we got out. "Come back at nine o'clock in the morning," she told him as I walked up the steps ahead of her.

"Where is he going to stay tonight?" I asked.

"I keep a small place for him across town when I want to be alone," she said stepping inside. "Go on up, I'll join you in a bit."

She came up a couple of minutes later with a medical vial in her hand. "I think you're going to like this stuff. It's special, real mellow," she said rolling it between her thumb and forefinger.

"No thank you. I'm fine."