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65
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Mort made his way down the old Portuguese alleyway, searching for the Ceniza Bros. workshop. He rounded a corner, then spotted the familiar place. But as he walked closer to it, there was something different about it.
The shop's exterior was in disarray and there was a moving truck parked outside. Mort slowly stepped into the shop only to find the place half empty with two moving men inside trying to disassemble one of the remaining bookshelves with a power-drill.
Not noticing Mort's intrusion, they went on in their work, talking amongst themselves as they did so. Mort looked around the distraught shop, in complete befuddlement. Suddenly, one of the movers turned and saw Mort standing there.
"Oiga," Mort said.
"Seftor?" The mover replied.
"Hermanos Ceniza?" Mort asked.
"Como?" The mover asked.
"Hemanos Ceniza?" Mort repeated.
The mover pointed to himself. "Pepe Lopez." He pointed to the other mover. "Ricardo Ferrerra."
"Si," Mort said, looking down at the floor disappointedly. He lifted his head and asked, "Do you speak english?"
The man gave him a look which Mort perceived as a 'no', then he returned back to his work.
Mort stepped a few steps closer to the movers to get a better look at the shop. The mover said something to Mort in Portuguese, pointing to the book shelf. Mort understood that he was in the way and they were going to move it so he backed up a step.
As they moved it down to the floor, a dusty piece of paper slid off the top of the cabinet and fell to the floor like a falling leaf. It landed right at Mort's feet.
Instinctively, Mort bent over and picked it up. He looked it over, then more closely. His eyes became wide.
It was the Ninth Engraving: The naked woman riding a seven-headed dragon with a castle ablaze in the background. The woman's face bared a strong resemblance to that of the mysterious girl.
Mort walked out of the shop and down the alleyway, in a flash of light, his receding figure dwindled to a speck.