Authors: Duane Swierczynski,Anthony E. Zuiker

Dark Revelations (31 page)

BOOK: Dark Revelations

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“You guys hiring, by chance?” Riggins asked.

They said nothing in reply. Riggins noted they were wearing serious body armor over their black and gray camos, and loaded up with SIG Sauers and MK23 MOD .45-caliber handguns with suppressors and laser pointers.

“Okay then.”

When they finally approached Dark’s room, Riggins was treated to one more pat-down—“Seriously, fellas?”—before he was allowed inside. Riggins thought it was a lot of effort for what was sure to be an anticlimax. Garcon had told him that Dark was still unconscious, and Riggins expected to spend the next eight hours sitting next to Dark’s bed in a dim room, wishing like hell he could smoke.

But Dark was propped up in the reclining bed, IV tubes still snaked up to his arm. There were heavy circles under his eyes, and Riggins had never seen the man look more beaten or tired . . . but he was awake. That was huge.

“Riggins,” Dark said weakly.

“Hey. You’re up.”

“Yeah,” Dark said. “Natasha told me you might be visiting, so I figured I’d better snap out of the coma, otherwise I’d have to listen to you rambling on and on in my subconscious.”

Riggins forced a smile. “I’m going to probably ramble anyway.”

“Figured.”

“So what happened? And what’s this Global Alliance bullshit you’ve signed up for?”

Dark recapped the basics—how he was recruited, and the hunt for Labyrinth thus far, including their encounter in Edinburgh. Riggins listened to the way Dark talked about their battle. How the bullets seemed to pass right through him. How he moved with preternatural speed and strength. Riggins bit his tongue so hard he thought he might sever it. He remembered his attacker—how stealthy he was, and how absurdly powerful. There wasn’t a chance to mount a proper fight. The motherfucker was all over him like a wild animal. Shooting him up. Pulling open his brain . . .

“And he was ready for me,” Dark said. “Me, personally. Because under another mask, he wore a replica of a Sqweegel mask.”

Riggins felt his stomach go instantly cold. “You’re fucking kidding. How the hell . . . ?”

“Sqweegel was big news five years ago. It would not take much to dig up that piece of my past. But the way he spoke . . . it was like he knew a lot more about the case than had ever appeared in the papers.”

“Huh,” Riggins said, but his mind was
racing
. The shattered memories of his assault were making sense now. Oh fuck were they making sense. The attack. He remembered more of it now.
You’re going to tell me all about Steve Dark.
Shit, what had he told that bastard about Steve Dark?

Dark continued. “Strange thing was, he didn’t want to kill me. He dropped me out of desperation—because I was about to blow his face off. It’s like he wanted to mess with my mind, throw me off the hunt.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m not one of his targets. He took me seriously enough to try to neutralize me, but he also didn’t want to bother killing me. He’s extremely precise with his targets, and extremely precise about explaining himself to the world. That’s the thing about this one, Riggins. He’s not like the other sickos and freaks we’ve chased down over the years. Look at the people he’s targeted so far. All guaranteed to grab maximum headlines.”

“We’ve chased other sick bastards who liked to see their handiwork show up in the press,” Riggins said.

“But not like this one. He’s ideological more than homicidal. He’s not even killing everybody. That’s what worries me. A Level 26 killer typically uses a trail of victims to build toward something greater. The question is, what’s Labyrinth building?”

“No idea,” Riggins said, only half-listening, because the other half of his brain was furiously putting together the pieces of his assault, and the horror and shame were building. There was one awful secret about Steve Dark, and for five years Riggins had kept it buried in an iron vault deep within his mind. Had Labyrinth dug it up and forced it open with a crowbar of truth serum and relentless questions?

“Hey,” Dark said, “I am glad you’re here. That means a lot.”

“What did he tell you?” Riggins asked. “You said he knew things about Sqweegel that weren’t in the papers.”

Dark was silent for a moment before saying, “It’s not important.”

Riggins squeezed his fists so hard that his fingernails dug into his palms, drawing blood. Fuck. Labyrinth
knows
. He knows and he told Dark the truth to gain a tactical advantage. And now Dark knows . . . and that’s the one thing Tom Riggins swore that his surrogate son would never,
ever
know.

That Sqweegel, their greatest nemesis, and the man who had killed Dark’s foster family and beloved wife, Sibby, was a
blood relative
.

What was that doing to his mind? Riggins almost couldn’t bear to look Dark in the eye for fear he’d give himself away. The guilt. The shame.

“Riggins.”

“Yeah.”

“Hey, look at me.”

Riggins did. “I’m going to be fine. I’m bruised as hell and that rattled the tapioca of my brains around a little bit . . . but I’m going to live. You’re acting like I’m about to check out or something.”

“Yeah. No. Sorry . . . look, I’m just hungover and tired. You know me. I can’t fly without getting shitfaced.”

“Well, down a bunch of coffee. Because I have a favor to ask.”

Riggins was again surprised. Dark, like any bitter child, had made a point over the years of letting Riggins know he didn’t need him or his help for anything, ever again.

“What do you need?”

“I want you to find Natasha and help the rest of the team catch this son of a bitch,” Dark said.

“What, me, join your
superspecial fancy
spy team? You’ve got to be kidding, right?”

“They’ve got everything—weapons, money, computers, access.

But they don’t have a manhunter. They don’t have someone experienced in catching Level 26 killers. They need
you
.”

“Hey, they tapped you. They don’t want your old boss who’s about to be put out to pasture.”

“Riggins, I haven’t even tried walking to the bathroom yet. And when I get there, I have a feeling that I’m going to be pissing a lot of blood. Meanwhile, this Labyrinth fuck is going to be sending more packages, and he’s going to keep going and building toward something that . . . well, that frankly worries the hell out of me. I’d feel a whole lot better knowing you were on the hunt.”

Riggins listened to his words, and knew he should feel the slightest bit flattered—the classic pupil praising the teacher. But the shame and guilt blanked all of that out. So all he could say was,

“Yeah, okay, I’ll help.”

Guardian

Breaking: New Labyrinth threat said to have been delivered to the Vatican.

New York Times

Exclusive: Alain Pantin’s call to stop Labyrinth not with guns, but ideas.

chapter 60

TRANSCRIPT: THE CORMAC JOHNSON HOUR, CNN

CORMAC JOHNSON

Joining us tonight via satellite is European Parliament member Alain Pantin, a man who’s become known as, for better or worse, Labyrinth’s spokesman. Until a few weeks ago, nobody had ever heard of Pantin. He was just one of hundreds of semi-obscure parliamentary members of the EU. That is, until Labyrinth started sending letters and boxes of clues and—allegedly—started killing people, demanding change. I’ve asked Mr. Pantin on the show to explain why he’s hitched his political career to a sociopath and why he thinks Labyrinth’s diatribes are worth listening to. Welcome, Mr. Pantin.

ALAIN PANTIN

Thank you, Cormac. I’m a longtime fan of your show, but I’ll correct you on one thing, I am not Labyrinth’s spokesperson. I have never met this Labyrinth, nor do I represent him in any way.

JOHNSON

But you’re taking Labyrinth’s messages and running with them.

PANTIN

While I vehemently disagree with his methods, there is something to Labyrinth’s messages. Just because a monster tells you that a building is on fire doesn’t mean that the building is not, in fact, on fire.

JOHNSON

The bigger question here, though, is whether we should start basing our economic and political decisions on the desires of a monster. Is that a way to run the world? Are you going to base your campaign on the rantings of a madman?

PANTIN

Labyrinth has called our attention to a host of problems in our world that we should
not
be so willing to accept, yet somehow we do. We elect people who serve their own interests or those of the highest bidder. I’m sick of it. You should be, too, Cormac.

JOHNSON

You are up for reelection this year, are you not?

PANTIN

I am. And as I campaign, I’m going to remind myself of why I’m running—which is to represent the interests of my constituents. Not just the rich, or the influential constituents. And while the attack on the senator was shameful, look at the allegations that have surfaced in the days since WoMU. Do we want someone morally and ethically compromised to speak for so many?

JOHNSON

Allegedly
compromised.

PANTIN

Semantics. And that’s what people are tired of. Tired of their courts failing them, tired of seeing CEOs, men who have destroyed the lives of others with their scheming and fraud, given a slap on the wrist and a posh cell in a minimum security prison. People are tired of it. Look at the protests around the world. People have begun to question their leaders and are starting to have frank discussions about accountability. Look at the wave of protests in the Middle East, in London, South America, Greece.

ON-SCREEN: The interview cuts to b-roll of the protests around the world. Many of the groups feature signs with Labyrinth’s messages and quotes.

JOHNSON

Why do you think people seem to be getting behind Labyrinth in such large numbers? Police are fairly certain he’s nothing more than a serial killer.

PANTIN

I think that people see in Labyrinth . . . a voice. They see someone, at long last, taking up their cause. Most people feel powerless, and they see Labyrinth as at least doing something about it. He is forcing a dialogue that most leaders would prefer to not have. He’s giving a voice to all those who can’t be heard. People are tired of the corruption. I’m tired of the corruption. [Looks at the camera] Aren’t you?

JOHNSON

Thank you, Mr. Pantin. We’ll be right back after the break to take your calls. And from the way this board is lighting up, I’d say you good folks still have a lot to say about the matter. We also want to extend an open invitation to Labyrinth himself. If you’re watching, give us a call.

PANTIN

If Labyrinth’s watching, I’d encourage him to take a rest. Let the people forge their own destinies.

JOHNSON

We’ll be right back.