1934 Alice in Jails: Prison/Epilogue I: At the Information Brokerage

Synopsis
At a certain information brokerage, an unnamed individual meets with an information broker and wonders where he should begin his tale. He pontificates upon information for a while, his manner of speech fluctuating between formal and well-spoken to casually uncouth, until he finally dismisses the broker as lacking and asks him to call for vice president Gustav St. Germain.

The individual then assures the broker that he already knows Gustav and his assistant girl are staying at the Gansluck Hotel in Chicago, and had ham and eggs for breakfast that morning. He claims he knows because he was the waiter who poured the girl a cup of the hotel's special bitter coffee, which she bravely drained.

When the broker points out that the individual's claim is impossible, the individual calls the response proof that the broker knows nothing about him. The individual explains that he has hundreds of real names and accompanying bodies, but only one mind; that his speech style has been inconsistent is simply because his mind cannot decide whether or not the broker is owed respect.

He finally gives the broker the name Sham, a name which all his bodies share. Considering this a sufficient introduction, Sham explains that he was present for some situations in 'this incident' and absent for others; the 'incident' in question, which he emphasizes is 'already over' being the events that simultaneously took place in Alcatraz, Chicago, and New York City.

Sham tells the broker that in exchange for his information, he wants information on what happened in the locations from which he was absent. While he is still not sure if there is a 'true' beginning, he decides to start with the story of a certain camorrista in an interrogation room.

Characters in Order of Appearance

 * Sham