9

9

The goon takes the subway uptown. On the train I get a better look at his face and clothes. He’s young but restrained, not playing up the gangster thing with jewelry, or the Chinese thing with the kind of tacky Kung Fu graphics I see the wannabes flaunting. This one looks like he’s on his way to lieutenant, so he’s probably on an assignment Tien won’t risk on some low rank gopher. His posture shifts as we roll into Union Square, spine straightening and shoulders rolling back. I’m not surprised this is our stop. He’s headed to the Diamond Path Dharma Center.

On the street, he buys a couple of hot dogs with sauerkraut and a can of Coke from a cart, then settles on a concrete planter where he can eat his lunch with a view of the dharma center from an angle that also takes in most of the path to a side entrance. I hang back and pace the street, blending in with foot traffic, watching him watch the doors and hoping Norbu won’t pop out of one of them, spot me, and bring me to the go