The pride in his voice makes Martin chuckle. "I was at a cafe near my apartment. It took out the bodega next door, but that was about it. My point is ... they had to alter the memories of everyone else in the cafe, so they wouldn't remember what happened. I'm not sure how, exactly, it worked, but ... they escorted me out into the street and everyone who came out afterward looked as though they were just going about their day. I'm sure they use the same procedure on anyone who gets too close to the portal."

He thought about that for a moment, reaching up to rub a thumb over his frizzing beard. "As a matter of fact, I wouldn't be surprised if they've got people convinced it's an art installation or something like that."