"Eames, I have a job for you."

"What, no 'how have you been these past eight months'? I'm pleased to see you too, Arthur darling."

"Pleasure's all yours. Look, are you in?"

"Depends on the job. What are we doing?"

"Extraction."

[The Mark]

At 6:32 on a Thursday evening, a young, impeccably dressed man stood on the platform of the grand Penn station, waiting for the Amtrak Acela Express scheduled to pass through at 6:35. It was the last intercity train of the day to make the 3.5 hour journey from New York to Boston, and in his fedora and pinstripe suit, with a sleek metal briefcase in hand, the man looked like a typical New Yorker who simply couldn't pry himself away from the desk to catch the 5.25.

At 6:35 on the dot, the train streaked into the station. Smoothly, the man stepped into the carriage, his steps a little too purposeful to be simply choosing a seat. A few minutes later, just as the train began to pick up speed, he quietly stepped into Carriage D.

The carriage was already half-occupied. A prim brunette sat by the door, her hands flitting about her neck as she carefully readjusted her silk scarf. She glanced up briefly as he entered, before returning her attention to the large sketchbook resting on her lap. In the stall opposite hers, a suave, older man tapped noisily away at his laptop, while his Indian companion occupied himself with a copy of the day's New York Times.

The newcomer ignored them. Instead, his eyes scanned about the small carriage before zeroing in on the final occupant in the furthest stall. A petite Asian woman had tucked herself in the corner, her face partially hidden behind a curtain of ink-black hair.

The man took two steps forward in her direction, the door rasping closed behind him. "Excuse me," he said.

The young woman glanced up, meeting his dark eyes with a polite look of inquiry.

The man gave hesitant smile, his eyes crinkling at the corners in a manner that was as boyish as it was handsome. He gestured to the empty seat opposite hers. "Do you mind if I sit here?"

"No, please, go ahead," she replied, returning his smile with a soft one of her own before turning her attention back to the pages of her well-worn novel.

Flicking his eyes to the cover, the man's lips twitched in amusement.

She was reading 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'.