Mastering Id

JD Bennett

Smashwords Edition

Copyright ©2010 by JD Bennett

All rights reserved.

ISBN 978-1-4523-8263-0

The club was called “The Factory” which seemed to Jacob a rather perfunctory title, as this was what the complex of buildings used to be anyhow. But that was more than twenty years ago and the facility was reduced to a dark labyrinth of buildings protected by an impotent chain link fence and overgrown vegetation, rotting boards protecting broken windows and rusty chains securing doors falling off their hinges.

The Jeep bounced and swayed as Jacob navigated the many craters marring the pavement. Without the glow of a nearly full moon to aid him, he was positive he would be investing in a new set of tires come Monday. Only one structure, a squat red brick building in the center of the compound, was illuminated. He pulled the Jeep to a stop near the back of the crowded parking lot and turned to Phil. “Doesn’t look like much.”

Jacob met Phil Dawson at TechOne, a software development firm where they were both employed, about a year ago. Phil was short and thin and wore thick round glasses. He was in his early thirties, like Jacob, and their friendship started out of necessity; TechOne’s offices were cramped and being trapped in a cube less than five feet from one’s neighbor facilitated hasty acquaintances. Once the pleasantries were established, they moved on to movies, gaming, politics, and eventually embarking on a quest to help one other find “the perfect girl”…or the closest approximation thereof. So every Friday for the past eight months they had set out together, braving nightclubs, double dates, and Internet dating to accomplish this goal. Jacob met Trish five months ago; Phil was still in bachelor status.