Three Ways to Die by Rachel Amphlett

Author:Rachel Amphlett [Amphlett, Rachel]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781915231284
Publisher: Saxon Publishing

FIVE

Xander MacKenzie raced down the service stairs two at a time, the canvas backpack lolling against his shoulder with the weight of the rifle.

It had taken him mere seconds to collect the spent cartridge, fold the stock, rip out the magazine and stow the lot before sprinting across the rooftop, the sound of honking horns and screams billowing up from the intersection below.

His legs were on autopilot, his body pivoting at each landing to leap down the first three steps, a mixture of finely-honed cardio fitness from days in the gym and pure animal instinct.

He couldn’t believe Afflan’s luck.

Or his own.

Cursing under his breath, he slowed as he reached the twenty-third level, popped open the fire exit door and peered into the hallway beyond.

All the doors to the residential part of the building were closed, save for one at the far end near the elevators.

An elderly lady in her eighties peered at him from behind beer-bottle glasses, her brow furrowed as she blocked his way.

“What’s going on?” she barked, clutching an evil-looking tabby cat to her substantial chest. “I heard a gun.”

Xander shrugged as he drew closer. “I thought it was a car back-firing, ma’am.”

“I can hear screaming,” she said. Her eyes narrowed. “I don’t know you, do I?”

“I’m on the twenty-fifth. The elevator’s stuck so I took the stairs.”

“Oh.” She stood to one side to let him pass, then called after him. “You should report it to that piece of shit janitor they call a receptionist downstairs.”

“I will, thank you, ma’am.”

Xander stabbed his finger to the call button, exhaling as the elevator door slid open, and stepped inside.

Dropping the backpack to his feet, he stripped off his T-shirt, pulled out a freshly wrapped white cotton shirt from a side pocket of the bag and tugged it on.

His jeans were next.

By the time he walked out of the elevator, he resembled any one of the smartly-dressed men loitering in the lobby while craning their necks to see what was happening beyond the glass doors.

“What happened?” Xander asked a passing woman, her face pale. “What’s going on?”

“Someone said there’s a sniper,” she managed. “There was gunfire. Didn’t you hear it?”

He gave her an apologetic smile. “I was taking a video call with my headphones on. Are the police out there yet?”

“On the intersection, next to where that coffee cart is parked by the fountain.”

“I’m sure they’ll have the place secured in no time.”

She didn’t look convinced but turned away from him when someone across the lobby called to her.

Xander spun on his heel and headed for the back door, his phone out, his thumb already pressing the speed dial.

Hurrying now, the need for escape overriding any frustration, he pushed through a service door and out into an alley that ran parallel to the building.

Farther along, it dog-legged past overflowing trash bins before widening as he approached the street beyond.

He could see a patrol car parked skewed to the kerb, lights flashing, a radio squawking at volume while two officers stood next to the open trunk, pulling out rifles and body armour.

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