Beneath the city everyone thought they knew, underneath the noise, grit and grind, below the night owls in flight still seeking to quench their thirst; a gathering—an impromptu assembly convenes. The location, an oval shaped chamber with protruding crown molding on every other wall, walls that curved and rounded at the top and bottom. The chamber's design was never-ending. A huge table sat in the center of the room...

Flickering street lamps and police floodlights on the outskirts of the Gowanus Houses illuminate Hoyt Street. White candles tied with red bandanas beside empty Henny bottles surround an 8x10 photo of a baby-faced male positioned on the side wall of Mohammed's Deli. Officers walk their beat. A crowd forms in front of the deli. Staying in their lane, the beat cops move along with their patrol. People in and out of the corner store gaze at the memorial...