Read On the Fifth Day for Free Online

said Thomas, honestly. "I hadn't thought of that. This looked different from those. More realistic."
    "We'll keep an eye on the local pawnshops," said the cop.
    "And he had a sword? Like, you know, Robin Hood or one of those guys in Lord of the Rings? Like a sword sword?"
    "A short sword, yes," said Thomas. "Like a Roman le
    gionary's sword, if that means anything to you."
    "Nope," said Campbell. "And he hit you with that?"
    "No, with this clublike glove thing he was wearing. Metal. Weighed a ton."
    "Weird," said the cop.
    "I thought so," said Thomas, expecting a bit more.
    "Was there anything else?" said Campbell. "He have a horse or anything?"
    "No," said Thomas, smiling in spite of himself.
    "You sure?"
    "I think I would have noticed, it being upstairs and all."
    "Still," said the cop. "Look on the bright side. If he'd been serious--I mean, if he'd been a real hood, you know?--he would have shot you. You just got whacked with a glove, see?
    Bright side."
    "I'm ecstatic about the whole episode," said Thomas.
    "Okay," said the cop, grinning and putting his pad away.
    "If you see him again, you call us. Otherwise, I'll ask around, but . . ."
    He shrugged.
    "I shouldn't hold my breath," said Thomas.
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    "Not unless you got gills someplace."
    "Thanks," said Thomas, matching the policeman's smile.
    "You've been of invaluable assistance."
    "All in a day's work, sir."
    On the way out they met Jim coming in with a box of files. Thomas turned to introduce him.
    "Jim, this is Officer Campbell," he said.
    Jim nodded peremptorily and glanced away, but the police
    man's gaze was steady, and his former wryness had evaporated.
    "Hello again, Father," said Campbell.
    "You two know each other?" said Thomas. Jim was still looking anywhere but at the cop.
    "Oh, we go way back," said Campbell. "Ain't that right, Father?"
    Jim didn't reply and the cop left without another word. CHAPTER 6
    The man they called the Seal-breaker hung up the phone and considered it for a long moment.
    It was supposed to be over. It was all supposed to have died with the priest, but however much War had tried to make his report sound casual, the relaying of a formality, he hadn't been able to conceal the trace of unease in his voice. The priest had a brother.
    They had known that before. Of course, they had. It just hadn't seemed important till now.
    And may not be still, he thought. And if it became impor
    tant, if this brother to the hapless priest became a threat, the Seal-breaker would move, and fast.
    He had stalled with the priest, assuming the problem would just rinse out over time, but the man had been persistent and stubborn. He would not wait for his brother to become a threat. 30
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    Before the man could even rise to the level of irritant or dis
    traction, the Seal-breaker would swat him like the gnat he was. It wasn't as if he didn't have the resources, he thought, with the whisper of a smile. He had the reach, the finances, the sheer power to achieve all manner of things. He also had the will, and that was what would really terrify his enemies, or would if they ever knew who he was. The Seal-breaker him
    self was impossible to see. He could shake the hand of his most loathed adversary and they would not know him. And when it came time for action, the Seal-breaker would be a world away while his operatives struck.
    His horsemen, he called them, all four poised to do his bid
    ding, ready to release whatever private apocalypse the Sealbreaker thought appropriate. He had handpicked each of them for their special talents.
    War, his general, a skilled soldier who could deploy his own assault team in any terrain.
    Pestilence, his spy, who spread disease with dissimulation and lies.
    Famine, his private horror show, a man who sowed terror wherever he walked.
    Death, his wild card, and the measure of his near-limitless power.
    What could he not do with such cavalry at his command?
    It wouldn't come to that, he thought. But