Feet pounded up the steps — four men, at least. She scooted up to the next landing and pressed the alarm on her wristcom. One or two men she could cope with. Four was asking for trouble.
She waited in the shadows. The men stopped on the landing below, one of them cursing softly. Tension leapt into the air, so thick she could almost taste it.
They edged forward. She caught a glimpse of blond hair as the stranger tried to figure out where she was. She informed him by firing a warning shot that skimmed his head. He jerked back, but others appeared over the railing, returning fire. They missed her position by several feet. Maybe they couldn't see her too well in the shadows. She silently ran up to the next landing.
Where the hell was her backup?
With all the security running around this place, she'd have thought there'd be someone close enough to help her out. Maybe she should just hightail it up to the control center. The State boys were up there. At least the odds would be more even, though in reality, the gunshots should have had them out and investigating by now.
She listened to the four men below. They were creeping up the stairs again, heading for the next landing. The Control Center was only another two flights up. Damn it, why hadn't anyone come out to investigate the gunshots? Surely they couldn't have missed the retort of the magnum? But she had no idea just how noisy a control center was. Maybe it was impossible to hear a gun as loud as the forty-four.
The door above her opened as she reached the next landing. Light flung itself down the stairwell, making her blink. A lanky fellow in the State's black uniform entered the stairwell.
"About time," she muttered. Then the sudden silence hit her as odd. As did the officer's amused expression.
Too late, she saw the gun in his hand, heard the muffled retort as he fired. She dove sideways, but not fast enough. The bullet tore through her shoulder, throwing her back hard against the wall. Pain ran like fire through her body, sucking the strength from her legs. As she slid down the wall, she stared at the lanky stranger walking towards her.
And saw that he had Jack's eyes.
Chapter Seventeen
Gabriel heard the booming retort of the forty-four and slid to a halt, pressing back against the wall as he stared up at the dark stairwell.
After a few seconds, there was a muffled retort, then silence. High up he could see a shaft of light, starlike in the distance.
"Still can't contact the State boys in the control center," Stephan said into his ear.
"Got shooters on the roof?"
"Yep. The first stage launch screen is up. It's difficult to see anyone inside. No one's responding to calls."
"What about Sam?"
"She's not responding, either."
Sam was a by-the-numbers cop. If she didn't answer, she was either injured or dead. Anger slithered through him. She might not be a friend, and she certainly wasn't his partner, but she was someone he certainly wouldn't mind getting to know better. If she was dead, if he'd lost that chance, Jack would pay. "What about Kazdan?"
"No sign of him."
He had to be here, somewhere. He wouldn't be careless enough to arrive at the last minute and hope to get inside.
"The PM?"
"Two minutes away."
They didn't have much time left. Nor could they delay the Prime Minister's arrival much longer without the press figuring out that something was wrong.
"I'm heading up."
"Be careful."
That was one warning his brother didn't need to give. He switched off the audio again. Then, keeping his back to the wall, he carefully eased up the stairs. From above came the brief mutter of conversation and the light winked out. He halted, listening.
Someone was walking down. He hunkered down in the corner of a landing, and waited. The soft steps came closer. Whoever it was, they were making no effort to conceal their presence. Feet came into view — joggers so white they practically glowed in the darkness.
It was a teenager who barely looked old enough to be out of grade school. He wasn't one of the security staff, nor was he one of the regular port staff, despite the fact he was wearing an ID tag. Given the total lock down, he had to be one of Kazdan's men — though the term "man" was something of a misnomer in this case.
He was also apparently night blind, walking right past without so much as twitching. Gabriel rose swiftly and moved up behind the skinny youngster. Still no sign of awareness. Shaking his head at Kazdan's stupidity for employing people like this, he clamped one hand over the kid's mouth and grabbed the gun with his other.