The Dark at the End

by F. Paul Wilson

  Even though sunrise had brought everything back to normal, just as Weezy had predicted, Jack could tell Eddie wanted out of here. Because even though the hallway and beyond had been restored at first light, the two chairs they'd tossed through the door were nowhere in sight. They'd gone Somewhere Else.

  Jack wondered if that might be the same Somewhere Else his brother Tom had been taken. In truth, he didn't even know if his brother was alive. But if he was, and in the same Somewhere Else, at least now he had someplace to park his doughy butt.

  But no matter what they found down here today, if they needed to stay over another night, they'd do it at the Lonely Pine Motel.

  "Jack?" Eddie said. "The end point?"

  "What?" He yanked himself back to the here and now. "Oh, sorry. " He shook his head. "I'm not sure. "

  "Well, pick something. I need a target. "

  "Why?"

  "I'm goal directed. It's the way my mind works. It needs an end point. Give me one. "

  Jack thought a moment, then shrugged. "Two more feet. "

  Didn't sound like much, but with a passage ten feet wide and eight feet high, that was 160 cubic feet of dirt. Eddie's daunted look said he realized that.

  "And then what?"

  "Then we call Tommy. "

  "Do we know his number?"

  Jack smiled. Eddie was already preparing for defeat. Jack wasn't ready to concede yet.

  "It was on the side of his truck. "

  He squinted at Jack. "You remember it?"

  "No, but I'll bet your sister does. "

  "Sister does what?" Weezy said from behind them as she descended the ladder.

  "Remember Tommy the excavator's phone number. "

  "Sure. " She rattled it off as she slipped on her work gloves. "You giving up?"

  "After two more feet," Eddie said.

  Weezy took the shovel from her brother and gave Jack a semi-stern look.

  "Is we gonna stand here jawboning or is we gonna move some dirt?"

  Before Jack could answer, she drove her shovel into the wall of dirt -

  And hit something that went clink!

  They all froze.

  Jack said, "Do that again. "

  She did, with the same result. Jack attacked the dirt in the area and within minutes a four-inch-wide expanse of gleaming black appeared.

  "That look familiar?" he said.

  "Does it ever. " Weezy's smile was beatific as she turned to Eddie. "See? Same material as our little pyramid. "

  "So we've found it?"

  "We have. "

  But they had a lot of digging left to do to free it from the earth.

  TUESDAY Chapter 4

  Ernst jumped at the sound of a knock on the car window. He turned and saw some disfigured derelict peering at him through the rear passenger window.

  Ernst waved him away. Probably wanted to wash the windshield or -

  "Drexler, open the door. "

  That voice . . . he knew that - oh, no, it couldn't be! He looked closely and saw that it was.

  The One.

  He fumbled for the LOCK toggle. The buttons popped up and the One entered the rear of the car. Ernst gaped at him. The hair had been burned off the right side of his scalp; scars stippled his right cheek. And his hand . . . his left hand was -

  "Close your mouth. You look foolish. "

  "Yes, sir. It's just that - "

  "Someone tried very hard to kill me, Drexler. To make that attempt, they had to first find me. My presence at that house was supposed to be a secret. "

  Ernst tried to read his eyes, but as usual, that proved impossible. Those pools of black infinity revealed nothing. How much did he know?

  "Your whereabouts was known only at the highest levels - and to Doctor Heinze, of course. "

  "Did that include you?"

  Ernst swallowed. Best to stay close to the facts, if not the truth. He'd learned of the One's whereabouts through indirect means. No one could be aware that he'd known.

  "No. I had no idea. The Council informed me only after the attack. "

  "I feel fear washing off you, Drexler. And while I find that enjoyable, I must ask: Are you guilty of something?"

  "No-no. I'm simply afraid I'll be suspected of something of which I am innocent. We - the High Council and I - believe we have pieced together what happened. Doctor Heinze visited the baby on Friday. We believe the baby's mother - "

  "Dawn Pickering - her body was found across the street. "

  "Correct. She was convinced that her baby was still alive, and we now believe she was following Doctor Heinze. We spoke to the doctor and he hadn't seen Dawn since he'd had her removed from his office last week. But we think she was following him and trailed him to Nuckateague. "

  The One looked troubled. "Sounds reasonable. It appears I underestimated that girl's determination. "

  "I assure you no one on our end let it slip. Gilda hadn't left the South Fork for a week and Georges only once to drive you to the airport. And no one could have followed you to Nuckateague because you weren't around. "

  Ernst would have loved to know where the One went on his jaunts but knew better than to ask.

  "Doctor Heinze's visit might have led her to suspect her baby's presence, but not mine. "

  "If Dawn spotted either Georges or Gilda out there - and we believe she must have - it would be logical for her to assume that Mr. Osala was there too. "

  "But Dawn Pickering did not mount that assault. "

  He had a feeling the One knew the identity of his attacker - or had a pretty good idea who he was - but was testing Ernst in some way.

  "No, of course not. My theory is that she informed Louise Myers - also known as Louise Connell - of the whereabouts of the baby. "

  "That requires a leap in logic. "

  Yes . . . definitely a test.

  "Not so much, considering they lived across the hall from each other. "

  Ernst wanted to add: Something you arranged. But he dared not. He was still baffled by the move. Weeks ago the One had instructed him to find the Connell woman - find and no more. Absolutely no contact. Ernst had succeeded almost immediately, and shortly thereafter the One moved Dawn in across the hall. He must have had a reason for that, but Ernst could not fathom what it might be. Now was not the time to ask . . .

  Or was it?

  "Is that why you moved Dawn so close to the Connell woman? So they would meet?"

  "That is not your concern. "

  Well, Ernst thought, glancing at the One's scars and the stump of his wrist where it rested in his lap, whatever your plan, it certainly backfired.

  "As you wish. "

  "You knew the Connell woman as a youngster, Drexler. Do you think her capable of such an assault?"

  "Louise Connell? No. A very determined young lady, but her weapon is her intellect. Her friend Jack, on the other hand . . . the one you were interested in . . . he's another story. "

  "Yes," the One said. "The Heir is quite another story. "

  Ernst jolted in his seat. He had never been struck by lightning, but this must be how it felt.

  "Jack is the Heir?"

  The One nodded. "Heir Apparent. "

  Now Ernst understood why the One had grilled him in such detail about his early experiences with Jack.

  "I knew it!"

  The singed remnants of the One's eyebrows lifted. "Did you, now?"

  Watch it! Be careful here. Fabricate as little as possible.

  "Well, I didn't know, exactly. But he visited me on Thursday night asking where he might find you. "

  "Really. For what purpose?"

  Ernst's mouth was dry. "To kill you. "

  The One leaned back. "Interesting. And what did you tell him?"

  "The truth: I had no idea where you were. He threatened me but became convinced I didn't know. In fact, I laughed in his face at the possibility that he could succeed
in harming you. "

  Obviously, not such a laughing matter. Jack, you impress me more and more. But still . . . you failed.

  Which put Ernst firmly back in the One's camp.

  "He very nearly did. Why didn't you subdue him?"

  "I tried but he was waiting for me when I entered my apartment and had disabled all my defenses. " Time to stretch the truth. "But I did call Szeto - "

  "Ah, yes. Szeto. Where is he?"

  Yes . . . your beloved Szeto . . .

  "Alerted by me, Szeto and two of his men captured Jack and brought him to a property the Order keeps on the West Side. Szeto wished to torture him for revenge, I wanted information from him - specifically, how he knew about you being the One. I had surmised he was involved with the Enemy but had no idea he was the Heir. When I got there, Szeto and his two men were dead and Jack was gone. "

  The One considered this. "Szeto did not strike me as the careless sort. "

  "Well, in this case he was. Perhaps because he was so full of rage at Jack for killing so many of his men, and for the brutal beating he had suffered at his hands just weeks ago. " Ernst could not resist a final dig. "Szeto was competent, but I learned from my dealings with him that he suffered from an exalted estimation of his own abilities. If he had done his job, Jack would not have been around to attack you. "

  The One appeared to mull this. "Still, he proved useful on a number of fronts. I shall miss Szeto. "

  All but choking on the words, Ernst said, "We all will. "

  Another protracted silence, and then the One said, "Drive me to the city. And as we travel, I want you to call the Council and tell them to send someone over to the Connell woman's apartment - that is, if the Heir has left any to send. "

  "We still have a few. "

  "Tell them I want to know if she is there. If she is not, I want them to search her apartment for the Compendium of Srem. "

  Another jolt, albeit of much lower voltage. Louise Connell had the Compendium?

  "Yes, sir. And if they find it?"

  "If it is there, do not touch it. If it is not, they are to leave her apartment exactly as they found it and report back to you. "

  "As you wish," Ernst said and reached for the phone.

  "And while that is under way, tell the Council to send some of the local members of that Johnson, New Jersey, Lodge over to the building to see what is going on. I want a report as soon as possible. "

  The Johnson Lodge? What could interest the One there?

  "Right away. May I ask - ?"

  "You may not. "

  The One leaned back and closed his eyes. The hideous injuries aside, he looked haggard, exhausted. Ernst had never dreamed anything like this could happen. And yet it had.

  He wondered what that ancient twisted mind was planning.

  Of one thing he was certain . . . Ernst was quite glad he was not Jack.

  TUESDAY Chapter 5

  Jack hacked away at the last layer of dirt packed around the gleaming black sigil where it leaned against the wall. Neither time, the flood, nor the encasing dirt had dulled its onyx finish.

  Since the sigil measured a half dozen feet across, they'd decided to excavate a narrow passage in front of it, free it from the dirt, and drag it out. The passage allowed room for only one, so the three of them rotated between digging and hauling away the loosened earth.

  Behind him, Eddie said, "Careful. Don't break it. "

  Jack bit back a retort that might have come out sharper than intended. Eddie had morphed into a pest. Yes, Jack understood that the Lodge creeped him out and he wanted the place in his rearview mirror ASAP, but he was beginning to micromanage. Maybe that expanded his comfort zone, but it set Jack's teeth on edge. Having dirt in his hair, his eyes, and down the back of his shirt didn't help.

  So he said, "Not to worry, Fredo. "

  "Frodo?" he heard Eddie say to Weezy. "Why's he calling me Frodo?"

  "I said 'Fredo,'" Jack called back. "And I'm getting in the mood to take you out on the lake for a little fishing. "

  "Fishing? What's he talking about?"

  Jack heard Weezy laughing farther behind. "Never mind. And as for the stuff that sigil is made of, you can't even scratch it. "

  "Nice sentence structure," Jack said.

  She laughed again. "Oh, now you're getting on me?"

  "No," he said as the last bit of dirt fell away from the top point of the sigil. "Now I'm getting this thing out of here. Eddie, give me a hand and we'll see if we can shake it free. "

  Eddie slipped in beside him. Together they both got two-handed grips on the spokes of the sigil and began rocking it back and forth. Dirt rained on them as it became looser and looser.

  "What is this thing made of?" Eddie said as they increased their efforts.

  "Don't know . . . but it looks like the same stuff as our little pyramid back in the day, and that was virtually indestructible. "

  "It's called tenathic," Weezy said.

  "Since when?"

  "Since I read about it in the Compendium. "

  He remembered Professor Nakamura telling him and Weezy that the folks at U of P hadn't been able to identify the pyramid's shiny black compound, mainly because they hadn't been able to chip off a sample. Now he had a name for it: tenathic.

  Finally it came free.

  "Yeah!" Eddie shouted. "Yeah!"

  "Okay. Let's try to roll it out of here. "

  They put their shoulders against the spokes, and Weezy pitched in by pulling on the free side, but the remaining section of the perimeter was jammed. Jack stepped up on one of the crosspieces and grabbed the perimeter. He could only vaguely make out the glyphs carved into the surface, but he could feel them against his palms. Something strange about them . . . something not right, but he couldn't say just what.

  Well, right or not right, it needed freeing up, so he tightened his grip and threw his weight backward - once . . . twice . . .

  It loosened up on the third try. He dropped back to the floor and put his shoulder against the sigil. The three of them resumed their effort to roll it.

  "Watch out for that point," Jack told Weezy. "If this thing starts to move, it could - "

  It moved and a point angled toward Weezy but she danced out of the way. Another couple of turns and it sat free in the passage. Dusting the dirt out of his hair, Jack stepped back with the others and stared at it.

  Weezy said, "That has to be his Other name. Don't you think? Can it be anything else?"

  Jack looked at her eager face. "It had better be. It's all we have. "

  After they'd discovered the sigil this morning, Weezy had brought her backpack down. As she stepped over to where she'd tied it to the ladder, Jack leaned in for a closer look. He couldn't say why it had felt so strange. But he recognized the glyphs.

  "No doubt, Weez. Those are the same seven characters from the pyramids - the big and the little. "

  "Makes sense, doesn't it?" she said, pulling out her camera. "Each of the seven sides of the pyramid had one of these glyphs. Each of the Other Names is composed of the same seven glyphs, so, in a way, each member of the Seven had his name chiseled on the pyramid. "

  She fiddled with the lens as she returned, then leaned in next to Jack and flashed a photo. When she checked the display, she frowned.

  "What's wrong?" Jack said as he and Eddie angled in on either side for a look.

  "Blurred," Eddie said, then grunted. "Huh. Master of the Obvious. "

  "Maybe you've got some schmutz on the lens," Jack said.

  Weezy gave him a cockeyed look. "Schmutz?"

  "Abespeak for dirt. Enough of it down here. "

  Weezy checked the lens. "No. Clean. I always keep the lens cover on and - oh, crap. "

  "What?"

  "Just remembered something. "

  She snapped another photo with the same result.

  "Damn!" she said. "The pyramid wouldn't photograph eith
er, remember?"

  Now that she mentioned it . . .

  "Right-right-right. Neither would the box it came in. And since this is the same material. . . "

  Weezy returned to her backpack and traded her camera for a yellow pad and one of her Sharpies.

  "That never stopped me from drawing them before. "

  Less than a minute later she displayed her work.

  "I now present the One's Other Name. "

  Jack made a quick comparison with the sigil: a damn near exact copy.

  "We hope. "

  Her smile faltered. "Yeah . . . we hope. "

  "Whether it is or not," he said, "it's a beautiful name . . . so euphonious. "

  "Okay!" Eddie said, clapping his hands. "Our work here is done, so let's get the hell out. "

  Jack couldn't argue with that.

  Eddie led the way up. Jack followed with Weezy's backpack, then helped her up to the basement level. He was about to unplug the spotlight they'd used below - he'd leave that and the shovels as a gift to the Lodge - when he heard footsteps on the basement stairs. He turned to see two men in suits step into the room from the stairwell.

  "Who are you and what are you doing here?" said the one in the lead.

  Jack had left his Glock in the backpack while he was digging. Neither of these two seemed to pose much of a threat but that didn't keep him from slipping his hand inside to find its comforting polymer composite.

  "We were hired to excavate the subbasement. "

  "I know who was hired," the guy said, "and you aren't he. "

  Ooh . . . you aren't he . . . a grammarian.

  Without missing a beat Jack changed the story: "The One told us to check out the work. "

  Both men frowned.

  "The one what?" said the second.

  Either they weren't high-ups or were pretending not to know. He bet on the former and figured it wouldn't hurt to keep them off balance by changing the subject.

  He jerked his thumb at the opening in the floor. "We found an interesting variation on the Order's sigil down below. "

  Weezy was nodding. "Really interesting. Like nothing you've ever seen before. "

  The Order guys glanced at each other. Both looked dubious but finally the first said, "I'll go see. " He pointed at Jack. "No games, all right?"

  Jack put on a wounded look. "I assure you, this is not a joking matter. "