The Alex King Series A BATEMAN (summer reading list txt) 📖

man. Not meant for a tough hide and over twice the distance. Our head tracker said that the man was testing himself. I believe he was right. He hit me and killed my brother at over six-thousand metres. He is a sniper, I’m certain of it. One of the world’s best. And you only get proficient at that sort of distance in the military. The inquest said it was a point-fifty calibre. That’s why it blew my arm clean off.” He held up his thumb between the seats. “That’s a bullet about this big. Just the head.” He spread his thumb and forefinger as wide as they would go. “With a cartridge casing that size. Full of powder.”

“With a bullet that big, and a range that long, perhaps it’s not such a difficult shot?” Kruger ventured.

“Rubbish!” Vigus chortled. “You’re not a military man, I can see that. No, to make a shot that far, the marksman would have to consider not just ground and air temperature and wind speed, but the actual curvature of the earth. Not only that, but the angle of seasonal tilt in the hemisphere and the direction and speed of the earth’s rotation.”

Kruger frowned. “Really?”

“That’s what I understand of it,” Vigus said resolutely. “I’m only familiar with close-up shots. We go for our client standing a chance of hitting what they’ve paid twenty-thousand dollars to shoot. That, and a guaranteed kill. One-hundred metres is about the most common distance.”

Caroline hated the idea of wealthy dentists or brokers killing elephants and lions, but she wasn’t about to launch into a debate. She’d already let her feelings be known. “What else?” she prompted him. “Where was he from? Accents, colloquialisms, the way he talked?”

“Watch out!” Kruger screamed. He struggled to control the vehicle, the impact from behind shaking them in their seats and shunting the vehicle forwards.

Caroline turned around in her seat, just caught sight of the front grille of a large, black SUV, but was then thrown forwards as it struck them hard. It looked like an American truck, oversized and towering over even the considerable size of the Toyota’s rear window. The truck rammed them again, but this time there was a surge of speed as the pursuing vehicle accelerated. It was far more powerful than the Land Cruiser and the engine and exhaust note were clearly audible. Kruger dropped a gear and rammed the accelerator to the floor, but they were under the power of the truck. Kruger changed tack and slammed on the brakes. The rear of the Land Cruiser rose off the road and then slammed down, the tyres struggling for traction on the tarmac.

“If he hits us on an angle, towards the edge of our bumpers, we’ll spin!” Kruger yelled. “Better brace yourselves!”

Caroline knew this. She had trained in evasive and defensive driving, knew how to force a car off the road. The guy in the American SUV did not, but he might well get lucky. Even so, he had the size and speed advantage. She was about to turn around again, but saw the pickup pulling across the road in front of them. It was another oversized American make and it filled the road. A double cab and a double bed. More than twice the length of the Land Cruiser.

“Look out!” she hollered.

Kruger hit the brakes and the pursuing truck rammed into them again. He held the steering straight for as long as he could, but the Toyota started to slew sideways, and like a pendulum, once it started it was inevitable. The vehicle swung wide, the tyres smoking as they fought for grip travelling sideways against their tread. They must have been travelling more than forty-miles-per-hour, and with the big SUV being top-heavy and still propelled by the truck, the tyres gripped the road too much and centrifugal force came into the equation. The body rolled away from the spin and inertia did the rest. Caroline screamed as the Toyota toppled onto its side and rolled a complete rotation, coming to rest on the driver’s side. Kruger grunted as his door hit the road and the window smashed. Caroline was propelled out of her seat, but her belt stopped her falling onto Kruger. The Toyota became airborne for a moment again, as the truck hit them on the underside, then smashed back down.

Kruger screamed in pain.

The sound of metal and glass on the tarmac was overwhelming. The Land Cruiser was hit again. This time, the truck struck the underside of the vehicle with more force than before.

Caroline tensed as she realised there was a stench of fuel. It was all around them, enveloping them, the smell getting to their nostrils and the vapour burning the back of their throats. She could feel the sting of the fuel vapour in her eyes.

The big SUV slowed, and the sound of the scraping metal ceased as the vehicle rocked to a halt. The silence was ominous, but short lived. Rapid gunshots followed. Caroline could not tell from which direction. She searched for her handbag and the comfort of the Sig 9mm pistol. She could not see it.

Bullets impacted against the roof of the vehicle. Caroline looked in time to see holes punching through the headlining of the roof. She fumbled with the seatbelt release and dropped unceremoniously on top of Kruger. He grunted, was trying to get his weapon clear of his hip holster. He wasn’t managing it, and as Caroline stared down in horror, she could see why. The man’s arm was caught outside the vehicle and was taking the entire weight of the wreckage. He was dazed, operating on auto-pilot. There was a distance in his eyes, perhaps a realisation that he had been beaten. That he wasn’t getting out of this situation. It did not look as if he was registering any pain. Adrenaline would be coursing through his veins and numbing his senses.