As soon as he releases you, you spin, swinging your fist wildly at him. Your blow hits him hard in the midriff—and he doesn't react at all. Conversely, you gasp in pain as fire surges up from your knuckles and floods your nervous system. He's clearly no pushover.
"That was unnecessary," says the man. "I told you that I wish you no harm. We are on the same side. I hope that this will put an end to such foolishness."
You look at him and immediately realize who he is. It is the muscled, mustachioed Arab manservant whom you last saw at the American Colony, sitting at the wheel of the Rolls which belonged to the woman who saved you outside the hotel. Who are these people?
"We do not have much time," he says. "You will not last long in the Old City. There are too many of them. We must get you off the streets."
"I have to find my friend Sam," you respond.
"They are safe," says the man. "They made it to the Paradise. But you will not. The city is full of those men, and they know what you look like. I will go to the Paradise, collect your friend, and bring them to you. In the meantime, Lady Esme is waiting for you outside the city wall, by the Dung Gate to the south. It is much closer than the Paradise. Go, now!"
And with that, the manservant, who never even told you his name, is gone, rushing off down the main thoroughfare in the direction of the Armenian Quarter.
And you realize he is right. You are still far from the Paradise, and the streets between you and it are teeming with undercover Nazi patrols. The Dung Gate is just a few blocks to the south, much more achievable. But you still have to decide how to get there.