She ran through beachheads of smoke. The helicopter had retreated higher, driven skyward by the blasts. The pilot must be assessing the situation, wary of the rapidly changing conditions below.
Likewise, the men on the ground milled in confusion.
Only one hunter remained on target.
The OMON van never slowed, bouncing and rattling straight toward her.
She sprinted faster, praying the gate was unbarred. She had no time to pick a lock or blast her way out.
Behind her, the van roared, sounding like a battering ram on wheels.
She flung her arm back and fired blindly toward the vehicle. She didn’t bother conserving ammo and strafed on full auto. Rounds ricocheted off glass and pinged metal, but the van continued to hurl toward her.
Ahead, a gust of wind cleared the smoke, enough for her to spot the narrow archway and its barred gate. A heavy padlocked chain secured it.
No...
She swung her rifle toward it, but she had already emptied the weapon at the van. Gasping, she expelled the spent magazine and fought in another.
Frustration growled out of her.
Never make it in time.
Then a trio of sharp bangs cut through her complaint.
Ahead of her, the chain slithered to the ground. The old gate swung partly open.
She sped the last of the distance.
The van, only two meters back, roared at her.
She hit the gate with her shoulder and spun through it without slowing.
Behind her, the van crashed into the archway, as its wheelbase proved too wide for the narrow opening.
Seichan continued running—toward the IMZ Ural motorcycle. It idled on a brick pathway of the child’s playground. Gray fired his SIG past her shoulder, discouraging anyone in the van from trying to exit.
But the vehicle wasn’t the only threat.
Seichan leaped headlong into the sidecar, twisting at the last moment to land on her back in the seat. She lifted her rifle high.
The helicopter sped over the wall in pursuit.
Seichan took her time, aimed the rifle’s sights to the rear of the aircraft, and fired a barrage of rounds into the tail assembly. The rotors exploded. The chopper spun wildly, tilting sideways. Its rotors chewed through the treetops. Then the helicopter rolled and slammed into the wall, bursting into a fireball.
Seichan lowered her rifle and turned to Gray. “Somebody had to finish what you started.”
He shrugged. “I was short on time. Figured you’d try to make it to this side gate if you could.”
“You shouldn’t have stayed.”
He gave her a stern look. “Don’t think you’re getting out of our wedding that easily.”
Gray turned his attention forward. He already had the cycle moving, racing through the park. He stuck to the shelter of the park’s trees. But with the sun setting and smoke rolling like a wave into the park, such cover wasn’t necessary.
They burst out of the park’s gate and headed away from the confusion on the far side of the monastery. They quickly buried themselves into the evening’s rush-hour traffic and continued across the city.
Seichan looked back at the distant column of smoke. “At least now we know Valya is definitely involved in all of this.”
