"Son of a bitch!" Reich growled. With iron nerve he returned to the bathroom, washed off the salt and blood, and sprayed his back with coagulant. He dressed, had his coffee, and descended to the Staging Hall where, after a savage skirmish with the peeper Customs Man ( Tension, apprehension, and dissension have begun! ), he boarded the Monarch launch that was waiting to take him down to the city.