I can’t head into the crowd because Natalia won’t think twice about firing at them to get to me…
I look behind me and see Natalia rounding the corner and heading for the street. I run quickly over to the Humvee, carefully pick up a shard of glass from the ground nearby, and use it to slash the front tires, before sprinting away to the right, down the street.
As I pass the alleyway again, Natalia is just stepping out onto the sidewalk. She shoots from the hip, a spray of bullets arcing upward in my general direction. I raise my arm, shielding my head — which I know is futile, but instinctive nevertheless.
The sirens are getting louder. I need to get off the main street…
Seeing another alleyway off to my left, I head down it, not bothering to look if Natalia is in pursuit. I quickly reach into my pocket and put my Bluetooth earpiece in, dialing Josh as I navigate the alleyways.
“Josh?” I say, wincing in pain. I’m still hurting from chasing after Marcus Jones and now I’m breathing heavily yet again, my bruised ribs are actively complaining.
“Hey, Adrian, are you alright?” he asks. “You sound… flustered.”
I can barely manage to say more than a few words at a time as I gasp for air. “Long story… gunfight… Dark Rain…Google Maps… my motel…”
“On it,” he says, fully understanding my request and knowing it’s not the time to ask questions. That’s the good thing about the two of us — we’ve known each other for so long, we’re like brothers. We understand each other very well and it’s times like these when that comes in handy.
I chance a look behind me, but can’t see Natalia. As Josh works his magic, I briefly think of Clara, hoping she got away alright.
“Right,” says Josh. “Take the next left up ahead. On the right is an alleyway that cuts through the block and brings you out two streets over from your motel, but approaching from the back. That’s the best I’ve got.”
“Thanks,” I reply before hanging up.
I run as fast as my body allows me, following Josh’s directions. I step out of the alleyway and slow to a casual walk, taking deep breaths in through my mouth and out through my nose, to slow my heart rate down quickly. Two police cars speed past me with their sirens blaring. I remain calm, knowing they won’t be looking for someone so relaxed and so far away from the scene. As long as I don’t draw attention to myself and remain anonymous, they won’t show any interest in me.
I wait until they’re out of sight and jog over to the back of my motel. I walk around to the front and look around to make sure I’ve not been followed before going inside.
I walk past the front desk, through the double doors and down the hallway toward my room. As I approach, I see the door’s open slightly.
I take a quiet breath to steady myself and draw my gun. I know it’s not loaded, but no one else does. Usually the sight of a gun is enough to throw anyone off their game.
I can’t imagine Clara leaving the door open, which means Dark Rain must’ve found out where I’m staying. These guys are worryingly adept at going after people…
I push the door open gently and walk in, dropping to one knee and raising my gun. I look around and see the room has been completely trashed. It’s a mess, with drawers open and clothes scattered across the floor.
But two things in particular catch my attention… The first thing is that my mattress isn’t on the bed frame anymore — it’s been upturned and thrown in the corner. This means that whoever did this now has the deeds to the Uranium mine…
The second thing, and arguably the more concerning of the two, is that Clara’s lying face down on the floor in a pool of steadily expanding blood.
Jesus Christ…
“Clara?” I say, holstering my gun.
No response.
Shit.
I kneel next to her body, being careful not to step in any blood. I feel for a pulse — it’s there, but weak.
“Clara?” I say again.
Still nothing.
Double shit.
I quickly assess her, calling on some long-buried first aid knowledge and come to the conclusion there are no broken bones. The blood’s coming from underneath her and I can’t see any exit wounds on her back, so I know the bullet is still inside.
I grab her right shoulder and roll her over gently on her back. I examine her body again. There’s a bullet wound in her left shoulder, just below her collarbone and to the left of her breast. It’s not fatal, but she’s lost a lot of blood because she’s been lay on her front. She needs urgent medical attention, but under the circumstances, a general hospital probably isn’t the best idea.
Triple shit…
I look back over at the bed, quickly thinking about the land deeds. If Dark Rain is responsible for this, then I’ve drastically underestimated them. They've managed to track me down and nearly kill me before I’ve barely had chance to learn their name.
I look back down at Clara.
Maybe they’re not after me at all… or maybe not me exclusively. This attack could very easily have been an attempt to kill Clara, not me. They might not consider me a threat — just an obstacle to overcome in order to get the deeds to the land…
The Beretta I lent to her is lying on the floor a few feet away. I pick it up, holstering it next to its brother at my back. I look around the place, my mind going into survival mode. The room’s under a fake name, and I paid cash up front, so no one can link me to the scene. I quickly move around, wiping down surfaces and checking the bathroom for any trace of forensic evidence. I then grab my shoulder bag and jacket — which thankfully hadn’t been taken as well — and with one last glance at Clara, I leave the room.
I walk at a brisk pace and put a few minutes between me and the motel before calling an ambulance from a payphone. I feel guilty in a way, because I’m putting Clara in a bad spot. The doctors are going to question her, and she could find herself in a lot of trouble. On the other hand, she needs medical attention and right now she’ll be much safer in a hospital than with me.
I’ll ask Josh to track her progress once she’s admitted. I’m sure he’ll be able to hack his way into the hospital databases without too much trouble.
I need to stay clear of any kind of authority for the time being. After the attack at the bar, and with the police being there, I’m probably close to the top of everyone’s priority list at the moment.
The first thing I need to do is find a new place to stay. I’ll keep to the back streets and alleyways where I can and make my way into the city center. I’ll need to be careful and make sure no-one picks up my trail — either the police or operatives from Dark Rain.
After another ten minutes or so, I come across a small park behind a row of convenience stores. It’s been a long day and I need time to get my head straight. I don’t envisage any major recovery time coming my way any time soon, so maybe five minutes sitting down in a quiet park will have to do.
I walk through the wrought-iron gates and down a path lined on either side by small flowerbeds. The path snakes through the middle of the park and brings me to an open area with a large water fountain surrounded by wooden benches. The sky’s turning orange as the sun slowly begins its descent, and it’s quiet and peaceful here. I take a good look around to make sure I’m alone before sitting down and allowing myself to relax.
I lean back on the bench, stretching my legs and carefully lifting my arms up, feeling my sore ribs crack in protest.
Oh my God, it feels so good to not move… in fact, in the last twenty-four hours, this is probably the longest I’ve gone without someone trying to kill me. You have to admit that’s pretty impressive…
I dial Josh, letting out a heavy and painful breath as it rings.