18 hours had passed since Snake suggested they break into hell. During that time Hauk had drifted in and out of sleep during the long drive but Plissken was wired. Travel always took longer now with crazies and roadblocks and gangs. For the most part Hauk had just sat inside and watched the madness roll by through the windshield like he was watching TV. Snake took care of everything with quick and deadly efficiency. A strange dynamic had built up in the silence. Hauk watched and directed, Snake reported what he planned and executed it flawlessly before returning. It was just like in the military. Somehow they had slipped back into old habits. Robert didn't know how Snake felt or if he noticed but the idea made his skin crawl.

The day wore on to a new night and Plissken finally slowed pulling down a dirt road. Bob couldn't shake the feelings that he was being led to his death. Plissken may have saved him from the crazies but Hauk knew he served his vengeance slow and colder then a corpse. It wasn't hard to imagine Snake rescuing someone just so he could have the pleasure of killing them later. It was madness and he tried to shake the paranoia as Snake pulled the Hummer up behind a low brick building. Hauk stepped out into the chest high weeds trying to figure out what was going down.

"Where are we?" Hauk questioned attempting to hide his suspicion.

"I'm starving." Was Plissken's response as he disappeared around the front of the building. The commissioner had long since passed starving. He was used to three meals a day back in New York but the once every few days or when you could steal something was getting to Hauk. He felt tired and couldn't rest. To his mind it made Plissken's drive and ability to go on seem even more outlandish then it usually did.

Hauk followed but his eyes scanned the dark. He had every confidence in Snake's skill but trust was a whole other matter. The building was dirty with no windows and one massive metal door. It reminded Bob of a long forgotten military bunker as he watched his companion knock hastily on the door. At the moment military war front food would due if that was what was inside.

The door cracked open and Snake disappeared inside amongst hushed voices. Hauk followed suspicious but confident. If this was a set up he wanted to be ready. His eyes took in the surroundings before settling on the attractive middle aged woman already speaking to Plissken in quiet tones. They both glanced sidelong at Hauk and he felt the paranoia edge back. When it came down to it Hauk trusted Snake less then he would a crazy. At least in all the insanity they were predictable, Snake on the other hand was a double-dealing outlaw with more bite then a stirred up rattlesnake. How anyone was comfortable in his presence eluded Hauk but he could play the game of mock confidence with the best.

The voices of Snake and his companion rose and Hauk could hear Plissken asking for food and rooms. The word "hotel" caught his attention in the syrupy words of the woman. This was a hotel? The ex-commissioner once more looked over his surroundings. Whatever they called it at least it was better then sleeping in the streets but not by much.

The men were ushered into a room with a few chairs and a long worn couch. Hauk took up position in a large arm chair with a good view of the room and all the doors. His uneasiness with his companion was still tensing his nerves to the breaking point. His vigilance turned to Plissken. He was stretching out lazily on the couch like some lounging cat in the shadows. He watches his hands flex as he leaned back pushing the pillow under his neck. For Hauk it would have been easy to imagine those stretching fingers terminating in claws and the thought was unsettling as was the half growl that accompanied Plissken settling into the cushions. It was like being trapped in a room with a wild animal, a tiger or a lion that was half starved. Hauk didn't care for where his mind was going and turned his attention to a gaudy piece of artwork across the room.

Moments passed and Hauk finally settled his nerves to a manageable level when the opening door startled them back to a fever pitch. A scantily clad girl appeared in the darkened doorway with a tray. Aromas preceded her across the room tensing Hauk's stomach into a knot. He was too hungry. Ignoring the pangs he observed the way the place worked.

A woman had joined Plissken in a chair nearby, she was pretty enough, not particularly Hauk's type but then he had a feeling she wasn't meant for his eyes. The lion analogy filtered back in as Bob watched the presentation. Snake had first pick of the tray and was poured a drink by deft hands obviously used to serving meals. The woman who was watching was served and finally the waitress as she seemed to be made her way to Hauk offering him the remaining food. The plate was a surprise. It was stacked high with carved meat. There were other things on the plate but Hauk found himself ignoring them.

"Roast beef?" He muttered under his breath as his mind finally placed the smell wafting from the plate he grateful took from the serving tray. The girl nodded and disappeared through the door she had used to arrive. Bob couldn't remember the last time he had eaten prepared food. For so long everything had come from a can or a packet.

He savored the first bite but his companion seemed to have already emptied his plate before Hauk looked up. Street life was what he attributed to the way Plissken ate. Hauk took another bite mounding potatoes and meat onto the fork. Plissken was stretching again and the woman was leaning closer running her long painted nails through his hair. Hauk knew what this meant, hotel… not really. This was a whorehouse and obviously one Snake was all too familiar with. Curiosity tugged at Hauk due to his utter distrust of the entire situation since they had pulled up outside the building.

"How are we paying?"

Plissken stopped stretching and glared at Hauk. He could see the displeasure in the man's eye but the hands working down to his shoulder seemed to sooth away the predatory look.

"Protection and we got other things they want." Plissken's words seemed both to be a flat statement and a taunt of some kind hidden behind his indifference. The commissioner could understand the bit about protection but it was the second part of his comment that drew the most attention. Hauk didn't trust this lounging tiger or his disinterest.

"What other things?" Inwardly, Hauk cringed unsure if he really wanted Plissken to answer. It was one of those moments when reason demanded an answer that it didn't wish to hear.

Plissken slid up against the arm of the sofa staring at Hauk with that blank aloof look Hauk had grown to despise. A cocky smirk spread across his face as Plissken lazily dangled his leg over the side of the couch. Dread filled the pit of Hauk's stomach. He didn't often see Snake smile and now he wished to see it even less. The look was worse then the hate filled stares Plissken had shot in his direction on occasion. Hauk knew the game Plissken was playing. It was the same one he always pulled and it never ceased to annoy him right down to the very core of his being. Hauk hated when other people had information he didn't know and wanted.

Hauk returned to his food unwilling to play Snake's game and finally, he gave up his secret.

"Right Here!" Plissken accentuated the words and Hauk looked up to see him grab his crotch.

The words froze Hauk in mid-bite. It wasn't possible. Bob searched Snake's face for a sign that he was being evasive and unnecessarily challenging as usual but his expression seemed serious.

Snake's expression darkened before Hauk's eyes and he wondered what the loose canon before him was thinking behind that one piercing, deadly eye. Suddenly, his lips fell to a grimace and he slammed his empty glass down on the small table near the couch.

"You're too uptight. You don't like it? FINE! Go outside and die. I don't give a fuck."

With that and a snarling hiss that could only be described as animalistic, Plissken was on his feet and out the door. Hauk looked at the woman who gave him a seductive and all too inviting smile before she trailed Plissken from the room.

Hauk set the plate aside and sat back trying to swallow the situation he was now in. He had never had to deal with an environment like this or his lack of authority and control over his position. The only thing Hauk was certain of was how little he knew about surviving in the world that Plissken seemed to thrive in. As disconcerting as it was, it seemed to Hauk from now on this would be his world too.