Free The Dark Path by Luke Romyn

able to gather any real information regarding his appearance or background. For all intents and purposes the man called Vain had simply appeared from the bowels of the city to wreak havoc amidst the scum of the underworld. The scraps Squirrel collected had made him pray he never had the misfortune to meet the man.
    Tattooed within Squirrel’s hazy memory burned the day he woke up in his cheap hotel room to find a man sitting at the foot of his bed staring intently at him. Fear shot through Squirrel as he looked into the man’s eyes and saw the darkness residing there. Registering the silencer pointed directly into his face, he felt his bowels loosen, adding another stain to his filthy bedclothes, further fouling the stale air.
    The Dark Man seemed unperturbed by the stench, offering no reaction when Squirrel whined liked a cowering puppy and tried to hide his head beneath the bedding.
    “Come out from there Squirrel, or I’ll start putting holes in your beautiful linen.”
    Squirrel peered over the edge of the sheet to where the Dark Man sat motionless. Little by little he inched his hand towards the blade hidden beneath his pillow in the futile hope he could somehow survive this encounter.
    “If your hand moves another inch, Squirrel,” Vain warned quietly, “I’ll be forced to kill you and lose the information I need.”
    Squirrel swallowed heavily, wishing for the hundredth time he had started out life teaching instead of banking.
     
    * * * *
     
    Vain peered from the alleyway watching Squirrel make his way down the busy street. To passersby he appeared simply another bum looking for loose change or cigarette butts, but watching closely, Vain recognized the method to Squirrel’s movements. He would pause momentarily near groups of people and listen to what they were saying, all the while searching through the trash or picking something from the ground, avoiding notice.
    An interesting tactic. Very interesting since Vain knew that Squirrel had risen above his poverty. Although he had started his second life on the streets, the man once known as Gary had done well for himself since starting in the information distribution business. In the few months since his appearance, Squirrel had gained access to intelligence from almost all corners of the city through his network of informants. Everyone from the lowest hood to the kings of the underworld wanted Squirrel’s information, but they all remained ignorant to the fact that the same information also found its way to their enemies, sometimes at a lower price. None of them realized Squirrel was more than just a street bum. And Squirrel preferred it that way.
    But the Dark Man knew otherwise.
    Before he had contacted Squirrel for the first time, he did a little information digging of his own and discovered some things about Gary O’Rourke’s past: the banker, his success and subsequent fall from grace. The rest Vain had pieced together after following him on nights similar to this one.
    Tonight was different, though. Possibly the Dark Man’s most important meeting with Squirrel. He wanted to make sure everything was perfectly safe before proceeding.
    Waiting until he felt certain the informant wasn’t being followed, Vain moved up the fire escape of a nearby building. He proceeded across the rooftop until he reached the edge. Pausing for the briefest moment, he took a running leap, landing on the adjacent building’s roof, rolling on his shoulder to absorb the impact.
    Squirrel’s home: a rundown dump, housing junkies, crooks and ex-millionaire Wall Street bankers. Vain looked over the side, and down to Squirrel’s room three floors below. Previously, scaling the wall had proven virtually impossible, so this time he’d brought a length of rope which he now proceeded to unravel and secure. Rappelling down, Vain easily accessed the unlocked window, and waited patiently for Squirrel to arrive.
    Squirrel entered the room soon after, finding the Dark Man sitting in a