by Tim Stevens
Purkiss stayed where he was.
The first of the men reached the slope and began climbing.
*
Designed for anti-aircraft use, the KPV heavy machine gun had an effective range of three kilometres. The man on top of the ridge was now less than a third of that distance away.
Aleksandrov raised the microphone to his mouth, ready to give the order to his gunner.
The man on the ridge fired the flare.
Aleksandrov watched it burst overhead, the din from below reaching his ears immediately.
He paused.
They are to be prevented from reaching the station at all costs. Had General Tsarev meant the fugitives must not be allowed to communicate with anyone at the station?
With his free hand, he keyed the General’s number.
One burst, and the man outlined on top of the ridge would be cut down. The second burst would take out the two bodies slumped at the base of the slope, one of whom appeared to be some kind of toboggan.
‘Yes?’ Tsarev answered instantly.
‘General, the targets are overlooking Saburov-Kennedy Station. They have just fired a flare.’
‘The station has been alerted?’
‘Yes, sir.’
A beat.
‘Sir, I have them in my sights. On your order, I will eliminate them.’
And they are to be terminated, without hesitation.
Another second’s silence at the other end.
Aleksandrov readied the microphone.
Give the order, sir.
Through the windscreen, he saw a head appear over the ridge, a man climb into view. A second followed.
‘Sir. Two new people are in the field. Station personnel.’
General Tsarev said, ‘Stand down.’
*
Purkiss felt hands grab his arms, steady him. Voices beat at him, voices in English, but with a Babel of accents: Russian, American, Norwegian.
‘You hurt?’
‘What happened? Where have you come from?’
‘Go get the stretcher.’
Purkiss’s lips moved soundlessly. He tried to point back down the other side of the slope, but someone mistook his action for a blind, semi-conscious flailing and restrained his arm.
He slid down the slope, half carried, and sat on the ground while he watched more figures emerge from the buildings, two carrying a stretcher.
Consciousness was slipping, and this time he wasn’t going to be able to hold on to it. But he had to let them know, somehow –
From high above and behind him, a yelled voice: Hey. There’s two more of them down there.
Purkiss closed his eyes.
THE END
John Purkiss returns in CRONOS RISING
FROM THE AUTHOR
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Tim Stevens
BOOKS BY TIM STEVENS
John Purkiss series
Ratcatcher
Delivering Caliban
Jokerman
Tundra
Haven (short story)
Spiked (short story, exclusive to mailing list subscribers)
Cronos Rising (coming in 2014)
Martin Calvary series
Severance Kill
Annihilation Myths
Redemption Road (coming in 2014)
Joe Venn series
Omega Dog
Delta Ghost (coming in 2014)
Shorter stories and novellas
Reunion
Snout