Lee Goldberg - Ring of Knives

It draws nearer to him, eager now, homing in like a flock to a tree, a swarm to a hive. Clearly, he's drawing it to him. But is he drawing it intentionally, like a fly fisherman luring a trout? Or unintentionally, like a bucket of chum drawing a hammerhead?

He can't tell.

But he can sense it draw closer, closer, until it's close enough to make a pass, then another. Feints away, then closes in.

Now it is in the ice with him.

Now it is on him.

Now it is in him.

A gasp-and Matt can breathe again. His lungs expand, contract. Not much, but enough.

The red sparks dance before his eyes again.

Again he feels his right hand, but it's a little less painful, and his teeth are a little less loose.

He draws another breath, but strangely, it's a double breath.

His heart pounds, but with a double beat.

His brain forms a single thought: Alive!

And promptly falls into a deep, dreamless sleep, to the sound of faint, echoing laughter.

RED BLACK RED BLACK RED BLACK RED BLACK RED BLACK

"Stop it, stop it," Maloria was yelling. "We was just told to hold him here. Now they ready for him, and you gonna fry his ass 'til he can't take a step? I ain't answerin' for that!"

Though Matt's mind was foggy with pain, and his vision blurred, he could see Hirotachi's face grow strangely blank. "Listen to me, nigger." She pointed a finger at Maloria, whose mouth had fallen open. "For the last time, shut your South-Side-of-Chicago, ghetto-ass piehole. I run this shift. And if I wanna fry this boy like a day-old wonton at China Buffet? I'm gonna do it. So: Back. The Fuck. Off."

Jaw locked, Maloria bent over, pretending to rummage through her purse.

Hirotachi turned back to Matt. "You like Emeril, Lover Boy? I do. Watch his cooking show every day. And he's the one that taught me what I'm about to teach you: that to make a good impression, you've got to kick it up a notch ."

She turned a knob on the console all the way to the right.

Took the switch in hand.

And then Matt watched in amazement as Hirotachi-as if to demonstrate what he was in for-snapped upright, hands clenched pharaonically across her chest. She clacked her teeth together, stared bug-eyed at him, and made a hissing sound.

Then teetered from foot to foot… and toppled forward, trailing a line of wires that extended from the center of her back to the yellow plastic gun in Maloria's hand.

"Paid three hundred twenty-five dollars for this shit, bitch-and WORTH EVERY PENNY."

It took Maloria only a few seconds to unbuckle the straps that held Matt in five-point restraint. He needed her help to stand, and even then it took a few tries. His legs were jelly.

"Boy, I wouldn't a' helped 'em out, but they so crazy-"

He waved her off.

"Gotta… gotta call the police," he croaked. His throat felt like sandpaper.

"Yeah, I'm all about that. Only I left my cell phone in my car, down the driveway. And Admin's crawlin' with night shift."

"I'll go with you." He took a few experimental steps. Stayed upright. "But we've got to bring the girl with us."

"Annica. Huh-uh." She shook her head, eyes big, pulling him towards the door. "Too late for her. She already at the Ring."

He stopped, pulled away. "The Ring? What the hell is that?"

"It's that stone circle they got, where they put on they plays, up the meditation path. C'mon!" She left the room, waving him to follow.

He did, his joints aching with every step. "But what's going on there tonight? What are they going to do to her?"

"No idea, and I don't intend to find out." They were in a dimly lit hallway. She opened a door marked "Emergency Only" and led him up a short set of concrete steps to another door, which she pushed open.

Together they stepped out into the foggy night.

Matt looked around. They had come out of the lower level of Module Two. To their left, the meditation path led into the woods. Through the fog, Matt could see the faint glow of lights among the pines.

To their right was the Admin Building, and beyond it, the driveway leading to the highway: deliverance.

"We'll go round the loading-dock way," she said, starting forward. "Where we met before. Just stay close together, and- Hey! Where you goin'?"

But it was obvious where he was going. He was going to the Ring.

"Get back here! You crazy!"

"Go get your phone, Maloria," he said without breaking stride. "Call for help."

"You ain't gonna need help, boy! You go up that path, all you gonna need is a pine box! Don't you understand yet? They is crazy ma'fuckahs! "

"So am I," he said. And meant it.

# # # # # #

He left her. Found the path. Passed the birdbath. Felt the long, wet, unmowed grass give way to pine needles. Smelled the pines. Felt his heart thump in his chest.

He didn't want to go into the woods. When Maloria had pulled him towards Admin, he'd wanted to follow. But he couldn't.

Matt had mostly forgotten those moments with Janey on the bridge and in the hospital, until Hirotachi had shocked him. They were too painful to think about, so he hadn't. But now, for the first time in months, he had. And not just thought about them: relived them. He had seen Janey's face . Heard her voice. So real… it was like, for a few moments, she had been with him. He couldn't shake that feeling. Didn't even want to. But part of feeling close to her, feeling like she was standing just at his elbow, meant that he couldn't follow Maloria and leave the blonde with the night shift. What would Janey say about that? He knew what she would say. And if it was true-even a little true-that he still carried her with him, how could he face her-or even the idea of her-if he left a young girl in the hands of these monsters?

He couldn't. That was all there was to it.

He went up the path as fast as he could.

But even as Matt got closer to the amphitheater, things started to go south.

His plan-what little he had of one-was to creep up, unnoticed, and spy on whatever was going on at the end of the meditation path. Take them by surprise, if there was any threat to the girl.

But that wasn't how it fell out. To begin with, as soon as he hit the path, he glanced over his shoulder and saw two figures following him. He sped up, forcing his wobbly legs to carry him more quickly over the damp needles and pinecones. But from the corner of his eye he saw shadows pacing him, parallel to the path: on both sides of the path. Sometimes they'd pass through a shaft of moonlight, and he'd see something glinting in their hands. Whatever it was, they all seemed to have it.

By the time Matt got to the boulder covered in black moss, they began to converge behind him, driving him around the corner, past the glowing horror of the Head Tree and its many obscene ornaments.

Until at last, heart thundering, he stood at the lip of the stone amphitheater.

Jesus Christ, he thought. What have I gotten myself into?

# # # # # #

The amphitheater wasn't big. Built into the hollow of a hill, it consisted of eight levels of stone-slab seats arranged concentrically around a sandy pit dotted with pinecones. Besides being lit by the ghostly light of the Head Tree, there were four halogen lights on poles focused on the center of the pit. About a dozen men and women sat on the bottom ring of stone slabs, completely encircling it. All of them had faces ravaged by rot and disease. It looked like a leper convention. Smelled like one, too.

But from this evil throng, three individuals stood out.

On the far side of the pit-which couldn't have been more than twenty feet in diameter-was a sort of stone throne. It was built into the top level of seats. In it sat a thin figure in a black robe. He had dark, curly hair, and his face was covered with bandages.