Page 9 of Dark Soul

Service.

Dark wasn’t a stranger to service. It’s what he’d always wanted to do. The 75th Ranger Regiment had been like a second family for him. When he’d lost that, he’d lost not just his job, but everything he’d ever worked for, everything he’d ever aspired to be.

And he’d missed it, while in prison. More than proper coffee. More than fresh air. Service was top in the list of things Dark had missed, and none of the jobs he’d taken up in prison had come close to filling that void inside of him.

So hearing the word, now, bandied around so carelessly by someone who likely didn’t know what it meant … it made Dark angry. Angrier than he’d been this entire time.

“Service?” he repeated.

“Five years of service,” British repeated. “Or you fly back today.”

Dark steadied his breathing before responding.

“Define service.”

“Fair enough.” The man’s lips stretched into a thin line. “You do whatever I tell you to do.”

“You’re going to have to be more specific,” Dark said stubbornly.

“I don’t have to tell you there are bad people in the world, Captain Dark.”

“People like me, you mean.”

British waved his hand, as if Dark was of no consequence.

“Dangerous people. Individuals whose very way of life is endangering the lives of countless others, and who find themselves, to all extent and purposes … above the law.”

“I thought nobody was above the law. At least in the United States.”

“We both know that’s not the way it works. Let me spell it out for you. You’re going to set up a team, Dark. The five of you will be … let’s say you’ll be the blunt instrument at the service of the taxpayers of a number of nations standing behind the project.”

“The United States?”

“The United States, yes, and many others. You don’t need to know the details. That’s why I’m here.”

Dark swallowed.

“You think I will murder people for you.”

He’d had a good life once.

How the hell did everything go so wrong?

“Not murder. Justice. You will take these people down, by any means necessary. On my end, I will promise you this: none of the people on the list I will provide are good people, Dark.”

“You promise …” Dark snorted. “I met you less than twenty-four hours ago, and I’ve spent most of the time since then blindfolded. Not exactly a way to generate trust.”

“Take some time to think about it, but I’ll need an answer today.”

“If these people are so dangerous, why not put the SAS or SIS on this? You’re obviously British.”

The question didn’t seem to faze the man.

“The world has changed, Captain Dark. And some things transcend nationality. Right now, we have the choice to either do nothing or to escalate the conflict. With you, we can expand that competitive space. Fight these people at their same level. The countries behind this project … they have the will to change things, but also the knowledge that there is no way to do it using existing structures.”

“You’re looking for anonymity. If we fail, you’ll drop us.”

British nodded gravely. “We will. We’ll deny all knowledge or involvement.”