The Corin Chronicles Volume I: The Light and the Dark (23 page)

“No, nothing at all,” Bradley replied. He quickly regained his composure. “I’m sorry, but I haven’t seen anyone or heard anything strange. Sorry—I can’t help you.”

Bradley started to shut the door when Karl put his right leg in the way. “Do you mind if we ask your wife?” he asked.

“Wha…what?” The nervousness crept back on to the man’s face.

“Your wife, sir.” Karl folded his hands. “It’s not a hard request. We would like to speak to your wife. She’s in, isn’t she?”

Bradley looked into the apartment, similarly to what his daughter had done, Andrew remembered. “She’s sleeping,” he said. “Why do you need to speak to her?” Sweat rose on his forehead. “I’ve already told you. I haven’t seen anything.”

“Why do you keep looking inside?” asked Andrew, edging forward. “What are you looking at back there?”

“Nothing, nothing,” Bradley said nervously.

“Relax.” Andrew stepped past Karl and held on to Bradley’s shoulder. “We just want to speak to your wife, and if she tells us the same thing you did, we’ll be on our way.”

Bradley continued to grow visibly confused and scared, looking back constantly, unable to respond.

Karl got a bad feeling in his stomach. “Listen,” he said softly. “I know what this man is capable of, so if he’s here, just say ‘yes, sir.’ He won’t know that you’re talking about him.”

“Yes, sir,” Simon said. “We definitely haven’t seen anyone.” His breathing became heavier.

Karl immediately grabbed Bradley’s hands and spoke into his right ear. “Listen carefully,” he said in a whisper. “I’m going to go in there with my partners, and I want you to step outside.”

“No way,” Simon also whispered. “I’m not leaving my family.”

“So he has them hostage? Even your daughter?”

Bradley nodded.

“Listen to me,” Karl said. “There’s nothing you can do for them. Only we can help them, but we won’t be able to do our jobs properly if you’re in danger in any way. Do you understand me?”

Bradley nodded again and quietly walked outside, with some assistance from Andrew. “Please look after my family,” he said. “They’re my world.”

Karl noticed a tear falling from Bradley’s left eye and struggled to contain his emotions. Sensing the discomfort that came over his partner, Andrew decided to speak up. “I give you my word,” he said. “We’ll do everything to ensure their safety.”

Karl took a few deep breaths before walking into the apartment, with Andrew and William close behind. They looked around, trying to determine where Siroco might have been holding the family hostage. Andrew prodded Karl, alerting him to the master bedroom. The door was shut, but they could see shadows moving along the crack at the bottom.

“Is that you, Sean?” Karl started. “Sean Pepper, or is it Charles Thomas? Which is it? What name are you hiding under now? Or should I just call you Siroco?” He remained near the door, waiting for any kind of response, as his partners trained their guns at it.

The faint sound of the young girl crying startled them, and Karl grimaced. “What is it with you and harming innocent people?” asked Karl. “Why are you doing this? What have they ever done to you? You might be fighting this war with yourself, but some people are good. Why hurt those people?”

“Why do you still insist on calling me names, Karl?” said a voice from within the room. “I’m not who you think I am. I’m no savior, or Anointed One, for that matter, like your superiors will have you believe.”

“I know who you are, Siroco,” said Karl firmly. “Deny that name all you want, but I know the truth.”

“Do you still hold a grudge against me, Karl?” asked the voice. Karl trembled for a second. “I already told you in Budapest that I was sorry for your family,” the voice continued. “You shouldn’t have dug so deep into my past. I really liked your family. You were good to me. I would have just left like I had planned, but you had to find out, didn’t you? Kimber—“

“Shut it,” interrupted Karl. “Don’t you dare mention their names.”

“A bit touchy, aren’t we, Karl?” Sounds of laughter accompanied Siroco’s voice. “What is your actual cause? Seeking vengeance, or to please those in Washington? They don’t care about you, you know.” His laughter came more frequently. “They will never try me, and you know it. All the talk about you getting justice for your family… That’s all nonsense. Once they get me, you’ll probably never see or hear about me again. I’ll probably end up in a lab for the rest of my days.”

“Maybe that’s the only place for an animal like you.” Tears appeared on Karl’s face.

“You sound emotional, Karl. Didn’t you always say that emotion was a killer?”

“There’s no way out, Siroco,” said Karl. “Just send them out, and let’s finish this. You and me.”

“But it’s not really you and me, is it Karl?” Siroco’s tone was almost playful. “You’ve got all your cronies out there, watching your back. Besides, do you really think that this is how it ends, with you capturing me in an apartment in Australia? No Karl. This is much bigger than you and even me. Things will soon start happening. My destiny is now starting to come to pass, and you’ll never stop me.

“You need to start believing, Karl. You think of me as evil, but I’m no more evil than any man that walks upon this planet. Embrace who I am, and what I stand for, for only when you do that will your eyes be truly open.”

“I say we just go in there and shut this idiot up,” said Andrew.

“Leave this to me, Agent Sharpe,” snapped Karl. “I’ll handle it.”

“It seems like your guys are on edge, Karl,” Siroco shouted. “What’s wrong? Trouble in paradise?” His laugh continued to echo through the door, and Karl scowled.

“This is between you and me,” said Karl. “Let them go, and let’s end this.”

“No, this has nothing to do with me and you.” Siroco’s voice became more aggressive. “You just want my head because of your family, but I’ve already told you that I didn’t mean for that to happen. It was an accident. I like you, Karl. That’s why I didn’t kill you in Budapest. But you’re testing my patience now. Remember that I’m the one with hostages, and you know I can kill them just like that.” A faint scream suddenly came through the door, followed by light sobbing.

“Are you all right, Mrs. Russell?” shouted William.

After moments of silence, a reply came. “We’re fine. We’ll be better if you just left and…” She paused for a few seconds, with the sobbing getting louder. “You need to stop meddling with things that don’t concern you, or innocent people will continue to get hurt.”

Andrew looked at Karl, with both his hands up.

“He’s telling her what to say,” said Karl. He remained focused on the door and continued to edge closer. “How do you want this to end? Because it has to end someday.”

“I’ll tell you how,” Siroco replied. “This will end when I have a car outside and a helicopter waiting to take me wherever I want to go.”

“And why would I do that?”

“Oh, Karl. We all know that your weakness has always been innocents. You couldn’t save your family, and now you’re on some pathetic mission to save everyone else. Don’t you know that in order to catch me, you must stop caring about others and just focus on me? Now stop wasting my time, and tell me when my car will be coming.”

Karl walked back a couple of paces and called his partners over to him. “No matter what we do, this won’t end well,” he said. “The longer we play this out, the more likely he will end up escaping, and the hostages will die anyway.” Following a nod from both of his partners, he shifted even closer to the door. “You have two choices, Siroco,” he shouted. “You can either come out now, or we’re coming in there to get you.”

“But you’ll never do that,” Siroco replied sharply. “You’ll never risk me harming them. You’re too much of a good man.”

“If they’re not out in one minute,” said Karl aggressively. “You’ll see just how serious I am.”

No response came, but they could hear the sound of feet moving around.

“What do you think he’s up to?” asked Andrew.

“I have no idea,” replied Karl. “But we can’t underestimate him. In a few seconds, he can turn this into a catastrophe.”

The shuffling noises continued, and with no idea where in the room the hostages were, Karl charged for the door. In an instant, however, a thunderous noise rocked him where he stood, followed by a blinding white glow. Trying to shield his eyes, he felt his body in the air before it crashed into a nearby wall.

Outside the apartment, lying flat on his back, Bradley Russell struggled to open his eyes. As a bright, white light flooded his surroundings, he wondered if death had claimed him. A sound like a whistle pierced his ears and burned through his skull. The white light lessened, and he opened his eyes. He felt a sudden fear for his family, seeing bricks and rubble all around him. In the diminishing light, he could make out the shape of feet approaching.

He massaged his eyes, and as his vision blurred, he vaguely recognized a young man with long, blond hair, down to his shoulders. His thick, brown boots seemed to approach him quicker and quicker. The navy blue cardigan he wore looked almost white from all the dust that had showered it. He had no doubt that it was the person who had held him and his family hostage.

With his vision slowly improving, Bradley shuddered when he realized that the white light seemed to be emitted by the young man, who was now a few yards from him. The light smothered him entirely, illuminating every aspect of his body. Focusing on his face, Bradley trembled uncontrollably. The man’s eyes had no pupils. In their place were hollow rings of fire. At that moment, Bradley almost felt the flames burning directly through his soul. Accepting death, he shut his eyes. But then he heard a loud, grinding noise that caused the floor to vibrate.

Seconds passed before the sensation ceased. Quickly opening his eyes, he saw that the light had disappeared. The noise was gone. Glancing behind him, he saw the same brown boots of the man casually exiting through the doors leading to the staircase.

With his eyes closed, Karl could smell the smoke and dust, but he still did not have complete control of his body. The sound of coughing close by ignited his determination to regain full consciousness. A few seconds later, he managed to sit up, trying to understand exactly what had happened. The bedroom door lay on the floor, completely unhinged. But more incredible than that was the gaping hole in the wall. It seemed large enough for an elephant to pass through.

The dust that filled the room had not yet cleared, and Karl understood why he heard coughing. The sight of Andrew’s gun lying on the floor nearby startled him, and he looked around the room for his partners. William was on his feet, with his hands over his eyes, seemingly very shaken and having trouble breathing. With every ounce of strength still available to him, he ran up to his partner.

“William, William,” he shouted repeatedly. “Are you all right?”

“What the… What the hell happened?” asked William. He coughed at regular intervals. “One minute… we were standing there, and the next, there was this great light.”

“It was Siroco,” said Karl. “It must have been. Have you seen Andrew?” Worry filled Karl’s voice.

“He’s over there,” said William. He pointed at a pile of rubble to their left. At first, Karl raised his hands, unsure as to why William indicated that Andrew was there, then he made out Andrew’s shoes.

“No! No!” he shouted, running over to the pile of rubble. “Andrew!” he said. “Can you hear me?”

He worked his way through the rubble and shook the body of his partner, looking worriedly at William. The sound of coughing from the bedroom, however, stopped him temporarily. He looked back to see the hostages. “Mrs. Russell,” he said. “I’m so glad you’re all right. How’s your daughter?”

“She’s okay,” replied the woman. “Where’s my husband?”

“I’m right here, honey.” Bradley Russell immediately appeared and, upon seeing his wife and daughter alive and breathing, sped toward them and embraced them.

In the midst of his relief that the hostages were safe, Karl felt movement from Andrew and quickly diverted his attention back to his partner, who coughed repeatedly. To the surprise of his partners, Andrew jumped to his feet, breathing heavily and swaying from side to side.

“Relax, Andrew, you’re fine,” said Karl. He tried to stop the rapid shaking that seemed to creep into Andrew’s hands.

“What the hell happened?” asked Andrew. “One minute, we’re about to take him down, and the next, I’m down for the count.”

“I saw what happened,” interrupted Bradley. He released the grip he had on his family and approached the agents. “I was outside when it happened.”

Karl walked toward him. “Please, you’ve got to tell me what happened, right now,” he said.

Holding on to the hands of his wife and daughter, Bradley relayed his entire experience, to the sound of gasps from all three agents. By the story’s conclusion, Andrew’s eyes remained half open. William took a few steps backward, studying the wall that had been destroyed, struck by the stark realization that Siroco was capable of such devastation to ensure his survival.

The sudden sound of Inspector Donovan on the radio brought Karl back to reality. “Agent Hobbs! Is anyone there? What’s happening?” he said.

Karl leaned toward the rubble, picked up the radio, and wiped the dust from it. “This is Agent Hobbs,” he replied.

“Are you okay, Hobbs?” Donovan asked. “We heard an explosion.”

“No, the bird is loose,” shouted Karl. “I repeat: the bird is loose, and he might be headed down there.”

“What? How? Is everyone okay up there?”

“Everyone is fine, Inspector, but we must contain him. Have all your men enter the building now. Deploy most of them to the staircases, but use non-lethals only. I repeat: non-lethals.” He held the radio away from his mouth and looked toward his partners. “He’s still in the building. We need to end this now.”

“Yes, sir!” shouted William. He rapidly made his way out of the room, followed by Andrew.

Karl motioned the Russell family toward him. “Stay here,” he said. “Help is on its way.” He also exited the room and ran toward his partners, who were at the edge of the staircase.

“What the hell was that, Karl?” asked Andrew. “Was that the force field you talked about?”