Don emerged from the alley floor like smoke slipping through cracks in pavement.
The shadows peeled back slowly, revealing his form as it rose upright beside the black car. The minions were still loitering near it, shoulders hunched, breath quiet. The moment they noticed him—**shfft**—they snapped to attention.
"Suuu," they whispered in eerie unison, hands raised in crisp salutes.
Don didn't flinch.
"Keep watching their movements," he said, his voice calm but not tired. "Have Gary notify me if they try anything."
They nodded again. Another round of "Suu. Suu. Suu." One by one like cogs clicking into place.
He watched them for a second. Then just nodded back, and without fanfare, his body collapsed into the shadows beneath him—**fwoosh**—gone like a bad thought.
The minions saluted one last time—"Suuu"—and then looked at each other in silence. Finally, one wordlessly pulled open the car door and climbed in. The others followed.
