Eyes without a face.

As Ace etched the series of roses on a rather hairy forearm of a biker, he kept thinking about the movement of the dragon on his left wrist.  His pen hesitated above the arm a bit too long.  Judd, the biker, coughed and brought Ace back to the moment. Constant as a headache, the rain drummed on the roof of the shop.  Ace finally finished the last stem that was a bit tricky because it ended at the elbow.  Judd was a regular customer. He said the roses are for his wife.  Ace hoped that they didn't break-up because covering one tattoo with another is particularly irritating for him.

Ace loved his work and hated trying to make one thing into another.  He went over to the stereo and carefully pulled out The Doors LA Woman.  The albums edges were a bit tattered and the red was fading in places.  Even with the plastic cover, time was taking its toll.  Carefully laying the needle on the record, Ace played "Riders on the Storm" while Judd was sitting around waiting with him on the leather couches in the waiting room.  They waited, drinking a beer and looking at the rain.

As he was standing at the window, the rain revealed a man walking past the shop.  He was trying to get out of the sudden resurgence of the storm by ducking under the awning of the shop. He stood looking out to the street as if he was searching for something.  With one quick turn, he looked straight at Ace. Ace unconsciously took a step back. He surprised himself and looked around, but by then the man had moved on.

Maybe it was the album, maybe the rain, or maybe it was the several skull tattoos he had done lately, but something about that moment and that man's eyes made Ace uncomfortable.

Shaking his head, and absently rubbing his tattoo on his left wrist, as if he was stroking the head and tail of the dragon, he stood looking at the wake of the stranger.

"Judd, I think it's going to be a long evening."