The Rise of the Widow-Maker

Book excerpt: The soul-chilling story of Carlos MacIntyre continues with exploration into the darkest unswept chambers of his mind. Therein, his innermost fears are revealed, including his fear of the Light of Death himself, his dark side, the Widow-Maker. Since the Widow-Maker emerged from the darkness within him in The Awakening of the Widow-Maker, Carlos MacIntyre has sought to understand the mission of this Egyptian Blackness and be at one with his teacher. With the aid of his psychiatrist, Dr. Marcus Rutowski, who is his mother’s old college psychology professor, the journey into his mind through hypnosis proves that the walls between different worlds no longer exist. From the Johnson Parkway tunnel underneath the Seventh Street railroad tracks in St. Paul, to the halls of the Bell Museum of Natural History at the University of Minnesota campus, in Downtown Minneapolis. As Li’l Carlos gives in more and more to the darkness, he becomes the living embodiment of requital. A cyanide cocktail in a chalice of destruction waiting for a worthy soul to take a drink. There is no safe haven to flee to, no bargaining chip to use for leverage, and no plea to offer that will obtain mercy. Only a terrible fate awaits those that fall on his list. He is armed with a brand-new set of construction skills from Summit Academy. The contortion of disfigured bodies in crawl spaces at renovated stores and the nauseous scents reported at numerous residential homes all seems unending and baffling for Lead Detective Tommy Soprano and his rookie partner, Mike Kowalski, whom are assisted by criminal pathologist Raj Sarkozy from the FBI, along with several police agencies. Many people in the neighborhood praise the Widow-Maker for the peace he’s brought. Some want his head for the lives that he took. He is the walking curse upon many, the writing on the wall at the hospital, and the whisper in the minds of the unrepentant, reminding them of their deeds that they won’t even dare utter in prayer. All know him, and none will forget him. As he casts his dark shadow upon the Twin Cities, they will witness the rise of the Widow-Maker.