square out and two to the right of the target square in front of door number one. He glanced over his shoulder. The goons hadn’t even turned to look at him. Whatever confrontation the Riddler had planned, it wasn’t going to happen in this room.
At least not right away.
Before he went any further, he buzzed Batman. When the connection went through, in his earpiece he could hear the rumble of the Batmobile’s engine.
“Careful about talking on the phone while you’re driving,” he said, but the joke was wasted.
“What’s your status?”
“I’m in a room designed to look like a chessboard,” Robin said. “It has seven doors, numbered one through seven, and there are three of the Riddler’s goons standing on the board dressed like a knight, bishop, and rook.”
“They aren’t doing anything?”
“It’s a puzzle. I already figured it out. The way they were standing, the only way I could get to the first door without one of them blocking me was to move like a knight. I did that and now I’m in front of the door.” He looked at door number one, assessing whether there was anything about it he should describe. “I’m guessing that at some point I’ll have to go through all seven.”
“Or you’ll be forced to make a choice about which door to choose. Remember that old riddle.”
“The one about the door to paradise and the door to hell? Yeah,” Robin said. Batman had made a study of riddles, and Robin had learned them along the way.
“Keep it in mind,”
Batman said.
“I’ve received instructions, too. I found a tooth in the bank vault. Either the Riddler or someone in his employ left it there.”
“What kind of a tooth?”
“That’s what I’m going to find out. Not human, that’s for sure. The next step comes from that answer, and the clock is ticking. There’s been another murder, and the counter is reset.”
“Crap. Any connection between the two victims?”
“Gordon is investigating. One, Lucas Angelo, was a software engineer and the other, Brian Isaacson, built the Ace Chemical works.”
Robin heard the Batmobile downshift, and the chirp of its tires as they went over the steel housing of the barrier at the cave’s vehicle gate.
“Time to get back to work,”
Batman said.
“I’ll find out where this tooth came from, and you move forward as you can. Don’t take chances.”
“I already did. I moved.”
“You know what I mean.”
Keeping the comm link open, Robin studied the barrier in front of him. It was nothing remarkable—a standard-issue steel door, the kind used on factory floors and stairwells all over the country, or found next to warehouse loading docks. The knob was stainless steel, and looked new. Robin took off one glove and pushed a finger against the lock’s cylinder. It didn’t move. Old locks always did, at least a little.
He looked more closely. The cut edge of the keyhole was still sharp. No key had ever been turned in the lock. Conclusion: This door was new, and had been put here when the room was created. Corollary: Whatever was behind it, Nigma had built that, too.
Time to get on the same page with Batman. So far their best results came from working in tandem.
“The Riddler’s passed up dozens of opportunities to kill me already,” he said. “His goons could have jumped me on the way here, or his three chess pieces could’ve come after me the minute I stepped through the door. But they didn’t even move—still haven’t. It’s kind of creepy, actually.
“So there must be a plan, like in a regular chess game,” he continued. “This is the opening gambit, right? He wouldn’t go to so much trouble if all he wanted to do was kill me.”
“You’re thinking like a rational person,”
Batman countered.
“The Riddler operates on different principles. He’s not a complete lunatic like the Joker or Zsasz, but not the most balanced individual we’ve fought, and he seems to be more vicious than usual. Worse, he’s controlling the game,
At least not right away.
Before he went any further, he buzzed Batman. When the connection went through, in his earpiece he could hear the rumble of the Batmobile’s engine.
“Careful about talking on the phone while you’re driving,” he said, but the joke was wasted.
“What’s your status?”
“I’m in a room designed to look like a chessboard,” Robin said. “It has seven doors, numbered one through seven, and there are three of the Riddler’s goons standing on the board dressed like a knight, bishop, and rook.”
“They aren’t doing anything?”
“It’s a puzzle. I already figured it out. The way they were standing, the only way I could get to the first door without one of them blocking me was to move like a knight. I did that and now I’m in front of the door.” He looked at door number one, assessing whether there was anything about it he should describe. “I’m guessing that at some point I’ll have to go through all seven.”
“Or you’ll be forced to make a choice about which door to choose. Remember that old riddle.”
“The one about the door to paradise and the door to hell? Yeah,” Robin said. Batman had made a study of riddles, and Robin had learned them along the way.
“Keep it in mind,”
Batman said.
“I’ve received instructions, too. I found a tooth in the bank vault. Either the Riddler or someone in his employ left it there.”
“What kind of a tooth?”
“That’s what I’m going to find out. Not human, that’s for sure. The next step comes from that answer, and the clock is ticking. There’s been another murder, and the counter is reset.”
“Crap. Any connection between the two victims?”
“Gordon is investigating. One, Lucas Angelo, was a software engineer and the other, Brian Isaacson, built the Ace Chemical works.”
Robin heard the Batmobile downshift, and the chirp of its tires as they went over the steel housing of the barrier at the cave’s vehicle gate.
“Time to get back to work,”
Batman said.
“I’ll find out where this tooth came from, and you move forward as you can. Don’t take chances.”
“I already did. I moved.”
“You know what I mean.”
Keeping the comm link open, Robin studied the barrier in front of him. It was nothing remarkable—a standard-issue steel door, the kind used on factory floors and stairwells all over the country, or found next to warehouse loading docks. The knob was stainless steel, and looked new. Robin took off one glove and pushed a finger against the lock’s cylinder. It didn’t move. Old locks always did, at least a little.
He looked more closely. The cut edge of the keyhole was still sharp. No key had ever been turned in the lock. Conclusion: This door was new, and had been put here when the room was created. Corollary: Whatever was behind it, Nigma had built that, too.
Time to get on the same page with Batman. So far their best results came from working in tandem.
“The Riddler’s passed up dozens of opportunities to kill me already,” he said. “His goons could have jumped me on the way here, or his three chess pieces could’ve come after me the minute I stepped through the door. But they didn’t even move—still haven’t. It’s kind of creepy, actually.
“So there must be a plan, like in a regular chess game,” he continued. “This is the opening gambit, right? He wouldn’t go to so much trouble if all he wanted to do was kill me.”
“You’re thinking like a rational person,”
Batman countered.
“The Riddler operates on different principles. He’s not a complete lunatic like the Joker or Zsasz, but not the most balanced individual we’ve fought, and he seems to be more vicious than usual. Worse, he’s controlling the game,
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