Desert Town seems abandoned, right up to the minute that it doesn't. Our heroes check the main office:
Page 54 (Kurjak) “There’s no one here!”
(Baldwyn) “Do you smell something burning?”
(Tesla) “Someone was boiling vegetables for soup as recently as this afternoon, Commander Baldwyn. They must have left in a hurry, to leave the stovetop burner on.”
Page 55 (The office telephone rings.) “It could be for you, Commander.”
(Baldwyn answers) “Hello… It's for Harlan.”
“Hello?”
“I assume you know who I am, Dampyr.”
“Condor…”
“Do you like my little city? I've had some happy days there, or at least passable ones. It's a shame that all human activity is destined to end so soon. These desert lands are my ideal environment. But maybe one day I'll have to leave them.”
“Running away from me?”
Page 56 “Don't overestimate your importance, Harlan. That day will come perhaps in a few centuries, when you will be long turned to dust. Wait. I want you to talk to a friend of yours.”
(Teresa Lopez on the phone) “Harlan! They captured us!”
“Teresa?”
(Ernesto Guerrero hears Harlan) “What? What is he telling you?”
“Condor! No! I won't let you talk to him. He’s a liar.”
“He wants to talk to me, right? Diego and Francisca… that damned man took them. Is that right?”
Page 57 “Ernesto… the Masters of the Night are capable of any trick, even imitating other people's voices.”
“Give it here! I will be able to tell the difference!”
(Francisca Guerrero) “Ernesto! They attacked the train! We're prisoners of…”
(Diego Guerrero) “Papa! Papa!”
“Diego! Francisca!”
“Damn it! It can't be! Listen to me, Condor. We have your hit man Erwin Rogers with us! So…”
“Erwin is not a good bargaining chip, Harlan Draka. When one soldier dies, another is made.”
“What do you want, then? Do you want me?”
“Oh, I don't want to make it easy for you to get to me at gunpoint. I'll think about if and when to kill the prisoners… in the meantime.”
“Did he hang up?”
“But first he said to look in the closet.” (They find Diego's soccer ball, Teresa's police badge, and the braid cut from Francisca's hair, all confirming their capture by Condor.)
Page 58 (They all go outside and look around.) “He could be anywhere.”
“But he's not here, Baldwyn. If he were, I'd feel him.” (One of Harlan's Dampyr abilities.)
(Ernesto) “Then why? Why make that phone call?”
(Harlan) “To drive us to despair, Ernesto. The Condor is afraid of us. He wants to weaken our resolve before he launches his attack.”
(Tesla) “If he's going to attack, we shouldn't be standing around in the open.”
(Kurjak) “We need to hole up in one of these huts. How about the old factory, Harlan? It's more isolated.”
(Harlan) “Let's go for the factory.”
