Nightfall Perimeter

Dusk settled over Portsmouth, and the streetlights flickered on along the pavement. Moving past the base of the front steps, I followed the low stone border toward the boundary wall. A discarded iron gate hinge was embedded into the mortar near the pavement edge, its hollow pin-sleeve forming a sheltered alcove. I scaled the textured masonry and stepped inside the curved iron casing. Hidden in the shadow, my vantage point covers both the gravel walkway and the sidewalk beyond. The street is quiet, but vigilance requires position.