Dagon Rising(33)
“These people don’t even maintain their own fucking airport?” Tony had asked. “What else don’t they maintain? Do they at least have their own resort hotels? Because when this shit’s over, I want a weekend at a resort. Five star all the way.”
“I’m sorry, but Naranu is not the kind of island people vacation at.”
“Will we get to eat once we get there? ‘Cause if they plan to feed us, I don’t eat that weird shit those island people eat. You know, monkey brains and fried spiders and birds nest soup and shit like that.”
Clark had listened to Tony’s banter and monitored the agent’s response to it. Then Onyx had turned his attention to him. The big man told Clark that he’d accompany Tony to the Naranu chief’s home. “Although you are not one of the seven, you did indeed fight the Clickers and the Dark Ones. Your military training and your past dealings with these creatures will be an unexpected asset in this situation.”
“What makes you think my training will be of any use to you?” Clark asked. With the exception of Ruby telling the other Black Lodge agents about his plans to kill former Secretary of State Donald Barker, the agents had not said one word to each other or to Tony about Clark’s background. Clark had no idea if they even knew the full extent of his background.
“Oh, come now. I thought we were done with this.” Sighing as if bored, Onyx approached Clark and took his hand. He held it in his own and squeezed, his eyes never leaving Clark’s. Then he said, “You’re Special Agent Clark Arroyo. You’re a retired Secret Service Agent. You killed President Jeffrey Tyler during the attack on Washington DC.”
Tony, who was across the aisle, turned toward him. “You shot that crazy fucker?”
“I shot him. I didn’t kill him though. I killed a fellow agent named Walpow, but Tyler was still alive.”
“Hell, even still, when this shit’s over, I’m buying you a drink! Hell, I’ll buy you a night on the Vegas strip! Anything you want, it’s yours! Gambling, pussy, dope, you name it!”
Both men ignored him. Ruby just shook her head. Amethyst and Diamond sat near the front, huddled together and apparently oblivious to anything going on around them. Their heads were bowed and almost touching. They had their eyes closed and their expressions showed intense concentration, as if they were meditating. Their foreheads and cheeks were bathed in sweat.
Onyx continued. “Prior to Secret Service duty, you served in the Army out of Fort Bragg. You are trained in cryptography; you an NRA sharpshooter certificate and a black belt in four different martial arts disciplines. You speak six languages. You were trained by the best and the brightest the US Government has to offer.”
Tony was looking at Clark with newfound interest now. “I fucking knew you weren’t a lawn jockey.”
“Okay,” Clark said, trying to pull his hand away. “Enough of this. You’ve proved your point.”
Onyx wasn’t finished. “Your wife left you for a low level underling of the RNC, who is spearheading a secret investigation into Tyler’s death. You are their main suspect. Their relentless pursuit into Tyler’s death, and your wife’s asking for a divorce has caused you to not only go underground, but to go on a mission to eliminate those who hold to the theory that you killed Tyler. Of course, they have no idea how close to the truth they are. You really did kill Tyler. Oh, perhaps it was a Clicker or a Dark One who finished him off, but it was your gun that shot him. That left him vulnerable to attack. You also left him to die back there, which was in direct violation of your duties. Only your superiors don’t know that, but then neither do those who are poking into your life. They’ve arrived at this conclusion through the process of elimination. They have no physical proof, because of how badly mauled Tyler’s body was”
“You’re right,” Clark had said, meeting Onyx’s stare. “They don’t have any proof. Can I have my hand back now?”
“You boys want some alone time?” Tony grinned.
“You hope that by eliminating the dozen or so people who hold to this theory, who have kept the theory to themselves and are the driving force behind the secret investigation into Tyler’s death, that their interest in you will cease. But these people are like cockroaches. Isn’t that how you described them?”
Clark felt his heart flutter. Those had been his exact words; unspoken, never to pass from his lips, but they’d crackled through his thoughts nonetheless. Onyx had read those thoughts, had tapped into every fiber of his being just by touching him. How much more had Onyx gotten from this simple touch? He tried once more to pull free, but the big man squeezed harder, his expression unchanged.