The Inverted Pyramid (An Alex Vane Media Thriller, Book 2) Read online

  The Inverted Pyramid

  A.C. Fuller

  Contents

  Series List

  Inscription 1

  Inscription 2

  Part 1

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Part 2

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Part 3

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Chapter 46

  Part 4

  Chapter 47

  Chapter 48

  Chapter 49

  Chapter 50

  Chapter 51

  Chapter 52

  Chapter 53

  Chapter 54

  Chapter 55

  Chapter 56

  Chapter 57

  Chapter 58

  Chapter 59

  Chapter 60

  Chapter 61

  Chapter 62

  Thanks for Reading!

  Author Notes, April 2017

  Free Preview: The Mockingbird Drive

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  Series List

  The Cutline (An Alex Vane Novella)

  The Anonymous Source (An Alex Vane Media Thriller, Book 1)

  The Inverted Pyramid (An Alex Vane Media Thriller, Book 2)

  The Mockingbird Drive (An Alex Vane Media Thriller, Book 3)—Coming June 30, 2017

  To Roger Hobbs

  A good friend, and the most talented writer I've ever met. Gone way too soon at age twenty-eight.

  Inscription 1

  Inverted Pyramid: A method of organizing a news story in which facts are presented in descending order of importance.

  Inscription 2

  Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown.

  -Shakespeare, Henry IV

  Part 1

  1

  Ground Zero, New York City, Saturday, September 11, 2004, 8:29 a.m.

  Aloop Sarin peered through a chain-link fence into the seven-story crater where the Towers had once stood. A large ceremonial pool had been placed at the bottom, brought in for the third anniversary of the attacks, and Sarin counted the ripples in the water. After a moment, lines of computer code began appearing in the spaces between them.

  serial_example_msg_t* rcm = (serial_example_msg_t*) call Packet.getPayload(&packet, sizeof(serial_example_msg_t))

  The procession began and he shifted his gaze to the victims' families, shuffling down a makeshift ramp carrying cards, photos, and flowers. When they reached the bottom, the mourners stopped next to the pool, one by one, to leave their remembrances.

  Sarin heard their wailing but felt nothing. He rarely felt anything at all. After adjusting the collar of his black turtleneck, he put on a pair of sunglasses, then ran his hands down his crisp black jeans. He checked his phone for the text message he expected at any minute. Nothing.

  He knew why Denver Bice had wanted to meet with him, and he knew that he could be in danger, but he didn't feel it. Ever since he'd taken the job for Bice, his OCD and dissociative tendencies had been amplified. Now, everywhere he looked, he saw the code he'd spent eighteen hours a day writing since the day after the Democratic convention in July.

  When the last of the mourners reached the bottom of the crater, they all paused. The crowd that was gathered around the chain-link fence went quiet. 8:46 a.m. A moment of silence for the first plane.

  Sarin knelt on the sidewalk and closed his eyes, trying to focus all his energy toward the center of his forehead. He sensed his chest and allowed the prayer to move silently upward, "Jo is prakaar shareer kee prakrti ko samajhata hai vah . . ." He said the prayer in Hindi, then again in English, as he always did, out of respect for his old home and his new. "He who thus understands the nature of the body, and all human relationships based upon it, will derive strength to bear the loss of our dear ones. In the Divine plan, one day each union must end with separation."

  Hidden in the shadow of the thirty-story Metro building, Denver Bice watched Sarin from a block away. Bice had no idea what comfort the frequent praying brought the man—since Sarin was never comfortable—but he always repeated that same prayer.

  A pair of officers paused behind Sarin to let their dog sniff his clothes and shoes. As they moved on, Sarin stood and gazed back down into the crater. A few minutes later, the mourners emerged from the large opening and gathered around a wooden podium at the west end of Ground Zero. Bice watched Sarin, who appeared to be watching the mourners, then pulled a silver flip-phone out of his pocket and tapped at the keys.

  Traffic in the financial district. Meet at Battery Park in 15?

  He sent the text, then watched Sarin reach into his back pocket, pull out his phone, and stare at the screen. Sarin's movements were precise and considered as he turned and slowly surveyed the area. Bice knew the distance was too great for him to be recognized, but even so, he stepped back and leaned casually against the building. Sarin was cautious. And brilliant. He'd arranged the meeting at Ground Zero because, on this morning, it would be the safest place in the city. But he was also obedient. The question was whether he'd be stupid enough to respond.

  After completing a 360-degree turn, Sarin tapped his phone.

  A moment later, Bice's vibrated with the message: K.

  Sarin stopped at the edge of a crowd watching Mayor Bloomberg step up to a podium. He told himself he'd join them briefly, then go straight home. The day was warming, but he was always a little cold, so he tugged his turtleneck up over his chin.

  "It has been said," the mayor began, "that a child who loses his parents is an orphan, a man who loses his wife is a widower, a woman who loses her husband is a widow. But there is no name for a parent who loses a child, for there are no words to describe this pain."

  The mayor's words barely registered, and his face blurred into lines of black code.

  serial_example_msg_t* rcm = (serial_example_msg_t*)call Packet.getPayload(&packet, sizeof(serial_example_msg_t));

  Sarin desperately wanted to feel something. Sorrow, or maybe empathy for the victims. And rage. He wanted to feel rage toward Denver Bice. All he knew was that he'd been cheated and was most likely in danger. But each time he found the conviction to leave, he lost track of it in the cloud of code racing through his mind.

  He closed his eyes. Now he saw the code scrolling in white over a black background.

  if (rcm == NULL) {return;}

  if (call Packet.maxPayloadLength() < sizeof(serial_example_msg_t)) {return;}

  "Gooooooal!" Someone was shouting from a nearby soccer field
and Sarin opened his eyes. Children laughed and shrieked. Joy. That must be joy.

  Looking up at the balcony of an apartment building a block to the south, he read a banner hanging from a window: NO BLOOD FOR OIL. In a window next to it, a campaign sign: BUSH/CHENEY 2004. Conviction. Meaning. Those people believed in something. He knew the election was in full swing—and even that he might be playing a major role in it—but he wasn't sure why it mattered.

  He focused on the red and blue lettering on the signs, but, after a moment, they too dissolved into code.

  The family members of the victims began reading names, some through heavy tears. "Abramson. Abromowitz. Acer." Grief. Mourning. He knew these things were important, but he didn't know why. He had to take it on faith.

  Sarin knelt at the edge of the crowd and repeated the prayer three times.

  " . . . In the Divine plan, one day each union must end with separation." As he stood, he decided to go straight home, but instead, he walked toward Church Street, smoothing his jeans over his thighs every eight steps.

  The voices of the mourners followed him. "Alton. Amber."

  He knew he shouldn't go, but he was going.

  "Bryant. Byes. Carson."

  Ten minutes later, Sarin stood in front of the World Peace Memorial statue in Battery Park, studying the dents in the massive gold ball. What was he doing there?

  "Decide to do something, then do it," he said to himself. But before his words could turn into action, white code appeared in the dusty cracks of the statue.

  if (rcm == NULL) {return;}

  if (call Packet.maxPayloadLength() < sizeof(serial_example_msg_t)) {return;}

  "Take off your sunglasses." Bice's voice came from behind him, his voice thin, like he was running out of air.

  Sarin turned. "Why?" His reply was quiet and clipped, but it echoed in his head.

  "I don't think you understand our relationship, Booth Buy."

  Sarin took off his glasses. "It's Bhootbhai. And please do not call me that." He spoke without an accent, except when he said his own nickname: two rapid syllables of soft-edged Hindi. He knew Bice didn't care, but correct distinctions were important. "I asked you to please not call me that."

  Bice took off a pair of silver-mirrored sunglasses and stowed them in the inside pocket of his light gray suit. "Have you thought any more about our talk?"

  Sarin heard voices and noticed a pair of joggers on the walkway along the water. When they'd passed, he turned back to Bice but looked at the ground. "I've thought about it."

  Bice took Sarin's chin in his hand, turning his face until their eyes met. "And?"

  Sarin jerked his chin free and looked back at the monument. "Did you know that they moved this here from World Trade Center Plaza? Some people wanted it to be repaired, but they left it exactly how it was after the attacks. There's something to that, I think. Honor. Memory. Truth."

  Bice scoffed. "Everyone in New York knows that."

  Sarin pressed his hands into his thighs. "I do not accept your new offer. You cannot lower the price when a job is done. I delivered what I promised."

  "I already knew half of what you found."

  "But the other half, only I could find."

  Bice ran a hand across his forehead and through his hair, which was dyed so dark it matched the black of his polished wingtips. "I'll pay one and a half million."

  "No."

  "I know things about you," Bice said. "The Chinese weapons system hack. The Russian stock exchange crash last year."

  "Maybe. But would someone else take your word for it?"

  Bice stepped forward so that his heel pressed down on the tip of Sarin's shoe. He shifted his weight until Sarin's big toe was crushed. Pain. This is pain. With the pain came an immediate urge to urinate, and Sarin shifted his gaze to a porta potty across the lawn.

  Bice stepped back. "I'm going to make this very simple, Bhootbhai. One point eight million. Final offer."

  Sarin watched a ferry glide across the water toward the Statue of Liberty, then looked into Bice's pale gray eyes. They blurred and he saw code that revealed itself with the rhythm of his toe pain. Sarin curled his throbbing toe inside his shoe as the pain shot up his leg. He clenched against a bladder spasm. "Okay. One point eight million. An additional one point three over what you have paid."

  "Good, and there's something else."

  "I need to use the bathroom." Sarin turned quickly and limped across the lawn without looking back at Bice. He stepped reluctantly into a large, handicapped-accessible porta potty, latched the door using his elbow, and stared at the blue plastic wall in front of him as he relieved himself. More code scrolled by.

  if (call Packet.maxPayloadLength.

  When he finished, he zipped his fly, straightened his pants, and folded a piece of single-ply toilet paper in his hand before reaching for the latch. As he pulled the metal bolt, the door swung open and a fist smashed into his face. Sarin crumpled to the floor, hands covering his face.

  Bice stepped inside, slid the bolt back into the locked position, and glanced down at him.

  When Sarin looked up, a mixture of blood and tears in his eyes, Bice's face was cloudy, like rice water. Anger. Sarin knew he should be feeling anger. He should fight back. Then he thought of the urine, the sticky plastic floor. He tried to scooch himself up the wall of the porta potty, but collapsed back down, arms stretched out at his sides. He reached to straighten his pants, but Bice stepped on his hand, grinding it into a cold wetness on the floor. Sarin's eyes were clearing slowly, and Bice's face came into focus, red and shaking. Jaw tight. Eyes wide.

  "Whom, exactly, did you speak to about what you found?" Bice asked.

  "What?"

  "You spoke with someone from the Kerry campaign."

  Sarin said nothing.

  Bice shifted all his weight onto Sarin's fingers, which cracked and popped. "Why didn't you just take the money and go away?"

  "I wanted what you promised."

  "I know you can't tell what I'm feeling," Bice said. "I know you don't know what's about to happen, so I'll tell you. You're about to die."

  Sarin looked inside himself for the will to fight back, but all he found was the prayer. He turned his head so his right cheek lay flat on the floor, trying to ignore the dampness on his ear as the words emanated silently from the center of his chest and filled his body.

  In the Divine plan, one day each union must end with separation.

  The last thing he saw was a single line of black code, scrolling by on the sliver of light underneath the plastic door as Bice crushed his cheekbone with repeated thrusts of his heel.

  2

  Sunday, September 12, 2004, 105th and Broadway, New York City

  Alex had one eye on the vegetables sautéing in a small pan on his two-burner stove, the other on Greta's slender curves. She was sleeping on her stomach, and her straight black hair glistened all the way down her pale back to her red silk pajama bottoms.

  A blister formed on the skin of a green pepper and popped loudly in the pan. Greta rolled onto her side. If she woke up before the food was ready, she'd try to pull him back into bed. Not that he would mind climbing back in for a bit, but if it were up to her, they'd spend all day there—again—which was beginning to take a toll on his work. If he woke her up with food, he thought he might be able to get out of the apartment before noon.

  He cracked three eggs into a small pan of simmering water, then stirred the veggies. They had caramelized, so he turned the burner off. The click caused Greta to sit up in bed.

  "Happy anniversary," Alex said.

  He arranged the veggies and poached eggs on plates and crossed from the kitchenette to the king-sized bed with just two large steps.

  Greta shook her hair out and tied it into a messy bun. "Thanks, baby. But what anniversary is this?"

  He handed her a plate. "You moved in a year ago."

  "We've been together almost two years."

  "Yeah, but you moving in was a big deal for me."r />
  "And that was a year ago?"

  "A year ago today." He leaned in and pecked her on the cheek, but she grabbed the back of his head and pulled him in hard.

  Alex thought about his Blackberry, which would ring any minute. He drew back. "Tea?"

  She frowned as he stepped into the kitchenette and returned with a cup of decaf green tea. She set the plate on the bedside table, took the tea, and ran her free hand through his hair as he sat down next to her.

  He glanced at the untouched plate of food. "Aren't you gonna eat?"

  She put the cup next to the plate and tapped her iPod, which was docked on a bright blue speaker. "I can eat after," she said, reaching out to grasp his arm.

  With graceful strength, Greta eased Alex over her body and onto the center of the bed. She moved to the beat as Queen's "Killer Queen" filled the room, and in one smooth movement, lifted her legs toward the ceiling, slid off her pajama bottoms, and rolled on top of him.

  She was tugging at his boxer shorts when he said, "I've got a really important call coming in. Remember, Cooper Whyte from The Times?"

  Straddling his hips, she leaned in, her hair tickling his neck. "C'mon, you're about to leave for four days."

  She kissed him, but he turned away. "I just really need to take this call when it comes in."

  "Baby, can you just be ten percent more like Freddy Mercury right now? Take your shirt off."

  He yanked his t-shirt off and held it wadded up in his hand, pointing it at her repeatedly as he spoke. "I will take off my shirt, but only for getting-dressed-for-the-day reasons. I have to stay focused, Greta. We burned The Times yesterday, so they were forced to run one of their we-just-got-scooped-by-a-tiny-Web-site-and-now-we've-gotta-write-a-story-about-their-story stories. James says it's a big deal." He threw the t-shirt across the room into the hamper.