Tuesday March 25, 2014 – 7:03 AM EST – The Compound , Old Saybrook, Connecticut


Never trust a drug addict. That was what I kept telling myself as I walked the 20 or so blocks to my mother’s apartment where she and my father had been spending their evening. This pathetic excuse for a common thief and even more pathetic of a human being was the second person that I had killed and unlike my previous victim, Thomas Martin, I feel relatively no guilt at all. Obviously the circumstances were completely different and I am sure that plays somewhat of a role. But at the end of the day I think that the time I have spent working with Sebastian and his team, as well as the many months I spent justifying my actions against Thomas Martin has made me somewhat cold to the harsh reality of taking someone else’s life.

The drive back from New York was a quiet one. Asmodeus was tired and I did not go out of my way to engage him in conversation outside of the standard pleasantries. Asmodeus dozed off about half way through the trip home which was not to be unexpected, though he swears that he was awake the whole time just resting his eyes. You know what else they call resting your eyes? Sleeping. As soon as we got back to The Compound I walked father to his cottage and then quickly made my way into the main building. As expected Matthew was still awake, plugging away at the computer like always; which was a welcomed sight since there was a lot I wanted to talk to him about.


ENIGMA: “Good Evening Matthew.”

MATTHEW: “Hi Eric.”

“How’s it going?”

ENIGMA: “Good, things are going well.”

“Do you have a few minutes?”

MATTHEW: “I do in fact, things have been relatively quiet around here lately.”

ENIGMA: “A welcomed change I’m sure.”

MATTHEW: “Most assuredly.”

“So what can I help you with?”

ENIGMA: “Well as you know I came into some money recently, a lot of it actually and I have been racking my brain trying to figure out exactly what to do with it.”

MATTHEW: “Did you consider investing it in something?”

“It could be the stock market or mutual funds, or even property, specifically land.”

“They certainly aren’t making any more of it.”

ENIGMA: “All great suggestions however not what I was thinking”

MATTHEW: “I see.”

“So what are you thinking?”



During the walk over here I tried to play this conversation out in my head, trying to figure out what Matthews reaction would be to what I am about to say. My final judgment was tempered excitement.



ENIGMA: “I want to use the money to help people.”

MATTHEW: “Like donations?”

ENIGMA: “No.”

“Let me give you a little background.”

“Last night I intervened in what was to be a purse snatch, the woman ended up walking away the would be purse snatcher bleed out in the alley way that I discovered them in.”

MATTHEW: “You killed someone?”

“Did anyone see you?”

“Does Asmodeus know?”

ENIGMA: “Calm down Matthew, everything is ok.”

MATTHEW: “How do you know that?”

“You were in New York City, there are camera’s everywhere.”

ENIGMA: “It’s fine.”

“The alley was dark, I was wearing my mask, no one saw anything.”

MATTHEW: “How can you be so sure?”

ENIGMA: “Tell you what, feel free to hack into the NYPD’s main frame and look around at what their cameras caught last night around 9:00pm at the alley way off Market Street between 24th and 25th avenue.”



Sure enough Matthew swings his chair back around, takes a gulp of his coffee and punches some information into the computer, a few seconds later all of the screens in front of us are now showing live feeds of the NYPD’s camera system. Another gulp of coffee and Matthew finds the camera that shows the area of NYC that I was talking about, he then puts that camera view on the main screen, blowing it up so that both he and I can see it. He rewinds to the time period I mentioned and as expected, the camera catches not except someone walking out of the alley and immediately getting lost in a crowd of people.



ENIGMA: “You see?”

“There was a reason I walked out of that alley when I did.”

“And it wasn’t because I got tired of being in there, I saw the crowd coming and knew it was the perfect way to shield myself from the cameras.”

MATTHEW: “Luck.”

ENIGMA: “No Matthew, not luck.”

“Skill.”

“I knew exactly what I was doing, and that leads us back to what started this entire conversation.”



I looked around the corner and then down the hall in the opposite direction to make sure that no one was listening in. While I should feel completely safe here, and to a degree I do, there is no reason for what I am about to say to become public knowledge, not at this point anyway.



ENIGMA: “Matthew, I want to use my skills, my money, our resources, specifically you, to help me take out the trash.”

MATTHEW: “I assume that is a euphemism for killing criminals?”

ENIGMA: “Yes it was.”

“But you have effectively rendered that euphemism useless by flat out saying what you just did, so thank you for that.”



Matthew takes another gulp of his coffee.



MATTHEW: “Right, sorry about that.”

ENIGMA: “Do you ever stop drinking that stuff?”

“One of these days your heart is going to explode from all the caffeine you ingest.”

MATTHEW: “I’m not sure that’s actually possible.”

ENIGMA: “Keep going down that road and we will find out.”

MATTHEW: “So you want my help in becoming a serial murder?”

“Is that what you are saying?”

ENIGMA: “Well when you put it that way…look here’s the deal, we all know that scum bags roam the streets unchecked all the time, either because the cops aren’t onto them or because the cops are limited in what they can do, you know, laws and all.”

“What I am suggesting is another avenue for removing some less than desirable elements of public society.”

MATTHEW: “So vigilante justice, is that it?”

“Because if that is what you are suggesting I have to say, I thought you Duke’s were smarter than that.”

“This isn’t Hollywood, you aren’t one of the MacManus brothers and this isn’t Boondock Saints.”

ENIGMA: “I actually thought you would go the Batman route, at least, when I played it out in my head that’s what you did.”

MATTHEW: “I’m not kidding Eric, you can’t go around killing people.”

ENIGMA: “Recent history shows that I can.”

“But that’s beside the point.”

MATTHEW: “What is the point?”

ENIGMA: “The point is Matthew that society needs someone who will operate in the darkness to do what needs to be done when the measures that are put in place to protect them have failed.”

MATTHEW: “And it is your belief that you are qualified to be that person?”

ENIGMA: “It is.”

MATTHEW: “Why?”

“Why you and not someone, anyone else?”

“Do you not understand the sensitive nature of what we do here and how you getting caught trying to be a vigilante puts all of that at risk?”

ENIGMA: “You know, I expected this from Sebastian, and Asmodeus, even Jacob, but not you.”

MATTHEW: “I’m sorry Eric but someone has to say it because what you are talking about is insane.”

ENIGMA: “Is it?”

“It’s been how many months since I killed Thomas Martin?”

“And where has that case gone?”



I knew I had him here. If I just pushed a little further I could get him to come around to my way of thinking.



ENIGMA: “I know Sebastian has you monitoring the progress of the case, so tell me, do they have any leads?”

“Any suspects at all?”

“Any clue what happened or why?”

MATTHEW: “No they don’t.”

ENIGMA: “Exactly.”

“They have nothing.”

“And I did that before I had any of the training I have had since I’ve been here.”

“I’m serious Matthew, I’m not just some guy off the streets who thinks he can be the next Dexter.”



He’s on the ropes.



ENIGMA: “And with your help, I can do this right, but I need your help.”



As the words come out of my mouth I can see Matthew’s entire demeanor change. Got him.



MATTHEW: “What do you need from me?”

ENIGMA: “I need you to help me locate a place to set up my base of operations.”

MATTHEW: “I assume you are doing this in New York City?”

ENIGMA: “Yes I am.”

MATTHEW: “Any specific neighborhood or really any specifications at all?”

ENIGMA: “Manhattan.”

“Something that has a front and back entrance, preferably with a service elevator in the back and a good view of the street, so nothing too high up.”

MATTHEW: “Price range?”

ENIGMA: “You know how much I have, so make it less than that.”

MATTHEW: “Understood.”

ENIGMA: “ I am also going to need the latest and greatest in tech set up, I assume I can count on you to figure out what that is and purchase it for me?”

MATTHEW: “Of course.”

ENIGMA: “And hook it up?”

MATTHEW: “Sure.”

ENIGMA: “And for the time being, I would prefer if you keep this between just the two of us.”

MATTHEW: “You know that’s not a good idea.”

ENIGMA: “ I will talk to Sebastian and my father about this when the time is right.”

“I promise it won’t be long from now, but it definitely will not be right now.”

MATTHEW: “I don’t like being deceitful to your bother and certainly not your father.”

ENIGMA: “I understand any if anything were to happen I promise you, I will shoulder the blame, you will be left out of this; you have my word.”

MATTHEW: “Thank you.”


Fade To Darkness.